Tomorrow is finally the last day of Ulpan! We watched a really cool movie in class today about the history of Kibbutzim. It was really interesting because it was told in documentary form from the point of view from the originaly kibbutznik kids.
In the original kibbutzim, kibbutznik were the "elite" - it was the 1930s and people were sick of being "scholarly" in yeshivas. Kibbutznik worked alll the time, it was just what you did and it was shameful to be a poor laborer. The kibbutznik were always ranked in the highest points in the army because they were so fit.
Anyway what was interesting is that kids were not raised by their parents. You see all this footage of kids in the Beit Yeladim (Childrens house). They were raised by nannys and split into groups and slept together, ate together, and all their food, clothes and toys were equal. Once a day they would meet with their parents and have dinner. It was proper, no kising or fighting and they called their parents by their first names. There was no such thing as a fmaily - since everyone belonged to the kibbutz! This part I think is so crazy because some of the people were talkin about how it was such a great concept - u worked at the things that you did well and someone took care of the kids, family doesnt have to be natural. BUT on the other hand - these poor people were raised really without love and once they raised children, it felt so hard for them to show love cuz they never recieved it. People in the kibbutz shared everything, jobs, food, even marriages happened together. You watch these kids grow up and raise their own families and eventually realize around the 60s and 70s that Kibbutz life no longer represented what it meant to them when they were children.
Such an intersting movie, we watched it in subtitles and it was cool to catch all teh words we knew (and what was translated poorly). Its called like Children of the Kibbutz or somethign like that. Def reccommend.
Our final exam for the class is at 10 tomorrow. Im basically all packed up now cuz I'm gonan catch a bus ride asap to Jlem so I can watch my friend Ben get his red beret from the army! Hes doing a hugeee 60 km hike! Then I'm hopin a bus to Eilat to get there late at night! But like 100 people from Tel Aviv Uni are goin since its our like first real weekend break :)
Wish me luck traveling
Ps. While im in Eilat i have the opportunity to day trip to petra..is this something I should do? everyone said its amazingg nd beautiful..but its also really expensive? i guess well see how the weather is cuz itd b cool to go to jordan if its shitty in Eilat
PPS. Hebrew is at 830 am mon -thurs during the school year..should i take it?
Send some love :)
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
Tuesday, February 24, 2009
another day..another week?
Wow I cant believe its been aweek.
The days always feel so slow but everyone said the weeks would fly - its already the end of February which is like a constant reminder about all the stuff I want to finish before March..sigh..
Last Thurs:
Luckily we had a day off of what was feelin like the longest ulpan week everr to have TAU take us to jerusalem.
Buses came at 7 in the morning and you know how Jews are..we finally left closer to 8. I dont think isrealis really understand the concept of breakfast and the breakfast they gave us were tuna/veggie sandwiches with apples and a candy bar...ok?
They took us to most of the typical JLem tourists sights which was both cool and not cool. I kind of like having a set itinerary and knowing where I'm going without having to buy tickets, etc but I dont think anyone likd the way our Madrichim were treating us - we may be 20 or 21 during the day but they were so flustered about keeping track of us that we instantly regressed 5 years. oh well.
One of our first stops - the "Time Elevator" which was a movie about the History of Jlem with seats that moved in reaction to the events..alittle nauseating but all around cool. Especially since it touched on important moments in every religions history. My knowledge about the temple being destoryed etc was alittle hazy so it was a cool refresher.
We also stopped by a spot where u could see a view from the entire mountain where the Old City is situated on. We read (actually I read aloud to everyone) the passage where Avraham attempts to sacrifice Yizkak because apparently the mountain he climbs onto is what we were looking at.
Then our bus took us into HaAyir HaAtik (*the old city) where we walked on the roof where u can see all 4 quarters, strolled through the Jerusalem shook and shops - saying hi to the same ppl from last time and walked on the wall of the old city straight to the Kotel (which is the Western Wall). I knew I did it before on Pilgrimage but couldnt remember much of it so was excited to do it again - well turns out I coudlnt remember it cuz its nothing to spectacular. Jerusalem was in midst of the craziest sandstorm soo it prevented us from seeing anything. anyway it was 20 minutes of climbing stone stairs in boots - but its cool becaue it was the same city wall that we were walkin on that protected Jerusalem and shielded it during so many evetns including the 6 day war?
We visited the Church of the Holy Sepluchre which was where Jesus was crusified. its SO big! Mostly though because so many sects of Christianity have "homes" there. There are so many different church areas to go in and pray. People were kissing the ground they have ropd off where he walked or something. You can also wait in line and literally sit under THE spot where he was crucified - they like preserved the rock (since jlem is one big mountain) or had it under class encasement or something . Its so crazy because for so many people this is their holiest spot and you could see it on alot of peoples faces how overwhelmed and excited they felt. There was a cool little hidden area where the Ethiopan church is. We walekd through the church and on the other side is where the Ethiopian monks LIVE! Like we saw them leaving their tiny litle corridors. So cool, especially looking at their paintings - since their language is something so unfamiliar to me. Their script is almost like a dead language. Acouple more religious Jews didnt go in anywhere since technically Jews are not really supposed to go into churches - especially wearing kippahs (?).
So we get to the site of the Kotel and get to go in the archeological museum where they explain all the sights we now see. Its crazy because so much was covered with dirt for so long that it was preserved! This stuff is basically 2000 years old! They have found so much - what they now now is that inside the city walls there were mikvahs and shops where people would buy their sacrifice and get holy before they entered the main wall. Inside were only Jews. Then there was the Beit Hamikdash - the holy temple. Only Cohens or Levis (the preists and scholars) could go on the steps and outside and only the Cohen Gadol (high preist) could enter the room where the Taburnacle (10 commandments) were - once a year on Yom Kippur - the holiest day of the year.
So this is really intersting to me: The holiest spot in the world - where both temples were thousands of years ago - is actually right under the Dome of the Rock. Its not a mosque that only Muslims can enter. Its kindof interesting because Jerusalem is only teh 3rd holiest city in Islam - the first 2 being Mecca and Medina obviously. Jerusalem is actually neverrrr mentiond in the Koran. Its only holy because apparently Aalah tied his donkey on the city walls and then stepped on the Rock before he went into Heaven.
Yet they stll have our holiest spot..so instead we have the Kotel.
Theres actually alot of the Wall surrounding then just the "western wall" segment. Theres a whole eastern portion! And the wall runs on and on. However the 72 feet or whatever of holy "Wailing Wall"ness is the segment that is closest to wear the Beit Hamikdash holy temple should be. Its like perpendicle to it. The comparison would kind of be like if your home was burnt down adn you lost everything, but part of your fence was kept alive and its the ONLY thing left tieing you to your most cherished belongs. So after 1000s of years, it becomes holy.
It makes alot of sense- its a really cool sight and people are usually overhwelemed the first time they go - u alwyas see people crying. But really - it was just a fence. Funny how much we cherish that fence.
it was a very long day and eveyrone basically passed out on the bus back
Friday
My friend Samara has a friend in the army - since he never got his own apartment and doesnt have any family - when hes on break he stays at a kibbutz. Since there was a couple other rooms he invited us to come stay at the kibbutz for a night. The kibbutz is one of the hottest places in Israel in the summer, but its in the North like sooo close to the Jordanian border. We took a sherut to Afula which is a small rural town in the north. Then we took a 10 sheckle bus ride to themiddle of nowhere. The only way to get to the kibbutz was to hitchhike the 7-10 mile way! So funny!
All you had to do was slyling hold out your hand and ppl were so nice. They just pulled over and told you where they were going. Apparently its very popular since no taxis or buses run this area. One of the people who drove us is living in Rome and Italy now but was back for the week to visit his family.
We got to have Shabbat dinner and lunch on the Kibbutz. We had our own little table and there were lots of older families everywhere. It was cool since its kind of like buffet style and u can take little trays to bring to your table. They said the prayers and had little Dvar Torahs -but I couldnt understand a word. It was cool. We also got to sleep - alot! Much needed ha. This kibbutz 0 called Tirat Zvi is located on land that was aroudn when Romans ruled this area - so they have parts of anceint columns everywhere! So cool and so beautiful. since it was shabbat we couldnt take any pictures but it was really so amazing - just people living right in the middle of nature.
