Friday, December 19, 2008
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
Brewing and Moving
Hi Everyone! It has been a very interesting week, for good and not so good. I'm going to stick to the positives for right now though. On Tuesday David and I started our first batch of beer, and everything is looking great. David did a great job of documenting it on his blog and the link is here.
Last night I moved into our apartment in Jerusalem and everything looks great. I knew I was giong to have to go shopping for some stuff, and I will be getting that done today. I'm going to be spending the next few days getting settled, and finishing up my assignments for Pardes. Shabbat will hopefully be peaceful, and it'll be welcomed. Time to go shopping, hope everyone is well.
Last night I moved into our apartment in Jerusalem and everything looks great. I knew I was giong to have to go shopping for some stuff, and I will be getting that done today. I'm going to be spending the next few days getting settled, and finishing up my assignments for Pardes. Shabbat will hopefully be peaceful, and it'll be welcomed. Time to go shopping, hope everyone is well.
Thursday, August 14, 2008
Friday morning in Jerusalem
Seriously, is there anything better? It's amazing (and somewhat humorous) to watch everyone running around so frantically. It truly is a special feeling to be in the middle of it. I can't wait until I am one of these frantic people trying to get ready for Shabbat...
This past week has been very relaxing and everything is going very well. As I said Sunday was Tisha B'av, and I spent the day studying at Pardes. We are not supposed to be social on this day, so when I was meeting people I would be studying with in the coming year, I had to hold back on wanting to know more about them. I am positive that there will be opportunities for that in the future.
Monday-Wednesday I spent my days at Pardes also. I received some summer assignments earlier in the summer and so I am working on finishing up those up before classes start at the beginning of next month. The first part is reviewing and familiarizing myself with the Parsha Shavua (I know I am supposed to be including that in my blog, but I forgot to my Tanach this weekend). The other part is going over all of Malachim Bet. It's an interesting book that goes over all the kings after Jehosophat, and the falls of both the Israeli and Judean Kingdoms. I'm not sure where these will be brought into my studies, but it's a good feeling to atleast prepare for school.
Thursday I came into town and met up with Shosh's group on Ben Yehuda during the afternoon. We are staying at the Young Judea youth hostel which is located near the Jerusalem Zoo. Last night we took her group out to a bar and I got to meet up with my friend Simi who has been here for the last couple weeks. He is leaving this weekend, so I was happy I got to see him beforehand. Overall it was a fun and interesting night.
Today I am in town doing some shopping for Shabbat (not frantically as I said earlier, I don't have that much to get!) I'm spending Shabbat with Shosh and her group. Her group is leaving right after Shabbat so Shosh and I will be heading back to Kfar Adumim on Sunday morning. She leaves first thing Monday morning, and then we are going about 6 weeks before she comes back. This is going to be a hard one, but we decided to not think about it. I am going to purchase the beer brewing materials on Tuesday, moving in to my apartment on Wednesday, and brewing beer on Thursday. It should be a fun week!
That's all for now, talk to everyone soon!
This past week has been very relaxing and everything is going very well. As I said Sunday was Tisha B'av, and I spent the day studying at Pardes. We are not supposed to be social on this day, so when I was meeting people I would be studying with in the coming year, I had to hold back on wanting to know more about them. I am positive that there will be opportunities for that in the future.
Monday-Wednesday I spent my days at Pardes also. I received some summer assignments earlier in the summer and so I am working on finishing up those up before classes start at the beginning of next month. The first part is reviewing and familiarizing myself with the Parsha Shavua (I know I am supposed to be including that in my blog, but I forgot to my Tanach this weekend). The other part is going over all of Malachim Bet. It's an interesting book that goes over all the kings after Jehosophat, and the falls of both the Israeli and Judean Kingdoms. I'm not sure where these will be brought into my studies, but it's a good feeling to atleast prepare for school.
Thursday I came into town and met up with Shosh's group on Ben Yehuda during the afternoon. We are staying at the Young Judea youth hostel which is located near the Jerusalem Zoo. Last night we took her group out to a bar and I got to meet up with my friend Simi who has been here for the last couple weeks. He is leaving this weekend, so I was happy I got to see him beforehand. Overall it was a fun and interesting night.
Today I am in town doing some shopping for Shabbat (not frantically as I said earlier, I don't have that much to get!) I'm spending Shabbat with Shosh and her group. Her group is leaving right after Shabbat so Shosh and I will be heading back to Kfar Adumim on Sunday morning. She leaves first thing Monday morning, and then we are going about 6 weeks before she comes back. This is going to be a hard one, but we decided to not think about it. I am going to purchase the beer brewing materials on Tuesday, moving in to my apartment on Wednesday, and brewing beer on Thursday. It should be a fun week!
That's all for now, talk to everyone soon!
Monday, August 11, 2008
a bit from the past month
Hi everyone, in case you forgot I’m still in Israel. I’m very sorry for not keeping this more updated. I’ve been doing quite a bit since I last reported to you. Let’s see…where to begin.
I guess I could begin with my shabbatot for the past month. I’ve been lucky enough to spend almost every Shabbat in a different place every week. Four weeks ago, I spent Shabbat in Jerusalem at a friend’s house that I met through ulpan. They live off of Emek Refaim, which is a neighborhood that I am very familiar with. It felt great to be in that area. I davened at Shira Chadasha, which is a modern orthodox synagogue that Shosh enjoys a lot, and happily I really enjoyed it. It’s a very Anglo synagogue with great singing and a strong community. What made it great was the singing, I loved the tunes and the fact that everyone had great savannah towards everything they were doing. After shul my friends hosted Shabbat dinner, and we just ended up staying up till 3 am talking. The next morning, I slept in and was still able to make it in time for the Torah service. As I walked in, I had the pleasant surprise of seeing Itzik, my madrich from Nativ! I hadn’t spoken or seen him for so long and it was great to catch up. That afternoon, we hosted a seudat shlishit and waited for Shabbat to end. That evening as I was walking to a coffee shop I ran into Becca Sykes. I hadn’t been able to see any of the Sykes family while they were here, so I was ecstatic when I got to spend some time with her.
The following Monday I went to Tel Aviv to see Shosh and get to spend the evening with her. I had the great opportunity of doing homework in a bar that night. Shosh has some great pictures of it, and I’m sure you will all see them soon. The following Shabbat I traveled down to Eilat to spend Shabbat with Shosh and her group. It was great to hop on a bus and travel through this country again. Even if it is to the single hottest place possible. We spent Shabbat afternoon on the beach and in the ocean. I got some great sun, and even bought a new bathingsuit. The next day I hopped on the bus with Shosh and her group to catch a free ride up to Jerusalem. On the way hope we did a short water hike, and enjoyed the rest of the ride.
Shosh finished up with her group the following Wednesday, so I was ecstatic to have her all to myself. We came back to the Kirschners’ house that night and I started studying for end of ulpan class. The next morning we went straight to Hebrew U, so I could take my test. After school we went into town so I could run a few errands, and then we made our way back home at the end of the night.
The following morning is when all the fun started. Shosh and I had decided to go to Tel Aviv for that Shabbat a while ago. I had made reservations at a hostel there and I had no real idea what kind it was. Boy did we luck out! All Shosh had asked for was for it to be close to the beach, and have a bit of sketchiness. The only thing I was looking for was air conditioning. We certainly got the best of both worlds. There was great variety of people at the hostel, it was located two blocks away from the beach, and best of all our room was air-conditioned. We had a very nice relaxing Shabbat, and then went out to get drinks with people from her group that night. The next day we hopped on a bus up to Rosh Pinna to stay at one Shosh’s family friend’s Bed and Breakfast. This was an extra special treat because I love going up north, and I had never been to Rosh Pinna before. We get to the town, and I realized how much I missed the small town feel. I’ve been living in a small town for most of the last ten years and at times it’s been difficult to adjust to life in Jerusalem, which is busy and always very fast. We arrived to the bed and breakfast, and all I can say is WOW. It was beautiful. We found out while we there that Rosh Pinna was the first town the Russian Olim founded when they arrived in the late 1800’s, and even better the house we were was one of the first built. We spent that first night there enjoying the company and just relaxing in the fabulous setting. The next day, Shosh and I went with Orli to the local market, and then we went to her sister’s bed and breakfast for a great breakfast. From there we returned and lounged around for most of the afternoon. That night we went to the hill of Righteous Men. It’s a hill with burials spread out all around it of Rabbis from different time periods. Each spot is dedicated to a different need. One grave women go to help them find a husband, another to help them have children, and so on. From there we went to a great restaurant that we wouldn’t have found without Orli’s help. They set up mats outside and brought out course after course of delicious food. It was a great atmosphere, and perfect way to end a trip.
The next day we went back down to Jerusalem so I could make it to my….BEER CLASS! That’s right everyone, I’m going to be brewing my own beer. My friend David and I are going to be taking this on together. I’m sure that some batches will not be so delicious, but I’m excited to test some flavors out and to give me some variety from the lackluster Israeli beers. I’ll keep everyone updated on what comes of this.
On Sunday we observed Tisha B’av, this is a fast day that commemorates the destruction of the Temples in Jerusalem and marks other sad anniversaries in Jewish history. I spent that day fasting, and learning at Pardes. I wasn’t the hardest fast, more than anything I was very thirsty at the end of the day.
One more update on stuff, I signed the lease for my apartment this afternoon, so everything is official. Hopefully I’ll be able to post some pictures of this place, but sadly pictures can’t truly capture how great this place is. It is a 5-minute walk to Pardes, and is surrounded by great cafes, synagogues, and people. I will be moving in next Wednesday, and I’ll be getting ready for Andy’s arrival on September 5, and of course Shosh’s arrival (permanent, that is) on October 6.
Again, I apologize that I haven’t kept up with this as much as I should have. There were times that I felt like not a lot was going on, but after looking through all of this, I guess I stand corrected. I look forward to hearing from everyone soon, and I hope you are all well.
I guess I could begin with my shabbatot for the past month. I’ve been lucky enough to spend almost every Shabbat in a different place every week. Four weeks ago, I spent Shabbat in Jerusalem at a friend’s house that I met through ulpan. They live off of Emek Refaim, which is a neighborhood that I am very familiar with. It felt great to be in that area. I davened at Shira Chadasha, which is a modern orthodox synagogue that Shosh enjoys a lot, and happily I really enjoyed it. It’s a very Anglo synagogue with great singing and a strong community. What made it great was the singing, I loved the tunes and the fact that everyone had great savannah towards everything they were doing. After shul my friends hosted Shabbat dinner, and we just ended up staying up till 3 am talking. The next morning, I slept in and was still able to make it in time for the Torah service. As I walked in, I had the pleasant surprise of seeing Itzik, my madrich from Nativ! I hadn’t spoken or seen him for so long and it was great to catch up. That afternoon, we hosted a seudat shlishit and waited for Shabbat to end. That evening as I was walking to a coffee shop I ran into Becca Sykes. I hadn’t been able to see any of the Sykes family while they were here, so I was ecstatic when I got to spend some time with her.
