Shalom, as some may say in the wonderful State of Israel! Just over a month ago, I had the incredible opportunity to travel to Israel with 12 friends of mine from the area in which I live. We participated in a local leadership program over the course of the last school year, and through the program, we were offered this trip to Israel. Within this program, in March of 2016, we hosted around 12 teenagers from Nahariya, Israel, while they visited Northern New Jersey and New York City. These Israelis became our best friends instantly, while we showed them our culture, the Empire State Building and (according to them) our HUGE malls. During my trip to Israel in December, we did the same; we stayed in our friends‘ houses and learned about their culture. This trip of mine was incredible as I was reconnected with my Israeli friends that I met 9 months earlier. Also, let’s be real for a moment – Israel in general is amazing (my favorite place on the planet, actually) so, all in all, this was one incredible trip. Now, let’s get to the important stuff: what did I eat while in Israel? The three places I visited with my group in Israel were Jerusalem, Nahariya (the city in which my friends live) and Tel Aviv. We roamed around street-side markets, Israeli bakeries, and amazing restaurants.
Our first night, we landed in Tel Aviv and drove straight to Jerusalem. We went to a mall to get some dinner (keep in mind, it’s around 7pm, but we think it’s noon… but nevertheless, we were traveling for 12+ hours, so we were hungry) and the first thing I see is falafel. Falafel it is! I bite into the pita and falafel and I’m instantly reassured that I can live on the fried chickpea-pita combo for the rest of the week.
The next day was our big full day in Jerusalem. Our itinerary included the kotel (which includes the Western Wall – truly amazing, by the way), some other stuff and markets!!! Vendors line up to sell their produce, baked goods, jewelry and some touristy stuff here and there. There were three particular stands that caught my attention for their beauty and smell… take a look.
This is halvah… I truly cannot tell you what it is, besides that the coffee flavored one is really good.
This last stand was my favorite. The chocolate rugelach and the other pastries made for a nice picture moment.
The chocolate rugelach looked SO good that I HAD to get a bite… I splurged!
Once we left Jerusalem, we traveled north to Nahariya. This city has a main street running through it, which has this amazing frozen yogurt place, Blueberry (where my Israeli friends happen to work at). During my stay of 5 days or so, I didn’t go there once, and I’m pretty sure I didn’t go there twice, but three times! And since I’m sooo original, I got the same thing every time.
Still in Nahariya one morning, my host family stopped at a bakery for breakfast before the day’s activities. Being a tourist, I had to snap a quick photo of the cute baked goods that were on display.
On display: freshly baked sufganiyot (jelly doughnuts). I did have one of thee doughnuts, just not from this bakery.
Really cute pastries and freshly baked bread!
On ANOTHER day (yes, I’m aware that I am moving fast through my trip, sorry!), we went to the old city of Akko, which is right outside of Nahariya (my Israeli geography is on point by this part of the trip). Here, we went to another market with a bakery; we were given some of the most exotic desserts I’ve ever had, but probably some of the best.
By the end of this bakery visit, it’s around 11am. Then, we walk outside (remember, we’re still in the enclosed market) and come upon a stand with Borekas, which, according to Buzzfeed, are pastries with either cheese, spinach, or some other filling. My friends and I split a cheese-filled boreka… SUPER good!!! Also from this market stand, we had pita with Za’atar, a seasoning with quite a strong flavor. Here’s a photo:
It’s still around 11am here, and we’re stuffed already, but more food the merrier… am I right?!
More food right? That’s what I said when we were walking back towards the car and I caught a glimpse of a man at a pita stand, where I saw straight up pita coming out of the oven. Heaven.
The man turned around and saw me staring at the beautiful pita and all of a sudden, HE HANDED ME SOME!!!!!!!!! I was in shock and I was super excited! Pita! Fresh pita! This just proves how AMAZING Israeli people are!!!
After quite a few days in the beautiful north of Israel (which included going to the Israel-Lebannon border!), we went back down to Tel Aviv for a few hours before our flight home (boohoo). But we wasted no time and used every last moment to find some more Israeli food that we haven’t had yet.
Look at this. Amazing. So beautiful. Jelly doughnuts for the win.
And look at these pomegranates!!! So beautiful. Israel. Everything is amazing there.
And even the spices were pretty. This right here is what makes Israeli food ~Israeli~.
Before dinner and before we had to leave for home, we went to Sarona Market in Tel Aviv. If you have ever been to Chelsea Market in New York City, Sarona Market is more beautiful and modern than any Chelsea Market. Fresh produce and vendors selling their items fills the building with great vibes. Of all the things there, my friends and I indulged in this ice cream waffle tower dessert. Once I had this dessert, I vowed to bring it to New York and open a waffle-on-ice cream shop of my own because it was singlehandedly one of the greatest things I’ve ever had. No joke.
Vanilla ice cream with toppings (including “kleek”, that Israeli chocolate candy from my frozen yogurt earlier in the week) and then a long stick of waffles with chocolate sauce on top. Yep. Incredible. Truly amazing. This must-have held me over for the next 12 hours of flying, because I did not touch the airplane food.
And with that, you can probably guess how much weight I gained from this trip. But as they all say, don’t count the calories, count the laughs (and the amount of falafel you have). Toda, thank you, Israel. You have treated me well and I hope to see you again soon. And to my Israeli friends, thank you for everything. Although 5,000+ miles (what is that in kilometers LOL) seems far away, a press of the Skype “call” button is super easy. Plus, my mom is coming to your city in less than a week, so we’re always connected. Not too shabby if you ask me. Shalom and laila tov.
Commentaires