mmm-yoso!!!

Riding the San Diego Trolley and a Visit to UTC

mmm-yoso!!! is a blog written mostly by Kirk.  But since He and His Missus are on a month-long vacation, Cathy is helping out.  All of our posts are about food, either directly or indirectly.  Today is another indirect post. 

In September, I received the dreaded notice in the mail-Jury Duty.  This notice was not like the others received during Covid-19 times (call a phone number after 5 p.m. starting on a specific Thursday until the following Wednesday or upon being called in to the Court).  No, this notice gave me a date to show up-Downtown.  Since I hadn't been on the Trolley in years, knew it had expanded to University Town Center in November 2021 and was curious after seeing the 'new' extension being built over the years, then seeing some banners advertising a "Ride the Trolley Free Day" happening in a few days, The Mister and I decided to make a day of it to get me re-acclimated to this mode of transportation. We started at the top right corner of this map (Green Line), changed to the Orange Line and after getting downtown, changed again to the Blue Line going North, ending up at the top left of this map. (Going home, we changed from the Blue to the Green Line)
 It was sunny leaving Santee.
 Then it got a bit cloudy when we hit downtown.
 Many people left the Trolley at this stop, since it was closest to the Ballpark and the Padres had a playoff game.
 By the time we were headed on the 'new' line, alongside Interstate 5, there was full fog.
 We stayed on until the last stop, followed signage (and the other people who exited) to the Mall (through the parking lot) and eventually got to the Food Court, which overlooks the Ice Rink.
 After checking all of the Food Court offerings, we decide on a meal and went off to order.  The Mister stopped here, at Craft Pizza.
He ordered a Calzone with ham, sausage and mushrooms; an item going back to our dating days.  This was excellent.
 I went over to Kebab Grill and ordered a 'Lunch Special' advertised behind the cash register to the left in this photo.
 Salad and
 Lentil soup.  Each was really good and made for a filling and complete meal. Then we started walking around the mall. 
   The Mall has remained about the same, with new stores taking the place of old ones.  There were some interesting vending machines.
 Then we saw this.  Had to stop.
 A great selection of cookies, cupcakes, pastries and ice cream as well as hot and cold beverages.  
 We shared a cup of coffee and a Jesuite pastry (Napoleon/flaky pastry filled with an almond custard, topped with almonds) (Triangle shaped  like a Jesuit Priest hat).

Then we headed home, enjoying a different route.  
 It was still overcast changing from the Blue Line to Green Line in Old Town. Passing the new Snapdragon Stadium and back to sunshine by the time we got home.

Jury Duty was at the new Courthouse, which has scaffolding and canopies all around because windows have been mysteriously shattering.  It's very nice; has a good cafeteria. I wasn't called, so expect another notice in the mail next year.  

Soo rode the trolley, too!

Paris (2022) - Chez Meunier (Rue Rambuteau), Musée Carnavalet, and L'As du Fallafel

We had asked the owner of the AirBnb we were staying at for a croissant recommendation. He lived in the apartment part of the year, so I was interested in what he would choose. He told us that his regular spot was down Rue Rambuteau across Rue Beaubourg. An outpost of Chez Meunier.

Chez Meunier has several locations in Paris and this didn't look too promising, but I thought we should try it.

Chez Meunier
18 Rue Rambuteau
75003 Paris

After picking up the Croissant we headed to our destination for the morning heading down Rue des Francs Bourgeois. We passed this cafe, Le Voltigeur along the way. Notice anything interesting?

Notice all the Teddy Bears? Apparently, various cafes across Paris used these over-sized stuffed animals as tools for social distancing during the pandemic! And now they are just hanging around enjoying the fruits of their labor!

There was also some interesting street art along Rue des Francs Bourgeois as well.

As for our destination. I had read that the Musée Carnavalet had just reopened after renovations two months before our visit. The museum, which is dedicated to the history of Paris resides in two former mansions. And best of all; admission is free!

As with many museums we've visited, we took our time. And heck, admission is free and we're sure to return to Paris and can always return.

We especially enjoyed the gallery of shop signs.

Some were pretty easy to figure out.

Others might keep you guessing. Guess the business of this sign.

According to the attached "sign" this was for a cheese maker and hung in the cheese district around Les Halles when it was Paris's central market!

We basically viewed the displays and rooms up to the 198th century and decided to leave the rest for a future visit.

The cafe area is also quite beautiful.

We decided to get some coffee and got us a table in the courtyard.

