Tag: beach life

Tel Aviv, Tel Avivians and Us – One Month In

We arrived in Tel Aviv from Rome exactly one month ago today, on an all too easy 3.5 hour flight down the Mediterranean. In hindsight, the straightforward nature of the travel logistics did not align in any way with the otherwise almost complete life overhaul between these two relatively close cities and countries (if not necessarily cultures).

All that to say, waking up in our apartment in Rome, with newborn and toddler one day, and falling asleep in a new home in Tel Aviv the same evening made for some serious sensory whiplash.

Alas, all is going well – or somehow better than I had honestly anticipated given those circumstances. Aleksander has started French school and mostly integrated without a hitch (on espère); Elia continues to grow, sleep, nurse, and has even begun to smile and coo; Dalia is making the most of her second go-round of maternity leave, walking the boys on the boulevards with iced coffee in hand and making activity dates with school moms; and I’ve begun my new job (same job, different place) and have found lunch, coffee and grocery spots as needed. The basics seem to be mostly covered.

Tel Aviv is a bit hard to describe. In parts, completely dilapidated, hipsterly-so, and in others, modern skyscrapers and construction cranes, à la Dubai. Kensington Market one moment and Bay Street the next. Plus, add a beach.

I’ve never had the pleasure of living in a proper beach town and I used to joke that I never trusted people who did because ending your day in flip flops and a sandy wavey sunset just doesn’t feel real enough real life.

In any case, the beach is about a 25 min walk from our home and we may have already caught a few sublime sunsets while buskers sing radiohead tunes, people do agressive calisthenics or play beach volleyball (strangely enough, just as often with their feet), and Aleksander climbs world class play structures while getting covered in dust-fine sand. Like I said, not really real life stuff; pretend temporary life indulgences.

Otherwise, the city is not very readily classifiable. Tel Avivians like to compare it to Miami but I’d say they’re overshooting on that one. There’s definitely more American street culture here than any other subset: burgers, beaches, lattes, longboards, athletic wear, etc. But, of course, this is not the U.S. I can’t say that we feel it’s particularly European either, somehow too casual for that, and certainly on an entirely different wavelength than Rome: smaller, younger, beachier. So, Tel Aviv is Tel Aviv, maybe at best it’s the Mediterranean lovechild of Montreal and Barcelona, that was then immediately estranged from its parents.

Tel Avivians appear to be the type of people drawn to such a place: keen to live in a (mostly) Jewish beach paradise.

There are lots of 20 somethings (and older wannabes), patios and tattoo shops. There are also loads of families (or maybe that’s mostly who we notice in the AI inspired playgrounds). And then others: Orthodox Jews zipping by on e-bikes; Russian grocery store clerks; Eritrean line cooks; Filipino nannies; almost middle-aged tech looking bros; aspiring cross-fit champions on every square metre of the kilometres-long beach boardwalk; 19 year old Israelis in their military training camo, at the coffee shop, automatic weapon in one hand, current love interest in the other; grannies on quiet park benches.

Regardless of all that, we’re pretty occupied just doing us, surviving, settling, adapting, starting to look ahead from a novel perspective. Life with two kids under three is full. So far we’re thankfully approaching it with some serenity: soaking in as much of Elia’s newborn vibes as we can, smelling his little baby head and kissing his squishy cheeks a million times a day.

School dropoffs aren’t proving to be as romantic and laid back as in Rome. The price of absolutely everything is so astonishingly high as to almost be physically painful. And, of course, we’ve gone from two plus years of actively integrating into Roman life – the language, gestures, food, rhythms, piazzas, countryside, olive oil and gelato and mozzarella. To doing a full cultural reboot in less time than it takes to watch The Godfather trilogy. Hummus, Hebrew, Rosh Hashanah. And that’s all without effectively leaving this city. The beach bubble of Tel Aviv. The beach bubble within an Iron Dome.

We still don’t entirely know what to expect here over the next three years but so far it’s comfortable living and often feels like a city built primarily with children in mind, so in that sense, we’re off to a positive start. And we look forward to see what this place and its people have in store for us.

