Fajitas and Florentine

Tuesday, September 14, 2010

Today I didn’t visit any volunteer sites, although I have two tomorrow. I just hung out and mostly did nothing until Ulpan, which was very good. We played charades at the end. My team lost horribly, but my acting skillz did not let us down. We don’t have ulpan for 5 days in a row (damn Yom Kippur!) so I think we should all play Pictionary and charades to remember vocab words. It’s fun. So far, I have 3 favorite Hebrew words: zarzar (cricket), meeshmeesh (apricot) and melachfafon (cucumber.)

After ulpan, some of us went over to one of the Tel Aviv apartments where Morgan made us FAJITAS! Absolutely delicious fajitas! And she’s from Malibu, so she knows what Mexican food needs to be like. It was amazing. After that, we went out to a bar in the super hippy/trendy bar area, called Florentine. We convinced this guy, Oren, who lives with Morgan and others in one of the apartments to come with us, which was awesome. He is in an army program where he: volunteered for a year, then worked with a youth group for 6 months, served in the army for 6 months, now is supervising at that youth group for a year, then maybe serves another 6 months in the army, and then is done with his service, which is pretty awesome. Also, he was hilarious and knew how to get places, not to mention he read us the entire all-Hebrew menu. Super useful fellow.

So anyway, Allyson was with us, and she was like “Oh, I met this girl who DJs here sometimes, I wonder if she’s here.” Allyson disappears for 30 seconds, then pops out of the first bar we saw saying: “She’s here, and she says we can come to the private birthday party in the back!” So we got to go into this super nice back room (and sing happy birthday?) and it was very awesome. We felt very important. After being there for quite a while, Oren took us to this amazing ice cream store, which was some of the best ice cream in the entire world, in my humble opinion. It was fantastic.

Visiting Placements

Monday, September 13, 2010

Today I visited two volunteer sites! The first was called Aros El Bachar, which is an Arab women’s empowerment organization. This amazing woman decided that the Arab women of Yafo needed a place to go to learn English, computer skills, and other skills that will help them get jobs. They also offer legal consultations and help the women be aware of their rights. To help them make money, they have a doll-making collective, and they make the most awesome dolls ever. Hopefully soon there will be a website just for the dolls and I will link it when it is up. They need help mostly with teaching English. It would be different from our other English teaching opportunities (there are many) because it’s much more unstructured, so there is a lot more leeway and room for creativity, as well as responsibility and lesson planning.

The second site was the Arab-Jewish community center in Yafo. The center is on incredibly nice grounds, which was kind of weird for us, but we were warned not to forget that it is still an incredibly needy population that goes there. The center was very cool – they mostly need help doing English in the “American Corner” which is partially funded by the US Embassy. That really freaked some of the people from the program out – they were unhappy about doing something so “American.” I was talking to one person, I don’t remember whom, and she was saying: “I never went to Israeli corner anywhere…this kind of American propaganda scares me.” I told her that I had thought that all Jewish summer camps are affiliated with Israel, as are many synagogues and Jewish communities, not to mention college Hillels, and wasn’t that like “Israel Corner?” I think I feel that if the American Embassy is going to be spending money to help poor Yafo kids learn English – why not? They could be doing a lot worse things with my tax dollars. Like killing and oppressing Palestinian children. Spending money in a coexistence community center is not a problem for me, at least at this point.

At the community center there is also a youth leadership program where they train teenagers to be leaders in their own communities. She mentioned that they talk about things like racism, which obviously caught my attention. I’m not sure if I’d be able to work there because of the language barrier, but it is definitely something I want to look into more.

After the site visits, we had Ulpan. I went to the lower class and told the teacher I wanted to be in her class and I had already done the homework. She was like, “Okay, cool.” No sweat. And this class is SO. MUCH. BETTER. They are doing things that I already did in my class at AJU, but I know we’ll finish that tomorrow or the next day, and then it’ll be perfect. But it’s a fun, funny, relaxed, but still very fast paced class. She speaks to us only in Hebrew but is always careful to make sure she is understood. It’s pretty thrilling to understand 3.5 hours of pure Hebrew, even if much of it is communicated through pantomime, or through one person getting it and telling the rest of us in English. It’s fun. And SO MUCH BETTER. I’ve started calling it “Baby Hebrew” (a name which has spread like wildfire) and I love my baby Hebrew!

