"We Are Family"

Hey All,
Not gonna lie, pretty boring week. Especially because my last post was on Tuesday. O well, so this will be short, then you can catch up on my other long posts that you haven't finished (giggle giggle).
The rest of the week I had classes, and for some reason they felt even longer then they normally are. Hebrew in the morning, and classes right after. I really love my classes, but now that mid-terms are coming up, I am getting even more homework, study material, and essays that want to take over my life. I have a 5-6 page paper for my Holocaust due in a week about the bombing of Auschwitz, complete with commentary from MANY European sources. Plus, I can't just write about the bombing of Auschwitz, I have to create my own topic on the subject, and expand on it using new sources other then one's that my professor gives me. Can you say OY?? I then have a midterm for my art course, which will be my professor showing us 40 different art pieces that we have seen, and we have to choose 6-10 pieces (maybe), and identify the artist, and write everything that you know about that piece (aka biblical text stuff, and artistic composition). My other midterm that I have is for my religious foundations course. It will be all multiple choice, and we are going to go over the answers right after everyone is done, so that we can discuss our answers and use the midterm to study for a final in the future. I absolutely love this class, we get into the best tangents with the professor on the most random things, then always end up connecting to the original subject. We are also going on an ALL DAY trip to the North to look at some religious areas that relate to the different movements in Judaism.
Wednesday night I then went with Shaina and Sarah to Margot's apartment to make pasta and salad, and watch Grey's Anatomy. We all had missed so many episodes, and Margot found some way to collect all of them on her computer so we could watch FULL EPISODES instead of bits and pieces from YouTube. It was great, we watched 3-4 episodes, and we were laughing and getting way too excited the entire time. We then left around 9:30 or so because both Shaina and myself had to do homework for Thursday.
The next day I breezed through my classes, and got ready to go to my cousin's for Shabbat. My friend Becca was coming with me, so when I got back to my room she was already there with her backpack ready. We met Debbie outside of the building and we went right to her house. When we got there I through a load of laundry in the wash, and we sat around snacking and watching Israeli television. We then realized it was only going to be four of us for dinner that night (Gil was included in the four) so we made tuna melts and onion soup. We then sat around the dining room table eating our comforting dinner and chit-chatting about children's movies we used to love. We then sat in front of the television for a bit watching something silly until we got tired (yay for comfortable beds!!). The next morning Becca got up a little bit earlier then me and watched some stuff on her computer, and I slept for another hour. We then went up to get some breakfast. Debbie came into the kitchen and was taking requests for breakfast, we all had eggs in a hole, and sat a our the kitchens mini TV and watched mindless soup opera's. The rest of the day Becca and I sat outside and did some studying for school, and just enjoyed the cool but sunny day. We then watched Mona Lisa Smile's and hung out until I started making dinner.
I decided that I wanted to make a big Shabbat dinner for my family, so Debbie went out shopping for some lovely chicken, and I cut them up into strips and made lemon chicken, pasta, and veggies for the family (Debbie, Alon, Avigal, Avigal's boyfriend Yonaton, Guy, and Shai)(Gil was sleeping at the farm that they have horses at so he was not at dinner). It was wonderful, and it seemed like they enjoyed the food (pleasepleaseplease). It was nice to spend more time with my family on a more intimate level instead eating and running around. We ate dinner, and sat and talked (a little bit of Hebrew and a little bit in English). Everyone else then went into the living room to look at pictures and I got to sit at the table with Avigal. We hadn't been able to really talk since I got here, so we talked about school and the things that I am doing here, and many other things. I was so happy to spend some one on one time with her because she works late nights at the airport so whenever she is home she resting before her next shift. I hope that soon we can go out, and hang out with her boyfriend and our friends (we are the same age). That night Becca went to bed early, and I stayed up with Debbie and Shai watching old episodes of CSI:Miami, and drinking hot Shoko (Israeli chocolate milk, it's AMAZING).
Saturday morning Becca and I woke up and made ourselves some eggs. Shai got up around the same time as us so she joined us. I made Shai and Becca eggs over easy, and a tomato, onion and cheese omelet for myself (which Becca ended up having half of because she was still hungry). We then sat in front of the television for a bit watching a soap opera (that I don't even remember the name of), and cleaned our stuff up to get ready to go back to school. Debbie took us back to school, and we thanked her for a great weekend, Debbie then said that she would be in touch with me not only to check in, but also to let me know about their Pesach (Passover) Seder on the first night of Pesach. Debbie and I thought that it would be nice for me to come to spend the first seder with them. I completely agreed, and now I am so excited to spend my Pesach break (spring break) in Cyprus and with my family. That night I relaxed, watched a TV show that Sarah, Shaina, and I normally watch before bed, and made some pasta and veggies for dinner.
Hope that was short enough...hehe...hope everyone has a great week!!!
Miss you all very much!!!

