We were unsuccessful in our negotiations with the taxi drivers. They wanted 40 shekels off the meter. We demanded 25 shekels (knowing that the meter would be 32 shekels). It was actually fun to argue with a group of drivers, in Hebrew, as they lamented everything from "it's shabbat" to "we've been waiting 2 hours for a fare and you offer us 35 shekels! As I pushed back at them, reminding them that it was, actually, shabbat when I paid 32 shekels that morning on the meter, one guy said to the other (in Hebrew). "This guy speaks Hebrew. You're not going to get anywhere." We decided to start walking home, figuring the drivers would agree to what amounted to a $1.25 discount. They didn't. We were far too committed to that $1.25 to turn around ourselves. We did catch a few taxis on the road that brought all the kids and a few chaperones back. Marci, Stacy, and a bunch of others actually DID walk all the way back. Nice job!
In the afternoon, we planned on visiting Marci's best friend from nursery school, Renee, who has lived in Israel for many years. Then, we fell asleep.....and slept and slept and slept....for hours.
About 7 pm, we walked over to Yemin Moshe, the windmill, overlooking the walls of the Old City (and the first neighborhood built outside the city walls). We made havdalah as the sun set over the Old City and the flood lights along the base of the wall did, indeed, reflect back a gold hue, giving Jerusalem the nickname, "The Golden City."
After havdalah, and with restaurants now opening throughout the city, we went to a restaurant called Focaccia. While I saw steak on the menu first, Marci saw a pasta with cream sauce. It took a few nanno-seconds for us to realize that this was NOT a kosher restaurant. (Hard to believe in Jerusalem!). To be sure, we kept reading the menu; shrimp and then prosciuto. And they were doing a GREAT business!
Shavua tov.
You probably didn't have to wait for Shabbat to end to eat at that restaurant! (and there are quite a few like it in Jerusalem!)
ReplyDeleteI'm forwarding your blog to our travel companions from last summer - they will laugh hard! They still remind me of my failed negotiations with the cab drivers at the Israel Museum and our walk through the city eventually back to the old city! Enjoy your trip - I can't wait to go back!
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