The WEIRD thing about today is that Justin, the dude from LA I had facebooked before we came, left the program! I knew he was upset because his apartment was gross and filled with cockroaches, but I didn’t think he was going to quit the program. Apparently he is crashing with a friend in Tel Aviv and is hoping to get a job. Since I didn’t hear from him the reasons he left so I won’t speculate here on this public forum. But anyway, I’m sorry to see him go. He was pretty hilarious to have around.

First Day of Ulpan

Sunday, September 12, 2010

Today was our first day having a real program after all these days off for the holidays. We took our first bus in Yafo (they have all been shut down for Rosh Hashanah and then Shabbat) to the central bus station, which seems to be bigger and more hectic than Port Authority. After some mishaps (oops) we found Benji (!) and our group, and headed over to the Bina building for more volunteering info with Avital. I found out from Benji that I was placed in the intermediate Hebrew group, instead of the intro group like I had expected. I was even more upset when I found out that Morgan, my number one twinsey, was also in that class. Morgan is pretty much conversationally fluent, and she is my translator when we go out. WHAT? So I asked Benji if, after today’s first class, I could downgrade a level if I need to. He said yes (after objecting to the word downgrade,) so that was slightly comforting. But still scary!

After more talking about volunteering placements (our visits start tomorrow!) we went home. I did some laundry and cleaned the apartment and we all helped settle in my 4^th roommate Allyson, who just switched from the Tel Aviv track to ours! Yay! I’m very glad she’s going to be living with us. She’s sharing a room with Tiffany, which seems to be working out well so far. We’re all very happy to have her.

Then it was time for our first Ulpan class! (Ulpan is the word for Hebrew class – I don’t know what kind of Hebrew class it has to be to be classified as “ulpan,” but whatever, that’s what ours is called.) Half of our ulpan classes are in Tel Aviv and half are in Yafo; classrooms in Yafo are very expensive so they are held in our living rooms instead! Which is super convenient for us!

With great trepidation, I went into the intermediate class (in my very own living room!) Immediately, it was way over my head. He spoke only in very fast Hebrew, and I caught maybe 1 in 10 or 20 words. Usually the word “ani” which means I, or “ken” or “lo,” which are “yes” and “no.” By the end of the 4 hours, I was pretty frustrated. Then the teacher came over to me while we were doing an exercise in the book (the same book I used for my class at AJU, funnily enough) and said something like “why haven’t you finished it?” It was something where you had to read the sentence and fill in the missing pronoun, either “I,” “you (masculine or feminine),” “you guys (m. and f.)” or “them (m. and f).” I understood the pronouns, but it took me so long to work through the sentences since I don’t actually know any Hebrew, that it was taking me way longer. So he came over and started explaining the pronouns to me in a way that made it seem like he was frustrated with me. I tried to tell him that I know the pronouns, but I can’t get the context. He didn’t seem to be listening. Then he told me I should think about switching to the other class, and I told him I expected to. Then he seemed mad (????) and said they were starting from the absolute beginning and would be working on the alphabet for weeks. I told him only one person didn’t know the alphabet, and he was like “No, I read the tests myself.” And I was thinking: “Really, did you read my test where all I wrote was “I don’t speak Hebrew” in Hebrew?”

Then towards the end, Adam, who seemed to be only slightly above my level, started saying that he was frustrated and wasn’t getting anything. The other girls in the class tried to encourage him, but the teacher was strangely silent. Then he started saying that he thought we weren’t motivated enough, especially those of us who are here for only 5 months. Some people tried valiantly to respond, but it was just really weird.

After the class I talked to Hannah and Katie who were in the lower class, and I’m definitely going to switch. In this first class they covered basically everything I learned at AJU, so it should be perfect to jump in tomorrow. It’s not that I don’t want a challenge, or that I don’t want to push myself. But there is a difference between pushing yourself and being in a level that is far too difficult for you, where everything is over your head and you are struggling so hard to keep up that you aren’t understanding or retaining anything. That is not at all constructive, and I know the frustration I felt was impeding my learning, not enhancing it. I learned a long time ago that I learn best when I’m comfortable – I don’t excel in stressful situations. I know that the lower level class will be the best place for me, and will really push me to improve and to be at the top of the class, which is how I learn best.