The following Monday I went to Tel Aviv to see Shosh and get to spend the evening with her. I had the great opportunity of doing homework in a bar that night. Shosh has some great pictures of it, and I’m sure you will all see them soon. The following Shabbat I traveled down to Eilat to spend Shabbat with Shosh and her group. It was great to hop on a bus and travel through this country again. Even if it is to the single hottest place possible. We spent Shabbat afternoon on the beach and in the ocean. I got some great sun, and even bought a new bathingsuit. The next day I hopped on the bus with Shosh and her group to catch a free ride up to Jerusalem. On the way hope we did a short water hike, and enjoyed the rest of the ride.
Shosh finished up with her group the following Wednesday, so I was ecstatic to have her all to myself. We came back to the Kirschners’ house that night and I started studying for end of ulpan class. The next morning we went straight to Hebrew U, so I could take my test. After school we went into town so I could run a few errands, and then we made our way back home at the end of the night.
The following morning is when all the fun started. Shosh and I had decided to go to Tel Aviv for that Shabbat a while ago. I had made reservations at a hostel there and I had no real idea what kind it was. Boy did we luck out! All Shosh had asked for was for it to be close to the beach, and have a bit of sketchiness. The only thing I was looking for was air conditioning. We certainly got the best of both worlds. There was great variety of people at the hostel, it was located two blocks away from the beach, and best of all our room was air-conditioned. We had a very nice relaxing Shabbat, and then went out to get drinks with people from her group that night. The next day we hopped on a bus up to Rosh Pinna to stay at one Shosh’s family friend’s Bed and Breakfast. This was an extra special treat because I love going up north, and I had never been to Rosh Pinna before. We get to the town, and I realized how much I missed the small town feel. I’ve been living in a small town for most of the last ten years and at times it’s been difficult to adjust to life in Jerusalem, which is busy and always very fast. We arrived to the bed and breakfast, and all I can say is WOW. It was beautiful. We found out while we there that Rosh Pinna was the first town the Russian Olim founded when they arrived in the late 1800’s, and even better the house we were was one of the first built. We spent that first night there enjoying the company and just relaxing in the fabulous setting. The next day, Shosh and I went with Orli to the local market, and then we went to her sister’s bed and breakfast for a great breakfast. From there we returned and lounged around for most of the afternoon. That night we went to the hill of Righteous Men. It’s a hill with burials spread out all around it of Rabbis from different time periods. Each spot is dedicated to a different need. One grave women go to help them find a husband, another to help them have children, and so on. From there we went to a great restaurant that we wouldn’t have found without Orli’s help. They set up mats outside and brought out course after course of delicious food. It was a great atmosphere, and perfect way to end a trip.
The next day we went back down to Jerusalem so I could make it to my….BEER CLASS! That’s right everyone, I’m going to be brewing my own beer. My friend David and I are going to be taking this on together. I’m sure that some batches will not be so delicious, but I’m excited to test some flavors out and to give me some variety from the lackluster Israeli beers. I’ll keep everyone updated on what comes of this.
On Sunday we observed Tisha B’av, this is a fast day that commemorates the destruction of the Temples in Jerusalem and marks other sad anniversaries in Jewish history. I spent that day fasting, and learning at Pardes. I wasn’t the hardest fast, more than anything I was very thirsty at the end of the day.
One more update on stuff, I signed the lease for my apartment this afternoon, so everything is official. Hopefully I’ll be able to post some pictures of this place, but sadly pictures can’t truly capture how great this place is. It is a 5-minute walk to Pardes, and is surrounded by great cafes, synagogues, and people. I will be moving in next Wednesday, and I’ll be getting ready for Andy’s arrival on September 5, and of course Shosh’s arrival (permanent, that is) on October 6.
Again, I apologize that I haven’t kept up with this as much as I should have. There were times that I felt like not a lot was going on, but after looking through all of this, I guess I stand corrected. I look forward to hearing from everyone soon, and I hope you are all well.
Friday, July 11, 2008
The Power of Words
Hi Everyone! This past week has been good. We went on a tiyul (field trip) on Wednesday to take a look at some of the water tunnels that the Jews used in the time of the Second Temple and took a "stroll" through one of the maintenance tunnels. It was very interesting to me especially since I thought I had already gone through all of these types of tunnels. Again, it was a new appreciation for Israel for me not to assume I've seen everything, but there is plenty more for me to discover. Thursday we had a test in class and I was very happy with how I did.
I am going to try something new today (and every Friday in the future). I'd like to add in a small d'var Torah every week. Let me know what y'all think!
Parshat Balak
This week's Parsha is called Balak and it focus on to main characters, Balak and Balaam. Balak was a King of Moab who saw the Jewish people growing in numbers and becoming stronger. Balaam was a wizard who was known for either giving out blessings (Mevrachim) or curses (Ra'aot) and hsi words were able to predict who would succeed or fail. Balak seeks out Balaam to send a curse to Bnai Yisrael so that he was able to Gerush (separate) them from this land (we will be returning to this word later). Balak sends many of his top dignitaries to recruit Balaam to come work for their King and Balaam is not swayed. Every night God comes to Balaam and tells him to stay until finally after three nights and Balak himself coming to see Balaam, Balaam concedes and joins the King (after God had told him to). God's final words to Balaam before he left were "You will speak whatever words I put in your mouth". This is also the condition that Balaam explains to Balak. Balak repeatedly tells him to what to say, and Balaam responds with simply "I will say the words that God puts in my mouth).
The most famous part of this parsha is of course Balaam's talking donkey. On the way to join Balak, God sends down an angel to communicate with Balaam. The angel stands in the middle of the road and at first only Balaam's donkey can see it, so the donkey stops. Balaam gets very angry with the donkey so he strikes it three times. Lo and behold, the donkey turns around and asks very simply "What have I done to you that you would hit me three times?". My favorite part is the fact that Balaam responds very matter of factly and doesn't think twice about the fact that his donkey is talking to him. After the conversation with the donkey, the angel reveals itself to Balaam and conveys God's thoughts to the wizard.
Once Balaam arrives to Balak he requests to an altar to be erected and for an ox and a bull to be sacrificed. He goes up on the hill where he can see all of B'nai Yisrael and gets ready to concoct the nastiest curse he can think of opens his mouth and lets out words of....praise? Wait a minute, that's not how it's supposed to work. Balak gets very angry with Balaam, asking him why he was paid to curse Bnai Yisrael and he says a blessing. Balaam simply responds with the phrase "I say the world that God puts in my mouth". Balak decides to try again but from a different spot and they go through the same routine of putting up an altar and Balaam gets ready to curse Bnai Yisrael and again a blessing comes out. They try it one more time for a different spot with the same result. Finally Balak gives up and returns to Moab, and Balaam returns to his home.
The end of the parsha is very interesting because until now there has been no mention of anything Bnai Yisrael has done. Finally at the end it says that God was angry with the people because they were mixing with Midianite women. God ordered that anyone who transgressed to be hung in the sunlight. In the end says that 24,000 people were killed because of their acts.
There are many aspects to focus on from this Parsha but for the sake of time and my computer battery I am going to focus on only one, the power of our words and how we decide to use them. In Masechet Brachot, Rabbi Meir explains how we have a certain amount of words that are alloted to use in our lives. The more we waste our words the less good we are able to do and the more of our lives our wasted. I love this explanation and it is my favorite way to look at lashon hara (literally evil tongue, but more specficially gossip or propaganda). We are all given the opportunity to do much good in our lives. We do not have the same privilege that Balaam was granted by being able to say "I say the words that God puts in my mouth". Balaam's intention was to give curses to Bnai Yisrael but that was changed by God. The responsibility is on all of us to share the words that we to say, and not words that we think are expected of us. It is always easier to trash someone for their shortcomings or mistakes, but it is much more respectable to see where that person is coming from and think about if you were in their position. My challenge for all of you is to take into thought how you are viewed by those around you. Are you seen as someone who will throw your friend under the bus so that evreyone else can think more highly of you, or do you take into regard what your words are doing to that person and how you can use your words to help them.
Shabbat Shalom and I hope to hear from everyone soon
I am going to try something new today (and every Friday in the future). I'd like to add in a small d'var Torah every week. Let me know what y'all think!
Parshat Balak
This week's Parsha is called Balak and it focus on to main characters, Balak and Balaam. Balak was a King of Moab who saw the Jewish people growing in numbers and becoming stronger. Balaam was a wizard who was known for either giving out blessings (Mevrachim) or curses (Ra'aot) and hsi words were able to predict who would succeed or fail. Balak seeks out Balaam to send a curse to Bnai Yisrael so that he was able to Gerush (separate) them from this land (we will be returning to this word later). Balak sends many of his top dignitaries to recruit Balaam to come work for their King and Balaam is not swayed. Every night God comes to Balaam and tells him to stay until finally after three nights and Balak himself coming to see Balaam, Balaam concedes and joins the King (after God had told him to). God's final words to Balaam before he left were "You will speak whatever words I put in your mouth". This is also the condition that Balaam explains to Balak. Balak repeatedly tells him to what to say, and Balaam responds with simply "I will say the words that God puts in my mouth).
The most famous part of this parsha is of course Balaam's talking donkey. On the way to join Balak, God sends down an angel to communicate with Balaam. The angel stands in the middle of the road and at first only Balaam's donkey can see it, so the donkey stops. Balaam gets very angry with the donkey so he strikes it three times. Lo and behold, the donkey turns around and asks very simply "What have I done to you that you would hit me three times?". My favorite part is the fact that Balaam responds very matter of factly and doesn't think twice about the fact that his donkey is talking to him. After the conversation with the donkey, the angel reveals itself to Balaam and conveys God's thoughts to the wizard.
Once Balaam arrives to Balak he requests to an altar to be erected and for an ox and a bull to be sacrificed. He goes up on the hill where he can see all of B'nai Yisrael and gets ready to concoct the nastiest curse he can think of opens his mouth and lets out words of....praise? Wait a minute, that's not how it's supposed to work. Balak gets very angry with Balaam, asking him why he was paid to curse Bnai Yisrael and he says a blessing. Balaam simply responds with the phrase "I say the world that God puts in my mouth". Balak decides to try again but from a different spot and they go through the same routine of putting up an altar and Balaam gets ready to curse Bnai Yisrael and again a blessing comes out. They try it one more time for a different spot with the same result. Finally Balak gives up and returns to Moab, and Balaam returns to his home.
The end of the parsha is very interesting because until now there has been no mention of anything Bnai Yisrael has done. Finally at the end it says that God was angry with the people because they were mixing with Midianite women. God ordered that anyone who transgressed to be hung in the sunlight. In the end says that 24,000 people were killed because of their acts.
