Argh! I'm getting more and more behind!
So I'm up to Saturday night, the 24th. My friend Hody was in Jerusalem over the weekend, so we saw each other Saturday night. We went to a wonderful little cafe-type-place which had amazing drinks and desserts. I had something called a Sahlab, which is an Arab, dairy-based drink. It's thick, and in it was vanilla flavoring, some nuts, and I think Cinnamon. It was great. I also had one of those chocolate cakes where the inside is hot liquidy chocolate. YUM! Anyway, it was really nice to catch up with him. Afterwards, we walked around for a bit, and I discovered (what he already knew - he's been in Israel since the summer) a new and used book store with mainly English books. Somewhere I will definitely go back to. While I was there, I picked up things that I could fine in other stores: a siddur, which I forgot to bring with me to Israel, a Hebrew-English Dictionary (likewise forgotten), and a guide to restaurants around Israel that was on mega sale.
He was going to meet another friend for a movie (I was invited, but declined), and then some of my Hebrew U friends met up with me and we hung out for a while. All in all, it was a very good night.
Sunday night was another lecture at the student center. It was supposed to be on Immortality & Reincarnation, but the guy who was supposed to give it was sick. Instead, someone else filled in on the subject of the mysticism of the Hebrew language. He spoke about how it is a special language because of a lot of weird little things, like meanings behind letter-shapes and words that are similar to each other and how they connect. For example, the word for balance and the word for ear in Hebrew come from the same root. Of course, we now know that the inner ear is responsible for us keeping balance, but the Hebrew language had been around thousands of years before this was known, so it seems like some sort of odd coincidence that these two words would be connected. Some arguments, like that one, were very interesting, but I felt that some were not so strong. I was skeptical of what he said, and though I think there are some interesting things in the linguistics of the Hebrew language, I'm not sure I would say that it's a spiritual thing from G-d. But who knows.
The next day deserves its own post, so I'll leave you with this for now.
Thursday, February 12, 2009
Tuesday, February 3, 2009
Second Shabbat in Israel
Friday, the 23rd, just before Shabbos.
We got to the old city. I had the address of Jeff Seidel's house, but not exact directions. I had a map, but apparently he lived on a street that was so small it wasn't on the map. We walked around for a bit, deeper into the Jewish Quarter. We figured if we didn't make it there, we'd just meet him at the Kotel (Western Wall) at 5:30, as we originally planned before we knew about the l'chaims. I asked people for the street we were looking for. Apparently, it's REALLY small. Multiple people didn't know. But we kept walking, as we had nothing better to do. Eventually I asked someone, and she pointed. It was right down there. Very close. To a point where I felt embarrassed to have asked. But we made it.
We went inside, and I was surprised at the lack of people there. I was expecting a bunch of people to be there, but it was just Jeff Seidel's family and one Rabbi. Still, there were seven of us there, so it was fine. He had a large array of drinks. I had some whiskey. First some kind I don't remember and then Jack Daniel's. I'd eaten that huge amazing lunch in Ein Kerem, so I didn't feel it. We chatted, Jeff Seidel drank a fair amount, his wife spoke about her skepticism of Obama, i.e. the incorrect Oath and then the Oath with no bible, I decided it was better to ignore it, we heard stories of their travels and all the famous people they've met. Jeff Seidel is kind of a name dropper, but he has met some really cool people. This conversation was prompted by my complimenting the awesome Rolling Stones poster above the door.
We left and headed towards the Kotel. It was my first time there since I've been here, and I was so happy to be back. I always get this amazing feeling being there. Things were in full swing by then. I'm always somewhat disappointed by the lack of enthusiasm on the women's side as compared to the men's, but I forgot about it as I got close to the Kotel and began to daven (pray) Ma'ariv ( the evening prayer). I got right in front of it, touched it, stood silently, thinking, praying, feeling. It was quite spiritual. I thought about Dad. He always comes into my mind when I'm there. I feel like he's around there somewhere.
Anyway, when we finished, we waited around for everyone to gather and someone to bring us along to Hippie Joe's. It seemed a very large group of people was heading over there. Jeff Seidel continued asking if everyone had a place for dinner, and he picked up two French guys to come along with us. Eventually, a guy named Ezra showed up. I later learned that he, too, was called Hippie Ezra. Apparently Jeff Seidel gives people nicknames a lot. He was wearing all white with a purple shawl kind of thing, and something on his head that reminded me of the olive branch wreaths given to Olympic winners, under a hooded sort of thing. He seemed...out of a different time period. Mystical. Spiritual. On some sort of a different plane.
We walked along, and he left us there. We walked up the stairs to Hippie Joe's apartment. Everyone was taking off their shoes - house rules. Hippie sign number 1, perhaps? By the door, there was a whole basket of slippers for people to take. I was fine in my stockings. I was surprised when I later noticed Hippie Joe's cousin wearing shoes.
We were told to sit down, girls at one table, boys at another. This disheartened us a bit. But we obliged, of course, our group of 7 splitting into 3 and 4. I sat next to a woman dressed in black. Hippie Joe wore all white. The woman in black, I later learned, was his cousin. Born in America, lived in Israel for 5 years, assimilated to Israeli culture, and, unfortunately, quite a racist. She started out by using the n-word. Multiple times. It was very uncomfortable. She didn't listen to our pointing out that this was rude. She told us she identified with n******. Eventually, it moved from n****** to Arabs. This wasn't any better. It turned into a very uncomfortable evening for those of us around her, as you can't help but think about that every time you look at her.
It was a very ritualistic meal. Hippie Joe, we learned, was not so much a hippie, but a Kabbalist. He explained everything he did. He talked a lot. It took quite a while for the food to come along. The food was not the point of the dinner. The point was him teaching us Kabbalah. There was some food for vegetarians, but it was somewhat slim pickins. About halfway through the meal, he wanted us to go around, say our named, and a short Dvar Torah or other Jewish moral kind of story. I couldn't think of any. I got nervous. But thankfully, I wasn't the only one, and not everyone ended up saying things.
The meal ended. We sang. Loudly. We benched (said the Grace After Meals). Also loudly. It was, all in all, a very interesting night. But not a particularly good one, at least for the girls sitting near Hippie Joe's racist cousin. I talked to the guys afterwards, and they had a bit of a better time. But it's not someplace I'd like to go back to often.