And had the croissant from Chez Meunier.

Which wasn't very good. Not enough butter, not light and flaky enough, and too doughy.

Oh well, at least the setting was great!

Musée Carnavalet
23 Rue de Sévigné
75003 Paris, France

Finishing our coffee we headed on out. We decided to grab something light for lunch and headed on over to Rue des Rosiers. The area around here is considered the Jewish Quarter of Paris and Rue des Rosier right before Rue Vieille-du-Temple is pedestrian only and is packed with Jewish/Kosher/Middle Eastern Restaurants. There's one place that is quite "famous" and always has a line. L'As du Fallafel. The line on this day wasn't as long as usual, So, we decided to actually try the fallafel sandwich.

The line moves quickly and it was a twenty minute wait.

The guys working here work hard and fast!

The fallafel sandwich looked quite good!

We loved the tender and warm pita and all the tasty veggies. As for the fallafel, well, even though this was better than anything I've ever had in San Diego, I guess our trip to Israel has really spoiled us. The fallafel here were on the harder, drier side and the interior was grittier than we prefer.

Still, in spite of the wait, it made for a decent lunch. And that line stretched all the way down the block as we left.

L'As du Fallafel
34 Rue des Rosiers
75004 Paris, France

We're glad we tried it.

We had a bit of shopping to do before heading back to the apartment. We had dinner reservations and one more full day in Paris. Time just seems to go so quickly when we're visiting.

Kaelin's- Eating inside the market

mmm-yoso!!! continues being blogged by Cathy while Kirk and His Missus continue to enjoy vacationing.  

I wrote about Kaelin's Mi Pueblo  back in 2011 and it still is one of our 'regular' stops.  As always, The Mister and I try to have a small meal before grocery shopping so as not to be tempted to purchase 'impulse' items.   The name of the market has changed slightly, the interior is still kept organized and clean.  
 As you walk in, the first kitchen/menu board/ refrigerated grab and go to your right has a clay tannour oven with fresh, hot flatbreads on the counter (El Cajon has the second largest Iraqi community in the USA).   Actually, this Middle Eastern kitchen is shared with the Mexican kitchen- there is a spit of rotating shawarma next to the spit of rotating al pastor.  You order Middle Eastern foods here, are given price stickers and pay at the cash registers while your food is being prepared. The Taqueria/Mexican menu board and cash register is a few feet more into the store, next to the seating area.  We usually purchase an aqua fresca here.
 On this visit, we chose a package of hummus ($4.99).  Fresh made that morning, great flavors, plenty left over to take home.

   We ordered two beef kababs ($2 each) and I watched as the ground beef, mixed with spices, was placed on long, flat kabab skewers and began cooking on the grill.  Made to order.  The meat was served with a roasted tomato half and a mix of chopped onion and parsley. 
 Here is the loaf of hot tannour bread ($2.25) which was placed in a paper bag after being removed straight from the side of the clay oven. Crisp, flavorful browned bubbles with soft, easy to tear middles.  Great flavor.  It went well with both the hummus and the kabab meat.  

A nice light meal with leftovers and beverage for less than $15.

Kaelin's  Market 1435 East Main Street El Cajon Ca 92021 (619)440-1423 Market is open daily 7a.m.-10 p.m.  Kitchen opens 10:30 a.m. 

Kaelin's  Market 1435 East Main Street El Cajon Ca 92021 (619)440-1423 Market is open daily 7a.m.-10 p.m.  Kitchen opens 10:30 a.m. 

Pioneer Park and Revisiting Ibis Market 20 Years Later

One of my favorite local blogs is Cool San Diego Sights, posts are put up on a regular basis and and some of the posts are quite interesting. And during the pandemic, I took to visiting places I'd long heard of like finding the grave site medallions for folks who are buried un San Diego Avenue. Along those lines, I had heard that Mission Hills Park, Pioneer Park had graves onsite and also buried in the park. And after reading this post, I decided to head on over to the park which I'd driven past many times.

It's a nice park, located right next to a school.

The pooches always seem to be having the best time!

The wall surrounding the park looks pretty old.

And as you head east just south of the playground area (?!!?!?) overlooking Washington Street you see it.

Good lord! Apparently, this was the site of Calvary Cemetery, which fell into disrepair. And in the 70's it was decided that there should converted into a park. So, you figure they'd go ahead and move the 800 graves, right? Well, they removed all the tombstones except for those that line the edge of the park. They did not however, remove the graves.....so all those folks are still buried under Pioneer Park. There a list of them in the park.

