More food....and drinks too!

Almost 25 years ago when my cousin Bill was at the Jerusalem Center this was a favorite of the BYU students.

It's still there....same oven, same baker, and the BYU students still come here to enjoy pizza.

Not only does he bake pizza, he bakes bread for most of the neighborhood, including some of the bakeries. Not all homes or bakeries have ovens so the dough is brought here and then is baked in his large oven. Sounds like a good system to me!

It's a pretty traditional cheese pizza, except that it has egg in addition to the cheese. It wasn't my favorite....give me a falafel anyday!!

Good marketing idea here....Cana Wedding wine! Does it turn to water?

Jerusalem's answer to Starbucks....a mobile coffee shop! I'm told that in the hot summer he sometimes carries lemonade instead of coffee!

Galilee Branch

The building behind us is the the meeting house for the Galilee Branch of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It is a beautiful house that they have remodeled into a chapel, multi purpose room, kitchen, apartment for the service missionary couple, class rooms and even a required bomb shelter!

Unlike in Jerusalem & Tel Aviv, where the majority of the members of the congregations are temporary (consulate/embassy officials, ex-pats from various corporations, and college professors from BYU and other universities) the members here are permanent to the area. They come from all over as you can see from the boards announcing the hymns....

They sing in English, Spanish, Russian, and Hebrew! I'd love to hear how that sounds.

This is the view when sitting in the chapel.

Can you imagine singing songs about the Savior while looking out at his beloved Galilee? I remember the song from the old hymn book, "Oh Galilee, sweet Galilee where Jesus loved so much to be."

Middle Eastern Fast Food

Although there are McDonalds in Israel, even Kosher McDonalds, the most common 'fast food' seems to be falafel. Falafel are deep fried balls of ground chickpeas and delicious spices.

What really makes them yummy are the tomatoes, cucumbers, hummus and tahini sauce that are also put in the pita!

Lynda, who lived in Jerusalem, took us to the 'best falafel stand in the city', which was just outside Damascas Gate.. It is what my mother would have called a 'hole in the wall'. There are no places to sit, you just order and take it with you. I think what made these especially good were the super good hummus and tahini sauces. They put just the right amount in so that they weren't soggy but deliciously moist.

If George liked falafel, I'd learn how to make them.

Meat lover George much prefers the other Middle Eastern fast food, Shawarma.

Shawarma is thin sliced meat, usually lamb but occasionally turkey or beef, also stuffed into pita with sauces and veggies.

Our tour group was about equally divided between the falafel fans and the Shawarma fans.

Food Obsessed

You're going to think I'm obsessed with food and you're probably right since I have a couple more blog posts I want to do about food in Israel.

Salad and the delicious pita bread make for a great lunch. In the US I've never had pita that is so light and fluffy. It's probably a good thing I can't find that kind of pita here!

This was our St. Peter's fish lunch near the Sea of Galilee at Kibbutz Ein Gev. It tasted much better than it looked....you're probably thinking it HAD to taste better than it looked!

I never knew what these were but they must be good as it seemed that every sweet shop in the old city sold them.

How would you like to buy your fish here? You can get filets or fish sticks or shaped fish nuggets for the kids....or maybe a whole chicken....and its all been sitting out for hours on the ice.

Or you might want to buy your meat here....

I think I'd become a vegetarian....the fruit and veggies look a lot better than the meat or fish.

Food in Israel was definitely a big part of the whole experience.

Breakfast in Jerusalem

In Israel it is easy to get the recommended 5 fruits and vegetables a day because they have salad for breakfast!

It looks pretty and tastes delicious! Who would have thought that fresh cucumbers and tomatoes would taste so good at 7:00 a.m.!

The fruit, cheese, and yoghurt is terrific too.

I'm afraid I never learned to appreciate these little fishes....

But the bread was a delight every single day! Yummy!

Jerusalem Bagels

Hungry in Jerusalem? Find a cart selling Jerusalem bagels.

Don't even think of how many carbs these giants might contain....

Sprinkle on some hyssop. (According to the Bible dictionary hyssop is a kind of wild marjoram used at the Passover for sprinkling purposes in the purification of lepers and in the sacrifice of the red heifer. According to John 19:29, the sponge with the vinegar offered to our Lord on the cross was put upon hyssop.) It is available in all the spice markets and they also give you a little package with the bread.

Or you could just eat it plain...

Either way it's delicious!

Barca in the West Bank

You probably know that our family lives and breathes La Liga soccer but you may not know that the West Bank area in Israel also shares our love of the Spanish soccer league. The evidence of true Barca fans is everywhere.

So strange to be winding my way through the maze of streets in old Jerusalem and come across a store selling Barca gear!

The Palestinians recognize the BEST TEAM IN THE WORLD!

Ok, I'll have to admit there are a few who love Real Madrid!

There are options to support either team but the majority definitely support Barca!

I did see a few Real Madrid posters.

including one on this bus!

At the Garden of Gethsemane I had a nice 'Spanglish' conversation with this Madrid season ticket holder. He also had noticed the abundance of Barcelona fans in the city!

Even though this little boy couldn't speak a word of English and I couldn't speak a word of Hebrew we communicated just fine saying, "Barca!" "Messi!" "Iniesta!" and smiling a lot!

This shop keeper was happy to sell to another Barca fan...although he probably would have been just as happy to sell to a Madrid fan!

Our tour guide got nervous when I took this picture because it is at the security check to go up to the temple mount. He was sure that it wasn't allowed but I'd already asked permission from the soldier. When our tour guide asked him, "Can she take a picture?" the soldier just grinned and put two thumbs up and said, "BARCA!!!!"

I used to say that our boys got along fine in Spain because before they spoke Spanish they spoke soccer. Never thought I'd say the same about myself!

Med Sea, Red Sea, Dead Sea!

Twenty seven years ago when I was last in Israel I was pregnant with Johnny and couldn't float on my back in the Dead Sea like everyone else. The weight of my tummy just pulled me over but this time, I am happy to report, I could float like all the other tourists!

You might not recognize me the next time you see me because they say the Dead Sea mud facial takes 20 years off your face....

We did swim in the Mediterranean, the Sea of Galilee, the Dead Sea and the Red Sea!

Check one off!

Check one off my bucket list....I've snorkeled in the Red Sea! That's my cute cousin David who will soon be a missionary in Seattle!

Hezekiah's Tunnel

Quoting from the Bible dictionary - "Hezekiah's tunnel is an elaborate engineering scheme extending about 1770 feet through limestone rock, bringing the waters of Gihon spring inside the walls of Jerusalem to the pool of Siloam. The tunnel was built during the days of Hezekiah, about 702 B.C., as a defense against possible attack from the Assyrian army. Workmen dug from both ends, in a zig-zag course until they met. The tunnel is still in use today."

Today you can wade through the tunnel in water that is about 3 feet deep in places. It was so fun! Here we are at the pool of Siloam after we had made it through!

This lady is my hero. She is 88 years old and kept up with everyone on the trip. I love her "I survived Hezekiah's tunnel shirt". I hope she wears it with pride and I hope I'll have her spunk and energy when I'm in my 80's!

Majdal Shams

Majdal Shams, a little Druze village on the Golan Heights, was in the news recently because of violent border protests that resulted in 20+ deaths. Well, we had lunch there a few days before that! I'll always remember the unusual food. As you can see the women prepare these large flat breads by shaping them on a pillow and then baking them quickly on a perfectly shaped oven.

I don't know what they are called but when you spread on the locally made cream cheese and dribble on some olive oil, they are delicious!