Blessings
xoxoxo
Em

"Zoot Suit Riot"

Hey All,

So because I am writing on a Tuesday instead of a Sunday this week, I am going to TRY and get together ALL of the stuff I did last week going into this week. Simplicity isn't really my thing, but those of you who actually enjoy reading my blog (or are procrastinating in other subjects) will have a lot to read.
Sooooo.....
LAST WEEK WAS PURIM!!!!
I had class on Monday night and then rushed back to my dorm to get dressed. For those of you who don't know what Purim is (and without getting into the historic background of the amazing Jewish holiday) it is a mix between St. Patrick's Day and Halloween (oy...I know). I got back to my room, did some quick homework, ate dinner in lightning speed, and dressed up to go to Tel Aviv. I dressed up as Bleeker (M. Cera from the movie Juno), Shaina was a Tiger, and my friend Sarah was "The Dead Sea." We ran to the bus stop that is just outside of our dorms, and took it to the central bus station, where we again ran to the bus that was taking people to Tel Aviv. We were some of the first people to get on the bus, so we got seats right away. Once we got to Tel Aviv we called some of our friends that had left a bit earlier. We were supposed to meet them at the main street where all of the craziness was happening (Florentine St.). When we got there, it was packed with MILLIONS, and I do mean MILLIONS of people. There was music going on everywhere, people dancing on cars, on buildings, lights flashing, and probably anything else that you could possibly imagine. We found our friends at the "beginning" of the street and linked arms to work our way through. We attempted to get through at least one block without getting separated, but clearly that wasn't going to happen. Some of us kept breaking the chain because other people were trying to get through (not noticing that there were two arms linked in front of them), we would then call out each others names, and try to identify someones clothing as something to follow. We got through one block and had to rush into an open alley in order to not get trampled on by unknown characters. When we got through, I called one of my Israeli friends (Daniel) and had him come and find me so that we could hang out for a bit. It took forever for him and his friends to find us, and by the time they got to where we were, all of my friends were exhausted and wanted to go back to Jerusalem (it was 3am already). I really wanted to hang out with Daniel so everyone else left and Shaina and I stayed. Daniel said that we should walk to a frozen yogurt shop that was only a couple blocks from where we were, so that seemed like a good idea. We ended up walking for an hour trying to find this place, and by the time we got there, it was closed. Then Daniel suggested that we get some sushi, and by this time Shaina and I were SOOOOO tired, so I said my goodbye to Daniel and told him that I would be back very soon to hang out with him again. Shaina and I then took a cab to the Sheeroot (taxi-bus) station and headed back to Jerusalem. By the time we got back into our room and into bed it was already 5am (OY!!!). However, even though it was a long night of craziness, we needed to experience it, and we ended up having a pretty OK time.
On Tuesday, my best friend Andrew (who is studying abroad in Tel Aviv) came to Jerusalem. His family, of whom are my second family basically, were here to visit him for 2 weeks. So they gave me a call when they got into Jerusalem, and I met up with them on Ben Yehuda street. After they had lunch we walked around, and went shopping. Karen (Andrew's Mom), Sara (Andrew's Sister), and I stopped in a lot of places, while the boys (Andrew and his dad Lou)(I think I spelled that wrong) walked around waiting for us (some of the time). After being on Ben Yehuda, we walked to the Shuk to do a little more shopping before dinner. Karen took us to a GREAT Israeli restaurant on Machaneh Yehuda called "Sami's" which was really great, when we got there we ended up meeting with one of Andrew's Camp Ramah friends that goes to Hebrew University with me as well. After dinner we walked all the way to Emek Rafayeem (about a 15 min. walk from Ben Yehuda) to another restaurant called "CafeCafe" to get some coffee. It ended up that my friends Sarah, Ariana, and Leah were there having dinner for the second night of Purim before going back out. I sat with Andrew and his family, and then when they wanted to leave to go back to Tel Aviv I stayed behind to hang out with my friends. It was really nice seeing Andrew and his family for the day. I had been getting really homesick in the past week, so being able to get a "mommy hug" and a "daddy hug" was really helpful.
After my girls were finished dinner, we walked BACK to Ben Yahuda street and found again MILLIONS BEYOND MILLIONS of people celebrating the second night of Purim (forgot to mention that within these two days, aka Tuesday and Wednesday, I didn't have any school)(yay for Jewish holiday breaks). We tried walking through the many crowds but it was even crazier then Tel Aviv. We could get through the crowds of people this time, but it was even noisier, and even younger people. Which basically meant that they were running around, bumping into people, and light firecrackers ALL NIGHT!!. Some even got really close to where we were walking and made an incredibly loud noise right next to us. By this time it was midnight, and we were ready to go back to the dorms. I went to bed right away because I knew that I needed to get some sleep that night into Wednesday before the rest of the week.
