Po Lilmod...Here to learn. An American family in the Middle East: February 2009

Lailah Tov Ima

...Is what I hear every night before my boys go to bed . It means goodnight mom, you have to admit it sounds sweet .

They are learning so much. Especially Caden ! He is getting more Hebrew than the rest of us . In fifth grade the Israeli kid's are starting to learn more English so when they are in English class ... Caden goes to Hebrew, in third grade (Mason's class ) the kid's have English only 2 times a week compared to 5 times a week in fifth grade .

The other day while driving Caden was looking out the window and said to me ...Mom I use to be really stupid! When you told me we were moving to Israel, I thought we would be living out in the middle of the desert , I never imagined that there was anything here, boy was I wrong .

This was very exciting for me hear

The Valley of Armageddon

Rain and wind and cooler temp's ! I think our winter has arrived , The forecast is showing rain for the next week

Still keeping up our busy schedule on the weekends we went somewhere nearby , The ruins of Megiddo (Haifa is 12 miles from Armageddon !!!) It was a great way to spend a stormy day

The Ancient city of Megiddo overlooks the Jezreel Valley ,the site of many historic battles and believed to be the site of a final battle yet to come, known as Armageddon...

There was lot's to explore and learn here, the kid's liked the sophisticated ancient water system that was built so the people inside the city walls could access the spring without leaving the safety of the Kingdom .

Entering the City Gate

The Jezreel Valley
Not so scary

A grain silo from 800 B.C.

Limestone horse troughs and hitching posts

These stables date back more than 3,000 years

Mason horsing around : )

The tunnel to the spring

(this tunnel was hewn in the 19th century BCE )

Hitting the beach

Just like Southern California

In Haifa we have beautiful beaches , but some how I convinced Eric we needed to drive an hour to Tel Aviv : ) It was a gorgeous day ... when the sun went down we walked along the boardwalk to the ancient port city Jaffa

Shakshuka - Israeli Egg Dish

Friday is quickly becoming my favorite day of the week , it's the start of the weekend but the kid's still have school : ) After Eric and I get them off to school ...we have been going out to breakfast. It is always an experience ! The food in Israel is different than what we are use to. I don't think there is a single item on a menu anywhere here that doesn't come with huge a salad, you can also count on lot's of little tapas and a bread basket with every meal (I have been served olives with my coffee before) besides the olives and coffee, I am liking my my food options

Shakshuka is probably one of the most popular egg dishes in Israel and the surrounding countries.

Try this recipe my neighbor gave me

1 onion

2 tbsp. oil

4-5 plum tomatoes (Put them under the broiler for about 20 min)

2 eggs

1 tsp. basil

Salt, pepper, cayenne pepper, paprika, turmeric to taste

Peel & chop the onion and fry it oil until it turns translucent.Chop the tomatoes and add to the onion in the pan.Add herbs and spices.Cook until the tomatoes are evenly cooked through.With a wooden spoon, make two holes in the onion-tomato mix. Break and pour each egg into its own hole.Cover and let cook until the eggs are firm. Serve with pita or other bread.

Mt. Beatitudes

Leaving Nazareth we drove to The Sea of Galilee . Lot's of restaurants and shops along the shore ,a small marina with boat rentals. This place will be more fun in the summer for sure ! We drove up the coast to Mt. Beatitudes ...Famous for being the hill where Jesus delivered the Sermon on the Mount, A couple of weeks ago my neighbor (Jewish of course) knowing that I am Christian... gave me a bible, she said take this with you when you go to Holy sites... read the word's Jesus said in the places he said them. Next time I will take her advice . We read the Sermon on the mount later that night .

Nazareth

The town where Jesus grew up . We went to the Church of the Annunciation ,where according to the bible the Angel Gabriel told Mary she was going to have a son , The church is built over what is believed to be Mary's house . We also visited Joseph's work shop .