After shabbat ended, we hitched a ride on a van back to teh bus station. This father was in the biggest hurry eVER cuz his daughter had to catch the bus back to Jlem. He was going 100 over this rock roads ithought the van was gonna tip! They had this german shepard lying in the aisle and he was flying everywhere - poor dog looked like he was gonan be sick.
Lucky tho because the van got there literally right as his daughter's bus was about to pull away!
This Week
- Last week of Ulpan
- craziest rain/hail storm I've seen here! Thunder, lightening and hail from midnight - 6 am, then sunny by noon the next day!
- my roomates purse was stolen last night. while we were all in the apt - scary! They didnt take anything else, it prob happened quickly, but we got the locks checked. Super scary that someone just waltzed it and ran. hopefully it shows up, really devastating
- we went to Park harkayon yesterday. Its comparable to Central Park - so big and so cool! We hung out in the Sportique where there are basketball courts, baseball fields, a climbing wall, etc! WE foudn this little playground that was actually a fitness center! Runners come stop by, theres elipticles, weight machines ( u lift ur own weight), a place to do abs, pull up bars, a stairclimber, etc etc. All just there for free use! So cool. Israelis start teaching their kids how to stay healthy young too. Lots of older men were workin out on this equiptment too. It was crazy - even though we werent dressed for it, we used everything for like over an hour and met a guy whose in charge of likethe park district and is setting up a baseball team - he gave me a tshirt!
- Another shook visit. I got a head of cauliflower for 3 sheckles - crazy right! and some cool new spicy spices. The cheapest thing by far in Israel is veggies (and hummus). Cheese, grains, meat, etc are all mroe expensive.
So if anyone has any great vegetable recipes it would be much appreciated!
The other night a couple of the girls in teh building made a really good veggie stew kind of thing with pasta..soo good! WEre always lookin for cool new ways to grill veggies or mix em (Cuz all we have is a stove). Want to try makin chicken soup soon.
- New pictures are up on Picasa
Love from the HOly Land and I promise Ill keep updates more conistant now!
The days always feel so slow but everyone said the weeks would fly - its already the end of February which is like a constant reminder about all the stuff I want to finish before March..sigh..
Last Thurs:
Luckily we had a day off of what was feelin like the longest ulpan week everr to have TAU take us to jerusalem.
Buses came at 7 in the morning and you know how Jews are..we finally left closer to 8. I dont think isrealis really understand the concept of breakfast and the breakfast they gave us were tuna/veggie sandwiches with apples and a candy bar...ok?
They took us to most of the typical JLem tourists sights which was both cool and not cool. I kind of like having a set itinerary and knowing where I'm going without having to buy tickets, etc but I dont think anyone likd the way our Madrichim were treating us - we may be 20 or 21 during the day but they were so flustered about keeping track of us that we instantly regressed 5 years. oh well.
One of our first stops - the "Time Elevator" which was a movie about the History of Jlem with seats that moved in reaction to the events..alittle nauseating but all around cool. Especially since it touched on important moments in every religions history. My knowledge about the temple being destoryed etc was alittle hazy so it was a cool refresher.
We also stopped by a spot where u could see a view from the entire mountain where the Old City is situated on. We read (actually I read aloud to everyone) the passage where Avraham attempts to sacrifice Yizkak because apparently the mountain he climbs onto is what we were looking at.
Then our bus took us into HaAyir HaAtik (*the old city) where we walked on the roof where u can see all 4 quarters, strolled through the Jerusalem shook and shops - saying hi to the same ppl from last time and walked on the wall of the old city straight to the Kotel (which is the Western Wall). I knew I did it before on Pilgrimage but couldnt remember much of it so was excited to do it again - well turns out I coudlnt remember it cuz its nothing to spectacular. Jerusalem was in midst of the craziest sandstorm soo it prevented us from seeing anything. anyway it was 20 minutes of climbing stone stairs in boots - but its cool becaue it was the same city wall that we were walkin on that protected Jerusalem and shielded it during so many evetns including the 6 day war?
We visited the Church of the Holy Sepluchre which was where Jesus was crusified. its SO big! Mostly though because so many sects of Christianity have "homes" there. There are so many different church areas to go in and pray. People were kissing the ground they have ropd off where he walked or something. You can also wait in line and literally sit under THE spot where he was crucified - they like preserved the rock (since jlem is one big mountain) or had it under class encasement or something . Its so crazy because for so many people this is their holiest spot and you could see it on alot of peoples faces how overwhelmed and excited they felt. There was a cool little hidden area where the Ethiopan church is. We walekd through the church and on the other side is where the Ethiopian monks LIVE! Like we saw them leaving their tiny litle corridors. So cool, especially looking at their paintings - since their language is something so unfamiliar to me. Their script is almost like a dead language. Acouple more religious Jews didnt go in anywhere since technically Jews are not really supposed to go into churches - especially wearing kippahs (?).
So we get to the site of the Kotel and get to go in the archeological museum where they explain all the sights we now see. Its crazy because so much was covered with dirt for so long that it was preserved! This stuff is basically 2000 years old! They have found so much - what they now now is that inside the city walls there were mikvahs and shops where people would buy their sacrifice and get holy before they entered the main wall. Inside were only Jews. Then there was the Beit Hamikdash - the holy temple. Only Cohens or Levis (the preists and scholars) could go on the steps and outside and only the Cohen Gadol (high preist) could enter the room where the Taburnacle (10 commandments) were - once a year on Yom Kippur - the holiest day of the year.
So this is really intersting to me: The holiest spot in the world - where both temples were thousands of years ago - is actually right under the Dome of the Rock. Its not a mosque that only Muslims can enter. Its kindof interesting because Jerusalem is only teh 3rd holiest city in Islam - the first 2 being Mecca and Medina obviously. Jerusalem is actually neverrrr mentiond in the Koran. Its only holy because apparently Aalah tied his donkey on the city walls and then stepped on the Rock before he went into Heaven.
Yet they stll have our holiest spot..so instead we have the Kotel.
Theres actually alot of the Wall surrounding then just the "western wall" segment. Theres a whole eastern portion! And the wall runs on and on. However the 72 feet or whatever of holy "Wailing Wall"ness is the segment that is closest to wear the Beit Hamikdash holy temple should be. Its like perpendicle to it. The comparison would kind of be like if your home was burnt down adn you lost everything, but part of your fence was kept alive and its the ONLY thing left tieing you to your most cherished belongs. So after 1000s of years, it becomes holy.
It makes alot of sense- its a really cool sight and people are usually overhwelemed the first time they go - u alwyas see people crying. But really - it was just a fence. Funny how much we cherish that fence.
it was a very long day and eveyrone basically passed out on the bus back
Friday
My friend Samara has a friend in the army - since he never got his own apartment and doesnt have any family - when hes on break he stays at a kibbutz. Since there was a couple other rooms he invited us to come stay at the kibbutz for a night. The kibbutz is one of the hottest places in Israel in the summer, but its in the North like sooo close to the Jordanian border. We took a sherut to Afula which is a small rural town in the north. Then we took a 10 sheckle bus ride to themiddle of nowhere. The only way to get to the kibbutz was to hitchhike the 7-10 mile way! So funny!
All you had to do was slyling hold out your hand and ppl were so nice. They just pulled over and told you where they were going. Apparently its very popular since no taxis or buses run this area. One of the people who drove us is living in Rome and Italy now but was back for the week to visit his family.
We got to have Shabbat dinner and lunch on the Kibbutz. We had our own little table and there were lots of older families everywhere. It was cool since its kind of like buffet style and u can take little trays to bring to your table. They said the prayers and had little Dvar Torahs -but I couldnt understand a word. It was cool. We also got to sleep - alot! Much needed ha. This kibbutz 0 called Tirat Zvi is located on land that was aroudn when Romans ruled this area - so they have parts of anceint columns everywhere! So cool and so beautiful. since it was shabbat we couldnt take any pictures but it was really so amazing - just people living right in the middle of nature.