You can't make this stuff up?

While driving back from Pioneer Park, I passed a place that I hadn't thought about in years.

Ibis Market! Man, we used to get our hummus fix from here when we first moved to San Diego  and lived in Mission Valley. Which would be over 21 years ago! 

I decided to stop and check the place out.

It pretty much looked the same.

I walked to the deli counter and had to rub my eyes.....

Deli sandwiches are priced at $6.99.......which is crazy low for these days!

But I was interested in other items.....

The Missus and I miss Harvest Market down the street which closed during the pandemic. So, I sent the Missus a text and got a couple of items....

The hummus sampler. The Missus liked the jalapeno hummus, my favorite was the classic hummus, our least favorite was the artichoke hummus which had curry in it. It had a bitterness we didn't enjoy.

The Missus recalled how much She always liked the Dolmas, so I got that for Her.

I got my old favorite, the pickled beets which I still enjoy.

So much that I finished the whole container.

We enjoyed this warm weather meal with some pita that I bought as well.

A few nights later, the Missus sent me to Ibis to get some Falafel....I wasn't too keen on getting deli counter falafel, but what the heck. Of course I got my pickled beets and another item that I recalled liking.

The Armenian Potato salad, which is pretty good.

We still had pita bread and hummus leftover, so I just had to figure out how to heat up the falafel.

So, this is what worked the best. I got the toaster oven out and put it on toast at a high temp. I then microwaved the falafel for 1 minute to heat thru. I then crisped it up in the toaster oven. Not the best falafel I've had but the outside was crisp and interior was fairly moist and still had hints of a nice creaminess.

I like the couple that run the place; they are quite friendly and helpful.

It's nice to know that Ibis is still open two decades and one pandemic since we last visited.

Ibis Market
1112 Fort Stockton Drive
San Diego, CA 92103
Hours:
Daily 10am - 7pm

Roadtrip (2022) - Ojai Rotie

After lunch at Yume Japanese Burger Cafe we decided to take a short drive and headed east along Highway 150. The winding road headed uphill and we stopped at the Ojai Valley Lookout. From here you have a wonderful view of Ojai Valley and are surrounded on all sides by mountains.

We drove a bit further, before returning to Ojai to check in at our accommodation.

We showered, relaxed, and even took a short nap before heading out to dinner. Our dinner destination was a nice stroll away; Ojai Rotie.

Ojai Rotie describes themselves as being:

"Chef/Farmer driven, fast casual patio-restaurant offering French-Lebanese style rotisserie chicken".

The atmosphere is relaxed, the large patio is a wonderful place to eat on a warm summer's evening.

We had reservations and were shown to one of the tables. I then went into the main building and placed my order and paid at the counter. I was given a number and placed that on the table. 

You then go to the small detached structure to order wine and beer.

The young man working asked me if I was from out of town (folks in Ojai are really friendly), and when I replied yes, he asked where I hailed from. When I mentioned San Diego, he told me he went to college in SD and we had a nice chat.

People watching was quite interesting. There seemed to be quite a few "locals" or at least regulars. I hadn't seen so many folks wearing Birkenstocks in one place.....also interesting choices of slippers. Folks seemed to wear shorts and many women wore flowing "new agey" dresses with dangling earrings to match.

Soon enough our order arrived at our table......

We had ordered the "Dippity Dips"........

Three different "dips" with Manuoche; the typical Lebanese flatbread with a light sprinkling of Za'atar on it. The Bread was warm, slightly yeasty and very pleasant eating.

Our favorite of the three items was the White Bean Hummus; so beany and creamy.

This was delicious; though I think a touch of lemon would have taken this to another level.

The Muhamarah was pretty good.

This was much smoother and creamier than what we're used to; but it matched quite well with the Manuoche. The generous amount of pomegranate molasses made this a bit too sweet for our tastes; but it was still a nice dish.

I was looking forward to the Charred Eggplant, but it proved to be a bit disappointing.

While adequately creamy, this was missing the smoky-savory tones of a nicely charred/grilled eggplant. It was also lacking adequate salt for our tastes.

Still that White Bean Hummus was really good and the Missus has been asking me to make some.

Of course we had to try the rotisserie chicken and I'd heard good things about the pommes rotisserie. So we got a quarter chicken meal with the roasted potatoes and caramelized cauliflower as sides.

