Much ado about nothing..

So I have successfully managed to access the internet from inside my apartment! With ten days to go, I have finally broken through the barrier of technology and have connected with civilization from the comfort (or lack thereof) of my bed, of that's what this four cornered rock can be called.
I don't have much to update on... I just felt like writing and reflecting as I begin the wait for my new cell phone to be delivered (my other one decided it didn't like me anymore), This summer has been a whirlwind of so many different experiences...from living in an apartment in an unfamiliar city, to exploring the history of the country, to improving my Hebrew, to working with kids from a very very different background than anyone I know from home, to spending all of my money and then some :). So much has happened this summer, and I feel so connected and at home here. The thing is, being away gives you a new perspective on being home. I think it is hard to realize just how much you love being with people who know you and love you,

or just how delicious your mom's cooking is, or how soft your dog is,
or how nice it is to drive down the street and know where you are, until you have been away for awhile. It is easy to think of moving far away, easy to think it won't be hard to be away from everything you know, until you actually are doing it. Maybe for some people it actually is easy. For me, it has been a roller coaster all summer. Sometimes I can't think of anything besides how much I want to stay here and how I would do anything to not get on a plane back to the States just yet, and then there are other times that I think I can't stand being gone even another day. It's a weird feeling, to want two opposite things so much and knowing that whichever path I take, something will be missing.
Don't get me wrong, I'm coming home. Whether I decide to stay here in the long run is something I will figure out later. For now, I have things I need to do at home. :)
I miss you guys a lot! Hope all is beseder and sababa on your side of the pond!
Write soon :)

Shalom Shalom Shalom

Shalom once more me'haaretz...
Much has happened since the last time I wrote...
Last Monday Ashley and I went with Chana (one of our coordinators here in Israel) to the Old City once again but this time to do something neither of us had done.. to go to the Arab quarter and visit the Temple Mount, also called the Dome of the Rock, also known as that huge gold thing you see in pictures of Jerusalem. Now, I must make sure you are all aware of why this is a significant place for Jews and Muslims, and why it is slightly controversial that two Jewish girls were walking around there.
The site of Temple Mount is the place where the first and second holy temples were located, temples so holy and so sacred to the Jewish people that only the most holy Cohenim (rabbis) were allowed to enter, and even then only on the high holidays. It was so important that regular Joe Jews didn't enter that when a Rabbi would enter, a rope would be tied around his ankle just in case something happened to him inside and he could be pulled out. The reason that Jews are not technically supposed to enter the Temple Mount area is because we don't know exactly where the temple was located, and the fact that we could be stepping on a place directly above it is a major problem.

Now the Temple Mount area is a place holy to the Muslim community, where their huge mosque is built and where Mohammed supposedly ascended to heaven.

The interesting thing is that this area is considered by Jews to be the MOST holy place on earth, and by Muslims to be the third most holy place on earth, and yet Jews are not allowed to enter the mosque.
It was actually quite an interesting experience, when we stood in line to try to get in (which we knew we wouldn't be able to do), we were told point blank, No Jews in here, only Muslims. I couldn't help but feel unbelievably unwelcome, judged and actually hated by every Muslim person that walked past me, even though of course that couldn't be true, just probably a projection, but still...
Anyway the area is actually really beautiful, and so interesting to see and hear the history of the place, and I'm glad I had the opportunity to see it myself.
Later in the week the whole group went once again to the Old City for a Christian-Judeo-Muslim tour.. and we got to see the Church of the Holy Sepulchure, where Jesus's tomb, as well as the rock he laid on as he was dying, along with various stops on the Via della Rosa (sp?) can be seen. I took the liberty of photographing myself with Jesus...

The next day (Friday) was maybe one of the BEST DAYS of the summer, as I was reunited with the LOVE OF MY LIFE Hofit. For those of you who don't know, Hofit Kahana stayed in my house in Columbus while she was a camp counselor at the JCC this summer.. and we met before I left for Israel. How amazing, how wonderful, how weirdly ironic that we began the summer together at my house, and are ending it at hers! We didn't even know each other before June, and in no time we became best friends! AMazinggg...

