Thursday, December 9, 2010
Wednesday, December 1, 2010
Thanksgiving in Israel
Tuesday rolls around and Polina and I head out to do the Thanksgiving shopping. We approached the meat counter and asked for a turkey, not to my surprised he responded saying, "We do usually have them but for some reason this year we do not. You must go to some other supermarket (a bus ride away)." There was no way I was heading to another store. So I decided to take my dad's advice and just buy pieces of turkey. When we asked for this he proceeded to hold up what looked like to me was a 5+ pound turkey just without the skin and legs. Perfect. That was better than a turkey, white meat and no fuss.
I went home and spent Wednesday alternating cooking the turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, apple crisp and studying for my Hebrew midterm. It was quite the day, I have to admit I have never cook a lot of these things on my own but it was an adventure.
I wanted to give the Israelis an "authentic" Thanksgiving, I even found some nice big pine cones to decorate the table with. It turned out to be quite the feast, my American friend Zach and I had a rather traditional Thanksgiving evening and our Israeli friends experienced their first Thanksgiving, they even liked the stuffing which is not something that I am sure they even knew what it was considering I did not really know what it was until I made it.
It was not Thanksgiving at Cousin Susans house, but pretty good none the less.
Monday, November 22, 2010
Kibbutz Ramat Yochanan.
This weekend I took what I would like to call a "mini vacation" up North. My friend Molly, whom I lived with during my Ashdod volunteer program, made aliyah and is doing a 5 month Hebrew ulpan program on a kibbutz. I decided this would be the weekend to visit her.
Things do not always go as plan here in Israel so I took every precaution to make sure I could get to her with a little trouble as possible before Shabbat arrived. I knew the bus line 997, which would take me to Kiryat Ata, the closest town to her kibbutz, was a religious line and may be less than reliable but it was my only direct option. I got to the bus stop practually an hour early so I knew there would be no way I could miss it. I told myself I could not get worried about the bus not coming until 12:15 and slowly but surely it was 12:15. I asked some other people and bus drivers about the bus and they said they were not quite sure what I was talking about. Great. It was getting better by the minute. If it did not come I would have to take a bus to Tel Aviv, than to Haifa and somehow from there get to Kiryat Ata or her kibbutz, an adventure I was not prepared for.
A few minutes later the bus pulled up. I ran to make sure I got on it, luckily I did make it aboard but unfortunately there were no seats left and the bus was packed with people, mainly religious families. Wow, this was going to be an interesting ride. Eventually the people around me sat in the aisle so I joined them. All I wanted to do was rest my head somewhere, anywhere, and take a nap. I am not sure what happened but I did eventually manage to fall asleep. I started to get real achy an hour and a half into the trip so I stood up for the last 20 minutes or so. It was a shame I missed the scenic view the whole way up and just sat there starting at religious women's skirts.
We arrived at Kiryat Ata and I took a short cab ride over to the kibbutz. Man, was I happy to finally to see Molly. I put my stuff in her room and we went out for a long stroll. One of the kibbutz dogs, Hannah, loves Molly and her roommate. Hannah joined us everywhere we went throughout the weekend. We started off by walking by the cows and bulls, into the avocado trees and around to a beautiful view where we watched the sunset. You could see alot of the kibbutz with Haifa and the Carmel Mountains in the background.
We went back and rested up for Shabbat dinner. People start to fill into the dining room "chedar ochel" around 7 and there was a mini ceremony. It was typical cafeteria food Israeli style, a change in what I have been used to eating. After dinner we hung out with some of the people on her program and talked with her roommate.
The next morning we went for another walk. This time we checked out the baby cows. Molly insisted I let them suck on my finger, I did not disappoint her. They had all the cages labeled, there were probably 7 cows born in the last week. After wards we walked through the areas where most of the kibbutzniks live. It is amazing how nice some of the housing is. It is all done by seniority. When the kids are around 17 then move out and as they get older and older the housing gets nicer and nicer.