– Yom Kippur, 2023

One Final Italian Beach Season

As the summer rolls in, the reality that our time in Italy is dwindling is really starting to hit. Nostalgia, nerves, excitement, anticipation, overwhelmedness are all mixing constantly in the increasingly hot Roman days.

To help combat this melange, we’ve done our best to do what the Romans do, and forget about all of life’s bumpiness with a spritz and splash at the nearest beach.

After two full summer seasons of exploring, we’ve mostly narrowed down our preferred day trip beach spot to Santa Marinella. Conveniently about 45 minutes by train from Termini, with classic crystalline turquoise water, a relatively shallow coastline and wave breakers to keep the waters calm, we barely see a need to go anywhere else anymore.

With my mom in town for a record fourth visit, we saw no better place to take her than the beach. The fact that these world class beaches are a short ride away is quite mind melting for Canadians who are used to having to fly to at least Miami, if not the Caribbean for similar quality beaches. Grandma and Aleksander took some long walks, kicked the ball and even snoozed on a lovely summer Saturday.

After two visits in a row, we tried to go again with Dalia’s older brother in town (our second most frequent guest) but the summer trains were sold out so we reached a bit further south to Sperlonga. The travel was more complicated but the day no less pleasing. The slightly rougher waters made for more vigorous wave jumping and the scenery was probably even more beautiful than Santa Marinella.

With Dalia’s pregnancy approaching full term and the peak of daily heat approaching the high 30’s, we realize that our summer beach days may be approaching a bit of an early end this season. On our Canada Day holiday, we made one more trip to Santa Marinella and enjoyed far fewer crowds than usual. Trying to get Aleksander to sleep was a real challenge so I took him on a walk around the blooming streets nearby and even peaked into some real estate offices to see what a local pied-a-terre goes for.

The bougainvillea breezes eventually knocked our toddler out cold and I picked up some strawberries and ice cream cones on the way back to Dalia and her nine-month belly. Again, grateful to the core for a life that regularly feels like a movie.

Puglia, Our Last Italian Vacation, to the Country’s Beautiful Heel

After twice postponing a one-week visit to Puglia, all the way down the boot on Italy’s Adriatic coast, we finally managed to get ourselves organized for a visit, as our probable last longer trip within the country and doubling as a baby moon!

Puglia is one of the regions of Italy that we only heard about after arriving. Somehow in the second tier of regions behind Tuscany, Sicily, Sardegna, but as gorgeous and welcoming as any. And maybe slightly more budget friendly.

Since we’ve been sketching out a tentative itinerary for almost two years, we had a pretty good plan of attack to try to maximize our week and get a taste of different parts of the region.

Deciding against the four hour train or five hour drive to Bari, we hopped on a Ryanair flight from Rome and landed on a gloomy Saturday some 45 minutes later.

Rather than staying in Bari or even nearby Monopoli, we decided on an Apulian agriturismo near Ostuni. The countryside location, not far from many of the little towns we hoped to visit, was a perfect launching point for the trip.

Unfortunately the rainy weather continued pretty much throughout our full two day stay. Although this dampened Dalia’s and my mood somewhat, Aleksander was completely undeterred. He played in the wet playground, chased cats and sang with the chickens every moment he could!

Otherwise, since our days couldn’t be spent sunning by the pool, we visited the nearby towns, starting with Ostuni.

As ever, even in the rain, maybe even moreso in the rain, historic Italian towns always shine, inspire and enchant. Ostuni was no different. The slick hilly cobblestones kept things interesting both in the stroller and out and we were immediately satisfied with our decision to stay nearby.

The following day was gloomy but slightly less rainy and so we decided to head to the coast and visit Monopoli, one of the bigger cities in Puglia. It happened to be Mother’s Day and we reflected on the fact that our next similar trip would probably be as a quartet. A lot to consider, take in and reflect on as the afternoon Sunday sun peaked out in the historic harbour.

