Tova and I arrived at Ben Gurion International Airport in Tel Aviv at 3 a.m. First stop: security. Since I was traveling with Tova and she was obviously a bit sick, we went to the front of the line. Tova went straight through. Then the questions started for me:
How long have you been in Israel?
Sixteen days.
Why were you in Israel?
On a research grant.
What kind of research?
I'm interviewing Tova about her experience as an early Zionist and losing her family in the Holocaust.
How do you know her?
We met in Poland two years ago.
Why were you in Poland?
I was working as a guide in a museum.
So for two years, how did you have contact?
Letters.
Like once a month, once a year?
Like three or four over the two years.
Do you have other friends in Israel?
I do now.
Like who?
You mean names?
Yes.
Well, I have a friend named Orit, her husband Amiram, and also Yoav, and Yali, and Porat -
Okay, so do you have family in Israel?
No.
Do you know Hebrew?
I know some biblical Hebrew.
For reading?
For reading.
You can speak some Hebrew?
No.
Maybe you learned some Hebrew as a child?
No.
This went on for awhile. Then a more official-looking security guy was called in from somewhere else in the airport. He scrutinized my passport and took over the questioning.
What kind of research were you doing?
Interviewing Tova about her experience as an early Zionist and losing her family in the Holocaust.
How did you do this research? By recordings?
Yes.
Where are the recordings?
In my bag on my computer.
So we got out the computer to see that I actually had recordings. After some more questions, he approved me to go through, but I received a different color sticker on my bags than anyone else around me (including other Americans and non-Israelis). My big bag, sloppily packed late last night, went through the x-ray machine. After a short walk, we arrived at another security station. Tova went straight through, but I was stopped again. The girl scanned the sticker on my bag and a picture of its contents popped up on her screen. She was particularly interested in the books in the bag, and wanted me to pull them out. They were at the very bottom of the heavy bag, so it took awhile to wrench them out.
Did you receive any gifts in Israel?
No.
Anyone give you something to take on the plane?
No.
You know everything that is in the bag?
Yes.
Do you have any weapons?
No.
Anything that looks like a weapon?
No.
Anything that could be a weapon?
No.
This was all starting to sound very familiar. The first time around, it was novel and interesting to see how Israeli security works. This time, though, it was the middle of the night, and the questions seemed never to end. Also, I had Tova with me, who can't hear well enough to understand the line of inquiry, but offered her own commentary anyway, holding up the whole process.
I was already pretty cranky when the taxi picked me up at 2 a.m. I don't know why I ever thought it was a good idea to leave Jerusalem in the middle of the night to fly to Krakow, except that this was the flight Tova had chosen, and I just arranged to travel with her. By 4 a.m., I was finally through security, and just completely exhausted. Traveling with Tova is frustrating because even though she is old and sick, I have to coerce her to let me push the luggage cart (heavy), ask for special consideration with lines, get a wheelchair, etc. And as I was trying to deal with people from security and passport control (both completely proficient in English), she is convinced that somehow I don't know what's going on and she will help by saying something entirely unrelated in Hebrew. I think she is really excited about finally going to Poland, and a little bit on the wound-up side. Which is understandable, and I am happy for her that she is excited about the trip, and so glad that she wasn't too sick to go (although she's sounding pretty sick at the moment).
I, however, am not on the wound-up side. It's getting to be 5 a.m. here at Ben Gurion airport (which has wireless internet access, at least). Our plane should board around 5:15, and then it's four more hours to Krakow. The plan originally was that I would spend some time with Tova's friends during the day and then meet up with Tomek and Ola in the evening and stay at their apartment. The new plan that is taking shape in my head is that I will arrive in Krakow, say hello to Tova's friends at the airport, get some cash, and then take a taxi to a little hotel I know and go to sleep. All day long.
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