So we've been here a week now and it's time for me (Bob) to make my first post to the blog. Since this is the first time I've lived in a different country and have really been trying to live like a local, I thought I would share my thoughts on a few things I've learned/observed during this first week in Israel.
Driving
The key here is _defensive_ driving. Rule #1, if you think someone is going to try and fit their car between you and the car in front/behind/to the side of you, then you're right. If you're lucky, they will signal or honk their intention, but for the most part they just change lanes and expect you to get out of their way. I guess this this brings me to rule #1.a, even if you don't think someone wants to cut you off or turn into you, expect them to do it anyway.
There is a high percentage of motorcycles/scooters on the road, even outside of the urban areas. I'm sure this is for the obvious reasons: they're cheaper, you can park them anywhere and most importantly, when the roads are congested, you can split the lanes and pass the traffic. This is not a new concept to me, driving in California taught me to be prepared to have motorcycles weave between traffic when the freeway is gridlocked. As you might guess, Israelis like take it to the next level. Even when traffic is moving at its (typically) 10-20 km/h above the speed limit pace, there are still plenty of two-wheeled enthusiasts playing a game of high speed slalom where the pylons (cars) are moving at well over 100km/h (65mph+)! To make it even more interesting, many of the riders aren't wearing much more than a helmet, T-shirt, shorts and flip-flops. Whenever I see one of these donor-cycle riders coming up behind me, I make sure to move myself as far to one side of the lane as it is safe to do so to give then a relatively wide "gate" to shoot through.
I mentioned Israeli drivers using their horn as a method of making their intended lane change or turn known. There are many other reasons why the horn is used while driving the city streets, most of which are not done out of anger (like in the US). For example, when sitting at a red light, other courteous drivers will use their horn to tell you that the light is about to change just in case you hadn't noticed it. Other times, the other driver is just being friendly and use their horn just to make sure you know where they are.
One last thing... To clarify how other drivers know the light is going to turn green (and therefore honk to make sure others are also aware of the fact). The progression of the traffic lights here is:
1. red
2. red and yellow (honk, honk)
3. green
4. flashing green
5. yellow
6. back to red
Parking
No matter the size of the town or city you are in, it appears that parking is at a premium in Israel. Drivers will try and shoehorn their cars into whatever space is available. In many cases, private parking lots will require you to leave your keys with the attendant so they are able to park cars 2 or 3 deep and jockey cars around as people come and go. Street parking has its own set of rules that I'm quickly learning. The color of the curb signifies whether it is ok to park there or not. If the curb is unpainted or grey, then it is legal to park at any time for free. If the curb is blue and white then it is sometimes free, sometimes you have to pay, and sometimes it is illegal, it all depends on what day and time it is and whether you have a residential parking permit. This is all explained clearly (in Hebrew) on a sign at the beginning of the street. :) In our neighborhood, there is a lot of blue-white curb and once we have the parking permit it will be legal for us to park there at all times. Without it, you will get a ticket if parked there from 7pm-9am. The rest of the time it is either free or pay parking (I'd know for sure if I could read Hebrew). Other curb colors are red-yellow, red-white, and black-white which each have their own meaning, but are all illegal and will result in a ticket and/or getting your car towed. One unwritten exception to this rule appears to be where in some neighborhoods it is "legal" to park in a red-white zone if you can park the car entirely on the sidewalk.
The parking problems even extend themselves to my office complex. The business park in Yakum that Intel resides in consists of several buildings leased by a number of local and international businesses. One would think that such an establishment would have ample parking for all the employees expected to inhabit the office building. Well, I thought that and I was wrong... There are parking lots, but not nearly enough to handle all the cars. As a result cars line both sides of the road leading up to the complex (parking in the red-white no less, another example of where it is "legal" to park there). I end up parking in a dirt lot across the street from the business park, where the "park where ever there is space" mentality thrives. If you aren't careful, you may get boxed in and not be able to leave until others have moved their cars. I haven't had it happened to me (yet), but I was warned about it the first day I got here. To get a space in one of the gated lots on site, Intel holds a lottery (I think) quarterly.
Prices
We were warned ahead of time that cost of living here is high, but it didn't prepare us for the roller coaster of emotions every time you pay for something. For me, it normally starts out with extreme sticker shock at how high the total is, followed briefly by elation once I realize that I'm looking at it in Sheckles (there are roughly 3.5 Sheckles to the Dollar), then finally buyer's remorse when I realize that I just spent over $9 on a glass of orange juice (at least it was freshly squeezed).
So far, we've noticed that prices tend to be 1.5-2.5x what they are back home. I've filled up the tank once in my car and it was about $8/gallon. Meals out can easily be over $40 a plate for a nicer restaurant and even McDonalds is $10/person (so we've been told). A beer to go along with your dinner is $8-9, a glass of mediocre wine is $12, mixed drinks $15-20. We've gone to the large supermarket twice and it has been over $150 each time (although we're still buying a lot of one time items like dishes and cleaning products).
But I'm not complaining
Don't get me wrong. Despite, or maybe because of, the quirks I've written about here both Fara and I have found Israel to be a very warm and intriguing place. Most everyone we've encountered have been friendly and very helpful in making the move here as easy as possible.
