Henna Party

Started the weekend belly dancing with friends at a contemporary take on the traditional Henna party. When the bride is a tzfonit (had a hard time finding the exact English translation, the best equivalent we could find is: a local version of yuppie) the Henna invitation reads: bikinis mandatory. We had a wonderful time dancing and swimming the night away, with just a bit of tradition... We made Savta proud and enjoyed copious amounts of cava.

Cairo!

The last two days we spent roaming the streets of Cairo, a beautiful, over populated fascinating city. We'll definitely be back. 

Zamalek neighborhood, as seen from a bridge over the Nile.

Inside the Sultan Hassan Mosque

A fellow explorer at the Khan Al-Khalili market.

Medieval gates at Khan Al-Khalili

Sharia as-Souq, Aswan Market

What We Ate... In Egypt

Whenever we could we ditched the hotel buffet and ventured into town to try local specialties.

A staple street snack is ta'amiyya- the famous Egyptian falafel. The pita is stuffed with falafel and an array of salads. Tasty, but a little dry.

In Luxor we went out to dinner at the authentic Egyptian restaurant, Sofra. They offered a delicious variety of mezze and tasty local stews.

We ordered some of the delicious mezze- lentil salad, labane and tahini.

Sofra
90 Mohamed Farid street
Al Manshiya, Luxor, Egypt
phone: +20 (95) 235 97 52

We were surprised to find fresh fruit juices offered almost everywhere in Egypt. We tried guava juice (yumm...) and karkadai -a juice made from dried hibiscus flowers- (yummier...)

We also stopped for furkish coffee and mint tea at a tea house in the Khan Al-Khalili, Cairo.

The Nile

While in Aswan, we took a felucca ride on the Nile. A very cliche tourist attraction- we went for sunset- but beautiful nonetheless.

The King's Night - A Different Tel Aviv Bachelor Party

A bachelor party is one of my least favorite things. I usually know only half of the crowd and the conversation topics are rarely anything but real-estate and womens' breasts. So when I had to part with the Queen for a night of heavy drinking with fellow men, I was partly discontented.

We are not an ordinary group, so the bar of choice had to be something with a twist. Mommy's Place is a karaoke bar which caters to foreign workers from South-East Asia, China and Africa, and is located on a dingy street not far from the Tel Aviv Central Bus Station. My worries disappeared the moment I set foot at the door. This was another world.
It had everything you would expect from a South-Asian karaoke bar: the pink lights, the cheap shots of whiskey, lots of smiles and some very talented Thai divas, performing only the latest pop songs. The food was also a surprise. An excellent genuine Thai menu at very reasonable prices (rare in Tel Aviv).
The night continued to Joy's Bar, a very sleazy dance bar on Allenby street, which as I recall (by then I was seriously drunk) had two chubby blonds dancing on the bar? And then to Hummus Ashkara, an old Tel Aviv establishment, to seal the alcohol with a 3 am bowl of heavy hummus and pita.
It was a crazy night, just as bachelor parties are supposed to be, but I enjoyed every minute of it. Watching my macho friends sing The Total Eclipse of The Heart, or dance with potential drag queens to Madonna and Ricky Martin, I understood what it was all about -simply being free with your closest friends, something we should all practice more.

Congratulations E and M!

Mommy's Place,
10 Bnei Brak St.


Hummus Ashkara,
45 Yirmiyahu St.
tel 057 938 1339   

What They Wore... Red and White, Basel St. Tel Aviv

What you can get for 9.99?

We went to our neighborhood supermarket for the first time and found some intriguing phenomena:

Chulent in a can.

Ina and a mango.

We might need to find a new supermarket.

What They Wore... Dark Blazers/Beige Bottoms, Jerusalem

What They Wore... Keffiyeh Cool, Jerusalem

Very cool with his glasses and leather sandals.

What They Wore... To Church

While visiting the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, we asked this elegant elderly gentleman if he would be so kind as to allow us to take a quick snap. He kindly obliged. We loved the way he casually sat on a wooden bench while throngs of tourists passed by. His Circassia-like hat, gold rimmed glasses, cane and rosary beads complimented his elegant suit.

Breakfast at Versavee Cafe, Old City of Jerusalem

We went for a late breakfast at Versavee Cafe situated right inside the Jaffa Gate at the Imperial Hotel. Even though the food was simple and tad mild (we ordered a Jerusalem breakfast of hummus, labane cheese and salad- nothing to write home about) it was good enough. The Arab coffee and atmosphere, genuinely 'Old Jerusalem', were just what we needed to start our day. We will return for coffee or an afternoon beer.

Hard Times Come Again No More

Our yearly tradition of Thanksgiving dinner at the Z's is never complete without singing American folk songs.

Our Highway Accident

All tanned up we returned one day to the mainland, hopping on a VIP bus to Bangkok. Half way there: BANG! We were caught in a three car pileup involving rolling logs.

It all began when the pickup in front of our bus started loosing its cargo (logs were rolling). The driver pushed down the breaks, lost control over the truck and flipped over on the road. It was right then when our innocent tourist V-I-P bus happened to crash into the pickup, breaking its window and dashboard.

Luckily, we were all fine and in one piece so we helped clear up the road and tanned for another hour until we were transferred to a replacement bus.

Tourists clearing logs.





The Accident.





Puzzled tourists.

Bang Bao Village, Ko Chang, Thailand

A few days ago we decided to return to Thailand and continue our "active" beaching on the island of Ko Chang. Searching for a quiet place to stay, we found Bang Bao - a fisherman's village on the southern tip of the island. The village is just one small street on a pier with a few accommodations and some excellent seafood restaurants.


Our guesthouse on the water



The view from our window




A fisherman in action

Hanging Out, the Streets of Phnom Penh, Cambodia