First off, we weren't big fans of the chicken which was on the dry side. The seasoning also seemed quite mild. The saving grace was the bold and piquant garlic paste, which was sooooo good, but stayed with us for the entire evening if you know what I mean. The roasted potatoes were cold, but we both enjoyed the lemon-aioli. The Missus really enjoyed the cauliflower which was generously seasoned and had some great "role players" in the form of pine nuts, golden raisins, and baby kale.....each adding in a layer of complexity.

 We'd gladly eat here again. While sitting and watching the "regulars" get their orders we noticed that the house made sourdough bread and lamb kafta were popular and looked quite good.

We really enjoyed the vibe and setting.

And then there are the people.....we would really come to enjoy and appreciate the warm and friendly folks we ran into in Ojai.

For instance, that gentleman in the photo to my right. As he walked by, I noticed his t-shirt, which I really liked, so I took a photo of him.  Apparently he saw me taking his photos and came on by and asked me if I liked his shirt and we had a short chat. His name is Dave and he is in charge of restoring and renovating the Ojai Playhouse. We had a really nice conversation and he headed off....only to return a few minutes later with a t-shirt for me!

Yes, it says "Ojai Psychic Friends Network" and I love the t-shirt....plus I got a nice story to tell about how generous folks are in Ojai. And how in the world did he know I was admiring his shirt? Psychic perhaps???

Thanks Dave!

Ojai Rotie
469 E Ojai Ave.
Ojai, CA 93023
Hours:
Wed - Thurs 4pm - 830pm
Fri - Sun 12pm - 3pm, 4pm - 9pm
Closed Mondays and Tuesdays

Tahini (Kearny Mesa)

mmm-yoso!!!, a food blog.  Cathy is writing today; Kirk and His Missus are on vacation.

Since October 2017, Tahini has been thriving in the small strip mall on Clairmont Mesa just East of the County Assessors Office.  The 'original' location is being reconstructed to open as Finjån (a Turkish/hot sand coffee shop) just next door to the newer, larger corner storefront.  Same owners. There is plenty of parking in front as well as behind the building. You step inside, walk up and order (there is also a Self-Service ordering kiosk in that far corner next to the cash register).  

The menu is simple. 
 Three types of 'main' dishes that you can personalize with three types of proteins and toppings.  There are also six 'appetizers'-which could be a primary meal, seven 'sides' and one dessert.  Everything is made to order; fresh pita is constantly cooling on racks near the entrance, fresh from the oven.
 'Halloumi Cheese Stix' appetizer ($9).  Halloumi is a semi-hard cheese with a high melting point, so it can be fried.  It is a goat and sheep's milk cheese, kind of tangy.     It's served on top of a wheat pita along with a fig jam and a cucumber-yogurt sauce.  Every element of this appetizer is fresh and flavorful. This is a half order of Tahini Fries ($5).  Crisp potato fries topped with tomato, red onion, red bell pepper, pepperoni, kalamata olives, feta cheese, garlic sauce and tahini sauce.  (The large size ($7) is more than enough for sharing).
 This is a side order of Cumato Salad ($3).  Cucumbers and tomatoes, diced and mixed with an olive oil based dressing, topped with feta.  Refreshing.  (The Cumato Salad appetizer is $6). 

The "Build Your Own" menu consists of three choices: Pita Sandwich, Salad or Rice Bowl.  There are three choices of protein: falafel (made when you order), chicken shawarma or steak shawarma.  The chicken is marinated with 10+ ingredients and the beef is certified Angus, also marinated with 10+ ingredients. 
 This is the chicken shawarma salad ($12.50-salad, $9.50, add chicken $3), customized with add ons and topped with garlic sauce and tahini sauce.  

Choices of add ons: lettuce, tomato, pickles, pickled turnips, cheese, parsley mix, bell pepper, kalamata olives, pepperocini.  (Feta cheese is 50¢ as are toasted almonds). 

Housemade sauces: tahini, garlic, BBQ tahini, Sriracha tahini, cilantro tahini, cucumber yogurt.  

Plenty of moist, marinated, roasted chicken; plenty of all the other ingredients.  Fresh, flavorful, wonderful. 
 The steak salad ($12.50) had a generous portion of the marinated steak as well as all the other ingredients.
 This time, asking for the sauce on the side was a way to try the BBQ tahini (it was subtle; you could still make out the sesame base) as well as our 'must have', the whipped garlic sauce.  Again, a wonderful, filling, tasty salad.  
A falafel sandwich ($9- pita sandwich is $8, falafel is $1) comes with five fresh made falafel, your choice of add ons and sauce.  These are fava bean based falafel, mixed with fresh herbs and subtle spices and perfectly fried so the exterior 'crust' is a light crisp and the interior is fluffy.