We walked home from the Old City. Thanks to my trusty map, I managed to get us there fairly easily. It took an hour and 5 minutes but didn't feel very long at all. We went to a dorm room and talked for quite a bit. It was still early; we had been expecting this to be one of those very long Friday night meals that go until 11 or 12. I think it ended closer to 9, if I remember correctly. So we hung out, talked about that experience and other things, and eventually went to bed.
The next day we had lunch at Tsipora's house. Some of my friends who had not been to many Shabbat meals before were worried it was going to be like last night. I knew that was very unlikely, and I was right. We got there (after making one wrong turn but soon figuring it out) and saw many people around. Tsipora, her husband, their five kids, six of us, and a bunch of girls, some from Hebrew U, some from other programs. They were finishing up the salad and stuff.
The food was amazing. Warmed up challah, which I ate loads of. Humus, carrots, olives, coleslaw, cucumbers, and all the little salads Israeli's tend to have. A big, main salad, which was excellent. Sweet noodle kugel, which I normally don't like, but this had Cinnamon sugar on it and was amazing. A cranberry-apple crisp, also amazing. Tsipora kept apologizing for not having more vegetarian things and asking if I had enough food, and I kept assuring her I was fine. Stuffed. Plenty of delicious vegetarian things. Her food was amazing. I'd had a feeling she'd be a good cook, and not only because of the cookies we'd made a few days earlier. I was certainly not disappointed. For dessert, there was a fruit salad type thing, which I had, even though I tend not to like fruit salad. It was better than some, probably because there weren't many types of fruit in it. (The reason I don't like fruit salad has to do with my weird, mild OCD tendencies and my hatred of mixing foods. I don't like all the different juices coming together. An orange should taste like an orange. A pineapple should taste like a pineapple. A grapefruit should taste like a grapefruit. A strawberry should taste like a strawberry, a melon like a melon (each melon separately), and a grape like a grape. I don't want some orange-pineapple-grapefruit-strawberry-melon-grape mess.) Anyway, they also had these non-dairy ice cream bars in chocolate which were quite good.
By the time we left, I was nice and stuffed and ready for my Shabbos nap. I decided I'd sleep until I got a phone call or something after Shabbos. I was expecting at least one from a friend of mine who doesn't go to Hebrew U. We had talked about meeting up that night.
It was a wonderful nap.
We got to the old city. I had the address of Jeff Seidel's house, but not exact directions. I had a map, but apparently he lived on a street that was so small it wasn't on the map. We walked around for a bit, deeper into the Jewish Quarter. We figured if we didn't make it there, we'd just meet him at the Kotel (Western Wall) at 5:30, as we originally planned before we knew about the l'chaims. I asked people for the street we were looking for. Apparently, it's REALLY small. Multiple people didn't know. But we kept walking, as we had nothing better to do. Eventually I asked someone, and she pointed. It was right down there. Very close. To a point where I felt embarrassed to have asked. But we made it.
We went inside, and I was surprised at the lack of people there. I was expecting a bunch of people to be there, but it was just Jeff Seidel's family and one Rabbi. Still, there were seven of us there, so it was fine. He had a large array of drinks. I had some whiskey. First some kind I don't remember and then Jack Daniel's. I'd eaten that huge amazing lunch in Ein Kerem, so I didn't feel it. We chatted, Jeff Seidel drank a fair amount, his wife spoke about her skepticism of Obama, i.e. the incorrect Oath and then the Oath with no bible, I decided it was better to ignore it, we heard stories of their travels and all the famous people they've met. Jeff Seidel is kind of a name dropper, but he has met some really cool people. This conversation was prompted by my complimenting the awesome Rolling Stones poster above the door.
We left and headed towards the Kotel. It was my first time there since I've been here, and I was so happy to be back. I always get this amazing feeling being there. Things were in full swing by then. I'm always somewhat disappointed by the lack of enthusiasm on the women's side as compared to the men's, but I forgot about it as I got close to the Kotel and began to daven (pray) Ma'ariv ( the evening prayer). I got right in front of it, touched it, stood silently, thinking, praying, feeling. It was quite spiritual. I thought about Dad. He always comes into my mind when I'm there. I feel like he's around there somewhere.
Anyway, when we finished, we waited around for everyone to gather and someone to bring us along to Hippie Joe's. It seemed a very large group of people was heading over there. Jeff Seidel continued asking if everyone had a place for dinner, and he picked up two French guys to come along with us. Eventually, a guy named Ezra showed up. I later learned that he, too, was called Hippie Ezra. Apparently Jeff Seidel gives people nicknames a lot. He was wearing all white with a purple shawl kind of thing, and something on his head that reminded me of the olive branch wreaths given to Olympic winners, under a hooded sort of thing. He seemed...out of a different time period. Mystical. Spiritual. On some sort of a different plane.
We walked along, and he left us there. We walked up the stairs to Hippie Joe's apartment. Everyone was taking off their shoes - house rules. Hippie sign number 1, perhaps? By the door, there was a whole basket of slippers for people to take. I was fine in my stockings. I was surprised when I later noticed Hippie Joe's cousin wearing shoes.
We were told to sit down, girls at one table, boys at another. This disheartened us a bit. But we obliged, of course, our group of 7 splitting into 3 and 4. I sat next to a woman dressed in black. Hippie Joe wore all white. The woman in black, I later learned, was his cousin. Born in America, lived in Israel for 5 years, assimilated to Israeli culture, and, unfortunately, quite a racist. She started out by using the n-word. Multiple times. It was very uncomfortable. She didn't listen to our pointing out that this was rude. She told us she identified with n******. Eventually, it moved from n****** to Arabs. This wasn't any better. It turned into a very uncomfortable evening for those of us around her, as you can't help but think about that every time you look at her.
It was a very ritualistic meal. Hippie Joe, we learned, was not so much a hippie, but a Kabbalist. He explained everything he did. He talked a lot. It took quite a while for the food to come along. The food was not the point of the dinner. The point was him teaching us Kabbalah. There was some food for vegetarians, but it was somewhat slim pickins. About halfway through the meal, he wanted us to go around, say our named, and a short Dvar Torah or other Jewish moral kind of story. I couldn't think of any. I got nervous. But thankfully, I wasn't the only one, and not everyone ended up saying things.