We had shabbat lunch back in the cheder ochel and then went for a walk into the cirtrus fields. They were growing oranges, kumquat look alikes, pomellos and some green orange that I have seen in stores. We just walked up and down the rows of trees trying the fruit and picking some. Overall it was a great mini vacation. For only being there for one day I think I got a true kibbutz experience and a wonderful one at that.
Things do not always go as plan here in Israel so I took every precaution to make sure I could get to her with a little trouble as possible before Shabbat arrived. I knew the bus line 997, which would take me to Kiryat Ata, the closest town to her kibbutz, was a religious line and may be less than reliable but it was my only direct option. I got to the bus stop practually an hour early so I knew there would be no way I could miss it. I told myself I could not get worried about the bus not coming until 12:15 and slowly but surely it was 12:15. I asked some other people and bus drivers about the bus and they said they were not quite sure what I was talking about. Great. It was getting better by the minute. If it did not come I would have to take a bus to Tel Aviv, than to Haifa and somehow from there get to Kiryat Ata or her kibbutz, an adventure I was not prepared for.
A few minutes later the bus pulled up. I ran to make sure I got on it, luckily I did make it aboard but unfortunately there were no seats left and the bus was packed with people, mainly religious families. Wow, this was going to be an interesting ride. Eventually the people around me sat in the aisle so I joined them. All I wanted to do was rest my head somewhere, anywhere, and take a nap. I am not sure what happened but I did eventually manage to fall asleep. I started to get real achy an hour and a half into the trip so I stood up for the last 20 minutes or so. It was a shame I missed the scenic view the whole way up and just sat there starting at religious women's skirts.
We arrived at Kiryat Ata and I took a short cab ride over to the kibbutz. Man, was I happy to finally to see Molly. I put my stuff in her room and we went out for a long stroll. One of the kibbutz dogs, Hannah, loves Molly and her roommate. Hannah joined us everywhere we went throughout the weekend. We started off by walking by the cows and bulls, into the avocado trees and around to a beautiful view where we watched the sunset. You could see alot of the kibbutz with Haifa and the Carmel Mountains in the background.
We went back and rested up for Shabbat dinner. People start to fill into the dining room "chedar ochel" around 7 and there was a mini ceremony. It was typical cafeteria food Israeli style, a change in what I have been used to eating. After dinner we hung out with some of the people on her program and talked with her roommate.
The next morning we went for another walk. This time we checked out the baby cows. Molly insisted I let them suck on my finger, I did not disappoint her. They had all the cages labeled, there were probably 7 cows born in the last week. After wards we walked through the areas where most of the kibbutzniks live. It is amazing how nice some of the housing is. It is all done by seniority. When the kids are around 17 then move out and as they get older and older the housing gets nicer and nicer.
Wednesday, November 17, 2010
Shabbat & Yoga
I am sure this will be one of my many shabbat stories...
Two weeks ago I was walking by myself to a shabbat service. I was walking down a side street\driveway and a truck that had been parked started to move. BUT I was walking there first. To my surprise, but not really, he started honking and screaming at me for walking in his way. I do not know if he noticed or cared but I was walking there first, a parked car does not have the right of way over anyone. It freaked me out and pissed me off, a great way to start off shabbat.
As the sun was setting and shabbat was ending I went with a friend to the Old City. We walked through the Arab quarter and then found ourselves at the Western Wall. He did not want to go up to the Kotel but I figured why not? I covered up as best as I could and slowly approached the wall. There was an empty chair against the wall surrounded by many other chairs with religious people praying in them. I did not want to move the chair to sit in it or get closer so I just stood there and enjoyed the experience. A religious girl about my age noticed what happened and quickly moved the chair so I could be next to the wall as well. We often see and feel the divide between the religious Jews and secular Jews but this shabbat, for me, it was a bit different. It did not matter how I was dressed, where I was going or what I was doing, some people chose to embrace me and help me enjoy my shabbat while others had more important things to be doing. A shaky shabbat ended up with a beautiful ending.
