Friday, December 26, 2003
Happy Chanukah, Merry Christmas and a generally enthusiastic Hi!
I'm at my lovely apartment in Jerusalem enjoying the wonders of an at-home high-speed internet connection for a few days...but really I made the trek here this weekend to see Jaimee's friend (and Zoe's, actually, but unfortunately she's still in London) Sandy and her friend Sara who are both staying with us. Today we're hitting the bakeries and fruit stores on Derech Beit Lechem and tonight we're having a big shabbat dinner with lots of Brandeis graduates :)
Chanukah is just about over (sadly, as it's one of my favorite holidays). It's been great to celebrate it here, of course. I spent the first two nights with my uncle's family at two of their friends' homes, so I got to experience very authentic Israeli celebration - I even learned the Israeli tune for singing the prayers! We sang all kinds of Chanukah songs, many of which I'd never even heard. I tried to teach a few people Debbie Friedman's "I am a Latke," but it didn't really go over so well. They threw a small party for all the Hebrew classes at school on Tuesday, and I had an authentic Israeli sufgania (deep-fried jelly doughnut). I never realized that sufganiot are much more like paczkis (the things the Polish community eats on Fat Tuesday that they sell in every grocery store in Michigan around then - I think that's how it's spelled!) than the Dunkin' Doughnuts variety, for example. In other words, ridiculously calorie-filled, but very yummy.
I also spent one night at Yair and Rivke's (Yair used to work at Kutz Camp many years ago) with their three adorable daughters and Rivke's niece and her husband. I really like spending time with families here; as a college student, it's nice to get that home-ish experience, and it's a great way to experience a little real Israeli life. And as a complete surprise, Joel Hoffman (someone who also worked at Kutz a long time ago...and still works at Kutz...and likely will a long time from now) was there as well! Yay for camp people in Israel.
Speaking of camp people in Israel, I couldn't be more excited that it's finally the end of December and SO MANY fun people will be here starting this week. A couple of them are even staying with me after their trips, which means that I have guests/family pretty much up until the point I leave for the States.
Oh right! New information: I will be in the US from the 24th of January until the 5th of February, with a likely stop in Boston from 1/29 to 2/1. I don't know what my transportation possibilities will be, but I will try to make it to Ann Arbor at least once, so everyone had better be around!
On a sad note, the relative peace and quiet that we've had here for the last two months shattered last night. Four people were killed and many wounded by a bus bomb near Tel Aviv. The bomber was 18 years old. It's really not a new story around here, and most people will just attempt to go on with their daily lives; there's really not much else you can do. Still, I feel incredibly lucky to be safe, and yes, to be here. I'm learning things about this country, its people and myself every day here. No amount of bombs can change that, and we can only hope that the quiet returns soon.
I'm off to enjoy a busy Friday and what's sure to be a wonderful shabbat here in Jerusalem. More soon...
I'm at my lovely apartment in Jerusalem enjoying the wonders of an at-home high-speed internet connection for a few days...but really I made the trek here this weekend to see Jaimee's friend (and Zoe's, actually, but unfortunately she's still in London) Sandy and her friend Sara who are both staying with us. Today we're hitting the bakeries and fruit stores on Derech Beit Lechem and tonight we're having a big shabbat dinner with lots of Brandeis graduates :)
Chanukah is just about over (sadly, as it's one of my favorite holidays). It's been great to celebrate it here, of course. I spent the first two nights with my uncle's family at two of their friends' homes, so I got to experience very authentic Israeli celebration - I even learned the Israeli tune for singing the prayers! We sang all kinds of Chanukah songs, many of which I'd never even heard. I tried to teach a few people Debbie Friedman's "I am a Latke," but it didn't really go over so well. They threw a small party for all the Hebrew classes at school on Tuesday, and I had an authentic Israeli sufgania (deep-fried jelly doughnut). I never realized that sufganiot are much more like paczkis (the things the Polish community eats on Fat Tuesday that they sell in every grocery store in Michigan around then - I think that's how it's spelled!) than the Dunkin' Doughnuts variety, for example. In other words, ridiculously calorie-filled, but very yummy.
