By the way, check out this pretty cool link to a research survey. I know we don't love surveys but it's an interesting idea! http://tinyurl.com/5ll9vr
This past Thursday, Roni told us that we'd be going over verbs on Sunday. I anticipated that she'd do a quick review of past tense and move onto future. She didn't.... spend more time talking about shoresh. Ugh. I was beginning to think that I really ought to move up regardless of what other people commented about that particular class. I met with Rina to discuss my Hebrew placement and she granted me permission to sit in the next class the next day. I found out that this program's Bet course was divided in only two sections- one section covering the first half of the book and the other section on the second half. I told her that I'm almost on the second half and it just seemed kind of stupid that I was repeating and I was paying to make real progress after all. I also was beginning to think that if it wasn't for graduate school orientation and the need to move to Ann Arbor and settle for a bit, I'd like to stay for another month just to finish this level!
After class, I was pretty tired so I took an easy by just going shuk shopping. I took the 24 bus all the way down. It was a pretty nice ride. It passed supposedly the Middle East's largest mall, the Grand Canyon (Kenion). It was literally built in the valley so imagined our Grand Canyon having a mall in its canyons! Or told me it's not even worth comparing to the malls in the US. But the sight was quite amusing.
I came back from the shuk and fixed some dinner and did my homework. And spent some time updating this blog.
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Today, I rose very early- quarter to 6 in hopes of getting to the gym just as the doors would be open. You see, I've been battling with the university over entering in the gym when it opens for the past week. There's a short route from the dorms but apparently the workers don't unlock the doors until 7 AM (and yes, unusually Israeli, on the dot). My program booklet said the gym opens at 6:30 AM so I was quite... aggravated given that I need to be out of there by 7:45 in order to shower and eat before ulpan. I complained to the monitor and he said that I have to go through another main building to get in and it's really open at 6:30. So today, I took the time to find the doors. Eventually, I found an open entrance in the Rabin building, which is next to the Terrace building, where the gym was located. I almost wanted to shout "victory!"
In ulpan, I went to the advanced Bet class. I was nearly overwhelmed. I didn't quite have a good feeling about the teacher and she spoke very fast. Also other students seemed to be more advanced in their speaking abilities. So I began to think, "Well, I'm finished with David Copperfield and I might as well bring my other Bet book with me to the beach for reading in order to finish this level." So at the break, I told her thanks but no thanks. I went back to Rina and told her that it's a tough choice but I'd rather just stay where I was.
Later, I began talking with some people around me who came from that class and we agreed that this program wasn't quite working in our favor. We needed a class that's in the middle of the two. One girl said that there's really a huge gap between the two classes which made figuring out which one to study with more difficult. I began analyzing Haifa's summer ulpan program overall- it seemed to me that it was pretty small and largely catered towards Aleph level students as I think the highest level is Gimel (third level). Hebrew University's program was most definitely larger as I remember seeing a lot of Bet classes, meaning it might have a wider range of abilities. So if I had gone to Jerusalem ulpan, I might be exactly where I should be. But for now, I'm just going have to make do. I have to really remember how much I want this PhD. No Hebrew, no PhD. But studying Hebrew is tough without ulpan.
I've been having a bit of trouble with time management in terms of studying so today, I decided to try bringing my Hebrew homework on the beach. After all, I was out there for 3 hours and I could get everything done.... and I did. Now I have the rest of the night to work on my essay for Thursday's assignment!
Tomorrow, hopefully off to Nazareth!
Monday, July 14, 2008
Saturday, July 12, 2008
Weekend in Haifa (Shabbat)
Dear Mom,
I'm officially a "brown baby." Don't drop your jaw when you see pictures of me down below.
Love, The Brown Baby
Today did not start out very well. According to my orientation handbook, the gym was supposed to open at 8 AM. I planned to do my long run with a goal of 9 miles. Since it was Shabbat, I figured that the only way to get in the building would be through the main building rather than the other entrance that's much closer. So I walked over there and found the doors locked. I got a little annoyed and realized that I can A) Skip it and just go tomorrow or B) Brave the heat and the hills. I chose B. So I walked past the dorm security and he said that the gym's closed on Shabbat during the summer and open during academic year. UGH! I complained to him that then the school gave me the wrong information!