I’m hoping there won’t be any tsuris about me switching classes – I’m planning to just tell Benji tomorrow morning at the placement tours and then show up to the lower class. I’m even going to do the homework she assigned so I’ll be an ideal pupil. She’s gonna love me! Plus, I get to be with Hannah, and a bunch of my other friends! Yay!

After the disastrous ulpan, I hung out downstairs on the patio for a while, and then got the best falafel of my LIFE. He cooked the falafel themselves right there for me, and it was super delish. Plus, I managed almost the whole thing in Hebrew (all I said was “falafel,” “ken,” “lo,” and “zayoo” (that’s all,) and “toda” (thank you), I think.) The best part is that it’s only 3 blocks from our apartment! SCORE! Then I hung out in the downstairs apartment for a while, which is always delightful, and now I am going to bed. I gotta wake up super early tomorrow to go see two placements before lunch, and then ulpan in the afternoon!

I am Harry Potter

Saturday, September 11, 2010

Today is Caroline’s birthday! HAPPY BIRTHDAY CAROLINE!!!!!

Today I woke up late, did some stuff around the apartment, and then in the early afternoon met some of the Tel Aviv people at the beach. It was really nice and warm down there, and the water was great, as expected. I walked down to the beach by myself, and I realized it was the first time I had walked around by myself at all! Crazy! But I didn’t get lost and found my people on the beach without trouble, so that was lovely.

After a while we got hungry and went at got falafel on Yefet, one of the main streets of our part of Yafo. It was super delish. Then we returned to the beach, where I was VICIOUSLY STUNG BY A JELLYFISH. But it’s cool, because it stung me in the shape of a lightning bolt. You know what that means. I’M HARRY POTTER. I’m also a horcrux, which is pretty badass. It stung quite a bit, but it was fine. Some other people got big stings too. I have pictures that I’ll post soon – it’s pretty spectacular! Then Dante and I watched the sunset over the water – there were clouds for the first time, which made it super pretty. Almost like Maui style! AND there was a tiny green flash! I was practically eating pupus and drinking experimental Maui Sunrise Piña Coladas.

After I got home and showered, I doused my sting with vinegar and watched half of Anchorman with Vanessa until she was too sickly to stay up and then I went to bed!

New Layout!

New layout! Because the white letters on the dark background hurts my eyes! And now there are birds! How delightful.

Empty Shuk!

September 10, 2010

Friday Hannah and I decided to go explore in downtown Tel Aviv. Our goal was the Hacarmel Markets, which is a sort of outdoor market with people hawking their wares in your face. However, we forgot that it was the second day of Rosh Hashanah, which meant that (1) the buses weren’t running, and (2) zero shops were open. So we walked for about an hour into Tel Aviv, and arrived at the market to find it ghost town. Literally zero people in sight. Then we met up with Hannah’s friend from Harvard and Morgan and Jodi (from the Tel Aviv group) and we wandered around until we found one street that was semi-open, called Rothschild, which is the hip young people center in downtown Tel Aviv. We got some gourmet ice cream with savory flavors and hung out in the shade for a while. Then we meandered back along the coast and put our feet in the water, which was really nice, although we were sweating immensely at that point, so we wished we were swimming instead of walking.

Then we bought bourekas, which are pastries with made of filo dough with cheese or potato inside them. I had a potato one, which was like knish but with filo dough. Delicious. Best street food ever. And only 10 sheckles!

After we got home, I google mapped how far we walked – turns out it was 6.5 miles! That’s a lot of walking, especially in the immense heat. I just looked it up, and it was 90 degrees with 75% humidity. So intense! So after showering all of that off, we had Shabbat dinner!

We decided to have a Yafo group bonding activity and have a potluck Shabbat dinner downstairs. Every apartment brought food and we all had a great time. It was really nice to have a family bonding activity like that. And some people made super delicious food! It was awesome. My contribution was financial and I washed every single dish! So I feel that I significantly contributed. AND, Katie said she’d teach me how to cook anytime I want, which is also great. I hope we keep doing Yafo Shabbat together, cause it was really nice to all be there.