There are many aspects to focus on from this Parsha but for the sake of time and my computer battery I am going to focus on only one, the power of our words and how we decide to use them. In Masechet Brachot, Rabbi Meir explains how we have a certain amount of words that are alloted to use in our lives. The more we waste our words the less good we are able to do and the more of our lives our wasted. I love this explanation and it is my favorite way to look at lashon hara (literally evil tongue, but more specficially gossip or propaganda). We are all given the opportunity to do much good in our lives. We do not have the same privilege that Balaam was granted by being able to say "I say the words that God puts in my mouth". Balaam's intention was to give curses to Bnai Yisrael but that was changed by God. The responsibility is on all of us to share the words that we to say, and not words that we think are expected of us. It is always easier to trash someone for their shortcomings or mistakes, but it is much more respectable to see where that person is coming from and think about if you were in their position. My challenge for all of you is to take into thought how you are viewed by those around you. Are you seen as someone who will throw your friend under the bus so that evreyone else can think more highly of you, or do you take into regard what your words are doing to that person and how you can use your words to help them.
Shabbat Shalom and I hope to hear from everyone soon
Tuesday, July 8, 2008
Keeping up
Hi Everyone, nothing new to report from my end. Ulpan is coming along well, and I received my first summer assignment for Pardes. I'm very excited to get to work on the readings, and to start studying. I'm going to catch a ride home now, so I'll write more later on.
Thursday, July 3, 2008
The Day After
Today was uneventful. I went to school early, took a test in class, had lunch with David Riemenschnieder (he is going to be in the Educators Program with me), went to Pardes, and came home with Aunt Gail.
This post really is not about me.
It's about the three people who were killed by someone described as a "hot head". For those that are curious Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Defense Minister Ehud Barak described this person as a 'murderer' and not a 'terrorist'. Unfortunately, Israelis do not care either way. They see a man who was an Israeli Arab (notice I didnt' say Arab Israeli), how went on a rampage through a very crowded part of Jerusalem in bulldozer with the intention of killing as many people as possible. Most people I spoke with yesterday said "Thank God he only killed 3 people". Sadly for myself I wasn't shocked to hear a response like this. This was a horrible crime. Worst of all, I didn't even do research to see who was killed. I just saw a number, and knew that my family and friends here were okay. This afternoon while waiting for the bus with Aunt Gail she mentioned to me that one of the women killed was a friend of a friend. Alll of a sudden it became real. I found the article on JPost.com about the 3 people who were killed. All of a sudden it became very real. Once you hear the stories and realize what kind of travesty this was does it really hit you. I ask all of you to read this article and think about how thankful you are to have your loved ones around you. I know I am.
This post really is not about me.
It's about the three people who were killed by someone described as a "hot head". For those that are curious Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Defense Minister Ehud Barak described this person as a 'murderer' and not a 'terrorist'. Unfortunately, Israelis do not care either way. They see a man who was an Israeli Arab (notice I didnt' say Arab Israeli), how went on a rampage through a very crowded part of Jerusalem in bulldozer with the intention of killing as many people as possible. Most people I spoke with yesterday said "Thank God he only killed 3 people". Sadly for myself I wasn't shocked to hear a response like this. This was a horrible crime. Worst of all, I didn't even do research to see who was killed. I just saw a number, and knew that my family and friends here were okay. This afternoon while waiting for the bus with Aunt Gail she mentioned to me that one of the women killed was a friend of a friend. Alll of a sudden it became real. I found the article on JPost.com about the 3 people who were killed. All of a sudden it became very real. Once you hear the stories and realize what kind of travesty this was does it really hit you. I ask all of you to read this article and think about how thankful you are to have your loved ones around you. I know I am.
Tuesday, July 1, 2008
Have you Missed Me?
Many apologies for slacking on keeping this up to date. I've been very busy for the past week so I have plenty to catch y'all up on. I started school last Tuesday and it has been very nice to actually start the 'school' process and say I am a student again. I've got a lot to review from the past week so I'm going to try and cover everything.
Tuesday June 24
I had my first day of Ulpan and realized that I might know more than I thought, but still have a lot to learn. My teacher is a lot of fun, and makes the class very interactive. I mention this because I can imagine it being very boring teaching Hebrew to Americans 5 days a week, so it's very admirable to make it interesting everyday. My class is much more diverse than I thought it was going to be. I was expecting all 20-21 year old Americans who are here to get drunk and have Ulpan as there 'activity'. I couldn't have been more wrong, half of my class is not from America. There are people from France, Germany, Spain, Brazil, Italy, Argentina, and Japan. The rest of the people are from from America, but there is a great variety and liveliness in the classroom. One of the most interesting aspects is that the only language some of us have in common is Hebrew. Just reaffirming that bond that Jews can have all over the world.
After class I hung out around Hebrew U for a few hours because I was going to meet Shosh's group in town and they weren't in Jerusalem yet. I met up with them at Har Herzl and walked through it with them. From there we went to the Shalom Hotel to put our stuff down. We got to relax for about 20 minutes, and then were off to Kvar HaStudentim (The Student Village) at Hebrew U for a night out at one of the bars there. Shosh's group was a lot of fun, and they took me in as part of the group. It was really nice to celebrate a great trip with them. We got back to the hotel around 12:45 and went straight to bed.
Wednesday June 25
I woke up early that morning, and had breakfast with Shosh's group at the Shalom Hotel and caught a cab to Hebrew U. Class was normal, and afterwards I met Shosh at Pardes. She was coming back from Ben Gurion airport (saying goodbye to her group), so we put her suitcase in Aunt Gail's car. I had set up an appointment to look at an apartment that afternoon so we went straight there. The apartment was very nice, fully furnished, and in a great neighborhood. The problem was that neighborhood wasn't near anything we wanted. We told the broker thank you and were on our way. We went back to Kfar Adumim that night, at some dinner and Shosh was out cold by 8:30 that evening. I stayed up for a while to write in my journal, and do some homework.
Thursday June 26
Thursday both of us woke up refreshed and caught a ride to Hebrew U with Aunt Gail. Shosh waited for me at Rothberg while I was in class. It was great to be able to see her durng thd ay consistently. I'm excited for the chance to have that everyday. After class we went down to Emek Refaim to do more work on apartment hunting. We found a second one that was interesting to us, and got in touch with the broker. He was very nice and came to pick us up from the cafe we were sitting at, and took us to the apartment. This one was in the perfect neighborhood that we are looking for, but it wasn't the nicest place. That wasn't a big deal to either of us, but we were both nervous about the appliances and we got some shady answers about who would be responsible for them if anything broke. Neither of us felt great about that one, so the search continued. We decided that we weren't going to get nervous about the apartments until after Shabbat.
After the apartment look we walked downtown and passed the Israel Gay Pride parade on the way down. It was very interesting to see, but what was more interesting was the attention I was getting. Shosh and I were standing on the sides so we could watch it go by, and I was wearing a kippah. On two different occasions a policeman came up to me and was interrogating
about what I was doing at the parade. We both figured that it was because I was wearing a kippah that that happened. They were assuming I was there to cause trouble. This just made me realize what sort of associations people can make here just by appearance. After the parade Shosh and I headed to Egon to hang out for a while. You're probably wondering "Why didn't you just head home?", well that's because we were meeting Judi and Oren for dinner that night. We met them at a sushi restaurant called Japanika and it was delicious. Both Shosh and I had a great time hanging out with Judi and Oren and it's comforting to know that we'll have them around while we are here. After dinner Aunt Gail came to pick us up and we headed home for the night.
Friday June 27th
We slept in on Friday morning and got our stuff ready for Shabbat. Both of us wanted to stay in Jerusalem for Shabbat but it was difficult to find a hostel that was in the area we wanted. We ended up staying at the Jaffa Gate hostel which is located right next to the Jaffa Gate in the old city. This hostel was "quaint" , Shosh loved it for it's shadiness but it left some to be desired for me. We had a private room, so that's all I truly cared about. We went in to town to get some lunch, and while we were down there we ran into Jeff Seidel. He is known as someone to help people get meals on Shabbat all around Jerusalem. We ran him down and inquired about the evening. From there we headed to Machane Yehuda to pick up some snack for Shabbat. We got some rogolach, a bottle of wine for dinner, and two challot for lunch. We then headed back to our hostel to get ready for Shabbat.
I should confess something, I've never enjoyed davening at the Kotel. I found it to be monotonous and not very meaningful. So as we headed there for Kabbalat Shabbat, I had very low expectations. As I arrived, I found a minyan like every other one I've had there. A leader that you couldn't understand and lots of mumbling. All of a sudden to my right I heard Yedid Nefesh coming out. I truly love this song, and was ecstatic to hear it being sung. I went straight to that minyan and sang with them. Even better was for the beginning of the service they sang it in a Carlebach tune. This service ended up being fantastic, it was lead by 16 year old Israeli and his friends. It was full of ruach and was exactly what I needed. Probably a bit too much, because I was supposed to meet the person that was hosting us for lunch at 8:20, and Shosh didn't yell out my name until 8:50 (woops). Luckily for me, our host was late getting to daven, so we weren't left behind. We left the Kotel and headed down to their house. Again I had somewhat low expectations since most of the time I get set up for a meal like this, it is with a family that has 9 kids but can really afford to feed 3 of them. Once again I was more than pleasantly surprised. Their apartment was beautiful and the food was even better. The first course could have filled me up on its own. Conversation was fantastic and we didn't leave the apartment until close to 12:30. We got back to the hostel and passed out right away.
Saturday June 28
We woke up Saturday morning around 10:00 and got ready for the trek to Mercaz HaMagshimim. We walked down there and hand lunch with Sari Roy, she was on Nativ with both Shosh and I. Shosh has seen her as recently as last January, but I hadn't seen her since Nativ. I'm very excited that she will be here also. From there we walked back home, got to the hostel and took a nap. We woke up around 6:30 and went back to the Kotel for Mincha and Ma'ariv. The temperature changes here are very funny. Once the sun is going down and not shining directly on us, it really becoms the most comfortable place around. We sat in the dusk of the Kotel for a while and took it in. Once Shabbat was over we headed back to the Kotel and went out that night for dinner and some drinks.
Sunday June 29
Sunday we woke up and I headed straight to school while Shosh hung out around town. Class was normal, nothing special. Afterwards I headed into town and met up with Shosh at Cafe Hillel where she was having lunch with her friend Elana. We hung out there for a while and then meandered around town for the afternoon. We spent some of it in the lobby of the David Citadel Hotel, some of it in a new shopping area near the Old City (where Shosh got some make up), and some of it just walking around Ben Yehuda. We waited until 8 PM and then met up with one of Shosh's friends, Carmi. I knew her when I was on Nativ so it was great to see her, and again it's nice to know that she is here for us to be friends with. Afterwards Aunt Gail came to pick us up, and we went home for the night. Again exhausted I fell asleep on the way home, and was outcold up arrival to the house.