So I went back to my room, put on my bandana and filled up another water bottle, and then set out. The run eventually got very challenging after 2 1/2 miles went I ran towards the Carmel National Park. I found a jogging/biking trail that I went on that was flat for at least 1/2 mile and generally in the shade. I was happy for a bit. At the end of the seamless path, I had a choice of turning around or aiming to climb the mountain towards the electric tower. I grimced as I searched for more flatter paths but not were to be found. I figured that it couldn't be hilly for that long. But I stopped and walked quite often because the air got so thin for me even though I was pretty much capable of climbing up that mountain road. Finally, I made it to the top and found a flatter part of the road that stayed generally flat for about 1/2 mile. I made several loops because I did not wish to climb the mountain again. I decided that I had enough and I would just go back. I went back down and saw that I ran only just more than 7 miles (in a slow time) when I reached the driveway leading up to the dorms. I went down to the main university gate and then back. I made it out to 8 miles overall in 1:20:00. I deserved a medal for all this- my face was completely covered in body salt. I was definitely grateful for my bandana to keep my head cool. Everything I wore was completely soaked in sweat and water. I'm definitely going to change my long runs to Fridays so I can do it on the dreadmill (ahem, that's runner's lingo for treadmill). As you can imagine, I was sooooo happy to be in a very cold shower!
At 12:30, I met the group and our Madrichims (social leaders), Maa'yan and Or. Much, much to my surprise, Bus 37 actually ran on Shabbat! I kicked myself a little in my head that I could've taken 37 down to Bat Galim beach... Anyway, we all got on and rode it out to French Carmel. I will tell you that Shabbat in Haifa was not quiet as it in Jerusalem. In Jerusalem, everything, everything was closed except for very few restaurants. Those particular restaurants were not certified kosher. In order to be certified kosher in Jerusalem (and I think probably in Israel), the business must be closed on Shabbat. No kosher certification in Jerusalem where there's a heavy haredim population meant no business. No haredi will walk in a non-certified restaurant, not even during the week. So anyway, a lot of places seemed to be open if they sold food and drinks. We had about half hour so I walked around a bit and met Mia (from San Diego) and Cristina (from Ecuador, studying in the US) at a coffee shop.
We walked along the Louis promenade which was situated behind Dan Carmel and Nof hotels (where I stayed with Grandma and Zev). The view was gorgeous. It led us right down to the top entrance of the Bahai Gardens. Now, that got a little tricky there. You have to dress very modestly in order to get in. They won't allowed one of the students in because he was wearing a basketball jersey and shorts (I thought "idiot"- just because the rule was generally geared towards women, it wasn't exclusive!). Some girls couldn't get in if their tops showed too much shoulder (like scoop necks) and they had to borrow extra shawls that a couple of others had with them. For me, already having lived in Jerusalem and adopted the ways of it, I was already prepared in my long skirt and white button down half sleeved shirt!
Our tour guide took us down the Gardens. We climbed down sooooo many steps that it was just all crazy! Let's take a moment and walk through what I saw on my way down... actually, the Shrine of the Book and exit was located halfway down the hill.
Pretty cool plants and flowers grew here!
Maayan and me
Looking back up
Towards Bat Galim, German Colony, downtown, Haifa Port
Couldn't quite reach high enough!
As you can see, everything is fairly symmetrical, symbolizing harmony in the Ba'hai religion
Some of these houses are private residences and others are for tourist attractions.
Kind of interesting... old meets new!
Finally, we made it! Kind of. We were just at Zim Square (Kikar Zim) when I saw the sign for the famed Haifa Port. We walked towards the beach. We found the Quiet Beach (Hof Sekqet). I thought, "Cool! But seriously?" We took a peep in and in the picture to the left proved the reality of just how quiet the beach was. Not. Everybody was in the water and kids were running all over! I stopped to use the bathroom- it was so disgusting. I couldn't figure out if the water on the floor was from the potty or... the sea... I didn't want to think about it (Probably more disgusting than the one in the Arab Quarter of the Old City).
Then, we took a quick cab ride to Bat Galim promenade. I didn't expect to take the cab- it didn't look very far on the map. But Mia already talked to the driver and I think the driver said that it wasn't even all that far. But she just wanted to get there and I wanted to haggle. I had a jealous feeling- I'd rather be the one talking to the cabbie! It's one of my favorite parts of living in Israel after all.... but I decided to let her learn from her own lessons. For one, she'd be taking a risk that this cabbie could take her the long way around, adding money to the meter (which he didn't). Or, the cabbie could offer her an outrageous price, which he didn't as we asked for the meter.