After shabbat ended, we hitched a ride on a van back to teh bus station. This father was in the biggest hurry eVER cuz his daughter had to catch the bus back to Jlem. He was going 100 over this rock roads ithought the van was gonna tip! They had this german shepard lying in the aisle and he was flying everywhere - poor dog looked like he was gonan be sick.
Lucky tho because the van got there literally right as his daughter's bus was about to pull away!
This Week
- Last week of Ulpan
- craziest rain/hail storm I've seen here! Thunder, lightening and hail from midnight - 6 am, then sunny by noon the next day!
- my roomates purse was stolen last night. while we were all in the apt - scary! They didnt take anything else, it prob happened quickly, but we got the locks checked. Super scary that someone just waltzed it and ran. hopefully it shows up, really devastating
- we went to Park harkayon yesterday. Its comparable to Central Park - so big and so cool! We hung out in the Sportique where there are basketball courts, baseball fields, a climbing wall, etc! WE foudn this little playground that was actually a fitness center! Runners come stop by, theres elipticles, weight machines ( u lift ur own weight), a place to do abs, pull up bars, a stairclimber, etc etc. All just there for free use! So cool. Israelis start teaching their kids how to stay healthy young too. Lots of older men were workin out on this equiptment too. It was crazy - even though we werent dressed for it, we used everything for like over an hour and met a guy whose in charge of likethe park district and is setting up a baseball team - he gave me a tshirt!
- Another shook visit. I got a head of cauliflower for 3 sheckles - crazy right! and some cool new spicy spices. The cheapest thing by far in Israel is veggies (and hummus). Cheese, grains, meat, etc are all mroe expensive.
So if anyone has any great vegetable recipes it would be much appreciated!
The other night a couple of the girls in teh building made a really good veggie stew kind of thing with pasta..soo good! WEre always lookin for cool new ways to grill veggies or mix em (Cuz all we have is a stove). Want to try makin chicken soup soon.
- New pictures are up on Picasa
Love from the HOly Land and I promise Ill keep updates more conistant now!
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
Calendar Agenda
Last night a bunch of OSP (overseas program) kids decided they felt that everyone needed to be more united - so they organized a big get together. They're trying to make it a weekly or bi-weekly function -> where the bar basically sponsors us and gives us free drinks and a not as crowded space.
Anyway definitely one of my favorite memories so far!! Maybe it was just the fact that 75 of us were in the same place or that I saw almost everyone in my Ulpan class or that it was a Sunday but it was so fun to be out with everyone! You got to see alot of people in a different element..where we're not exhausted in class everyday! It was awsome..
I guess it was some sort of giant group consesus that no one was going to go to class today! haha Class didnt get rolling until 845ish and half the class didnt come or came after the first break at 10! So funny & such a good bonding experience!
It was a great day in class too cuz we were all joking around and I dont understand how our teacher puts up wiht us - but she jokes around with us too..its awsome. We def have one of the best teachers - even if unorganized she just teaches us random words and grammar and Israeli fun facts. and I got a 98 on my second exam!
Today we went back to Allenby area by the shook where all the cute little cheapy shops are. I actually haggled with a guy to get a pair of boots down to 50 scheckles! Score! A bunch of us made a big dinner too - its a new fav - frozen and fresh vegetables boiled with some sauce and spices. Very simple but very good and convenient for a gas burner stove.
These past couple days have been intense planning - now that ulpan is coming to a close, we wanna make sure we maximize all the time we have and travel..cheaply.
This Thursday TAU takes us to Jerusalem - think a couple of us are staying in a hostel overnight then going to a kibbutz Friday - Saturday for Shabbat
Feb 26 = Ben has his Red Beret like graduation from Special forces training
Following Feb 27 - March 1 weekend = Eilat perhaps? Trying to find a cheap hostel (rumor of a 70 sheckle one on the beach) for the break btwn Ulpan and real classes; hoping to do a Petra day tour
March 6-8 = Tel Aviv U takes us on a South trip to Masada, Dead Sea, Ein Gedi, Bedouin tents and the typical southern (but not super southern) locations
March 10 = purim!!!
March 12 - 15= Istanbul, Turkey
then we have 2 weekend break to hang around Tel Aviv which should b ultra nice and sunny and hoepfully these will b good times to visit family/ Ashkalon
March 22 = Hadar has a dance recital in Ashkalon I'm excited to go to!
Then starting April 2 is Spring/ Passover break through the 19! Wowww
So time is flying but hopefully not too fast!!! Its nice having something to look forward too.
MOre pics on their way up
Anyway definitely one of my favorite memories so far!! Maybe it was just the fact that 75 of us were in the same place or that I saw almost everyone in my Ulpan class or that it was a Sunday but it was so fun to be out with everyone! You got to see alot of people in a different element..where we're not exhausted in class everyday! It was awsome..
I guess it was some sort of giant group consesus that no one was going to go to class today! haha Class didnt get rolling until 845ish and half the class didnt come or came after the first break at 10! So funny & such a good bonding experience!
It was a great day in class too cuz we were all joking around and I dont understand how our teacher puts up wiht us - but she jokes around with us too..its awsome. We def have one of the best teachers - even if unorganized she just teaches us random words and grammar and Israeli fun facts. and I got a 98 on my second exam!
Today we went back to Allenby area by the shook where all the cute little cheapy shops are. I actually haggled with a guy to get a pair of boots down to 50 scheckles! Score! A bunch of us made a big dinner too - its a new fav - frozen and fresh vegetables boiled with some sauce and spices. Very simple but very good and convenient for a gas burner stove.
These past couple days have been intense planning - now that ulpan is coming to a close, we wanna make sure we maximize all the time we have and travel..cheaply.
This Thursday TAU takes us to Jerusalem - think a couple of us are staying in a hostel overnight then going to a kibbutz Friday - Saturday for Shabbat
Feb 26 = Ben has his Red Beret like graduation from Special forces training
Following Feb 27 - March 1 weekend = Eilat perhaps? Trying to find a cheap hostel (rumor of a 70 sheckle one on the beach) for the break btwn Ulpan and real classes; hoping to do a Petra day tour
March 6-8 = Tel Aviv U takes us on a South trip to Masada, Dead Sea, Ein Gedi, Bedouin tents and the typical southern (but not super southern) locations
March 10 = purim!!!
March 12 - 15= Istanbul, Turkey
then we have 2 weekend break to hang around Tel Aviv which should b ultra nice and sunny and hoepfully these will b good times to visit family/ Ashkalon
March 22 = Hadar has a dance recital in Ashkalon I'm excited to go to!
Then starting April 2 is Spring/ Passover break through the 19! Wowww
So time is flying but hopefully not too fast!!! Its nice having something to look forward too.
MOre pics on their way up
Sunday, February 15, 2009
Happy Valentines Day!
Nothin too excitin happened these past couple days so a quick run through should suffice. Pictures are now up on Picasa :) More comin soon
http://picasaweb.google.com/mkrakauer2
Thursday:
Another exam - got a 99 on the last one and hope I did well again!
A group of us are tryin to book a trip to Istanbul for the weekend of March 12- 15/16...In Israel its cheaper usually to book through a travel agency - but we're having a hard time find the right times of flights. Instead maybe a smaller group of us might just book online? Idk It winds up being the same price for a nicer hotel and transportation to and from the airport if we go through the agent. Maybe if we have enough people we can get our own charter?
At night we went to Friends - it was super crowded so I walked 10 blockes to a diff bar. Talk about a cool way to learn the city. We walked down Ben Yehuda St to where it intersected with Allenby. There are lots of travel agents down Ben Yehuda - including one thats in charge of Turkey - plan on goin back soon :)
Friday:
NO class!! Yay
We went to Dizengoff center - which is one of the biggest malls like everr..its 2 different buildings and has almost every kind of store..its alittle like an outlet but its really cool. On the main floor every Friday is like an International Food festival. There were rows and rows of buffet type food and people offering you free samples. It was mostly sephardic style food but there was sushi, mini crepes, free squeezed juice, chullent, chinese, italian pasta, kineshes, etc. I had a bowl of spicy rice, lentils, veggies, a persian meatball and some other stuff. Everything is pretty cheap and kosher! We want to come back all the time and just split stuff so you can try everything. MM..
