Two Months in a Glance

My apologies for not blogging in two months. Life can be a bit hectic here and I usually take every extra moment I have to sleep.

Speaking of sleep, or rather lack there of, last night-or more like this morning we woke up at 1:30AM to go on a tiyul (trip) in the Negev. Hiking through the desert at 3AM was an amazing experience.  One of the best things about the tiyul was from starting out in the dark where it was hard to see where I was going and knowing me I did trip several times. As we walked the sky slowly got lighter and lighter until the sun peaked over the cliffs. Before the hike started we had a moment of silence-the fourth one of this trip.

In Israel there are two national holidays where the whole country comes to a stop and commemorates the dead. The first is Yom Hashoah- Holocaust Memorial. This year it was April 8th.  A siren goes off in the morning for a whole minute. When the siren goes off everyone and everything stops. All traffic on the streets and highways stop and people step out of their cars and stand in silence and remember those who died in the Holocaust. This was a very moving day for me as we were learning about the Holocaust that week and we had a few ceremonies for it. Later that week we went to Yad Vashem- the Holocaust Museum. The museum itself was extremely moving but what was even more important was talking to a Holocaust Survivor. Her name is Hanneli Goslar. She was Anne Frank's childhood best friend. She was a wonderful speaker and her story will always stay with me. 

The second national holiday where the country stops is Yom Hazikaron- Memorial Day. It was April 15th. This holiday tends to be more personal to Israelis than Yom Hashoah. This holiday isn't like what it is in the U.S. In the U.S. people have barbecues and get school off. In Israel it is more personal than that. Everyone in Israel goes into the army when they turn eighteen. For this reason almost all Israelis know someone or know of someone who has passed away serving their country. On this day there are two sirens. One in the evening and one in the morning. Same as Yom Hashoah, everything stops. It is a very moving day especially since that night starts Yom Haatzmaut- Israeli independence day.

To describe Yom Haatzmaut take the Fourth of July than multiply it by five. EVERYONE is out on the streets dancing and singing or at parties. TRY went to Ben Yehuda (a very popular shopping street in Jerusalem) and got to take part in the festivities. We were out till 1 in the morning and there were still tons of people out when we left. The next day we had a barbecue on the beach. It was chilly and rainy but still a good time. The difference between the U.S.' independence day and Israel's is that Israel's goes deeper. Instead of just a day of partying it has a deeper meaning. Israel is a very controversial country with many enemies and the fact that the Jewish people have a place to call home is worth celebrating.

The week after these holidays we had Gadna- army training. We spent five days at a Sde Boker in the desert. We ran around a lot, did conditioning, learned about all different sections of the army, and learned how to shoot a gun. The last thing was a bit controversial for me as I have no interest in ever using a gun. We spent days learning about the different parts of the gun and what commands were used for shooting. We were taken out to a shooting range were we all got the chance to shoot a M-16. It was an interesting experience but as I said, not something I plan on doing again.

This past Tuesday we had a tiyul different than all the rest. We were split in to groups and chose a topic to write an article about for a non existent newspaper.  My group chose the question: what makes you an Israeli? Depending on the group's topic the ICC teachers chose a place for us to interview Israelis. My group went to the shuk- market place or bazaar. The answers we got were really interesting and as soon as I finish  writing the article I'll post it on here. What was possibly more interesting than the answers to my questions was the general interaction with the people working at the shuk. I was asked by a old man to marry his son. He was speaking in Hebrew so at first I didn't understand what he was saying but I finally got it than politely declined. My friend got the same question from another man. It was very amusing.

That bring us to today. Hiking at 3 in the morning. We were in the middle of no where and had a fourth moment of silence. The only difference was that this was complete silence. In the world today there is not many places you can go with complete silence. There were no cars, no trees blowing in the wind, no animals stirring at this hour. My ICC teacher told us to use this moment to reflect on the past few months. I thought back and realized how amazing this trip has been so far. I am excited to see friends and family in a little less than a month but I will miss Israel. Luckily I have a whole month left (and hopefully a few more blog posts) to enjoy this wonderful country!