Finally, we made it to the promenade. It was very beautiful as the sun was going down. Oh, and we found the real Bat Galim beach. Let's go for a walk again.
Remember, the pictures are facing Carmel- to the southeast.
Waves really exist in Haifa because of all the winds, no matter where the beach is!
I'm officially a "brown baby." Don't drop your jaw when you see pictures of me down below.
Love, The Brown Baby
Today did not start out very well. According to my orientation handbook, the gym was supposed to open at 8 AM. I planned to do my long run with a goal of 9 miles. Since it was Shabbat, I figured that the only way to get in the building would be through the main building rather than the other entrance that's much closer. So I walked over there and found the doors locked. I got a little annoyed and realized that I can A) Skip it and just go tomorrow or B) Brave the heat and the hills. I chose B. So I walked past the dorm security and he said that the gym's closed on Shabbat during the summer and open during academic year. UGH! I complained to him that then the school gave me the wrong information!
So I went back to my room, put on my bandana and filled up another water bottle, and then set out. The run eventually got very challenging after 2 1/2 miles went I ran towards the Carmel National Park. I found a jogging/biking trail that I went on that was flat for at least 1/2 mile and generally in the shade. I was happy for a bit. At the end of the seamless path, I had a choice of turning around or aiming to climb the mountain towards the electric tower. I grimced as I searched for more flatter paths but not were to be found. I figured that it couldn't be hilly for that long. But I stopped and walked quite often because the air got so thin for me even though I was pretty much capable of climbing up that mountain road. Finally, I made it to the top and found a flatter part of the road that stayed generally flat for about 1/2 mile. I made several loops because I did not wish to climb the mountain again. I decided that I had enough and I would just go back. I went back down and saw that I ran only just more than 7 miles (in a slow time) when I reached the driveway leading up to the dorms. I went down to the main university gate and then back. I made it out to 8 miles overall in 1:20:00. I deserved a medal for all this- my face was completely covered in body salt. I was definitely grateful for my bandana to keep my head cool. Everything I wore was completely soaked in sweat and water. I'm definitely going to change my long runs to Fridays so I can do it on the dreadmill (ahem, that's runner's lingo for treadmill). As you can imagine, I was sooooo happy to be in a very cold shower!
At 12:30, I met the group and our Madrichims (social leaders), Maa'yan and Or. Much, much to my surprise, Bus 37 actually ran on Shabbat! I kicked myself a little in my head that I could've taken 37 down to Bat Galim beach... Anyway, we all got on and rode it out to French Carmel. I will tell you that Shabbat in Haifa was not quiet as it in Jerusalem. In Jerusalem, everything, everything was closed except for very few restaurants. Those particular restaurants were not certified kosher. In order to be certified kosher in Jerusalem (and I think probably in Israel), the business must be closed on Shabbat. No kosher certification in Jerusalem where there's a heavy haredim population meant no business. No haredi will walk in a non-certified restaurant, not even during the week. So anyway, a lot of places seemed to be open if they sold food and drinks. We had about half hour so I walked around a bit and met Mia (from San Diego) and Cristina (from Ecuador, studying in the US) at a coffee shop.
We walked along the Louis promenade which was situated behind Dan Carmel and Nof hotels (where I stayed with Grandma and Zev). The view was gorgeous. It led us right down to the top entrance of the Bahai Gardens. Now, that got a little tricky there. You have to dress very modestly in order to get in. They won't allowed one of the students in because he was wearing a basketball jersey and shorts (I thought "idiot"- just because the rule was generally geared towards women, it wasn't exclusive!). Some girls couldn't get in if their tops showed too much shoulder (like scoop necks) and they had to borrow extra shawls that a couple of others had with them. For me, already having lived in Jerusalem and adopted the ways of it, I was already prepared in my long skirt and white button down half sleeved shirt!
Our tour guide took us down the Gardens. We climbed down sooooo many steps that it was just all crazy! Let's take a moment and walk through what I saw on my way down... actually, the Shrine of the Book and exit was located halfway down the hill.
Pretty cool plants and flowers grew here!
Maayan and me
Looking back up
Towards Bat Galim, German Colony, downtown, Haifa Port
Couldn't quite reach high enough!