Then right next store is this dog park where we spent atleast 30 minutes watching the dogs run around. Its a fenced in area and the Israeli dogs are so well behaved. it was adorable!!
We wanted to make a Shabbat dinner but the stores closed too early. Instead at night we explored the Namal which was pretty snazzy on a Friday. So many placeshave outside seating on the port next to the ocean - cant wait till its warmer!
Saturday:
BEACH! It was 70 degrees and hot! Instead of going to the downtown Tel Aviv beach, we walked to the local Ramat Aviv beach 35 minutes away. Its still very nice and the crowd tended to be the local suburban families enjoyin their shabbat day off. Some people were surfing - the waves were crazy! Apparently Herzilia has the nicest beaches - and we want to explore down there soon. WE only stayed for a couple of hours but I think I have a teensy bit of color - cant complain cuz it IS only February. :)
Happy Valentines Day everyone!! Hope its a great one!
http://picasaweb.google.com/mkrakauer2
Thursday:
Another exam - got a 99 on the last one and hope I did well again!
A group of us are tryin to book a trip to Istanbul for the weekend of March 12- 15/16...In Israel its cheaper usually to book through a travel agency - but we're having a hard time find the right times of flights. Instead maybe a smaller group of us might just book online? Idk It winds up being the same price for a nicer hotel and transportation to and from the airport if we go through the agent. Maybe if we have enough people we can get our own charter?
At night we went to Friends - it was super crowded so I walked 10 blockes to a diff bar. Talk about a cool way to learn the city. We walked down Ben Yehuda St to where it intersected with Allenby. There are lots of travel agents down Ben Yehuda - including one thats in charge of Turkey - plan on goin back soon :)
Friday:
NO class!! Yay
We went to Dizengoff center - which is one of the biggest malls like everr..its 2 different buildings and has almost every kind of store..its alittle like an outlet but its really cool. On the main floor every Friday is like an International Food festival. There were rows and rows of buffet type food and people offering you free samples. It was mostly sephardic style food but there was sushi, mini crepes, free squeezed juice, chullent, chinese, italian pasta, kineshes, etc. I had a bowl of spicy rice, lentils, veggies, a persian meatball and some other stuff. Everything is pretty cheap and kosher! We want to come back all the time and just split stuff so you can try everything. MM..
Then right next store is this dog park where we spent atleast 30 minutes watching the dogs run around. Its a fenced in area and the Israeli dogs are so well behaved. it was adorable!!
We wanted to make a Shabbat dinner but the stores closed too early. Instead at night we explored the Namal which was pretty snazzy on a Friday. So many placeshave outside seating on the port next to the ocean - cant wait till its warmer!
Saturday:
BEACH! It was 70 degrees and hot! Instead of going to the downtown Tel Aviv beach, we walked to the local Ramat Aviv beach 35 minutes away. Its still very nice and the crowd tended to be the local suburban families enjoyin their shabbat day off. Some people were surfing - the waves were crazy! Apparently Herzilia has the nicest beaches - and we want to explore down there soon. WE only stayed for a couple of hours but I think I have a teensy bit of color - cant complain cuz it IS only February. :)
Happy Valentines Day everyone!! Hope its a great one!
Thursday, February 12, 2009
Sorry in advance...
When my roomates returned from Jordan they told me what a cool experience it was..how beautiful it was..and how to them it really helped define the fact that we are IN Israel, In the middle east.
Well I told everyone from home the way I would define my being here..something that to me is just so - Israeli. Whats that?
Oh ya - a nose piercing.
So...I got it!
Yesterday (Wed) after class, I round up my roomies and Jen's boyfriend and we went down to Disengoff mall - where lots of other people from my school had gotten peicings!
Jen got hers before so she went with me to make sure everything was ok. Its only 100 sheckles at one place and I heard good things so I went there.
Well maybe it was kharma for defying everyones wishes because in Jens words "It was the most barbaric peircing ever". The guy LOOKED like he knew what he was doing - he tatooed a girl right before me! But the proces..was jsut wayyy longer than it needed to be. First he stuck a needle in my nose, then he stuck a tube in it to feed the peircing thru and then he spent 20 minutes trying to get the stud onto the peircing. The look on Jen's face when he was doing all this was priceless. Normally its a 5 minute thing, they look the peircing thru and feed the tube out at the same time. Well let me tell you this draged onnnn and kind of took all the fun excitement out of it. AND it really hurts when u have a man squeezing ur newly swollen nose trying to tie this thing on.
But...it looks great!! it looks really natural! It hurt alot yesterday and still is a little weird today but I'm so happy!
In order to celebrate, we went to this hummus place right next to the mall - its like a hidden spot that Dan's parents (israeli) said is the best. Its just a small hebrew place and they give you free pita to go with the ordered hummus. We got hummus with pine nuts, tahina and israeli salad with tahina. AMAZING!! They also had this really spicy sauce and everyone was wowing at how much I put on my pitas!
Prob best meal yet and only like 12 sheckles a person for all of it! Yummm
After we went to a stand next door where u pick your fruit/chocolate and they mix it into a frozen yogurt. I got mango, peach, white and dark chocolate mix and strawberries. Wow. Talk about a celebratory meal!
I came back to the dorms and showed everyone..some people dont even notice because it looks like I've had it forever. I'm bout to run to the store to pick up cotton swabs so I can dip salt water into it to keep it from being infected.
Im sure pictures will surface soon enough :)
So should I keep it in until I return home or will it be out in a month? We'll see...!!
Well I told everyone from home the way I would define my being here..something that to me is just so - Israeli. Whats that?
Oh ya - a nose piercing.
So...I got it!
Yesterday (Wed) after class, I round up my roomies and Jen's boyfriend and we went down to Disengoff mall - where lots of other people from my school had gotten peicings!
Jen got hers before so she went with me to make sure everything was ok. Its only 100 sheckles at one place and I heard good things so I went there.
Well maybe it was kharma for defying everyones wishes because in Jens words "It was the most barbaric peircing ever". The guy LOOKED like he knew what he was doing - he tatooed a girl right before me! But the proces..was jsut wayyy longer than it needed to be. First he stuck a needle in my nose, then he stuck a tube in it to feed the peircing thru and then he spent 20 minutes trying to get the stud onto the peircing. The look on Jen's face when he was doing all this was priceless. Normally its a 5 minute thing, they look the peircing thru and feed the tube out at the same time. Well let me tell you this draged onnnn and kind of took all the fun excitement out of it. AND it really hurts when u have a man squeezing ur newly swollen nose trying to tie this thing on.
But...it looks great!! it looks really natural! It hurt alot yesterday and still is a little weird today but I'm so happy!
In order to celebrate, we went to this hummus place right next to the mall - its like a hidden spot that Dan's parents (israeli) said is the best. Its just a small hebrew place and they give you free pita to go with the ordered hummus. We got hummus with pine nuts, tahina and israeli salad with tahina. AMAZING!! They also had this really spicy sauce and everyone was wowing at how much I put on my pitas!
Prob best meal yet and only like 12 sheckles a person for all of it! Yummm
After we went to a stand next door where u pick your fruit/chocolate and they mix it into a frozen yogurt. I got mango, peach, white and dark chocolate mix and strawberries. Wow. Talk about a celebratory meal!
I came back to the dorms and showed everyone..some people dont even notice because it looks like I've had it forever. I'm bout to run to the store to pick up cotton swabs so I can dip salt water into it to keep it from being infected.
Im sure pictures will surface soon enough :)
So should I keep it in until I return home or will it be out in a month? We'll see...!!
this is an old city
Visit to Jerusalem was definitely fun but not too exciting.