Monday June 30
Woke up Monday feeling refreshed and we headed out with Aunt Gail. She dropped me off at Hebrew U and Shosh continued on with her to Pardes. After school I went straight to Pardes and hung out there for a couple hours. We went home with Aunt Gail, had a nice dinner outside, and tried to take it easy. I was exhausted after the previous days so it felt good, to just stay at home. We went to sleep at a good time, and got some needed rest.
Tuesday July 1
Yesterday Shosh and I got a ride to Hebrew U with Aunt Gail. I went to class and Shosh hung out at the cafeteria. Afterwards we went straight down to pardes to meet up with Aunt Gail and did a bit more research for apartments. At this point we were somewhat burnt out from the process and were getting worried that we were going to get a crappy apartment for way too much money. But LO AND BEHOLD Shosh found something!! It was listed as 3 rooms, 4000 NIS ($1200), and furnished. No way. There must be a catch. It must already be rented. I called the broker and it wasn't rented. We set up a time to see it that afternoon. Shosh, Aunt Gail, and I headed down and met up with Israel, the broker. He showed us the apartment and WOW. That's all I can say. WOW. It's perfect. All three of us were blown away, and we pretty much agreed to it on the spot. It was very exciting and extremely relieving to know where I'm going to be and where Shosh and my first home will be (with Andy of course). From there we headed home and the sad part starting dawning on us. Shosh was leaving that night. We had a light dinner, she finished up packing and we headed to the Hyatt to meet the taxi. We said our goodbyes (unfortunately we are very good at these). I headed home from there and wanted to go to sleep. I'm still waiting for her to land though.
Wednesday July 2
Class was good today, but I wanted to let you all know that there was a terrorist attack this morning. Someone took a tractor and rammed two public buses with it. I am fine, as is everyone I know. 4 people were killed and 44 were injured. Once again, I am fine. As my teacher said after we found out, this is Israel. Unfortunately you learn to live with these things.
That's all for now.
Tuesday June 24
I had my first day of Ulpan and realized that I might know more than I thought, but still have a lot to learn. My teacher is a lot of fun, and makes the class very interactive. I mention this because I can imagine it being very boring teaching Hebrew to Americans 5 days a week, so it's very admirable to make it interesting everyday. My class is much more diverse than I thought it was going to be. I was expecting all 20-21 year old Americans who are here to get drunk and have Ulpan as there 'activity'. I couldn't have been more wrong, half of my class is not from America. There are people from France, Germany, Spain, Brazil, Italy, Argentina, and Japan. The rest of the people are from from America, but there is a great variety and liveliness in the classroom. One of the most interesting aspects is that the only language some of us have in common is Hebrew. Just reaffirming that bond that Jews can have all over the world.
After class I hung out around Hebrew U for a few hours because I was going to meet Shosh's group in town and they weren't in Jerusalem yet. I met up with them at Har Herzl and walked through it with them. From there we went to the Shalom Hotel to put our stuff down. We got to relax for about 20 minutes, and then were off to Kvar HaStudentim (The Student Village) at Hebrew U for a night out at one of the bars there. Shosh's group was a lot of fun, and they took me in as part of the group. It was really nice to celebrate a great trip with them. We got back to the hotel around 12:45 and went straight to bed.
Wednesday June 25
I woke up early that morning, and had breakfast with Shosh's group at the Shalom Hotel and caught a cab to Hebrew U. Class was normal, and afterwards I met Shosh at Pardes. She was coming back from Ben Gurion airport (saying goodbye to her group), so we put her suitcase in Aunt Gail's car. I had set up an appointment to look at an apartment that afternoon so we went straight there. The apartment was very nice, fully furnished, and in a great neighborhood. The problem was that neighborhood wasn't near anything we wanted. We told the broker thank you and were on our way. We went back to Kfar Adumim that night, at some dinner and Shosh was out cold by 8:30 that evening. I stayed up for a while to write in my journal, and do some homework.
Thursday June 26
Thursday both of us woke up refreshed and caught a ride to Hebrew U with Aunt Gail. Shosh waited for me at Rothberg while I was in class. It was great to be able to see her durng thd ay consistently. I'm excited for the chance to have that everyday. After class we went down to Emek Refaim to do more work on apartment hunting. We found a second one that was interesting to us, and got in touch with the broker. He was very nice and came to pick us up from the cafe we were sitting at, and took us to the apartment. This one was in the perfect neighborhood that we are looking for, but it wasn't the nicest place. That wasn't a big deal to either of us, but we were both nervous about the appliances and we got some shady answers about who would be responsible for them if anything broke. Neither of us felt great about that one, so the search continued. We decided that we weren't going to get nervous about the apartments until after Shabbat.
After the apartment look we walked downtown and passed the Israel Gay Pride parade on the way down. It was very interesting to see, but what was more interesting was the attention I was getting. Shosh and I were standing on the sides so we could watch it go by, and I was wearing a kippah. On two different occasions a policeman came up to me and was interrogating
about what I was doing at the parade. We both figured that it was because I was wearing a kippah that that happened. They were assuming I was there to cause trouble. This just made me realize what sort of associations people can make here just by appearance. After the parade Shosh and I headed to Egon to hang out for a while. You're probably wondering "Why didn't you just head home?", well that's because we were meeting Judi and Oren for dinner that night. We met them at a sushi restaurant called Japanika and it was delicious. Both Shosh and I had a great time hanging out with Judi and Oren and it's comforting to know that we'll have them around while we are here. After dinner Aunt Gail came to pick us up and we headed home for the night.
Friday June 27th
We slept in on Friday morning and got our stuff ready for Shabbat. Both of us wanted to stay in Jerusalem for Shabbat but it was difficult to find a hostel that was in the area we wanted. We ended up staying at the Jaffa Gate hostel which is located right next to the Jaffa Gate in the old city. This hostel was "quaint" , Shosh loved it for it's shadiness but it left some to be desired for me. We had a private room, so that's all I truly cared about. We went in to town to get some lunch, and while we were down there we ran into Jeff Seidel. He is known as someone to help people get meals on Shabbat all around Jerusalem. We ran him down and inquired about the evening. From there we headed to Machane Yehuda to pick up some snack for Shabbat. We got some rogolach, a bottle of wine for dinner, and two challot for lunch. We then headed back to our hostel to get ready for Shabbat.
I should confess something, I've never enjoyed davening at the Kotel. I found it to be monotonous and not very meaningful. So as we headed there for Kabbalat Shabbat, I had very low expectations. As I arrived, I found a minyan like every other one I've had there. A leader that you couldn't understand and lots of mumbling. All of a sudden to my right I heard Yedid Nefesh coming out. I truly love this song, and was ecstatic to hear it being sung. I went straight to that minyan and sang with them. Even better was for the beginning of the service they sang it in a Carlebach tune. This service ended up being fantastic, it was lead by 16 year old Israeli and his friends. It was full of ruach and was exactly what I needed. Probably a bit too much, because I was supposed to meet the person that was hosting us for lunch at 8:20, and Shosh didn't yell out my name until 8:50 (woops). Luckily for me, our host was late getting to daven, so we weren't left behind. We left the Kotel and headed down to their house. Again I had somewhat low expectations since most of the time I get set up for a meal like this, it is with a family that has 9 kids but can really afford to feed 3 of them. Once again I was more than pleasantly surprised. Their apartment was beautiful and the food was even better. The first course could have filled me up on its own. Conversation was fantastic and we didn't leave the apartment until close to 12:30. We got back to the hostel and passed out right away.
Saturday June 28
We woke up Saturday morning around 10:00 and got ready for the trek to Mercaz HaMagshimim. We walked down there and hand lunch with Sari Roy, she was on Nativ with both Shosh and I. Shosh has seen her as recently as last January, but I hadn't seen her since Nativ. I'm very excited that she will be here also. From there we walked back home, got to the hostel and took a nap. We woke up around 6:30 and went back to the Kotel for Mincha and Ma'ariv. The temperature changes here are very funny. Once the sun is going down and not shining directly on us, it really becoms the most comfortable place around. We sat in the dusk of the Kotel for a while and took it in. Once Shabbat was over we headed back to the Kotel and went out that night for dinner and some drinks.
Sunday June 29
Sunday we woke up and I headed straight to school while Shosh hung out around town. Class was normal, nothing special. Afterwards I headed into town and met up with Shosh at Cafe Hillel where she was having lunch with her friend Elana. We hung out there for a while and then meandered around town for the afternoon. We spent some of it in the lobby of the David Citadel Hotel, some of it in a new shopping area near the Old City (where Shosh got some make up), and some of it just walking around Ben Yehuda. We waited until 8 PM and then met up with one of Shosh's friends, Carmi. I knew her when I was on Nativ so it was great to see her, and again it's nice to know that she is here for us to be friends with. Afterwards Aunt Gail came to pick us up, and we went home for the night. Again exhausted I fell asleep on the way home, and was outcold up arrival to the house.
Monday June 30
Woke up Monday feeling refreshed and we headed out with Aunt Gail. She dropped me off at Hebrew U and Shosh continued on with her to Pardes. After school I went straight to Pardes and hung out there for a couple hours. We went home with Aunt Gail, had a nice dinner outside, and tried to take it easy. I was exhausted after the previous days so it felt good, to just stay at home. We went to sleep at a good time, and got some needed rest.
Tuesday July 1
Yesterday Shosh and I got a ride to Hebrew U with Aunt Gail. I went to class and Shosh hung out at the cafeteria. Afterwards we went straight down to pardes to meet up with Aunt Gail and did a bit more research for apartments. At this point we were somewhat burnt out from the process and were getting worried that we were going to get a crappy apartment for way too much money. But LO AND BEHOLD Shosh found something!! It was listed as 3 rooms, 4000 NIS ($1200), and furnished. No way. There must be a catch. It must already be rented. I called the broker and it wasn't rented. We set up a time to see it that afternoon. Shosh, Aunt Gail, and I headed down and met up with Israel, the broker. He showed us the apartment and WOW. That's all I can say. WOW. It's perfect. All three of us were blown away, and we pretty much agreed to it on the spot. It was very exciting and extremely relieving to know where I'm going to be and where Shosh and my first home will be (with Andy of course). From there we headed home and the sad part starting dawning on us. Shosh was leaving that night. We had a light dinner, she finished up packing and we headed to the Hyatt to meet the taxi. We said our goodbyes (unfortunately we are very good at these). I headed home from there and wanted to go to sleep. I'm still waiting for her to land though.
Wednesday July 2
Class was good today, but I wanted to let you all know that there was a terrorist attack this morning. Someone took a tractor and rammed two public buses with it. I am fine, as is everyone I know. 4 people were killed and 44 were injured. Once again, I am fine. As my teacher said after we found out, this is Israel. Unfortunately you learn to live with these things.
That's all for now.
Monday, June 23, 2008
Back to school, back to school...
Got my shoes tied tight, boy I hope I don't get in a fight....
