I finally made it to Hebrew U right around the time I predicted I'd be there- 5:30. Woot. I thought that we'd go out somewhere very Israeli (aka Sima's) for dinner but the girls wanted to eat everything in the apartment before they leave tomorrow night. So I met Melissa, an Evangalical from Idaho, who is deciding what to do for her masters, a girl from England, one from Washington (Seattle) who knew Jessica, my old roommate.... the British girl's accent wasn't very strong much to my surprise. So I asked where she was from and she said Norwich and her family's from the southern part of England. I told her about Anna, the girl in my Hebrew class who had a very thick British accent. She asked where she's from and I said "Birmingham." Ah-ha, she said, those people have very strong accents that even she can barely understand them herself. Cool, this was fun meeting the Brits and learning about the UK- definitely better than studying in London!
We had a big dinner of schintzels (frozen, then cooked), pita, hummus, lentils/couscous, beans/eggs, and vegetable pasta soup. We finished up with pancakes for dessert- yummy. Meredith and I both thought it was crazy but definitely not as crazy as our brownie fiasco from the year before. While talking about, someone popped in for something and she asked me where did I come from and I said that I just came in from Haifa. She had a friend there in the ulpan and apparently this person agreed with me- the girl said that it sounded like she was pretty lucky to be studying at Hebrew U instead of Haifa.
Unexpectedly, I ended up meeting my old boyfriend. To put it in short, we realized that our values clashed more than we thought and just parted ways on a neutral note.
I slept in for the first time since my first day back in Israel- until 9:30! I was soooo happy! Katie made some eggs with mozzerella cheese- she stopped going to classes after 2 weeks. She just didn't want to study anymore and would rather play. So she's been around Jerusalem and central Israel for the past 3 weeks and surprisely, still hadn't been to Tel Aviv! After chatting for a while, it was time for me to head out to meet Zvi Feine for lunch at the Joint (JDC). I wanted to walk. So I left her to finish cleaning out the apartment.
I walked pretty much from Hebrew U to Ramban/Diskin in the center along Route 1 (Bar Ilan). It didn't feel as long as my first time and I felt that if I came back here next year, I could do this on more regular basis. When I realized that I had about 5 minutes before I was supposed to meet him, I decided to catch a cab on a meter. My guess that it would cost about 15 shekel but the meter went to 17. Close enough.
JDC building is so weird but definitely as weird as some places in Tel Aviv. It was beautiful nevertheless. I met Zvi in his office and then we went for lunch downstairs. He told me about his trip to Poland, some stuff about the Ethiopian aliya plans, other people in the room, etc. He pointed out a guy who has been working for JDC since like 1944!!! I was so tempted to go over there and ask him to tell me about his early days on the job but I figured that he spoke only Hebrwe or Yiddish. Zvi also told me how he uses Yiddish a lot for his job which surprised me- including during his trip to Poland. "The older people speak Yiddish, the younger people speak English," he said. So if I can learn Yiddish, I might be able to get around a bit in Poland after all- don't need to know the Polish language! There's really something about Zvi that you can't help but smile how much he enjoyed his life and is proud of what he's done. Next week, he's taking his grandson on a trip to Tanzania to see the world's largest animal reserve park. So his schedule was tight as mine but I was glad that I saw him. Next time, he said, his apartment will have finished the renovations and I will be able to come over.
Afterwards, I talked to Meredith and it turned out that they needed to turn in the apartment by 4 PM and wouldn't be able to go to the shuk beforehand. So I thought that maybe I'd just walk to the Old City to pick up dirt cheap ibuprofren but at the end, I stopped on King George and caught the bus back. I helped the girls throw out the trash and whatever else they needed. I thought about going with them but given the time it takes and the fact I needed to get to Tel Aviv by 7 if I wanted Linda to pick me up with my heavy bags, I decided against it. So the three of us waited at the bus stop for 28 and I wanted to get an apple but was afraid of missing the bus. Meredith offered to run in Mr. Zol's and while she was in there, 28 did come by. But I could wait another 15 minutes. I didn't say anything to her when she came back out. We were sorry that we didn't spend more time together but hopefully at least if we're together again next year, we'll definitely have the time!
I went to the bus station without a problem as usual even though it was crazy time (5:30 PM). The bus drivers were definitely picky about not overloading the buses, especially that there were 2 480 buses going at the same time. Off to Herzliya/Tel Aviv for a week... thankfully because I don't really want to be carrying my suitcases for a good while...
Wednesday, July 30, 2008
Last Few Days in Haifa
I will never use Talk N Save to rent phones again. Ever. My phone finally came in today (after a week and a promise it'd be here by last Thursday). I might check around for my own Israeli phone but not buy one yet. I can my own permanent number but I think it just means that I have to get a SIM card.
In terms of ulpan, we're actually finishing the first half of the book. I think that the book is just badly organized and doesn't give clear explanations. I am amazed how Roni's very focused on little things that will help us decipher Hebrew when we encounter new words such as recognizing verbs as nouns (like I'm going "running"). All that will help me when I prepare for my reading proficiency exam in graduate school. I learn new random things in class from Roni like the Japanese don't have a word for "joke" because they don't know how to joke! I do actually feel good and am glad that we're moving along. Bet isn't hard as everyone says, maybe it's just Hebrew U is very intense. We also did a couple more presentations. The most interesting one was about Marshall Islands- yes, we actually have a student from Marshall Islands. So we asked more questions about it. My class is actually pretty diverse- 2 from France, 1 from Switzerland, 1 from UK, 1 from Germany, 1 from Marshall Islands, 1 from Greece, 1 from Sweden, and everyone else is from the US.
I am doing well in Hebrew, I think. Lilach, my roommate, is a big help. The other night, she seriously stood besides me while I finished up my Hebrew homework! She helped me to get it done quicker by translating some of the phrases/words I didn't know. We converse both in Hebrew and English and I learn to pronounce words a little better. When I asked her if she ever learned how to read/write in cursive, she didn't know what I meant until I showed her a list of all the states in cursive (doodling in class...). She couldn't believe it! Not that I care for cursive but it can make writing go a little faster with practice. We got into a conversation last night about how American Jews perceive themselves and how its divided by denominations like Orthodox and Reform/secular Jews face tensions because of different observance levels. She asked if American Jews cared about marrying someone who isn't from their background like a Sephardi marrying an Ashkenazi. I told her no, because 95% of American Jews is Ashkenazi so no one really thinks of it.
On Sunday after class, I just went for a walk down to Horev Center. It was a little too late to go to the beach and it was pretty cool out. When I came back, the program was showing the movie "The Syrian Bride." It's quite good and humorous and I recommend it.
Monday, I went to the beach for the last time even though I kind of had enough and I knew it wouldn't be quite warm down there. I was right- it wasn't. I did finish my homework there and took a walk along the shores, and then I packed up. I stopped by the Haifa Mall just for a bit while waiting for 46 to come along. I'm amazed how Israeli malls can be "all-in-one" like just about every one of them has a supermarket, big pharmacy, and some kind of a home depot. It reminds me of why and how much I like farmers market and more local stores because at least you're getting real customer service and interacting with people. When I came back, I went to a lecture on Israel and Feminism. I had expected that she'd talk about feminism in Israel in sense of cultural and social norms. I wanted to know what Israeli women think and view their roles in modern Israel. Instead, the lecturer gave a laundry list of women who contributed to Zionism and the State of Israel. I got a little research idea when she talked about Russian Jewish women contributing something during the Russian Revolution. I began wondering about Russian Jewish women- both observant and secular- and how they contributed and defined the women's movement in the Soviet Union in its early days (I did a paper on Soviet women in the gulags and how they were disillusioned by Stalin's propaganda by being arrested and sent to camps where the camps attempted to humilate them as women by stripping them of their female identities).
Tuesday, I did my laundry and packed. I was actually down to my last pair of underwear! It felt very strange to pack everything- I did a very good job of packing only the most necessary things. I had a few things that I never used/worn that I just put to the bottom of my suitcase. I was kind of sad that I brought only the basic stuff- no frills but I just hate overpacking.
Around 6 or so, I went to Mor's to see Or, Mor, and their parents for the last time. Hadar cooked me a sampling of her usual Iraqi food. We talked about Obama and Israeli politics and current events over tea. I am finding it interesting that the older Israelis are very staunch Republicans- in a sense they'd vote for McCain while the younger Israelis are more apathetic. I'm going to keep surveying in the next two weeks. Hadar thought that the Israeli government should give in Hamas' demand of releasing 1,000 prisoners that the IDF captured during the second intifada to get Schalit back. I also talked to them about getting an Israeli cellphone but found out that they're definitely not cheaper here (despite being very widely used). Hadar thought that my new phone probably cost about 1,000 shekelim ($330)- yikes!
On the bus ride home, Sylvia found me. It was pretty funny so we chatted on the way back. The ride seemed so short! When we came home, we found that our fridge was broken. Fortunately, I was leaving so I didn't care about the food so I told them that it's fine to throw out anything. In the meantime, I finished up packing and sorted out clothes I'd need in the next day.
In terms of ulpan, we're actually finishing the first half of the book. I think that the book is just badly organized and doesn't give clear explanations. I am amazed how Roni's very focused on little things that will help us decipher Hebrew when we encounter new words such as recognizing verbs as nouns (like I'm going "running"). All that will help me when I prepare for my reading proficiency exam in graduate school. I learn new random things in class from Roni like the Japanese don't have a word for "joke" because they don't know how to joke! I do actually feel good and am glad that we're moving along. Bet isn't hard as everyone says, maybe it's just Hebrew U is very intense. We also did a couple more presentations. The most interesting one was about Marshall Islands- yes, we actually have a student from Marshall Islands. So we asked more questions about it. My class is actually pretty diverse- 2 from France, 1 from Switzerland, 1 from UK, 1 from Germany, 1 from Marshall Islands, 1 from Greece, 1 from Sweden, and everyone else is from the US.
I am doing well in Hebrew, I think. Lilach, my roommate, is a big help. The other night, she seriously stood besides me while I finished up my Hebrew homework! She helped me to get it done quicker by translating some of the phrases/words I didn't know. We converse both in Hebrew and English and I learn to pronounce words a little better. When I asked her if she ever learned how to read/write in cursive, she didn't know what I meant until I showed her a list of all the states in cursive (doodling in class...). She couldn't believe it! Not that I care for cursive but it can make writing go a little faster with practice. We got into a conversation last night about how American Jews perceive themselves and how its divided by denominations like Orthodox and Reform/secular Jews face tensions because of different observance levels. She asked if American Jews cared about marrying someone who isn't from their background like a Sephardi marrying an Ashkenazi. I told her no, because 95% of American Jews is Ashkenazi so no one really thinks of it.
On Sunday after class, I just went for a walk down to Horev Center. It was a little too late to go to the beach and it was pretty cool out. When I came back, the program was showing the movie "The Syrian Bride." It's quite good and humorous and I recommend it.
