Believe it, or not, I had my kids pack for both our Eilat trip and our Pesach vacation several days BEFORE our Eilat trip! I had the kids pack:
1. a bag for Eilat
2. a bag for the first and last days of Pesach
3. a bag for camping/the juggling convention
I also had them pull out all our camping and juggling equipment, including what we borrowed from friends.
I wanted to make sure we left on time and had everything we needed. And that preparation for our vacations created as little stress as possible.
This might be the first (and only) time I have ever been so put-together!
We came home for Shabbat HaGadol, so that we would have time to rest and recover from Eilat, before heading out for Pesach. We also needed to do a bit of laundry so that we all would have what we needed for both trips.
Several weeks in advance, I arranged to spend Shabbat HaGadol lunch at our friends, R&AD. The day before we left, a good friend, CV, offered to cook us chicken soup, with chicken, for Friday night dinner. So, in besides making rice and defrosting a few additional leftovers, I had plenty of time to rested on Friday. Even so, I slept most of Shabbat!
On Sunday, I finished up the laundry and all our packing. Sunday night we did a very focused "bedikat hametz." Monday morning, we let the kids "sleep in."
My one oversight was that I forgot that we would need kosher l'Pesach (yes, the proper pronunciation is kosher l'Fesach) food for the kids on Monday. When we realized the kids had nothing to eat, we sent them out to buy some basics. Unfortunately, by that time, the mini-markets were all closed. The kids managed to purchase some potato chips at a nearby kiosk and we opened a jar of gefilte fish. It was not great, but it was enough.
After they ate, we all showered. Then we packed the trunk with the bags we would not need until Chol HaMoed, and piled the rest of our bags in the back seat, over and under our kids. I also squeezed several items under my legs and held several bags on my lap. Somehow we managed. The kids were AMAZINGLY cooperative, especially considering how we packed them in like sardines!
We arrived at my Rav's home, over an hour before hadlakat neirot (candle lighting) -- that is unheard of, for us! I even had a chance to nap before Seder!! (I really needed it!!)
The plan was to head up north right after Yom Tov, but Moshe forgot an essential item at home. so, we had to go back. It turns out that the kids and I had also left behind several non-essential items that we were very happy to pick up. So, it was a gam zu l'tovah ("all for the best") situation.
Nevertheless, it did mean that, once again, we left an hour later than we had planned.
Luckily, the ride to Sde Eliyahu only took an hour and a half to two hours.
It was a fun ride. We talked and laughed and listened to music. Everyone was in a good mood after Chag.
We arrived at Sde Eliyahu around midnight. Within minutes, we were all in PJs, and in bed!
Please daven (or send happy, healing thoughts) for RivkA bat Teirtzel.
With love and optimism,
RivkA
Showing posts sorted by date for query Eilat 2010. Sort by relevance Show all posts
Showing posts sorted by date for query Eilat 2010. Sort by relevance Show all posts
Thursday, April 8, 2010
Friday, April 2, 2010
Eilat 2010 -- Day Three: Coral Beach & The Long Drive Home
After Wednesday’s lunch experience, I took a bit more food with us on Thursday, including a big salad. We had lots of pitot (pl. pitah) and several buns left over from the b-b-q, and lots of snacks, so I felt fairly confident that we would be ok. Good thing, too, because the beach did not have a restaurant! Not even a non-kosher one.
We spent the day at Hof Almog (Coral Beach), which is one of Israel’s National Parks Nature Reserves. Entrance is free for members of the National Parks Association (“matmon”). We also received a discount of rental equipment. I ended up renting masks and snorkels for all three of our kids, though I could have managed with just two sets. In the end, my son and youngest daughter did not go in at the same time, but I did not know that in advance. I also did not realize that we could have returned one of the sets right away, and gotten a refund. Oh well. At least the money goes to a good cause (park preservation).
Moshe had worried about being too hot and not finding a comfortable location. But right next to the entrance, was a dug out square area, with a picnic table and stone seats, It was quite cool and breezy. In fact, even on the beach, the weather was cool and breezy. Throughout much of the day, the kids and I were cold!
Moshe made himself comfortable with a book. We dumped all our bags on the table, next to him, and headed for the water. Need I mention that the water was COLD!?!
Originally, I rented two sets of masks and snorkels. I had a new set for myself (that I had bought on my previous trip to Eilat) and my youngest had volunteered to use another mask and snorkel that we brought with us (just before we left our home, my eldest had found my old snorkeling equipment, that had been “lost” in our storage area). The buckle for adjusting my old mask had rusted, so it was difficult to adjust.