The meal ended. We sang. Loudly. We benched (said the Grace After Meals). Also loudly. It was, all in all, a very interesting night. But not a particularly good one, at least for the girls sitting near Hippie Joe's racist cousin. I talked to the guys afterwards, and they had a bit of a better time. But it's not someplace I'd like to go back to often.
We walked home from the Old City. Thanks to my trusty map, I managed to get us there fairly easily. It took an hour and 5 minutes but didn't feel very long at all. We went to a dorm room and talked for quite a bit. It was still early; we had been expecting this to be one of those very long Friday night meals that go until 11 or 12. I think it ended closer to 9, if I remember correctly. So we hung out, talked about that experience and other things, and eventually went to bed.
The next day we had lunch at Tsipora's house. Some of my friends who had not been to many Shabbat meals before were worried it was going to be like last night. I knew that was very unlikely, and I was right. We got there (after making one wrong turn but soon figuring it out) and saw many people around. Tsipora, her husband, their five kids, six of us, and a bunch of girls, some from Hebrew U, some from other programs. They were finishing up the salad and stuff.
The food was amazing. Warmed up challah, which I ate loads of. Humus, carrots, olives, coleslaw, cucumbers, and all the little salads Israeli's tend to have. A big, main salad, which was excellent. Sweet noodle kugel, which I normally don't like, but this had Cinnamon sugar on it and was amazing. A cranberry-apple crisp, also amazing. Tsipora kept apologizing for not having more vegetarian things and asking if I had enough food, and I kept assuring her I was fine. Stuffed. Plenty of delicious vegetarian things. Her food was amazing. I'd had a feeling she'd be a good cook, and not only because of the cookies we'd made a few days earlier. I was certainly not disappointed. For dessert, there was a fruit salad type thing, which I had, even though I tend not to like fruit salad. It was better than some, probably because there weren't many types of fruit in it. (The reason I don't like fruit salad has to do with my weird, mild OCD tendencies and my hatred of mixing foods. I don't like all the different juices coming together. An orange should taste like an orange. A pineapple should taste like a pineapple. A grapefruit should taste like a grapefruit. A strawberry should taste like a strawberry, a melon like a melon (each melon separately), and a grape like a grape. I don't want some orange-pineapple-grapefruit-strawberry-melon-grape mess.) Anyway, they also had these non-dairy ice cream bars in chocolate which were quite good.
By the time we left, I was nice and stuffed and ready for my Shabbos nap. I decided I'd sleep until I got a phone call or something after Shabbos. I was expecting at least one from a friend of mine who doesn't go to Hebrew U. We had talked about meeting up that night.
It was a wonderful nap.
Sunday, February 1, 2009
First full week in Jerusalem
Hello all,
So first of all, notice I added a falafel count to the right of the page. It was Mom's idea. How many falafels will Dina eat while in Israel? We'll find out. Low so far...only two. But give it time.
Secondly, it's FREEZING in Jerusalem today. It apparently even snowed for a minute. I didn't see it, but that's the word around town. I know I shouldn't complain to you in the New York area, as I've heard it's been one of the coldest winters in history there, but it's not supposed to be cold in Jerusalem! Now, I've kind of wanted to go out to get hot chocolate, but I need to shower in order to do that. As you may or may not know, in much of Israel, you need to turn on the boiler for hot water. Well, it's taking it's sweet time to heat up. So no shower yet, no hot chocolate yet. Why do I feel like I'm back in my cold New York bedroom?
Anyway, I figure I'll try to take some of this time to catch up on what I've missed. I left you off at the end of Sunday, the 18th.
Classes began Monday. I later learned we have two teachers. I don't quite know why. One seems more prominent, and so I know her better. She's really nice. Her name is Hodiya (hoe-dee-YA). She's one of those very good teachers who can be nice, control a class, and teach a lot at the same time. The other teacher is named Shifi (SHEE-fee), and she seems nice, though I think I prefer Hodiya. At first, I thought the class might be a tad too slow, but I think it's good now. We learn vocabulary, grammar, read little stories or other texts - exactly what Hebrew class has pretty much always been. There's no English in the class. All new words are explained in Hebrew, though occasionally when we think we know what it is but isn't sure, we'll confirm it in English. There's some homework, but it's really nothing too bad. And of course, since I'm not doing this for credit, I really just learn as much as I want to. Which is as much as I can, because I'd really like to improve my Hebrew.
Tuesday, of course, was inauguration day. We watched the coverage at Jeff Seidel's student center. I love the student center. They have all sorts of things going on there. Each Sunday night, they have a free dinner and a guest come in to talk about some subject on Judaism or Israel. That was what the Gaza talk was. After that, they have a learning program where they pair you up with a tutor and you learn pretty much whatever interests you in Judaism, but I'm not doing that program. I'm involved in so much here already, and I feel I've done enough of the Talmud studying for now at Heschel. Some of my friends are doing it, however. Anyway, also at the student center, there's free laundry, TVs, so they show all sorts of things we want to see like sports games and the Inauguration.
So I went over awfully early. My friend and I and one other person were the first to show up. Unfortunately, they already had Fox News on. (I later asked for it to be changed to MSNBC or CNN, and was basically told no, but they eventually gave in and we saw the inauguration itself on CNN.) But we watched, I realized I wasn't wearing my Obama shirt or sweatshirt, ran back to the dorm to put them on, came back, and we were still in the pretty boring coverage. As it got later, more people showed up (though I'd already secured the best seat), and I watched everything so excitedly!
Really, there are no words to speak. I was just in awe the whole time; I couldn't believe it was finally here. I'd worked so hard, and so many friends of mine had as well. While I was disappointed I couldn't be THERE, nothing could upset me while watching it on TV. Of course, we all talked, took note of the clothing and Bush's expressions, Cheney's chair, Aretha's amazingness, Hilary and Malia matching each other and the carpet, Carter passing the Clintons by, Bill's inability to hide his bitterness that it wasn't his wife's inauguration, Reverend Joseph Lowery's amazing rhyming, everyone leaving during Elizabeth Alexander's poem, etc. But we were silent during the Oaths and Obama's address, even while having our separate interpretations of what happened during Obama's oath (I loved one in particular, a friend of mine who merely took it as a dramatic pause). The address was simply incredible. I have nothing to say. I was just wide-eyed, open-mouthed in awe the whole time.