Monday, I went to the beach for the last time even though I kind of had enough and I knew it wouldn't be quite warm down there. I was right- it wasn't. I did finish my homework there and took a walk along the shores, and then I packed up. I stopped by the Haifa Mall just for a bit while waiting for 46 to come along. I'm amazed how Israeli malls can be "all-in-one" like just about every one of them has a supermarket, big pharmacy, and some kind of a home depot. It reminds me of why and how much I like farmers market and more local stores because at least you're getting real customer service and interacting with people. When I came back, I went to a lecture on Israel and Feminism. I had expected that she'd talk about feminism in Israel in sense of cultural and social norms. I wanted to know what Israeli women think and view their roles in modern Israel. Instead, the lecturer gave a laundry list of women who contributed to Zionism and the State of Israel. I got a little research idea when she talked about Russian Jewish women contributing something during the Russian Revolution. I began wondering about Russian Jewish women- both observant and secular- and how they contributed and defined the women's movement in the Soviet Union in its early days (I did a paper on Soviet women in the gulags and how they were disillusioned by Stalin's propaganda by being arrested and sent to camps where the camps attempted to humilate them as women by stripping them of their female identities).
Tuesday, I did my laundry and packed. I was actually down to my last pair of underwear! It felt very strange to pack everything- I did a very good job of packing only the most necessary things. I had a few things that I never used/worn that I just put to the bottom of my suitcase. I was kind of sad that I brought only the basic stuff- no frills but I just hate overpacking.
Around 6 or so, I went to Mor's to see Or, Mor, and their parents for the last time. Hadar cooked me a sampling of her usual Iraqi food. We talked about Obama and Israeli politics and current events over tea. I am finding it interesting that the older Israelis are very staunch Republicans- in a sense they'd vote for McCain while the younger Israelis are more apathetic. I'm going to keep surveying in the next two weeks. Hadar thought that the Israeli government should give in Hamas' demand of releasing 1,000 prisoners that the IDF captured during the second intifada to get Schalit back. I also talked to them about getting an Israeli cellphone but found out that they're definitely not cheaper here (despite being very widely used). Hadar thought that my new phone probably cost about 1,000 shekelim ($330)- yikes!
On the bus ride home, Sylvia found me. It was pretty funny so we chatted on the way back. The ride seemed so short! When we came home, we found that our fridge was broken. Fortunately, I was leaving so I didn't care about the food so I told them that it's fine to throw out anything. In the meantime, I finished up packing and sorted out clothes I'd need in the next day.
Wednesday, I decided to sleep in a little given that I was up a little too late packing and was getting tired. So I came to class and Roni was giving last minute lessons on another future verb tense. Then we did the program evaluation together as a class and in Hebrew. Roni wrote down everything. Apparently, I wasn't the only one who actually liked the computer drills! People did complain a bit about the homework not being productive. I suggested that she assign more readings in the future rather than just grammar drills. After our break, we had a class party. That was cool and we finally did our final exam. I didn't think it was too difficult and was comparable to the midterm. I understood the entire text section so I'm sure I got everything right there. Oh well, I am hoping to get a B or better.
After class, it was finally time to finish up cleaning my room and say good-bye. Sylvia was the only one home so I said good bye to her. She wanted to help me carry my bags to the bus stop. I looked at her, a petite who's at least a head shorter than me, and declined her offer but if she really wanted to try... then fine. She attempted to pick up my smaller duffel and she could barely pick it up. I teased her if she even been in the army! I knew she didn't do the tough physical work.
For a send-off party, the program had the Druze over to make their special snack treat- yogurt and toppings wrapped in huge pita. Then I caught the 2 PM bus and took an uneventful ride to Jerusalem.
As I watched Haifa go by, I thought how fast those 3 1/2 weeks went by. It wasn't really all that terrible. I appreciated that I was able to speak Hebrew more easily with confidence and to ask for proper pronounication without embarassment. I found the Russian market, enjoyed the beach, and had gorgeous view all the time. The only real drawback was the location of the university and in relation to the public transportation system that makes going places take longer than in Jerusalem or Tel Aviv. I would rate this program as "good" and for those very concerned with improving their conversational Hebrew skills (as I was). But not the program to do if people want to focus more on reading and less speaking. So I would do another month ulpan with Haifa but not my top choice. I also realized how much easier it was to reach anywhere in the North, including Tiberias, than from Jerusalem.
Anyway... off to Jerusalem!
Sunday, July 27, 2008
Encore! Shabbat with the Israelis!
I left for Jerusalem around 12:15 after doing my long run (survived 9.5 miles..yay) . I made it just fine after an annoying incident involving a young family bringing a puppy onboard and the puppy makign some kind of yucky mess in two seats front of me. The mother decided to throw the puppy's mess in a plastic bag and put the bag in a garbage can right behind me. I tried adjusting the fan above me but it didn't work and I was only 20 minutes away from the city! I resorted to moving to the back of the bus. I just sat there, totally peeved.
I sighed with a relief when I walked out of the Central Bus Station onto Jaffa. I began walking along Jaffa, just taking in the cityscape. However, the sight of Jaffa, nearly sliced in half, one side being a road, and the other being a construction site, shocked me. As I studied the construction below, I realized that the new light rail will be running along Jaffa. For something that's been talked about for years and non-existent last year, it was incredible to see some work done! The light rail is scheduled to be completed by 2011... but this is Israel... who knows. I began thinking about how much Jerusalem will change in the next 10 years and maybe, just maybe, I will want to live here now that there will definitely be light rail connecting to Tel Aviv, more gourmet restaurants coming for my taste buds, and generally improving quality of life for me. The only problem will be housing, expensive housing.
I made it to the shuk and soaked in the craziness of people running around buying food for Shabbat. I picked up some pita (they're really terrible in Haifa- can't even cut them well to make pockets), a roll, and 30 shekelim worth of Marzipan's chocolate rugalechim. Half would be for the Israeli family as a thank you for coming to Israel, and the other half for my roommates in Haifa as a thank you for being great to me. The trick was to see if I could deliver these without eating them! I bought some pizza rolls as late lunch. Once I was out of the shuk, I began walking to King David hotel, where the Israeli family was staying. I smiled the whole way there. I didn't care if I had to carry my duffel bag for 1 1/2 hours from the CBS to the shuk to King David.
I met Aunt Nancy and the gang. Then Ron's cousin, Yehudit and her family came over to join us for some pool time before Shabbat. She had two kids, ages 10 and 13, perfect for Ben and Alec. She also brought along another cousin, Tamar, who's 14, for Ella. So all 6 of them played in the pool while all the adults sat on the deck and talked. They talked a lot about Max, Yehudit's brother, who lives in New York. It was getting cold after a while that I actually put my clothes back on- I shouldn't have changed into my bathing suit.
When we went back up to the room to prepare for Shabbat, I called up Meredith to see what was going on as I was planning to leave after dinner to Hebrew U. As it turned out, she wouldn't really have much time- the next day, she'd be going to the church until 2 (which I understood) and then leave right after for Ramallah. I froze a bit just hearing that and asked her questions. She and her friend(s) were taking a bus and their friend would pick them up in a tiny car. I decided, partly for comfort, partly for my safety, and partly the need to get back to Jerusalem by 8:30 to catch the 9 PM bus to Haifa, it would be best that I didn't go to Ramallah. She and my aunt both individually thought that I should stay with the Israelis for the night and just stay with them for the weekend, and then I would come back to Jerusalem on Wednesday after the end of ulpan. So that was that. I was a little smitten at the thought of being able to stay at King David for the night, even if it meant sleeping on the couch in their suite.
Around 6:30ish, we took cabs out to northwestern part of Jerusalem, to Chana's (Ron's aunt, on father's side) and Zoobie's (sp.?). They live in a small apartment building that they built in 1981 for their family. They live in one apartment, their son lives in another, and Max used to live in the third (and now some people rent it). They had a beautiful view of Jerusalem Forest, which equalled to a great sunset. The Israeli family and Chana went over to Ron's grandmother in her nursing home while I hung out with Zoobie and Etai, their grandson (who was very cute by the way!). They set up the BBQ and some of the dinner (isn't that nice, men taking care of the cooking a bit?). I took the opportunity to call Linda to update her and then I called Dad to say hi.
Finally, everyone came around 7:30ish. Aunt Nancy asked me if I had told Dad that she had let me with some strange relatives for an hour. I said to her that I was just so happy to be in Jerusalem that it didn't matter at all! So at dinner, we had about 25 or so people- half adults and half kids. It was all family and the atmosphere was quite inviting and warm. Dinner was lamb beef patties (Zoobie told me that generally ground meat in Israel is 50% beef and 50% lamb, which I wish I had known!), rice, stuffed peppers (Mexican style), carrots glazed with grapes, some Israeli salads, and pita. All so delicious that I wish I could take some with me! For dessert, Chana served parve cheesecake (it tasted parve...), watermelon, and chocolate cake loaf. Consequently with all the food, Nancy, Ben, and I did not sleep very well that night and had crazy, bizarre dreams (I dreamt of Cutie, my old pony, who I hadn't thought of in a while!).
I met a couple, the Yerushalamis, who had connections to Rochester Jewish community. The wife, Judy, who made aliyah 15 years ago, still has some relatives there. I told them that I worked on a thesis and am still working on it, relating to the Jewish community there. She gave a hint that she might be able to give me more clues of the German immigrants in the 1930s and 1940s. I got her email. That was quite exciting for me! In Israel! We also talked a bit about challenges of making aliyah like support and jobs.
We finally left after 10 PM. I pretty much crashed with everyone else.
The next day, we got up and went down for breakfast. The breakfast spread was just beautiful- they had cinnamon and chocolate brioche! We met Zvika around 9:15 and began driving. I was worried that the Dead Sea would be very hot and thought we'd need to go sooner so we wouldn't melt on Masada. As it turned out, it was pleasant weather! We drove through the West Bank and made a pit stop at this little tourist attraction- the Sea Level point. Remember, the Dead Sea is the lowest point on Earth, below the sea level.
Aside from this little sign (and a big one), there was a man with a camel. Obviously, he took advantage of being the only guy to sell tourist stuff and photo-op with a camel. The kids got on it- all together! They had a lot of fun. I wasn't quite into it- just because I'm not a fan of camels. I think they're rude and arrogant. Anyway, the Israeli family all together managed to get a photo op. While they played with the camel, I took a picture of this:
It looks so much like a painting but it's for real! I love it. Afterwards, we all hopped back in the SUV and began driving non-stop to Masada. I wish I had remembered to bring my bandana- I thought I was not going to be going on this leg of the trip... So I ended up wearing a baseball hat and needed to buy water. Zvika was quite admant over everyone drinking water. I kept telling him that I've been here, not just in the desert, and I know how much water I need to drink! We took a cable car up. Before we went through the gate at the top, we went the steps on the snake path to see where the Jews stored water inside the mountain. I didn't remember seeing that. Then we did our tour. I felt that Zvika was very good in telling the history of Masada and knowledgeable of the area. Maybe I didn't pay too much attention to Ron, my parents' tour guide. I pointed out to Aunt Nancy and Ella the Roman ramp and the south side of the mountain where I had gone on my birthright trip. I told them that even though it's my third time on Masada, it's still important to me because that's when I made my kesher (connection) with Israel- through the martyrdom of the Jews in history.