She took me out in style after her parents hosted me for Shabbat dinner, we didn't get back until 5:30 am Saturday morning!! It was an amazinggg night! Today she started a course for school, but we will be seeing a lot of each other before I leave!

Today I started a new job.. I am working with kids in the cancer unit of the Children's hospital here. It was amazing to see that anywhere you go, kids are just kids and even when they are sick, all they want to do is play and smile. So that's what we did.
Alright, I'm going to get going.. but I miss you all and I will be home before we know it! (Can't decide how I feel about that one...)
Neshikot and harbeh ahavah!

I know, you missed me right?

Alrightyy guys here's the scoop since our last update!
This past week was sadly my last week of work... I was really really sad to leave the kids.. I had really grown attached to some of them and the idea that I might not see them again made me so so sad. But the week itself was a really good one!
On Sunday I went to the pool all day with the camp.. we had a great time just playing all day.. seriously these kids know how to play.. I think they thought I was their personal doll to just dunk under water and jump on top of and drag around all day.. it was really fun.

Monday and Tuesday were pretty normal, just camp, running, and hanging out. Wednesday was my last day at the camp, and that evening I went with about 10 other members of our Career Israel group to Jerusalem for the most AMAZINGG wine festival EVER! This place was unbelievable, first, it was at the Israel Museum outside overlooking the entire city which was lit up and absolutely breathtaking. Second, there were huge stands from various wine manufacturers all over the place, so obviously we were extremely excited to run from place to place sampling all different kinds of red, white, and even pomegranate wines (which were WAYY too sweet by the way). There was a jazz band playing, cheese, fruit, and bread stands to eat at, and hundreds of people scurrying to and fro trying to consume as much alcohol as possible :) Very fun.

Thursday I was lucky enough to have the day to do as I pleased, and so Ashley, Emily, Becca, and I all walked in the blazing heat to Yafo (did I mention this past week was a heat wave? Cause it was an actual heat wave here, somewhere around the equivalent of 105 degrees Fahrenheit here), and did some exploring in the shuk there. We attempted to go to a place referred to as Israel's Blind Museum where you are blinded and have to experience an exhibit as a blind person, but we found out that that is actually some place else, and that what they have in Yafo is a center for people who are deaf and blind to work, and people can come and eat a meal in a blackout room where you are served by blind people, and where you cannot even see your hand waving in front of your face! We made reservations and are planning to eat there next week, I'll let you know how it goes. Emily and I ordered a coffee from the coffee bar where everyone is deaf, and learned how to order an iced cappuccino in sign language! Very cool.
That night I was lucky enough to be taken to a concert on the beach in Herzliyya, which was definitely a great time!
Friday was an AMAZING DAY for Ashley and I. We had the opportunity to make our way into the West Bank for a tour of the area by a woman we know from Kfar Saba. When I first met this woman and she told me she lived in a Jewish settlement in the West Bank, I immediately asked her, "Oh wow, aren't you so afraid? Don't you feel like you are in danger?" and she laughed and said, "Alright, you are coming to see where I live and learn all about the area!"
So Ashley and I got picked up by Hila's neighbor who happened to be in Telly, and made our way through the border patrol security and into the West Bank

and learned all about the history of the place and why it is so controversial now. It was amazing to see a place where we have all been taught is so dangerous and in such a state of anarchy, because it is in fact no such thing! It is quiet, calm, and so carefully guarded that you cannot help but feel safe. We learned so much about the area, and I feel so much more well informed now that I have been there and seen it all myself.

That night Ashley and I were hosted at Janine's for a BEAUTIFUL Shabbat dinner, which was of course delicious and so much fun for us.
Saturday was an adventure! Me, Emily, Beth, Ashley, and Daphny decided to all take a SURFING lesson! We had a lot of fun, but I'll be honest people, it was not a pretty sight ;) Legs were flying, boards were crashing into people, salt water was in the eyes, and bikinis were falling off. I can honestly say that after two hours of an "intensive" lesson, I am no better of a surfer now than before. Oh well, it was an experience to say the least.