Beach!

September 9, 2010

Thursday we went to the beach! It took us about 30 minutes to walk there, although we thought we didn’t take the most direct route. At first it was just Hannah, Stephanie (my roommate) and I, but then a bunch of people from Tel Aviv came and joined us, so that was awesome. I had missed them a lot, so it was great to see them.

And the beach, OH MY GOD. It is the number one best beach I have even been to, minus our very own Kamaole II. The sand is super soft, there are no rocks, and the waves are big enough to be exciting but not scary or hard to get in or out. And the water. Oh my god. It’s incredibly warm, warmer than Maui. If it were any warmer it wouldn’t even be refreshing. It’s also extremely salty, which is fun too. And soft! Soft like Maui water! But the whole thing is just amazing. I feel less bad about missing Maui now, knowing that I can go to this beach and pretend I’m at the Hale Pau Hana. Hopefully we are going to go back today (Saturday) because I want to be there every single moment of my entire life.

Apparently you can bring your dog anywhere on the beaches with you. Which is nice to get to watch the dogs, but not nice because you have to watch your step at all times. We did watch a small fluffy dog try to make babies with a pit bull who was not having it at all. The dog tried for literally two and half hours. We felt bad for him. And the owners did NOTHING. It was kind of strange.

Some of us stayed on the beach to watch the sunset, which was amazing. Our beach faces due west, so it was really nice to get to see the sun drop right into the ocean. And, of course, it was still very warm at sunset, even though we were all in our bathing suits.

After the beach we came home and hung out at our apartment with two of our Tel Aviv friends, which was super nice.

Rosh Hashanah

September 8, 2010

First of all, today is HEATHER RIPLEY’S BIRTHDAY. So, obviously, it’s the best day in the whole entire world. Obviously.

Also, pictures from the trip thus far are now on facebook! They are visible to friends of friends, so even if you and I aren’t friends, you should be able to see them! Enjoy!

This morning I woke up, wrote a birthday song for Ripley, then hung around the apartment until Hannah, Nate, Stephanie, and I went out to the ATM and bought wine for our host dinners. Then Hannah and I went back out (after dropping off money and wine in our apartments) and wandered around all of Yafo for about 4 hours. We went to the Old City, the Flea Market, up and down the big streets, then down to the port and along the beach and back through Ajamai (one of the poorest neighborhoods of Yafo). It was really awesome. Every part of it is different, but there is so much cool stuff to see everywhere. There is a lot of whale and water imagery since Yafo is, apparently, the port Jonah took off from when he got swallowed by the whale. Which is pretty damn cool. Oh, plus, we had the best couscous of my life! It was amazing! Everyone should come here and eat this couscous!

Also, we didn’t get lost once. It was MIRACULOUS. We were SO PROUD of ourselves. You have no idea.

Then after the most freezing and refreshing shower of my life, Hannah and I went to our Rosh Hashanah dinner at Esi Lillianthal’s house. She lives in a super nice part of Tel Aviv. We split a cab with another girl from the program so we walked for about 20 minutes to get to the apartment, and it was such a difference from Yafo, and especially Ajamai. So incredibly nice. But anyway, Esi is basically the nicest person in the entire world. We got off the elevator and she gave us huge hugs, and said “Welcome, welcome, l’shona tova!” She is the matriarch of the family, and her children and grandchildren were all there, about 18 people total I think. Luckily one of her daughters and her three kids lived in Miami for a long time, so her two daughters speak perfect English. They are 21 and 15, and Esi sat us with them, so that was nice. The third child is actually taking a class at SMC right now! Hilarious. And, of course, the food was incredible. I am STUFFED.