This week I started a new-ish hobby, yoga. So far its going great. Last weekend I looked up yoga studios in Jerusalem and to my surprise one of the only websites that worked was of a studio that happened to be in an apartment building on my block. As my mom would say, it was b'shert. So I called ahead to let them know an American would be coming. I thought they deserved a heads up and she seemed nothing but welcoming on the phone.
I showed up Sunday morning to a small woman's only Kundalini class. It was just what I needed. The first 30 minutes we did a lot of stretching and warming up. The middle section were some really interesting yoga positions that I was not familiar with and the end was an unbelievable cool down. She played different music throughout the session. It was quite the experience. I had a great view of Jerusalem when I was standing looking out a window in the corner of the room. It was very spiritual in a non Jewish way but a wonderful city to be experiencing it in. After the class she brought out tea and cut up bananas an apples. We all sat around for almost a half an hour talking and enjoying each others company (of course I was mostly listening). No to mention the instructor translated everything for me, it was a good Hebrew lesson for me and English lesson for everyone else.
Yesterday I went to an evening Vinyasa class that was totally different but equally enjoyable. So far so good. I always enjoy finding new hobbies. We'll see where this goes.
(Of course it turns out that a lady who teaches Hebrew at Hebrew University was also in both classes, what a small world...)
Two weeks ago I was walking by myself to a shabbat service. I was walking down a side street\driveway and a truck that had been parked started to move. BUT I was walking there first. To my surprise, but not really, he started honking and screaming at me for walking in his way. I do not know if he noticed or cared but I was walking there first, a parked car does not have the right of way over anyone. It freaked me out and pissed me off, a great way to start off shabbat.
As the sun was setting and shabbat was ending I went with a friend to the Old City. We walked through the Arab quarter and then found ourselves at the Western Wall. He did not want to go up to the Kotel but I figured why not? I covered up as best as I could and slowly approached the wall. There was an empty chair against the wall surrounded by many other chairs with religious people praying in them. I did not want to move the chair to sit in it or get closer so I just stood there and enjoyed the experience. A religious girl about my age noticed what happened and quickly moved the chair so I could be next to the wall as well. We often see and feel the divide between the religious Jews and secular Jews but this shabbat, for me, it was a bit different. It did not matter how I was dressed, where I was going or what I was doing, some people chose to embrace me and help me enjoy my shabbat while others had more important things to be doing. A shaky shabbat ended up with a beautiful ending.
This week I started a new-ish hobby, yoga. So far its going great. Last weekend I looked up yoga studios in Jerusalem and to my surprise one of the only websites that worked was of a studio that happened to be in an apartment building on my block. As my mom would say, it was b'shert. So I called ahead to let them know an American would be coming. I thought they deserved a heads up and she seemed nothing but welcoming on the phone.
I showed up Sunday morning to a small woman's only Kundalini class. It was just what I needed. The first 30 minutes we did a lot of stretching and warming up. The middle section were some really interesting yoga positions that I was not familiar with and the end was an unbelievable cool down. She played different music throughout the session. It was quite the experience. I had a great view of Jerusalem when I was standing looking out a window in the corner of the room. It was very spiritual in a non Jewish way but a wonderful city to be experiencing it in. After the class she brought out tea and cut up bananas an apples. We all sat around for almost a half an hour talking and enjoying each others company (of course I was mostly listening). No to mention the instructor translated everything for me, it was a good Hebrew lesson for me and English lesson for everyone else.
Yesterday I went to an evening Vinyasa class that was totally different but equally enjoyable. So far so good. I always enjoy finding new hobbies. We'll see where this goes.
(Of course it turns out that a lady who teaches Hebrew at Hebrew University was also in both classes, what a small world...)
Tuesday, November 2, 2010
October Update.
Topics: Israel REALLY is a Small Country, The U.S.A., Public Spaces & Parties.
As I have been walking around the city of Jerusalem over the past few weeks I cannot help but realize how small this country really is. If I leave my apartment with one of my roommates and go almost anywhere in the city, we are guaranteed to bump into someone they know. Its really unbelievable. I lived in Washington DC for 5 years and I have never seen anything like this.