After class and workin out, 11 of us hopped onto the bus to the downtown central bus station. The bus station is huuuge and has all kinds of food shops, clothing stores, dollar souvenier shops, etc etc. A kid who has never been to Jerusalem before thought it would b a great idea to drink on the way there. I thought that was an awful idea since i was nauseaus from the bus ride..seriously I get bus sick all the time - weird.
We hired our own 10 person sherut and figured a way to fit us all in - for a higher rate the sherut would drop us off in front of the Hebrew U dorms.
It was a beautiful ride and only took about an hour. From there people split up to visit their respective friends or friend's friends. I found out that a girl from Wheels, Sara, only lived 3 doors down from the girls whose apt we were staying at! Everyone changed and all the TLV kids met up again. The Hebrew U dorms are sooo much nicer than ours! Theyre only like a year old and have complete air condition/heat; full fridge with granite kitchen, new table and chairs and couches in the main room; then 5 people each have their own room; they share 2 bathrooms. Its interesting though because its boys and girls living togehter sharing the main room.
Apparently this was the night that Hebrew U kids wanted to party like Tel Aviv kids so they had rented out a bar. Only the bar was being used for a bar mitzvah when we arrived! ha Imagine over 100 drunk college students waiting for these 12 years old to get escorted out. The club was supposed to have 2x more Israelis than Americans but unfort not :(. Still everyone had a really fun time and loved the bar mitzvah decorations haha.
In the morning we trekked over to Ben Yehuda street. WE grabbed the most amazing falafel and Samara met up with her friend from school. Her friend is orthodox, 18 and already married with a baby daughter!! We sat with them for awhile but me and the other girls met up with the guys in the Old City. We got lost in the shook and had a couple funny conversations with the shop owners. Its like being in Jamiaca wiht every owner hassling you to come into the store - the line went on and on! I dont know how anyone stays in business but they sell anything from beautiful Judiaca to hookahs to tshirts. And of course you always barter with them.
then we passed into the main old city area where I took a picture of this kosher falafel stand next to a local bagel place right next to the kotel. There were hoards of chasidic Jews lining up to get their fresh kosher bagels - hilarious. Only a couple seconds from there was the Kotel where we spent atleast 20 minutes.
Then it started to rain!! Israel has been in a drought for a long time - and we saw the reprocusions up north - but this was a downpour!! It was prob one of the loudest storms I've ever heard and the windy was blowing as much as a winter day in Chicago! Unfort Samara and Shira had left us earlier and me and the other 2 girls took naps on these benches in the main dorm area while we waited for them to unlock the door. Very interesting nap..but we were so tired!
There was no way we were traveling more than necessary! So we looked it up and found out that a Sherut would come pick us up at the Hebrew U dorms and take us back to the TLV dorms for only 270 sheckles!! Thats way less than we paid on the way here! Awesome! So we managed to sleep the whole way back and not have to worry about transfering transportation!
Definitly cool to know! Everyone was way too exhausted to do more than sleep for rest of the night.
After class and workin out, 11 of us hopped onto the bus to the downtown central bus station. The bus station is huuuge and has all kinds of food shops, clothing stores, dollar souvenier shops, etc etc. A kid who has never been to Jerusalem before thought it would b a great idea to drink on the way there. I thought that was an awful idea since i was nauseaus from the bus ride..seriously I get bus sick all the time - weird.
We hired our own 10 person sherut and figured a way to fit us all in - for a higher rate the sherut would drop us off in front of the Hebrew U dorms.
It was a beautiful ride and only took about an hour. From there people split up to visit their respective friends or friend's friends. I found out that a girl from Wheels, Sara, only lived 3 doors down from the girls whose apt we were staying at! Everyone changed and all the TLV kids met up again. The Hebrew U dorms are sooo much nicer than ours! Theyre only like a year old and have complete air condition/heat; full fridge with granite kitchen, new table and chairs and couches in the main room; then 5 people each have their own room; they share 2 bathrooms. Its interesting though because its boys and girls living togehter sharing the main room.
Apparently this was the night that Hebrew U kids wanted to party like Tel Aviv kids so they had rented out a bar. Only the bar was being used for a bar mitzvah when we arrived! ha Imagine over 100 drunk college students waiting for these 12 years old to get escorted out. The club was supposed to have 2x more Israelis than Americans but unfort not :(. Still everyone had a really fun time and loved the bar mitzvah decorations haha.
In the morning we trekked over to Ben Yehuda street. WE grabbed the most amazing falafel and Samara met up with her friend from school. Her friend is orthodox, 18 and already married with a baby daughter!! We sat with them for awhile but me and the other girls met up with the guys in the Old City. We got lost in the shook and had a couple funny conversations with the shop owners. Its like being in Jamiaca wiht every owner hassling you to come into the store - the line went on and on! I dont know how anyone stays in business but they sell anything from beautiful Judiaca to hookahs to tshirts. And of course you always barter with them.
then we passed into the main old city area where I took a picture of this kosher falafel stand next to a local bagel place right next to the kotel. There were hoards of chasidic Jews lining up to get their fresh kosher bagels - hilarious. Only a couple seconds from there was the Kotel where we spent atleast 20 minutes.
Then it started to rain!! Israel has been in a drought for a long time - and we saw the reprocusions up north - but this was a downpour!! It was prob one of the loudest storms I've ever heard and the windy was blowing as much as a winter day in Chicago! Unfort Samara and Shira had left us earlier and me and the other 2 girls took naps on these benches in the main dorm area while we waited for them to unlock the door. Very interesting nap..but we were so tired!
There was no way we were traveling more than necessary! So we looked it up and found out that a Sherut would come pick us up at the Hebrew U dorms and take us back to the TLV dorms for only 270 sheckles!! Thats way less than we paid on the way here! Awesome! So we managed to sleep the whole way back and not have to worry about transfering transportation!
Definitly cool to know! Everyone was way too exhausted to do more than sleep for rest of the night.
Monday, February 9, 2009
Warning: Long post about the weekend up north
I woke up around 5 am on Friday morning and played madrichim trying to wake up all my friends. of course most people were like "noo lets just sleep instead" but after a lot of work I got everyone up and we stumbled over to the bus stop.
we hit the road on a big coach bus and a tiny little mini bus behind it which had some be'er sheva kids on it as well. 20 minutes out of telaviv on the highway and you can already see mountains. beautiful.
the girl i sat next to on the first part of the bus ride turned out to be a full academic year student at hebrew u from u of i!
the second half of the ride ( i got moved from the mini bus onto the big bus) I found out that the girl I was sitting next to (who lives 2 floors above me) has a cousin who dated my stepbrother. the girl in front of us goes to umiami with elle. then i found out one of the guys sitting next to us is from ohio, going to school at indiana - his friend from home is one of my good friends at school and his sister was my staff on pilgrimage!
i know this has little to do with my trip but it actually has everything to do with it.
we went RTVing first which was quite an ordeal; as you had to pair up and they were running low. since i don't have an ID anymore I made my friend drive me, which wound up working out great since I could take pictures the whole time. we took this dirty little jeep - not even an rtv- that couldnt make it over 40 miles an hour but it was just fast enough to feel the wind. since it was early in the morning in febuary, it was a really pale blue sky and mountain view and none of the shrubs we drove through had leaves on it yet. it was really wintery-prety but i bet it would be gorgeous in the summer. we were going up and down hills and cliffs throughout the golan mts. there was a point where u could look out and see lebanon on one side and israel on the other.
the whole ride there and back took an hour and we packed it up to go on the longest cable car ride in israel.
alot of people were afraid of heights but after a steep cable car ride up, we were taken to a fun zipline. a journey down probably took 12 seconds and the israelis tend to strap you in and send you off before there was even time to turn back. it was pretty big body rush but not that exhilirating. the best part was at the end of the hill, they cram about 12 people into a little army truck and treck you back up the mountain - at 70 miles an hour! our jeep was flying over rocks, cliffs; scenery way more intense than the atving experience and the poor girls at the end of the truck were legit falling out of the car. they kept screaming for the car to slow down so they could stick their bodies back in but we were all leaning backward from the incline. mt bikers were goin down beside us and im pretty sure the driver didnt even watch the road. it was awsome.