As soon as we entered the water, my youngest daughter had a rough time. Her mask did not seal well. Both her mask and snorkel filled with water. She ended up swallowing a lot of water and getting water in her face. The salty water burned her throat and eyes.
This was not the experience I wanted her to have!
I immediately sent her, with my eldest daughter, to go rent another mask and snorkel set from the front desk. My snorkel was an older model, with a straight tube. The rented snorkels curved over the head, making it more difficult for water to enter the snorkel.
Meanwhile, my son, who had entered the water for only a few minutes, was ready to get out. Besides being cold, the salt-water burned his nose, which was sore from allergies. He got out of the water before we even began.
He left, just as my youngest came back with her newly rented mask and snorkel. My eldest dove right in, but my youngest was suddenly afraid. She did not want to enter the water. I realized that she was really traumatized from her earlier experience. Even though the "new" mask fit her well, with a tight seal that prevented the water from seaping in, she was afraid to put her face in the water.
Earlier, before any of us had entered the water, I tried to give my kids guidance about how to use the snorkeling equipment. No one had patience to listen to me.
Now, my youngest was ready to listen, but she really needed to be coaxed into the water. I gently guided her until she felt comfortable breathing through the snorkel. Then I helped her to breath in the water, and then to swim while breathing through the snorkel.
Once she agreed to try, it did not take her more than ten minutes to catch on. We swam out together, holding hands, but it was not long before she let go, eager to explore on her own.
At one point, she headed back to the Northern dock, from where we started. She had not indicated that she was going and, as soon as I noticed she was missing, I signaled my eldest. We spotted her swimming back to the dock and followed after her.
“What’s wrong?” I asked, when we caught up, concerned that she was still scared.
“Nothing,” she answered, laughing. She just wanted to adjust something.
The next time she mysteriously headed back to the dock, we waited until she adjusted whatever needed adjusting and swam back to us. Then we added a few additional hand-signals to ease our underwater communication, and headed along the reef to the Southern dock.
We saw lots of cool coral and fish, including this large, shimmering, light green and purple fish. We also saw schools of Zebra fish (I don't have the patience to look up their real name) and several other species.
Several times, my kids were excited to spot “that thing we should be careful not to step on!”
When I was in Israel for the year, one of the girls on my program stepped on a black, spiky anemone and was in agony for days. Ironically, it is one of my strongest memories from that year.
When Moshe was here for the year, he also mistakenly put his hand down on one of the black, spiky anemones. He still vividly remembers the searing pain.
So we warned our kids. And they paid attention.
I would have liked to spend more time exploring, but it was not clear to me where we were allowed to swim. And we were cold.
When we got out, I found out that we missed the nicest reef, just off of the Southern dock.
The water was so cold. Once we got out, there was no way we were going back in.
We dried off in the sun. The kids warmed up before I did and they were hungry. I was still chilled to the bone. So, I remained in the sun while they ate. I did not mind. I was not hungry anyway.
After lunch, Moshe went off to check out what was playing at the IMAX theatre.
The kids played in the sand, and I took pictures of them. It was fun and carefree!!
After about an hour, I had enough. We packed up our stuff. Moshe was already outside, waiting for us.
It turns out, there was nothing really exciting showing at the IMAX. Moshe and I were bummed, but figured it would be good for us to start heading home.
We made the mistake of consulting the kids first. They were REALLY DISAPPOINTED.
They would have gone anyway, or done something else. But I was exhausted, as was Moshe.
The kids were trying to be creative and “find a solution” (read: an alternate plan). They did not want to accept that we would just be going home. Moshe would have been happy to take them out to dinner, which probably would have appeased them. But I was already nauseous, and I did not want to smell any more food.
Furthermore, I was quite anxious to get on our way.
Once I did the math, I realized we would not get home before nine or ten, at the earliest! Both Moshe and I were very tired. I did not know if he would be able to drive the whole way home, and I did not want to spend another night driving when I should be sleeping.
Finally, we just cut the conversation off and directed the kids to help pack the car, so we could go. There was a bit of tension, but that ended about ten minutes into the drive, when we noticed that all three kids were fast asleep. A few minutes later, so was I.