Unfortunately, everyone started getting up before we got to see Bush taken away by helicopter, so I missed that. But overall, it was just an amazing experience. How could it not be?
On Wednesday, a friend and I baked cookies with the student center to give to Israeli soldiers. It was very fun, and very yummy.
On Thursday, there was an "activities fair" after class where all of the campus clubs, etc. came. Hillel, the Student Center, various things. I signed up for a number of things, but I'll talk about them as they come along. Also on Thursday I thought there was a Freshman orientation. Unfortunately, it had been Tuesday. Guess I was too excited about the Inauguration to notice? I talked to the proper people and got the information and materials I needed, including a course pack, and I later chose my classes. I haven't registered yet, as I need to have a meeting with an advisor-type person, but she said it wasn't first come first served, so I'm not too worried about them filling up. Still, I have back-ups.
I plan to enroll in 4 classes, but only stay in 3 of them. We also have a required continuing Hebrew class. The reason for 4 classes is because one of the ones I'd like to take is very science-oriented, and I'm slightly worried I won't be able to follow it, in which case I'll drop it and take the other. But, if it works out, I'll definitely stick with it. The two definite classes are Foreign Policy of Israel and From Jewish Jesus to Christianity. The third class I'd like to take is called Introduction to Astrobiology: Appearance, Evolution, and Future of Life on Earth, A Planet in Environmental Turmoil. If that one doesn't work out, I will probably take The North American Jewish Community and its Continuity Challenge: Studies in Jewish Education. However, that requires an Internship. I believe the one I am planning on may count, but I need to be sure. (For those of you who don't know about it yet, I'll explain it a bit later.) If that doesn't work, I'll probably take Colloquial Arabic I, although I think that's unlikely.
Unfortunately, I can't link you to the precise course descriptions, but if you would like to read more about them, follow these steps:
Click here
Next to "Course Number" type the following numbers for each course:
Click "Catalogue View"
When you are finished reading, if you would like to see another course, click "Course Search Engine" and repeat above steps.
Ask me if you have any questions.
Side note- a maintenance person just came in about the shower. You see, there are two identical switches by the shower: one for the boiler, one for the room heater. I had thought the room heater one was the boiler one, so when I saw that on, I just left it, thinking someone else had turned it on and the shower would get hot soon. When I checked back later and it was still cold, I switched the other on, just in case. That was the right move. The water is lukewarm now, so it should soon be possible to take a shower. However, apparently the room heater switch was broken which is why it was on. So the maintenance guy is fixing it, and I think I'll soon have hot enough water for my shower. All good news :)
Anyway, earlier in the week some friends and I had discussed taking a weekend trip to Tzfat. First of all, weekends here are Friday and Saturday, not Saturday and Sunday. So weekend trips mean leaving Thursday after classes and staying for Shabbos. But while planning this trip, things seemed to continue to go wrong (including the big problem of the hostel being filled up), and by Thursday night, we'd decided to wait for another week. But that meant we had no plans for Shabbos. Well, as Thursday night is a big social night here, we went back to Ben Yehuda Street and, at about 2 AM, while eating some pizza, who should walk by but Jeff Seidel, proprietor of the lovely student center! Now, this is probably a lot funnier to people who know him, but the thing about Jeff Seidel is that he's always wherever you are. One of those people who you always bump into. He's also quite a character, and so we're always talking about him, and then he shows up. He is also known for setting people up for Shabbat meals. Here's a lovely example of him. But anyway, he walked by, asked if we were set up for Shabbos, and we said, actually, no! We discussed for a bit and he decided he'd send us to "Hippie Joe's" for dinner on Friday night. Of course, we were all very intrigued and could not wait to meet the mysterious Hippie Joe. But I'll explain that all in good time. He also told us a few possibilities for Lunch, including at Tsipora's house. Tsipora also works at the Student Center. She's really nice, and the baking was actually her activity and was done at her house.
Friday, a couple of my friends decided that, instead of Tzfat, we'd take a day trip in Jerusalem. We went to a place called Ein Kerem, which is known for its artists and as the birthplace of John the Baptist. Therefore, a bunch of churches are around there, and we decided to go check it out.
Now, to take the bus there would mean multiple buses and would take a long time. We did not have a lot of time, as we had to get back to our dorms to get ready for Shabbos and down to the Old City before Shabbos began at around 4:30. So we needed to take a cab, even though it's quite far and therefore somewhat expensive. 70 Shkalim would be considered a good price, with 100 being reasonable but pricey. We wanted to aim for 70, so when we got a taxi, my friend low-balled it at 55, assuming it would get up to around 70. (In Israel, haggling is the culture, especially with taxis.) Shockingly, the driver accepted the 55, so we got there very cheap.
Anyway, we turned up in Ein Kerem. We didn't know our way around, and the maps weren't detailed enough to help in the very small streets. So, we kind of wandered in the general direction of a church we saw and, in a roundabout way, eventually made it. It was nice, and we met a Franciscan Brother there, dressed in brown robes, who told us about it as well as how to get to the other churches. However, it seemed to be a very roundabout way, so we tried going our own way, just sort of taking a road that seemed to head in the general direction of two other churches.
We ended up finding something, but we couldn't tell what it was. It seemed to be a church that was turned into a mosque, but we weren't quite sure. There was something called "Mary's Spring" or something, leading us to believe church, but there also seemed to be a crescent at the top, leading us to believe mosque. Either way, we couldn't go inside and it was quite small, so we moved on fairly quickly.
