The Holy Land for All

Before coming to Israel, I naively thought Tel Aviv was the capital of Israel but when we arrived there, you can see how Jerusalem is a more well maintained city. This city has significance to every Abrahamic religion but yet so many people asked us why we were interested in coming to Israel. We did a day tour of the main sites in Jerusalem although we had a very biased guide who was just Ok. If I could do it again, I would have chosen to go on the Sandeman tour or Green Olive Tour of Jerusalem.

Our Old City of Jerusalem tour included visits to the Western/whaling Wall where Jews write a wish/note to God on a small piece of paper and insert it between the ancient stones of the wall. Men and women go to separate areas split by a partition. It is also the largest open air synagogue in the world. We also saw the Church of the Holy Sepulchre which is significant to Christains as its where Jesus was crucified and his tomb is said to be there as well. 

The highlight for us of course was to see the Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Dome of the Rock, which is stunning. They are one of the top 3 Islamic sites of importance to Muslims only behind Mecca and Medina in Saudi Arabia and it is mentioned in the Quran. These sites are on the Temple Mount which you have to clear security before you can even go up to it and then at several points we had to prove we were Muslim. The Temple Mount is also very significant in Judaism. On another tour we found out the reason why non-Muslims aren't allowed to enter these sites anymore. Apparently an Australian lit an important structure in the dome on fire with a lighter and in general, the Jew vs Muslim tension is so high, that they don't want to take a chance of any damage by an extremist Jew. There is a sign put up by Israelis that it against Torah Law to go the the Temple Mount area. While we were there, we did see a group of Jews surrounded by a boat loads of security and video cameras who apparently come up to the a Temple Mount daily as they apparently want to tear the Dome of The Rock down to build a synagogue - although that could be just what the Muslim security guard told us. They were only there for less than 5 min as we could tell as there was a lot of commotion to get them off the property. We video taped it and were worried about a situation erupting as it so commonly does. The day after we visited, there was a French tourist that came to the Temple Mount and waved an Israeli Flag and caused some ruckus so that blocked off access to the area. Although you hear about the tensions between the two sides, we really didn't get it until we took a day trip to Hebron in the West Bank/Palestine (see the next post).

At both the Muslim and Jewish sites, you have to be very covered up, which makes it even hotter! I wish I brought more maxi dresses for the trip!

The security is insane everywhere in Israel and especially so in Jerusalem. You get searched and asked for your passport at various points even walking through the old city itself. 

We stayed at the City Centre Suites which we chose based on reviews, location and price. There were super nice hotels such as the Waldorf Astoria, King David, Mammila hotel etc but again the starting was $500/night for those hotels. Good for our purposes but nothing special. 

There are a lot of good restaurants and generally very good food in Israel but as I've mentioned, very expensive. For example, a shwarma for the two of us without a drink sometimes is $30 CDN at a street food type of restaurant. The Makende Yakuda Market was a cool place to visit  with some yummy food options. At least the food quality is good unlike spending a lot in Brazil and being constantly disappointed with your meals. We always find that the restaurants that are recommended by friends are always better than some of the top restaurants that we find  on tripadvisor as it depends so much on where people are from and what they are used to. I will add to this post later with our food recommendations. 

Shalom (Hello in Hebrew) from Israel

Our trip to Israel didn't start on a high note as we were "detained" at the Tel aviv airport for 3 hours and asked a billion questions by 2-3 different people. Apparently all the Americans which was 90% of the people in the "holding room" said in previous trips they have waited for for 7-12 hours.  There was one "white" guy in there and the rest were coloured or Arab looking people. We were then taken into an interrogation room and asked more questions about when our parents immigrated to Canada, purpose for visiting, religion, professions, origin of our last names, etc.  We were asked what our fathers name and grandfathers names were which both of our grandfathers names are very Muslim names. We were also asked if we've ever been to Syria, Iraq, Iran, Lebanon etc. We also had to right down our email addresses which were likely being hacked lol. Adam joked that the immigration people were likely reading this exact blog.

Our first day wasn't very productive as we were getting our bearings, getting over jet lag and getting used to the heat! Apparently this is the hottest it's ever been in Israel and they set highest temp records this week - lucky us! I think of Nadeem, Anh and Jimmy as we walk in the heat sometimes as hot as 39 degrees plus humidity. My brother Arif, aka Shinsplints, would have lost his mind with all the walking we have done lol. 

We stayed at the Cinema Hotel at Dizengoff Square which is a good location and a few minutes walking from the beach and good restaurants. Dizengoff street also has a bunch of store with local Israili designers. It was good for our purposes but nothing luxurious. Hotels and basically everything in Israel are super expensive. The brand name hotels like the Sheraton, Hilton etc are upwards of $350 per night but on average about $500/night which is a similar situation in Jerusalem if not even more expensive in Jerusalem. When we came back to Tel Aviv after visiting Jerusalem and the West Bank, we stayed at Center Chic hotel which is the sister hotel of Cinema Hotel which I liked better as its newer and cuter which is literally across the street from Cinema but with equally small rooms. 

