Haifa Works

Chicago has been described as “the city that works” due to its historical role as an industrial center in the States. In Israel, it has been said that “Jerusalem prays, Tel Aviv plays, and Haifa works”. We’re planning to spend the final two weeks of our trip in Tel Aviv, completing the trifecta.

Located along the northern coast, Haifa still has a working port that is visible from the steep slopes of Mt. Carmel. We got up early on Sunday, packed the two cars (because a Kia Picanto can barely fit one suitcase in its trunk), and said goodbye to Jerusalem (for now). The drive north was uneventful and took about two hours. The Hyundai i10 we rented had more pep and better gas mileage than the Picanto.

We had a leisurely breakfast at the Lehem Erez cafe on Moriya Boulevard. The food was good and a female patron who was smoking outside offered to put out her cigarette after the kids complained about the smell. She’ll thank them in twenty years.

We got the keys to our apartment, Bev moved the suitcases up three flights of stairs, then we rushed across town to return the second rental car. It was not a fun experience. It was unclear how to actually get into the Budget facility and Bev had to hunt for a full service gas station after a debacle at the Delek station: we had to return the rental car with a full tank and you need a Teudat Zehut in order to buy gas. Deep breaths. At the Budget return facility we had to show pictures of the dent in the rental car door (with timestamp) to avoid paying for damage, then sprinted to the municipal parking office downtown. The streets are so windy and the steepness makes it a little unclear where downtown is, but all that really mattered was the clerk was surprisingly nice and helpful.

We had lunch at this great restaurant nearby, but only after walking down an incredible number of stairs toward the water.

Here’s a picture of us trying to walk back up with full bellies. San Francisco has nothing on Haifa in terms of hills and steps. It is very humid here and it doesn’t take long to get drenched with sweat. For example, it is 84 degrees with 69% humidity, so it feels like 92 degrees right now.

The apartment is great, with plenty of room if you want to visit over the next couple of months. There is a mid-sized supermarket and post office a few minutes down the street. There are several parks nearby and just over the hill is the city center with the auditorium, restaurants, and shops. The Louis Promenade is a fifteen minute walk and the Baha’i Gardens are a twenty minute walk. The Haifa Zoo is maybe seven minutes away and Millie will be doing a trial week of their summer camp starting this Sunday.

On Monday, Bev took the bus to the Technion and picked up the key to an office vacated by a faculty member who is currently abroad. He located the library, figured out WiFi, and found a kumkum for making Turkish coffee. The person who handles visas, parking, and library access is out of town this week, so more patience is required. We also interviewed two nanny candidates and made an appointment to visit a preschool near the apartment for Aviva on Friday morning. Apparently, sign up for ganim happened about two months ago and most things are full ☹️.

Being in Haifa is working out, but true to the saying, everything has been a lot of work.