then the jeff seidel people took us to a delicious kosher meal. food was waiting for us on tables when we arrived and we shoved it down quickly - salads, pita, hummus, chicken kabas, chicken salad, it was so good! one of the staff members started walking around offering vodka and whiskey to people with their orange juice. we ate so fast so they could take us to the hotel on the kinneret.
the trip was basically a shabbaton but all the service parts were optional. i roomed with 2 girls in the other dorm who i have alot of mutual friends with and next door were my 2 good friends from the dorm, samara and shira and samara's friends from home who go to hebrew u. we were in the hostel area but it was certainly nicer than our dorms! a full shower and bathroom, a mini fridge area and 2 beds and diff kind of pull out couches.
we decided to go to kabbalat shabbat anyway and got dressedup. of course we look out our back porch window and allour guy friends who are rooming right across from us are outside taking shots before services with the madrichim! haha thats how the orthodox lure you in. well it certainly made it a merry shabbat and even the most stubburn people got up and danced. kabbalat shabbat was outside and the sun was setting over the kinneret right in front of us. after we had like a 7 course dinner with all the students who came on the trip and a bunch of israeli/american families. everyone gave speeches and told stories adn somehow even i wound up standing up saying something and everyone told me how much they liked it after.
there was neverending maccabi beer and wine...really never ending and of couse people snuck some coke and wine back with them.
after a long fun dinner we changed and walked to the beach. the hotel was right on the kinneret and a huge group of us sat on the rocks overlooking the water, half the size it should have been. we turned on an ipod and the whole horizon was black, black sky, black water, the only lights were the town of i think tiberias across the water in the hills. it was really pretty and we tried to take pictures but it was too hard. we turnd on the ipod and made random friends with people staying at the hostel and it was so chill and beautiful. AND we went to bed early without even realizing it! AND we slept in late..
around 11 we got up for lunch which was another huge 7 course meal and believe it or not, they started up with the wine and beer again. everyone looked at the people like they were crazy. we took baby naps and hung out at the beach by the kinneret. it was really foggy and everything was outlines in light hues of blue. i talked to the staff people about upcoming trip ideas - since its really since a great deal to go on these. we were talkin about football or basketball games, shooting ranges, etc. one of them is 22 and married to a beautiful 20 year old girl - they look so much older! its ridiculous. it was fun to be part of the shabbaton but definitly wary of believes that just aren't my own.
then of course a small dinner (seriously i think i ate in 2 days the amt i had eaten the entire week before!) we had akabbalat shabbat and they packed everyone up and sent us along our respective buses with beer and wine. haha.
its funny cuz its been so long since i did a jewish trip like this and it felt alot more like wheels or camp than college - which feels so long ago. but it was really fun. the only differnece of course, is that all the rules were gone! they sent us on a bus home by ourselves! we could have hijacked it - done anything! there were no rules - they were just our peers. ha it was awsome havign that kind of shabbat since it felt like more of a community than a learning experience or a mandatory program. we were just hanging with them instead of being their guest. that was pretty neat. i guess i like this jeff seidel for now. alot of people dindt like the religious aspect..but im used to it.
ha i also snuck back a blanket and pillow from the hostel! im using the blanket to cushion my bed.
ulpan started back up today at 830 am and i feel like i bonded alot with the poeple who went on the trip - like we have something in common now. after class my roomate jenn and i made a list of cool places around tlv to go to next time were feeling bored. samara, myself and another friend went to another jeff seidel sponsored program tonight - its called"dollars for learning" and at the end of the semester they count as many events u go to and write u a check. its 2x a week - split btwn mens/ womens and its juts a discussion. tonight this women had this huge kosher chinese meal brought in and we learned how to find bugs in fruit and ate 15 diff kinds of fruit for tu bshvat. wed is like coffee and cake and we write down topics and just like discuss them. i dont think ill go all the time but its def nice, free good food and $ for it!! the people were so nice too
tuesday is election day in israel adn we dont have school. me and samara and a couple other dorm friends are goin to jersualem after class and staying overnight. i think were gonna go out, go to the kotel, maybe the kinneset, ben yehedua street, etc. im excited - its been so long!! my roomates and some other people are taking a bus down to eilat and a tour of petra, jordan on tuesday. i think it sounds awesome and def something i wanna do - but im kind of excited to see election day in israel and hope i can make it down there another time! still alittle nervewracking - idk if u guys heard about the guy who got stabbed the other day in Jlem..he was jst a studyabroader asking for directions. everyone tells us not to get in taxis with arab drivers - bt sometimes its hard to tell when one is or not!
well back to hw...pictures comin soon!!
we hit the road on a big coach bus and a tiny little mini bus behind it which had some be'er sheva kids on it as well. 20 minutes out of telaviv on the highway and you can already see mountains. beautiful.
the girl i sat next to on the first part of the bus ride turned out to be a full academic year student at hebrew u from u of i!
the second half of the ride ( i got moved from the mini bus onto the big bus) I found out that the girl I was sitting next to (who lives 2 floors above me) has a cousin who dated my stepbrother. the girl in front of us goes to umiami with elle. then i found out one of the guys sitting next to us is from ohio, going to school at indiana - his friend from home is one of my good friends at school and his sister was my staff on pilgrimage!
i know this has little to do with my trip but it actually has everything to do with it.
we went RTVing first which was quite an ordeal; as you had to pair up and they were running low. since i don't have an ID anymore I made my friend drive me, which wound up working out great since I could take pictures the whole time. we took this dirty little jeep - not even an rtv- that couldnt make it over 40 miles an hour but it was just fast enough to feel the wind. since it was early in the morning in febuary, it was a really pale blue sky and mountain view and none of the shrubs we drove through had leaves on it yet. it was really wintery-prety but i bet it would be gorgeous in the summer. we were going up and down hills and cliffs throughout the golan mts. there was a point where u could look out and see lebanon on one side and israel on the other.
the whole ride there and back took an hour and we packed it up to go on the longest cable car ride in israel.
alot of people were afraid of heights but after a steep cable car ride up, we were taken to a fun zipline. a journey down probably took 12 seconds and the israelis tend to strap you in and send you off before there was even time to turn back. it was pretty big body rush but not that exhilirating. the best part was at the end of the hill, they cram about 12 people into a little army truck and treck you back up the mountain - at 70 miles an hour! our jeep was flying over rocks, cliffs; scenery way more intense than the atving experience and the poor girls at the end of the truck were legit falling out of the car. they kept screaming for the car to slow down so they could stick their bodies back in but we were all leaning backward from the incline. mt bikers were goin down beside us and im pretty sure the driver didnt even watch the road. it was awsome.
then the jeff seidel people took us to a delicious kosher meal. food was waiting for us on tables when we arrived and we shoved it down quickly - salads, pita, hummus, chicken kabas, chicken salad, it was so good! one of the staff members started walking around offering vodka and whiskey to people with their orange juice. we ate so fast so they could take us to the hotel on the kinneret.
the trip was basically a shabbaton but all the service parts were optional. i roomed with 2 girls in the other dorm who i have alot of mutual friends with and next door were my 2 good friends from the dorm, samara and shira and samara's friends from home who go to hebrew u. we were in the hostel area but it was certainly nicer than our dorms! a full shower and bathroom, a mini fridge area and 2 beds and diff kind of pull out couches.
we decided to go to kabbalat shabbat anyway and got dressedup. of course we look out our back porch window and allour guy friends who are rooming right across from us are outside taking shots before services with the madrichim! haha thats how the orthodox lure you in. well it certainly made it a merry shabbat and even the most stubburn people got up and danced. kabbalat shabbat was outside and the sun was setting over the kinneret right in front of us. after we had like a 7 course dinner with all the students who came on the trip and a bunch of israeli/american families. everyone gave speeches and told stories adn somehow even i wound up standing up saying something and everyone told me how much they liked it after.