We almost stopped at Yotvata, for Moshe to pick up something to eat, but the kids started stirring, so we continued on our way. About an hour later, we stopped at a Burger Ranch, but it was not Kosher. I ran around the car a few times, to get my circulation going; then we continued on our way. We did not stop again, until we got to Ein Gedi, for another pit-stop. The kids all had a snack. And, once again, we were on our way.
The drive back took an hour longer than the drive down. We got home, just before midnight.
We unloaded the car, dumped all our bags in the living room, and I do not know what happened after that.
I went straight to my room, got under my covers, and, within seconds, was fast asleep.
Please daven (or send happy, healing thoughts) for RivkA bat Teirtzel.
With love and optimism,
RivkA
We spent the day at Hof Almog (Coral Beach), which is one of Israel’s National Parks Nature Reserves. Entrance is free for members of the National Parks Association (“matmon”). We also received a discount of rental equipment. I ended up renting masks and snorkels for all three of our kids, though I could have managed with just two sets. In the end, my son and youngest daughter did not go in at the same time, but I did not know that in advance. I also did not realize that we could have returned one of the sets right away, and gotten a refund. Oh well. At least the money goes to a good cause (park preservation).
Moshe had worried about being too hot and not finding a comfortable location. But right next to the entrance, was a dug out square area, with a picnic table and stone seats, It was quite cool and breezy. In fact, even on the beach, the weather was cool and breezy. Throughout much of the day, the kids and I were cold!
Moshe made himself comfortable with a book. We dumped all our bags on the table, next to him, and headed for the water. Need I mention that the water was COLD!?!
Originally, I rented two sets of masks and snorkels. I had a new set for myself (that I had bought on my previous trip to Eilat) and my youngest had volunteered to use another mask and snorkel that we brought with us (just before we left our home, my eldest had found my old snorkeling equipment, that had been “lost” in our storage area). The buckle for adjusting my old mask had rusted, so it was difficult to adjust.
As soon as we entered the water, my youngest daughter had a rough time. Her mask did not seal well. Both her mask and snorkel filled with water. She ended up swallowing a lot of water and getting water in her face. The salty water burned her throat and eyes.
This was not the experience I wanted her to have!
I immediately sent her, with my eldest daughter, to go rent another mask and snorkel set from the front desk. My snorkel was an older model, with a straight tube. The rented snorkels curved over the head, making it more difficult for water to enter the snorkel.
Meanwhile, my son, who had entered the water for only a few minutes, was ready to get out. Besides being cold, the salt-water burned his nose, which was sore from allergies. He got out of the water before we even began.
He left, just as my youngest came back with her newly rented mask and snorkel. My eldest dove right in, but my youngest was suddenly afraid. She did not want to enter the water. I realized that she was really traumatized from her earlier experience. Even though the "new" mask fit her well, with a tight seal that prevented the water from seaping in, she was afraid to put her face in the water.
Earlier, before any of us had entered the water, I tried to give my kids guidance about how to use the snorkeling equipment. No one had patience to listen to me.
Now, my youngest was ready to listen, but she really needed to be coaxed into the water. I gently guided her until she felt comfortable breathing through the snorkel. Then I helped her to breath in the water, and then to swim while breathing through the snorkel.
Once she agreed to try, it did not take her more than ten minutes to catch on. We swam out together, holding hands, but it was not long before she let go, eager to explore on her own.
At one point, she headed back to the Northern dock, from where we started. She had not indicated that she was going and, as soon as I noticed she was missing, I signaled my eldest. We spotted her swimming back to the dock and followed after her.
“What’s wrong?” I asked, when we caught up, concerned that she was still scared.
“Nothing,” she answered, laughing. She just wanted to adjust something.
The next time she mysteriously headed back to the dock, we waited until she adjusted whatever needed adjusting and swam back to us. Then we added a few additional hand-signals to ease our underwater communication, and headed along the reef to the Southern dock.
We saw lots of cool coral and fish, including this large, shimmering, light green and purple fish. We also saw schools of Zebra fish (I don't have the patience to look up their real name) and several other species.
Several times, my kids were excited to spot “that thing we should be careful not to step on!”
When I was in Israel for the year, one of the girls on my program stepped on a black, spiky anemone and was in agony for days. Ironically, it is one of my strongest memories from that year.
When Moshe was here for the year, he also mistakenly put his hand down on one of the black, spiky anemones. He still vividly remembers the searing pain.
So we warned our kids. And they paid attention.