As you can see, everything is fairly symmetrical, symbolizing harmony in the Ba'hai religion
After the Gardens, I joined Cristina and Mia on their expedition to explore the rest of north Haifa. We walked down these steps and commented how people who live here must climb up and down, up and down.... eh, who actually wanted to live here?!
We began noticing how the buildings started to look older as we moved towards the sea. So these buildings were probably dated back to the 1950s or earlier. The Templars (a Protestant sect) settled in this area in mid-1850s. They hoped that by moving to Palestine, it would hasten the Second Coming of Christ. Although Christ never came, their achievement made an impact in Haifa. The Ottoman Empire neglected the area so the Templars fixed up with strict urban planning guidelines and brought technology. They also brought modern European agricultural methods. This colony was quite successful and very German in nature given the conditions that Palestine was in. The main street that we walked on, Ben-Gurion, ran from north to south, directly in line with the Ba'hai Gardens. So if you're walking south from the port, you'll be watching the Shrine of the Book the entire way!
We began noticing how the buildings started to look older as we moved towards the sea. So these buildings were probably dated back to the 1950s or earlier. The Templars (a Protestant sect) settled in this area in mid-1850s. They hoped that by moving to Palestine, it would hasten the Second Coming of Christ. Although Christ never came, their achievement made an impact in Haifa. The Ottoman Empire neglected the area so the Templars fixed up with strict urban planning guidelines and brought technology. They also brought modern European agricultural methods. This colony was quite successful and very German in nature given the conditions that Palestine was in. The main street that we walked on, Ben-Gurion, ran from north to south, directly in line with the Ba'hai Gardens. So if you're walking south from the port, you'll be watching the Shrine of the Book the entire way!
Some of these houses are private residences and others are for tourist attractions. Kind of interesting... old meets new!When we reached the end of Ben Gurion at Jaffa, we stopped in the City Center mall to cool off a bit. Mia was on the search for a passion fruit popsicle and I wanted something to drink. So I grabbed some ice coffee and we set out towards Bat Galim. It was indeed a very hot walk.
Finally, we made it! Kind of. We were just at Zim Square (Kikar Zim) when I saw the sign for the famed Haifa Port. We walked towards the beach. We found the Quiet Beach (Hof Sekqet). I thought, "Cool! But seriously?" We took a peep in and in the picture to the left proved the reality of just how quiet the beach was. Not. Everybody was in the water and kids were running all over! I stopped to use the bathroom- it was so disgusting. I couldn't figure out if the water on the floor was from the potty or... the sea... I didn't want to think about it (Probably more disgusting than the one in the Arab Quarter of the Old City).
Then, we took a quick cab ride to Bat Galim promenade. I didn't expect to take the cab- it didn't look very far on the map. But Mia already talked to the driver and I think the driver said that it wasn't even all that far. But she just wanted to get there and I wanted to haggle. I had a jealous feeling- I'd rather be the one talking to the cabbie! It's one of my favorite parts of living in Israel after all.... but I decided to let her learn from her own lessons. For one, she'd be taking a risk that this cabbie could take her the long way around, adding money to the meter (which he didn't). Or, the cabbie could offer her an outrageous price, which he didn't as we asked for the meter.Finally, we made it to the promenade. It was very beautiful as the sun was going down. Oh, and we found the real Bat Galim beach. Let's go for a walk again.
Remember, the pictures are facing Carmel- to the southeast.
Waves really exist in Haifa because of all the winds, no matter where the beach is!
We walked down to Yotvata in the Town, a chain restaurant. I realized that Mia was using her Frommers, which I had used when I lived in Israel. I told her that the place's quite good and worth going. I didn't bring my Frommers as I found it a bit too heavy to lug around, especially in a city of Haifa where there wasn't that much to do (as it seemed to suggest...) and I would spend most of my time in Jerusalem or Tel Aviv/Herzliya outside of Haifa. I ordered yogurt soup and a plate of grilled veggies (which they put a slab of cheese that I took as a "take-away"). We shared date and mango juices. I've taken a real liking to mangos- they're my desserts now!