Tel aviv is a vibrant city with a fantastic white sand beach and clear water. It is a wide and long beach with tones of cute restaurants, cafes and stores.  I was expecting it to be a bit cleaner in some areas but overall an interesting place to visit and a food haven. The boardwalk area is one of the nicest I've seen and nicer than I was expecting it to be! Tel aviv is also more liberal than expected and reminds us of a European city, which is a strong contrast to how conservative Jerusalem is. There are fewer American chairs for restaurants than we were expecting. One of our tour guides told us Starbucks came here and failed and I'm sure that entirely because of Aroma Expresso Bar. We dont have it in Calgary but it's all over Toronto and been to it in Miami too - had no clue it was Israeli.  

We did the Sandemans walking tour of Old Jaffa which is supposed to be the oldest inhabited city in the World which is just outside of Tel Aviv. We have found the Sandemans tours to be generally all very good in the 4-5 cities we have taken them in Europe and South America. 

Food blog:

Mediterranean food is a vegetarians dream as there are so many choice and really flavourful. We think of "Vegi Mami" (Shy) everything we have a veg meal. For restaurants close to the beach especially on Ben Yahuta or Borgoshov street, the names are in Hebrew and in English but in other locations, the names are only in Hebrew which makes some of these places difficult to find at times. Some places I haven't included here because I have no clue what the name even is. We also ate street food at the Carmel Market which was a lively place.

Miznon - $ (Israili standards)

Basically street food /simple eatery with more unique Pitas  than the average place (not just chicken shawarma and falafels). The lamb pita and the "fish and chips" pita were both great. Famous for their whole head of roasted cauliflower.  

Gooncha- $$$

Yummy restaurant famous for their seafood on Dizengoff Street. Had fresh prawns and red tuna which is abundant here 

Thai House - $$

Yummy Thai food and great portions. Fresh seafood and can be very spicy! 

Anita -$

Cute ice cream frozen yogurt place in a few locations

Sushi Bar Bazel $$

Good sushi and fresh but no one beats Globefish in Calgary or Sushi Samba for interesting combinations

Cookeez $

Cool concept dessert place where you choose 2 different cookies and a flavour of ice cream to make an Ice cream sandwich +/- dolce du leche or chocolate syrup Was very popular but definitely need to share one

Adraba-$$

Good location for people watching and a good cappuccino. I tried a Shakshuka here which is a popular Israeli breakfast which to me tasted like poached eggs in a pan of Italian style tomato sauce with peppers, onions, etc. Every Israeli meal comes with Olives which I love and bread with Tahini. Was also very busy at night as it s close to the Thai house.

We had been recommended to try the following places but didn't get to them:

- Rachel $$$

- Shila $$$

- Cafe Europa $$

- Kitchen market and Night Market $$

Shin splints

Our time in Buenos Aires has been fun so far! We are splitting up the days with a day trip to Colonia, Uruguay which is only a 1 hr ferry ride away.

On the night we arrived, we got to the house/apartment we were renting in Palermo Soho (area in Buenos Aires) and acted like we were in war torn Syria or something because we were all jumpy at every noise and creek because of the reputation this city has of being unsafe. The housing is very secure here even in our area, which is safe to walk around in at night, etc. We have 2 sets of locks with a long narrow hallway before you actually get to the house/apartment where it opens up at the back with other homes off shooting off the hallways as well. From the outside, it doesn't like anything at all and one of the other places that we can see into, even has a pool but you would never know from the street.  In our defense, a lot of the city is very poorly lit which probably adds to the crime although the terrible economy is what probably drive the desperation for some quick cash.

Inflation here is astronomical so Argentinians horde American dollars. It is the strangest thing. The official rate is $8.5 peso to $1 USD but you can Exchange money for up to 14 to 1 (non-bank) and maybe more if you're a local and know where to go (probably someplace shady that we wouldn't go).  Even restaurants and clothing stores will accept US at around 11-13. As a result, everything is cheaper than we expected which is nice since Chile was definitely more expensive. We didn't use public transportation here although it's supposed to be safe and efficient as taxis are pretty cheap especially with four people. 

Palermo is a great area with lots of restaurant, bars, small hotels and boutique clothing stores from local Argentinians designers. One store we went into had 5 rows of clothes and each row was from a different designer who was actually there and who you paid directly. Prices for cute unique items is very reasonable because of the dollar at the moment. Although the big international brand hotels are situated at Puerto madero and some in Ricoletta, Palermo is a more interesting and safe area, in my opinion, that has more reasonable prices for everything as its catering for locals and tourists alike. 

Tango lessons were an interesting experience! We went to Salon Canning near our apartment. We only pseudo understood the instructions as they wee mostly in Spanish. What a difficult dance! It would definitely take a long time to master but nonetheless, fun to watch the pros! Marta, our geriatric instructor, can still bust a move! You see random tango dancing in the streets in tourist areas as well with live music as well so we didnt to a Tango show per se. 

Travelling with Shy and Arif has been interesting. Arif's new nickname is "Shin splints" - his feet always seem to be  hurting and always wants to take a taxi even for a short distances instead of walking. They've been great travel buddies so far though. 

