The Dating Difference

     I have to mention this… Dating in Israel.  I have recently had the need to start dating again after a very long sabbatical.  Now I don’t pretend I’m a supermodel, the world knows I’m not.  I also do not think that I am the greatest gift to single men, but I do know quite a lot about dating and single men…  Years of practice and failure. ;)  Here in Israel however, things are… well…  It certainly explains my past relationships with Israelis. 

     In America if I liked a guy or wanted him to talk to me I would give him the sexy eye.  I know the Ladies know what I’m talking about.  The look you give a guy that says “Yeah, I’m looking, and I like what I see.  Come say Hi if your interested.”  And that look works almost every time.  NOT IN ISRAEL!  Here when you give a guy the sexy eye, sometimes he smiles back.  When he does that is a good response.  Usually I get a look and then nothing.  When I get the smile, it usually goes… Smile, turn and ignore. 

     This, as you can imagine has been incredibly annoying.  No wonder these people wait until they are almost 30 to get married… they don’t have the guts to talk to a girl.  So…  I really don’t understand how it works.  Is there a secret code they teach you in the Army that I missed out on?  Seriously, it’s THAT bad.  I’m trying to learn how things work here.  The men are not aggressive at all which is shocking considering the women are ALWAYS decked out in their best clothes when they leave the house.

     I realize that for all intensive purposes I am American and the men in America and forever being seen as the rough and tumble cowboy type.  But still… Some European countries have a reputation for aggressive men too.  So what’s Israel’s malfunction?  My theory… This country has a hard time just surviving.  The people here have developed a hard shell.  It is in their nature to be aggressive and distant until they get to know you.  If women in the U.S. were as aggressive as the ladies here… the men in America might be castrated by fear.

     So I will continue to put myself out there like fish bait and hope I get a bite.  I’ll keep you posted!