A Last Dinner! And some thoughts...

I had dinner tonight at Malka, a restaurant that's in the Eyal Shani group.  I wanted to give another shot at their food since I was sure I'd ordered wrong (not their fault) when I went to Abraxas a couple of days ago and I had to give the food another try.  So glad I did!  Malka is in an area of Tel Aviv I hadn't walked to yet, near the enormous Tel Aviv Hospital area which is also where the chic-est shops and new skyscrapers are. 



Malka's menu was similar to Abraxas but I ordered two very different dishes -- a roasted eggplant on a tahini tomato bed and then a schnitzel that was described as "filled with burning mashed potatoes that erupt and melt."  Truly amazing and the restaurant is fun!  I highly recommend it and it was a fantastic last meal before I head to the airport.

A few logistical notes:

I packed for 12 days with a carryon and a backpack. I used up a bunch of space on things anticipating colder weather.  I didn't need the warm stuff and I sure could have used more clean t-shirts.  Until today, I didn't need the raincoat I brought and and I only needed it for 30 mins.  Attire everywhere I went was casual.  I did buy a bathing suit while I was here.

Language was a bit more of a problem than I expected.  Random moments when I encountered someone who spoke no English or businesses whose signs were only in Hebrew.  

I'd been advised not to take public transportation for safety reasons.  I'm not sure that was necessary, but in any case, I found the bus app in Tel Aviv didn't work (it required some piece of info that I don't have and it wouldn't let me skip it) so I would have had to buy a bus pass.   I ended up taking Gett, their version of Uber, to arrange cabs so I could pay with a credit card rather than cash.  I also didn't have a day of this trip when I walked less than 14,000 steps and in Tel Aviv was closer to 20,000 every day.  

I thought my travel arranger, Jonathan Goldstein of Cicerone Travel was amazing. The guides Elana and Bena were both awesome, kind, and knowledgeable.  

This was a fantastic trip and I'm so glad I did it!

Next up, moving to Seattle and a trip to Amsterdam & Madrid!


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