Thursday was back to classes (which didn't really make sense because after that we had the weekend, aka no classes on Fridays because of Shabbat), I breezed through them and went right back to my room and hangout with Shaina and Sarah. That night we went out with our friend Becca and her boyfriend who was visiting her in Israel for a bit. We went to Ben Yehuda street again and just sat in a pub to talk. We didn't want to stay out too late so Shaina, Sarah, and I went back to the dorms early(Shaina and Sarah were getting up early Friday morning to go to a weekend retreat "Shabatone" which I didn't get a chance to sign up for so I wasn't going)(I was assured that there would be more int he future). All day Friday was Emily time. I slept in, made a good breakfast, did some homework, took a LONG shower, watch a movie (or two, or three), made Shabbat dinner for myself and then went to bed. The next day I go up and again made some breakfast (shakshuka, aka tomato's and other lovely vegetables and pouched eggs), then walked to the student village to spend the day hanging with my friend Larissa. Larissa and I know each other from camp, and we had not been able to truly have Larissa and Emily time since we got here, so it was nice to hang with her, listen to music, watch a movie, and just talk for a bit. Larissa then decided that we should go to a waffle bar for dinner/dessert, so we got a couple of people together and took a bus to Ben Yehuda to eat some AMAZING waffles (waffle with chocolate ice cream, and a waffle with warm cinnamon cream cheese spread on top). After we were finished I got the best phone call of my life, the EYH trip (Expand Your Horizons) from Wagner College (my school yay) was here.
I left Larissa and friends, and met up with the group, I was so very surprised when I saw some of the girls that live on the Earth/Green floor with me. It was so exciting to see people from school, and Kathryn Steingraber, who was the person that truly helped me with EVERYTHING that I needed to get here. I showed them around Ben Yehuda and showed them where the night life was. We went to "Crack Square" so they could see where a lot of the parties go on (clubs, bars, etc.). We sat down in a pub for a bit, and talked about my time here a little bit. They asked a lot of questions as to the classes I am taking, what the school is like, and what I have truly been up to during my already two months here. I then left them to hang out on their own. I had class the next morning so I needed to get to sleep.
On Sunday, Kathryn came to two of my classes (Religious Foundations of Judaism, and In the Community: Israel Case Study, aka my internship course). After my first class, I took Kate to a salad bar that we have on campus that I love, and chit-chat about my time here so far. We then had a little bit of time before the second class, so we walked to my dorm so that she could check out my room. I think she liked it, and said that it seemed cozy. We then went to my second class, and we both took many many notes. That day we were talking about the structure of different organizations. Everything was VERY clear to me because I am studying management in the arts, so I take classes about how different organizations work. Kate was taking notes on what the professor was saying, as well as how the class connects to the things that Wagner is looking for in a study abroad program (I have a feeling that she got more then she needed). After the class, I met with my teacher so that he could know how I am doing in my internship. He liked that I was happy in what I was doing, and to contact him or my advisor with any problems that I might be having (we were told this many times, but it feels good that they are so concerned). Kate and I then went out to dinner. I took her to Fococcia Bar, which is a Tuscan grill like restaurant off of Ben Yehuda. We had a great dinner, and talked about how to endorse the study abroad to Israel program, and the experience that I am having here both as a regular college student, and from a religious point of view. It was a really great opportunity for us to debrief about the program, and really have some down time from the rest of the group, and from school.
The next day I had class bright and early. I couldn't concentrate all that much though because I knew that the Wagner group was coming to Hebrew University to get a personal tour of the campus by me. I got them through security, and we walked to the Rotheberg International School building (Boyer building), where we took a quick picture of all of us in front of the beautiful view from the top of the school. I then took them inside, where they had a brief introductions to the RIS program, and the things you can do on campus. I then took them through the building, around a couple of court yards, through the forum, and then took them to the Botanical Gardens that are on campus. I thought that would be a nice last stop so they could see how much, not just my school or Jerusalem, but Israel cares about the environment, and the immense amount of natural agriculture that is here. I explained to them the Israel takes pride in their land, and that everything here is properly nurtured, and taken care of so that all can enjoy it. we then left Hebrew U. and went to the Community Center in Pisgat Ze'ev for lunch with Karen Kalif (my internship advisor). They learned about the community and what the center does, and what kind of internships you can do there. I then had to head out because I had my last class of the day very soon. I said my goodbyes, and wished everyone a great rest of semester, and that I would see them next fall (Senior Year!!!).