After dinner, we walked back towards Bat Galim bus station. I suggested that either we walk back to Bat Galim bus station to catch the 37 all the way back to the university. Or, we could transfer buses in Hadar. I wanted to use my map to get use back but Mia asked around. The guy at Bat Galim beach gave us directions in Hebrew and I understood what he said. So we set off. The girls decided that they'd rather take a transfer bus. So we got on and I used (now my favorite Hebrew word) "em-shek" (transfer) to get a transfer ticket. My roommate, Lilach, taught me that so I was pretty excited! I taught that word to Mia and Cristina and they were excited to learn this word that might make our lives easier in Haifa. We eventually switched buses and rode back to the university.
What a day... I pretty much just finished up my Hebrew homework and went straight to bed.
Friday, July 11, 2008
Weekend in Haifa (Friday)
Friday
I slept in since I would be just going to the beach for the day. I stopped at the Haifa mall on the way in to pick up some grape juice and mini challah for my Shabbat blessings, some burekas, and a copy of the Jerusalem Post for Shabbat reading. Then I wondered how the bus system worked in Haifa in relation to Shabbat. So I went over to the station and asked about it. Apparently the last direct bus (46) stops at 2 PM (it was already 11 AM) and the transfer bus (133) stops around 5 PM. I sighed. I was also beginning to wonder about how buses worked on Shabbat since Haifa is the only Israeli city that has limited public transportation on Shabbat (yes, considering how liberal Tel Aviv is, it's still shut down on Shabbat).
I walked along the Ha-Carmel promenade to explore more beaches. There wasn't actually much after 1 1/2 miles and I realized that Dado/Zamir was actually better. Along the route, I found a bunch of old men playing dominos at tables. I thought that it was cute. After that, I found the children's pool with a status of a dolphin in the middle. As it looked tempted to be sitting there instead of on the jelly-infested beaches, it was restricted to children ages 2 to 8. Yes, 8 was the oldest allowed but I doubt it that Israelis even follow that. I was thinking more to age 12!
I came back to Zamir/Dado (but actually labed "Seasons Beach") and settled down with a beach chair and a table to put my stuff under to keep cool. Unlike Tel Aviv, these chairs were actually free! The beach wasn't terribly crowded but the showers were- of children. Although the temperatures reached about 88 or so degrees, it wasn't that completely hot because of all the wind. Haifa was much windier than Tel Aviv given that it's further up north. The advantages of the wind here (besides being cooler) were that it created real waves and that meant that Haifa had the only surfing beach of all Israel. I spent the rest of the day finishing up David Copperfield and relaxing in the sun. I also grabbed a slice of pizza and an apple (Either the guys were being flirtarious and said that I didn't need to pay or they actually gave out fruit for free). I stayed out until about 4:15 and went back to the station to catch the 133 bus.
Coming back wasn't too much of a problem- just took longer as buses became more infrequent. I took a shower, did the Shabbat blessings, and worked on my Hebrew homework a bit. Mor came to pick me up after 7 to take me back to her house for dinner.
Her mom, Hadar, fed us dinner. This time, she didn't attempt to put together my plate. Thank goodness! I was fretting all day about how to handle her again but she was much more lax than when I visited them a year ago. She made the usual Iraqi food so that was delicious. Or, Mor, and I talked a lot to catch up and they were curious about my program. Mor and Hadar asked if I liked Haifa better than Jerusalem. I said that each city had pros and cons so it's not fair to ask now. Hadar gave me a little gift of a necklace. Okay, that works. Better than hideous red shirt that she gave me last year. Or took a little time to explain how to use the conjugation of the preposition ב which is "in/at" in Hebrew. She hated the passage that we looked at because it was a fill-in-the-blank one. It'll be tough!
After dinner, Mor, Or, and I drove out Central/French Carmel to play pool at a cafe bar with some of Mor's friends from the Army. One of them brought his girlfriend with him and all of them were very nice and pleasant. The guys were definitely great and humorous. It was Or's first time so they spent a bit of time teaching her how to place her hand- she couldn't get over the weird feeling of the cue stick sitting on top of her hand. We played several games before calling it quits after 11. Mor and I dropped Or off and then we drove back to the university.
I saw that there had been a (free) Shabbat dinner. Naomi, a girl from my class, said it went well and there were still some leftovers. I grabbed a bag of sliced challah to use for lunch for next week.
For tomorrow, I made the decision to join the Bahai Gardens tour instead of taking the one un Sunday. According to Or, it sounded like I would be isolated as buses would be limited to Central Carmel. I figured that the school probably hired a private bus to take 50 of us.