A few hours later I had the pleasure of bumping into a few stragglers that some of you might find familiar!

I was beyond thrilled to see some familiar faces, and we are planning to get together again hopefully this week!! Yay AEPhi in Israel!
Now I find myself sitting in the laundry place/cafe where people can do laundry, eat, and skype all at one time! Is that multitasking or what?
Tomorrow Ashley and I are off to Jerusalem for a tour of the Muslim quarter, and hopefully some seriously delish pita and hummus!
Love you guys, write again soon!

Long Time, No Talk!

Heyyyy friends! Again, sorry for the long absence. Things have been hectic as usual and with no internet access in my actual apartment, I haven't had the time or patience to make it over to my usual internet hangout to get my blog on...
But I'm here now, being super cool on a Friday night and instead of going out I'm going to sit outside of this other cafe and jack the internet without buying anything just to catch you all up on my life as an Israeli. :)
So.. last time I left off I had just gone on that cool field trip with my kids...
That night our big group of Career Israelis decided to go out and hit up the port where all of the cool clubs are here in Telly.. and like VIPs we made our way into Galina, one of the nicest clubs on the port. I should mention that a few of the guys on our trip are REALLY into clubbing.. so when it comes to this kind of thing, they are champs. They made sure to get us our own table (which is awesome because you have your own leather couches for dancing on, table for your drinks, and all in all enough space to not be grabbed by every guy in the club... woo!), they ordered drinks like professionals, ending with multiple rounds of champagne, you know, just to lock in our level of classiness. All in all, the night was really really fun, with only a few bumps along the way which for the sake of my friends I won't mention here.. and by the time I walked through the door around 4 am I was thoroughly beat and ready to sleep! (Does that kind of rhyme?)


Friday Ashley and I somehow managed to wake up and make our way to Jerusalem in time for Shabbat... we were hosted in the Old City by a few incredibly generous, beautiful, Orthodox families who taught us what it means to truly keep and honor the Sabbath.. we began on Friday night at the Kotel (where else?) and were escorted to a gorgeous home in the Jewish quarter where we enjoyed an amazing (and HUGE) Shabbat dinner, filled with some major Judaic learning.. it was honestly so amazing. We didn't get back to our hostel until 1 am (the curfew of this place) but we didn't want to leave! The family was so inspiring in their love for Judaism and Torah and G-d.. it was really beautiful to see.
Saturday we woke up and (SHOCKER) headed back to the Kotel for some services and then made our way to a second beautiful home where we once again rejoiced in the Sabbath day by eating an unprecedented amount of delicious, kosher food and then enjoyed the tranquility of our self induced food comas... basically, for those of you who haven't figured this out, Jews really REALLY like to eat. I mean think about it, on Shabbat there are many laws about what we can't do in order to honor the day, but there are no laws against eating and that is exactly what we do!
After attempting to take a walk around the Old City in our modest clothes and the hot sun, Ashley and I ended up taking shelter under a shady tree where we befriended three little Orthodox boys who were delighted by speaking Hebrew with us and hearing us answer them in American accents...and just like everyone else in Israel, they just HAD to know for sure if these two blonde, American girls were in fact Jewish. Seriously, if it weren't against the religion we would invest in tattooing "JEWISH GIRLS" across our foreheads. (Well probably not, but you get the point.)
The rest of the day was filled with more learning, more food (duh), and more inspiration from even just the walls that surrounded us in the Old City. After the sun went down and we lit the Havdala candles, Ashley and I were finally free to go back to our more secular way of life here in Tel Aviv. The whole experience left me reeling... everything we did was just so meaningful and special and beautiful, I felt so proud to be Jewish and take part in something so unique, holy, and all around just amazing! :)
This week was relatively standard, minus the shopping expedition that brought me back to Jerusalem on Monday (bad idea, I am an embarassingly compulsive shopper), singing and playing my gweetar at an awards ceremony in Kfar Saba on Tuesday
(and afterwards hanging out in Janine's gorgeous home, as well as a tour of Columbus' influences on Kfar Saba)


and our group expedition to Zichron Yaakov and the surrounding areas on Thursday. Here's a basic run down: We got on the bus around 8 am, arrived close to 10, did a quick tour of the Aliyah museum in the town, and booked it over to the Binyamina winery where we took part in a delightfully EDUCATIONAL wine tasting.