I ended my Monday night with my internship, and had a great time playing some Theater games with the girls and getting them a little bit more prepared to go to London. I love being with them, and they seem like they enjoy being with me as well, and I hope that I am making a big enough impact on them that they will go on their trip with a positive frame of mind.

I have a feeling that this was really long, but then again like I said in the beginning, I am not really a simple kind of girl.
I hope everyone is well and happy, and had a great St. Patrick's Day!!!

Blessings
xoxoxo
Em

"Get This Party Started"

Hey All,
Busy, Busy week!!!
I had a long week of classes, filled with BIG exams, and mini quiz's.
All week I was preparing for two Hebrew quiz's. One on words from the week, and the other was for infinitive words, yea I said it, infinitive words such as; to go, to read, to speak, to learn. They all also have different rules, not all are spelled the same, it all depends on how the original word was set up. For example; Gar is "Live" (I live there), or lomed is "study" (I study art). However, when you are making these two words infinitive, they are put into two different categories. "To Live" is La'gor, and "To Study" is Leel'mode. It gets very complicated, and some words have exceptions to the original words. I studied very hard for both quiz's and I am hoping that I did well on both.
The big exam that I had was on basic knowledge of the Holocaust. Which means to me; who is Adolf Hitler, when did the Nazi's come to power, what are ghetto's, what is "the night of broken glass," what are some of the major camps, etc. NOPE!!! I had to read an entire 382 page Holocaust book in 3 days in order to know; other names of generals, officers, commanders, places, vocab, events, and specifics about certain camps. All of this information spanning from 1930-1945. I attempted to read the entire book within those 3 days (same time that everyone else had) and got to about 1939 when I realized I couldn't retain anymore information. I figured I would wing it, and I would have a good amount of information to at least get a decent grade. I went into the exam, and we had to choose 10 out of 20 people, places, events, and vocab to describe in one paragraph each. Then when we were finished with those descriptions, I had to write an essay, out of four VERY different choices. I got to a point towards the end of my essay where I felt that I couldn't write anymore about the Holocaust or I would start crying (because of the actual event, and because I could write anymore information)(I was literally "dead" in the subject). When I was finished, my friends Nicole and Ayala went to celebrate finishing the exam. We went to Burgers Bar which is a great burger place in Israel with a million choices as far as both poultry and meat, and toppings. They also have the BEST fries ever. It was nice to relax after class with my friends and talk about how crazy the exam was, and how now we can look forward to so many other things without having to worry about studying for any more exams in this class (for my Holocaust class you just have that exam and two papers, NO FINAL!!).
On Thursday, I had my regular classes until 2:15, and then got ready to go to the Center again. A board a important people from the Staten Island JCC was visiting Israel, and they were in Jerusalem for Thursday and Shabbat. I went to the Center and met them (all 9 of them) in one of the meeting rooms. Then after they went around the table to tell me there names, we headed out to go on a quick tour of Pisgat Ze'ev (the same tour that I went on when I first got here). They were all really nice, and wanted to ask me a million questions. It was great, and I felt very close to them (like family) after just meeting. After the tour we had a nice buffet dinner in the same meeting room that we started in. By that time, Yoel and Shai had gotten there, and we sat around and ate good food, and had some wonderful conversations. The next day was Shabbat, and I spent I think the whole day in bed, studying, and hanging out. It was a very quiet day, and at night I watched a movie on my computer and made myself some dinner (pasta, and vegys). I then went to bed early because I had to get up early to meet up with the group again.
On Saturday, I got up extra early to take a shower, and get dressed for a walking tour of the Old City. I checked the weather before I got dressed, and it said that it was going to be 80 degrees. I was sooo excited, I wore jeans and a tank top, and brought a light jacket just in case (in some parts of the Old City you have to cover your shoulders for modesty). I met the group that the hotel that they were staying in, and we started walking from there. We met up with two of there Israeli friends that they met when they had home hospitality Shabbat dinners, and they took us to another meeting area where there were a million other groups waiting to go on a tour of the Old City as well. When we got there it was so packed with touring groups that we decided to just go on our own. We figured that we have to two Israeli's with us, and they know their way around, why not go on our own personal tour of the "real" Old City. It was great, they took us through the back alleys of Ben Yehuda, and I got to give my two cents on the places that I had been (aka night life), and then we headed through some other little towns on the outskirts of the Kotel (Western Wall). We got to this little park that was absolutely beautiful, overlooking the Kotel, Jaffa Gate (pronounced Yaffa), and the Arab quarter. We walked through the park and ended up in a little village that we found out was the 1st community built outside of the Old City. As we were walking through, a woman stopped us and asked if we wanted to come into her home. She said that she was an artist, and that she had a beautiful home, and she just wanted us to come inside and experience it (and maybe even buy one of her art and poetry books). We excepted and it was the most beautiful home I had ever seen. It was very small, but everything was hand made, and very antique looking. The walls were COVERED in her art pieces, and felt so warm and cozy. I remember thinking that when I have my first home, I want it to look just like this; lived in, bohemian, hippy, chic. The woman we found out was from Holland and moved to Israel when she was 22. She painted everyday, and would never think about what to paint, she would just paint whatever she felt, and somehow it just came out this amazing masterpiece. It was really wonderful, and she stopped me before I left and said that I should come back to her soon and we would relax in the park and paint together. I thought that was very sweet, and I hope that if I do go back she will remember my face, and we will do exactly what she said we would do.
We finally got to the Jaffa Gate and we walked around the Arab quarter so that the group could do some last minute shopping before moving on. After they were finished we walked to the Christian quarter where we took the group to Church of the Holy Seplicur(I know that I did not spell that right) (the supposed place where Jesus was buried). I didn't go inside because I had already been before and didn't find it to be all too exciting when I first went, so I sat outside in the sun with our two Israeli friends and chit-chat about living in Israel, and if I had ever considered moving to Israel in the future.
After being in the Old City, we took a couple of cabs to the "Israel Museum." We went to the dead sea scrolls exhibit, and checked out the beautiful sculpture garden that was there. There wasn't really a lot to see because the museum has been under construction, and wont be complete until 2010, it was still a very nice experience anyway. Once the group was finished we walked back to the Hotel and rested until dinner. I went to the room that some of the woman were staying in, and took a nap on their couch. It was very relaxing, and when I woke up they acted very mother like, and offered me a million things (they said that since they were away from their own children they needed someone to baby). That night we went to a great noodle bar called River to have dinner. Shai was there, and we sat and hung out and had some fun conversations with each other and the people around us. By the end of the night I was so tired I had to go to bed (I had class early Sunday morning so I thought sleeping might be a really good idea).
All in all it was a wonderful week. I know that this blog is very late. I was having some personal problems so I needed to write it a little later. This coming Sunday however will be filled with EVERYTHING that i did for Purim, so no worries, I will be completely put together by then.
Much Much Love!!!

