Wake up and smell the flowers

No, they aren’t roses. These be wild flowers. Wild, but protected by the Nature Authority. Israelis may be a grumpy, aggressive, loud lot – but they sure like their wild flowers. On a beautiful spring day (can the 9th of February be considered spring?), we wandered about admiring the flowers up on the Carmel Mountain […]

The Puzzle Maker

I have started doing puzzles – jigsaw puzzles. There is something therapeutic, soothing, yet stimulating in sitting in front of a puzzle for a few hours each evening. I imagine that we use only about five per cent of our brain during the day, even if we are multi-tasking twelve different screens on the computer. […]

Travelling the Italian Way

What is loyalty, really? I know you can be loyal to a husband, a wife, a country, or a friend… but what about being loyal to an airline?For five consecutive years I travelled from Tel Aviv to Toronto and back with Air Canada, faithfully collecting miles through their Aeroplan frequent flyer program.  After having flown […]

Canadian Passport Blues Revisited

Canada has recently initiated the “Simplified Renewal Application Process” for a new Canadian passport. Yes, really. Does this mean that we are no longer left with the dreadful anticipation of wading through a complex bureaucratic nightmare at the Canadian consulate in Tel Aviv – a nightmare that I described in graphic detail in my blog […]

When New Years comes twice a year

Doesn’t seem fair, does it – that we get to celebrate New Years twice a year. First time around: family, gefilte fish and presents. Second time around: friends, cocktails and smooching at midnight. Officially, there is only one New Year in Israel – the Jewish New Year which falls sometime in September. Just as, “officially”, […]

Is Ageing all in the Mind?

A friend of mine sent me an article: “Can you trick your ageing body into feeling younger?” http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-11284180I am not sure what she meant by sending me this. (What would you think if a  woman – significantly younger in years – sent you such an article?) The thing is, when it comes to unpleasant things […]

Look into my eyes, so that I know I am real

“I believe there is nothing more thrilling than eye contact while speaking.” Her words echoed through me.  So many images. Images of time past and of things that are yet to happen. Eyes that have haunted me for almost as long as I can remember. And eyes that have left me cold, forlorn.“Do you believe […]

And where are you from, laddie?

“Where are you from?” is a question I was often asked in Scotland.How do I answer that? Canada? Israel? Does it really matter what I choose? For so long, my only  travelling was short visits to Canada and back, where both Canada and Israel stake their claim to who I am. But here, in Scotland, […]

Why Edinburgh doesn’t like Wi-Fi

Sixteen years ago, I travelled through the United Kingdom for two weeks with my youngest son, Noam. This summer, I travelled with my elder son, Edan, for close to three weeks throughout Scotland. Many things were different in the space of 16 years, but perhaps the greatest difference of all was the ready presence of […]

The book’s the thing

There are still books out there. Many, many books. I guess I shouldn’t be surprised. Books have been here for… well, not forever, but for a very long time. More than I can remember, at least, but that’s not saying much.The thing is: the book is quite a clever concept. A bundle of knowledge, strapped […]