Thursday, July 10, 2008
Figuring It All Out!
Class today went well. I am actually following a lot of what's being said in the classroom and it's scary considering that I hadn't heard much Hebrew in a year! Dvorona also speaks very well and has a pretty good command of English. She's also quite entertaining and very expressive. There were times that I felt the class was too easy. I talked with a few people to get their opinions and they felt it was challenging enough for them- they didn't know much of the vocabulary. I must've studied harder than I thought when I did the Jerusalem ulpan... Then a new student (actually... a professor) came in who transferred from a class above mine. He showed me where they were and I looked at the material and thought it seemed a little challenging but... doable. So I talked with Dvorona during the break and told her that I had seen all the stuff that she's been teaching in the last two days. She agreed to talk to Rina. Then later in class she mentioned that she'll be doing all verb study on Sunday so I am wondering which tense she meant...
Wow, I'm figuring out everything in Haifa just a bit. I have been to Haifa before. I thought the university was located way in the back because of the Carmel National Park and Haifa port. It turned out that there's one intersection that makes a difference in terms of how to go by bus- the Horov center. As I said yesterday, I had to go across the street to take the 133 bus in the opposite direction. It was the road, Sderot Aba Hushi, that intersected with Horov. Sderot Aba Hushi was the road that trailed up the mountain from Highway 2 and the Central Bus Station. And if you keep going on that particular road and make a slight left, then it merged with Horov (which then continued onto Central Carmel and French Carmel). So if you draw it out in your head, it now becomes clear on the confusion with the changes of the buses just to get down the mountain. Oy.
It's always nice for me once I learn the layout of the city and what each area has to offer for me. Then I generally begin to like the place. I took a little time to walk up towards the north to see if there were any other beach spots. I saw some more possible spots but I'll have to keep mind that the beach is narrow and I might have to fight for a spot on weekends! After the beach (I actually went with some people who I met at the bus stop at the university), I walked over to what it would be the Haifa Mal to get some salad for dinner from Cafe Aroma. It basically had the basics that I'd need for the weekend- Steimensky's for Jerusalem Post and a bakery for some burekas and a mini challah.
I came back and met with two girls, one of them in my class, who had the heaviest British accent I've heard. She had just come back from the shuk and we spent a few minutes complaining how tiny and out of the way the shuk was in Haifa. But if I ask for a transfer, then that might be worth the extra 5.70 shekels to do it. Then I went to the apartment. I chatted a little with Lilach who was back from spending the night at her house in Bet Shean. I told her of my adventures and she taught me a couple of new Hebrew slangs and how I could use my bus pass in order to get a transfer without having to pay every time I get on and expect to transfer.
Life will be good in Haifa as long I can budget my time. And minimize my contact with the jellyfish. That's basically a hit-or-miss thing.
Wednesday, July 9, 2008
Carmel Beach, Where are you..?
Ah, I was kind of wrong about Fox News. All they talked about was the election. I'd like to know what's happening elsewhere in the US, thanks.
So the first real day of ulpan went by just fine. I struggled a bit to keep my eyes open and focus on listening to other students. I had forgotten how tired I'd get if I got up at 6 AM to work out and then go straight to class after showering and eating breakfast. We mostly focused on a beach story and reviewed several concepts that I had seen before. I'm undecided on whether this class is a little too easy or not but this is Level Bet, right? I'll see how it all goes tomorrow. At one point, Dornova said, "I know you all will want to go to the beach all the time but don't expect to do it because you're going to be doing 2 to 3 hours of homework!" Heh. I guess too many of us were having side conversations about figuring out how to get to the beach.
I took my first attempt after classes. I waited what seemed like forever for 37 to come along and I asked for a transfer ticket. There was also another bus- 46- that went directly to Hof Ha-Carmel cental bus station (which was located right across the street from Carmel Beach) but apparently that comes once every hour. Someone told me that she caught it around 2 PM so perhaps it might be on the dot. I guess I should've waited another 10 minutes to catch that bus...
So I rode the 37 down to where 99 stops. I got off and waited for a lonnnggggg time. I noticed that 133 also went to the beach and it came along. I asked the bus driver (double checking) and he said that he doesn't drove to the beach. Then a woman waiting on the seat behind me said that I have to go across the street in order to catch the bus. Ah MAN! Then I went over there and waited a lonnngg time again for 133. 99 never came.
