Israel - And why I got stuck at the Airport

Hey guys,

since I visited this beautiful country, I couldn’t wait until I would tell you about my experience there!

So what was the reason I traveled to Israel?

As most of you know, my boyfriend is Jewish. He had been living in Israel for quite some years and two of his brothers and his sister are living permanently there.

We were invited to the wedding of his sister, and I was more than excited to visit a country that he used to call home.

My boyfriend and his family currently live in the Netherlands while I am working in Barcelona. It was clear that we both had to get different flights. Luckily we would only have a difference of 5 hours between my arrivals and his arrival.

My adventure started at 2 am in the morning the 16th of October as my flight would take off at 6 am in the morning. You can tell I chose this option as it was the cheapest (who else would choose to wake up to such an hour?)

I tried to go to bed early - like I really tried to sleep at 8 pm haha - but it didn't quite work out. I was so nervous but I shouldn't have been! Many people asked me if I was  afraid to visit Israel with everything that is going on right now. But honestly, there was not one moment that I felt unsafe in my environment. As long as you keep to the safe areas and stay away from the Westbank, there is nothing you need to worry about. Remember, they are on high alert at all times. I must say I felt way more anxious after the attack in Barcelona (which happened only 15 minutes away from my apartment).

Everything went according to plan from the beginning of my journey until arriving in Israel - the flight went smoothly and I had the most amazing view on the sunrise while enjoying the quiet hours in the morning.

I arrived in Tel Aviv in time - the customs as everyone including me expected. The customs in Israel are known to be very strict, but to be honest, I had worse customs in London and America when immigrating.

But then the chaos had to began. Apparently, the company that was required to get our suitcases out of the airplane decided to strike - which means no one was planning on giving us our luggage for the rest of the day. (On that note, should I even be surprised anymore when it comes to strikes and demonstrations? I mean I live in Barcelona lol).

I have to give props to the Israeli mentality at this point. The passengers did not stay quiet. They put pressure on the staff of the airport, as they were too relaxed in saying “there is nothing we can do”. We had to wait more than 3 hours at the luggage claim and the people working at the airport assured us every half hour that we would receive our luggage 5 minutes (which was a lie). The people started to get louder, started to film it and pressured the staff to actually do something against it. In the meantime I was tired, hungry, unable to exchange my money or get something from the vending machines and I cried, because I felt so helpless. I felt so bad since the groom and his best friend were waiting for me in the car for all those hours and there was nothing I could do about it. Every half hour longer I told him to go home and not wait for me. Instead he sneaked in some food and drinks for me through the customs door, so that I am at least not starving anymore. I will be forever grateful! Right after I received the food I told him to go and enjoy the rest of the day. I already decided to stay at the airport and wait for my boyfriend. Once I started to eat, the luggage claim started to move! I texted him quickly and told him that I got my luggage. He actually still waited and I was so relieved to leave this place.

He and his best friend took me straight away to an all-day breakfast place. Everyone who knows me knows I would take breakfast/brunch at any time of the day.

I ordered some typical Israeli Breakfast and we enjoyed a couple of Mimosas and cocktails before I got drop off at my boyfriends Brothers place. This was the place where we could stay for the rest of the week. I was really happy to see him as we get to see each other maybe once a year and I could freshen up before we head out to pick my boyfriend and the rest of the family.  My boyfriend and his family had more luck towards the luggage claim, but their flight delayed for 1 ½ hours. This was the perfect opportunity for me to not look like a tramp after we haven’t seen each other for two months.

I think most of my fellow travelers can relate but the first moment seeing your significant other half again is an amazing feeling. And once you are together, its like you never been away from each other. Getting to the airport went pretty fast as we went by car and I couldn’t wait to spend the week with my love.

I cherish every little hello we have.

This is my first part of my Israel experience, there is so much to talk about but I don’t to torture you guys with a novel right now.

Would you like to know more about my experiences and tips of long distance relationships? Comment below!

Yours,

Karoline