I joined Sari and Dikla for lunch, which was pretty quick because Dikla had an experiment running. This was actually good as I didn't have much time to stay at work in the afternoon. I continued my powerpoint until 3:30, when I grabbed my stuff and headed out, first stopping by at Asaf's lab to say hello and goodbye. I returned to my room and repacked my bag for the weekend, then walked to the train station and got on a northbound train.
At the third Tel Aviv stop I got off and found the exit where the taxis were waiting. After a very brief confusion which was resolved when I asked about the fare, I managed to convey that I wanted to get to Dov airport, which was closeby, and not Ben Gurion, which was not. Ten minutes later I found myself at the pedestrian entrance to the airport. I was asked to show my passport and answer a few logical questions about my stay in Israel, then passed through and entered the building.
I then passed through the security and then had to answer numerous illogical questions centered on my brother and synagogue before being able to check in for my flight. I was told that my flight would be boarding at gate two. When I sat down, I looked at the back wall of the airport. It was glass, so you were able to see that the three gates were just three adjacent glass doors opening onto the same bus lot. I could also see numerous small planes, and a few of those little vehicles which tow carts of luggage at gates. One of these was actually pulling a plane, interestingly enough. I couldn't get a picture, to my dismay.
We began boarding about 15 minutes after I had been told, which also happens to be 5 minutes before the flight was scheduled to take off. Two busloads of us filed through "gate 2" and onto the waiting vehicles. Five minutes later we were climbing the steps up to the plane, which was parked on the tarmac about 30 meters away from the sea. We all got seated and took off. It was hard to hear, but at times during the flight the pilot pointed out sites like Massada as we passed over them. The airline, called Arkia, is one of two that flies out of this airport (the other being Israir), but I totally approve of it due to their serving us Ben and Jerry's in cute little cartons with built-in spoons as the in-flight snack.
Fourty-five minutes later we landed in Eilat, and I caught a glimpse of the hotel where my family was (and, as it turns out, my mom was out on the balcony and saw the plane land). I grabbed a short cab ride and came up to the sixth floor to meet the fam! We hung out a bit as they showered after their evening dip in the sea and pool, then, once everyone was clean and happy, walked a short way to the restaurant, called Pago Pago. It was recommended to us by our guide, Eli, as the best place around for seafood. The selection was amazing, and included all sorts of dishes including a diverse sushi menu. We all ended up getting some sort of permutation of shrimp and calamari, but ordered a few different sushi dishes as apetizers. I also introduced my family to Goldstar, which seemed to be a relative success!
After eating we started making our way back towards the hotel. Andrew and I decided to stick around the boardwalk area for a bit and see if we could ride an extreme-looking contraption called the "Sling Shot," while the rents headed back. We decided the ride was way too expensive, so bummed about the shops for a few minutes before heading back ourselves. In the room, Andrew flipped the channels a bit and we caught the end of The Last King of Scotland (I think?) before calling it a night.
This is all of Dov Airport...
...and these are the three gates.
A view from the bus of the entire airport and the other buses
Very reassuring safety instruction card
The view from my window
Only in Eilat: sunscreen ads on the luggage carousel
An interesting sign along our walk to dinner
The [floating] restaurant
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