Being unable to find an available lunch spot in Monopoli, (Italians love to reserve – especially on holidays), we decided to take our chances with a late lunch visit to Martina Franka, on the way back to our agriturismo. We scarfed down not the best lunch in Italy, followed by not the worst gelato and headed for the gates as the heavy clouds loomed once again.

We spent a quiet evening before braving the morning showers for our next stop near Nardo. We arrived at our next agriturismo in the rain and were immediately charmed by the outdoor furniture of Casina Solatia and Aleksander was thrilled to find new cats to chase around.

Our stay at Casina Solatia not only prompted one of my first poems in a while but really provided almost a cinematic backdrop for an intimate few family days. It was more than once, watching Aleksander play piano or run through tall grass in dimming sunlight, that I felt like we were in a Terrence Malick movie. And Simona the host, a costume designer and fairly recent transplant from Milan, really made the place feel like one big open home. Maybe another couple overcast days weren’t the worst turn of events.

Our first free evening, we decided to visit nearby Gallipoli for a windy evening by the sea, visiting the old town castle and having dinner overlooking the water.

Our second day staying near Nardo finally brought some hopeful weather. It wasn’t quite yet beach friendly but with a partially sunny forecast, we made our way to Lecce, the biggest city in the southern part of Puglia.

Lecce was quite bustling and busy with European tourists. We kicked balls through the alleyways and Aleksander made some Canadian friends over lunch and we started to look forward to what the rest of the week might bring.

On our way down the coast the following morning, we passed by a stretch of beach known as the Maldives of Salento. And even though the beaches weren’t quite prepared for summer crowds, we were thrilled to have some sunny clear skies and Aleksander finally got to dig into the coastal sands.

Heading to the southwestern-most point of Italy’s heel, we lunched and lounged a bit more in the small charming town of Santa Maria de Leuca. The seafood fry, white wine and gelato all passed the test in this scenic stop. Also home to maybe the world’s most picturesque natural seaside pool.

As we turned up the coast for a few days near Otranto, our trip finally started to look like what we had hoped it would. The late May weather started to look characteristically as it should in Italy at this time of year. We gratefully pulled into our final stop at the Cuti Mari guesthouse and were not disappointed.

We drove to Otranto about fifteen minutes away to pick up an evening pizza and walk around the boardwalk.

We took our chances the next day and found the nearest (open) stabilimento and even though less than ten of the hundreds of sun loungers were occupied, we were happy to spend a relaxing day by the sea.

Finally energized by the summertime vibes, we even braved the unheated pool at the hotel and had some family laughs and good times.

Being so pleased with the grounds, facilities and staff at Cuti Mari, we extended our stay by one night, opening up an extra day in the area. So we headed up the coast a bit and spent a proper early season beach day in an early season beach town – Torre del Orso.

Even though the restaurants, bars and hotels were still dusting the cobwebs off before the summer hordes arrive, we found the town a perfect little size and pace for our flow. And to boot, the street art had no business being so interesting in such a random and faraway place.

We longingly said goodbye to Cuti Mari, petted all the cats one last time and Aleksander even got a hat and t-shirt from the owner. We hope to return as soon and often as possible.

Our circuit of Puglia was almost at an end. We returned back up the coast towards Bari and stayed in a non-descript highway hotel on our last night to make sure we could easily make our morning flight.

Never ones to let an opportunity pass, we squeezed in a short afternoon visit to postcard perfect Polignano a Mare. Dalia absolutely fell in love with this place while I found the instagram friendly crowds somewhat overwhelming.

The hilight again was Aleksander making a local friend and kicking a ball for close to an hour. Our child is definitely in the right country for a soccer obsession.

Before leaving Puglia, I really wanted to take Dalia to the Basilica of St. Nicholas in Bari. Partially because it made such an impression on me during my last visit, partially because it’s become a global pilgrimage site for Ukrainians since the invasion of their country and partially because I’m fond of the name Nicholas for our next child.