Blessings,
xoxoxox
Em

"If I Only Had a Brain"

Hey All,
So this week I got to experience all of my classes for the semester. Every day it is something different, and ALWAYS eventful. The only thing that I have everyday is a Hebrew class. It is at 10:30 am until 12:15 everyday except for Monday mornings when it is at 8:30.

Hebrew is really hard, but I am learning slowly but surely. At this point I feel comfortable with asking for things, such as; directions, food, prices when I need to buy things, etc. I feel like a am better at speaking it then understanding it because I have to ask the person that I am talking to to speak slowly, or speak in English. My teachers try to go slowly so that we don't get too frustrated, but it is kind of hard considering that we are all learning this language for the first time. For some (including myself) this is the first NEW language they have ever taken other then learning Spanish or french in middle school and high school.

My other classes I have are great. Sundays and Tuesdays I have Religious Foundations of Judaism: Intellectual Trends and Ideological Developments. This class has 10 people in it now, and we all come from different religious backgrounds. Including one guy named Kendal who is christian (hmmmmm?). We talk about the beginning of the Jewish faith, aka the middle ages until now. We started out talking about the differences between "written Torah" and "oral Torah." As Jewish people we read the Torah word for work, but not all of the laws that we abide by today come from actual words from the Torah. For example; in the Torah it says, word for word, "you shall not boil a kid in it's mothers milk." However, nowhere does it say anything about having to separate dishes, as well as if you boil a calf in sheep's milk does that mean that it is still kosher? Clearly the calf is not the "kid" of the sheep, so it is OK to eat together. There is also nothing said about eating poultry and dairy, because clearly chickens don't produce milk. This where "oral Torah" comes in. The Rabbi's of that time read the literal meanings, and then thought about how they can create laws to expand on what is said in the Torah. In the future we are going to be talking more about the different movements in Judaism, as well as the issues that other religions have had with the Jewish faith thought history.
Sundays and Thursdays I have Biblical Figures and Stories in Jewish, Christian, and Islamic Art. This class is right up my alley. It is going into the different famous stories within the Torah, and how they differ from christian stories and Islamic/Muslim stories. Then we look at different art pieces throughout history that depict the same stories. We analyse the art, and think about what the artist was thinking as far as what is said in the old testament, new testament, and the Koran which is the Islamic/Muslim Torah/bible. It is a lot of fun, and it gives me a chance to relax and learn about something that I have an immence interest in, as well a passion for art in general.
Mondays and Wednesdays I have Jewish-non-Jewish Relations and Rescue During the Holocaust. This class is a little bit more intense (for more reasons then just that it is about the Holocaust). It has about 40 people in it, and everyone gets to the class really early so that they can get a good seat. Once we find a place to sit that is a good distance from the board as well as where the professor is standing, we take out our notebooks and get ready to listen and write notes for 3 hours. It is quite literally a lecture class, where the students sit and listen, and the professor talks until he is blue in the face. My professor that goodness as very good at what he does, so he goes over arts of history that we didn't know a couple of times before moving on. He also is always so excited about what he is talking about. It is as if he wants us to get just as excited about history as he is. I for one am definitely feeling the thrill of history that he is seeking, even though the subject matter is VERY depressing. We are going to be talking about the years leading up to the establishment of the ghetto's and concentration camps. Then we are going to move into the bombing of Auschwitz, and the Pope and the Vatican's views of the Holocaust. It is really interesting so far, and I am pretty sure I am taking enough notes to teach my own course in the Holocaust. I have only had 2 lectures in this subject and I already had 15 pages worth of notes just from class time.
