Magical day in Israel

I am still in Israel and it can truly be a magical place. This morning we went to Akko market, which dates back to the time of the Crusaders and has changed little in the intervening centuries.
We started our journey at the kibbutz, where my daughter is based. They have a wonderful computerised system where you can check who is leaving the kibbutz when and where to in order to get a ride. This is not England.

We managed to find someone going to Tzfat. Soldiers in uniform travel on public transport for free in Israel so daughter was in uniform, but had to change before we went to the market. It is a sad but true fact that it is not such a good idea being in a predominantly Arab market in an IDF uniform.

At the market we bought dried tea herbs, spices and various foods that all come in large sacks and big hunks of honey scented olive oil soap. The smells and the colours are other worldly, although the trays of every sort of fish and seafood, barely dead, with a sprinkling of flies is somewhat unappealing. The market looks as if it should star in a'chasing-the-baddie-through-the-market' scene in a James Bond movie. We ate in a restaurant that my daughter claims sells the best hummus in Israel. They sell three types of hummus and nothing else, and because of the speed at which the waiters have to work to keep up with the crowds, the food is essentially thrown at the customer rather than served.

We managed to catch the one bus a day that passes through Akko and eventually ends up at my daughter's kibbutz. This bus meanders through town and country, Arab village, religious settlements, mountains and valleys before arriving at the kibbutz. This 30 shekel trip gives a sense of the spectrum lifestyles in even a small part of this vibrant country.

We got back to the kibbutz just in time for the Lag B'Omer party. This was a picnic in the forest with all the kids playing bongos for all they were worth followed by the traditional Bonfire.

A magical day yes yes yes