This morning gave me a glimpse of Israeli life on Fridays. First, I went to the hospital to find out about getting a bone scan, figuring that if many places stay open on Fridays until 2 PM, there’d be a chance that someone would help me out. No such luck- the orthopedic department literally pushed me out and the nurse directed me to the x-rays. Apparently, people really do take Fridays off as the schedule showed Sunday through Thursday at the reception desk. Then I walked to the gym. Its craziness demonstrated how serious Israelis are about making the most of their day offs. I could not get any machine except for a rowing machine. So I did a mix of strength training and rowing.
Let me get this whole deal about Mount Scopus’ fitness center being Jerusalem’s ‘biggest” facility straight. It is not big by the standards of the major gyms I have been to in the States. The number and variety of machines and strength training equipment are rather incomparable. There are twice more treadmills than the number of elliptical trainers and stationary bikes at Mount Scopus. The total number of machine appears to be around 30% less than JCC Rochester’s and Colgate’s. I am still scratching my head over why I paid $250 for my membership throughout this semester. But it is cheaper than at the JCC in Rochester or San Francisco. Plus, as I discovered today on the bus to the Old City, Mount Scopus is really separate from the bustling downtown area. I do not have that kind of time anyway with these buses- if there is a subway, I might re-think where I want to fork over my money for a gym membership. Spinning classes are held at night- no 6 AM classes. I was surprised. I am wondering if Americans are really crammed for time that they need to work out at 6 AM. Well, I’ll learn over my time here to find out the typical Israeli attitudes towards living day to day.
Two buses took us to the Zion Gate in the Old City of Jerusalem. Our marcharims guided us around the Jewish Quarter. I recognized several places where I had been on my birthright trip- the bombed area that revealed the ground floor from the earliest days, the tunnel that hosted the Judica shop where I bought my menorah, and the gold menorah. Of course, we visited the Western Wall. We stopped at a falafel/schwarma place for lunch. They literally stuffed my schwarma with everything- did not even asked me what I wanted for my toppings! Needless to say, I did not finish that thing. Plus, it was not until I went to bed when I checked my change when I realized that they had given me incorrect change for 50 shekls that I gave them. Rrrrr….
The Old City itself was King David’s dream and the project was taken up by King Solomon some time later. It is the first capital of the Jewish people. The Babylonians came and destroyed the First Temple. Then the Persian empire took over and helped the Jews to rebuild the Temple, which became the Second Temple. That was only seventy years later. Next, we came under the Greeks and then the Romans came and destroyed the Second Temple. After that the Christians and Muslims took over- they basically battled constantly over the years for control. Meanwhile, the Jews stayed put. Then the Old City split between Israel/Palestine and Jordan. Very few Israelis know that during the War of Independence, Israeli troops did manage to take over a small portion of the Jewish Quarter. Then there was a power vacuum in which the Jordanians took over. Finally, the Israelis took over in 1967.
The buildings and stones are really beautiful- not grimy or dirty like in Toledo. Also the alleyways are wider. You can see how well preserved the place is- no signs of deterioration or wear except for the streets. It is hard to believe that people are walking on the same paths as their ancestors did many centuries ago. During our tour, we saw a lot of children running around with their backpacks. There must be a school nearby. I was surprised that the children go to school six days a week here but I guessed that it was a yeshiva. They were adorable in their kipaks and long skirts.
I did not go to Shabbat services as I was not clear on where to go. Oh well. I ended up walking around a little with Mitchell, who is from Florida, to explore French Hill a little bit. We could not go into the supermarket that he wanted to check out because it was already closed for Shabbat at 3 PM! We grabbed some stuff at a mini-mart nearby that was preparing to close. All I could think was how the heck I was supposed to entertain myself until dinner. I chose to nap and to watch Aly and Gina dressing up for dinner.
The program threw a Shabbat dinner for over 100 people at the Hyatt Regency. The hotel itself was really massive like any other Israeli hotels I have been to. I met a lot of new people throughout the night and I liked them a lot. When we began the Shabbat prayers, I then remembered why I loved Israel. The power of celebrating Shabbat nationwide felt stronger than any other holiday that I have experienced in the States. Everyone said the same prayers nearly at the same time. I would compare the magic and spiritual connection to Who-ville in Dr Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas. Really, this whole experience of celebrating Shabbat in Israel is simply amazing and cannot be described in words..
I sat with a bunch of girls (from California and Michigan) and Mitchell. Next to me was a very quiet girl from Argentina and she told me a little bit about where Argentine Jews came from. We also talked a little bit about our birthright trips. What I have noticed from talking to a bunch of people that most of them came back to Israel because of their birthright trip. I made a theory that unless you have been to Israel and know that life is perfectly fine, you would not consider studying here. I think that if I did not go on that trip, I probably would not be so sure about coming to Israel for the semester.
After dinner, I met more new people and we hung out in the courtyard of the village and then moved to someone’s apartment. I found a “small world’ connection with a girl (Lexi) from Philadelphia who actually went to school with one of my friends at Colgate (Rob). I also found someone who wants to explore Jerusalem with me.
Now I can’t wait for the new week and see what it has in store for me.
No comments:
Post a Comment