there was neverending maccabi beer and wine...really never ending and of couse people snuck some coke and wine back with them.
after a long fun dinner we changed and walked to the beach. the hotel was right on the kinneret and a huge group of us sat on the rocks overlooking the water, half the size it should have been. we turned on an ipod and the whole horizon was black, black sky, black water, the only lights were the town of i think tiberias across the water in the hills. it was really pretty and we tried to take pictures but it was too hard. we turnd on the ipod and made random friends with people staying at the hostel and it was so chill and beautiful. AND we went to bed early without even realizing it! AND we slept in late..
around 11 we got up for lunch which was another huge 7 course meal and believe it or not, they started up with the wine and beer again. everyone looked at the people like they were crazy. we took baby naps and hung out at the beach by the kinneret. it was really foggy and everything was outlines in light hues of blue. i talked to the staff people about upcoming trip ideas - since its really since a great deal to go on these. we were talkin about football or basketball games, shooting ranges, etc. one of them is 22 and married to a beautiful 20 year old girl - they look so much older! its ridiculous. it was fun to be part of the shabbaton but definitly wary of believes that just aren't my own.
then of course a small dinner (seriously i think i ate in 2 days the amt i had eaten the entire week before!) we had akabbalat shabbat and they packed everyone up and sent us along our respective buses with beer and wine. haha.
its funny cuz its been so long since i did a jewish trip like this and it felt alot more like wheels or camp than college - which feels so long ago. but it was really fun. the only differnece of course, is that all the rules were gone! they sent us on a bus home by ourselves! we could have hijacked it - done anything! there were no rules - they were just our peers. ha it was awsome havign that kind of shabbat since it felt like more of a community than a learning experience or a mandatory program. we were just hanging with them instead of being their guest. that was pretty neat. i guess i like this jeff seidel for now. alot of people dindt like the religious aspect..but im used to it.
ha i also snuck back a blanket and pillow from the hostel! im using the blanket to cushion my bed.
ulpan started back up today at 830 am and i feel like i bonded alot with the poeple who went on the trip - like we have something in common now. after class my roomate jenn and i made a list of cool places around tlv to go to next time were feeling bored. samara, myself and another friend went to another jeff seidel sponsored program tonight - its called"dollars for learning" and at the end of the semester they count as many events u go to and write u a check. its 2x a week - split btwn mens/ womens and its juts a discussion. tonight this women had this huge kosher chinese meal brought in and we learned how to find bugs in fruit and ate 15 diff kinds of fruit for tu bshvat. wed is like coffee and cake and we write down topics and just like discuss them. i dont think ill go all the time but its def nice, free good food and $ for it!! the people were so nice too
tuesday is election day in israel adn we dont have school. me and samara and a couple other dorm friends are goin to jersualem after class and staying overnight. i think were gonna go out, go to the kotel, maybe the kinneset, ben yehedua street, etc. im excited - its been so long!! my roomates and some other people are taking a bus down to eilat and a tour of petra, jordan on tuesday. i think it sounds awesome and def something i wanna do - but im kind of excited to see election day in israel and hope i can make it down there another time! still alittle nervewracking - idk if u guys heard about the guy who got stabbed the other day in Jlem..he was jst a studyabroader asking for directions. everyone tells us not to get in taxis with arab drivers - bt sometimes its hard to tell when one is or not!
well back to hw...pictures comin soon!!
Thursday, February 5, 2009
beach season impending
Took our first test at 1130 - -pretty easy for our class.
after we decided to hit the beach since it was sooo nice out - sunny!
my friend ben from the army got off for the weekend and came to meet a group of us at dinner. he said itd been forever since he hung out in a group of americans and came in his full uniform with gun because he gets free transportation that way. everyone was asking him questions about the army. he just got off a 23 mile hike that he did in full gear in 6 hours! such a crazy lifestyle
this weekend were heading up north for a night to atv/repel i guess its kinda a shabbaton hosted by this guy jeff seidel (jeff seidel.com) - he tries and makes u more religious and word is hes alittle creepy but i like the idea of a super cheap trip and he provides the full lodging, food, etc etc - were gonan try and sneak around on saturday to hike around the golan. 50 people each are goin from Tel aviv U, hebrew U and ben gurion - so itll b great to meet some cool new people!
i kinda wanna convince jeff to do a trip to hungary! he did one to prague last semester!
not feelin so good..passin out some align to people - hope it works.
wake up at 6 am for trip tomorow!
lila tov!
after we decided to hit the beach since it was sooo nice out - sunny!
my friend ben from the army got off for the weekend and came to meet a group of us at dinner. he said itd been forever since he hung out in a group of americans and came in his full uniform with gun because he gets free transportation that way. everyone was asking him questions about the army. he just got off a 23 mile hike that he did in full gear in 6 hours! such a crazy lifestyle
this weekend were heading up north for a night to atv/repel i guess its kinda a shabbaton hosted by this guy jeff seidel (jeff seidel.com) - he tries and makes u more religious and word is hes alittle creepy but i like the idea of a super cheap trip and he provides the full lodging, food, etc etc - were gonan try and sneak around on saturday to hike around the golan. 50 people each are goin from Tel aviv U, hebrew U and ben gurion - so itll b great to meet some cool new people!
i kinda wanna convince jeff to do a trip to hungary! he did one to prague last semester!
not feelin so good..passin out some align to people - hope it works.
wake up at 6 am for trip tomorow!
lila tov!
Wednesday, February 4, 2009
Pictures
the group dinner we made - stirfry, salad, pita & humus, and chicken
rainbow building
israeli elvis
Buildings on the beach
People from the dorms at the bowling activity
Tuesday, February 3, 2009
Ivrit
Its ridiculous to me that 3 days ago I could barely speak hebrew - except for a few phrases and that I could only read and recognize a couple words at a time. Achshav, ani lomedit ivrit todos los dias....for real while my writing/reading and comprehending skills have improved, everytime I try to say something it comes out in spanish!! Its nuts that some people know hebrew the way I know Spanish - even 4 years later I can still remember most nouns and verbs.
we went to the shook again today and it always seems like such a waste to go to the supermarket after. I went with barely 50 shkalim and without spending most of it was able to buy a huge thing of carrots (2 sheckles!), a loaf of fresh bread (7), 2 things of ricecakes and noodles (3 for 13), cheese (more expensive here but 7) and a bracelet (8). Since Israel is like the queen of genetic engineering, all the vegetables and fruit are huge and bright. I've never seen strawberries or apples this large! The shook is definitly overwhelming in terms of bargaining and finding products; but today we actually walked around the surrounding Allenby streets and walked into cute boutiques. The other day I bought a cardigan because it was cold and it was 20 sheckles..sometimes its like the prices are American (50 for shoes) - but then u remember to divide by 4! Still, 50 sheckles can take u a long way and I've yet to really go out and spend on something like clothes or applianes etc for that reason.
I was always afraid going abroad would be a lonely experience - since everyone comes back raving about the places they go and things they do but sometimes forget to mention the people they met. I guess Tel Aviv is kinda different or maybe I just think of it differntly because everyone you see is dying to talk to you. Locals are so happy that you're in the country and the people in the program try and make friends at every opportunity. Every bus ride I've met foreigners who made aaliyah or Israelis just wanting to converse. It's definitly a homey feeling and while some people grew up or act differently than me we seem to have alot in common - at home/school people seem surprised about why I chose Israel but some of the people here hardly make it seem like a choice as much as a given to be here. It's great because at least 2 people are vegetarians and a couple more keep kosher. We all made dinner last friday and are prob gonna keep the tradition. Still, I'm looking to do something exciting and worthy of pictures; even though I've been exhausted I really want to explore!
Yet to unpack (still..haha) but once I do I'll take pics of the room and post em!
Meeting up with people from the other dorm for a girls birthday - shes from highland park!
lila tov..
