My new favorite city in Israel: Haifa!

For the Sukkot holiday, we had a few days off from Ulpan (Hebrew class), so Ellie and I took advantage of the break and headed up north to Haifa. Our friend Guy picked us up and we started our scenic drive up the mountain. I fell in love with Haifa the moment we drove out of the bus station- downtown Haifa leads to the beach, while the rest of Haifa is scattered through the Carmel Mountain. Guy lives near the top of the mountain and has an incredible view of the hills down the mountain that lead to the Mediterranean Sea. It's hard to find a place in Haifa that doesn't have a great view- the mountain has a view of the sea and the sea has a view of the mountain.

The Bahai Gardens leading down the Carmel Mountain to the beach

On our drive to Guy's house, we saw the city at night. As we drove, we saw the steps that lead up the Bahai Gardens from downtown to the top of the mountain. We stopped a few times to take pictures of the incredible view as we ascended the mountain. We also stopped at a place known as the end of the world, which is a bit separated from the houses and has its own amazing view of the city.
When we arrived at Guy's house, we were amazed how beautiful his home is. I could have stayed forever- beautiful house, incredible view down a mountain that leads to the beach, and a small town feeling where everyone in the neighborhood knows everyone else. Over the next few days, I got to experience life as an Israeli that grew up in Haifa.
The first night, we went out for Thai food and it was delicious (honey peanut chicken on thai noodles with veggies)! Then, we went to an Irish Pub with a bunch of Guy's friends. It was a lot like going to the bar at Bucknell; you go with some friends, see others while you're out, and meet friends of friends.  It was great getting to know Guy's home friends (and twin brother of a camp friend!) and hear about their lives in Israel, studying at Technion University, and working in the city.
Most of our time in Haifa was spent at the beach, always preceded and followed by delicious food. We hung out in the sun, went in the sea, and played a lot of Matkot (Israeli beach paddleball). Another great thing about Haifa is that so many of Camp Harlam's mishlachat live there! Our friend Tal joined us on the beach for a while Wednesday afternoon. Wednesday evening, Ellie and I joined Guy's family for Sukkot dinner- great food and they spoke English the whole time so we could join the conversation. After dinner, we headed to our other friend Tom's for a relaxing video game night.

Haifa Beach

Before hitting the beach Thursday, we got some burekas (dough stuffed with potato and served with a hard boiled egg). After the beach, Guy and I joined Tal and some of Guy's friends for a game of 4 v 4 soccer on an outdoor court (indoor style). When we got there, a bunch of 15 year old boys wanted to challenge us for the court, but we put them in their place and got on with our game. They kept bothering us to play every time we took a break. It was a great time and a true Israeli pick-up soccer game experience.
After soccer, we rushed to the train station to pick up our friend Nati and two other camp friends I didn't know from 09. We went to Tom's for dinner- amazing sandwiches from Guy's favorite sandwich place called Sandwich Bar. Honey turkey with fresh Israeli veggies and mayo on fresh flat bread- so good! Thursday night was the big camp reunion night, so we all hung out with Guy's friends and headed out to a club called The Loft. The Loft looks like a big loft (funny how that works) and has lots of floor space for dancing and tables on the sides and a bar. Ellie and I went in first with two of Guy's friends and danced for a bit. Unfortunately, one of the other girls had trouble getting in, so we ended up leaving and sitting outside for a while. We all headed back to Guy's, watched How I Met Your Mother re-runs, and went to sleep.
On Friday morning, we picked up some really good hummus and pita, brought it to the beach, and had a little picnic on the beach. We stayed at the beach for a few hours before we had to catch our train back to Tel Aviv. It was hard to say goodbye to Nati, Guy, and the amazing city of Haifa, but I know I'll be going back as much as I can. It was so great to spend time with Israeli's and live their lives for a while.