I also spent one night at Yair and Rivke's (Yair used to work at Kutz Camp many years ago) with their three adorable daughters and Rivke's niece and her husband. I really like spending time with families here; as a college student, it's nice to get that home-ish experience, and it's a great way to experience a little real Israeli life. And as a complete surprise, Joel Hoffman (someone who also worked at Kutz a long time ago...and still works at Kutz...and likely will a long time from now) was there as well! Yay for camp people in Israel.
Speaking of camp people in Israel, I couldn't be more excited that it's finally the end of December and SO MANY fun people will be here starting this week. A couple of them are even staying with me after their trips, which means that I have guests/family pretty much up until the point I leave for the States.
Oh right! New information: I will be in the US from the 24th of January until the 5th of February, with a likely stop in Boston from 1/29 to 2/1. I don't know what my transportation possibilities will be, but I will try to make it to Ann Arbor at least once, so everyone had better be around!
On a sad note, the relative peace and quiet that we've had here for the last two months shattered last night. Four people were killed and many wounded by a bus bomb near Tel Aviv. The bomber was 18 years old. It's really not a new story around here, and most people will just attempt to go on with their daily lives; there's really not much else you can do. Still, I feel incredibly lucky to be safe, and yes, to be here. I'm learning things about this country, its people and myself every day here. No amount of bombs can change that, and we can only hope that the quiet returns soon.
I'm off to enjoy a busy Friday and what's sure to be a wonderful shabbat here in Jerusalem. More soon...
Monday, December 15, 2003
And once again there's tons to write and not nearly enough time...
I won't bore any of you who are still bothering to read these with all the mundane details of the last few weeks. Suffice it to say: I went to class, I took a few tests, wrote a few papers, met some fun people, spent a shabbat in Herzliya with Zoe's friends, spent a shabbat in Jerusalem with my friends, spent a shabbat in Haifa with the HUC crew...I think that gives you the gist. Email me if you want more details about any of the above :)
Life here at the University of Haifa continues as normal. I'm finding myself more than slightly frustrated with the isolation factor of being way up on a mountain (i.e. it took me an hour and a half to get to physiotherapy on Friday, and almost the same amount of time to get back. You can only imagine the great mood I was in.) Still, Haifa is a great city, and when I do manage to get myself off of the "peak" that is campus, I'm really enjoying being in this part of the country.
It's now "Birthright" season, so the next few weeks are full of lots of exciting people coming to visit (yay!!). If only I didn't have to go to class. I know, I know, that's why I'm here. But still. It really gets in the way of my travel plans.
Anyway, it's about time to go in for my daily two-hour dose of Hebrew (or as my new friends from Texas jokingly refer to it, "Jewish.") I'll make an attempt to be more dilligent in updating the mundane details of my life. In the meantime, Chag Chanukah Sameach (almost)!
I won't bore any of you who are still bothering to read these with all the mundane details of the last few weeks. Suffice it to say: I went to class, I took a few tests, wrote a few papers, met some fun people, spent a shabbat in Herzliya with Zoe's friends, spent a shabbat in Jerusalem with my friends, spent a shabbat in Haifa with the HUC crew...I think that gives you the gist. Email me if you want more details about any of the above :)
Life here at the University of Haifa continues as normal. I'm finding myself more than slightly frustrated with the isolation factor of being way up on a mountain (i.e. it took me an hour and a half to get to physiotherapy on Friday, and almost the same amount of time to get back. You can only imagine the great mood I was in.) Still, Haifa is a great city, and when I do manage to get myself off of the "peak" that is campus, I'm really enjoying being in this part of the country.
It's now "Birthright" season, so the next few weeks are full of lots of exciting people coming to visit (yay!!). If only I didn't have to go to class. I know, I know, that's why I'm here. But still. It really gets in the way of my travel plans.
Anyway, it's about time to go in for my daily two-hour dose of Hebrew (or as my new friends from Texas jokingly refer to it, "Jewish.") I'll make an attempt to be more dilligent in updating the mundane details of my life. In the meantime, Chag Chanukah Sameach (almost)!