I would have liked to spend more time exploring, but it was not clear to me where we were allowed to swim. And we were cold.
When we got out, I found out that we missed the nicest reef, just off of the Southern dock.
The water was so cold. Once we got out, there was no way we were going back in.
We dried off in the sun. The kids warmed up before I did and they were hungry. I was still chilled to the bone. So, I remained in the sun while they ate. I did not mind. I was not hungry anyway.
After lunch, Moshe went off to check out what was playing at the IMAX theatre.
The kids played in the sand, and I took pictures of them. It was fun and carefree!!
After about an hour, I had enough. We packed up our stuff. Moshe was already outside, waiting for us.
It turns out, there was nothing really exciting showing at the IMAX. Moshe and I were bummed, but figured it would be good for us to start heading home.
We made the mistake of consulting the kids first. They were REALLY DISAPPOINTED.
They would have gone anyway, or done something else. But I was exhausted, as was Moshe.
The kids were trying to be creative and “find a solution” (read: an alternate plan). They did not want to accept that we would just be going home. Moshe would have been happy to take them out to dinner, which probably would have appeased them. But I was already nauseous, and I did not want to smell any more food.
Furthermore, I was quite anxious to get on our way.
Once I did the math, I realized we would not get home before nine or ten, at the earliest! Both Moshe and I were very tired. I did not know if he would be able to drive the whole way home, and I did not want to spend another night driving when I should be sleeping.
Finally, we just cut the conversation off and directed the kids to help pack the car, so we could go. There was a bit of tension, but that ended about ten minutes into the drive, when we noticed that all three kids were fast asleep. A few minutes later, so was I.
We almost stopped at Yotvata, for Moshe to pick up something to eat, but the kids started stirring, so we continued on our way. About an hour later, we stopped at a Burger Ranch, but it was not Kosher. I ran around the car a few times, to get my circulation going; then we continued on our way. We did not stop again, until we got to Ein Gedi, for another pit-stop. The kids all had a snack. And, once again, we were on our way.
The drive back took an hour longer than the drive down. We got home, just before midnight.
We unloaded the car, dumped all our bags in the living room, and I do not know what happened after that.
I went straight to my room, got under my covers, and, within seconds, was fast asleep.
Please daven (or send happy, healing thoughts) for RivkA bat Teirtzel.
With love and optimism,
RivkA
Thursday, April 1, 2010
Eilat 2010 -- Day Two: Breakfast, Underwater Observatory, & desert B-B-Q
Breakfast was awesome.
Unfortunately, I could not eat much.
But the rest of the family enjoyed: shakshouka, potato latkes (pancakes), baked zucchini, hard boiled eggs, tuna salad, fresh cheese spreads, Bulgarian cheese, sliced cheeses, fresh vegetables, homemade olives, hot chocolate, lemonade, and more….
We planned on buying lunch later, but, just in case, I took a couple of extra hard boiled eggs and some triangle cheese (that was packaged in squares, like butter).
After breakfast, we packed our bags. It took longer than expected to get going, but we finally got on our way.
We spent the entire first day at the Underwater Observatory.
Grabbing those basics turned out to be a really smart move – the restaurant did not have a Teudat Kashrut (Kosher Certification). Probably the only reason for that was that they were open on Shabbat, but the bottom line is we would not purchase cooked food there. I did not need to eat anything, but the rest of my family did.
We sat down at a table and ate the food, along with pretzels, cookies, and all sorts of other snack foods I had brought. Then we bought the kids, and Moshe, ice cream (packaged, with a hechsher). It was not very satisfying.
Suddenly, I noticed that they had a salad bar (it had been hidden by the crowd). We still had some packaged salad dressing from our breakfast at Yotvata. So, we got a large plate, filled with vegetables, and everyone (but me) shared that. It did the trick. My family was well-fed and ready to go.
We took things slowly. We all were still pretty tired, and I was downright exhausted!
We did everything but the underwater boat ride, for which we did not have tickets anyway, because we had not realized that we had to purchase them in advance (in addition to the entrance ticket)
We left as the place was closing and looked forward to resting (maybe even napping) in our room.
We had plans to bar-b-q with our friends (two other families), who were also vacationing in Eilat.
We had not yet heard from them, so we figured we had plenty of time. But, as soon as we arrived at the youth hostel, they called to say they were ready to go. Since they planned to b-b-q in the desert, we wanted to follow them out there (to Solomon’s Cavern). So, after a quick pit-stop, we were on our way, again.