There were signs and we decided to head for a Russian Orthodox Church because the Brother had told us that the Church of Visitation was closed until 2:30. We trekked for quite a while and made it eventually. We saw a little chapel with a gift shop, kept walking around, only to later be yelled at in Russian by a nun. We asked if she knew Hebrew or English and made it clear we didn't know Russian. Apparently, we weren't supposed to be there, though there were no signs. She spoke a little English, telling us to leave, but kept yelling in Russian. We went back the way we came, but the nun followed us and prompted us to go a different way. It took a while and a bunch of Russian, but we eventually got out. Of course, the nun left us on an empty-looking gravel path seeming to be in the middle of nowhere. But we had no choice but to walk along it. Eventually, we came to Hebrew University dorms and a Hadassah Hospital - apparently, students working at the hospital had dorms right there. Luckily, the Brother had mentioned the Hadassah hospital and talked about a dirt path from the parking lot which we were to follow. So we knew we were somewhat going in the right direction. We found the path, followed it, eventually got to the Church of Visitation which was, indeed, closed for lunch from 11:45 until 2:30. Now I ask you, what kind of a church closes for lunch for nearly 3 hours?! But we had to leave Ein Kerem by 2:30 in order to have time to get ready for Shabbos, so we couldn't wait there. We ended up going back to the main street in Ein Kerem and had a very good lunch of salads and sandwiches at a little cafe type place. Meanwhile, I had called Tsipora and set up lunch at her house for my friends and me on Saturday.
I apologize for the lack of pictures in Ein Kerem. I forgot my camera, and my friend has yet to put up his. When he does, I will post them here.
We got a taxi back to the dorms (this time for an understandable 70 Shkalim), and who do we meet by the gate of the dorm complex (known as the Student Village, or Kfar HaStudentim, and I will from hereon in refer to it as the Kfar, as everyone does)? None other than, you guessed it, Jeff Seidel, talking to people about their plans for Shabbos. He asks if we're all ready for Hippie Joe's, tells us we're invited over to his house for "l'chaims" (pre-meal drinks on Shabbos) at 4:30, and makes sure everything is cool. I took a quick shower before meeting my friends to head down to the Old City before Shabbos in order to get to Jeff Seidel's house for the l'chaims.
And I will leave you with this, in suspense for Hippie Joe and this past week, as I go to take a shower. I think I've written quite a lot for today, though if I feel like it, I may add some more later.
So first of all, notice I added a falafel count to the right of the page. It was Mom's idea. How many falafels will Dina eat while in Israel? We'll find out. Low so far...only two. But give it time.
Secondly, it's FREEZING in Jerusalem today. It apparently even snowed for a minute. I didn't see it, but that's the word around town. I know I shouldn't complain to you in the New York area, as I've heard it's been one of the coldest winters in history there, but it's not supposed to be cold in Jerusalem! Now, I've kind of wanted to go out to get hot chocolate, but I need to shower in order to do that. As you may or may not know, in much of Israel, you need to turn on the boiler for hot water. Well, it's taking it's sweet time to heat up. So no shower yet, no hot chocolate yet. Why do I feel like I'm back in my cold New York bedroom?
Anyway, I figure I'll try to take some of this time to catch up on what I've missed. I left you off at the end of Sunday, the 18th.
Classes began Monday. I later learned we have two teachers. I don't quite know why. One seems more prominent, and so I know her better. She's really nice. Her name is Hodiya (hoe-dee-YA). She's one of those very good teachers who can be nice, control a class, and teach a lot at the same time. The other teacher is named Shifi (SHEE-fee), and she seems nice, though I think I prefer Hodiya. At first, I thought the class might be a tad too slow, but I think it's good now. We learn vocabulary, grammar, read little stories or other texts - exactly what Hebrew class has pretty much always been. There's no English in the class. All new words are explained in Hebrew, though occasionally when we think we know what it is but isn't sure, we'll confirm it in English. There's some homework, but it's really nothing too bad. And of course, since I'm not doing this for credit, I really just learn as much as I want to. Which is as much as I can, because I'd really like to improve my Hebrew.
Tuesday, of course, was inauguration day. We watched the coverage at Jeff Seidel's student center. I love the student center. They have all sorts of things going on there. Each Sunday night, they have a free dinner and a guest come in to talk about some subject on Judaism or Israel. That was what the Gaza talk was. After that, they have a learning program where they pair you up with a tutor and you learn pretty much whatever interests you in Judaism, but I'm not doing that program. I'm involved in so much here already, and I feel I've done enough of the Talmud studying for now at Heschel. Some of my friends are doing it, however. Anyway, also at the student center, there's free laundry, TVs, so they show all sorts of things we want to see like sports games and the Inauguration.
So I went over awfully early. My friend and I and one other person were the first to show up. Unfortunately, they already had Fox News on. (I later asked for it to be changed to MSNBC or CNN, and was basically told no, but they eventually gave in and we saw the inauguration itself on CNN.) But we watched, I realized I wasn't wearing my Obama shirt or sweatshirt, ran back to the dorm to put them on, came back, and we were still in the pretty boring coverage. As it got later, more people showed up (though I'd already secured the best seat), and I watched everything so excitedly!
Really, there are no words to speak. I was just in awe the whole time; I couldn't believe it was finally here. I'd worked so hard, and so many friends of mine had as well. While I was disappointed I couldn't be THERE, nothing could upset me while watching it on TV. Of course, we all talked, took note of the clothing and Bush's expressions, Cheney's chair, Aretha's amazingness, Hilary and Malia matching each other and the carpet, Carter passing the Clintons by, Bill's inability to hide his bitterness that it wasn't his wife's inauguration, Reverend Joseph Lowery's amazing rhyming, everyone leaving during Elizabeth Alexander's poem, etc. But we were silent during the Oaths and Obama's address, even while having our separate interpretations of what happened during Obama's oath (I loved one in particular, a friend of mine who merely took it as a dramatic pause). The address was simply incredible. I have nothing to say. I was just wide-eyed, open-mouthed in awe the whole time.
Unfortunately, everyone started getting up before we got to see Bush taken away by helicopter, so I missed that. But overall, it was just an amazing experience. How could it not be?
On Wednesday, a friend and I baked cookies with the student center to give to Israeli soldiers. It was very fun, and very yummy.
On Thursday, there was an "activities fair" after class where all of the campus clubs, etc. came. Hillel, the Student Center, various things. I signed up for a number of things, but I'll talk about them as they come along. Also on Thursday I thought there was a Freshman orientation. Unfortunately, it had been Tuesday. Guess I was too excited about the Inauguration to notice? I talked to the proper people and got the information and materials I needed, including a course pack, and I later chose my classes. I haven't registered yet, as I need to have a meeting with an advisor-type person, but she said it wasn't first come first served, so I'm not too worried about them filling up. Still, I have back-ups.
