Our good friend Cathy from A-100 flew in Thursday night to spend a couple of weeks for R&R. It’s so fun to have her here – we’ve been talking pretty much non-stop since she arrived!
We walked down to Jaffa today – it’s a beautiful sunny day outside and perfect day to be outside walking along the sea. We walked around the old port city, then found a good Arab restaurant for lunch. Unfortunately, the flea market and most of the stores were closed for Shabat.
Yesterday I went in late to work so I could have breakfast with Cathy on her first morning in town. She came to the office at the close of business and joined the officers for a bottle of wine before we went home for the day. It was a good to have some relaxing time with my co-workers at the end of the week. Although we have only been taking emergency visa cases while our office is being remodeled, we’ve kept busy getting caught up on desk work. We’ve also done a “mini-management school,” where we read and discuss books and articles on management.
Last Saturday night, John and I met several friends at a good restaurant to celebrate Ben’s birthday. It was fun to go to a new part of town.
Sunday we went back to Hertzliyya for an appointment, then went to brunch overlooking the marina. We hit the grocery store, then made our way back to Tel Aviv. I had a nice manicure and finished reading Hurting Distance, by Sophie Hannah.
Thursday, I went with some co-workers to represent the Embassy at a career fair for young Israeli soldiers who are about to leave their mandatory army service. We were there to talk to them about the danger of working illegally in the US. Lots of young Israelis have gotten in trouble by selling Dead Sea products in mall kiosks, while they are in the US on a tourist visa (you’re not allowed to work on a tourist visa). It was a fun day, seeing these young kids in their uniforms.