It was so much fun!
I ate more than I had in days: two beef hotdogs (I had half a bun, then decided to skip the bread) and a hamburger. I haven’t been hungry since then! (It’s been three days, and I am still full.)
At one point, we noticed a light flashing on the opposite mountain. Turns out, my son had gone climbing… in the dark! *sigh* Never a dull moment.
Of course, we all completely crashed when we got back “home.” It was so worth it!
Good company, good food, and nature – what could be better?
Please daven (or send happy, healing thoughts) for RivkA bat Teirtzel.
With love and optimism,
RivkA
Unfortunately, I could not eat much.
But the rest of the family enjoyed: shakshouka, potato latkes (pancakes), baked zucchini, hard boiled eggs, tuna salad, fresh cheese spreads, Bulgarian cheese, sliced cheeses, fresh vegetables, homemade olives, hot chocolate, lemonade, and more….
We planned on buying lunch later, but, just in case, I took a couple of extra hard boiled eggs and some triangle cheese (that was packaged in squares, like butter).
After breakfast, we packed our bags. It took longer than expected to get going, but we finally got on our way.
We spent the entire first day at the Underwater Observatory.
Grabbing those basics turned out to be a really smart move – the restaurant did not have a Teudat Kashrut (Kosher Certification). Probably the only reason for that was that they were open on Shabbat, but the bottom line is we would not purchase cooked food there. I did not need to eat anything, but the rest of my family did.
We sat down at a table and ate the food, along with pretzels, cookies, and all sorts of other snack foods I had brought. Then we bought the kids, and Moshe, ice cream (packaged, with a hechsher). It was not very satisfying.
Suddenly, I noticed that they had a salad bar (it had been hidden by the crowd). We still had some packaged salad dressing from our breakfast at Yotvata. So, we got a large plate, filled with vegetables, and everyone (but me) shared that. It did the trick. My family was well-fed and ready to go.
We took things slowly. We all were still pretty tired, and I was downright exhausted!
We did everything but the underwater boat ride, for which we did not have tickets anyway, because we had not realized that we had to purchase them in advance (in addition to the entrance ticket)
We left as the place was closing and looked forward to resting (maybe even napping) in our room.
We had plans to bar-b-q with our friends (two other families), who were also vacationing in Eilat.
We had not yet heard from them, so we figured we had plenty of time. But, as soon as we arrived at the youth hostel, they called to say they were ready to go. Since they planned to b-b-q in the desert, we wanted to follow them out there (to Solomon’s Cavern). So, after a quick pit-stop, we were on our way, again.
It was so much fun!
I ate more than I had in days: two beef hotdogs (I had half a bun, then decided to skip the bread) and a hamburger. I haven’t been hungry since then! (It’s been three days, and I am still full.)
At one point, we noticed a light flashing on the opposite mountain. Turns out, my son had gone climbing… in the dark! *sigh* Never a dull moment.
Of course, we all completely crashed when we got back “home.” It was so worth it!
Good company, good food, and nature – what could be better?
Please daven (or send happy, healing thoughts) for RivkA bat Teirtzel.
With love and optimism,
RivkA
Wednesday, March 31, 2010
Eilat 2010 -- Day One: Hai Bar, Check-In, & the Beach
I would have liked to walk around Hai Bar first, before driving through the “safari.” But our crew was so exhausted when we arrived, at least half of them announced that they had no intention of walking anywhere.
So we drove around the safari, which was very cool, though not quite as exciting as I remembered. We took our time and watched the animals interact with each other. By the end, everyone was “into” the experience.
When we finished the drive, all family members were willing to do the short walk through the zoo area.
Admittedly, we were all a bit zombie-like.
Luckily, since we are members of the National Parks Association (“matmon”), the entrance to the zoo was free and the safari was half price. So the whole experience was pretty cheap (12.50 NIS/adult, 6.50 NIS/child).
And we had fun.
Then we drove the rest of the way to Eilat and checked into the youth hostel. We were lucky; they allowed us to check in several hours early.
Even though I am the one who drove the whole way, Moshe crashed (as predicted) and I took the kids across the road to the beach. The water was freezing!! We all played around for a bit. I could not stay in the water that long. I got out and dried off and then sat on the rocks, watching my kids collecting shells. To their surprise, the shells started moving! They discovered that each shell housed a teeny, tiny crab! The spent almost an HOUR watching the crabs. Eventually, I declared that we had to go.