After Masada, we went down everyone got orange and watermelon juices. I was still feeling a little full so I opted out of the watermelon juice. Aunt Nancy never failed to stop asking Alec if he wanted any juice (he's not a fruit eater). While waiting for people to use the bathroom, Zvika challenged me to a water chugging contest to see if I could drink more than what he had left in his water bottle (I had a big bottle and he had the medium size). I thought, "You're challenging the wrong person. If you knew about Colgate's reputation and my past as a milk chugger..." Whatever, I held out longer.
After Masada, Zvika drove into the desert a bit to show us the remains of the Dead Sea from thousands of years ago. On the way here, he had given us a lecture on the Dead Sea. The sight was amazing- I couldn't believe all the salt-rock formations!
We stopped at the Ein Gedi restaurant to grab some lunch.
It was also the same place that my family had lunch too. They didn't have chicken schinztel so I just got baked chicken. Then we went across the road to Ein Gedi Reserve Park. Again, I felt a little unprepared given that I didn't bring my sneakers to walk in. Fortunately, we didn't have to walk very far to the waterfall and pool we'd be dipping in for a bit. I was literally sweating when I got there 15-20 minutes later! Ella was a very good help by offering her shoulder for balance support while I navigated in my birkenstocks. The water was cold but felt great! Zvika said that the Israelis call this the "second waterfall" because the really good ones were up further (where my friends and I had gone several weeks ago). I'm glad that I know where this waterfall is now so I can take my family there next time they come back to Israel. The kids explored behind the rocks (not shown here) while I sat on the rocks observing the nature. They had watershoes on and I was going barefoot so I couldn't really join them. Also I get a little nervous around water when I don't hear anyway.
Finally, we drove out to the Dead Sea- to the beach fairly close to the West Bank chekcpoint- Desert Oasis. It was a very small, narrow beach. I liked it- at least I can go down here from Jerusalem quickly instead of riding all the way down. The water was very warm. The twins and I floated together. Alec floated for a bit but his skin was... too sensitive so he went to the showers pretty fast. It seems like the more time I spend in the Dead Sea, the tougher I get! Ron has all the pictures, by the way. I was on the look out for mud but it didn't really seem to be in plain sight anywhere. So I got out of the water and showered off and then when I came back, the kids and Ron found some mud. So I joined in. We didn't leave much time for the mud to completely dry as we had to get going back to Jerusalem. Before we left, we met Zvika in the bar restaurant and he was smoking some hookah. He explained how the hookah worked. I didn't give a whirl- hookahs aren't really my thing.
I closed my eyes for a bit on the way. When we reached the hotel, I thank Zvika for everything and it was a pleasure to meet him. We all went upstairs to shower and pack. I told Aunt Nancy that I couldn't really leave until Shabbat was over anyway. So I stuck around and had a light dinner with them. Alec and Ben were facsinated by the chocolate syrup decor on their chocolate milk. No one seemed too thrilled that there wasn't anything hot to eat because of Shabbat so most of us ordered tea for drinks. It was also getting very cool out and we were sitting outside on the deck- at the same table where my family had drinks a year ago! I mentioned that to Aunt Nancy and she thought it was funny.
After good-byes and thank yous, I set out to walk to the bus station. I had about an hour. I figured that buses wouldn't actually start running until I would be close to the bus station. But I was just so happy to be in Jerusalem that the bag felt lighter than it did the day before and the walk didn't seem very long even though it was about 45 minutes. At the CBS, things were starting to get nuts! I couldn't get on the 9 PM bus to Haifa and had to wait for the 9:15 one (the next one would be 9:40). I was a little worried that my round-trip ticket would be no good because it was supposed to be good for 23 hours but I knew I could argue that it was still Shabbat at 12:!5 PM! The bus driver took it without problem thankfully. The bus drivers, I noticed, for both buses were carefully not to allow any standing room, given that its a two-hour ride and the buses were running more frequently than on a typical day. I wound up sitting next to some weirdo girl who watched some kind of strange sci-fantasy movie on her laptop.
When I got back to Haifa, I saw that the first bus, 133, I'd take wasn't going to leave for another 20 minutes, I decided that I just wanted to get back to the university before I fall asleep on Horev Street, waiting for 37 to take me back to the university. So I nabbed a cab. I learned my lessons about cab drivers in Haifa- they're actually very fair and won't rip anyone off because this wasn't like Tel Aviv or Jerusalem where there are many ways to different places. Besides, the standard price in general seemed to be around 40 or 50 shekelim anyway between the university and French Carmel/Carmel Center and the universitty and the CBS.
I am very glad that the Israelis were able to visit Israel while I was there. I am thankful for the opportunity to see other parts of Israel that I hadn't seen before. I wanted to do this because I know that once I go off to graduate school in Michigan, it will be more difficult to see them other than Thanksgiving (and the upcoming bar mitzvah). So I didn't just go for the sights, but to spend time with them.
I realized, from this experience, that although it sounds easy to point out things that are important to me, it's hard to convey my emotional connections. I have to really explain why and how. Maybe it sounds easy because I have such vivid imagination. Or maybe sometimes I expect too much. I think that all I want for my family and friends is just to see what I appreciate about Israel and why, however they're feeling about being in this country. For example, when I stood out on the balcony at Chana's watching the sunset over Jerusalem forest, I largely thought about what it had meant for me to live in Jerusalem and to be able to overcome the large stereotypical picture of the city as "very religious" to a picture of a beautiful city where old meets new and changing demographics. I also didn't need to be in the desert to see this beautiful sunset either. How Jerusalem had become much more than the expectations that people have of the city- as very old, ancient place situated in a desert where it's just all sand...
I sighed with a relief when I walked out of the Central Bus Station onto Jaffa. I began walking along Jaffa, just taking in the cityscape. However, the sight of Jaffa, nearly sliced in half, one side being a road, and the other being a construction site, shocked me. As I studied the construction below, I realized that the new light rail will be running along Jaffa. For something that's been talked about for years and non-existent last year, it was incredible to see some work done! The light rail is scheduled to be completed by 2011... but this is Israel... who knows. I began thinking about how much Jerusalem will change in the next 10 years and maybe, just maybe, I will want to live here now that there will definitely be light rail connecting to Tel Aviv, more gourmet restaurants coming for my taste buds, and generally improving quality of life for me. The only problem will be housing, expensive housing.
I made it to the shuk and soaked in the craziness of people running around buying food for Shabbat. I picked up some pita (they're really terrible in Haifa- can't even cut them well to make pockets), a roll, and 30 shekelim worth of Marzipan's chocolate rugalechim. Half would be for the Israeli family as a thank you for coming to Israel, and the other half for my roommates in Haifa as a thank you for being great to me. The trick was to see if I could deliver these without eating them! I bought some pizza rolls as late lunch. Once I was out of the shuk, I began walking to King David hotel, where the Israeli family was staying. I smiled the whole way there. I didn't care if I had to carry my duffel bag for 1 1/2 hours from the CBS to the shuk to King David.
I met Aunt Nancy and the gang. Then Ron's cousin, Yehudit and her family came over to join us for some pool time before Shabbat. She had two kids, ages 10 and 13, perfect for Ben and Alec. She also brought along another cousin, Tamar, who's 14, for Ella. So all 6 of them played in the pool while all the adults sat on the deck and talked. They talked a lot about Max, Yehudit's brother, who lives in New York. It was getting cold after a while that I actually put my clothes back on- I shouldn't have changed into my bathing suit.
When we went back up to the room to prepare for Shabbat, I called up Meredith to see what was going on as I was planning to leave after dinner to Hebrew U. As it turned out, she wouldn't really have much time- the next day, she'd be going to the church until 2 (which I understood) and then leave right after for Ramallah. I froze a bit just hearing that and asked her questions. She and her friend(s) were taking a bus and their friend would pick them up in a tiny car. I decided, partly for comfort, partly for my safety, and partly the need to get back to Jerusalem by 8:30 to catch the 9 PM bus to Haifa, it would be best that I didn't go to Ramallah. She and my aunt both individually thought that I should stay with the Israelis for the night and just stay with them for the weekend, and then I would come back to Jerusalem on Wednesday after the end of ulpan. So that was that. I was a little smitten at the thought of being able to stay at King David for the night, even if it meant sleeping on the couch in their suite.
Around 6:30ish, we took cabs out to northwestern part of Jerusalem, to Chana's (Ron's aunt, on father's side) and Zoobie's (sp.?). They live in a small apartment building that they built in 1981 for their family. They live in one apartment, their son lives in another, and Max used to live in the third (and now some people rent it). They had a beautiful view of Jerusalem Forest, which equalled to a great sunset. The Israeli family and Chana went over to Ron's grandmother in her nursing home while I hung out with Zoobie and Etai, their grandson (who was very cute by the way!). They set up the BBQ and some of the dinner (isn't that nice, men taking care of the cooking a bit?). I took the opportunity to call Linda to update her and then I called Dad to say hi.
Finally, everyone came around 7:30ish. Aunt Nancy asked me if I had told Dad that she had let me with some strange relatives for an hour. I said to her that I was just so happy to be in Jerusalem that it didn't matter at all! So at dinner, we had about 25 or so people- half adults and half kids. It was all family and the atmosphere was quite inviting and warm. Dinner was lamb beef patties (Zoobie told me that generally ground meat in Israel is 50% beef and 50% lamb, which I wish I had known!), rice, stuffed peppers (Mexican style), carrots glazed with grapes, some Israeli salads, and pita. All so delicious that I wish I could take some with me! For dessert, Chana served parve cheesecake (it tasted parve...), watermelon, and chocolate cake loaf. Consequently with all the food, Nancy, Ben, and I did not sleep very well that night and had crazy, bizarre dreams (I dreamt of Cutie, my old pony, who I hadn't thought of in a while!).
I met a couple, the Yerushalamis, who had connections to Rochester Jewish community. The wife, Judy, who made aliyah 15 years ago, still has some relatives there. I told them that I worked on a thesis and am still working on it, relating to the Jewish community there. She gave a hint that she might be able to give me more clues of the German immigrants in the 1930s and 1940s. I got her email. That was quite exciting for me! In Israel! We also talked a bit about challenges of making aliyah like support and jobs.
We finally left after 10 PM. I pretty much crashed with everyone else.
