We started off continuing a string of bad luck which really began before we left. “Have we done the right thing?” we asked ourselves as the seemingly hostile crew of movers mashed our stuff into the storage locker, intent on placing 50 lb. boxes of books on top of anything marked ‘fragile’. Maybe we were overly sensitive, but we had just said goodbye to the pets and were feeling a bit vulnerable. I didn’t really make too much of it but after the car broke down on the way to Montreal (having paid $3000 to service it before we left), being nearly struck by a falling tree branch in Ottawa on a ‘nature walk’ and getting charged another $250 by Continental for extra bags (we did have a lot, but it was the first day of Rosh Hashana so the plane was empty!) it started to seem like we were maybe being given some kind of sign—a sign like this was a stupid idea.
I had been really looking forward to Tel Aviv. We were there last March and had a great time with Elle’s friends, who were now my friends, hanging out at cafes and strolling along the tree-lined boulevards. Tel Aviv is called ‘the bubble’ as it is geographically removed from the ever-present political issues existing everywhere else in Israel, as well as largely secular, as compared to Jerusalem. It was to be our vacation before we got serious about our work. I imagined our flat which we had rented through a friend, in one of those beautiful light-filled Bauhaus buildings with a groovy curved balcony. Unfortunately, the only thing that matched my fantasy was the part about the building being built in the Bauhaus era. I think Dad summed it up best when he said that he had seen Soviet era apartments in the Ukraine that beat this dump. We could have lived with the student-like amenities and the musty smell, and even the woman next door who yelled at when we ate breakfast on the balcony (the only place we could see what we were eating), but when Eli the super came to fix the plumbing and left us with a kitchen flooded with a black puddle, no more hot water (an issue described as a ‘Pandora’s box’—‘impossible to fix’ he explained as he asked if we had a cigarette) and the cupboards ripped out. It seemed things had reached an all time low. You see, there were a few other things which had brought us to this point, the point where we almost turned around and headed home, even though we have no home to go to. I won’t get into all of it (losing a cellphone, being charged by UPS another $1200 in VAT taxes to bring in the video camera) but there was the incident the very first day we arrived, where we found ourselves held captive by a hotelier (perhaps a slightly loft title for a man who lived on a hobby farm and rented out a Bavarian style cabin…of sorts) who demanded an additional 400 shekels from us before he moved his car so we could actually leave (we actually ended up at the police station where we met a very nice policeman who told us we were the first married lesbian couple he had ever met and that we should have children - right away).
There was a lot of yelling during these weeks. I’m not great at yelling, but Elle is well-practiced and seemed to confront Israel the way it was confronting us. It was only after we ended up squealing out of a parking lot after Elle gave some bad driver the finger that we realized things needed to change.
So we calmed down and tried to stop feeling sorry for ourselves. We went to the beach, made fruit salads with guava, persimmons and pomegranates and sat around for hours in cafes with Dorit, drinking coffee and giving her unhelpful relationship advice. We even had a beautiful day on Yom Kippur walking down the streets without any cars. It’s actually an amazing feeling, to have a city literally shut down for a day. Of course we heard the next day that Akko had erupted in flames because a Palestinian man had driven to pick up his daughter and ended up being pelted with rocks for his religious insensitivity. Yet for us, in Tel Aviv, where we didn’t read the paper and played backgammon that day, something felt like it shifted. And for that reason, I have attached photos of some nice things we found in Tel Aviv - see sidebar.
Any way, things have turned around since then. My Dad came to visit and we moved to Jerusalem for the last part of October to tour and find our apartment in Ramallah. I had zero expectations of our Jerusalem rental so when we walked in to our clean, quiet, newly renovated apartment with freshly baked goods on the table, I decided that things were looking up.
I had been really looking forward to Tel Aviv. We were there last March and had a great time with Elle’s friends, who were now my friends, hanging out at cafes and strolling along the tree-lined boulevards. Tel Aviv is called ‘the bubble’ as it is geographically removed from the ever-present political issues existing everywhere else in Israel, as well as largely secular, as compared to Jerusalem. It was to be our vacation before we got serious about our work. I imagined our flat which we had rented through a friend, in one of those beautiful light-filled Bauhaus buildings with a groovy curved balcony. Unfortunately, the only thing that matched my fantasy was the part about the building being built in the Bauhaus era. I think Dad summed it up best when he said that he had seen Soviet era apartments in the Ukraine that beat this dump. We could have lived with the student-like amenities and the musty smell, and even the woman next door who yelled at when we ate breakfast on the balcony (the only place we could see what we were eating), but when Eli the super came to fix the plumbing and left us with a kitchen flooded with a black puddle, no more hot water (an issue described as a ‘Pandora’s box’—‘impossible to fix’ he explained as he asked if we had a cigarette) and the cupboards ripped out. It seemed things had reached an all time low. You see, there were a few other things which had brought us to this point, the point where we almost turned around and headed home, even though we have no home to go to. I won’t get into all of it (losing a cellphone, being charged by UPS another $1200 in VAT taxes to bring in the video camera) but there was the incident the very first day we arrived, where we found ourselves held captive by a hotelier (perhaps a slightly loft title for a man who lived on a hobby farm and rented out a Bavarian style cabin…of sorts) who demanded an additional 400 shekels from us before he moved his car so we could actually leave (we actually ended up at the police station where we met a very nice policeman who told us we were the first married lesbian couple he had ever met and that we should have children - right away).