Ps. This is what I've eaten today:
- half a cucumber for breakfast
- a small carrot and 2 ricecakes for lunch
- 2 toasted peices of bread - one w/ pb and one with cheese and lettuce
- dont worry ive had falafel at least 3 times but yet to have meat!
we went to the shook again today and it always seems like such a waste to go to the supermarket after. I went with barely 50 shkalim and without spending most of it was able to buy a huge thing of carrots (2 sheckles!), a loaf of fresh bread (7), 2 things of ricecakes and noodles (3 for 13), cheese (more expensive here but 7) and a bracelet (8). Since Israel is like the queen of genetic engineering, all the vegetables and fruit are huge and bright. I've never seen strawberries or apples this large! The shook is definitly overwhelming in terms of bargaining and finding products; but today we actually walked around the surrounding Allenby streets and walked into cute boutiques. The other day I bought a cardigan because it was cold and it was 20 sheckles..sometimes its like the prices are American (50 for shoes) - but then u remember to divide by 4! Still, 50 sheckles can take u a long way and I've yet to really go out and spend on something like clothes or applianes etc for that reason.
I was always afraid going abroad would be a lonely experience - since everyone comes back raving about the places they go and things they do but sometimes forget to mention the people they met. I guess Tel Aviv is kinda different or maybe I just think of it differntly because everyone you see is dying to talk to you. Locals are so happy that you're in the country and the people in the program try and make friends at every opportunity. Every bus ride I've met foreigners who made aaliyah or Israelis just wanting to converse. It's definitly a homey feeling and while some people grew up or act differently than me we seem to have alot in common - at home/school people seem surprised about why I chose Israel but some of the people here hardly make it seem like a choice as much as a given to be here. It's great because at least 2 people are vegetarians and a couple more keep kosher. We all made dinner last friday and are prob gonna keep the tradition. Still, I'm looking to do something exciting and worthy of pictures; even though I've been exhausted I really want to explore!
Yet to unpack (still..haha) but once I do I'll take pics of the room and post em!
Meeting up with people from the other dorm for a girls birthday - shes from highland park!
lila tov..
Ps. This is what I've eaten today:
- half a cucumber for breakfast
- a small carrot and 2 ricecakes for lunch
- 2 toasted peices of bread - one w/ pb and one with cheese and lettuce
- dont worry ive had falafel at least 3 times but yet to have meat!
Monday, February 2, 2009
super bowl
Forgot to mention:
-Superbowl last night in Tel Aviv was awsome..there is a sports bar called Mike's Place which caters to Americans and was founded by exBirthright people. Even though the game ran between 1:30 and 5:30 the place was packed! Almost everyone from our program was here along with British students and Americans in the Israeli army.
- i played jewish geography with almost everyone i meet and one of the most fabulous parts of Israel is how likely you are to have mutual friends! one of the soldiers I met studied at TAU with my cousin Marni 2 years ago. Another one studied at BU with my stepsister Rachelli.
- fun fact: i'm on the 3rd level of the stairway in the dorm and the only lightswitches turn on for 10 seconds at a time! we can only climb one set of stairs without needing to turn them on again..gettin very used to the dark haha
-Superbowl last night in Tel Aviv was awsome..there is a sports bar called Mike's Place which caters to Americans and was founded by exBirthright people. Even though the game ran between 1:30 and 5:30 the place was packed! Almost everyone from our program was here along with British students and Americans in the Israeli army.
- i played jewish geography with almost everyone i meet and one of the most fabulous parts of Israel is how likely you are to have mutual friends! one of the soldiers I met studied at TAU with my cousin Marni 2 years ago. Another one studied at BU with my stepsister Rachelli.
- fun fact: i'm on the 3rd level of the stairway in the dorm and the only lightswitches turn on for 10 seconds at a time! we can only climb one set of stairs without needing to turn them on again..gettin very used to the dark haha
i'm here!
So internet in the dorms is finally working! or working enough for me to steal from the router upstairs.
I love Israel but the disorganization of this country and this program is just hilarious.
Recap:
- lost passport and visa 2 days before departure!
- lost deposit, and acceptance - which means they lost everything i submitted - and now i need more passport photos for an ID card and a new doctors apt b/c they lost my health form!
- internet takes over a week to install?
It has been an exciting week here so far though; mostly our dorm tower (2 suites per floor, 4 floors; 4 towers in Einstein Dorm) has been going out and exploring Tel Aviv.
we've been down to the beach; to the namal (port); to dizengoff center where the shook (market) is; to allenby and rothchild (in the center of the city) - and we got a bus pass which gives you 10 rides and has come in handy to getting around to offcampus stores!
the campus is beautiful though and we're close to a couple supermarkets, a mall and a post office which does currency exchanges for no extra charge!
still i'm freezing in my room at night - its like 20 degrees colder than outside! our windows are permanently open which will probably be nice when its 80 degrees with no airconditioning.
Our kitchen is probably the most old school thing I've ever seen..there are 2 tiny gas burners that need to be lit, a sink and a fridge. Me and my roomates went out to buy a pot, a pan, plastic forks, knives , spoons and plates to be rewashed, a spatula and some cooking spoons. Needless to say all people really eat in the dorms here are pita and hummus! I swear I think I've lost 5 pounds.
My roomates are Jen from NJ - who goes to Ithaca College and Rachel from Long Island - who goes to American U. Our 4th roomate apparently dropped out after one look at our room. It's pretty dirty and old but by this first week, I've gotten used to it.
Ulpan started yesterday. We take class Sun - Thurs 830 am - 1 pm!! Our classroom is like 10 minutes away as well..luckily its kind of like summer school in that we have a couple short breaks to stand up and socialize.
I'm in class AB which is the 3rd to most beginner class but even though I never learned the language and haven't studied the letters since 7th grade, most things are coming to me quite quickly! HW everyday and tests every thursday! It's ridiculous but I cant wait to start traveling.
Ps. I'm terrifed of converters and have already fried my straightner and I swear my computer charger started smoking once..?
Any suggestions about what to eat/ places to go/ friendly hello would be amazing!
Missing everyone back in America..
I love Israel but the disorganization of this country and this program is just hilarious.
Recap:
- lost passport and visa 2 days before departure!
- lost deposit, and acceptance - which means they lost everything i submitted - and now i need more passport photos for an ID card and a new doctors apt b/c they lost my health form!
- internet takes over a week to install?
It has been an exciting week here so far though; mostly our dorm tower (2 suites per floor, 4 floors; 4 towers in Einstein Dorm) has been going out and exploring Tel Aviv.
we've been down to the beach; to the namal (port); to dizengoff center where the shook (market) is; to allenby and rothchild (in the center of the city) - and we got a bus pass which gives you 10 rides and has come in handy to getting around to offcampus stores!
the campus is beautiful though and we're close to a couple supermarkets, a mall and a post office which does currency exchanges for no extra charge!
still i'm freezing in my room at night - its like 20 degrees colder than outside! our windows are permanently open which will probably be nice when its 80 degrees with no airconditioning.
Our kitchen is probably the most old school thing I've ever seen..there are 2 tiny gas burners that need to be lit, a sink and a fridge. Me and my roomates went out to buy a pot, a pan, plastic forks, knives , spoons and plates to be rewashed, a spatula and some cooking spoons. Needless to say all people really eat in the dorms here are pita and hummus! I swear I think I've lost 5 pounds.
My roomates are Jen from NJ - who goes to Ithaca College and Rachel from Long Island - who goes to American U. Our 4th roomate apparently dropped out after one look at our room. It's pretty dirty and old but by this first week, I've gotten used to it.
Ulpan started yesterday. We take class Sun - Thurs 830 am - 1 pm!! Our classroom is like 10 minutes away as well..luckily its kind of like summer school in that we have a couple short breaks to stand up and socialize.
I'm in class AB which is the 3rd to most beginner class but even though I never learned the language and haven't studied the letters since 7th grade, most things are coming to me quite quickly! HW everyday and tests every thursday! It's ridiculous but I cant wait to start traveling.
Ps. I'm terrifed of converters and have already fried my straightner and I swear my computer charger started smoking once..?
Any suggestions about what to eat/ places to go/ friendly hello would be amazing!
Missing everyone back in America..
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)