Holy Land, here I come!

Finally! At last – like Etta James would sing – I've got flights booked to Israel. This summer in Finland has been quite balmy to us near the Arctic Circle but I'm the kind of girl who needs minimum +28C to start wearing skirts and shorts to call it a real summer. To reach these degrees, we Northerners usually have no other choice but to hit the South. The temperatures in Tel Aviv seem to bounce nicely between +25C and +30something C, and I especially look forward to those warm evenings and nights when you don't need to carry a sweater and gloves with you "just in case it gets chilly".

I am quite prepared: got some shekels, sunscreen and Crocs waiting to hit the heat. I recently purchased my first-ever pair of Crocs even though I previously had sworn off those hideous clumsy plastic things. But then I was tipped off by a friend and I came across this pretty pair that swooned my picky feet - and we've been walking on air together ever since (love at first step). I've been told that Crocs are somewhat of a national attire in Israel so now I will fit in nicely!

I've never really experienced the lovely sea and beaches or the Dead Sea in Israel. The only swim I have taken there was a hasty dip in the Genesaret, so this time around I am hoping for more. Contemplating a swim means, though, daring the horrors of wearing a bikini... I'm thinking the mud at the Dead Sea would cover nicely all the screaming white, wobbly bits that I am not proud of, so maybe I should opt for that? Panic preparations for the bikini problems have started: I've booked an appointment for ultrasound fat removal procedure next Tuesday. And ran 2km last Tuesday. Desperate? Yes. Will it help? No. But there is no harm in trying is there...

I was determined to book the flights with Finnair in order to commemorate the fact they opened this seasonal route just this year when I'm in first need of this connection. Apparently it is quite a popular one as I could only get my return ticket with the familiar blue & white wings. To make things a tad more interesting, I've booked a kosher meal for my return flight. I am curious to see & taste how a Finnish airline goes kosher!

Need to struggle at work for a little more, and then I can call it a h-o-l-i-d-a-y!