Can a hotel earn zero stars?

I know I said that the Galil Hotel was “adequate.” The longer we’ve been here the less the term “adequate” properly describes our lovely accommodations.

Thankfully, nothing in my room has been too earth shattering. But between the broken air conditioner, the cockroaches, the mold, and the fact that the food has been less then stellar, our outlook on this hotel is declining rapidly. If any of the Maccabi USA people are reading this, I’ll be happy to share with you my full report of the hotel … and trust me, there’ll be a line of people there to support me.

But I don’t want to spend all my time complaining about the hotel. I’ll briefly complain about the bowl and then get to the fun stuff. I wrote earlier about how the bowl wouldn’t give us a reduced rate for bowling … but now they are trying to charge us for stuff that they had said they wouldn’t charge us for. Today, the center staff called every delegation to say they owed money for the games that accumulated during the practice time that we get beforehand. They even tried to pit us against one another, but we know the time really is and our team managers will be meeting tomorrow to try and rectify the situation.

Personally, I’m happy not practicing anymore on our own and not buying anything at the bowling center just to prove a point. There is a golden opportunity to make friends who will buy things at the snack bar and bowl extra games and now all that is almost gone. Way to go, Einstein!

Ok, now onto the fun stuff! We’ve had a busy 24 hours since Shabbat ended. First, we got all the bowlers together for a fun dinner at London, a restaurant in the main square of Netanya. While they were a little surprised when we rolled in with about 50 people (between Maccabi bowlers, Australian team management, and Israeli friends), they did a great job to serve us and make us all smile. Kol HaKavod to the London Restaurant.

Then, myself and four of my teammates went with our Sport Coordinator to a bar in Tel Aviv, Clara. We were joined by a few members of the Water Polo team, who have the (dis)pleasure of sharing the lovely Galil Hotel with us. The bar was a blast … there are probably pictures on Facebook to prove it. And on the way home, we had a rip-roaring time in the taxi with the Water Polo boys. USA Bowling … woohoo!

We did find a nice surprise when we returned around 2:30 a.m. … eight Water Polo members were stuck in the elevator. Apparently, one of them had the bright idea of jumping as the elevators was moving down. Now the elevators are only supposed to hold five people and no more than 400kg, and Water Polo guys are not known for their svelte figures. But being that as it may, they rang the alarm that fell on deaf ears, literally. The Fire Department was called and they let them out only after we tried to pry to doors open ourselves with the hi-tech equipment that only exists at the Galil Hotel. Everyone was safe and got back to their room in one piece, but the incident is just one more crazy adventure and another reason why the Galil Hotel earns a raving zero star review.

Tonight, we enjoyed the athlete’s reception/party at Kfar Maccabiah. Besides the fact it was so nice to be back at the Kfar after spending a few days at the Galil Hotel, it was a fun night with lots of music and entertainment. We danced a lot on the tennis court as Israel’s finest in dance and music took the stage. My camera is upstairs and I’ll upload a few pictures tomorrow (I know I say that a lot, but this time I mean it).

And tomorrow, after the big meeting of team leaders, we may practice … though I’d be happy not if it means we can make a point with the center’s management. Then, it’s off to the Opening Ceremony in Ramat Gan. If you have Direct TV, check it out on JLTV or just go JLTV’s website and enjoy the festivities with us.