There was a lot of yelling during these weeks. I’m not great at yelling, but Elle is well-practiced and seemed to confront Israel the way it was confronting us. It was only after we ended up squealing out of a parking lot after Elle gave some bad driver the finger that we realized things needed to change.
So we calmed down and tried to stop feeling sorry for ourselves. We went to the beach, made fruit salads with guava, persimmons and pomegranates and sat around for hours in cafes with Dorit, drinking coffee and giving her unhelpful relationship advice. We even had a beautiful day on Yom Kippur walking down the streets without any cars. It’s actually an amazing feeling, to have a city literally shut down for a day. Of course we heard the next day that Akko had erupted in flames because a Palestinian man had driven to pick up his daughter and ended up being pelted with rocks for his religious insensitivity. Yet for us, in Tel Aviv, where we didn’t read the paper and played backgammon that day, something felt like it shifted. And for that reason, I have attached photos of some nice things we found in Tel Aviv - see sidebar.
Any way, things have turned around since then. My Dad came to visit and we moved to Jerusalem for the last part of October to tour and find our apartment in Ramallah. I had zero expectations of our Jerusalem rental so when we walked in to our clean, quiet, newly renovated apartment with freshly baked goods on the table, I decided that things were looking up.
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8 comments:
Tamira, this is a beautiful site. I am fascinated by all the information herein. Is it all true? Wow, you lead quite the life. your wife.
Dear Tamira, I am immediately putting your blog in my "favourite" list, so that I can follow your adventures. Drop a note every now and then on the progress of elle's project, too. Much love from Venezia to you both. And check out those Haifa-Italy ferries. Was it Haifa?
This IS a beautiful - which makes your early troubles less believeable. Where's the photo of the plumbing gone awry? Actually, scratch that. A little escapism will go a long way this winter. Keep it pretty.
omg what a story (i can hear the yelling!!).... so glad you are blogging -- i'd imagined you were happily ensconced and surrounded by olive and pomegranate trees.
perhaps all the obstacles you've endured so far are there to cement your relationship!!!
sounds like a day at the beach with some fruit : ) is the best medicine!!!
Thank you for this Tam, the site is gorgeous and entertaining. From my view, one needs the black puddles to balance the pomegranate picnics. I love being inside your head. It makes you so ... present.
Tamira,
Wow, congrats on a job well-done. You aren't missing much here. The economy has gone Pete Tong. Actually it hasn't but everyone is hypnotizing themselves by staring into the abyss. It kinda feels like there is a disaster brewing and everyone is reacting just like in the war movies - semi-paralyzed, people are talking optimistically for once (it won't be so bad, etc - trying to convince themselves, etc).
I guess it won't be as bad in Canada as elsewhere but you guys got the hell outta Dodge at the best possible time and the feeling in the air is one of tense foreboding where people are hoping that those in charge have a plan, and those in charge keep walking up to the podium and shrugging their shoulders (W is a complete idiot).
Anyhow, there is a weirdness that is hard to put your finger on, and I would avoid coming back for as long as possible.
There are stories in the media about the falling prices in Toronto Real Estate. I get the feeling that you will be able to buy into your old lifestyle at a discount in a couple of years.
Now, onto more important things - awesome blog. I feel like I am there. Keep going
I was reading some old letters from friends dated over a decade ago. My little Xia had found a box of papers to scatter about (what fun!). I was feeling sentimental and sad that no one had time to write anymore. But ha! I get a link to your new blog. Of course! There is no need for too much nostalgia because the internet has suggestions for every woe. Write copiously! By the way, why are all your friends on the internet before the sun comes up?
Thanks, this is great Tamira...well not what had happened to the two of you initially but things are looking up, eh...BTW, is that nice policeman in cahoots with Rob; doesn't he have a wager regarding your offspring? Take care and keep it coming...
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