Sorry for the Billy Madison reference, but it's the best way I could describe my frame of mind this evening. Tomorrow I will be having my first day of school in about 5 years. This should be interesting. Keep in mind that this is not my first day at Pardes, that doesn't begin until September. Tomorrow I will be starting a Hebrew Ulpan at Hebrew University. An ulpan is an intense language course, and mine will be lasting for 5 weeks (June 24-July 31). Almost everyone from the Educators Program will be taking it with me (1 girl is taking her ulpan in Haifa), so I'm looking forward to meeting them. Also, I'm ready to take an ulpan. Everyone I know that has been through one says it helped their Hebrew immensely. Hopefully, I'll get the same benefits from it.
This was my Monday
I woke up today around 8:30 this morning and got ready to head into town. Keep in mind that I've never gone to Hebrew U before, so I really had no idea of how to get there. I knew it was either near French Hill or Mt. Scopus (or both???). I was able to get a ride to French Hill, and I thought it would be right in front of me, and as usual, I was wrong. I asked someone how to get to the university, and in quick Israeli fashion he just said "Straight ahead". With those directions I assumed that it would be right in front of me (what would give me that impression??). I'm walking and walking and walking and I don't see a thing. Finally (as I'm sweating like it's my job) I ask someone else and he points out that I was going in the totally wrong direction. Good start. So I correct myself and start heading to Hebrew U. Made my way in, and tried to figure my way through the campus. I have to say it felt great being on college campus, but I felt a bit out of place. For those of you who have heard the song "I Wish I could Go Back to College" from Avenue Q than you would understand. The song is talking about how great it would be to go back to the carefree days of college, but at the end the singer realizes how awkward he would be because he'd years older than everyone else. Well that was me today. All the Americans taking the ulpan are 20-22 years old. It was interesting. On to the day though. I had to register for classes and get my student I.D. card. There was a place to get passport photos done on campus, and I must say that these were the best passport photos I've ever seen. I really look great. She made six of them, I used one for the card and I'm actually keeping the other 5. After I finished with the registration I headed into town to get some lunch and do my usual wandering around streets to find cool places. By the time I was done with that it was about 3:00 PM, so I headed to Pardes to meet with Aunt Gail and head home with her. We went to Ma'ale Adumim first to meet some of her friends, and then got a call from Elana asking to be picked up in Jerusalem. I didn't mind this at all simply because I love going through the city. Everything intrigues me about it, the traffic, the people, the buildings, the signs, the smells (good and bad), literally everything. I hope that excitement doesn't disipate the longer I am here. We then came home, had some leftovers and now here I am. That's all for now.
I'll make sure to keep my shoes tied tight tomorrow, and will pack a quality lunchbox. Talk to everyone soon!
Sorry for the Billy Madison reference, but it's the best way I could describe my frame of mind this evening. Tomorrow I will be having my first day of school in about 5 years. This should be interesting. Keep in mind that this is not my first day at Pardes, that doesn't begin until September. Tomorrow I will be starting a Hebrew Ulpan at Hebrew University. An ulpan is an intense language course, and mine will be lasting for 5 weeks (June 24-July 31). Almost everyone from the Educators Program will be taking it with me (1 girl is taking her ulpan in Haifa), so I'm looking forward to meeting them. Also, I'm ready to take an ulpan. Everyone I know that has been through one says it helped their Hebrew immensely. Hopefully, I'll get the same benefits from it.
This was my Monday
I woke up today around 8:30 this morning and got ready to head into town. Keep in mind that I've never gone to Hebrew U before, so I really had no idea of how to get there. I knew it was either near French Hill or Mt. Scopus (or both???). I was able to get a ride to French Hill, and I thought it would be right in front of me, and as usual, I was wrong. I asked someone how to get to the university, and in quick Israeli fashion he just said "Straight ahead". With those directions I assumed that it would be right in front of me (what would give me that impression??). I'm walking and walking and walking and I don't see a thing. Finally (as I'm sweating like it's my job) I ask someone else and he points out that I was going in the totally wrong direction. Good start. So I correct myself and start heading to Hebrew U. Made my way in, and tried to figure my way through the campus. I have to say it felt great being on college campus, but I felt a bit out of place. For those of you who have heard the song "I Wish I could Go Back to College" from Avenue Q than you would understand. The song is talking about how great it would be to go back to the carefree days of college, but at the end the singer realizes how awkward he would be because he'd years older than everyone else. Well that was me today. All the Americans taking the ulpan are 20-22 years old. It was interesting. On to the day though. I had to register for classes and get my student I.D. card. There was a place to get passport photos done on campus, and I must say that these were the best passport photos I've ever seen. I really look great. She made six of them, I used one for the card and I'm actually keeping the other 5. After I finished with the registration I headed into town to get some lunch and do my usual wandering around streets to find cool places. By the time I was done with that it was about 3:00 PM, so I headed to Pardes to meet with Aunt Gail and head home with her. We went to Ma'ale Adumim first to meet some of her friends, and then got a call from Elana asking to be picked up in Jerusalem. I didn't mind this at all simply because I love going through the city. Everything intrigues me about it, the traffic, the people, the buildings, the signs, the smells (good and bad), literally everything. I hope that excitement doesn't disipate the longer I am here. We then came home, had some leftovers and now here I am. That's all for now.
I'll make sure to keep my shoes tied tight tomorrow, and will pack a quality lunchbox. Talk to everyone soon!
Sunday, June 22, 2008
First Shabbat and some traveling
It is not Sunday afternoon and I just returned to Jerusalem. We are experiencing a hot spell right now. Jerusalem is brutal right now, and it is actually unbearable to be outside during the high point of the day. I'm hoping it'll end soon, because I know it won't be much better once we get into July...
On to my days....
The last time we spoke I was sitting at the Jerusalem bus station about to my buy my ticket to head up to Kibbutz Ohalo for Shabbat with Shosh and her group. I got on the 2 PM bus, and settled into my seat with my 5 kilos of rogalach, flowers, and mountainsmith bag (my backpack was under the bus). The bus ride was normal and easy, I was able to have my own seat for the whole ride and got a little cat nap on the way up. Israel truly amazes me at how it can change within an hour or two of driving. Even during this hot spell, the north still is lush and very green. Very different from the desert climate that surrounds Jerusalem. As we got deeper into the north I started wondering where my stop was. I had asked the bus driver to announce when we arrived to the Kibbutz since I wouldn't be able to recognize it. I knew it came after Kibbutz Kineret, and once I saw the sign for that I hopped out of my seat and asked if Ohalo was next. he nodded, stopped the bus and I got off. I looked around for a second, with my accessories in hand, and realized I couldn't find the entrance. Every kibbutz I had ever been to had some sort of sign to let you know how to get in. From what I could see, that didn't exist. I called Shosh to see where she was only to find out that she wasn't arriving for another. (disclaimer! Keep in mind that I was supposed to be staying there incognito, thus I didn't find it a good idea to try and 'check in'). I continue walking around, find a cemetary that I assumed that wasn't it. Walked out, cursed the heat, and continued up the road to find the entrance. Lo and behold! I found it. I walk in, make friends with the receptionist, asked if I could hang out in the lobby, and take a seat. While waiting for her group, I was throughly entertained by a group of French tourist who crowded into the lobby and were yelling about everything possible. I couldn't understand a word they were saying, but I couldn't stop staring at the short pudgy man, that refused to wear a shit. It was like an awful painting. You don't want to look, but you are curious at how it was put together. Thus you stare. After that fiasco, I, along with the receptionists, made of the tourists. Shosh and her group arrived around 5:45, and I couldn't have been happier. I greeted her with flowers, and the whole group let out a resounding "awwwww". I guess my reputation had proceeded me. I knew that Shosh was in work mode, so I was more than happy to help her with anything possible (especially since she worked as my chaperon during a couple trips to Colorado last February). I already knew I was going to assist Noah, her co-staff, in services so Noah and I sat down and went over what we wanted to do. After meeting for an half hour, I finally went to my room and got see Shosh. The first word that comes to mind when I got to see her was 'refreshed'. I had missed her so much, and it felt so good and reviving to be able to hug her again. To say the least I was looking forward to Shabbat...
The Sabbath
Shabbat was certainly welcomed by everyone there. The previous week had been hectic to say the least, and the prospect of taking a deep breath and taking it all in was more than enticing. We first went down to the beach to sing a song, and explain all the options for tefillah (services). Noah and I lead our group to the room and began. The service itself were parallel to what I did when I was working with NFTY. I was okay with that for this situation, since most people in the room didn't know any of the prayers, but for my first Shabbat in Israel I was looking forward to a very spirited Kabbalat Shabbat and Ma'ariv. Luckily I have plenty more Shabbatot to come for me to enjoy, for the birthright group this is their only one. I wanted to make sure they got as much out of it as possible.
From there we had dinner, nothing special to report about except for the fact that I was starving and enjoyed eating very much. I also did my second rendition of Aishat Hayil for Shosh and I must say that the second go around went much more smoothly. After dinner we had an oneg, and I finally was able to get the bounty of carrying around the rogalach all day. It was very tasty, and I was happy that Shosh's group got to enjoy them also. After that we had a tish, which is nothing more than sitting around on Shabbat and telling stories. Traditionally you tell Rabbinic stories, that either talk about Shabbat or teach something. In this circumstance, the floor was open to everyone to share a random (Jill, I hope you noticed that) story that has opened to them in their life. I shared the Chick fil A story of course. Once the tish was over, we went to bed and it felt great.
The next morning we were able to sleep in, and I lead a Parsha HaShavua lesson for Shosh's group. This was a bit easier since the Parsha was Shelach Lecha, and it's my Bar Mitzvah portion. In fact this past Shabbat was my 15th anniversary. I taught a lesson about faith, since that is one of the main themes of the Parsha. Faith in oneself, and people around you. I felt it was appropriate for the experience they were having, and some of them told me afterwards that they were able to take a lot from what I taught. Those are always my favorite moments. Next was some free time and lunch. During the afternoon we had an activity about Jewish identity. This is a hot topic on Birthright, since every participant really comes from all over the board in how they see themselves as Jews. We were split into three groups, and I went with Noah to help him. We would hold up signs with different Jewish aspects on them, some examples of these are "Fasting on Yom Kippur", "Keeping Kosher", "Learning how to speak Hebrew", "Making Jewish Education a Priority for your children", and "Marrying a Jewish man/woman". The discussions were very intriguing. Some of the people were a bit more on the observant side, and wanted to learn to speak Hebrew, and wanted to make sure their children had the same background that they had. Others (including all the Israelis in our group), didn't really have or need a dedication to these traditions. It was eye opening to many of us, where varied the Jewish demography is around the states and in Israel. I contributed some, but tried to hold back and let the participants dictate the conversation. After the discussion, I took a nap since the heat of the day really took a lot out of me. Shosh woke me up around 7:45 and we started practicing for our Torah readings. You might ask "What were you reading Torah for?" Well, that's a great question! Birthright trips give the option of letting any of their participants become Bar or Bat Mitzvahs if they haven't already done so. 4 girls in Shosh's group wanted to do this, and 2 girls wanted to receive Hebrew names. We did an abbreviated mincha services (just the Torah service to be exact), I acted as gabbi and Shosh read for the first two, and we switched for the last one. All six girls came up for their aliyot, and after the Torah service gave a brief speech. For the girls receiving names, they spoke about why they chose those names. The four girls who became B'not Mitzvah spoke about their commitment to the Jewish people, why they chose this moment to go through with the ceremony, and to teach something to the rest of the group. All six girls put a lot of thought into what they spoke about, and all did a beautiful job. After the ceremony we had havdallah, and prepared to go to Tiberias for the evening.
