What's different

I'm constantly asked the question "Which place do you like better [the middle east or USA]?" Similarly, I know that what's here seems foreign to friends there, and vice versa. Unfortunately I don't have a preference [I love both] and I can't un-foreign-ize each place. Hah.

But I wrote recently about the south for those who don't know it. And here are some details about the Middle East maybe you don't know about:

1. when you are outside the Tel Aviv airport's main terminal, you could honestly confuse it for LAX that's how similar the construction style is
2. the toilets here generally have two flush options, and I guarantee not a single time I intended more or less water did I deliver that into the bowl. I'm always guessing wrong, in other words
3. right turns on red are not allowed in Israel, not because of which side of the road people drive on - they drive on the right - but that's simply the law
4. right turns on red ARE allowed in the West Bank, and yet there is likely to be a lot of honking regardless of what the driver chooses to do with that opportunity
5. radio stations are in Hebrew, Russian, English, and Arabic - one in particular is called "Sowt Israel" and broadcast entirely in Arabic -- yet the name means "Voice of Israel." I can't figure out why this is so
6. the super bowl is tonight - here is my post on it from last year - and it starts at about 1:30am tomorrow. ugh, if only i weren't interested in the whole charade. 

I drove around the Sea of Galilee the other day/night and grabbed this picture