The travelling Israeli

December 13, 2009 - 11:09 AM by David

ben guironI love travelling out of the country. I’ve been living in Israel for for almost 25 years now, so don’t get me wrong, this is my home.

But maybe because I don’t do it that often (compared to many Israelis who travel abroad for business or pleasure many times a year), I just love being on airplanes, going to the airport, browsing the duty free shops.

As soon as I get to Ben-Gurion Airport, and get through the labrynthe of security checks, interrogation, passport control and more security checks, I already feel like I’m abroad, with the lavish outbound terminal and its kitschy fountain spraying every few minutes, and outgoing travellers appearing happy instead of their normal tense demeanor.

I love to leave the country, but ironically, it’s hard not to think about it as soon as I’m gone. Whenever I hear Hebrew spoken abroad, my ears perk up in the same way as when I hear English on the streets here. Suddenly, it’s the Israelis I have the secret bond with, not the English speakers.

I’m spending Hannukah in the United States, where the only candles burning in the windows are artificial Christmas ones. So it will seem strange at first, and I’ll probably miss the Hannukah events and activities that are a normal part of daily life during the week back in Israel.

As we touch down back in Tel Aviv, it will be back to the loud voices, honking cars and rude behavior. And I’ll breathe a sigh of relief knowing that I’m home. And I’ll almost immediately start thinking about my next trip abroad.

Tags: , , , , , • Category: A New Reality, General, Holidays, Immigrant Moments, Israeliness, Life, Travel 

Comments

3 Comments on The travelling Israeli

  1. Batya on Mon, Dec 21st 2009 5:00 PM

    2. This year I missed most of Succot and Simchat Torah, being in NY. But Halloween was bigger, more commercial than 40 years ago.

  2. County Travelling on Sun, Jul 4th 2010 1:24 AM

    3. I am seventeen, and will have the privilege of travelling to Jerusalem on the 4th of July, where my mother has been living for about a year and a half. I’ve been trying to do some research on the place, and while there seems to be a tremendous payload of tourist destinations and sights, I’ve been getting a lot of radically mixed answers on whether or not it is safe to go.

    Some sites have an all-out ban on the place and prohibit going, some advise heightened degrees of caution, and some are completely casual and cafe-free, touting it as safer than most American cities.

    Seems to me that the best course of action would be to go, and just… not act like an idiot.
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  3. Travel Agent Help on Fri, Jul 9th 2010 1:27 PM

    4. Traveling for your business does not necessarily means buying expensive ticket for your last minute bookings. With the help of corporate travel agents or the corporate travel agencies it is very easy to get affordable corporate business travel to domestic and international destinations.

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