The next day, we got up and went down for breakfast. The breakfast spread was just beautiful- they had cinnamon and chocolate brioche! We met Zvika around 9:15 and began driving. I was worried that the Dead Sea would be very hot and thought we'd need to go sooner so we wouldn't melt on Masada. As it turned out, it was pleasant weather! We drove through the West Bank and made a pit stop at this little tourist attraction- the Sea Level point. Remember, the Dead Sea is the lowest point on Earth, below the sea level.
Aside from this little sign (and a big one), there was a man with a camel. Obviously, he took advantage of being the only guy to sell tourist stuff and photo-op with a camel. The kids got on it- all together! They had a lot of fun. I wasn't quite into it- just because I'm not a fan of camels. I think they're rude and arrogant. Anyway, the Israeli family all together managed to get a photo op. While they played with the camel, I took a picture of this:
It looks so much like a painting but it's for real! I love it. Afterwards, we all hopped back in the SUV and began driving non-stop to Masada. I wish I had remembered to bring my bandana- I thought I was not going to be going on this leg of the trip... So I ended up wearing a baseball hat and needed to buy water. Zvika was quite admant over everyone drinking water. I kept telling him that I've been here, not just in the desert, and I know how much water I need to drink! We took a cable car up. Before we went through the gate at the top, we went the steps on the snake path to see where the Jews stored water inside the mountain. I didn't remember seeing that. Then we did our tour. I felt that Zvika was very good in telling the history of Masada and knowledgeable of the area. Maybe I didn't pay too much attention to Ron, my parents' tour guide. I pointed out to Aunt Nancy and Ella the Roman ramp and the south side of the mountain where I had gone on my birthright trip. I told them that even though it's my third time on Masada, it's still important to me because that's when I made my kesher (connection) with Israel- through the martyrdom of the Jews in history.
After Masada, we went down everyone got orange and watermelon juices. I was still feeling a little full so I opted out of the watermelon juice. Aunt Nancy never failed to stop asking Alec if he wanted any juice (he's not a fruit eater). While waiting for people to use the bathroom, Zvika challenged me to a water chugging contest to see if I could drink more than what he had left in his water bottle (I had a big bottle and he had the medium size). I thought, "You're challenging the wrong person. If you knew about Colgate's reputation and my past as a milk chugger..." Whatever, I held out longer.
After Masada, Zvika drove into the desert a bit to show us the remains of the Dead Sea from thousands of years ago. On the way here, he had given us a lecture on the Dead Sea. The sight was amazing- I couldn't believe all the salt-rock formations!
We stopped at the Ein Gedi restaurant to grab some lunch.
It was also the same place that my family had lunch too. They didn't have chicken schinztel so I just got baked chicken. Then we went across the road to Ein Gedi Reserve Park. Again, I felt a little unprepared given that I didn't bring my sneakers to walk in. Fortunately, we didn't have to walk very far to the waterfall and pool we'd be dipping in for a bit. I was literally sweating when I got there 15-20 minutes later! Ella was a very good help by offering her shoulder for balance support while I navigated in my birkenstocks. The water was cold but felt great! Zvika said that the Israelis call this the "second waterfall" because the really good ones were up further (where my friends and I had gone several weeks ago). I'm glad that I know where this waterfall is now so I can take my family there next time they come back to Israel. The kids explored behind the rocks (not shown here) while I sat on the rocks observing the nature. They had watershoes on and I was going barefoot so I couldn't really join them. Also I get a little nervous around water when I don't hear anyway.
Finally, we drove out to the Dead Sea- to the beach fairly close to the West Bank chekcpoint- Desert Oasis. It was a very small, narrow beach. I liked it- at least I can go down here from Jerusalem quickly instead of riding all the way down. The water was very warm. The twins and I floated together. Alec floated for a bit but his skin was... too sensitive so he went to the showers pretty fast. It seems like the more time I spend in the Dead Sea, the tougher I get! Ron has all the pictures, by the way. I was on the look out for mud but it didn't really seem to be in plain sight anywhere. So I got out of the water and showered off and then when I came back, the kids and Ron found some mud. So I joined in. We didn't leave much time for the mud to completely dry as we had to get going back to Jerusalem. Before we left, we met Zvika in the bar restaurant and he was smoking some hookah. He explained how the hookah worked. I didn't give a whirl- hookahs aren't really my thing.
I closed my eyes for a bit on the way. When we reached the hotel, I thank Zvika for everything and it was a pleasure to meet him. We all went upstairs to shower and pack. I told Aunt Nancy that I couldn't really leave until Shabbat was over anyway. So I stuck around and had a light dinner with them. Alec and Ben were facsinated by the chocolate syrup decor on their chocolate milk. No one seemed too thrilled that there wasn't anything hot to eat because of Shabbat so most of us ordered tea for drinks. It was also getting very cool out and we were sitting outside on the deck- at the same table where my family had drinks a year ago! I mentioned that to Aunt Nancy and she thought it was funny.
After good-byes and thank yous, I set out to walk to the bus station. I had about an hour. I figured that buses wouldn't actually start running until I would be close to the bus station. But I was just so happy to be in Jerusalem that the bag felt lighter than it did the day before and the walk didn't seem very long even though it was about 45 minutes. At the CBS, things were starting to get nuts! I couldn't get on the 9 PM bus to Haifa and had to wait for the 9:15 one (the next one would be 9:40). I was a little worried that my round-trip ticket would be no good because it was supposed to be good for 23 hours but I knew I could argue that it was still Shabbat at 12:!5 PM! The bus driver took it without problem thankfully. The bus drivers, I noticed, for both buses were carefully not to allow any standing room, given that its a two-hour ride and the buses were running more frequently than on a typical day. I wound up sitting next to some weirdo girl who watched some kind of strange sci-fantasy movie on her laptop.
When I got back to Haifa, I saw that the first bus, 133, I'd take wasn't going to leave for another 20 minutes, I decided that I just wanted to get back to the university before I fall asleep on Horev Street, waiting for 37 to take me back to the university. So I nabbed a cab. I learned my lessons about cab drivers in Haifa- they're actually very fair and won't rip anyone off because this wasn't like Tel Aviv or Jerusalem where there are many ways to different places. Besides, the standard price in general seemed to be around 40 or 50 shekelim anyway between the university and French Carmel/Carmel Center and the universitty and the CBS.
I am very glad that the Israelis were able to visit Israel while I was there. I am thankful for the opportunity to see other parts of Israel that I hadn't seen before. I wanted to do this because I know that once I go off to graduate school in Michigan, it will be more difficult to see them other than Thanksgiving (and the upcoming bar mitzvah). So I didn't just go for the sights, but to spend time with them.
I realized, from this experience, that although it sounds easy to point out things that are important to me, it's hard to convey my emotional connections. I have to really explain why and how. Maybe it sounds easy because I have such vivid imagination. Or maybe sometimes I expect too much. I think that all I want for my family and friends is just to see what I appreciate about Israel and why, however they're feeling about being in this country. For example, when I stood out on the balcony at Chana's watching the sunset over Jerusalem forest, I largely thought about what it had meant for me to live in Jerusalem and to be able to overcome the large stereotypical picture of the city as "very religious" to a picture of a beautiful city where old meets new and changing demographics. I also didn't need to be in the desert to see this beautiful sunset either. How Jerusalem had become much more than the expectations that people have of the city- as very old, ancient place situated in a desert where it's just all sand...
Thursday, July 24, 2008
Exciting Conversations!
Ulpan is picking up a bit, slowly but surely. My partner, David, and I did our class presentation yesterday on Eliezar Ben-Yehuda. We turned it into a skit. I played an unhappy talmud student and David was Ben Yehuda and it was Ben Yehuda's job to make the student excited about learning Modern Hebrew. We did pretty well and Roni didn't interrupt too much compared to other presentations- yippee. It was our goal. The room we were in was soooo cold that I had to get a cup of cappuccino to warm up!
Roni finally taught the future tense today but I didn't think she taught it too well. She was trying to cram two concepts instead of separating them. Like there's a common tense but certain final letter of the shoresh reqires a slight change in the first and second persons. At least we're moving on. In the final period of class, we went to the children's section in the library. We formed groups and each read a book and acted out in front of the class. Danna, Naomi, and I read Dr. Seuss' Green Eggs and Ham (actually in Hebrew it roughly translates "I'm Not Hungry, I Don't Like It" (לא רבע לא אוהב)) Obviously the story didn't rhyme but it was great. Danna acted out while Naomi and I took our parts. Other people picked Where the Wild Things Are, The Giving Tree, and Good Night Moon. It was the best part of ulpan class so far!
I went to the beach yesterday. I totally missed the 46 bus so I hopped on the 37 to transfer and just missed the 133. So I waited like half-hour for the next one, ugh! The waves were still good but very strong that I actually ducked underwater when the waves came over! I almost lost my bikini bottom (I guess my body has changed quite a bit since I was 17 and had more fat on my body, even though I weighed less then!). The beach where I was was very busy that I didn't get a chair for a while so I laid out on my towel as usual. I definitely wished that I had a surfboard!
When I came back, I made my dinner and Sylvia and Einuat also made their dinners. The three of us actually sat down and talked about Israel and our backgrounds. My apartment is very diverse but everyone (except for Liora) is Sephardic. Einuat's father immigrated from India and her mother came from Egypt (and her lineage go back to France in 1880s). Sylvia's family was from South Africa (though she's white like us). Bat-El's parents were from Yemen. And Lilach's from Iran and Iraq. They're all quite traditional in their practices with Bat El and Lilach coming from Orthodox families. Einuat and Sylvie also talked about their opinions towards the Israeli government and the Second Lebanon War. Contrary to my beliefs and the grapevine, they, as young Israelis, don't care for either presidential candidates- they think Obama is a good person.
Today, I had planned on going to Tiberias after class as I had been hankering to go for a couple hours. But I ended up having lunch with Rahel and her friend. Rahel's from Switzerland and has the most lovely accent so I love listening to her talk. She's not Jewish but her mom's very into Jewish culture and also gave one of her brothers a Jewish name- David. The girls were curious about my cochlear implant and thought it was a very cool thing that it existed and that I could lip read.
Afterwards, I went to the international student office to see if my cell had come in yet. Nope. I need to try again on Sunday. Sigh.
Then I went back to my room and got dressed quickly for the beach. I caught the 46 today-
yippee! Bat-El was also on the bus so we sat together to the station. A girl in front of us said that it was her first time riding the bus to the beach and one thing after the other, I learned that she's a Smithie! Her name's Chantel and she's from Santa Barbara. Go figure that she loves the beach. We decided to buddy up and go to the beach together. We spent the next 2 1/2 hours talking and doing our Hebrew homework. Even though I know I left Smith, I still love meeting up with Smithies. She also lived in Albright and has Justin Cammy, my old Jewish Studies advisor, for her advisor. She's studying Hebrew this summer to fulfill her major requirements for her Jewish Studies major. I'm proud of her!
Now I'm glad that I didn't go to Tiberias! Maybe I'll try again on Monday or next Wednesday though... I want to do it from Haifa- it's just easier to do it than from Herzliya or Jerusalem.