That night we went down to the pier, and spent the evening out and about. Shosh, Noah, and i went to dinner at a dairy restaurant (so Shosh could actually eat something) and enjoyed the random nice weather. Overall wasn't the most the eventful evening, except for the stomachache I had after dinner.
This morning we woke up at about 6:50 and got ready to pack up. I had a very nice shower, and went to breakfast. Shosh's bus driver was nice enough to drop me off in Tiberias so I could catch my bus. It came on time, I found a seat, put on my Ipod and passed out. I woke up when we got to Jerusalem and started gathering my belongings. I got everything together and got off the bus, and had to go through another set of security to enter the bus station. This is where the day got sticky. I emptied everything (or so I thought) out of my pockets and went through the metal detector. It beeped. I realized I had my Ipod in one of my cargo pockets, I took it out and put it on top of my one of my bags. After I went through the metal detector again I put my Ipod in one of the side pockets of my mountainsmith bag. This is where I always put my Ipod. I walked through the bus station and went outside to catch another bus to go into town. I looked in my bag, and to my disbelief my Ipod was nowhere to be found. I was crushed. I ran across the street, back in the bus station to retrace my steps and speak with security to find a lost and found. Nothing. Nowhere. So now I'm Ipodless. Before any of you respond with a "Marc! How could you be so irresponsible?!?!" Please don't, I'm already pissed at myself. It sucks, but atleast I still have my external with everything backed up.
Anyhoo, I'm at Pardes now and will be going to get something to drink soon. I look forward to hearing from everyone!
On to my days....
The last time we spoke I was sitting at the Jerusalem bus station about to my buy my ticket to head up to Kibbutz Ohalo for Shabbat with Shosh and her group. I got on the 2 PM bus, and settled into my seat with my 5 kilos of rogalach, flowers, and mountainsmith bag (my backpack was under the bus). The bus ride was normal and easy, I was able to have my own seat for the whole ride and got a little cat nap on the way up. Israel truly amazes me at how it can change within an hour or two of driving. Even during this hot spell, the north still is lush and very green. Very different from the desert climate that surrounds Jerusalem. As we got deeper into the north I started wondering where my stop was. I had asked the bus driver to announce when we arrived to the Kibbutz since I wouldn't be able to recognize it. I knew it came after Kibbutz Kineret, and once I saw the sign for that I hopped out of my seat and asked if Ohalo was next. he nodded, stopped the bus and I got off. I looked around for a second, with my accessories in hand, and realized I couldn't find the entrance. Every kibbutz I had ever been to had some sort of sign to let you know how to get in. From what I could see, that didn't exist. I called Shosh to see where she was only to find out that she wasn't arriving for another. (disclaimer! Keep in mind that I was supposed to be staying there incognito, thus I didn't find it a good idea to try and 'check in'). I continue walking around, find a cemetary that I assumed that wasn't it. Walked out, cursed the heat, and continued up the road to find the entrance. Lo and behold! I found it. I walk in, make friends with the receptionist, asked if I could hang out in the lobby, and take a seat. While waiting for her group, I was throughly entertained by a group of French tourist who crowded into the lobby and were yelling about everything possible. I couldn't understand a word they were saying, but I couldn't stop staring at the short pudgy man, that refused to wear a shit. It was like an awful painting. You don't want to look, but you are curious at how it was put together. Thus you stare. After that fiasco, I, along with the receptionists, made of the tourists. Shosh and her group arrived around 5:45, and I couldn't have been happier. I greeted her with flowers, and the whole group let out a resounding "awwwww". I guess my reputation had proceeded me. I knew that Shosh was in work mode, so I was more than happy to help her with anything possible (especially since she worked as my chaperon during a couple trips to Colorado last February). I already knew I was going to assist Noah, her co-staff, in services so Noah and I sat down and went over what we wanted to do. After meeting for an half hour, I finally went to my room and got see Shosh. The first word that comes to mind when I got to see her was 'refreshed'. I had missed her so much, and it felt so good and reviving to be able to hug her again. To say the least I was looking forward to Shabbat...
The Sabbath
Shabbat was certainly welcomed by everyone there. The previous week had been hectic to say the least, and the prospect of taking a deep breath and taking it all in was more than enticing. We first went down to the beach to sing a song, and explain all the options for tefillah (services). Noah and I lead our group to the room and began. The service itself were parallel to what I did when I was working with NFTY. I was okay with that for this situation, since most people in the room didn't know any of the prayers, but for my first Shabbat in Israel I was looking forward to a very spirited Kabbalat Shabbat and Ma'ariv. Luckily I have plenty more Shabbatot to come for me to enjoy, for the birthright group this is their only one. I wanted to make sure they got as much out of it as possible.
From there we had dinner, nothing special to report about except for the fact that I was starving and enjoyed eating very much. I also did my second rendition of Aishat Hayil for Shosh and I must say that the second go around went much more smoothly. After dinner we had an oneg, and I finally was able to get the bounty of carrying around the rogalach all day. It was very tasty, and I was happy that Shosh's group got to enjoy them also. After that we had a tish, which is nothing more than sitting around on Shabbat and telling stories. Traditionally you tell Rabbinic stories, that either talk about Shabbat or teach something. In this circumstance, the floor was open to everyone to share a random (Jill, I hope you noticed that) story that has opened to them in their life. I shared the Chick fil A story of course. Once the tish was over, we went to bed and it felt great.
The next morning we were able to sleep in, and I lead a Parsha HaShavua lesson for Shosh's group. This was a bit easier since the Parsha was Shelach Lecha, and it's my Bar Mitzvah portion. In fact this past Shabbat was my 15th anniversary. I taught a lesson about faith, since that is one of the main themes of the Parsha. Faith in oneself, and people around you. I felt it was appropriate for the experience they were having, and some of them told me afterwards that they were able to take a lot from what I taught. Those are always my favorite moments. Next was some free time and lunch. During the afternoon we had an activity about Jewish identity. This is a hot topic on Birthright, since every participant really comes from all over the board in how they see themselves as Jews. We were split into three groups, and I went with Noah to help him. We would hold up signs with different Jewish aspects on them, some examples of these are "Fasting on Yom Kippur", "Keeping Kosher", "Learning how to speak Hebrew", "Making Jewish Education a Priority for your children", and "Marrying a Jewish man/woman". The discussions were very intriguing. Some of the people were a bit more on the observant side, and wanted to learn to speak Hebrew, and wanted to make sure their children had the same background that they had. Others (including all the Israelis in our group), didn't really have or need a dedication to these traditions. It was eye opening to many of us, where varied the Jewish demography is around the states and in Israel. I contributed some, but tried to hold back and let the participants dictate the conversation. After the discussion, I took a nap since the heat of the day really took a lot out of me. Shosh woke me up around 7:45 and we started practicing for our Torah readings. You might ask "What were you reading Torah for?" Well, that's a great question! Birthright trips give the option of letting any of their participants become Bar or Bat Mitzvahs if they haven't already done so. 4 girls in Shosh's group wanted to do this, and 2 girls wanted to receive Hebrew names. We did an abbreviated mincha services (just the Torah service to be exact), I acted as gabbi and Shosh read for the first two, and we switched for the last one. All six girls came up for their aliyot, and after the Torah service gave a brief speech. For the girls receiving names, they spoke about why they chose those names. The four girls who became B'not Mitzvah spoke about their commitment to the Jewish people, why they chose this moment to go through with the ceremony, and to teach something to the rest of the group. All six girls put a lot of thought into what they spoke about, and all did a beautiful job. After the ceremony we had havdallah, and prepared to go to Tiberias for the evening.
That night we went down to the pier, and spent the evening out and about. Shosh, Noah, and i went to dinner at a dairy restaurant (so Shosh could actually eat something) and enjoyed the random nice weather. Overall wasn't the most the eventful evening, except for the stomachache I had after dinner.
This morning we woke up at about 6:50 and got ready to pack up. I had a very nice shower, and went to breakfast. Shosh's bus driver was nice enough to drop me off in Tiberias so I could catch my bus. It came on time, I found a seat, put on my Ipod and passed out. I woke up when we got to Jerusalem and started gathering my belongings. I got everything together and got off the bus, and had to go through another set of security to enter the bus station. This is where the day got sticky. I emptied everything (or so I thought) out of my pockets and went through the metal detector. It beeped. I realized I had my Ipod in one of my cargo pockets, I took it out and put it on top of my one of my bags. After I went through the metal detector again I put my Ipod in one of the side pockets of my mountainsmith bag. This is where I always put my Ipod. I walked through the bus station and went outside to catch another bus to go into town. I looked in my bag, and to my disbelief my Ipod was nowhere to be found. I was crushed. I ran across the street, back in the bus station to retrace my steps and speak with security to find a lost and found. Nothing. Nowhere. So now I'm Ipodless. Before any of you respond with a "Marc! How could you be so irresponsible?!?!" Please don't, I'm already pissed at myself. It sucks, but atleast I still have my external with everything backed up.
Anyhoo, I'm at Pardes now and will be going to get something to drink soon. I look forward to hearing from everyone!
Friday, June 20, 2008
Oh find me a home!!
It's Friday afternoon now, and I am sitting in the Tachanat Mercazit (Jerusalem Central Bus Station) waiting to hop on a bus to go up to Kibbutz Ohalo. It is located near the Kinneret and I'm excited to be going up north, it has always been one of my favorite parts of the country. Probably because it isn't a desert.
Yesterday I didn't do very much, I spent most of the day apartment hunting for this coming fall. I've gone through this process so many times in the states that I sometimes take for granted how easy it is there. Shosh, Andy, and I are looking for an apartment within walking distance of Pardes (since Andy will be there also :), with 2 bedrooms, and fully furnished. That last part might seem odd to request, but you need to understand that when an apartment is labeled as 'unfurnished' they really mean nothing. No fridge, stove, cabinets...nothing. It forces us to be a bit more picky about where we are. Everyone keeps telling me to be patient and we will find someething, but patience isn't one of my specialties. Anyhoo, I got in touch with a couple of real estate companies and put the word out to everyone we know, so I'll keep y'all updated with what we find.