I plan to enroll in 4 classes, but only stay in 3 of them. We also have a required continuing Hebrew class. The reason for 4 classes is because one of the ones I'd like to take is very science-oriented, and I'm slightly worried I won't be able to follow it, in which case I'll drop it and take the other. But, if it works out, I'll definitely stick with it. The two definite classes are Foreign Policy of Israel and From Jewish Jesus to Christianity. The third class I'd like to take is called Introduction to Astrobiology: Appearance, Evolution, and Future of Life on Earth, A Planet in Environmental Turmoil. If that one doesn't work out, I will probably take The North American Jewish Community and its Continuity Challenge: Studies in Jewish Education. However, that requires an Internship. I believe the one I am planning on may count, but I need to be sure. (For those of you who don't know about it yet, I'll explain it a bit later.) If that doesn't work, I'll probably take Colloquial Arabic I, although I think that's unlikely.
Unfortunately, I can't link you to the precise course descriptions, but if you would like to read more about them, follow these steps:
Click here
Next to "Course Number" type the following numbers for each course:
- Foreign Policy of Israel - 48201
- From Jewish Jesus to Christianity - 48238
- Intro to Astrobiology - 48678
- Studies in Jewish Education - 48251
- Colloquial Arabic I - 48233
Click "Catalogue View"
When you are finished reading, if you would like to see another course, click "Course Search Engine" and repeat above steps.
Ask me if you have any questions.
Side note- a maintenance person just came in about the shower. You see, there are two identical switches by the shower: one for the boiler, one for the room heater. I had thought the room heater one was the boiler one, so when I saw that on, I just left it, thinking someone else had turned it on and the shower would get hot soon. When I checked back later and it was still cold, I switched the other on, just in case. That was the right move. The water is lukewarm now, so it should soon be possible to take a shower. However, apparently the room heater switch was broken which is why it was on. So the maintenance guy is fixing it, and I think I'll soon have hot enough water for my shower. All good news :)
Anyway, earlier in the week some friends and I had discussed taking a weekend trip to Tzfat. First of all, weekends here are Friday and Saturday, not Saturday and Sunday. So weekend trips mean leaving Thursday after classes and staying for Shabbos. But while planning this trip, things seemed to continue to go wrong (including the big problem of the hostel being filled up), and by Thursday night, we'd decided to wait for another week. But that meant we had no plans for Shabbos. Well, as Thursday night is a big social night here, we went back to Ben Yehuda Street and, at about 2 AM, while eating some pizza, who should walk by but Jeff Seidel, proprietor of the lovely student center! Now, this is probably a lot funnier to people who know him, but the thing about Jeff Seidel is that he's always wherever you are. One of those people who you always bump into. He's also quite a character, and so we're always talking about him, and then he shows up. He is also known for setting people up for Shabbat meals. Here's a lovely example of him. But anyway, he walked by, asked if we were set up for Shabbos, and we said, actually, no! We discussed for a bit and he decided he'd send us to "Hippie Joe's" for dinner on Friday night. Of course, we were all very intrigued and could not wait to meet the mysterious Hippie Joe. But I'll explain that all in good time. He also told us a few possibilities for Lunch, including at Tsipora's house. Tsipora also works at the Student Center. She's really nice, and the baking was actually her activity and was done at her house.
Friday, a couple of my friends decided that, instead of Tzfat, we'd take a day trip in Jerusalem. We went to a place called Ein Kerem, which is known for its artists and as the birthplace of John the Baptist. Therefore, a bunch of churches are around there, and we decided to go check it out.
Now, to take the bus there would mean multiple buses and would take a long time. We did not have a lot of time, as we had to get back to our dorms to get ready for Shabbos and down to the Old City before Shabbos began at around 4:30. So we needed to take a cab, even though it's quite far and therefore somewhat expensive. 70 Shkalim would be considered a good price, with 100 being reasonable but pricey. We wanted to aim for 70, so when we got a taxi, my friend low-balled it at 55, assuming it would get up to around 70. (In Israel, haggling is the culture, especially with taxis.) Shockingly, the driver accepted the 55, so we got there very cheap.
Anyway, we turned up in Ein Kerem. We didn't know our way around, and the maps weren't detailed enough to help in the very small streets. So, we kind of wandered in the general direction of a church we saw and, in a roundabout way, eventually made it. It was nice, and we met a Franciscan Brother there, dressed in brown robes, who told us about it as well as how to get to the other churches. However, it seemed to be a very roundabout way, so we tried going our own way, just sort of taking a road that seemed to head in the general direction of two other churches.
We ended up finding something, but we couldn't tell what it was. It seemed to be a church that was turned into a mosque, but we weren't quite sure. There was something called "Mary's Spring" or something, leading us to believe church, but there also seemed to be a crescent at the top, leading us to believe mosque. Either way, we couldn't go inside and it was quite small, so we moved on fairly quickly.
There were signs and we decided to head for a Russian Orthodox Church because the Brother had told us that the Church of Visitation was closed until 2:30. We trekked for quite a while and made it eventually. We saw a little chapel with a gift shop, kept walking around, only to later be yelled at in Russian by a nun. We asked if she knew Hebrew or English and made it clear we didn't know Russian. Apparently, we weren't supposed to be there, though there were no signs. She spoke a little English, telling us to leave, but kept yelling in Russian. We went back the way we came, but the nun followed us and prompted us to go a different way. It took a while and a bunch of Russian, but we eventually got out. Of course, the nun left us on an empty-looking gravel path seeming to be in the middle of nowhere. But we had no choice but to walk along it. Eventually, we came to Hebrew University dorms and a Hadassah Hospital - apparently, students working at the hospital had dorms right there. Luckily, the Brother had mentioned the Hadassah hospital and talked about a dirt path from the parking lot which we were to follow. So we knew we were somewhat going in the right direction. We found the path, followed it, eventually got to the Church of Visitation which was, indeed, closed for lunch from 11:45 until 2:30. Now I ask you, what kind of a church closes for lunch for nearly 3 hours?! But we had to leave Ein Kerem by 2:30 in order to have time to get ready for Shabbos, so we couldn't wait there. We ended up going back to the main street in Ein Kerem and had a very good lunch of salads and sandwiches at a little cafe type place. Meanwhile, I had called Tsipora and set up lunch at her house for my friends and me on Saturday.
