Answers to Some FAQ

Hi all,
Sorry it took me too long to answer. I'm just too busy, and somehow it doesn't surprise me.
Ireland is very nice, yet a bit retarded in certain ways, but you cannot have it all. So at least work is fine. There's a lot to do, but I enjoy it and it's very interesting. I love the people I work with, the food at work (which is a huge problem, but at least we have a free gym, and I'm there almost every other day), and the feeling that we are really being taken care of.

The most important thing is earning Euros and living in Ireland. It really makes everything else and other places to seem so cheap. And helps admitting that Israel is not such a bad expensive place to live. especially not Tel Aviv. And I'm serious. Try to pay no less than 1200 Euros for 1 bedroom apartment (and at least 1500 for 2 bedrooms). And the obvious thing is of course being closer to the rest of Europe and the lack of El Al presence nearby. It may be the main reason why the flights are cheap.

It also feels like people here are planning their next vacation all the time. So am I. That's what happens when people have so many free days a year (excluding National Holidays!). It also seems like I have been abroad (of Ireland) every month since I moved here. Yes, we already have plans for the next vacation which will be on 1-10 of December. We will be in Hong Kong. We already booked flights (even cheaper than what it would have cost in Israel) and hotels.

So... Those are the only updates I can come out with for now. Feel free to comment (or send an email) , and I think I'll use my blog for future updates for my dearest friends. Don't feel bad if it takes a while till you hear something back from me...
By the way, I can read and write Hebrew on my laptops, so don't write in English I you don't feel like (Unless you comment. Lets be fair towards my non-Israeli fans).

And to my dear friends that miss me, I really miss you and all the fun we had. And since you miss me in the office as well, maybe you better send me you CV??? Take a day or 2 to think about it.

And... Don't forget to check out the pics from Oslo, on my blog!

Air Bus

One of the great advantages of living in a European country is of course the possibility of cheap traveling. The low-cost airlines, to be precise. One of the biggest dreams of the average Israeli.
So guess what, after being in London last month I'm going to be in Oslo the coming weekend. We are going to be 13 friends from work, and probably we'll spend most of the weekend trying to work it out so that everybody will be content. But who cares? In that case its the company that counts.

Besides, I'm sure I'll be in Norway again one day, hopefully on February, to see Northern Lights. That has been one of my dreams ever since I was a child. One of my favourite book I liked to read over and over was a children's science book, and when I was reading about the northern light for the first time, and looking at the attached pictures, I decided that one of my goals in life is to witness this amazing phenomena.

But that's not what I want to talk about. Lets go back to the subject, this weekend in Oslo.

The flights are cheap indeed, cheaper than flying from Tel Aviv to Eilat.
But there is a catch. Probably there always is... It's possible to find and book a flight for 0.01 Euros (yes, 1 Euro cent), depends on when you travel and how much time in advance.

The reason we go to Oslo is the cheap flight (and lets ignore the fact that Norway is a very expensive country, even more expensive than Ireland). But in our case, we discovered we have to take a bus from the airport to Oslo, around 2 hours journey, and will cost us 35 Euros each, one way. so that's the money we were trying to save by booking cheap flights. Damn!

Oh, yes, 3 more things. Fees, to be precise:
Luggage fee- 6-10 Euros for each bag you check in, depends on the airline and whether you pay in advance or at the airport. Luckily, passengers can (still) take carry on luggage for no extra fees. 1 for each passenger, and depends on the size of the bag.
Check in fee- only the online check in is free. otherwise pay extra 7 euros.
Credit card fee- 6 Euros for each passenger. One can avoid that fee incase s/he pays with Visa electron. Otherwise, no one can get away with this.

So eventually the amount of money we spend in order to arrive to our destination is reasonable enough, definitely not cheap.

So the lesson for today is that there's no such thing as free meals (except from Google). Unless, of course, you get your flights to London Gatwick for as little as 10.02 Euros (0.02 Euros for the flights and 10 more for the Credit Card fee) or Edinburgh for 20 Euros.

My First Time

Or: First Month Summary

1. Got my first ever Free Massage for the first time in my life
2. Played Foosball for the first time in my life
3. Played Nintendo Wii for the first time in my life
4. Worked extra hours on my third week in a new job for the first time in my life
5. And must think how I want to spend my 11 Vacation days by the end of the year! And some other 25 days by the end of next one, not including public holidays - another 9 days per year. I wish this was my only problem. But when I come to think of it, I don't have that many problems these days for the first time in my life
6. Having an umbrella in my bag on a regular basis for the first time in my life
7. Walked in the rain wearing shorts for the first time in my life
8. Not working on Sundays for the first time in my life
9. Go to the Gym (for the first time in 6 years)
10. And don't have to pay for it for the first time in my life
11. Went to a Jews' singles party (organized by Rabbi Zalman), and enjoyed every minute (not everybody were Jews neither single) for the first time in my life
12. Drank alcohol every weekend for the first time in my life
13. Being broke for the first time in my life. Had more money when I was 16 (Don't want to spend the money I have in Israel)
14. But I'm also doing good by thinking how shall I spend the little money I do have.
15. Don't spend money on food during weekdays for the first time in my life
16. I'll have a very impressive this month for the first time in my life. This month only, though...
17. And of course living abroad, (18.) working abroad, (19.) to be precise- working at Google, (20.) partying and having fun and (21.) trying to count how many people in Israel are thinking of me and wanting to strangle me out of jealousy. Or just strangle me without any reasonable reason (I can think of one person right now! haha ha ha hahaha ha... I wish she could read that!) all of the above- for the first time in my life

There are many other first times I just can't remember. So many new good things and adventures. Besides, I must leave something for my next post.

I also have to go to a party soon, so no time as well.