The other course I am taking is not very much fun for me. I am doing an internship with the community center in Pisgat Ze'ev so I have to take a course/workshop about working in an internship. In the Community: Israel Case Studies- Academic Internship is a course where you sit in a class every other Sunday and talk about the fundamentals of working in an internship. It is quite boring because I have experience in working in different kinds of organizations, so I know the protocol for meeting your employer, and the other people that work in the organization. It is basically going to be a class that I will hopefully get through easily. I can also see how important it is to understand Israeli society, and how to work in it.

Another fun event that happened this week was my friend Nicole and I figuring out what we are doing during our spring break. Nicole and I had met in the airport on the way to Israel, and we instantly became friends. A couple of weeks ago she had suggested to me maybe going on a cruise with her and her cousins during our spring break. I had told her that I still didn't know what I wanted to do, and that money was definitely an issue, considering that I didn't come to Israel with a lot of money to spend on vacations, and other forms of traveling. Then, on Wednesday after my Holocaust course, Nicole got all of the information that I needed for the cruise. A 3 day cruise to Cyprus, for people in a room, 4 meals a day, pool, hot tub, night life, etc. All for the amazing price of 250 dollars (yep dollars, not shekels). I immediately said YESYESYES!!! I had to give my mom a call first to see if it was OK, and she was so excited for me that she of course said yes. I am going with Nicole, our friend Ayala and one of Nicole's female cousins in one room, and the other room is Nicole's male cousins and one of their friends. I am so very excited, and I couldn't wait to tell all of my friends from the states about my up and coming adventure.
After that set of good news, I was ready for a relaxing weekend with my cousins. On Thursday, after my Biblical Art class, my cousin Debbie picked me up from my dorm and we drove to her home that is only 25 minutes away from my school. All of the kids were home which was really nice. We had a quiet dinner together, and spread out to do some work. I put in my LARGE BAG of laundry and started on some readings for two of my classes. After my laundry and reading was done, Debbie, Shai, and I watched a movie, then went to bed. It felt so good to sleep in a real bed with comfy sheets and fluffy pillows, I felt at home with my cousins. On Friday I woke up around 11am and had some breakfast while doing some more reading. This is how it was the entire day. Me and most of the kids just sat around doing work, or some crafts, in complete silence. Finally Gil decided to watch a movie, so I stopped what I was doing and joined him. Considering that it was thundering outside, Debbie made some soup, and we got comfortable on the couch to watch Quantum Of Solace (the James bond movie), which was pretty OK. After the movie we all got ready to go out to dinner. My cousin Avigal joined us for dinner with her boyfriend, and we had a really great time. I made sure that they spoke in Hebrew with me so that I could learn more. It was great, I could understand a lot of what was going on, and when I didn't understand a word I would ask Debbie what it meant and would go right back into listening to the different conversations.
That night was also very relaxing. We got back to the house and Avigal and her boyfriend were getting ready to go out. We hadn't planned out my being there very well because I wasn't able to go with them. However, Avigal told me that next time I come for the whole weekend we would go into Tel Aviv together and meet up with both of our groups of friends. It sounded like a good idea to me, and I was very excited to figure out when we could make that happen. After they left Debbie, Gil, Shai, and I watched some television and went to bed around midnight. I slept really well again, and ended up waking up the next morning at noon. I went to the kitchen thinking that I would make some cereal for myself, but found that Debbie was already making a HUGE brunch for everyone, and was taking requests for how people wanted their eggs. It was really nice just sitting around the table eating brunch and watching TV, because right after, I started getting ready to leave. I said goodbye to the kids, and Alon (Debbie's husband), and headed out. Debbie drove me back to school right before Shabbat let out, and I was very sad to say goodbye. We said to each other that it was a good thing I wasn't too far away, and that it was nice to have family in the area for a long period of time instead of many miles away in the States.