I apologize for the lack of pictures in Ein Kerem. I forgot my camera, and my friend has yet to put up his. When he does, I will post them here.
We got a taxi back to the dorms (this time for an understandable 70 Shkalim), and who do we meet by the gate of the dorm complex (known as the Student Village, or Kfar HaStudentim, and I will from hereon in refer to it as the Kfar, as everyone does)? None other than, you guessed it, Jeff Seidel, talking to people about their plans for Shabbos. He asks if we're all ready for Hippie Joe's, tells us we're invited over to his house for "l'chaims" (pre-meal drinks on Shabbos) at 4:30, and makes sure everything is cool. I took a quick shower before meeting my friends to head down to the Old City before Shabbos in order to get to Jeff Seidel's house for the l'chaims.
And I will leave you with this, in suspense for Hippie Joe and this past week, as I go to take a shower. I think I've written quite a lot for today, though if I feel like it, I may add some more later.
Saturday, January 31, 2009
I gave in. My first five days in Israel.
I swore I wouldn't. I never read blogs, I never made them. But, after a couple weeks of being here, it started to seem more difficult to send emails to people telling me what I've been up to. I figured this way, I could let everyone know I have the blog, and they could choose to either follow it or not. I won't be offended if you don't read it. In all honesty, I probably wouldn't read yours. I find keeping up with the details of people's lives to be difficult. But here it is, in case you want it.
I've been in Israel two and a half weeks so far. So much has already happened. I sent an email to some family, so I'll just post it here so you can get what happened the first few days.
Here it is:
Hello!
This is now my fifth day in Israel, and so far, it has been amazing. I'll start from the beginning.
The flight was pretty good. I slept most of the time, so it didn't feel too long (although I woke up every couple of hours and fell back asleep). When we got into the airport in Tel Aviv around 6:40 am Israel time, after going through customs and getting our bags and everything, we had buses take us to our dorms in Mount Scopus, Jerusalem. Everyone was meeting each other, talking and being friendly. We got our room assignments and had some forms to fill out on the bus, and I then got to my room, after a hard schlep of my 3 suitcases and backpack up the many stairs to the dorms. (I took two trips.)
The dorms are apartment suite style, with five singles sharing a kitchen, little living area, and bathrooms (two toilets, one shower). Anyway, I got to my apartment, and the key to my room wasn't really working. So after talking to a couple people, I got in, but then couldn't re-lock my door, so later in the day maintenance came and fixed it. I didn't meet all my roommates at that time, but I'll tell you about them all now. There is an Israeli girl who I haven't spoken to much, but who seemed very nice. An American girl named Miriam showed me around everything, and has helped me with any questions I've had. She just went off to Europe for three weeks, as the international students who were here since the beginning of the year now are on break. I have a French roommate who doesn't speak very much English, but we always just say hi to each other. I hope that once I brush up on my Hebrew skills and we can communicate a bit better, I might be able to learn a little French from her. And lastly, another French roommate who is moving out in a couple weeks, so we'll see who replaces her.
Anyway, Wednesday was spent settling in, figuring things out, and then we had a campus tour (and I'm starting to kind of know my way around by now), and then they took us to the mall to buy whatever we couldn't fit in our suitcases, like pillows and comforters. And, of course, I had my first falafel. By the time we got back, everyone was exhausted, so a few of us just hung out in one of our apartments for a bit and went to bed.
Thursday, some students who had been here for first semester had a bagel brunch in their apartment for the new students, so I went there and did some socializing, met some new people, etc. Later, we had orientation, which was mostly boring and unnecessary, but we talked a bit about some useful things. We also bought some more things we needed at the campus store, including books for Hebrew class (called Ulpan). Then, we went to the supermarket, which was a whole adventure, especially considering it was difficult to tell what everything was. But I managed pretty well, I think, and by the time that was done, we were again tired, still recovering from traveling and meeting these many new people. So again, we just relaxed and talked in my friend's apartment, and then went to sleep.
Friday I slept in, and then my friend who lives off campus came over around 3:15 because the buses stop running for Shabbat. So we just hung out and stuff until 6:45, when we left to go meet everyone for our big Shabbat dinner. We went to a nearby hotel, and there was an abundance of food, and we just had a lot of fun talking, and we met a few new people there. Afterwards, a couple friends came back to my apartment this time to hang out.
Yesterday, Saturday, we had a fun kiddush and lunch thing, where there was more socializing and meeting people. After that, I took a nap before a few of us met at 3:00 to take a walk. We tried to find our way to the Old City, but we took a wrong turn and ended up just heading back and walking around Mount Scopus for a bit. There are some really amazing views here. After that, there was a Seudat Shlishit, the third meal of Shabbat, which is usually like a light dinner, at the Student Center here, where I again met some new people and learned about some things that go on through the Student Center (including free laundry! I'd have to bring it there, but it's not far from my dorms, so if I don't have too much, I will definitely take advantage of that.) Then we made Havdalah, the prayer that transitions us from Shabbat to the week, and went back to our dorms. I spent a little time checking my email and stuff, and then met up with some friends. We hung out in an apartment, had some food, and then a bunch of us went out to Ben Yehuda Street, which is a main street for restaurants, pubs, coffee shops, etc. in downtown Jerusalem. We just hung out in a place that caters to Americans, and then went home to sleep.
So far, today, I have not done very much. Though Sunday is a weekday in Israel, I don't have class on Sundays. Later, there is an activity with the Madrichim, who are sort of like RAs, sort of like counselors, and are just people we can go to when we have questions or anything. They're Israeli students at the main Hebrew University who work in the Office of Student Affairs, which plans trips and activities. After that, I will probably be going to hear a guy from Israel public radio or something speak about the situation in Gaza over a barbecue dinner, which will hopefully have veggie burgers. Tomorrow, Ulpan starts for me, so hopefully I'll have a good teacher and fun class.
That's all for now. I hope things are all good with you, and I'll try to be in touch as much as possible.
Lots of love,
Dina
P.S. We apparently do have mailboxes, but no keys yet, nor do I know what the address is or anything, so I'm going to need to get back to you on that.