Tomorrow, off to Jerusalem!!
Roni finally taught the future tense today but I didn't think she taught it too well. She was trying to cram two concepts instead of separating them. Like there's a common tense but certain final letter of the shoresh reqires a slight change in the first and second persons. At least we're moving on. In the final period of class, we went to the children's section in the library. We formed groups and each read a book and acted out in front of the class. Danna, Naomi, and I read Dr. Seuss' Green Eggs and Ham (actually in Hebrew it roughly translates "I'm Not Hungry, I Don't Like It" (לא רבע לא אוהב)) Obviously the story didn't rhyme but it was great. Danna acted out while Naomi and I took our parts. Other people picked Where the Wild Things Are, The Giving Tree, and Good Night Moon. It was the best part of ulpan class so far!
I went to the beach yesterday. I totally missed the 46 bus so I hopped on the 37 to transfer and just missed the 133. So I waited like half-hour for the next one, ugh! The waves were still good but very strong that I actually ducked underwater when the waves came over! I almost lost my bikini bottom (I guess my body has changed quite a bit since I was 17 and had more fat on my body, even though I weighed less then!). The beach where I was was very busy that I didn't get a chair for a while so I laid out on my towel as usual. I definitely wished that I had a surfboard!
When I came back, I made my dinner and Sylvia and Einuat also made their dinners. The three of us actually sat down and talked about Israel and our backgrounds. My apartment is very diverse but everyone (except for Liora) is Sephardic. Einuat's father immigrated from India and her mother came from Egypt (and her lineage go back to France in 1880s). Sylvia's family was from South Africa (though she's white like us). Bat-El's parents were from Yemen. And Lilach's from Iran and Iraq. They're all quite traditional in their practices with Bat El and Lilach coming from Orthodox families. Einuat and Sylvie also talked about their opinions towards the Israeli government and the Second Lebanon War. Contrary to my beliefs and the grapevine, they, as young Israelis, don't care for either presidential candidates- they think Obama is a good person.
Today, I had planned on going to Tiberias after class as I had been hankering to go for a couple hours. But I ended up having lunch with Rahel and her friend. Rahel's from Switzerland and has the most lovely accent so I love listening to her talk. She's not Jewish but her mom's very into Jewish culture and also gave one of her brothers a Jewish name- David. The girls were curious about my cochlear implant and thought it was a very cool thing that it existed and that I could lip read.
Afterwards, I went to the international student office to see if my cell had come in yet. Nope. I need to try again on Sunday. Sigh.
Then I went back to my room and got dressed quickly for the beach. I caught the 46 today-
yippee! Bat-El was also on the bus so we sat together to the station. A girl in front of us said that it was her first time riding the bus to the beach and one thing after the other, I learned that she's a Smithie! Her name's Chantel and she's from Santa Barbara. Go figure that she loves the beach. We decided to buddy up and go to the beach together. We spent the next 2 1/2 hours talking and doing our Hebrew homework. Even though I know I left Smith, I still love meeting up with Smithies. She also lived in Albright and has Justin Cammy, my old Jewish Studies advisor, for her advisor. She's studying Hebrew this summer to fulfill her major requirements for her Jewish Studies major. I'm proud of her!Now I'm glad that I didn't go to Tiberias! Maybe I'll try again on Monday or next Wednesday though... I want to do it from Haifa- it's just easier to do it than from Herzliya or Jerusalem.
Tomorrow, off to Jerusalem!!
I know, I look ridiculously tan. Maybe the Olympics on tv will keep me out of the sun while I stay with the Ravids...
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
Immigration Museum and Elijah's Cave
I felt so bad this morning. I tried to get up for the gym but the monitor didn't get there on time. Other people and I waited for a bit but after half-hour, I just really wanted to go back to bed. I didn't want to go to class. So I went back to sleep for another hour or so. I woke up very refreshed, especially with a shower.
First, I went to the secretary's office to tell her which phone I wanted. TalkNSave would be sending one out today and I'll get it tomorrow or Thursday, before I go to Jerusalem. Yay!!! Then, I went to class. Apparently, everyone knew that I got stung by a bee. I guess my classmate told everyone why I didn't show up. Roni was cool with it. Then she went on *gasp* another "therefore" lesson... all the stuff she posted for lessons today were repeats. So much for progress. Some people improved while others still struggle a bit to speak more naturally in Hebrew. I felt that my conversations with Lilach helped me out because I just snapped a sentence or two out of the air when we had to say sentences.
After class, I ran off to my room and quickly packed my lunch and began waiting at the bus stop. The Immigration Museum would be closing at 4 and I had no idea how long the ride would be or how big the museum was. I mistakely stepped on 36 bus when I should've taken the 24. So the 36 bus took me to the north bus station. That was good for me to know though when I want to head out to Tiberias for a day. (Haifa has two central bus stations- one in the south to serve all places south of Haifa and another one in the north to serve the Golan and Galilee areas). I switched to 114 that would take me along the route to the south station. I went too far past the museum so I ended up having to walk quite a bit.
The Museum was a bit tricky to find as I had to stop at the Maritime Museum to ask for directions. As it turned out, I had to go down the stairs. I hated the stairs- they're the very gradual kind and it's hard to step down without short-stepping or gliding. The security guy was very frisky- he really checked me over and asked for my ID (passport but I gave him my student ID). My ID was almost unacceptable!
I paid 5 shekels and went in. First, I went to see the audiovisual movie. It was a little hard to understand but it talked of the illegal immigration of DPs. After that, I walked the exhibits (I had about 30 minutes left). Almost everything was in Hebrew.
"Aliyah Bet" was an illegal immigration operation to save thousands of DPs and Holocaust survivors using the ships, which were later converted for the Israeli Navy to fight in the 1948 war. At that time, Palestine was still under British Mandate with heavy Jewish immigration restrictions. Only up to 1,250 Jews could immigrate legally to Palestine. Britian had planned to expand immigration and partition the state to a Jewish state and an Arab state but the Arabs shot down the idea in 1939. To pacify the Arabs while needing the oil and weaponry for the upcoming war against Hitler, Britain abandoned any ideas or promises to give Jews more opportunities to be in Palestine. Jews were very unhappy especially that the Jews in Eastern Europe needed a place to escape. During the war and after, the British Navy created a blockade to prevent any illegal immigration to Palestine. Aliyah Bet operated in the 1930s and from 1946 to1948, bringing in 50,000 safely to the shores of Palestine. Another 50,000 were captured and deported to Cyprus by the British. Many of the ships and resuce efforts came from American and Canadian Jews.
The ship, which held the audiovisual movie.
The exhibits themselves were alright. I saw photographs and objects from the operation and camps in Cyprus. There were also a bunch of old Ha'aretz newspapers.
What a dwelling looked like at a camp in Cyprus
Finally, I walked into an exhibit on the history of the Israeli Navy. I thought it was very interesting that the Israeli Navy was literally born out of claudestine immigration (PC term used by those involved) because they used the same ships and basically some of the people who participated in Aliyah Bet became fighters for Israel in the War of Independence. The exhibit covered many of the major battles fought- in 1959, 1967, 1973, 1982... The Navy also captured many terrorists. It was definitely the most interesting part because it seemed like Israel really prided on its navy to protect the fragile state and there were some pretty cool operations against the Egyptians and Syrians.
After the museum, I decided to take advantage of the opportunity of being across the street from Elijah's Cave. So I put on my white button down shirt and went up the stairs/ramp. I was expecting a big, big cave. Like a real cave that you see in Biblical movies. Instead, it was like a synagogue in a moutain. Elijah was one of the prophets and rumor had it that he stayed here on his way to a momentous confrontation with the prophets of Ba'al on the Carmel. "And Elijah said...Now Therefore send and gather to me all Israel unto Mount Carmel." (I Kings 1B). This is one of Israel's most sacred caves.
The view from across the street
Men's side
Women's side
After the cave, I set to walk along Allenby Street towards Hadar to catch a bus back. It was a longer walk than I thought but mostly flat, thankfully. I decided to catch a sherut when I got tired but oops, I should've kept going to another bus stop because I finally saw a 37. Oh well. So the sherut dropped me off near Herzl street. Much, much to my joy and this greatly lifted my spirit- a Russian market!!! As I've mentioned Haifa has a pretty large Russian speaking population and I have yet to find an ethnic market until today. So I went in to look for Russian chocolates. I sampled one but it wasn't what I was thinking off. Then I looked in the refridgerated cases and looked at the prepared foods. Yum... one of the young Russian girls gave me several samples, which were all yummy. I picked out two potato pancakes and a sweet pancake. I also got several pieces of chocolates for Aunt Nancy to give to her on Friday and some chocolate covered marshmallows. I also picked out what I thought was a slice of honey cake (but later found out it wasn't). I was very happy and nothing seemed to matter for the moment.
By the way, here's a picture of McDonalds' on Herzl and thought you'd enjoy the little "McWall" sign. In Israel, the Israelis don't say "take-outs." Instead, they say "take-away." I would imagine it'd be confusing in a restaurant if you wanted to tell the waiter to "take-away" your food as in clearing the table..
While e-mailing with another graduate student, she talked about her research papers and such and I mentioned how I hadn't done anything this summer. Then I realized that when I'm in Israel, it's so hard for me to even think about research project ideas. Everything relating to graduate school is basically thrown out of the window when I land in Tel Aviv because my mind warps to "survival-mode." Whether it's a matter of being able to understand Hebrew or just... survival in a semi-state of war country, I just don't think about anything except making it to the end of the day alive and gaining more knowledge of Hebrew. No wonder why I wanted to make aliyah so badly a year ago- it was too hard for me to imagine any research ideas or maintain my interest in the Holocaust or American Jewish history. Or even want to go to graduate school. It's funny because when I was in Germany or Czech Republic (or Japan and Spain), my train of thought keeps running. In Israel, the tracks go nowhere in particular.
Monday, July 21, 2008
More Beach Time and Cellphone Craziness
I had my midterm on Sunday which was fairly easy. I got a B+ on it (84). So I'm happy, especially that I didn't really need to study for it. But because it was so easy I just didn't want to write 6 pages of it so it took me as long as the first person to finish it (1 1/2 hours).
I couldn't wait to get out of class but we had a speaker, an Israeil student who is from Ethiopia. We asked her a bunch of questions about her background and what she thinks of things. I was surprised that one of the Israeli students (well she is Israeil by nationality but moved to Sweden) didn't know the difference between Ashkenzaim and Sephardim and where those people came from. I was feeling that as much I like learning Hebrew quickly, maybe I don't really need to be in another ulpan... at least only one more and then just be all done with it because these things just get old for me. I don't know how Melissa manages going through several ulpanim! Another reason why we tend to run overtime quite bit was that Roni likes to talk a lot.
