Out with the Neighbors

About two weeks ago our neighbor (my grocery store friend) had offered to take us out with some of their friends (that know English) for a day. I said sure that sounds great. That was two weeks ago and on Friday I could not remember exactly what I agreed to (was it lunch or doing something specific???). So we decided to not plan anything and just go with the flow. They stopped by at 9:30am and said they were ready but that their friends (and our other neighbors, the husband works at the same place Ken does) would be ready shortly. So we waited for a while and then took off. We followed them in our car and took one of the neighbors kids with us (13 yr old boy, who can talk, talk, talk!). We ended up driving to the Carmel Forest for a hike. I wish I had known ahead of time to pack ice water! We drove around quite a bit and then found a place to park in the shade. The Shermans (grocery store neighbors) and their 3 kids - 15,13,9, the Bears (other neighbors) and their 2 kids - 17,15, and Ken & I set out for a hike. The Bears son and Father seemed to be the ones with the map and had the game plan. None of the trails were marked. I guess this was a popular biking trail and they have been there dozens of times and "know the area" quite well. Well we walked for about 2 hours up and down, all around, (seemed to be in circles) stopping frequently to look at the map. At one point we did stop and have some snacks that the Shermans brought with them. We eventually ended up walking past the same run down ranger station that we saw when we first started the hike. It was actually a nice hike, I'm just not sure if we actually made it anywhere. The kids seemed to have a lot of fun both hiking and talking in English. Both these families lived in CA for a 2 year relocation assignment about 5 years ago.


After our hike we headed off for an authentic Arabic meal in En Hod. Our reservations were for 3pm so we took the scenic route which was absolutely beautiful. At one point I thought our poor car wasn't going to make it up the steep hill that led to this lonely hilltop village. I guess until recently they didn't have electricity or running water. The restaurant was started by a family who just invited friends over for dinner. They loved the food so much, they invited their friends and pretty soon they had to build a separate building for their restaraunt. It's an interesting place. It was totally packed. It was 90 shekels a person... but it was all you can eat. You don't order off a menu. They just bring you a 15 course meal and you eat what you'd like. No soft drinks, only water and juice (squeezed from dates... it tasted a little like bubble gum to me). So the 11 of us sat down and they brought pita bread with all sorts of hummus and salad (cucumbers, tomatoes, and onions). After that they kept bringing all sorts of dishes to the table... rice stuffed red peppers, kebab in a white cream sauce (kind like a small hamburger patty), rice and pot roast (my favorite!), creamed spinach, roasted chicken, creamed sauteed onions,and potato salad (not like our friend Miss Mary's!). I think Ken and I tried everything, even though towards the end I felt sick and couldn't bear to put one more bit in my mouth. I take that back I pulled the "I'm allergic" card on the Okra. Ken did make me try the chicken liver. Had we not known what it was it might have been easier to stomach. I washed it down with pita bread and water. Overall it was a fabulous experience and we were so glad our neighbors took us out. Afterwards, we went down stairs in the restaurant where there were couches and large cushions on the floor to relax and rest. Everyone down there looked like they were about to explode from such a large meal. They offered tea/coffee and a pistachio dessert. I had to pass. The whole day was really fun. The kids seemed to like us quite a bit. The Bears invited us over to their house once we arrived back home. We visited with them for a bit longer and shared a green tea slushy and coconut cornbread cake (ahh more food!). The kids really love to cook (they don't even let their mom cook dinner anymore!) and wanted to show us some of their talent. The Bears were just as nice as our other neighbors. We are so blessed to be where we are at!