Moshe was fast asleep when we got back to the hostel. We all showered, except my son (who fell asleep while waiting for his turn). The girls and I ate a small snack, from the food I had brought with us, and then we crashed too.
We all slept soundly until our alarms woke us for breakfast….
Please daven (or send happy, healing thoughts) for RivkA bat Teirtzel.
With love and optimism,
RivkA
So we drove around the safari, which was very cool, though not quite as exciting as I remembered. We took our time and watched the animals interact with each other. By the end, everyone was “into” the experience.
When we finished the drive, all family members were willing to do the short walk through the zoo area.
Admittedly, we were all a bit zombie-like.
Luckily, since we are members of the National Parks Association (“matmon”), the entrance to the zoo was free and the safari was half price. So the whole experience was pretty cheap (12.50 NIS/adult, 6.50 NIS/child).
And we had fun.
Then we drove the rest of the way to Eilat and checked into the youth hostel. We were lucky; they allowed us to check in several hours early.
Even though I am the one who drove the whole way, Moshe crashed (as predicted) and I took the kids across the road to the beach. The water was freezing!! We all played around for a bit. I could not stay in the water that long. I got out and dried off and then sat on the rocks, watching my kids collecting shells. To their surprise, the shells started moving! They discovered that each shell housed a teeny, tiny crab! The spent almost an HOUR watching the crabs. Eventually, I declared that we had to go.
Moshe was fast asleep when we got back to the hostel. We all showered, except my son (who fell asleep while waiting for his turn). The girls and I ate a small snack, from the food I had brought with us, and then we crashed too.
We all slept soundly until our alarms woke us for breakfast….
Please daven (or send happy, healing thoughts) for RivkA bat Teirtzel.
With love and optimism,
RivkA
Sunday, March 28, 2010
Eilat 2010 -- Drive 'till You Drop!
We left for Eilat 2 hours later than I had planned.
The plan was:
Pack in advance, see Annie (performed by Israel Theatre), and leave from the theatre. Drive ‘till we drop, then pull over (i.e. park in a gas station) and sleep ‘till the sun wakes us. Then drive to Hai Bar and see the animals early in the morning, while they are still active. If there is time, stop at the Yotvata Restaurant to eat. Then continue to Eilat and check into the youth hostel, where Moshe would sleep (assuming he would be tired from driving all night) and I would take the kids to the public beach, just across the street.
It seemed like a decent enough plan. The first night would be a bit rough, as would be the next day, but we would go to sleep early, to make up for the lack of sleep the night before.
“Man plans, God laughs.”
We forgot that two days earlier, on Sunday night, we had a wedding in Nes Tziona (near Rishon L’Tzion). We left the wedding “early,” but it was already close to midnight when we began our drive. Moshe had to get up early Monday morning for a professional conference in Tel Aviv. He did not have time to sleep enough. Monday night, Moshe skipped the play, to finish packing and rest a bit. Besides missing his company, this meant we would have to come home to pick him up before we left for Eilat.
As the kids and I were finishing packing, I remembered I had to go to the pharmacy to pick up my chemotherapy. I had placed the order earlier, but the drugs hadn’t arrived yet. For two day, I had frantically argued to get my medication on time. Even as I was driving to the pharmacy, I was not sure I would be able to get all my medication (it had arrived, but there was still some technical “glitch” to resolve).
If we were going to make it on time to the play, we had to leave for the pharmacy before Moshe came home. We would not even have time to pack the car before the show.
It did not matter. Packing took longer than Moshe thought.
Between the wedding, the conference, the driving, and packing, Moshe was exhausted. He suggested we sleep at home and leave in the morning. I knew the drive would be tough, but I did not want to leave in the morning. We are the slowest family in the world and we NEVER get out of the house on time. If we waited until morning, we would lose the whole day. I offered to drive for the “first shift,” so Moshe could sleep.
Well, not only did Moshe not fall asleep right away, but our son “could not sleep” either. By the time they finally fell asleep, we had already been on the road for several hours. I do not know how I managed to stay awake and alert, but I actually found the drive strangely relaxing.
The most significant advantage to driving so late at night (we did not leave Jerusalem until after midnight) is that there are almost no other cars on the road, eliminating most of the stress associated with driving.
By the time I was ready to pull over, we were almost at Yotvata. In the end, I drove all the way to the Yotvata Restaurant (three and a half hours from Jerusalem), and parked in their parking lot.