Women of the Wall

For the TRY newspaper I wrote an article about joining WOW (Women of the Wall)  for Rosh Chodesh. I hope you enjoy it!

This Rosh Chodesh (beginning of the new month) may have seemed like a normal Tuesday morning to most people. To me it was so much more. I woke up at 5:45 just so that I could join Women of the Wall at the Kotel. Despite the lack of sleep it was totally worth it.

While I loved the experience at the wall, there were parts that I was not happy about. One such part was the men on the other side shouting vulgar and derogatory words at us. On the women’s side there were people shushing us and telling us we shouldn’t be there. What I don’t understand is why men are allowed to pray as loudly and with as much ruach as they want, but women aren’t allowed to pray above a whisper. There needs to be equality.  The kotel is a holy place to all Jews, not just those who believe that women should not make minyan at the wall.

Fortunately there were more ups than downs. I was praying at the Kotel. In Israel. How cool is that! I was part of a minyan made up of women. Some chose to wear tallitot and some did not-whatever their personal opinion was. I got to wear my tallit-the orange tallit you can easily find in a crowd (and clashes with most of my clothing).  My mother and I made my tallit together  during a difficult period in our lives and whenever I wear it, it reminds me of my family and what I have to be thankful for. My talliit has fabric on it that belonged to my great-great grandmother so I brought my ancestry with me to the holiest place in the world. The most important thing was that I stood up for what I believe in. I believe that women should be able to make the decision to wear a tallit themselves. If I make a stronger connection when I am wearing a tallit I should be able to wear it.

Joining Women of the Wall at the kotel is one of my highlights from being in Israel. I was singing out loud. I was dancing with other women who had the same beliefs as me. I prayed at the wall both on a personal level and a communal one. I was doing everything that connects me to Judaism.

I really hope Women of the Wall achieves its purpose. Not only is it a personal goal but a communal goal.  Women should have the right to practice their religion as they chose. Everyone has their own personal connection to prayer and to G-d and for many women the simple act of wearing a tallit or praying as a minyan can make all the difference. For me it is worth waking up early. It is something worth being yelled at or scoffed at.  It is even worth being arrested. For me this is something worth fighting for.

Meital, Heather, and I at the Kotel. I'm wearing my tallit!

 Later that day I found out that I had made it into Jerusalem Post. Here is their article: http://www.jpost.com/NationalNews/Article.aspx?id=306137

If you go through the pictures I'm in the fifth one in the orange tallit!

"Vacation" Time

We are currently staying at Kibbutz Ketura in the south of Israel near Eilat. We got here two days ago and we already have climbed two mountains, went snorkeling, wove baskets, made challah, and of course much more.  When they said that we were going south for a week without school I thought that meant lots of sleep. Despite the lack of sleep I still love it here!

For those who don't know what a kibbutz is here is an original Wikipedia definition: a communal farm in Israel, cooperatively owned, with members who receive no pay but who gain housing, clothing, medical care, and education from the cooperative. Ketura's main businesses are solar energy, dairy cows, algae plant, some farm products, and of course, its guest house which is where we are staying.

The hike we went on yesterday was very unique. The top of that mountain is the only place in the world where you can see four countries at once: Israel, Egypt, Jordan, and Saudi Arabia. During services today Arie pointed out the fact that while we could see four different countries you couldn't see the borders between the countries. It made me feel so different about the whole controversy going on. You couldn't tell what was a Jordanian city or an Israeli city.

Fun Fact: My mom's friend knows someone on this kibbutz. Jewish Geography = best game ever

Today we woke up at seven, had tifilot (services), had breakfast, then split up into groups for activities. My group did basket weaving, but first we had to go pick up the palm fronds from the date orchard. We picked up the branches but instead of going back to the kibbutz we kept walking and ended up on the border of Israel and Jordan. I was not allowed to cross the border-you know, barbed wire and all, but I still got to play on the sand dunes right next to it. We ended up basket weaving for only twenty minutes.