Finally, I got out and grabbed my stuff (almost forgot my towel!) and took a sherut to meet the Israelis at the hotel. They had just returned from a day trip exploring Haifa, including the family cemetery and Ron's old school. The kids were very tired- Ben kept falling asleep on the spot wherever he was. But the parents and I got them up and moving for the beach. Sometimes I have a hard time believing that the kids still need to be told what to do and get organized... all three of them. I thought back to what the days used to be so easy when our family had only those twins! Aunt Nancy and Uncle Ron certainly have amazing patience to keep talking in order to get each kid moving in his/her way. Like you think that someone's dressed for the beach and then you go off telling another kid to get off the bed, and then you look at a third one who's playing with a camera and then you realize that the kid still hasn't gotten dressed...
Anyway, we took cabs down to the beach. Ron stopped at one beach and I was praying for him to keep going down further south, where I go. The place he thought we'd go wasn't what he expecting so I was happy when we drove down another 1/4- 1/2 mile.
Then we just hung out at the beach from 4:30 to 7 PM. I spent time talking to Aunt Nancy, working on my Hebrew dialogue, and sitting in the waves. The kids either played in the waves or running around in the sand. Ben and Alec were interested in collecting pretty cool rocks. I played frisbee with them. I was surprised that Ben's actually very good at it, given that he doesn't have great coordination (like me). And for Uncle Ron? He was so happy to be at the beach. When he went in the water, Aunt Nancy said to me that she was glad that Ron was in the water with Alec because the kids went out further than expected. When Ron came back, she said that to him and he said that it wasn't exactly what he was thinking... he just wanted to be in the water. Ha.
We also got ice cream, yum. For dinner, we went to one of the restaurants by the beach so we could look out to the water and sunset. I love doing this- sitting outside and having a meal. I ordered a salad with sauteed mushrooms and friend bits of halumi cheese. Ella ordered some shrimp. Everyone else had more Israeli fare- chicken schinztel. The waitress also brought in Israeli salads- including marinated eggplant! Yes!
Then we went to catch cabs to get back up on the mountain. I got in mine and then just went we left, I forgot my purse! (I had a backpack too). The cab driver was so nice to drive back and wait for me. The restaurant still had it- plus my extra tank AND someone's sunglasses. Very nice.
Today, class got a little more interesting. Not only Roni was actually teaching us new stuff but we also got to play on the computers doing verb drills. It didn't take me very long as I knew how to type in Hebrew. I know where the letters are but it's not quite becoming automatic yet as I do in English. The verb drills on the computer were neat and better than the ones I had at Hebrew U (although the program was designed by Hebrew U!).
I took some time to work on my cellphone issue. My family kept telling me that it's the phone that's the problem. So I sat with the assistant secretary to sort it out. She called TalkNSave to see what's the deal. TalkNSave said that I could try out certain models at the local Cellcom store and tell them which one I want and they'll send me a new one. I am hoping to have this sorted out before I go to Jerusalem.
So that meant scratching the idea of going to the Immigration Museum and go to the beach and stop at the Haifa Mall. Tomorrow, I will go to the Immigration Museum.
The beach today was the best one- there weren't many jellyfish around! So I actually stayed in the water and played in the waves for a while! I was much happier than before. But I forgot my pen to work on my Hebrew homework with. Oops.
After the beach, I went over to the Haifa Mall. I stopped at the counter in the aisle but the woman didn't speak enough English and directed me to visit the store upstairs. So I went over there. It was... a madhouse. It was much better than Verizon or any of the other cellphone companies! There were 12-18 desks and you actually need to get a punch ticket and wait for your turn. But I went up to one of them when it was free and told them I don't know enough Hebrew and blah, blah. I also needed to find that slip that the secretary gave me that had instructions on it in Hebrew to give to someone. So while waiting for someone to come with me downstairs, I went through my notebook again. Finally, I found it and told the manager thanks and I'll just go down and try again. But... that scene was just crazy... I hope that if I make aliyah to Israel, my phone had better be good!
I went back down and showed the woman the slip. Ah-ha, she got it. Then we started communicating in Hebrew by writing on a piece of paper with a pen. I understood enough that she couldn't help me for some techincal reasons. She wanted to help but couldn't let me try anything. But the models that I am allowed to upgrade are all Motorola or Nokia. So I'm just going to ask for one of the Motorolas.
So it took me a while to get back home.... And I got stung by a bee while working on my blog. Funny that Alec asked me the other day whether a jellyfish sting hurt more than a bee sting. I had told him that I hadn't been stung by a bee since I was like 8. Now I can tell him that bee stings hurt A LOT more than jellyfish! I actually cried for a bit.
After putting ice on it with the help of my classmate and my Israeli roommates, I went back down. I talked to Dad via AIM- that was a good way to end my day. I felt a little better as I was missing my family. I realized that I usually start missing home when I'm in third week of being away. So hopefully after this weekend, I will feel a little better with a trip to Jerusalem and a new cellphone.
I couldn't wait to get out of class but we had a speaker, an Israeil student who is from Ethiopia. We asked her a bunch of questions about her background and what she thinks of things. I was surprised that one of the Israeli students (well she is Israeil by nationality but moved to Sweden) didn't know the difference between Ashkenzaim and Sephardim and where those people came from. I was feeling that as much I like learning Hebrew quickly, maybe I don't really need to be in another ulpan... at least only one more and then just be all done with it because these things just get old for me. I don't know how Melissa manages going through several ulpanim! Another reason why we tend to run overtime quite bit was that Roni likes to talk a lot.
Finally, I got out and grabbed my stuff (almost forgot my towel!) and took a sherut to meet the Israelis at the hotel. They had just returned from a day trip exploring Haifa, including the family cemetery and Ron's old school. The kids were very tired- Ben kept falling asleep on the spot wherever he was. But the parents and I got them up and moving for the beach. Sometimes I have a hard time believing that the kids still need to be told what to do and get organized... all three of them. I thought back to what the days used to be so easy when our family had only those twins! Aunt Nancy and Uncle Ron certainly have amazing patience to keep talking in order to get each kid moving in his/her way. Like you think that someone's dressed for the beach and then you go off telling another kid to get off the bed, and then you look at a third one who's playing with a camera and then you realize that the kid still hasn't gotten dressed...
Anyway, we took cabs down to the beach. Ron stopped at one beach and I was praying for him to keep going down further south, where I go. The place he thought we'd go wasn't what he expecting so I was happy when we drove down another 1/4- 1/2 mile.
Then we just hung out at the beach from 4:30 to 7 PM. I spent time talking to Aunt Nancy, working on my Hebrew dialogue, and sitting in the waves. The kids either played in the waves or running around in the sand. Ben and Alec were interested in collecting pretty cool rocks. I played frisbee with them. I was surprised that Ben's actually very good at it, given that he doesn't have great coordination (like me). And for Uncle Ron? He was so happy to be at the beach. When he went in the water, Aunt Nancy said to me that she was glad that Ron was in the water with Alec because the kids went out further than expected. When Ron came back, she said that to him and he said that it wasn't exactly what he was thinking... he just wanted to be in the water. Ha.
We also got ice cream, yum. For dinner, we went to one of the restaurants by the beach so we could look out to the water and sunset. I love doing this- sitting outside and having a meal. I ordered a salad with sauteed mushrooms and friend bits of halumi cheese. Ella ordered some shrimp. Everyone else had more Israeli fare- chicken schinztel. The waitress also brought in Israeli salads- including marinated eggplant! Yes!
Then we went to catch cabs to get back up on the mountain. I got in mine and then just went we left, I forgot my purse! (I had a backpack too). The cab driver was so nice to drive back and wait for me. The restaurant still had it- plus my extra tank AND someone's sunglasses. Very nice.
Today, class got a little more interesting. Not only Roni was actually teaching us new stuff but we also got to play on the computers doing verb drills. It didn't take me very long as I knew how to type in Hebrew. I know where the letters are but it's not quite becoming automatic yet as I do in English. The verb drills on the computer were neat and better than the ones I had at Hebrew U (although the program was designed by Hebrew U!).
I took some time to work on my cellphone issue. My family kept telling me that it's the phone that's the problem. So I sat with the assistant secretary to sort it out. She called TalkNSave to see what's the deal. TalkNSave said that I could try out certain models at the local Cellcom store and tell them which one I want and they'll send me a new one. I am hoping to have this sorted out before I go to Jerusalem.
So that meant scratching the idea of going to the Immigration Museum and go to the beach and stop at the Haifa Mall. Tomorrow, I will go to the Immigration Museum.
The beach today was the best one- there weren't many jellyfish around! So I actually stayed in the water and played in the waves for a while! I was much happier than before. But I forgot my pen to work on my Hebrew homework with. Oops.
After the beach, I went over to the Haifa Mall. I stopped at the counter in the aisle but the woman didn't speak enough English and directed me to visit the store upstairs. So I went over there. It was... a madhouse. It was much better than Verizon or any of the other cellphone companies! There were 12-18 desks and you actually need to get a punch ticket and wait for your turn. But I went up to one of them when it was free and told them I don't know enough Hebrew and blah, blah. I also needed to find that slip that the secretary gave me that had instructions on it in Hebrew to give to someone. So while waiting for someone to come with me downstairs, I went through my notebook again. Finally, I found it and told the manager thanks and I'll just go down and try again. But... that scene was just crazy... I hope that if I make aliyah to Israel, my phone had better be good!
I went back down and showed the woman the slip. Ah-ha, she got it. Then we started communicating in Hebrew by writing on a piece of paper with a pen. I understood enough that she couldn't help me for some techincal reasons. She wanted to help but couldn't let me try anything. But the models that I am allowed to upgrade are all Motorola or Nokia. So I'm just going to ask for one of the Motorolas.
So it took me a while to get back home.... And I got stung by a bee while working on my blog. Funny that Alec asked me the other day whether a jellyfish sting hurt more than a bee sting. I had told him that I hadn't been stung by a bee since I was like 8. Now I can tell him that bee stings hurt A LOT more than jellyfish! I actually cried for a bit.
After putting ice on it with the help of my classmate and my Israeli roommates, I went back down. I talked to Dad via AIM- that was a good way to end my day. I felt a little better as I was missing my family. I realized that I usually start missing home when I'm in third week of being away. So hopefully after this weekend, I will feel a little better with a trip to Jerusalem and a new cellphone.
Saturday, July 19, 2008
Shabbat with the Israeli Family!
I waited forever and ever for the Israelis to make it to Haifa! I thought they'd come either Thursday or Friday. Then Aunt Nancy said Friday afternoon and I hoped sometimes after lunch... but not until 4ish! I spent pretty much almost the whole day just getting my Hebrew homework out of the way. That was important as my teacher decided to give everybody a monster assignment of using evey single verb and put them in a sentence, both past and present. So it ended up being 49 verbs, or 98 sentences. Ew.