Owned by American and Arab friends with immigrants, refugees, butchers and bakers as employees, made it through Covid-19.  A great place to enjoy Middle Eastern Street Food. 

Soo and Maggie have been here.

Tahini 9119 Clairmont Mesa Blvd, Suite H San Diego 92123 Open Mon-Sat 11-8, Sun 11-7 Website

 Trays of fresh pita cooling.

Jerusalem (Before Covid) - Exploring Machaneh Yehudah Market and the Old City, Lunch at Jachnun Bar, Dinner at Machneyuda, and Beer Bazaar

**** This is another long one as I try to finish up our Israel posts; thanks for dropping by

I made sure to keep our last full day in Jerusalem open. I figured that we'd have seen enough over the last couple of days to figure out how we'd like to spend the day. And we started off at Machaneh Yehuda Market.

It was early and the food vendors weren't open yet, so we had a chance to check out the produce, bakery, and meat stalls....something we always enjoy and this was no exception.

We always learn so much about the culture and a region by just exploring the open air markets.

   We stopped to check out the varieties of tea available in this shop and the very friendly young man started chatting with us. He was so nice and we came to find out that he is originally from new York City! Of course the Missus finding out he was from the states immediately started the "interrogation"....boy did the questions flow. And he was so nice, with a great sense of humor. I ended up getting a coffee and the Missus some tea....She even purchased some tea as well. 

I asked the young man where to grab a Sabich and he made a recommendation.....he was so nice.

Machaneh Yehudah Market
Agripas St. 90
Jerusalem, Israel

From here we walked past Mamilla Mall and into the Old City.

This was a Monday and things seemed much quieter than the previous days.

And along with the now familiar sites.....

There were things we hadn't noticed on the previous day. At the Fifth Station of the Cross we saw this.

Apparently, this is where Christ stumbled and placed his hand on the wall to balance himself. And this is his handprint in stone along the Via Dolorosa.

We went ahead and followed the route in reverse from where we had started the previous day.

 Until we arrived at the First Station where Pontius Pilate condemned Jesus to die and the Crown of Thorns was placed on his head.

Right past this spot is the Church of the Flagellation where Pilate had Jesus flogged. We had wanted to see this area the previous day, but our guide would not take us because it as in the Muslim Quarter.

From here we decided to explore the Muslim Quarter for a bit.

Which seemed pretty mellow and relaxed. We stopped for some tea at this shop.

And just hung out with the old timers outside and watched the world go by.....

We were starting to get a bit hungry so we headed back to the area around Machaneh Yehudah Market and found the recommended Sabich Shop. We walked in and the menu was in Hebrew. There were no customers when we arrived so I asked about the menu....the two young ladies working were not very nice; I was told; "you read the menu and order....it right there..." And she walked away. I did a Google translate thing, walked back to the counter and was ignored. Two customers walked in behind me and their order was taken. So, I figured that they really didn't want my business so we crossed the street and went into the Market and stopped at this stand.

The Young Man working the counter was a hoot....he loved flirting with all the girls walking by.

There was something on the menu She wanted to try......

    The Shakshuka. This was quite good; great acidic-sweet tomato flavors.....like sunshine in the form of food. The eggs were lovely, the Missus just loved the seasoning. She even enjoyed the bread!

I was told; "you better up your Shakshuka game!"

Hmmm.....

Me, well I got the namesake item; the Jachnun.

  Man, this was quite good as well. Loved the pastry used to wrap the simple fillings; egg and eggplant was particularly tasty.

This was a very nice lunch...I'm glad we came here; I guess it was fate, huh?

Jachnun Bar
(Machaneh Yehudah Market)

We strolled back to the apartment and packed, we had a morning flight back to Paris, so there would be no time to dilly-dally in the morning. After which we had a nice afternoon nap.

For our last meal, I chose a highly recommended and very popular restaurant near Machaneh Yehudah Market named Machneyuda. I kept reading about the place and when Yotam Ottolenghi mentioned the place in several articles online; well it just seemed like the right pick for us.

We had 645 reservations and arrived at a hair past 630. The place was already packed and we were seated upstairs where the music and the discussions weren't quite as loud.

   The menu is a single sheet; but there's quite a bit to choose from. The direction of our ordering was based on our previous meals and we also selected dishes that caught our attention.

