יום שישי, פברואר 24, 2006

Eilat to Chicago

So here is my first attempt at describing Israel as a tourist.

We left Eilat around 11am. Of course after availing ourselves of the pool, the sun , and the breakfast buffet. Like I said, it's such a pleasure to be in a place with kosher restaurants and kosher hotel breakfasts. Happiness is going into a roadside cafe and being able to order something other than the black coffee.

Maps are all good but if a road was built (as you know) - it must lead somewhere. So we took it. To a less built road. To a dirt road. To a dirtier road. To a road that made us realize that Dan's Honda is not a 4x4. To a place to stop, leave the car and hike for an hour in random desertscape. We saw lots of desert.

While driving we saw a lot of desert art. Sculpture so bad that no city wanted it. "That? Go shove it down in the Negev." Objects d'art condemned to line route 90, a road with 60 and 70 kilometer stretches of nothing.
We saw: an eagle, a wall, 6 standing Egyptians, a cyborg cyclist, and a giant Easter Island-esque head! It was a long drive.

So that was leaving Eilat. And Chicago?
We needed to stop for lunch. Driving north from Eilat there are two options:Continue on 90 past the Dead Sea or turn left and take 40 up through Be'er Sheva. I was voting for the Dead Sea route but had we taken it there would have been no food for us till Jerusalem. Dimona was to the left and only 30 minutes away.

Upon arrival we remembered that Dimona is the home of the Black Hebrews. And they have a restaurant. Soul food in Dimona! A little miznon (cafe) in the Black Hebrew neighborhood, 6-7 tables and a tall elegant black man behind the counter. We ordered the chili and the fried tofu somethings (these guys are all vegan). That was some good chili and I don't think I've ever had such good tofu somethings.


Warning: After sprinkling chili powder with your fingers, wash your hands before going to the bathroom.

posted by YS @ 2:43 AM