 Last week I climbed Masada and went to the Dead Sea. The hike at five in the morning was not as bad as I thought it would be, plus watching the sun rise was spectacular. The Dead Sea was a lot of fun, especially putting mud all over me. My skin was so smooth afterwards!

 This week I had one normal day of school-and it was only a half day! Monday was Purim which was so much fun! Last week the chava had it's own Purim celebration which was actually kinda enjoyable. The best/worst part of it was that the Russian school's students dressed up as communists. Stalin and all. I'm not quite sure what to think....

The rest of Purim was normal-well as normal as you can get with Purim! I dressed up as a cow girl one day and a zebra the next. We volunteered at three different places. I went to Yad LaKashish which is a place for elderly Jerusalem residents to work. They do all sorts of arts and crafts that are all extremely gorgeous and it was so hard not buy everything. The rest of Purim we hung out, played games, ate, and avoided school work. 

Tuesday I had school in the morning then an ICC test in the afternoon. It took me about three hours but I think I did OK. Hopefully. Wednesday we came to the kibbutz. 

Well tonight is Shabbat so I have to get ready. I hope everyone had a good week. Shabbat shalom!

P.S. Its Lindsay's birthday tomorrow. Happy Birthday Lindsay!!!!!!!

Sunrise on Masada

Purim

Shuk!!!!

Meital and I

My apologies for not writing recently. I broke my computer last week and did not get a new one till last night.

I have been crazy busy since I last blogged. We have gone to Sataf, Nachal David, the City of David, the Kotel, and so many more amazing places. I also have been very busy with school work. I am taking all the classes that I would be taking at home plus Hebrew and ICC.

ICC (Israel Core Course) is the most amazing class ever. My teacher Betsalel's motto for the class is that "Israel is our classroom". Wherever we go we take our notebooks and learn about the history of the area. We are currently learning about Herod-a king who was appointed by the Romans. He built a castle on Masada and we get the pleasure of climbing the hardest path on Masada on Tuesday. Pleasure meaning I am not the most athletic person ever so this may be interesting.

TRY went as a group to the Kotel for the first time last Monday. The experience itself was indescribable. I did not feel as much a connection to the wall as I did to the people. While the woman's side of the wall is one fourth the size of the men side-which I was not very happy about, I did like the fact that all the woman were so close, both physically and mentally. On one side of me there was a woman praying silently and crying to herself. I had to restrain myself from interrupting her prayers to give her a hug. On the other side of me there was a bride. You could see how happy she was by the glow on her face. I could feel her excitement and happiness and so did everyone around me.

One of my favorite tiyulim so far was when we went to Ein Gedi. The view from the top of the mountain was breathtaking. You could see the Dead Sea and just barely the mountains in Jordan. While we were there we reenacted the story of David and Goliath. I was Goliath-and yes I was very intimidating. Climbing was exhausting but worth it, because after the hike we stopped at a waterfall and got to swim in it's pool.

I could go on about the tiyulim forever as each and everyone has been so much fun, but what might be even better then the tiyulim is just getting to know everyone one the program better.
From my teachers to my madrichim (counselors) to my fellow TRY-ers everyone I have met has been wonderful.

 Classes are a bit like they are at home, just with a lot more freedom. Some days I will be sitting in a classroom all day and be taking notes. Other days my English class will go outside to play ukelele and write haiku's. The nice thing about classes is that my largest class has seven people in it so you really get to know your teachers well.        

My madrichim are all really nice-even when they get mad at me for being late to everything. Unfortunately my skills of waking up in the morning have not gotten any better so I am often late to breakfast.
It's OK though because I have ten boxes of protein bars under my bed .I also have nutella, peanut butter, bread, chocolate, ramen, apples, cucumbers, etc. in my room or in the fridge. Don't even get me started on falafel or shawarma or the pastries that you can find on almost any street, because they are all delicious and I will never stop talking about them.