First there was schmoozing (we tried to help in the kitchen, but were rejected, as I expected), then we gathered around the table. Two quick prayers, one kiddish, and then eating time – just the way I like it. Esi was really great about explaining everything to make sure I knew what was happening all the time, and everyone spoke English and translated anything that was said in Hebrew for us. First we had apples and honey and pomegranate seeds (supposedly there are 613 seeds in a pomegranate, like the 613 mitzvahs) and then gefilte fish (sorry Tash.) Then we had latkes made out of leeks (AMAZING) and egg salad, a recipe passed down from Esi’s grandmother. Oh, also the candlestick (which they adorably called a candle holder) belonged to Esi’s grandmother. Then we started the “real meal” of fish, beef, salad, mashed potatoes, and more I can’t even remember. Topped off with cake (amazing) and fruit salad. I never want to eat again. However, if I didn’t feel that way after Rosh Hashanah there would be something seriously wrong. Then the Miami granddaughter drove us home (score!) and we exchanged numbers with her so we can see her again if we want. When we left, Esi was like “sometimes, give me a call! Come over! I cook for you!” and Hannah and I were like YES PLEASE. It was a really great experience; I’m so glad I went.

Apparently in Israel, Rosh Hashanah is all about family dinner, and Yom Kippur is the much more religious holiday. It’s like that at home too, but I think the difference is more exaggerated here. It was crazy when we were walking around – almost every single store was closed, and the streets were dead. Every single pedestrian we saw in Tel Aviv (less in Yafo because of the high Muslim and Christian population) was dressed up and carrying a bottle of wine. It was crazy to see so much going on for a Jewish holiday. There was even a giant display next to City Hall that said “L’shona tova” and “Chag Sameach” in Christmas lights on our way home. Everyone says that the whole country shuts down, and will be basically shut down until Sunday morning. That’s obviously not completely true because when we drove back into Yafo we saw all the Arab restaurants were open. But everything run by Jews was done around 3 or 4pm today. It’s really fun being somewhere that everyone knows about the holidays I celebrate. I enjoyed it quite a bit. But the great thing about living in Yafo is that I can’t think that everyone is celebrating, that everything is shut down. I can see the truth on my own street, in my own neighborhood. I’m really glad to be living in such a mixed area because it keeps me from being carried away with the “I’m surrounded by Jews!” mentality. It’s a great reality check.

Tomorrow we are going to have a New Years beach day with a bunch of people from the Tel Aviv track, as well as our Yafo friends. It’s only been a day and half since we haven’t seen them, but I feel like it’s been forever. I miss them!

Back in Yafo

September 7, 2010

Today is the day we had to leave Kibbutz Ketura. L I’m very sad to have left. I know we didn’t get the real kibbutz experience because we weren’t working, we were on vacation. Spending all our time at the pool, and all. But it was an amazing week, and I’m very sad it was over. I’m also very sad to be losing most of the group to Tel Aviv. I have a lot of friends in the Jaffa (or as they say in Hebrew and I’m trying to train myself to say, Yafo) track, but it’s hard losing 15 of your brand new best friends to another part of town. It’s also weird being in my apartment with just one other person now after being surrounded by 25 other people for an entire week.

I slept most of the bus ride to Yafo (4 hours), which was excellent. I’m in the upstairs apartment, 3^rd floor, which is good for security but bad for my tired legs in the million degree heat. I am living with Stephanie and Tiffany, and Allyson if she switches from the Tel Aviv track. I have a great room, pretty good sized, and our living room is massive, so that’s good. The other two Yafo apartments are just downstairs, so that’s good for hanging out. After moving our stuff upstairs, Benji took us on a whirlwind tour of our neighborhood. Mostly, the only thing I retained was how much more humid it is in Yafo than down south on the Kibbutz. That was super hot but a dry heat, and this is yucko muggy style. Unfortunate, but what can you do. Oh, also we had pizza! It was good.

Then Stephanie and I braved the big bad world by ourselves and went out and bought a bunch of crap for our apartment at the pharmacy (called SUPER PHARM, LOL), veggie store, grocery store, etc. All I can say is, thank god everyone here speaks English!

One thing that is really cool in our neighborhood is that you can hear the Muslim call to prayer while you’re walking in front of a church listening to men in yarmulkes speak in Hebrew. It really is a mish-mosh of cultures, and that’s really awesome.

Another awesome thing is that these ladies gave us apples and honey on the street corner. I was like, I know it’s the new year, and you do too! Being in a Jewish state is awesome! She was walking up and down giving them to all the people in cars stopped at a red light too. It felt nice. I wonder if she would have given them to me if I had been wearing a hijab.