I am looking forward to another wonderful week of classes, and the beginning of my internship!
Hope everyone is well and happy, and I miss you all very much!!!

Blessings,
xoxoxo
Em

"Learn Your Lessons Well"

Hey All,

So this past week was CRAZY!!
I had my last week of Ulpan, which means Final Exams. Tuesday was my oral exam, which actually went really well. I had to have a conversation with a girl in my class about which was better; the Shuk (an outside market) or the Supermarket. It was an entire 5 minute conversation between the two of us asking what each place and if what we wanted was expensive. Then we ended with giving each other directions to the two places that we wanted to go to. The second part of the oral exam was just the Teacher and I. She would ask me questions about a specific text that I had to read and memorize. I ended up forgetting half of the words that I needed to use, and she could tell that I was getting frustrated. At this point she stopped me, and started over with just asking me questions about myself (things that I like, do, eat, and drink). That part actually went really well, and I ended up getting an 80% on my oral exam. Thursday was my written exam, which I was freaking out about the whole week. When I finally got into the exam I took a minute to relax and finally decided that it was not worth getting stressed over. I just needed to do my best, and what ever happens, happens. I started the exam, and I felt really good about it. There were parts that I REALLY didn't know, and then there were parts that I breezed through. The last page of the test (5th page) was me having to write an essay (all in Hebrew). I started writing and it actually went really well, I found that I knew more then I thought I would remember. I finished early, and went back to my room with Shaina and took a "congratulation Ulpan is over" nap.

When Shaina and I woke up, we went out with our friends Sarah, Margot, and Leah to the Shuk so that we could go shopping for Shabbat dinner at Margot's apartment. It was a lot of fun, and ended up being a really nice day out. After the Shuk I came back to my room, cleaned up a bit, read, and got ready to meet up with my friend from camp, Neta. Neta and I haven't seen each other in two years, and I was so very excited to see her again. I met her at the central bus station and we took another bus to Ben Yehuda Street for dinner. We went to a restaurant called Foccacia Grill, which was kind of like a Tuscan grill, which served everything you could possibly think of. Neta and I talked about old times, and caught each other up on the things that we were doing now, all of this over two amazing salads, and a dessert cup of chocolate mousse. After dinner, Neta and I met up with some of her friends at a bar that was down the street. When we sat down Neta told them that they should speak in English, and I immediately cut her off and told them that they should speak in Hebrew, and I will let them know if I need them to stop and go back to English. They were really nice, and told me that they wanted to practice their English, and that if it gets too hard for them they will just start speaking in Hebrew. I didn't care either way, I loved hearing them speak in Hebrew, even though I didn't understand most of what they were saying. Then around 1am Neta and her friends left and I met up with my girls Ariana and Leah. We walked around the larger bar and club area on Ben Yehuda Street called "Crack Square" (you guess is better then mine). We went to another small bar just to have some girl time, and ended up staying for a good hour, we got back to our rooms around 3am.