I was at a bar the other week talking with a friend of a friend. We were discussing that he lived up North and the conversation led us to ask how his family was effected in the 2006 Lebanon War. Incidentally his house was actually hit by the rockets. When people tell you everyone knows someone effected by everything that happens here they are not kidding. Israel REALLY is a small country.
A new perspective. Being involved in an International School where the classes are taught in English leads many of our readings to be from American Literature and Research. I have studied abroad before but it is quite interesting sitting through these research examples and readings from the US. Two of the boys in our class are from South America and I cannot help but wonder what they think of it, they have a much different perspective. Sometimes the examples and cultural difference in the readings must have a very different meaning to non-Americans. Its amazing how much influence the US and the English language have.
I have always found public spaces interesting since my freshmen year University Writing class, Public Spaces. I know I have already mentioned the park that I run in but it continues to amaze me. In the past few weeks I have witnessed several birthday parties, with balloon set ups and all, countless sports practices, religious girls rollerskating and even a minyan. Yes, at first I was really confused what a bunch of men were doing silently facing one direction but I was quickly able to count 10 of them before I passed them and immediately realized what was going on. My only issue with the public spaces in Jerusalem, moreover the country as a whole, is the lack of garbage clean up. It is a particularly big issue in Jerusalem. Its dirty.
Last night I went to a protest with my roommate, Ina, and two of her friends. The government is planning to start to give money to the religious students in Yeshivas for living expenses while there is no intention of helping out the students studying in the secular universities. The rally met at the top of Aza Street by my house and went down King George ending at Kikar Zion at the end of Ben Yehudah. It was interesting to see the signs people had made, to listen to the cheers people were chanting and simply to see who showed up in support of the cause. Some people carried stretchers symbolizing their time, among many other things, given to their country through their years of service, very powerful images. Obviously they are deserving of government financial support as well. It is a touchy subject, like MANY others, in this country. I clearly understand the view point of the students and it surely is interesting how they go about expressing themselves. Only in Jerusalem, Israel would a rally of this nature exist.
Parties like you've never seen. Last week I went with my roommate, Ina, to a party sponsored by her school. She happens to be studying medical research along side the med students at the Medical School of Hebrew U. So this party was a crowd unlike any I have ever seen. It was a hopping bar\club (especially for Jerusalem standards) filled with future doctors. I think it was the largest amount of Jewish doctors in the smallest space that I will ever witness. To top it off, it was a great night.
This last weekend I went to a birthday party in Tel Aviv, this was like no birthday party I have ever been to. It was located in one of the 2 well known Yoo Buildings in Tel Aviv. They are circular sky scrappers and this particular apartment had a view of Tel Aviv and the Mediterranean Sea from the 27th floor. There was Halloween decorations, open bar, delicious appetizers, a dj and an amazing balcony. In Hebrew, זה מדהים, it was amazing.
As I have been walking around the city of Jerusalem over the past few weeks I cannot help but realize how small this country really is. If I leave my apartment with one of my roommates and go almost anywhere in the city, we are guaranteed to bump into someone they know. Its really unbelievable. I lived in Washington DC for 5 years and I have never seen anything like this.
I was at a bar the other week talking with a friend of a friend. We were discussing that he lived up North and the conversation led us to ask how his family was effected in the 2006 Lebanon War. Incidentally his house was actually hit by the rockets. When people tell you everyone knows someone effected by everything that happens here they are not kidding. Israel REALLY is a small country.
A new perspective. Being involved in an International School where the classes are taught in English leads many of our readings to be from American Literature and Research. I have studied abroad before but it is quite interesting sitting through these research examples and readings from the US. Two of the boys in our class are from South America and I cannot help but wonder what they think of it, they have a much different perspective. Sometimes the examples and cultural difference in the readings must have a very different meaning to non-Americans. Its amazing how much influence the US and the English language have.