----------------------------
Well, I later went to the activity with the Macrichim. It was pretty stupid. Not really worth talking about. But I did hear the guy talk about Gaza. I was surprised at how well he did. I assumed it would just be completely biased, pro-Israel, not even telling us anything from the other side. But he managed to lay out the facts of the events very...factually. He was very good at pointing out when he was stating his opinion instead of fact. Of course, his opinions were all pro-Israel, but I'm fine with him discussing that as long as he lets us know that it is just HIS opinion. And there weren't veggie burgers, but there was pita and humus and salad, so I managed just fine. :)
Anyway, I know I have a LOT to catch up on, but hopefully once I do, I'll be able to keep this updated often enough that you'll get a more or less day-by-day idea of what's going on.
I'm hoping to put my pictures here, and maybe some video blogging as well, but all in good time.
I've been in Israel two and a half weeks so far. So much has already happened. I sent an email to some family, so I'll just post it here so you can get what happened the first few days.
Here it is:
Hello!
This is now my fifth day in Israel, and so far, it has been amazing. I'll start from the beginning.
The flight was pretty good. I slept most of the time, so it didn't feel too long (although I woke up every couple of hours and fell back asleep). When we got into the airport in Tel Aviv around 6:40 am Israel time, after going through customs and getting our bags and everything, we had buses take us to our dorms in Mount Scopus, Jerusalem. Everyone was meeting each other, talking and being friendly. We got our room assignments and had some forms to fill out on the bus, and I then got to my room, after a hard schlep of my 3 suitcases and backpack up the many stairs to the dorms. (I took two trips.)
The dorms are apartment suite style, with five singles sharing a kitchen, little living area, and bathrooms (two toilets, one shower). Anyway, I got to my apartment, and the key to my room wasn't really working. So after talking to a couple people, I got in, but then couldn't re-lock my door, so later in the day maintenance came and fixed it. I didn't meet all my roommates at that time, but I'll tell you about them all now. There is an Israeli girl who I haven't spoken to much, but who seemed very nice. An American girl named Miriam showed me around everything, and has helped me with any questions I've had. She just went off to Europe for three weeks, as the international students who were here since the beginning of the year now are on break. I have a French roommate who doesn't speak very much English, but we always just say hi to each other. I hope that once I brush up on my Hebrew skills and we can communicate a bit better, I might be able to learn a little French from her. And lastly, another French roommate who is moving out in a couple weeks, so we'll see who replaces her.
Anyway, Wednesday was spent settling in, figuring things out, and then we had a campus tour (and I'm starting to kind of know my way around by now), and then they took us to the mall to buy whatever we couldn't fit in our suitcases, like pillows and comforters. And, of course, I had my first falafel. By the time we got back, everyone was exhausted, so a few of us just hung out in one of our apartments for a bit and went to bed.
Thursday, some students who had been here for first semester had a bagel brunch in their apartment for the new students, so I went there and did some socializing, met some new people, etc. Later, we had orientation, which was mostly boring and unnecessary, but we talked a bit about some useful things. We also bought some more things we needed at the campus store, including books for Hebrew class (called Ulpan). Then, we went to the supermarket, which was a whole adventure, especially considering it was difficult to tell what everything was. But I managed pretty well, I think, and by the time that was done, we were again tired, still recovering from traveling and meeting these many new people. So again, we just relaxed and talked in my friend's apartment, and then went to sleep.
Friday I slept in, and then my friend who lives off campus came over around 3:15 because the buses stop running for Shabbat. So we just hung out and stuff until 6:45, when we left to go meet everyone for our big Shabbat dinner. We went to a nearby hotel, and there was an abundance of food, and we just had a lot of fun talking, and we met a few new people there. Afterwards, a couple friends came back to my apartment this time to hang out.
Yesterday, Saturday, we had a fun kiddush and lunch thing, where there was more socializing and meeting people. After that, I took a nap before a few of us met at 3:00 to take a walk. We tried to find our way to the Old City, but we took a wrong turn and ended up just heading back and walking around Mount Scopus for a bit. There are some really amazing views here. After that, there was a Seudat Shlishit, the third meal of Shabbat, which is usually like a light dinner, at the Student Center here, where I again met some new people and learned about some things that go on through the Student Center (including free laundry! I'd have to bring it there, but it's not far from my dorms, so if I don't have too much, I will definitely take advantage of that.) Then we made Havdalah, the prayer that transitions us from Shabbat to the week, and went back to our dorms. I spent a little time checking my email and stuff, and then met up with some friends. We hung out in an apartment, had some food, and then a bunch of us went out to Ben Yehuda Street, which is a main street for restaurants, pubs, coffee shops, etc. in downtown Jerusalem. We just hung out in a place that caters to Americans, and then went home to sleep.
So far, today, I have not done very much. Though Sunday is a weekday in Israel, I don't have class on Sundays. Later, there is an activity with the Madrichim, who are sort of like RAs, sort of like counselors, and are just people we can go to when we have questions or anything. They're Israeli students at the main Hebrew University who work in the Office of Student Affairs, which plans trips and activities. After that, I will probably be going to hear a guy from Israel public radio or something speak about the situation in Gaza over a barbecue dinner, which will hopefully have veggie burgers. Tomorrow, Ulpan starts for me, so hopefully I'll have a good teacher and fun class.
That's all for now. I hope things are all good with you, and I'll try to be in touch as much as possible.
Lots of love,
Dina
P.S. We apparently do have mailboxes, but no keys yet, nor do I know what the address is or anything, so I'm going to need to get back to you on that.
----------------------------
Well, I later went to the activity with the Macrichim. It was pretty stupid. Not really worth talking about. But I did hear the guy talk about Gaza. I was surprised at how well he did. I assumed it would just be completely biased, pro-Israel, not even telling us anything from the other side. But he managed to lay out the facts of the events very...factually. He was very good at pointing out when he was stating his opinion instead of fact. Of course, his opinions were all pro-Israel, but I'm fine with him discussing that as long as he lets us know that it is just HIS opinion. And there weren't veggie burgers, but there was pita and humus and salad, so I managed just fine. :)
Anyway, I know I have a LOT to catch up on, but hopefully once I do, I'll be able to keep this updated often enough that you'll get a more or less day-by-day idea of what's going on.
I'm hoping to put my pictures here, and maybe some video blogging as well, but all in good time.
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