Now I am exhausted, and probably going to bed super early. Tomorrow night is Rosh Hashanah, so I am going to this lady’s house with Hannah for dinner. I hope it will be good! I’m sure the food will be! The bad news is that the buses and shops and everything are all going to be closed until Sunday because of the holiday and then Shabbat. Welp, my feet will get lots of exercise! And lots of beach time for me!

Sand Dunes

More September 6, 2010

After the Zionism workshop, we did some more logistics, and then WENT TO THE SAND DUNES. We rode on a bus up above the kibbutz 300 meters up into the mountains and then drove deep into the desert. The bus pulled over in the very middle of the desert; it looked to us like a stretch of nothing just like all the stretches of nothing we had passed. We actually laughed when David said we were getting off – we thought he was joking because it was absolutely NOWHERE. We got off and hiked into the desert for a moment. Then David stopped us and showed us a row of rocks in the sand, about ankle high, forming a small part of a circle. They are remains from the stone age! That was a super long time ago! Apparently the Arava Valley, where we were, was incredibly populated during the Stone Age because of the incredible availability of flint. It was lying all of the ground we walked on, and apparently in the rest of Israel it is covered with several layers of limestone. Also I learned that there was great debate about whether to mention God or not in the Israeli Declaration of Independence, and they compromised by mentioning the Rock of Ages, which is, fascinatingly enough, flint.

Anyway, after I soaked in the amazingness that I just saw a Stone Age relic just chilling in the desert, not in a museum, but just there on the ground, we started to hike up the mountain. It was about 10 minutes, then we rested almost at the top. The view was incredible. We could see into Egypt, which was crazy. From the kibbutz you can see into Jordan (it’s RIGHT THERE), so it was a three-country day for us. Then we hiked about 2 more minutes, and arrived at THE SAND DUNES.

The dunes are huge, covering a massive territory. And the view from them is incredible. But the most amazing thing about them is how soft the sand is. It literally felt like velvet. I can’t even find the words to describe it. It was the most amazing substance I have ever seen or encountered in my entire life. When I held it up to my face, I couldn’t even see the different colors of rock in it like you usually can. This sand is made of limestone instead of the usual mix of quartz and other rocks, so it is different from any other sand I’ve seen.

We had time to romp, roll, play, run, and do anything we wanted. It was amazing. We even made sand angels. It was windy, so sometimes my eyes hurt, but I didn’t care even a little. Then we all were given two pieces of paper and were told to go into the dunes and find a spot where we couldn’t see anyone else, and we weren’t supposed to make a sound. For fifteen minutes, we were just supposed to sit and think and be.

I’ve never been able to mediate or anything, but this would be the place to do it. I couldn’t get over the fact that this place looks exactly the way it looked thousands of years ago. Probably millions. All you could hear were the same sounds you would have heard in the Stone Age, or before. As far as I could see from my chosen perch, there was absolutely nothing man made – just mountains and dunes. I was sunk in the softest sand, watching the wind whip it around, listening to it whistle around me, and it was deep and profound in a way that makes those words seem empty and meaningless.

I felt very comforted by the idea that this was all unchanged. I thought a lot about time up there; about how time affects the dunes, about how every time I touched the dune I messed it up, but in a few minutes the wind covered up everything I did and made it go away again. I was thinking about my future and I was, for some reason, really comforted that no matter what I do, this desert will be the same. I felt much less anxiety and urgency to figure out my life when I was up there than I ever have, and I’m very much trying to hold on to that feeling. I can’t explain any of it well, but I think it was one of the best places in the entire world.

After our solo pondering time, we all ran down the last dune together, put our shoes on (saddest moment of my LIFE) and then went down to where they had a dinner set up for us. We made our own pitas on a Bedouin cooking stone, which was absolutely delicious. I accidentally ate a lot of it. Good raw too! Then we sat around the campfires for a while until we had to leave.

I’ve always thought of myself as a beach or forest kind of person, but this experience, both on the dune and the whole week at Ketura gave me a real appreciation for the desert. There is something incredibly beautiful in the simplicity and the geology, something that is impossible for me to put into words. I could never live somewhere like that, but it was so amazing. I’m still processing.