Friends. Where to begin. Lets just say that everyone on the program is amazing. We pray together. We eat together. On our free nights we go shopping together. During free periods during the school day make a quick trip to the grocery store. We all try to fit in naps where ever we can-which is not very often. We avoid all the cats (those who don't know Israel should know that there are cats EVERYWHERE. It's like squirrels in Minnesota.) We get lost in Jerusalem without any phones.   We try to stay out past curfew just to watch a few more youtube videos together.

It's currently 12:36AM and I still have not packed for my tiyul tomorrow. Oops! Till next time!

The entire group on the monster slide!

The hike at Ein Gedi

My fabulous job as Goliath

My ICC class at Ein Gdi

Israeli Museum

  

My first week

This is my fifth day in Israel. My Fourth night in Jerusalem. My third time losing internet. My second time craving a shwarma since I had it for the first time yesterday. My first time that I actually have a moment to sit down and write.

We have been non stop busy here at TRY. Not only are we getting to know one another, getting ready for classes to begin Sunday, and finding our way around the Chava (our campus), we went on our first tiyul (trip) two days ago.

Two days ago we went to the Negev. We went to the Negev Brigade Memorial, the Tel Be'er Sheva, and finally, we went to the middle of no where to ride camels and sleep in mud huts. 

The Negev Brigade Memorial was made in honor of fallen soldiers during the Arab Israeli War of 1948. I could not read much of the Hebrew inscribed on the sculptures, but I did have fun climbing on top of them.

The Negev Brigade Memorial

According to wikepedia (I know, my sources are legit) A tel is a type of archaeological mound created by human occupation and abandonment of a geographical site over many centuries. If you want a better definition look it up yourself.We got to see ruins of a village that started around       4000 BCE.

Tel Be'er Sheva

 The final step of our journey on our lovely coach bus was to Beerotayim (the middle of no where) where we got to ride camels and sleep in mud huts. This was my favorite part of the trip by far. While we were there-in the Negev (desert)it rained! The people said that it rained there only three times a year! It was so amazing to see something so rare. That night the stars were brighter than I have ever seen. I laid on my back for half an hour just staring up at the sky. We had AMAZING food that was cooked over the fire. We had a campfire where we had s'mores, sang songs, and bonded with each other.

Meital and I on our camel Niña

Prayer time!

  It is my first shabbat in Israel tonight and I am going to a modern orthodox synagogue. I am so excited to see even more Israeli culture! I haven't even been here a week and yet I am already in love with Israel.

Shabbat Shalom!

Safe and Sound

Hey everyone!

I would just like to let everyone know that we arrived safely this afternoon and are all getting settled in. I have already met so many people that all seem awesome! I have to go to sleep now but I will write as soon as possible!

The Preamble

First of all, shout out to Adam for naming my blog for me. Sadly, I haven't thought of a better title yet so if you have any ideas of something witty or just plain genius please tell.

I leave in four days for Israel. I've grown up my entire life hearing about how wonderful it is and finally I'll be able to see it for myself!

For those who don't know what I'm doing, I am going on a program called Tichon Ramah Yerushalayim-or TRY for short. I will be living in a dorm setting in Jerusalem with around 50 other American/Canadian students for four months. I will be taking all my classes that I would have been taking back at Eagan but I will also be taking Hebrew and Israel Core Course-or ICC. In ICC we will be learning about Israel's history from biblical times to present and every few days visit what we have learned about. I have heard that this class is one of the most amazing things about TRY.
Along with schooling I will be able to visit friends and family and do a bit of exploring of Jerusalem in my spare time.

I wish I could say goodbye to everyone individually before I leave. Unfortunately, the fact that I still have quite a bit of homework, still need to go shopping, and I'm not even halfway done with packing means that that is not going to happen. Luckily, I'll have skype, facebook, snapchat, and of course, my blog to stay in contact with people.

Don't forget to keep in touch!

Before I leave

Hey everyone!

You guys talked me into it, I'm doing a blog while I'm in Israel. 12 days to go!!!