I have always found public spaces interesting since my freshmen year University Writing class, Public Spaces. I know I have already mentioned the park that I run in but it continues to amaze me. In the past few weeks I have witnessed several birthday parties, with balloon set ups and all, countless sports practices, religious girls rollerskating and even a minyan. Yes, at first I was really confused what a bunch of men were doing silently facing one direction but I was quickly able to count 10 of them before I passed them and immediately realized what was going on. My only issue with the public spaces in Jerusalem, moreover the country as a whole, is the lack of garbage clean up. It is a particularly big issue in Jerusalem. Its dirty.
Last night I went to a protest with my roommate, Ina, and two of her friends. The government is planning to start to give money to the religious students in Yeshivas for living expenses while there is no intention of helping out the students studying in the secular universities. The rally met at the top of Aza Street by my house and went down King George ending at Kikar Zion at the end of Ben Yehudah. It was interesting to see the signs people had made, to listen to the cheers people were chanting and simply to see who showed up in support of the cause. Some people carried stretchers symbolizing their time, among many other things, given to their country through their years of service, very powerful images. Obviously they are deserving of government financial support as well. It is a touchy subject, like MANY others, in this country. I clearly understand the view point of the students and it surely is interesting how they go about expressing themselves. Only in Jerusalem, Israel would a rally of this nature exist.
Parties like you've never seen. Last week I went with my roommate, Ina, to a party sponsored by her school. She happens to be studying medical research along side the med students at the Medical School of Hebrew U. So this party was a crowd unlike any I have ever seen. It was a hopping bar\club (especially for Jerusalem standards) filled with future doctors. I think it was the largest amount of Jewish doctors in the smallest space that I will ever witness. To top it off, it was a great night.
This last weekend I went to a birthday party in Tel Aviv, this was like no birthday party I have ever been to. It was located in one of the 2 well known Yoo Buildings in Tel Aviv. They are circular sky scrappers and this particular apartment had a view of Tel Aviv and the Mediterranean Sea from the 27th floor. There was Halloween decorations, open bar, delicious appetizers, a dj and an amazing balcony. In Hebrew, זה מדהים, it was amazing.
Roommates and me.
Saturday, October 16, 2010
Israel: The First 3 Weeks.
I arrived in Israel on September 24 and it was in the middle of Sukkot. I had 2 weeks to settle into my apartment and life here, get to know my neighborhood and catch up with friends. It was a crazy 2 weeks.
I managed to reconnect with friends on the beach in Tel Aviv, at the supposed best chummus place in Jerusalem and while swimming in a natural spring outside of Jerusalem. I was also lucky to go on a camping trip up north where we swam in and slept next to the Jordan River and saw gorgeous views of the area. It was definitely nice to have had this time to spend reacquainting myself with the country and friends.
I have been trying to keep up my running and I am lucky to live near a park here in Jerusalem called Gan Sacher. It seems to be a pretty social area and I believe they are a lot of concerts and festivals that take place there. I run past an old Greek Monastery than head to a more open area. I usually go in the morning so its pretty quiet there but it is always an eclectic mix of people; runners, religious men praying, bikers, religious women running in pants with skirts over them, army units who are training, hippies playing frisbee, basically anything you could imagine. I am continually pleasantly surprised by something each time I go to the park. Only in Jerusalem.
I am really enjoying my neighborhood so far. It's called Rehavia. It has a mix of people living in it as well. In the beginning because of the holidays there were a lot of religious Jews from the states here who seemed to be taking over but its become much more pleasant post holiday season and now that more students have moved in school. I live about a 20+ minute walk from the "city center" - Ben Yehudah Street and the bar area. Its very nice not being dependent on public transportation all the time. This city is obviously very old and there is no organized layout so of course the traffic can be ridiculous at times.
