The Klezmer Festival is starting this Sunday, and you can see the signs sprouting up around the city. The visitors are starting to trickle in, and, in fact, I'm spending my Shabbos meals with a couple I'm friends with from Jerusalem, Chaim and Dionne Hayman, who are in town for the first two days of the festival.

The Shabbos preparations this morning were made extra exciting by a power outage that hit the whole Old City and outskirts. It lasted about a couple of hours, but while it was going on, I had no idea how long it would last and how I'd get the groceries for Shabbos, what with the ATMs disabled and no way for the supermarket to use my bank card. But all's back to normal now, and preparations are well on their way with plenty of time to spare.

The Steve's going to arrive in town from Jerusalem this Saturday night after midnight, assuming he doesn't get lost on the way to the bus stop. (I know I should have more faith in his ability to get around on his own, but it's hard not to worry about someone wandering around in a country without speaking the local language. I remember how confused I could get myself my first couple years here.) Tomorrow's his last day with his archeological program, and they're spending it on a properly guided tour of Jerusalem. I plan to fill up Steve's next two weeks with klezmer music, souvenir shops, art galleries, hiking, camping, fire-spinning, and, yes, also some well-deserved chilling out time.