I finally met the Israelis at their hotel (after a brief mix up of the two Dans- Dan Carmel and Dan Panorama). It seemed a little surreal to see them actually in Israel. Maybe it's just that the kids just got to Israel and I had such strong roots here that I didn't think much of them being so connected with the surroundings yet. I mean, Ella said that she's just enjoying Israel. Anyway, we rested for a bit before going out for Shabbat dinner.
For Shabbat dinner, we went to Ron's mother's best friend's house. The woman, Ri'ah, was very hospitable and welcoming. She was a lovely woman. Her husband cooked grilled meat. Essentially, the dinner was a reflection of Sami's in Jerusalem (without the Jerusalem mixed grill!). We had lamb, hot dogs, chicken, all the Israeli salads, and pita/hummus. Ri'ah's family was also there- her three (out of four) children and their children. So my cousins played with those kids while I listened to Aunt Nancy converse with others. I also spoke with one of the children a bit. It was all very good and I enjoyed the meal very much. Her place was a bit close to the university and faced the hills rather than the water. Ri'ah had a very old photograph of Uncle Ron as a baby and he was very cute.
On Shabbat, we had a whole day of tripping. First, we went up to Rosh Hanikra, about 45-60 minutes north of Haifa. When I heard that we were going there, I felt a little sad and almost wanted not really get out of the car. But for the Israeli family, I'll join along. We end up visiting the Grottos, water caverns. The view from the hill to the shores was just beautiful.
Rosh Hanikra has incredible interesting history. It was one of the major passage points for trade and caravans. In the early 1940s, under the British Mandate, it was proposed that a railroad would be built that would link Europe to Egypt. The railroad would run through Turkey, Lebanon (Beruit), Rosh Hanikra, Akko, Haifa, and all the way down to Egypt. The railroad would provide military supplies to the troops in North Africa. The railway was destroyed just prior to the War of Independence in 1948 to stop the infilteration of Lebanese troops into Palestine. We saw the tunnels and the tracks that the railroad once ran on.
It used to be that only very experience divers could explore the grottos. Now there is a cable car that takes visitors down. So we took it. We walked about 25 minutes through the tunnels to see the water crashing and mulling about the rocks. The sight was quite spectacular! I couldn't believe that I had this privilege of being able to take some beautiful pictures like these.
This one is my favorite- looking down through a crack
Ben looked so ridiculous with his sunglasses!
After Rosh Hanikra, we drove down to Akko. I had been to Akko but it was more of a "Take a quick pic and let's go" trip. First, we walked through the Turkish bazaar, which was definitely busier than last April (2007). The stuff was actually quite good and not too junky as in the Old City of Jerusalem! We had falafels and schwarma for lunch. Now I'm really going to try not having falafels again for the rest of the time in Israel although those falafels were very good. So was the hummus- I wish I wasn't running out of any! I probably could've bought some for Meredith when I visit her in Jerusalem this coming weekend. Uncle Ron looked like he was in heaven.
When we finished lunch, we began walking towards the Turkish bathhouse. It was very hard to hear the audio phone but the site (most likely renovated) was very beautiful. I loved the 18th century Oriential architecture. I felt like a royalty! The place was actually multi-media- you listened to the audio phone while watching a screen in each room. The movie was a drama through the eyes of a servant. You saw how the people used the baths as a means of socialization of all kinds. Just like the Roman baths. But the experience, for me, was just marveling at the architecture.
Courtyard in the Citadel
The Great Hall
Then we began walking to the Citadel. We saw the Great Hall, the prison, and courtyards. We (almost crawled) went through tunnels again- they were quite narrow! The site was still under renovations so there weren't a lot to take good pictures of. We end up at a shop where we saw the owner etching metal. The metalwork was gorgeous.
Then it was time to leave Akko. As we headed out, I took another look at the walls, from the Crusades era. It's pretty unbelievable how the Crusaders really came over to spread influence in Israel, not just to conquer Jerusalem.We returned to the hotel and I was so exhausted! I wasn't used to being on the go- the last time I was on the go was... basically when I had classes almost three months ago. So I napped a little while the kids went into the pool. Then before dinner, we walked around the center a bit and through the park. Uncle Ron used to play in there and he said that the park used to be bigger- but didn't know if it was because he grew UP or it actually shrunk in size. We ran into Or on her stroll so that was fun introducing everyone.
We tried to find a real restaurant although I was just fine going to a cafe. We didn't succeed so we just went to a cafe across the street from the hotel. All of us kids got quiches and yummy frozen drinks. Alec got milk with honey. Ben got butterscotch milkshake. Ella got the chocolate milkshake with chocolate chips in it. I just got ice coffee- I wished I had ordered a sweet drink too!
We made plans to meet up again tomorrow for the beach.
Thursday, July 17, 2008
The Prisoner Swap
I've been following the whole kidnapped soldiers saga since 2006. It's hard to ignore it when you're in Israel. You just feel that sense of loss of those missing soldiers, Gilad Schalit, Ehud Goldwasser, and Eldad Regev. But life has been going on to prove to Hezbollah that they're not going to dampen Israel's hopes nad pride.
So, when Hezbollah and Israel made a deal to do a prisoner swap, I felt a sense of slight hope and relieved that it's two soldiers down, one to go (and one MIA- Ron Arad). The media has been so focused on Schalit that I often wondered more about the other two. The Hizbeollah consider Schalit more valuable because he's sargeant and Goldwasser and Regev were just ranked reservists. As part of the deal, Hezbollah was supposed to give an updated report of Ron Arad's whereabouts. PM Olmert was determined to prevent another Ron Arad situation- a situation of not knowing where the body of a soldier is for years and years, by approving this deal before the report actually came. He wanted to be sure that those three soldiers actually came home to Israel-dead or alive. When Hezbollah sent the report over the weekend, Olmert was completely dissatisfied. It only contained several pages of his diary from 1987 (or 1988?) and two photographs from that time. Hezbollah claimed that it was the last time they saw him and has no idea where he really is now. Unfortunately, deal was deal so the Israeli Cabinet voted on a majority rule for the swap to be set on Wednesday. So the exchange ended up like this:
Hezbollah to Israel
Eldad Regev and Ehud Goldwasser
All the bodies of killed soldiers from the Second Lebanon War that the fighters snatched
Israel to Hezbollah
198 Palestinian/Lebanese fighters' bodies, exhumed from a cemetery near a kibbutz
4 Lebanese fighter prisoners
Samir Kuntar, whom Israelis deem as one of the most notorious killers
It might not sound very much but the release of Kuntar is a huge deal. In 1979, he and his accomplices raided Nahariyya, a city north of Haifa, and killed 4 people, two of them little girls. One of them was accidently smothered by her mother to keep her cries quiet. But Israelis were (and still are) furious over how Kuntar ended the other girl's life- by shooting her father in front of her and then crushing her skull against the rocks with the butt of his rifle. Hezbollah see him as a hero for his terrorist act. Kuntar was Israel's last playing card in obtaining more information on Arad.
Israel held its breath but not very long on Wednesday morning to find out the truth about Goldwasser and Regev. Since their capture on July 12 in 2006, there had been no report on their condition, they only reported Schalit's. The reservists arrived in coffins, their bodies in very poor condition. And the Israelis brought these 5 prisoners to the border alive with a truck in tow of bodies. Something's slightly wrong with this picture in my opinion.
Now, Israel has no trump cards left. Hezbollah in Lebanon is celebrating his return and its leader, Nasrallah, briefly greeted him in public on a red carpet. But Israel argues that the prisoner swap was no Hezbollah victory but a moral victory for Israel. The IDF need to be able to persuade its soldiers that Israel will always do what it can to bring them home to their families (dead or alive) and never be lost in the enemy's hands.
When I received the official news of the soldiers, I felt a very strong pang of sadness all day. The feeling was very similar to my experience of Yom HaZikron (Israeli Memorial Day) a year ago. It didn't help a lot that Roni spend some time talking about the swap for the first half hour of class yesterday and today. I shouldn't be shocked that many of my classmates were unaware of the situation because they weren't so closely tied to Israel and following the news. I felt angry on one hand that Hezbollah brought our men in coffins and we were humane enough to keep our prisoners alive instead of rotting in the cells. On the other hand, it was all over and the men came home. Then I begin to wonder, just how can we get Schalit back now that we don't have any "high" cards left? Many of the prisoners that IDF captured over the years (less than 2,000 in prison now) were what I consider accomplices, not ring leaders. It is very hard to be in Israel when the country feels a sense of loss and mourns for a day or two. And accept the fact that we lost two soldiers (an equivalent of 1,000 American soldiers).
But that's just the fact of living in Israel. We can handle the pain while going about our daily routines. For that, I went to the beach for the afternoon and did my homework yesterday. I did buy copy of JPost yesterday and a Hebrew newspaper, Ye'diot Achronot, today for my personal collection. Yes, I can read some sections of the articles in Hebrew!
Today, I moved on a bit. I went to the beach in the late afternoon with Mor and Or. Mor and I got completely mixed up in our language over our meeting place. She texted me that Or was waiting for me at the bus station. I got very confused because I was supposed to meet them in Merkaz Carmel, not down by the beach where the Central Bus Station is. When I finally met up with them at a bus stop, we were just happy to finally be together. Then before Mor dropped me back off at the same place several hours later, I said to her, "So you know, in English, in America, this thing over there is called a 'bus stop.' And a 'bus station' is a building with all the buses. That's why I got very confused over where we were supposed to meet!" Apparently, I know the bus system in Haifa better than them (they usually drive the family car to get around). It was pretty funny! We decided that from now on, it would be just easier if I just went to the beach and met them there given that 46 goes directly there.
Now I have a monster load of homework before the Israeli family comes to Haifa tomorrow!!!
So, when Hezbollah and Israel made a deal to do a prisoner swap, I felt a sense of slight hope and relieved that it's two soldiers down, one to go (and one MIA- Ron Arad). The media has been so focused on Schalit that I often wondered more about the other two. The Hizbeollah consider Schalit more valuable because he's sargeant and Goldwasser and Regev were just ranked reservists. As part of the deal, Hezbollah was supposed to give an updated report of Ron Arad's whereabouts. PM Olmert was determined to prevent another Ron Arad situation- a situation of not knowing where the body of a soldier is for years and years, by approving this deal before the report actually came. He wanted to be sure that those three soldiers actually came home to Israel-dead or alive. When Hezbollah sent the report over the weekend, Olmert was completely dissatisfied. It only contained several pages of his diary from 1987 (or 1988?) and two photographs from that time. Hezbollah claimed that it was the last time they saw him and has no idea where he really is now. Unfortunately, deal was deal so the Israeli Cabinet voted on a majority rule for the swap to be set on Wednesday. So the exchange ended up like this:
Hezbollah to Israel
Eldad Regev and Ehud Goldwasser
All the bodies of killed soldiers from the Second Lebanon War that the fighters snatched
Israel to Hezbollah
198 Palestinian/Lebanese fighters' bodies, exhumed from a cemetery near a kibbutz
4 Lebanese fighter prisoners
Samir Kuntar, whom Israelis deem as one of the most notorious killers
It might not sound very much but the release of Kuntar is a huge deal. In 1979, he and his accomplices raided Nahariyya, a city north of Haifa, and killed 4 people, two of them little girls. One of them was accidently smothered by her mother to keep her cries quiet. But Israelis were (and still are) furious over how Kuntar ended the other girl's life- by shooting her father in front of her and then crushing her skull against the rocks with the butt of his rifle. Hezbollah see him as a hero for his terrorist act. Kuntar was Israel's last playing card in obtaining more information on Arad.