And as we often do; we made a meal out of several starters as those menu items seemed the most interesting.

The first two dishes were easy to pick. We had really enjoyed the vegetables in Israel, so we made sure to get a couple of veggie based items.

Starting with the Turkish Tomato Salad.

Man, the wonderful sweet-acidity of the tomatoes; just perfect.

The Cabbage Siniya was also very good.

The cabbage had been charred thus creating a nice smoky-sweetness and wonderful textural contrast. The nutty-earthy tones of the tahini gave the dish some heft and the chilies added a bit of zip.

Our least favorite item of the night was the Shaour Tartare.

   The tartare was delivered covered by spinach leaves; which were browning and getting discolored. The fish itself was quite chewy and very mild in flavor which was just over-powered by the aioli, herbs, and spices.

Meanwhile, the Sweetbreads were so delici-yoso!!!

Firm at first bite, giving way to a wonderful creaminess; the tomato and radish paired quite well, smoothing out any strong metallic-offal flavors with the dill adding in a grassy, slightly anise touch to things. The flatbread was crisp and nicely charred.

Our last dish was the Crispy Brain with Eggplant.

As if things couldn't get better; the brain was nicely fried; the interior so crisp then creamy, the tender eggplant smoky, the bread added a brioche like sweetness.

Overall, this was a excellent dinner and a great way to end our stay in Jerusalem.

Machneyuda
Beit Ya'akov St. 10
Jerusalem, Israel

After this wonderful dinner, the Missus treated me to a nightcap, stopping at the Beer Bazaar location in Machaneh Yehudah Market.

Hipster Jerusalem anyone?

Actually we enjoyed the vibe here; the bartender spent time in San Diego! 

She told me to keep the coaster to remember our time here.

Cool folks!

Beer Bazaar Jerusalem
(Machaneh Yehudah Market)

Like I said, this was our favorite area in Jerusalem.

Back at the apartment, I sat on the porch for a while.

And tried to take in all that we'd seen and done over the last couple of days....whew.....

The next morning we were off to Ben Gurion International Airport. We had time to check out the lounge since we were flying Business Class on El Al.

And had a light breakfast.

And we got fed again on our flight to Paris.....

We arrived in Paris on time. We'd have one night before moving on to our next stop!

Jordan (Before Covid) - Petra at Night and Wadi Rum

**** I'm trying to finish up our pre-Covid travel posts, so will try to keep this brief, the photos speak for themselves. Not much food in this one.

After seeing the wonders of Petra in person, we decided to do Petra by Night. I had planned on being in Wadi Musa on one of the three nights the light show was available (Mon-Wed-Fri). We had an early dinner in the hotel we were staying at; Petra Palace.

And then walked over to the Petra Visitors Center to stand in line for tickets. We got there early and were the fifth group of folks getting tickets. Just before 830 we were let in and proceeded to head down the Siq toward Al-Khazneh (the Treasury).

The path was lined with candles.

After getting to the Treasury, we found sat on mats along the candlelit ground.

And soon enough, there was the sound of a flute and the lights shining on the Treasury came on.

And then more music, more lighting effects, a reading/poem.....more lights.....

After a while it got a bit monotonous; but heck I guess it's worth doing once?

And then we marched back out of Petra and back to the hotel.

The next morning we packed up had a quick breakfast in the hotel.....

We checked out and waited excitedly for our driver to pick us up.....well, that is, I waited excitedly. You see, the next part of our tour was for Wadi Rum. Not that I knew a lot about Wadi Rum....but what little I knew surrounded the tales of one T.E. Lawrence, probably more well known in the west from the movie Lawrence of Arabia. TE Lawrence fought alongside the Arab tribes revolting against Turkish rule and is known to have been launched from Wadi Rum. In fact, there's a set of peaks in Wadi Rum named after one of Lawrence's writings. Anyway, Lawrence of Arabia was one of my late Mom's favorite films and without fail, she would watch it everytime it was on television. You can read more about TE Lawrence and Wadi Rum here.

That's the "Seven Pillars of Wisdom" above; named after Lawrence's Autobiographical work of the same name.

It's quite possible that I enjoyed Wadi Rum even more than Petra in some ways. Perhaps it was our amazing Bedouin Guides and Drivers, whose sense of humor was great and also the Australian couple, who was on our tour of Petra the previous day who were so much fun and easy going.

From the Nambatean ruins.....

To the amazing peaks and valleys....

The views......my goodness....