We did a city tour which was a quick and dirty overview of all the tourist sites including the Recoletta cemetery including Evita's tomb, the women's bridge, Caminato street in La boca, the Pink House, San telmo, etc. The cemetery seems like an odd place to visit but it's more like a cemetery of grand looking mausoleums where members of a family can be buried together (Often above ground). 

Because of the economy, some of the high end stores etc have shut down in Recoletta which was known to be the Paris of Latin America. It would have been nice to have one more day to explore BA a bit further including the more touristy areas. 

We ate like Kings and Queens while we were here! Of course Argentina is known for their beef and we definitely had our share of it! Even Shaila has good luck with vegetarian options even at the steak houses. See my post on BA food! We had a bit of a cockroach incident on the last night in BA and it was Shaila, the vegetarian, that saved the day! 

Santiago Food/restaurant Review

Astrid Y gaston - $$$$

Very good (lamb, king crab spaghetti and crispy banana desert). Also in Lima and Bogata 

Fuente Almero - $ 

Chilean sandwiches. Id miss this despite good reviews on tripadvisor. 

Galindo - $

Good Chorillanas ("Chilean nachos"- french fries topped with sirloin, egg and onions) and spicy shrimp

Tiramisu - $$

Big Pizza place in Las Condes area. Wasn't too impressed despite good tripadvisor reviews. Pizzas could be shared

Ruca bar - $$

Tasty but don't go hungry as its tapas. Not close to other restaurants, etc

Jewel of India -$$$$

Tasty but very very overpriced for the portions etc. "Indian piquante" was also very spicy

Uncle fletches -$$

Awesome burgers! 

Feliz Ana Neuvo!

Happy new year in Spanish! Arif and Shaila arrived on Dec 30 and the rest of our trip has been been as a foursome! 

New Years Eve in Santiago was an awesome time! Everything here starts later in the day. People seem to wake up later and must start work later as Starbucks doesn't even open until 8 am in some areas, lunch is around 1 pm and most people eat dinner after 9 pm. So the New Years party started at 12:30 am! The nice thing about that is people spend the evening with family and then go out after! We went to dinner (Ruca Bar) then to watch fireworks near Entel Tower. There were tonnes of people in the streets lighting what we're basically fire balloons/kites - a bunch of them light up the sky but we saw a few fall and nearby burn little kids. That definitely wouldn't "fly" in North America but interesting to see!

The party we went to was at Castillo Hidalgo, which is at Santa Lucia Hill in downtown (tourist landmark). Because it's on a hill, we were bused up where there were 3 floors of different music. My fav floors were outside where they played chill house music and the upper floor that played a mix of reggae-tone, Latin and hip hop music. Apparently 500 of the 1800 sold out tickets were sold to Brazilians. We befriended a Spanish couple that explained a few things to us so we wouldn't miss out on where to get photos taken, New Years props  and let us know what music was Spanish vs Brazilian/Portuguese. Overall it was an awesome party! We left the party at 5 am which is the longest I've stayed out for as far as I can remember!

The best story of the night is Adam being tapped on the shoulder and the person saying, "hey you're good looking. I'm gay, you are too, right?!" And then to top it off, this guy happened to be an Opthamologist from CALGARY!! Let me remind you that were at a random club in Santigao, Chile. We haven't let Adam live that one down since it happened.

We also did a walking tour (Tours 4 Tips) of the main tourists spots of Santiago which was good overview of the city. Also, checked out Costanera Mall. This time we stayed in an apartment in Provendencia which was nice and central compared to Los Candes (area we stayed in the first few days).

Next stop, Buenos Aires!

City of Graffiti

Valparaiso was a very interesting city and different than anything we have seen before. It's a bit like Hvar, Croatia meets Cinque Terra, Italy in that it's a port city with a lot of hills but that's the closest comparison I can think of. It is made up of 45 hills or Cerros and some of the hills have funiculars or small gondolas that take you up to the hills and of course, long staircases that you can use to get up as well. It is a UNESCO world heritage site now as well. 

When we first arrived and the taxi driver was taking us to where we were staying up in the hills, I wondered why I didn't do more research and just book something by the port but when we got to our place, the view from our room of the Bay Area was unreal and even better at night! We stayed at a B&B called Costal Azul run by the nicest Slovanian couple and can see why they have #1 rating on trip advisor in the B&B category in Valpareiso. It's definitely a change from a hotel but goes back a bit more to the backpacking days! Breakfast was super fresh included home made granola and yummy fresh fruits/smoothies, etc. 

Valpareiso is much more of what I was expecting from Chile in terms of its randomness. It's an extremely artsy place with a Bohemian feel. There is a combination of graffiti and intentionally painted murals on most of the streets of the city. People commission certain painters to paint the facades of there houses.  

The city is apparently the place to be for new years as the city has a population of only 300,000 but usually gets close to 2 million people on New Years with the grandest fireworks festival in all of Latin America. To get around here there are a million buses but they have "collectivo" system which is basically a shared taxi that has a sign above it to let you know the normal route it takes and if there is space, you can jump in. It's quite a good system. Of course they have normal taxis as well, but they are few and far between as the collectivos are abundant and much cheaper.

Back to Santiago for New Year's Eve!