I finally made it to what I thought was Carmel Beach after an hour, what it should probably have been at least 30 minutes. It was much smaller than I thought and I saw a lot of roped off areas. The waves were pretty strong but Tel Aviv had those but the areas weren't roped off. Hm. I also figured it was meant to keep people from swimming out too far as it's jellyfish season. July in Israel was the worst time to be if anyone's looking for a beach vacation. It's jellyfish mating season so basically people enter in the water at their own risk. After walking around a bit, I finally found a comfortable spot a bit close to the shore- it wasn't crowded at all so I felt a little weird being the only one for several meters around. This beach was seriously not as big or "glamorous" as Tel Aviv- there wasn't even much to eat or drink! But there was a huge amphitheater for concerts- that'd be so much fun! There's also a little playground and a pool for children.
After several hours, I went back to the bus station. While walking towards my bus stop, I saw what seemed to be a rarity in Israel- a map of bus lines in Haifa on the wall! I went over to the info desk and if they had any paper copies and they said no. Oh, really smart, Israelis, for not thinking that perhaps while you're creating that map, you might as well print some too! I sighed and began tracing the lines to figure out other bus routes to see other beaches. I was just so glad to see this for more beach options!
Right now I'm writing this as I'm getting my free laundry. :) This definitely beats remembering to go to the ATM and saving change for laundry and... might make all the bus transfers well worth it. And now I'm just discovering that it was not the Carmel Beach- that was Zamir Dado Beach.
So the first real day of ulpan went by just fine. I struggled a bit to keep my eyes open and focus on listening to other students. I had forgotten how tired I'd get if I got up at 6 AM to work out and then go straight to class after showering and eating breakfast. We mostly focused on a beach story and reviewed several concepts that I had seen before. I'm undecided on whether this class is a little too easy or not but this is Level Bet, right? I'll see how it all goes tomorrow. At one point, Dornova said, "I know you all will want to go to the beach all the time but don't expect to do it because you're going to be doing 2 to 3 hours of homework!" Heh. I guess too many of us were having side conversations about figuring out how to get to the beach.
I took my first attempt after classes. I waited what seemed like forever for 37 to come along and I asked for a transfer ticket. There was also another bus- 46- that went directly to Hof Ha-Carmel cental bus station (which was located right across the street from Carmel Beach) but apparently that comes once every hour. Someone told me that she caught it around 2 PM so perhaps it might be on the dot. I guess I should've waited another 10 minutes to catch that bus...
So I rode the 37 down to where 99 stops. I got off and waited for a lonnnggggg time. I noticed that 133 also went to the beach and it came along. I asked the bus driver (double checking) and he said that he doesn't drove to the beach. Then a woman waiting on the seat behind me said that I have to go across the street in order to catch the bus. Ah MAN! Then I went over there and waited a lonnngg time again for 133. 99 never came.
I finally made it to what I thought was Carmel Beach after an hour, what it should probably have been at least 30 minutes. It was much smaller than I thought and I saw a lot of roped off areas. The waves were pretty strong but Tel Aviv had those but the areas weren't roped off. Hm. I also figured it was meant to keep people from swimming out too far as it's jellyfish season. July in Israel was the worst time to be if anyone's looking for a beach vacation. It's jellyfish mating season so basically people enter in the water at their own risk. After walking around a bit, I finally found a comfortable spot a bit close to the shore- it wasn't crowded at all so I felt a little weird being the only one for several meters around. This beach was seriously not as big or "glamorous" as Tel Aviv- there wasn't even much to eat or drink! But there was a huge amphitheater for concerts- that'd be so much fun! There's also a little playground and a pool for children.
After several hours, I went back to the bus station. While walking towards my bus stop, I saw what seemed to be a rarity in Israel- a map of bus lines in Haifa on the wall! I went over to the info desk and if they had any paper copies and they said no. Oh, really smart, Israelis, for not thinking that perhaps while you're creating that map, you might as well print some too! I sighed and began tracing the lines to figure out other bus routes to see other beaches. I was just so glad to see this for more beach options!
Right now I'm writing this as I'm getting my free laundry. :) This definitely beats remembering to go to the ATM and saving change for laundry and... might make all the bus transfers well worth it. And now I'm just discovering that it was not the Carmel Beach- that was Zamir Dado Beach.
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