Saturday, July 03, 2010

Then and Now

I had not been back to Israel since 1988 and much has changed.
For one, the country got much more sophisticated. I blame the Internet or Israelis travelling abroad and realizing that nice service with a smile is better than surly waiters throwing falafel platters at you. And that not all the food has to be schnitzel and Turkish salad. Hence, this has become a great place to eat, with very good food and so far, gracious, warm service in very good looking restaurants -- absolutely unimaginable in my day.
Excellent new roads, communications that work like a charm. Very good.
Turning almost every archaeological site into a mall, not so good.
What hasn't changed is the screaming between people, in which I have been forced to participate (to my enormous glee) pretty much everyday. Not all the screaming is intended to inform you  that you are a moron. Or to ask you with that dripping aggressive sarcasm that borders on genius if you are not yet aware that you are a moron. All of it is intended to assure you that you are a moron when you are driving, even if you are Emerson Fittipaldi. Some of it is to tell you not to be a moron as there's no need to pay for parking today, and good deeds like that. People here just butt in, as always. 

A perfect example: I ask the lady guard at our hotel in Haifa if there is a pharmacy nearby. She tells me yes and where it is. I ask whether it is within walking distance. She gives me a once over and then pronounces:
The weather is beautiful and you are wearing good shoes, so why not walk?



2 comments:

  1. Anonymous11:31 PM

    y los muertos palestinos cómo están. ¿Con buen sol? ¿con nuevas vías, nueva sangre, son menos gracias a este maravilloso cambio del que hablas?

    Verguenza mexicana, malinche. verguenza sionista.

    debes saber quien soy porque los comentarios no te sobran.

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  2. Por lo menos yo no me escondo cobardemente detrás de la anonimidad para dar mis opiniones. Si no te gusta lo que lees aquí, hay un millón de otros blogs que a lo mejor te harán hacer menos corajes. Este es un espacio libre para comentarios, pero no para insultos personales.
    Da la cara, o cállate la boca.

    ReplyDelete