28 by 28

The tree has been planted (Day 1 recap)

23rd January, 2011 - Posted by admin - 792 Commentshttps%3A%2F%2Fwww.28by28.com%2F2011%2F01%2F23%2Fthe-tree-has-been-planted-day-1-recap%2FThe+tree+has+been+planted+%28Day+1+recap%292011-01-23+12%3A03%3A40adminhttp%3A%2F%2Fwww.28by28.com%2F%3Fp%3D79

For those who haven’t been following the blog, I created a list of 28 things that I want to do during my 28th year. They range from little things like smiling more and planting a tree to things like going to the Kotel once a month and visiting China. Since Tu B’Shvat and my birthday coincided this year, I decided to start off the year fulfilling my goal of physically planting a tree. In addition, I invited friends and family to plant one too online through the JNF. Here is a recap of my tree-planting experience.

The JNF (Jewish National Fund) has two locations for people to visit and to plant trees. One is up north and the other is outside Jerusalem near Hadassah Hospital. I decided that since I don’t have a car I would go into Jerusalem and take a cab from Hadassah. Due to time restraints, I ended up taking a cab from the Tachana Merkazit (Central Bus Station). Instead of appreciating the scenery and the change of pace from driving in Jerusalem, the cab driver spent the entire time complaining. At one point he asked me how I was going to get back and I asked him if he would wait for me. He said he would but wanted to run the meter. I said, no.

When we arrived at the site, the instructions that the JNF person who I had spoken to over the phone were not very clear. After arguing with the cab driver (Israeli cab drivers are the best at that) and getting back in, he drove me down a hill to the planting site. Upon arrival, I was greeted by a JNF worker who handed me a tree (which happened to be almond) and took me to an already dug hole. I placed my tree in it and pushed the surrounding dirt into the hole to bury the roots of the tree.

I then got back in the cab and the driver continued to complain. By the time we got into Jerusalem he was saying that he makes more money from one hour driving people around in Jerusalem than the two hours he spent with me. I finally gave in, laughed and smiled and said he was lying and asked him if in truth he didn’t really enjoy the little excursion and change of scenery. He said he didn’t. After persisting and saying that I didn’t believe him, he finally laughed and smiled and admitted he did. Since I had told him that it was my birthday earlier on in the travel, he offered to take me to somewhere in the Tachana Merkazit and buy me coffee and cake. I politely declined.

Before going back to Tel Aviv though, I did have a delicious chai latte and pastry from Aroma.

Lessons learned and take-aways:

When Israeli cab drivers and others complain, it’s usually just a front. They do it because it makes their customers feel bad or intimidated and therefore more likely to pay more. It’s just a business tactic.

Along those lines, it’s not unusual for people in the supermarkets here to put their baskets or carts in a line and then continue to shop. This has led to many arguments among people on line, especially on Friday afternoons. Somehow though, by the end, everyone talks as if friends and tells each other about the deals they found and that the others should get the items as well.

After my experience with Dudu, I’ve decided he isn’t a completely bad guy. If you need a cab from the Tachana Merkazit in Jerusalem, he’s usually outside with the other ones. Just tell him to be nice.

Goals completed or practiced:

Learn Hebrew (we spoke in Hebrew)

Planting a Tree

Smiling more