It was a great place to leave our prayers of thanks for yet another incredible trip within Italy; for our growing family; and for two wonderful years living in Rome.

Puglia can finally and joyfully be crossed off the Italian bucket list!

Italian Labour Day Weekend in Sperlonga

Even though we had almost laughably bad luck after buying a car in Italy and then having it die 10 days later on our first weekend drive out of town, we’ve made the most of Italy’s underrated train system and visited pretty much everything within an hour or so of Rome, over the last two years.

With our final Italian beach season approaching, we set our sights on nearby Sperlonga, one of the few major beach towns that we hadn’t yet visited. Sperlonga features on many lists of Italy’s best summer destinations and as the May Day holiday created a three day weekend, we ventured off for a two night visit with a work pal, his wife and their daughter, almost exactly Aleksander’s age.

The train to Sperlonga is an easy hour away from Rome and we hopped into a taxi from the train station to get to our early season hotel.

The hotel was clean, comfortable, had seaside views and a swimming pool, mostly reserved for foreigners (including Canadians) at this pre-summer heatwave juncture. We enjoyed a seafood lunch at the hotel restaurant before taking the 40 minute or so walk up to the scenic Sperlonga town itself.

The views were typically fabulous, if overcast. The town’s piazzas, patios and alleyways were buzzing with European tourists and lounging locals alike. Aleksander, of course, was entranced with some kids kicking a soccer ball against the wall as we watched for the better part of half an hour. Eventually, Tom and family joined us for an apertivo as the kids chased bubbles spiritedly.

We scored some pizza al taglio as the evening closed in and were glad to share the experience with some adult and toddler friends, our first joint family weekend since arriving in Italy.

The next day, we hoped for a few hours of clear skies in order to enjoy some of Sperlonga’s famous sandy beaches. The stabilimemti were all within an easy ten minute walk and Aleksander frolicked in the sand for a good few hours. The sun peered out from behind the clouds and it looked like the gloomy weather forecast might be proven wrong altogether. Alas, after sitting down for lunch, the clouds and winds darkened and picked up and we had to call it a day on our first beach attempt of the year.

We returned to the hotel, the kids watched some tv as the adults indulged in some vino and convo. We discussed the amazingness of Italy, how every little town seemed worth a visit and how lucky our kids were to get such memorable experiences on the regular.

The next day was even rainier than the others and it felt fully acceptable to return to the beauty of Rome after the long weekend escape.

Again, the Springtime weather is proving to be a bit more unstable than in our previous years but we’re not letting that slow down our exploration. Next stop, our final weeklong Italian trip, to the southern heel of the boot, in Puglia and Salento.

Thank you Sperlonga for a great soft launch of our final Italian beach season!

Summer’s Last Gasps in Gaeta

As the summer approached its end, we hosted Dalia’s brother back for another visit to Rome. We’re lucky enough to be at the point of having a few return visitors, which hopefully means both Rome and us are providing inviting travel experiences.

This time Robert returned with his wife and young son, just about one year younger than Aleksander. This was the first chance for the cousins to meet in person and Aleksander’s first opportunity to hang out with another baby outside of his pals at daycare.

As it was Robert’s birthday weekend, the timing seemed perfect for an out of town escape to help close the summer season and spend some extended family time together. We set our sights on Gaeta, a little bit further down the coast than we’d been before and still within easy striking distance from Rome.

The weather was not exactly on our side as heavy clouds jostled over windy seas to put a bit of a damper on our well intentioned beach plans. Nonetheless, we did our best to enjoy the almost entirely abandoned beach front as Aleksander frolicked and kicked anything in sight and we searched for any last slivers of September sun.

As the beachfront didn’t end up as the weekend destination we had hoped for, we spent more time exploring the narrow streets and squares of Gaeta itself – and, as always, were not disappointed.

We ate as much of Gaeta’s amazing seafood as we could and paired it with as many lovely white wines as we could find. We made the most of this September long weekend, discovered another gem of a locale in Italy and enjoyed some much needed fam R&R.