So the Moscow airport was a free for all, very minimalist, which I like, in terms of design, not "giving a shit."
The customs situation - There is a door wide enough for 1.5 people, no line, just a mob trying to push through - looked like a football tragedy waiting to happen.
No layover due to prior delays, got on the plane, fell asleep, woke up two hours later...
And we hadn't left the gate, derp :/
***
Get to Ben Gurion Airport outside Tel Aviv and I'm immediately flagged for being suspicious, or incredibly sexy, one could only hope... The solider asked me for an alibi with evidence - looks like my auditing career came in handy after all.
I went to the baggage claim, waited for about an hour, comforter did not show up. How poetic! Turns out its hot as hell and the air conditioner doesn't really work yet, so a blanket is the last thing I need.
I take a train to a station nearby the $15 a night hostel, I waited on the platform as an Israeli trio laid down some cool stylings on the synth, guitar and more different musical instrument. They built up quite a crowd. Once at the station, I decided to walk to the hostel, a 2.something kilometer hike with my life on my back and front. The neighborhood looked like a Call of Duty level, daddy would not have been pleased to see the sight, I'm sure. Good thing I spent a couple of semesters in college preparing for such events. Isn't pop culture in a warring nation just great! I was ready to dive behind an exploded car at a moments notice. I noticed a couple of potential tangos in an exploded building, I heard some one on a phone, hopefully not calling in an airstrike... but it was fine. Nice sunset on the final 100m stretch.
I finally got the hostel on my GPS and I saw this... Here goes nothing!
I walked around side and noticed the number on the door was the same, I rang the bell and got buzzed in.
Pretty cool little oasis, lots of street art, a pop up pool, bikes galore, I walked through the outdoor area up the stair and into the lobby and met a nice Brit named Sashana/Sashawna/Somethinglikethat, a fellow Kanye fan. I need to get back to her about the show on Sept. 30th.
I put my stuff down and headed to the beach, had to get into the Mediterranean pronto, only a 20 minute walk from the $15 a night paradise, it turned out to be. Towards the beach it didn't look like a video game warzone, it was very nice and I had my first Shawarma - which is like a gyro.
I got the the beach, there was a wedding on a rooftop, you could hear the prayers nearby and see the couple from the beach.
Back at the hostel I considered going to sleep, since I had been awake for a while, still on my caffeine bender, who knew the Russian airlines had such killer coffee? In my room I was joined by a girl from the Netherlands, with teal hair, and invited each other up to the rooftop for a beer.
We were greeted by a fine Polish woman named Hanna who was playing bartender. She's quite the world traveller, check out her travel blog
hannatravels.com, she gave me some new ideas. I then went over to the couches, one of the many, to bum a smoke, which turned into a rager that ended around 5am.
The rooftop had a canopy, cheeky lights and a great vibe. First I met a dude named J...., a man looking to hideout, very soft spoken. A Chi-town scientist named Leo, who had just finished a research assignment on water desalination. He had just developed a new invention, a double bendy straw to drink out of a wine bottle with, very innovative. An Aussie named Georgie, or at least he said it was, he was drinking a bag of wine/inflating the bag to use as a pillow to use for his "micro-naps," he took about 5 throughout the night, before the regular sized nap around 3am. And actually first, a young peppy blonde named Kazaa. She kept popping up all over the place, and sometimes sported a helmet, which looked like a dinosaur and had a sharks fin. I asked her about it,
"It's for danger." She replied.
Fair enough. We proceeded to drink and smoke for hours, was joined by some new faces, the Brit from downstairs, Hanna brought over a bottle of "wodka," another Aussie showed up, the Balls, Shane, an osteopath for pro-golfers, he was on quite the world tour. The Aussies talked AFL, and shared stories about 90s pop stars, the Brit knew, a girl from Dr. Who. Leo, Kazaa and myself felt out of water. Then Georgie took another micro nap, and we were back.
I wanted to get up at the crack of dawn, and not wake people with my alarm... My room also didn't have a/c, so I was told to sleep on the rooftop. I was a bit afraid of the "Mozzys" as the Aussies would say. I kept relocating, looking for the cheekiest spot.
I went past a large red light-up dragon, to the far side of the roof, for alleged hammock, didn't look too comfy, so I opted for the floor.
Then I reconsidered and went to the couch. Slept for a minute, got bit by a Mozzy, scratched, sun rose, went downstairs and slept in the bed. Also took 3 showers during all this, hot hot hot! My Aussie sir woke me at 11am, checkout! Packed up and headed out to my apartment. Time to meet the Real World crew!
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