Netanya-Kika-Ikea

I woke and showered and then headed for the lounge to get my blog sorted, Natalie was in early, our train date has gone sideways, as I'm going today and Natalie is going tomorrow, so after I finished I took myself to the bus stop, once again I was driven all over the mountainside to reach my destination, which althought was a train station, it was not the one I was expecting, not to worry, I jumped on the train, at Bejamina I jumped off and changed trains for Netanya, now had I bothered to double and triple check the map I would have realised there is a a north and south to Netanya, but I found that out to my cost when I got off the train at Netanya north side, cos it took me an hour to walk to Kika, desperately needing to powder my nose, it was a fast walk!!! Having arrived at Kika I ran at the toilets, well when I eventually made myself and my needs known that it. Oh the relief, if I hadn't been so dehydrated from the walk I think I would have sat and contemplated longer. I just don't get how you can be so dehydrated yet so desperate to pee, you would have thought that our very superior bodies would have worked out a system to sort through the waste and take back the fluid, but no!

Kika was a huge store, and on four levels, if you start in the middle you can actually walk around the middle of the store all the way to the top, they have some lovely stuff in there. Trouble is just now I can't decide on anything, I need to be moved in I think, although I have found an ace chair for the bedroom, which I will have to show My Beloved. I strolled around the shop and every now and then I could hear a terrible racket coming from the top floor, I eventually came across the source of the noise

A Crazy band of gentleman who were entertaining the children and adults in the store, I got accosted by them, and then had to get the obligatory photo taken with them, all this whilst they were teasing me and generally being funny. They told me we were in Austria, bit tricky seeing at I could have sworn I got off that train in Netanya.  All the staff had their faces painted for Purim and some were in costume. Children were dressed in fancy costumes and there was generally a party atmosphere all day, I saw geishas, and young girls in tutu's stood at bus stops with white painted faces, I love that all the people I have seen dressed up are not shy about their costumes, they are dressed up and proud, its a very great atmosphere. 

I left Kika and headed for Ikea, again this was another trek across Netanya, Ikea opened today for the first time since its fire and the place was mobbed, when I entered the store, there was a guy on stilts crawling up some stairs, being helped by an old man, now that was funny. I didn't see anything I liked, well apart from the obligatory smelly candles, and whilst stood at the till, an older lady behind me was getting irritated because the queue wasn't going as fast as she thought it should be, I thought she would be climbing in my Ikea bag at one stage. Candles purchased I left the shop, I decided on a taxi back to the train station, I could have walked to the south station but it was hot, my feet were already complaining and I just couldn't be bothered. I waited for my train to Benjamina and when it arrived it got on, we went one stop and the train stopped, I was busy minding my own business when a young man came up to me and said ' you need to get off the train' when I asked about getting back on he actually said 'blah blah blah' and smiled, his English is as good as my Hebrew, so I got off the train and when the doors reopened I got back on, only to realise when it started moving in the wrong direction I had once again got the wrong blasted train and was now heading back to Netanya. I arrived in Netanya and stepped off the train, I changed platforms and waited once again for the train to Benjamina grrrrrrr.  In Benjamina I asked twice before getting on the train, at least when I have done this in London on the tube, I still remain in London, you make a mistake on these babies and your in a whole other town, miles from where you want to be. Anyway correct train found and My Beloved is going to meet me at the other end, now me being on the wrong train is one thing, My Beloved getting his GPS to find the correct train station is completely different, I told him to meet me at Hof HaCarmel station because if he met me at the station I had originally left from he would have had no hair left, why? because he would have pulled it all out trying to find me.

My Beloved called and said he was at the station, and on the beach side, so I walked the subway and met him, he informed me his GPS had taken him from the hotel and on a grand tour of Haifa before she eventually bought him to the station, that woman likes to lead My Beloved on a merry dance.

When we got back I drew a bath and rested my weary body in the lovely water, we decided to eat at HaBank tonight so we got ourselves ready and headed up the road, we ordered our meals, and a lovely bottle of Katzrin Chardonnay, this wine is produced by Yarden one of the lovely Israeli wineries, and is purely Chardonnay grapes grown in the Northern Golan heights. Whilst we were eating My Beloved decided he couldn't eat the dish he had ordered as it was way to fatty for his delicate taste buds, so he complained, the trouble with not being used to complaining he turned Israeli as Natalie would say, he was a touch aggressive, and I promptly told him so, the waitress was very apologetic and offered to replace his dish, but he asked if he could just get some Pate as he didn't fancy another of the same dish.  His pate arrived and he was much happier. One bad dish out of the hundreds we have eaten it really very good odds, and it wasn't that the dish was bad, it was just the type of meat which unfortunately is a fatty piece at the best of times, and I certainly wouldn't ever order it again, I ordered it once and that was enough for me.

We finished our meals, and as we were sipping the Katzrin I received a call from Natalie, she was on her way home, so we told her to pop in, she was just across the road going past Japanika, so she crossed over and came and sat with us, 2nd Bottle ordered, the waitress bought a Creme Brulee as way of recompense for My Beloved's main course issue, and we sat and chatted about Purim, Israel, Palestine and the Gaza, we had a lovely evening, Natalie told us which parts of the Carmel centre roads will be shut on Thursday for Purim, I am so looking forward to the evening entertainment, and all the bars taking their carts outside into the street, it should be very entertaining.

In French, the word entrecôte denotes a premium cut of beef used for steaks.

A traditional entrecôte comes from the rib area of the carcass, corresponding to the steaks known in different parts of the English-speaking world as rib, rib-eye, club, Scotch fillet, or Delmonico.