I in particular REALLY enjoyed the experience, which left me woozy and breathlessly man-laughing for no particular reason.. essentially drunk, and all in the name of education! :) We then did a little tour du force of some Roman built aqueducts where we got very wet and slimy,
and then made our way to an authentic Druze home/restaurant where we got to gorge ourselves on Druze food while learning about where the Druze people fit into Israeli society. It was AWESOME and DELISH.

That evening when we got back Aksel and I went for a barefoot beach run, and afterwards we all headed back to the port for some table dancing and champagne drinking.. but unfortunately the line for Galina was CRAZAYYY and we ended up at a lounge a few bars down which was definitley much more relaxed but of course still so much fun... oh PS have any of you ever tried salty bulgarian cheese combined with watermelon?! The BEST taste combination ever. It is my new passion. So good.
So today Ashley and I headed over to Kfar Saba to attend a POOL PARTY we were so graciously invited to where we mingled with gorgeous Israeli men and lounged on rafts in a luxurious, deep blue pool. Yummy.
Tonight for Shabbat we were invited for dinner over to Ashley's family friends' home where we were hosted like the queens we are learning to be (kidding).. but seriously we have been treated to some amazing Shabbat experiences and we are SO thrilled to be wined and dined like this.
Tomorrow I'm thinking the beach? Yeah sounds pretty good.
Heart you all!

יום חיות!

Shalom Chaverim!

Just wanted to post a quick one about my day today! I went with the campers to this place in the North called Monkey Forest, an animal reserve with so many different animals to see and even touch! Here are a few pictures to show the kinds of shenanigans we were up to today!
Me and chamuda sheli Sheni... of course being a professional I don't have favorites... ;)




Some crazy birds... this guy seriously treated them like they were his pet dogs,
and they acted like it!




Yes.. I am touching a snake.. not totally prepared for what was about to happen...




AHHHHH I'M HOLDING A SNAKE. (Don't let the serene smile fool
you..I was less than comfortable!)



The stars of the show were certainly these little monkeys that we were able to get right up close to... chamud, nachon?


Yes, the monkey is on my head. (And so is this gross little worm
thing that they really enjoy eating... ewww!)


All in all an extremely fun day by all accounts... I'm off for a run on the beach.. Layla tov motekim!

Out of the desert and back into the Holy Land...

Well hello people! I apologize for my extended absence last week... the first half of the week wasn't too exciting for me to blog and then I took a little road trip that left me stranded in the desert sans internet all weekend.
I know, you can't wait to hear all about it, right? ;)

Well, lets just cut to the chase by saying Sunday through Wednesday was fairly normal, with lots of lemon popsicles and bus riding along the way. (Have I mentioned that fruity popsicles are beginning to take the place of my coffee addiction? Or maybe just in addition to my coffee addiction.. hard to say).

So Thursday I wake up at (AHHH) the unmentionable hour of 6 am because ((YAYY)) I have a field trip to the North to go hiking with my campers. I don't have a ton to report on about this.. overall it was a pretty nice day, minus the final (vertical) hike where half of the kids sat down, red faced, crying, refusing to move any further due to overheatedness, exhuastion, and thirst, and me (along with the other counselers) trying to coerce them into continuing using the broken Hebrew I was capable of mustering between gasping for air and drinking water. Super fun.
Actually though, jokes aside, I really enjoyed this outing. It was absolutely beautiful to overlook the mountainous, wooded terrain of Northern Israel, and along the way I bonded with another volunteer named Dotan, and our armed and dreadlocked security guard who wanted to know all about what all the Greek letters on my shirt meant.. like every other Israeli he wanted to know if it really is "just like the movies!"