It was also a bit of a hectic day at the Kirschner house. Uncle Alon is heading back to the Memphis to be with his father who is ill. I felt very bad, because it seemed to me that I was getting in the way everywhere I was standing or sitting. I am trying to be as helpful as possible to Aunt Gail just to ease to the burden of everything going on. Judi came over to cook dinner, and I was very happy when she said tha Ira was coming home that evening. We had a very nice dinner as a family, and it was great to see and hear the interaction of their family. Again, it felt like I was at home. When we finished, Uncle Alon finished packing and he, Aunt Gail, and Ira left for the airport. I spent some time with Elana and Judi, and around 8:45 Oren, Judi's husband, came over to eat some dinner and pick her up. This was great since I haven't met him yet, and everyone in my family has been raving about him. I'm very excited to have some time when Oren, Judi, Shosh, and I can hang out.
This morning I woke up and finished packing my stuff to head up north. I left Kfar Adumim very early, and went to check out a house near school. Unfortunately it wasn't what we are looking for, so the search will continue. From there I headed to the Jerusalem Shuk. For those of you that have been there before you can attest to the chaos that ensues on Friday when everyone is running around to be ready for Shabbat. Put that along with all the stuff I was carrying around and you can just imagine how smoothly this trip went. I went to Marzipan, one of my favorite bakeries, to pick up some rogalach for Shosh's group, and of course for myself. I also picked up some flowers for Shosh and I was off. At this point, I am carrying around my backpack, mountainsmith bag, 5 kilos of rogalach, and some flowers. I was bumping into people everywhere I turned. I was entertained by the end. I caught the 74 bus to the bus station and for the first time went through the first noticeable security difference from when I was here before. The bus station while I was here on Nativ, was an open air station and you could really pass and go anywhere you wanted. Now it is a very nice building, but the security is very intense. Before entering the building you must empty out your pockets, but your bags on a table, and walk through a metal detector. Once you have entered the building, there is an X-Ray machine to check out your bags. It wasn't inconvenient, but it was noticeable. Now I am sitting in an Aroma coffee shop and waiting.
I think it's about time that I go by my bus ticket. Shabbat Shalom everyone, I miss y'all dearly and can't wait to hear from you
Yesterday I didn't do very much, I spent most of the day apartment hunting for this coming fall. I've gone through this process so many times in the states that I sometimes take for granted how easy it is there. Shosh, Andy, and I are looking for an apartment within walking distance of Pardes (since Andy will be there also :), with 2 bedrooms, and fully furnished. That last part might seem odd to request, but you need to understand that when an apartment is labeled as 'unfurnished' they really mean nothing. No fridge, stove, cabinets...nothing. It forces us to be a bit more picky about where we are. Everyone keeps telling me to be patient and we will find someething, but patience isn't one of my specialties. Anyhoo, I got in touch with a couple of real estate companies and put the word out to everyone we know, so I'll keep y'all updated with what we find.
It was also a bit of a hectic day at the Kirschner house. Uncle Alon is heading back to the Memphis to be with his father who is ill. I felt very bad, because it seemed to me that I was getting in the way everywhere I was standing or sitting. I am trying to be as helpful as possible to Aunt Gail just to ease to the burden of everything going on. Judi came over to cook dinner, and I was very happy when she said tha Ira was coming home that evening. We had a very nice dinner as a family, and it was great to see and hear the interaction of their family. Again, it felt like I was at home. When we finished, Uncle Alon finished packing and he, Aunt Gail, and Ira left for the airport. I spent some time with Elana and Judi, and around 8:45 Oren, Judi's husband, came over to eat some dinner and pick her up. This was great since I haven't met him yet, and everyone in my family has been raving about him. I'm very excited to have some time when Oren, Judi, Shosh, and I can hang out.
This morning I woke up and finished packing my stuff to head up north. I left Kfar Adumim very early, and went to check out a house near school. Unfortunately it wasn't what we are looking for, so the search will continue. From there I headed to the Jerusalem Shuk. For those of you that have been there before you can attest to the chaos that ensues on Friday when everyone is running around to be ready for Shabbat. Put that along with all the stuff I was carrying around and you can just imagine how smoothly this trip went. I went to Marzipan, one of my favorite bakeries, to pick up some rogalach for Shosh's group, and of course for myself. I also picked up some flowers for Shosh and I was off. At this point, I am carrying around my backpack, mountainsmith bag, 5 kilos of rogalach, and some flowers. I was bumping into people everywhere I turned. I was entertained by the end. I caught the 74 bus to the bus station and for the first time went through the first noticeable security difference from when I was here before. The bus station while I was here on Nativ, was an open air station and you could really pass and go anywhere you wanted. Now it is a very nice building, but the security is very intense. Before entering the building you must empty out your pockets, but your bags on a table, and walk through a metal detector. Once you have entered the building, there is an X-Ray machine to check out your bags. It wasn't inconvenient, but it was noticeable. Now I am sitting in an Aroma coffee shop and waiting.
I think it's about time that I go by my bus ticket. Shabbat Shalom everyone, I miss y'all dearly and can't wait to hear from you
Thursday, June 19, 2008
Same as it ever was?
As I'm getting more accustomed to life here, I'm beginning to notice differences from when I was hear on Nativ. I don't mean in the people, because I haven't really been here long enough or interacted with them enough to sense anything. More so, I'm referring to the cities. They are very developed. Jerusalem has always been this way, but I can tell they are trying to refine themselves and become an elite city (of course it already is in so many ways). The european feel is unmistakeable, I just it doesn't take away from what makes this city and this area so unique to begin with.
On to My Day
Yesterday was somewhat low key, I left the Kirschner's house around 10 AM, and headed into town. Something you must understand about my commute into Jerusalem is that there is not a consistent bus that comes into Kfar Adumim. I can't simply wait for 5-10 minutes and expect a ride. I wait next to the bus stop near the house and put my hand out and wait for someone to pick me up. Now I know some of you are probably reacting with a "What the hell is he thinking?!?!" but you should know that there is a checkpoint to enter and leave Kfar Adumim. All Israelis have yellow licsense plates, and they are the only ones who can enter the town. Also, almost everyone in town that does not own a car uses this as their way of getting to Jerusalem. I got a ride with a very nice man, who did not speak very much. He dropped me off at French Hill where I caught the 6 bus into downtown. I spent a couple hours walking around, seeing if I could remember some old hangouts and try to discover some new ones. I also got my first shwarma since arrving here. Of course I went to Maoz, which is located on King George right off of Ben Yehuda. That stuff is so good. Then it was off to Emek Refaim. I hopped on a bus, and purposely got off much earlier than I needed. I truly enjoy walking down that road. It's one of the great things about Jerusalem. Every neighborhood you go down, it is a totally different feel. Down town is very Israeli feeling. From the shops to the people. One Emek Refaim, all of a sudden you feel like you have arrived to a European town. Everything is very laid back, people are saying 'hi' to one another, and the restaurants and shopping have a very different feel. Instead of touristy shops, there are boutiques. Instead of cliche eating places, there are cafes. I walked down there, and had so many memories. I thought about knocking on doors to the houses of people I knew, but didn't want to take the chance that they had moved away. I made my way all the way down to Pardes, and met up with Aunt Gail. We went home around 5:15, and were given a ride by a teacher at Pardes, Rabbi Reuben Gruben. He was a very sweet man, and very smart. Soon into the ride he wanted to know what my story was. So I gave him my shpiel (I've become very good at this). At the end he said something that I've thought many times recently "Wow, you really do have everything". It's true. I've felt very lucky over the past few years for many reasons. The friends, job, and experiences in Colorado really changed how I feel and how I approach my life. Shosh coming into my life, helped me to feel comfortable with who I am knowing that I was loved. Being accepted to the Educators Program, helped clarify what I want to do with my life, and how I am going to do it. I've never felt more ready to take the challenges that stand in front of me and more importantly to succeed in all of them.
For now, this is all. Take care everyone and I look forward to hearing from all of you.
On to My Day
Yesterday was somewhat low key, I left the Kirschner's house around 10 AM, and headed into town. Something you must understand about my commute into Jerusalem is that there is not a consistent bus that comes into Kfar Adumim. I can't simply wait for 5-10 minutes and expect a ride. I wait next to the bus stop near the house and put my hand out and wait for someone to pick me up. Now I know some of you are probably reacting with a "What the hell is he thinking?!?!" but you should know that there is a checkpoint to enter and leave Kfar Adumim. All Israelis have yellow licsense plates, and they are the only ones who can enter the town. Also, almost everyone in town that does not own a car uses this as their way of getting to Jerusalem. I got a ride with a very nice man, who did not speak very much. He dropped me off at French Hill where I caught the 6 bus into downtown. I spent a couple hours walking around, seeing if I could remember some old hangouts and try to discover some new ones. I also got my first shwarma since arrving here. Of course I went to Maoz, which is located on King George right off of Ben Yehuda. That stuff is so good. Then it was off to Emek Refaim. I hopped on a bus, and purposely got off much earlier than I needed. I truly enjoy walking down that road. It's one of the great things about Jerusalem. Every neighborhood you go down, it is a totally different feel. Down town is very Israeli feeling. From the shops to the people. One Emek Refaim, all of a sudden you feel like you have arrived to a European town. Everything is very laid back, people are saying 'hi' to one another, and the restaurants and shopping have a very different feel. Instead of touristy shops, there are boutiques. Instead of cliche eating places, there are cafes. I walked down there, and had so many memories. I thought about knocking on doors to the houses of people I knew, but didn't want to take the chance that they had moved away. I made my way all the way down to Pardes, and met up with Aunt Gail. We went home around 5:15, and were given a ride by a teacher at Pardes, Rabbi Reuben Gruben. He was a very sweet man, and very smart. Soon into the ride he wanted to know what my story was. So I gave him my shpiel (I've become very good at this). At the end he said something that I've thought many times recently "Wow, you really do have everything". It's true. I've felt very lucky over the past few years for many reasons. The friends, job, and experiences in Colorado really changed how I feel and how I approach my life. Shosh coming into my life, helped me to feel comfortable with who I am knowing that I was loved. Being accepted to the Educators Program, helped clarify what I want to do with my life, and how I am going to do it. I've never felt more ready to take the challenges that stand in front of me and more importantly to succeed in all of them.
For now, this is all. Take care everyone and I look forward to hearing from all of you.
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
Aaaaand I made it!
Well, the last 2 days have been interesting. After being delayed at the Atlanta airport for an hour (not to mention sitting on the plane for an extra 45 minutes before taking off, and flying in circles around Dover, Delaware). We spent most of that flight doing wedding stuff, I actually got to contribute some ideas and I think Shosh actually liked them :). Upon arrival to LaGuardia, we got a cab to JFK and the waiting began. We settled ourselves near the ElAl desk, and within an hour we saw that our flight was delayed from 2:20 AM until 5:40 AM. Oy.
At JFK
Shosh switched into work mode because about a 1/4 of her group either had their flight canceled out of Chicago or was delayed. So really the delay for our flight to Israel was a blessing because it helped to insure that all except for one participant were able to make it. Once everyone in her group were checked in we made it down to the gate at around 1 AM, and hunkered down for the wait until we finally took off. Thankfully, we were not delayed anymore and took off around 6:15 AM.
