Mailbox, Neve Tzedek
Israel was in the news again this week when several attacks occurred in the southern part of the country on Thursday. Violence has continued with rockets continuing to pepper the area, and Israel forces have engaged some of the perpetrators. Our job in the American Citizen Services section is to be sure that U.S. citizens get the same message that we get within the Embassy – the “no double standard” rule that came about after the Lockerbie bombing in 1988. I worked late Thursday night drafting the message and maneuvering it up the chain of command through our Front Office and in DC. We remain on alert here as the situation continues to evolve.
Despite the troubles, we have had a fun week.
Last Sunday we were treated to an afternoon with Dave, our friend from the Consulate in Jerusalem. Later that evening, Jen and Rebecca and I enjoyed the sunset while floating in our pool – life doesn’t get much better!
Monday night, our TDY’er came over to do laundry and we got a good chance to visit. She is very interesting, and told me lots of stories from her work in DC and her three years in northern Africa.
Tuesday night we went to the DCM’s residence to hear a speaker who runs political campaigns in Israel – he was young and interesting, and talked about how American campaigns have influenced how campaigns are run in Israel.
Friday night, we joined Chip, Anne, Robbie and Suzanne at a wonderful little restaurant in Neve Tzedek. It was a beautiful night to sit outside for dinner and enjoy a bottle of good wine.
One of most fun things I did this week was going with a professional photographer around the city for a photography class yesterday morning. Wendy, TDY’er Solange and I spent about two and a half hours Saturday morning walking through the neighborhoods around our apartment, learning some photography basics, followed by a well-deserved breakfast at a nice little cafe.
John and I watched a great movie, “Barney’s Version” last night with Paul Giamatti. Very good.