Twenty minutes after I fell asleep, someone knocked on my window. Another driver was stuck and needed a jump start. I hate to say no, especially when someone need help, but I was too tired to get up. I just could not help him. I just could not help him. I apologized, explaining that I had been driving all night, and he would have to wait. I was able to turn over and fall back asleep. Unfortunately, Moshe and some of the kids had a harder time, especially my son. He did not manage to fall back asleep and kept waking me, out of frustration and exhaustion. I could not get angry at him, he was so tired and just wanted to sleep. But I could not help him either.
Eventually, my eldest woke up too. The two of them went exploring, finding a small park with climbing objects and a mini-omega.
When the rest of us woke up (none of us having slept all that well), we had a nice breakfast at the Yotvata restaurant.
Then, we continued on our way. Hai Bar was just another 8 km down the road…..
Please daven (or send happy, healing thoughts) for RivkA bat Teirtzel.
With love and optimism,
RivkA
The plan was:
Pack in advance, see Annie (performed by Israel Theatre), and leave from the theatre. Drive ‘till we drop, then pull over (i.e. park in a gas station) and sleep ‘till the sun wakes us. Then drive to Hai Bar and see the animals early in the morning, while they are still active. If there is time, stop at the Yotvata Restaurant to eat. Then continue to Eilat and check into the youth hostel, where Moshe would sleep (assuming he would be tired from driving all night) and I would take the kids to the public beach, just across the street.
It seemed like a decent enough plan. The first night would be a bit rough, as would be the next day, but we would go to sleep early, to make up for the lack of sleep the night before.
“Man plans, God laughs.”
We forgot that two days earlier, on Sunday night, we had a wedding in Nes Tziona (near Rishon L’Tzion). We left the wedding “early,” but it was already close to midnight when we began our drive. Moshe had to get up early Monday morning for a professional conference in Tel Aviv. He did not have time to sleep enough. Monday night, Moshe skipped the play, to finish packing and rest a bit. Besides missing his company, this meant we would have to come home to pick him up before we left for Eilat.
As the kids and I were finishing packing, I remembered I had to go to the pharmacy to pick up my chemotherapy. I had placed the order earlier, but the drugs hadn’t arrived yet. For two day, I had frantically argued to get my medication on time. Even as I was driving to the pharmacy, I was not sure I would be able to get all my medication (it had arrived, but there was still some technical “glitch” to resolve).
If we were going to make it on time to the play, we had to leave for the pharmacy before Moshe came home. We would not even have time to pack the car before the show.
It did not matter. Packing took longer than Moshe thought.
Between the wedding, the conference, the driving, and packing, Moshe was exhausted. He suggested we sleep at home and leave in the morning. I knew the drive would be tough, but I did not want to leave in the morning. We are the slowest family in the world and we NEVER get out of the house on time. If we waited until morning, we would lose the whole day. I offered to drive for the “first shift,” so Moshe could sleep.
Well, not only did Moshe not fall asleep right away, but our son “could not sleep” either. By the time they finally fell asleep, we had already been on the road for several hours. I do not know how I managed to stay awake and alert, but I actually found the drive strangely relaxing.
The most significant advantage to driving so late at night (we did not leave Jerusalem until after midnight) is that there are almost no other cars on the road, eliminating most of the stress associated with driving.
By the time I was ready to pull over, we were almost at Yotvata. In the end, I drove all the way to the Yotvata Restaurant (three and a half hours from Jerusalem), and parked in their parking lot.
Twenty minutes after I fell asleep, someone knocked on my window. Another driver was stuck and needed a jump start. I hate to say no, especially when someone need help, but I was too tired to get up. I just could not help him. I just could not help him. I apologized, explaining that I had been driving all night, and he would have to wait. I was able to turn over and fall back asleep. Unfortunately, Moshe and some of the kids had a harder time, especially my son. He did not manage to fall back asleep and kept waking me, out of frustration and exhaustion. I could not get angry at him, he was so tired and just wanted to sleep. But I could not help him either.
Eventually, my eldest woke up too. The two of them went exploring, finding a small park with climbing objects and a mini-omega.
When the rest of us woke up (none of us having slept all that well), we had a nice breakfast at the Yotvata restaurant.
Then, we continued on our way. Hai Bar was just another 8 km down the road…..
Please daven (or send happy, healing thoughts) for RivkA bat Teirtzel.
With love and optimism,
RivkA
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