Friday morning I once again awoke at an unfeasible hour because me, along with Ashley, Rebecca, Beth, Suzanne, and Emily all had decided that what we really wanted to do this weekend was to go to Ein Gedi for some hiking, camping, and mind-body-earth connecting. :) So off we went, hopping bus lines like the experts we are most certainly not, and somehow managed to make it into the Negev (Desert) with our backpacks stuffed, frozen water bottles already melting, and a sudden, searing realization of just exactly what it means to be in a Middle Eastern Desert in the middle of the summer. In simpler terms, IT. WAS. EXTREMELY. HOT. Like, FREAKING HOT. Within minutes of walking toward the place we needed to retrieve hiking maps we were already panting, sweating profusely, and wondering how the HELL we were going to make it through the day. (The temperature was somewhere near 50 degrees Celsius, you do the math).


Finally, after a long process of refilling water bottles, loading up on lunch at a nearby (thankfully air conditioned) restaurant, hat and bandanna adjusting, and much ado about who knows what, we began the trek to the trail. (No, not on the trail, TO the trail). We had to sit for a good few minutes when we got there before we actually began hiking. When we finally did, we could only go a few yards at a time without our heart rates increasing ridiculously and sweat pouring down our entire bodies.
This is not to say it wasn't a beautiful hike, it was really spectacular.

After something like 0nly 15 minutes of actual hiking, we came across the famous Ein Gedi pools where we quickly jumped out of our sweaty clothes (swimsuits underneath, come on!) and spent the larger part of the rest of the day frolicking the in the refreshing, fresh water, being splashed by the large group of rowdy French teenagers. Delightful really.

We did make one more attempt to hike, and after about 15 minutes gave up and went back to the water.
Seriously, how the HELL did Moses do it? We amused ourselves by imagining that the entire mana falling from the sky situation must have simply been a delirious dream by the Israelites hallucinating in the desert's insane heat.. I mean for real, forty days and forty nights in that desert and I'd be hearing voices from G-d too! Just sayin'...

Well, when the sun started going down we headed to our campsite where our resident hiking/camping expert Emily determined we would set up our tents. Yes, you can laugh at the mental image of 6 Jewish American girls attempting to set up camp in the middle of the desert. Or you can just laugh at the actual picture of it happening, as shown here:)


Interestingly enough, we ended up sleeping on TOP of our tents, which, after realizing the ridiculous heat level inside, we collapsed and used as makeshift mats. About as comfortable as sleeping on...well the ground..which we were...so I guess that analogy is shot.

You can imagine the sounds emanating from our little village when we discovered that somehow, like the crazy cats that prowl everywhere, bugs of varying colors, shapes, and sizes also manage to live in the desert, and very much like to surprise you when you least expect them. Needless to say, none of us slept very soundly that night.

I awoke around 5:40 the next morning to the most beautiful view of the sun rising behind the mountains... and unfortunately I didn't get a picture because my camera was locked away in one of the tents.

If I learned anything from the experience (and to be honest, I did learn quite a few things) it would be that there are two kinds of people in this world. People who like to camp, and people who think they like to camp until they are actually camping. If you know me, I'm sure I don't need to tell you which category I fit in to.

You know, I know my dry sarcasm makes it look like I am complaining about everything and not enjoying myself, but I hope you all know how much I am! I just tend to enjoy focusing on the humorous parts where nothing seems to go quite right because, well, it's funny! But honestly we had a wonderful time on Friday, heat, bugs, and all. We saw some beautiful nature, bonded with a few Dutch people we met after I offered the lobster colored guy with them some sunscreen, floated in the dead sea, ran screaming out of the dead sea (it has the tendency to burn you in crazy places sometimes), ate a disproportionate number of popsicles and ice cream, and located the Big Dipper, Little Dipper, and Northern Star while lying on our backs in the darkness.


Good times had by all, I dare say.

Tonight, a group of us went to the movies and saw (dare I say it!?) Eclipse, the third. Twilight movie. I would say that I am erring towards Team Jacob after all of this time of adamantly backing up Edward's controlling and disturbingly obsessive behavior towards Bella. I guess all that time staring at Taylor Lautner sans shirt can do that to a girl.