On my way to the city center I pass what could be called a new living memorial in honor of Gilad Shalit, a soldier that was captured over 1572 days ago by Hamas. You may ask, why does she know how many days? Well when you pass the area multiple times in a day its kind of hard to forget what you are seeing. Gilad's father, and I am sure other members of his family, spend a lot of time there and people are constantly coming, bringing food, talking with people who pass and handing out yellow ribbons and t-shirt in honor of Gilad. Last night I walked by after dinner and there was a long table set up and they were just finishing up a shabbat meal. People are very dedicated to his cause, he is a national icon. It can be difficult to walk by so many times in one day, it really makes you think.
From my apartment we have a view of the Knesset (Israeli Parliament), its lit up at night which looks nice. There is a beautiful breeze in the city and so we keep a lot of our windows open in the apartment, I get the best breeze in my room, I love it. Often you will hear different people singing, playing music or little kids laughing and playing, I also manage to smell peoples cooking which at times can be frustrating because I only wish I could know what it was or possibly have a little taste; it smells incredible.
This past week I celebrated my 25th birthday here. I actually did not have classes that day and I ended up having a relaxing, productive day. I went for a run and ran errands in the morning. In the afternoon I went out to lunch with my friends Polina and Idan at a restaurant in my neighborhood that I have been looking forward to trying out. It was a beautiful day outside and I enjoyed their company. For dinner I went with a few more friends to a restaurant in Jerusalem, a nice place with great atmosphere. It was the perfect day.
This was my first Shabbat staying in Jerusalem. Yesterday afternoon I decided to run to the grocery store to get some food because most places are closed on Shabbat. I pick up what I needed and proceeded to wait in line for possibly close to a half an hour. I tried to be really patient but I will do my best to avoid shopping at that time of the week ever again. I told my roommate Polina what had happened and she looked at me like "duh." I have learned my lesson. Polina's parents came for the evening and we had dinner with them at the apartment, Polina, her mother and I went for a walk after dinner. As soon as we stepped outside I could hear families singing shabbat songs. We walked all around the neighborhood, it was so beautiful and relaxing, barely any cars out and in every house people were sitting around their table talking and singing, you could hear the clanking of plates everywhere we went. There were some people out on the streets but I think I may have seen just as many stray cats waiting for dinner. These are my first discoveries of Shabbat in Jerusalem, I am sure there will be many more.
I managed to reconnect with friends on the beach in Tel Aviv, at the supposed best chummus place in Jerusalem and while swimming in a natural spring outside of Jerusalem. I was also lucky to go on a camping trip up north where we swam in and slept next to the Jordan River and saw gorgeous views of the area. It was definitely nice to have had this time to spend reacquainting myself with the country and friends.
I have been trying to keep up my running and I am lucky to live near a park here in Jerusalem called Gan Sacher. It seems to be a pretty social area and I believe they are a lot of concerts and festivals that take place there. I run past an old Greek Monastery than head to a more open area. I usually go in the morning so its pretty quiet there but it is always an eclectic mix of people; runners, religious men praying, bikers, religious women running in pants with skirts over them, army units who are training, hippies playing frisbee, basically anything you could imagine. I am continually pleasantly surprised by something each time I go to the park. Only in Jerusalem.
I am really enjoying my neighborhood so far. It's called Rehavia. It has a mix of people living in it as well. In the beginning because of the holidays there were a lot of religious Jews from the states here who seemed to be taking over but its become much more pleasant post holiday season and now that more students have moved in school. I live about a 20+ minute walk from the "city center" - Ben Yehudah Street and the bar area. Its very nice not being dependent on public transportation all the time. This city is obviously very old and there is no organized layout so of course the traffic can be ridiculous at times.
On my way to the city center I pass what could be called a new living memorial in honor of Gilad Shalit, a soldier that was captured over 1572 days ago by Hamas. You may ask, why does she know how many days? Well when you pass the area multiple times in a day its kind of hard to forget what you are seeing. Gilad's father, and I am sure other members of his family, spend a lot of time there and people are constantly coming, bringing food, talking with people who pass and handing out yellow ribbons and t-shirt in honor of Gilad. Last night I walked by after dinner and there was a long table set up and they were just finishing up a shabbat meal. People are very dedicated to his cause, he is a national icon. It can be difficult to walk by so many times in one day, it really makes you think.