We would and take a short hike to one of the peaks.....things were so beautiful, so serene, so colorful....you could have what I call a "Bourdain moment" of your very own taking in the amazing vastness of Wadi Rum.

And our Bedouin Drivers made a pretty good lunch......

That chicken grilled over a live fire was awesome........the Missus and I started talking about returning to Jordan at this point and staying in a Bedouin camp in Wadi Rum....maybe even one of these places!

After lunch we headed off....our Bedouin driver asked us if we wanted to go "dune surfing"......and having our wonderful Aussie companions in our Jeep it was all go......

Man, it was so beautiful here....I know, I keep saying that over and over.....you get the point!

One of the last stops was the Jebel Umm Fruth Rock Bridge. There were younger folks climbing up the rocks to stand on the formation....

Of course, I'm not a big fan of heights...nor scrambling up the side of the mountain....but you know who the only person on our tour who was all in for doing this was, right?

And here's the photo She took of us "wussies" waiting below.....

    We really enjoyed Wadi Rum and like I mentioned above, hope to return and spend a night here one day. Our Bedouin Guides and Drivers were so accommodating and had a great sense of humor. 

Once our day was done; our drivers took us to the border crossing at Aqaba, where we crossed over to Eilat and then were taken to Ramon International Airport for our flight to Tel Aviv.

Our flight arrived in Tel Aviv we suddenly realized that we were no longer in our "little bubble" of vacation. Our flight arrived and we took the shuttle bus to the main terminal. 

Once we got to the baggage claim and exits, the Missus bargained with one of the cab drivers (our scheduled transfer never showed up) and we got into his cab. Just before we left a young Orthodox Jewish man spoke to the driver who came to us and asked if we wouldn't mind splitting the cab fair into Jerusalem. The young man would pay a third and we two-thirds. We said sure, why not. When the young man entered the front seat of the cab we said hello to him; but he would not speak, nor even acknowledge our presence. I mean, he spoke to the cab driver, but refused to speak to us! 

Once our driver dropped the young man off, he pointed to the neighborhood and said; "tomorrow evening starts Shabbat....do not come to this part of the city". Our driver was a really nice guy and dropped us off at the apartment we were staying at. Once we unpacked, showered, and got ready for bed, I walked out to the patio......

The Missus and I wanted no part of the politics.......we just wanted to enjoy the history, sights, and food....but people are one of the biggest part of any trip we take. As looked out at the street I wondered; "would we be able" to do that?

Jordan (Before Covid) - Petra

**** I need to dedicate this post to two "FOYs", Kerri, who I know has been waiting for this one and RonR who emailed me - "This morning for the third year in a row I cancelled (postponed?) our 3 month European tour which of course included Tel Aviv, Israel, and Petra. Then, of course I opened up my favorite website every morning and there you are talking about Tel Aviv. Aaarrrggghhh!" Oh man, I'm so sorry Ron, I hope you'll be able to visit Petra and Wadi Rum soon!

Also, not much food in this one....even though I'm going to try to keep verbiage to a minimum, it's pretty looong....so I wouldn't be bothered at all if you decide to come back tomorrow for a more food focused post!

After a nice, relaxing evening at the Intercontinental Aqaba a van arrived to pick us up in the morning. We saw the landscape change as we drove from Aqaba to the town of Wadi Musa.

We stopped twice for bathroom breaks; once at a viewpoint above Wadi Musa and Petra....which was interesting.....you'd never know what lay in the valley below from here.

We arrived a Wadi Musa and transferred to a larger van with several other folks' including a wonderful couple from Australia whose company we really enjoyed! The tour company, Eco Desert Tours was amazing. They dropped our luggage at our hotel while we were dropped off at the rather chaotic ticketing area.

Where we met up with our guide. Once everyone was accounted for, we headed off, down the Bab el-Siq, the path and valley that leads to the Siq. 

There are actually tombs and what is called Djinn Blocks, carved blocks of stone. The word means something along the lines of "spirit" in Arabic, but is also credited with being the origin of the word "genie".

And soon enough you reach the Siq, the narrow gorge which leads to into Petra.

There's a lot to see here as well, like the Niche Monument, a shrine created with two Djinn blocks.

 This of course, is just an "appetizer" as most folks come to see what right ahead. It goes without saying that the last few steps to view Al-Khazneh, known as the Treasury is quite dramatic in its own right.  First, you get a peek, then as you walk closer, it comes slowly into view....the pink-hued wonder, with intricate designs chiseled on it.