Alright people, I'm going to head out and get to sleep. Tomorrow is going to be a beach day, just me, a towel, a yummy book, and probably about 3 thousand lemon popsicles.

Night!

"Yes, we're American. Yes, we're 20. Yes We're Easy. No, you're not getting any!" -Beth Carliner

Aaaand we're back!
It's Saturday night in Tel Aviv, and you know what that means! Work tomorrow! (You're suprised, right?) Here the work week is Sunday through Thursday. Kind of hard to get used to.. I keep thinking I can sleep in tomorrow and go to the beach again! But nope, 7:45 am it is!

So, last time I left off I was getting ready to go to the water park with the kids the next day. It was a fabulous day, but SO long! I had to be at camp at 7:30 am and didn't get home till close to 6:30 PM! Needless to say I was exhausted, but was I about to rest? Heck no! It was Thursday night, aka party night! And Ashley's co-worker got us free tickets to see Hadag Nachash, a really famous Israeli band. If you've heard the Sticker Song then you'll know that this is that band! I was so excited when I realized I actually knew one of their songs :)

By the time I got into bed that night it was close to 4 (sorry parents) and the next day was (what else?) a beach day! So I headed to the beach with a bunch of the other girls from the program that live in the building with us. We had a great time.. I mean how could we not on a beach like that? The sand is like silk and the water is the perfect temperature... essentially we are living in paradise. So beautiful.

Later that night Emily (one of the girls we live with) and I went for another run along the tayelet. After we got dinner and showered a group of us decided that even though we were too tired to go out to the bars, it might be fun to grab a bottle of wine and head down to the beach to hang out. The beach at night is still full of people.. people eating at cafes, people taking romantic walks barefoot, and of course groups of creepy guys trying to pick up American girls. Unfortunately American girls have made quite a name for themselves here in the 'rael. All of those Taglit Birthright trips where the American girls "intermingle" with Israeli soldiers have really taken their toll on the reputation of the Yankee chicks..
So we had quite the time fending off groups of guys who thought it would be perfectly acceptable to come right up to us, sit down with us, interrupt our conversation, and just be obnoxious in general. Now, let me be totally honest. If any of these guys had interested us in any way I'm sure we would have been MUCH more receptive.. I mean hello we're 20 year old girls, not Mother Teresa. However, on this particular occasion we were more irritated by the constant interruption and lack of respect to our wishes for them to leave than flattered or excited by the prospect of talking to locals. But, (and this is for my parents and grandparents and relatives who I know will have something to say to me about sitting alone in a group of girls on a dark beach) we knew we were in a safe place, close to a restaurant and lots of people, so it was nothing scary, just ANNOYING.

Anyhoo, we managed to have a great time bonding over storytelling and L'Chaiming, all the while lounging comfortably on the slightly damp, silky soft, and of course romantic beach looking out over the calm denim of the Mediterranean.
.

Today was another beach day, and I somehow managed to escape without getting stung by a jellyfish. (Knock on wood). I don't know how long my luck will last... everyone else pretty much has gotten little stings here and there, and come on, it's me, queen of the accident prone!

Tonight the seven of us girls ventured to Yafo for dinner, and indulged in delectable pita with hummus (duh), white wine, and one of the most beautiful views of the sea and the city I've ever seen.


Yafo reminds me of the Old City in Jerusalem. It is full of old secrets and history, and a something new (but actually old) is whispering and beckoning to you around every stone corner. Of course, just like every other tourist infested place in Israel it is full of locals peddling their goods for quadruple their worth, ice cream stops, and postcard stands, but once inside the walls of the Old City you forget about the world around you and lose yourself in the beauty and age of the walls around you.
We went to the wishing bridge, where you find your horoscope and legend says that if you hold it in your hand and make a wish while looking out at the sea, your wish will come true.


And now here I am, back at my regular cafe, still waiting for some sign of the internet making its way into my apartment and debating on whether or not I feel like ordering a coffee.

I hope all is well at home. I miss you all, and of course love you all very very very much. :)
Shavua Tov L'Culam!