From my apartment we have a view of the Knesset (Israeli Parliament), its lit up at night which looks nice. There is a beautiful breeze in the city and so we keep a lot of our windows open in the apartment, I get the best breeze in my room, I love it. Often you will hear different people singing, playing music or little kids laughing and playing, I also manage to smell peoples cooking which at times can be frustrating because I only wish I could know what it was or possibly have a little taste; it smells incredible.
This past week I celebrated my 25th birthday here. I actually did not have classes that day and I ended up having a relaxing, productive day. I went for a run and ran errands in the morning. In the afternoon I went out to lunch with my friends Polina and Idan at a restaurant in my neighborhood that I have been looking forward to trying out. It was a beautiful day outside and I enjoyed their company. For dinner I went with a few more friends to a restaurant in Jerusalem, a nice place with great atmosphere. It was the perfect day.
This was my first Shabbat staying in Jerusalem. Yesterday afternoon I decided to run to the grocery store to get some food because most places are closed on Shabbat. I pick up what I needed and proceeded to wait in line for possibly close to a half an hour. I tried to be really patient but I will do my best to avoid shopping at that time of the week ever again. I told my roommate Polina what had happened and she looked at me like "duh." I have learned my lesson. Polina's parents came for the evening and we had dinner with them at the apartment, Polina, her mother and I went for a walk after dinner. As soon as we stepped outside I could hear families singing shabbat songs. We walked all around the neighborhood, it was so beautiful and relaxing, barely any cars out and in every house people were sitting around their table talking and singing, you could hear the clanking of plates everywhere we went. There were some people out on the streets but I think I may have seen just as many stray cats waiting for dinner. These are my first discoveries of Shabbat in Jerusalem, I am sure there will be many more.
Friday, October 15, 2010
On completion of my first week of Graduate School...
For those of you who missed the memo, I am back in Israel, this time studying for a Masters degree called Community Leadership & Philanthropy, basically a degree in Non-Profit Management. I have decided to start a new blog but will be going a little out of order in updating you on my experiences over the past 3 weeks here in Israel. Yes, there is a lot that has happened but I believe as I did come here to earn my Graduate degree from Hebrew University, it is important to begin with stories from my first week of classes.
Often when I talk with people about the crazy things that happen in this country I begin by saying, "Only in Israel..." On my last adventure here my friends and I kept a mental list of the unreal experience, stories, words, people and situations we would encounter on a regular basis. I have decided to try and approach my blog from this angle and after my first week of school I think I have been able to take this saying to a new level, "Only at Hebrew University, in the Rothberg International School..." This is what I experienced my first week of classes:
Often when I talk with people about the crazy things that happen in this country I begin by saying, "Only in Israel..." On my last adventure here my friends and I kept a mental list of the unreal experience, stories, words, people and situations we would encounter on a regular basis. I have decided to try and approach my blog from this angle and after my first week of school I think I have been able to take this saying to a new level, "Only at Hebrew University, in the Rothberg International School..." This is what I experienced my first week of classes:
- Hearing the call to prayer up to 3 times during the school day
- Seeing a monk in the hallway
- Classes filled with Muslims, Christians and Jews
- Students from Israel, the US, Argentina, Brazil, South Africa, England, Germany, Korea, Australia and the list continues...
- Multiple pregnant women, both religious and not
- 25% of my Hebrew Ulpan class is of Korean decent and
- Unbelievable views from every direction you look including East Jerusalem, the Security Fence, the Dead Sea and Jordan. (The picture is from an outdoor amphitheater on campus which has a view looking East of Jerusalem.)
Overall the first week went well. In my program there are about 15 other people starting with me. We have most of our classes together. It is a pretty diverse group ranging from people who are 23 to 45+, a lot of people have made aliyah in the past few years. Most of the students are from America but we have 2 South Americans as well. It should be a much different, more intimate experience than I had as an undergraduate. I am looking forward to getting to know everyone else in the program and our professors.
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