One could imagine the moment that Swiss explorer JL Burckhardt, disguised as a Muslim Scholar, became the first Westerner to enter Petra, and laid eyes upon this amazing structure.

It's about a mile to get to the Treasury; which of course, is the most crowded area of Petra. With folks selling Camel rides to various other items......

If you're not inclined to walking...well, you can catch a wagon, camel, or even a mule to get around.......

The portion past the Treasury is called the Outer Siq and is comprised of burial chambers of various designs.

We walked on over to the Street of Facades, a collection of more tombs, these crowded closer together.

Carved into the mountain right past the Street of Facades into El-Khubtha Mountain are what's called the "Royal Tombs".

And then beyond that; the actual city of Petra.

And then, it was lunch time. We had chosen just the simple lunch. We were then told we'd have free time to explore and the meeting place and time were indicated to us.

Which was perfectly fine. Actually, the falafel were not bad at all.

And then we set off exploring........and had a great time exploring the City....the Great Temple and Qasr al-Bint, a Nabataean Temple.

Of course the Missus couldn't help but climb and explore the Royal Tombs.

After which we headed back to the Treasury.

It was amazing how the colors seemed to change as the sun moved across the sky.

The Missus had seen folks standing on the cliff across from the Treasury...and so...She just had to get there.....sigh.

So, we found a trail across from the Treasury and started climbing up. As I was set to start climbing I saw a gentleman wearing a long black robe and a clerical collar...my goodness; it was a priest climbing and inching his way down the rocks! I stuck out my hand and helped him down the last few steps. He smiles at me and said: "thank you my son"!

Anyway, it wasn't a super hard, but not an easy climb up. But of course, the Missus made it look easy.

I will say, the view was amazing.

Pretty amazing huh?

Of course, the climb down was much harder than going up. But...I'm here right? So I obviously made it.

By now we met our guide, whom we tipped, and told the nice guy that we'd just walk back to the hotel we were staying, the Petra Palace. We chatted on the way back to the hotel and decided to return and do the Petra by Night light show. But first; it was time to check in, hydrate, and most importantly, take a nap!

If you stuck around to the end of this post I thank you.

Have a great week!

Gate of Damascus (El Cajon)

mmm-yoso!!!, a food blog, is being written by Cathy today.  Kirk and His Missus are on a little vacation. 

We were sad when Speedy Falafel closed in the midst of the pandemic. There had been a few signs on the building indicating a new restaurant was soon to be opened in early 2021, but that never happened.  In September, Gate of Damascus opened.  We stopped by in early January. 

 It was pretty busy with people at the entrance waiting for their "To Go" orders. 


 The interior looks about the same and you can have a seat at one of the many tables and a menu will be brought out.  (Hot tea is self serve along the back wall).  Breakfast is served until at least noon.  
 Foul with olive oil ($9.99)  is always a favorite.  Warm mashed fava beans cupping a wonderful amount of chickpeas, tomatoes and olive oil was certainly a filling savory breakfast.  (There is also a tahini Foul served with yogurt, which will be ordered next time).  
We ordered a Manikesh (cheese pie) ($3.99) because we saw it on other tables.  Fresh, tasty, a bit salty (in a good way).  Perfect crunch. Two fresh made pitas were also brought out.  Because we ordered this:
 The small appetizer plate ($11.99) Tabboule, Baba Ghannouj, Hummus and Motabbal (another eggplant based appetizer). ( Motabbal is made with eggplant, garlic, lemon juice, olive oil, and tahini (ground sesame sauce).  Baba Ghanouj is made with eggplant, onion, tomato, garlic, lemon juice, olive oil, parsley, and no tahini!).  We took home plenty of leftovers. This is also a meal.  {Other appetizers to choose from include Mohammarah (red pepper hummus), Yalanjee (stuffed grape leaves), fried or grille Kebbeh (ground meat, onions, spices and bulgur wheat), Arabic salad, Fattoush, Tzazaiki and coleslaw}. Very refreshing, fresh, bright flavors.  
 Also we decided to try  a single skewer of beef kabob ($2.50) which is also a great choice and filled with subtle spices mixed in the ground beef.  

We will be back to try more of the menu, because everything is great!

Gate of Damascus 1142 East Main Street El Cajon, CA 92021 (619) 312-0427 Open Monday 9 a.m.-10 p.m., Tues-Sun 8a.m.-midnight

 Speedy Falafel had a choice of desserts sold by the pound in this display case.  Now there are choices of boxed desserts.