For dinner we decided to go for sushi per Alissa's request. Though this was only slightly dodgy sounding to most of our inexperienced palates, it turned out to be a quite a bit too much for Zvonimir to swallow. Starting off with salty edamame and chicken dumplings which we ate alongside warm sake, all things seemed to be going rather smoothly at first. When the main courses came out, we were all pleased with what we ordered. I ate Sunset Rolls—sushi with salmon, sweet potato, avocado, rice, and teriyaki sauce. Even Zvonimir seemed to enjoy his combination platter containing an assortment of tastes. However, once he boldly placed a rather large slab of raw salmon in his mouth, chewed, and swallowed the slimy fish he was instantly put off the rest of his meal. Regardless of this minor hiccup, the rest of us enjoyed our meals and had fun practicing our chopstick techniques.
Tanmay and Alissa
After dinner, we walked down to Mike's Place, an American bar which is located across the street from the beach. While Zvonimir and I filled up on french-fries and Irish Red beer we sat at the bar and listened to a live band with an American lead singer. The others chose to sit outside away from the booming sound coming from the bass guitar and drums. After a couple drinks, Zvonimir and I joined the rest (who now included Ari, Daniel, and Stephen from the summer program), chatted for a bit, and at midnight sang Alissa "Happy Birthday!"
Zvonimir at Mike's Place!
Around 1:00 or thereabouts we all trekked down to the beach (some of us swaying ever so slightly), and found seats in the sand very near the shoreline. A couple of us ordered drinks so that we'd be allowed to sit in beach chairs. Until 3:30am we chatted as music played in the background, and the constant glow of soft orange lighting created a festive mood. I took off my sandals and buried my feet deep within the warm sand, perfectly content though slightly dismayed when I pulled my feet out to discover a cigarette butt stuck between my toes. When we all finally arrived back to Rehovot by taxi, we immediately went to bed and dismissed all of our previous plans to arise early Friday morning to explore the various parts of Israel.
Zvonimir and Rachel on the beach
Ari, Daniel, and Johnathan
Zvonimir and Tanmay chillaxin' on the beach
This "morning" I woke up at 11:30 and went to Café Madaa with Zvonimir. Tanmay wasn't feeling so hot (as he had been a bit too adventurous in his mixed drinks last night), so slept in even later. For breakfast/lunch we both had shakshuka and coffee. Shakshuka is this very tasty Israeli dish consisting of two fried eggs on a piping hot mixture of tomatoes, onions, and other spices. It's served with a fresh loaf of bread to use as an eating utensil and to wipe up any left-over tomato sauce. Delicious!
My shakshuka at Cafe Madaa
For the rest of the afternoon, Zvonimir and I went to the mall (as he had to buy some new shoes) and then stopped by Aroma coffee shop. I've now decided that Aroma has the best iced coffee in Israel—it's not too sweet and actually tastes somewhat like coffee! Around 2:30, we headed back to the dorms and I went to work!
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