The Flight
The flight itself was not bad at all. I'm used to traveling with groups of teenagers, so I assumed every flight to Israel was full of lould kids who were hooking up the whole time. This one was very quiet (probably because everyone was exhausted). We sat down (Shosh and I had our seats next to each other), and I immediately passed out. I think I slept for the first 3 hours of the flight (but I really had no idea), but Shosh was the champ of sleeping. She was out cold for the first half of the flight, I was impressed and somewhat jealous. We watched a couple of movies on the plane, talked about wedding stuff, listened to some music, and simply waited for our arrival to Israel.
The Arrival
The landing was met with applause from the whole plane, and it started to sink in that all of this was for real. A moment of angst, excitement, and sheer fear hit me all at once. My normal list of questions hit me. Where am I going to live this fall? How am I going to do in school? What if no one likes me? Did I bring enough underwear? As always though, this moment of panic was taken with a gentle kiss from Shosh, and an assurance that everything is going to be great and to just enjoy it. We went to the customs line, and waited (it was a lot longer than I expected), then finally went to get our luggage. I should mention here how absolutely beautiful Ben Gurion Airport is now. I guess renovations happened a few years ago, the arboretum reminds me a lot of the Atlanta airport. I was really impressed. At the baggage claim, I was happy to see both of Shosh's bags already on the belt. I pulled those off and waited for mine. One came out....and I waited....and waited...finally we realized that the belt that brought the bags up was stopped. There were some that were almost out, and mine was one of them. So in my moment of impulse and impatience, I hopped up and started putting bags on the belt. It was a good moment, I must say. From there, I got a cab, and was taken to Jerusalem. I met up with Aunt Gail at the Hyatt Regency, and we were off to Kfar Adumim. I knew Aunt Gail and Uncle Allen had moved, but they really have a great house here. So much space, huge difference from their apartment in Ma'ale Adumim. It felt great to get to their house, put my stuff down and get into bed. I was restless for about 10 minutes, and the next thing I remember was waking up peacefully this morning, or atleast that would've been nice. Aunt Gail forgot to mention the construction that was going on this morning. It wasn't a problem, I woke up to that laughed for a few minutes and went back to sleep.
My First Day
I woke up around noon today, and felt really good. I took a shower (which made me feel even better) and got ready to head into town with Aunt Gail. I'm going to have to perfect my routine for getting into town since there won't be a direct bus but I have faith that I'll be able to do it. Once we were in town we changed buses to get on the 21 bus which takes me down to Emek Refaim, and more specifically Pardes. I had forgotten how great it felt to simply walk around this city, to hear Hebrew spoken everywhere, it also made me a little feel a little self conscious about my Hebrew and how much I do need to practice. I spent about 2 hours at Pardes, met a few of the staff members, a couple of teachers, and some of the students that I will be joining this coming year. One pleasant surprise was running into Benny Levy, he and I were staff members at Ramah Darom for two summers. It was great to see a familiar face. I'm not usually one to talk about the 'vibe' of a place, but Pardes really does give off a feeling of Jewish identity that I haven't felt for a long time. This isn't a place that everyone came from the same background, and you are expected to have a certain level of knowledge right away. There were people from all walks of life. All of them are excited to learn about one another, study Torah, and live in Israel. It really did make me feel more comfortable for what is to come.
After Pardes I went downtown to meander a little, and more importantly to meet up with my cousins, Judi and Elana. I walked around Ben Yehuda, and went to discover some of the backstreets that I used to know so well. One of my goals for this first week is to rediscover this city, and to not feel like I could get lost at every turn. I had some success, but still need to wonder around a bit more before I feel totally comfortable. I met up with Judi and Elana around 6:30, and we went to get some coffee. It felt great to sit around and catch them up on everything that has been going on. We had so many stories to share. I wanted to hear about Elana's Birthright trip with Shorashim, and both of them wanted to hear details about the engagement and other wedding details. I was happy to share on all accounts. Before the trip I was really underestimating the importance of having family here with me. I knew I was going to do enjoy it, but now I see how important of a resource they are for me. Everyone is so excited to explain details to me and help me to get my head wrapped around everything that is going on. Spending time with Judi and Elana made me think back to my first Saturday night in Atlanta when I went to a party at Anne's apartment. There were so many friends from high school there, that I had seen and kept in touch with but I hadn't really just sat around and chatted with them for so long. It's amazing to me how people grow up, and are able to fit into their own skin. No matter how long you've been away from someone you are close with, whenever you get together with them it feels like no time has passed at all.
Anyhoo, that's all for now (wow, that was long). Let me know what you think (ie. if you want the entries to be any shorter, what details you are looking for, etc.). I look forward to hearing from everyone.
B'shalom
At JFK
Shosh switched into work mode because about a 1/4 of her group either had their flight canceled out of Chicago or was delayed. So really the delay for our flight to Israel was a blessing because it helped to insure that all except for one participant were able to make it. Once everyone in her group were checked in we made it down to the gate at around 1 AM, and hunkered down for the wait until we finally took off. Thankfully, we were not delayed anymore and took off around 6:15 AM.
The Flight
The flight itself was not bad at all. I'm used to traveling with groups of teenagers, so I assumed every flight to Israel was full of lould kids who were hooking up the whole time. This one was very quiet (probably because everyone was exhausted). We sat down (Shosh and I had our seats next to each other), and I immediately passed out. I think I slept for the first 3 hours of the flight (but I really had no idea), but Shosh was the champ of sleeping. She was out cold for the first half of the flight, I was impressed and somewhat jealous. We watched a couple of movies on the plane, talked about wedding stuff, listened to some music, and simply waited for our arrival to Israel.
The Arrival
The landing was met with applause from the whole plane, and it started to sink in that all of this was for real. A moment of angst, excitement, and sheer fear hit me all at once. My normal list of questions hit me. Where am I going to live this fall? How am I going to do in school? What if no one likes me? Did I bring enough underwear? As always though, this moment of panic was taken with a gentle kiss from Shosh, and an assurance that everything is going to be great and to just enjoy it. We went to the customs line, and waited (it was a lot longer than I expected), then finally went to get our luggage. I should mention here how absolutely beautiful Ben Gurion Airport is now. I guess renovations happened a few years ago, the arboretum reminds me a lot of the Atlanta airport. I was really impressed. At the baggage claim, I was happy to see both of Shosh's bags already on the belt. I pulled those off and waited for mine. One came out....and I waited....and waited...finally we realized that the belt that brought the bags up was stopped. There were some that were almost out, and mine was one of them. So in my moment of impulse and impatience, I hopped up and started putting bags on the belt. It was a good moment, I must say. From there, I got a cab, and was taken to Jerusalem. I met up with Aunt Gail at the Hyatt Regency, and we were off to Kfar Adumim. I knew Aunt Gail and Uncle Allen had moved, but they really have a great house here. So much space, huge difference from their apartment in Ma'ale Adumim. It felt great to get to their house, put my stuff down and get into bed. I was restless for about 10 minutes, and the next thing I remember was waking up peacefully this morning, or atleast that would've been nice. Aunt Gail forgot to mention the construction that was going on this morning. It wasn't a problem, I woke up to that laughed for a few minutes and went back to sleep.
My First Day
I woke up around noon today, and felt really good. I took a shower (which made me feel even better) and got ready to head into town with Aunt Gail. I'm going to have to perfect my routine for getting into town since there won't be a direct bus but I have faith that I'll be able to do it. Once we were in town we changed buses to get on the 21 bus which takes me down to Emek Refaim, and more specifically Pardes. I had forgotten how great it felt to simply walk around this city, to hear Hebrew spoken everywhere, it also made me a little feel a little self conscious about my Hebrew and how much I do need to practice. I spent about 2 hours at Pardes, met a few of the staff members, a couple of teachers, and some of the students that I will be joining this coming year. One pleasant surprise was running into Benny Levy, he and I were staff members at Ramah Darom for two summers. It was great to see a familiar face. I'm not usually one to talk about the 'vibe' of a place, but Pardes really does give off a feeling of Jewish identity that I haven't felt for a long time. This isn't a place that everyone came from the same background, and you are expected to have a certain level of knowledge right away. There were people from all walks of life. All of them are excited to learn about one another, study Torah, and live in Israel. It really did make me feel more comfortable for what is to come.
After Pardes I went downtown to meander a little, and more importantly to meet up with my cousins, Judi and Elana. I walked around Ben Yehuda, and went to discover some of the backstreets that I used to know so well. One of my goals for this first week is to rediscover this city, and to not feel like I could get lost at every turn. I had some success, but still need to wonder around a bit more before I feel totally comfortable. I met up with Judi and Elana around 6:30, and we went to get some coffee. It felt great to sit around and catch them up on everything that has been going on. We had so many stories to share. I wanted to hear about Elana's Birthright trip with Shorashim, and both of them wanted to hear details about the engagement and other wedding details. I was happy to share on all accounts. Before the trip I was really underestimating the importance of having family here with me. I knew I was going to do enjoy it, but now I see how important of a resource they are for me. Everyone is so excited to explain details to me and help me to get my head wrapped around everything that is going on. Spending time with Judi and Elana made me think back to my first Saturday night in Atlanta when I went to a party at Anne's apartment. There were so many friends from high school there, that I had seen and kept in touch with but I hadn't really just sat around and chatted with them for so long. It's amazing to me how people grow up, and are able to fit into their own skin. No matter how long you've been away from someone you are close with, whenever you get together with them it feels like no time has passed at all.
Anyhoo, that's all for now (wow, that was long). Let me know what you think (ie. if you want the entries to be any shorter, what details you are looking for, etc.). I look forward to hearing from everyone.
B'shalom
Sunday, June 15, 2008
at the airport
Hi Everyone! I'm sitting in the Atlanta airport with Shosh trying to work on this communication highway thing. Today was great. Shosh and I got home for The Tap last night at around 1:30 and I of course passed out as soon as clearing off the bed. We woke up, and went to The Flying Biscuit for breakfast where we celebrated Fathers' Day with my parents, the Cohens (Jill, Gideon, Nathan, and Ryan) and the Webers (Rachel, Harry, and Mollie). It was certainly bittersweet after the great week that we've had together, but we were able to say good bye without an huge amount of tears. Shosh and I then returned to my parents house to finish up packing and head out. Everything really seemed to go smoothly.
I just wanted to send along my my appreciation to everyone that has been here to celebrate with Shosh and I, and to everyone that has sent called, emailed, or posted on my Facebook wall with their well wishes. I will try my very best to update this blog as often as possible with what I'm doing in Israel. I look forward to hearing from everyone!
I just wanted to send along my my appreciation to everyone that has been here to celebrate with Shosh and I, and to everyone that has sent called, emailed, or posted on my Facebook wall with their well wishes. I will try my very best to update this blog as often as possible with what I'm doing in Israel. I look forward to hearing from everyone!
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