I Was Walking Down the Street One Day...

In a matter of a few hours while out walking I saw the following things, some funny some disgusting but it is life in Jerusalem and Israel:

1:  3-4 year old children playing with fire and sticks without close by adult supervision We watched this go on for at least 5 minutes), it was a preschool group in a park.  In general Israelis are not as uptight about safety and security as are us Americans.  OSHA does not exist here... they have bigger fish to fry.

2: On a major road I saw a large turtle walking down the street (I carried him to a green space).

3: Honking Cars; this is one of my 2 pet peeves; Israelis* are the MOST OBNOXIOUS DRIVERS in the world.  They will sit in their cars for ten minutes honking for a friend to come out rather than to get out of their car and ring the doorbell or use their cell phone... and this goes on all day and all night. They honk (like a scream) if someone isn't going fast enough , Everyone honks at taxis as they stop wherever they please to pick up or drop off fares, or just to try to pick up a potential fare, and bus drivers honk because they can!  I may never honk again.

3: Egg plant (someone has a sense of humor)

4. I stopped to feed cats a chopped up can of sardines ( Paul and Noa made fun of me, pretending I was the old woman from Mary Poppins with the tuppence)  I love cats and someday when I weigh 300 pounds and have a house full of cats, I'll have the last laugh:-)

5. Man on an accordion; as I read The Book Thief along with Noa, I have a special place in my heart for men like Hans Hubermann.

6: Dog Poop  Pet Peeve #2; Israelis* are BARBARIANS, as most people live in apartments  and there are not back yards or  parking strips, they let their dogs poop right in front of your front door!  I hate this more than the honkers.  For example the lady with two adolescent boys who lives just below us, was fighting with a neighbor across the street as she walked her large dog to poop on their sidewalk in front of their apartment, and they yelled at her to have her dog poop in front of her own home.  When I returned home later in the afternoon, there it was a huge smoking pile in front of our gate... I'll spare you that photo.  People don't bother to pick up after their dogs or themselves for that matter... future blog will be on Recycling in Israel.

* A few people have begun to pick up after their pets and there are a handful of kind drivers.  After living in Portland for 17 years, I too became a more civilized driver.  As we are more than halfway through our adventure, part of the charm of everyday life has worn off a bit. Sorry to sound like a bummer, it is just an honest look at life in Jerusalem.