Israel held its breath but not very long on Wednesday morning to find out the truth about Goldwasser and Regev. Since their capture on July 12 in 2006, there had been no report on their condition, they only reported Schalit's. The reservists arrived in coffins, their bodies in very poor condition. And the Israelis brought these 5 prisoners to the border alive with a truck in tow of bodies. Something's slightly wrong with this picture in my opinion.
Now, Israel has no trump cards left. Hezbollah in Lebanon is celebrating his return and its leader, Nasrallah, briefly greeted him in public on a red carpet. But Israel argues that the prisoner swap was no Hezbollah victory but a moral victory for Israel. The IDF need to be able to persuade its soldiers that Israel will always do what it can to bring them home to their families (dead or alive) and never be lost in the enemy's hands.
When I received the official news of the soldiers, I felt a very strong pang of sadness all day. The feeling was very similar to my experience of Yom HaZikron (Israeli Memorial Day) a year ago. It didn't help a lot that Roni spend some time talking about the swap for the first half hour of class yesterday and today. I shouldn't be shocked that many of my classmates were unaware of the situation because they weren't so closely tied to Israel and following the news. I felt angry on one hand that Hezbollah brought our men in coffins and we were humane enough to keep our prisoners alive instead of rotting in the cells. On the other hand, it was all over and the men came home. Then I begin to wonder, just how can we get Schalit back now that we don't have any "high" cards left? Many of the prisoners that IDF captured over the years (less than 2,000 in prison now) were what I consider accomplices, not ring leaders. It is very hard to be in Israel when the country feels a sense of loss and mourns for a day or two. And accept the fact that we lost two soldiers (an equivalent of 1,000 American soldiers).
But that's just the fact of living in Israel. We can handle the pain while going about our daily routines. For that, I went to the beach for the afternoon and did my homework yesterday. I did buy copy of JPost yesterday and a Hebrew newspaper, Ye'diot Achronot, today for my personal collection. Yes, I can read some sections of the articles in Hebrew!
Today, I moved on a bit. I went to the beach in the late afternoon with Mor and Or. Mor and I got completely mixed up in our language over our meeting place. She texted me that Or was waiting for me at the bus station. I got very confused because I was supposed to meet them in Merkaz Carmel, not down by the beach where the Central Bus Station is. When I finally met up with them at a bus stop, we were just happy to finally be together. Then before Mor dropped me back off at the same place several hours later, I said to her, "So you know, in English, in America, this thing over there is called a 'bus stop.' And a 'bus station' is a building with all the buses. That's why I got very confused over where we were supposed to meet!" Apparently, I know the bus system in Haifa better than them (they usually drive the family car to get around). It was pretty funny! We decided that from now on, it would be just easier if I just went to the beach and met them there given that 46 goes directly there.
Now I have a monster load of homework before the Israeli family comes to Haifa tomorrow!!!
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
Nazareth
Nazareth. I associated this city/village with of Jesus and Christian Arabs. As I woke up from my short nap on the bus, I saw signs in Arabic and felt a little uneasy. But I eventually reminded myself that Nazareth is the home of a lot of Israeli Christian Arabs and they strive to live in peace here. The city is 2/3 Muslim and 1/3 Christian. I imagine that very few Jews live here.
Nazareth was the place that angel Gabriel first appeared to Virgin Mary to announce that she was pregnant with Jesus. Jesus apparently grew up around this area. Only the Gospels mentioned Nazareth's existence so our tour guide said that there's been a lot of scholarly debate over Nazareth's actual location. Some even say that this particular area isn't even where it is today!
First, we went to the Church of Annunciation, the Greek Orthodox church. Here is the courtyard, lined with beautiful paintings of Jesus and Virigin Mary. The tour guide told us a very interesting fact- old paintings used to protray Joseph (Jesus's father) as a much older man to ward of any impressions that he had any sexual relations with Mary. Now, contemporary artists paint him as younger man who wouldn't look much older than Mary as a way of accepting the fact that Joseph was Jesus's father.
Artists all over the world contributed to this amazing gallery of paintings. A lot of them came from Europe and Asia, and a few from South America. I thought the Korean and Japanese ones were the most beautiful.
Then we went inside the lower gallery of the church. This church can comfortably hold at least 10,000 people, both in upper and lower floors. Also this is the third church to be erected- there were three others and this one was built in 1967. The previous ones were built in the Byzantine and Crusader eras. The lower gallery is significant as it was believed that Mary dwelled here.
The stained windows were indeed very beautiful. My camera seems to be handling indoors pretty well. Now, we go upstairs...
Inside the tower part (from the above picture of this one)
Nazareth was the place that angel Gabriel first appeared to Virgin Mary to announce that she was pregnant with Jesus. Jesus apparently grew up around this area. Only the Gospels mentioned Nazareth's existence so our tour guide said that there's been a lot of scholarly debate over Nazareth's actual location. Some even say that this particular area isn't even where it is today!
First, we went to the Church of Annunciation, the Greek Orthodox church. Here is the courtyard, lined with beautiful paintings of Jesus and Virigin Mary. The tour guide told us a very interesting fact- old paintings used to protray Joseph (Jesus's father) as a much older man to ward of any impressions that he had any sexual relations with Mary. Now, contemporary artists paint him as younger man who wouldn't look much older than Mary as a way of accepting the fact that Joseph was Jesus's father.
Artists all over the world contributed to this amazing gallery of paintings. A lot of them came from Europe and Asia, and a few from South America. I thought the Korean and Japanese ones were the most beautiful.
Then we went inside the lower gallery of the church. This church can comfortably hold at least 10,000 people, both in upper and lower floors. Also this is the third church to be erected- there were three others and this one was built in 1967. The previous ones were built in the Byzantine and Crusader eras. The lower gallery is significant as it was believed that Mary dwelled here.
The stained windows were indeed very beautiful. My camera seems to be handling indoors pretty well. Now, we go upstairs...
Inside the tower part (from the above picture of this one)
The upper floor
After touring the main parts of the church, we headed down to the basement where supposedly Joseph resided and worked in his carpentry shop. The church was built in 1914.
Inside St. Joseph Church
After the tour of the Church of Annunciation, we walked through the Old City of Nazareth to visit other holy sites. We walked through a small bazaar to reach the Synagogue Church. The Crusaders built it in 12 AD. It was believed that this building sat atop the original location of where Jesus first learned, prayed, and preached. It's located next to the Greek Catholic church and run by it.
We walked some more through the Old City to reach the White Mosque. We heard the blares calling for praying. We went inside the mosque and saw men and boys hanging about and praying. The site was bult in late 18th century/early 19th century and thus Nazareth's oldest Islamic holy site. The mosque’s first trustee, Sheikh Abdallah al-Fahum, gave the mosque its name to mark the end of the Ottoman Governor al-Jazzar’s bloody rule. White was chosen to symbolise a new era of purity, light and peace to be enjoyed between the faiths in Nazareth.
Then we meandered towards a famous hostel, Fauzi Azar Inn, which gave us a great view of Nazareth from its 3rd floor lobby. The place was formerly a mansion. 
Actually, Nazareth currently has a lot of old mansions still standing with beautifully painted ceilings by reowned artists from Italy and Lebanon(which from the outside, we could not see) and marbled floors. They were all built during the Ottoman Empire, allowing the wealthiest to live in a prosperous area.
Let's continue our walking tour through the Old City. I was getting pretty tired and hot (I was drinking water!) but the sun was beginning to set a bit in the sky, cooling things off slightly.
Then we came to the Greek Orthodox Church, also built during the Crusades. What's special about it was that 
underneath it, spring water provided the city with water.
underneath it, spring water provided the city with water.
Inside the church with so many architectural details...
This is 
After the tour, we had about 45 minutes to explore Nazareth. We weren't allowed to stray very far (well not everyone knew Arabic and many had limited Hebrew speaking skills). I tagged with Cristina and others. I met a girl from Czech Republic and another one from Bulgaria, which was really cool. I also met a black girl, who is beginning her study abroad in Israel. The girls wanted to find a shuk. We didn't exactly find any (other than the bazaar) but the Bulgarian girl found "Matook Ha-Shalom" (Sweet Peace), a huge baklava shop. I was in heaven. I love baklavas and was so excited to see it. I haven't found any in Haifa thus far (well I haven't wandered in the Arab neighborhoods). The guy was so generous. I realized that he didn't know any English, only Arabic and Hebrew. So I spoke in Hebrew that I wanted to buy some baklava. He offered me a piece and told me to try it. He began offering pieces to other people in my group. He was so cheerful. Then he took out the tray to load my baklava on. After putting on several varieties of my choice, he put in two more of a variety that I didn't pick. I said that I didn't ask for that... then he took a piece from that bunch and gave me it to try. It was all good- I was getting hungry! So I ended up buying 30 sheklim worth of delicious baklava...
This is what it looks like on the other side of Haifa, towards center of Israel (Haifa is on the other side of these mountains). Hard to believe that it's possible to get out of Haifa into northern Israel!
After the tour, we had about 45 minutes to explore Nazareth. We weren't allowed to stray very far (well not everyone knew Arabic and many had limited Hebrew speaking skills). I tagged with Cristina and others. I met a girl from Czech Republic and another one from Bulgaria, which was really cool. I also met a black girl, who is beginning her study abroad in Israel. The girls wanted to find a shuk. We didn't exactly find any (other than the bazaar) but the Bulgarian girl found "Matook Ha-Shalom" (Sweet Peace), a huge baklava shop. I was in heaven. I love baklavas and was so excited to see it. I haven't found any in Haifa thus far (well I haven't wandered in the Arab neighborhoods). The guy was so generous. I realized that he didn't know any English, only Arabic and Hebrew. So I spoke in Hebrew that I wanted to buy some baklava. He offered me a piece and told me to try it. He began offering pieces to other people in my group. He was so cheerful. Then he took out the tray to load my baklava on. After putting on several varieties of my choice, he put in two more of a variety that I didn't pick. I said that I didn't ask for that... then he took a piece from that bunch and gave me it to try. It was all good- I was getting hungry! So I ended up buying 30 sheklim worth of delicious baklava... 
This is what it looks like on the other side of Haifa, towards center of Israel (Haifa is on the other side of these mountains). Hard to believe that it's possible to get out of Haifa into northern Israel!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)