i went to israel: post 4

With knitting content.  Before we left, I thought "Ten days not working! An eleven hour flight!  Driving around the Galillee! I will knit. So much!".  I wound yarn to knit a new project*.  I doubled down, packing my almost finished Cladonia. I double-dog-dare-ya'ed down, bringing addresses of yarn shops strategically located around the country.
Above, on the 8th day of the trip, one of the only times I sat and knit. Over outdoor breakfast in Haifa. Note: I am not complaining.

Although, who wouldn't linger at this cafe, in chill city, under the olive trees? My breakfast is shakshuka: eggs baked in a spicy tomato and vegetable stew**. Served with fresh pita and Turkish coffee.

The world headquarter of the Baha i faith is there, (top image above) set in a garden that climbs the steep mountainside, terraced along with the city. Turns out you can only enter to walk all the levels of the gardens on a tour--and our timing was off to take part in any tour.  That little glimpse, above on top,  through the (sob) gates barely gives a sense of the majesty and fantasy of it all.  We explored all over the city, though, on foot and by the funicular underground train. The center image above, of a super modern building, is near the shipping port. To counter the way I've only shown old neighborhoods. We were surprised how much new construction is underway, all over the state.  
We stayed in a little hotel - another last minute booking.com score- that we loved. It was chic-er than we are. I had the best time torturing the owner's twenty-something son by having an extended conversation about growing up there, in my mangled Hebrew. I have no pride when it comes to yapping in other languages. That's the door to the hotel, above on the left, with a map to remind you where to enter. It's in the old downtown, near the shipping port. It has little hidden cocktail bars and tiny tempting storefronts that I'm guessing are indie clothing designers' studios, although they weren't open when I was peeking in. Obviously I need a raincheck with Haifa.

More heavenly blue, looking over the harbor at dusk, by the gates to the Gan Bahai

* The new project is a shawl  from this new now-on-pre-sale book, which if you note the authors' names, you know you'll be hearing more.  I am grateful I chose blue yarn to bring along. It should be clear by now what color I wanted to knit with forever.

**I linked to the Smitten Kitchen recipe for shakshuka because I'm her fan--but a quick search confirmed the way I've been cooking it for years--you can throw in whichever veggies you have around, you can spice it up or keep it simple, you can top it with feta, or plain yogurt or nothing. You cannot go wrong with shakshuka.