The next morning I woke up extra early to go to brunch with my nest friend from home Andrew (who is going to Tel Aviv University for the semester). He came in the night before to see his friends from Camp Ramah that go to Hebrew University, and we had been in touch during that week so that we could make time to see each other. I met up with him at the student apartments, and took him to a great bakery right next to the student village. We sat for a good hour and a half to two hours talking about our experiences so far, our birthdays, and what we are really looking forward to when the semester actually starts. I miss him so much, and I was so happy that I got to finally see him, even if it was for just a little bit. I hope that once we both have our semesters figured out we will be able to maybe see each other a little bit more (aka me traveling to Tel Aviv). After I left Andrew I went back to my dorm to get ready for Shabbat. Shaina and I and a bunch of our friends met up at Margot's apartment and we made ourselves a GREAT Shabbat dinner. It was really nice to cook, and hang out with my friends again in a more relaxed setting. The rest of weekend consisted of sleeping in, watching movies with my friend Sarah, and snacking on what was left (which was not very much) in our closet for food.

Then the semester started.....

Sunday morning (this morning) was my first day of the spring semester. Shaina and I got up early to get ready and scrounge around for some kind of breakfast, and then walked to our first class (which we had together), Biblical Figures and Stories in Jewish, Christian, and Islamic Art. This class was great. There are about 13 people in the class, and we just started right away the biblical stories that we knew the best; Cain and Abel, Jacob's Ladder, Jacob wrestling with the angel, and the binding of Isaac. We looked at different art pieces that were telling these stories through the eyes of Jews and Jewish artists, and Christians. They were all very different, and very interesting to compare. We then looked at one Islamic art piece, and out teacher told us that Islamic art is normally not allowed in society for people to see, and that if there were biblical art pieces created they were only allowed to be put inside the palaces. Our teacher told us that throughout the course we are going to be comparing a lot of art pieces between Jewish views of biblical stories, and Christian views of the New Testament stories. As well as looking at Islamic art and thinking about how they portray their own views on these biblical stories.
My second class of the day was Religious Foundations of Judaism 2: Intellectual Trends and Ideological Development. It was again a really small class ( about 9 people), and the Professor basically just started us out with where the Jews were practicing in the middle ages. He said that we were going to start out in the middle ages, and move on through medieval times, then the Renaissance, then move into modern views of Judaism. I am really excited for this class. I have a feeling that it parts of it are going to be difficult, and a lot of it is going to be class discussions on the different areas of Judaism, and how it can be argued with the New Testament. We were also told that the class will be going on an all day field trip to the North, to explore the different areas that Judaism first started, and the different movements with in those areas.
Other then that I have had a pretty easy going day, and cannot wait for the rest of my classes during the week. I'll take notes during the week so that I don't forget anything for my next post. I know that some of you are truly interested in the classes that I am taking. So I will hopefully be as detailed as I can next time.

Blessings,
xoxoxo
Em

"You've Got a Friend In Me"

Hey All,

Hope everyone's week was wonderful...mine sure was.
Last Sunday night after I submitted my latest blog post, Shaina and I went to the Community Center in Pisgat Ze'ev for their Tu B'shvat event. Yoel and his wife Chava picked us up at our dorm, and we drove right to the center. When we got there the entire room was an explosion of color and music. It was sett up a lot like an event that would be held at my own Synagogue. Round tables all over the room, pretty, theme like decorations on top. Art work around the room, done by the kids from the community, entertainment ( a woman singing A LOT of songs in Hebrew, with a piano accompanist), and an all around lively atmosphere. Everyone was so very warm, and caring, and everyone that Yoel introduced me to was so eager to meet me, and get to know EVERYTHING about me, Wagner, my stay so far at Hebrew University.

Through the night we blessed four cups of wine representing the change in all four seasons. As well as different blessings and songs for the different foods that come from trees (oranges, nuts, olives, figs, dates, etc.). It was a lot of fun, and Shaina and I learned a lot about celebrating this holiday in Israel. By the end of the night however, we were very tired, maybe because of the wine, but also because we had just started our first week of 5 HOUR ULPAN CLASSES!!!

During the week it was literally wake up at 7:30, walk to Ulpan by 8, and be in class starting at 8:30. We had to do this because it is the last 2 weeks of Ulpan before we start the semester. So we have to learn as much Hebrew as possible in order to take a final Hebrew placement exam by the end of the second week (a two part oral Hebrew exam, and a written exam). However, because of the Israeli elections on Tuesday we had off from school, and got to sleep in, relax, and study. The down side of not having class on Tuesday though, is we had to have class on Friday, which normally does not happen because people are getting ready for the Sabbath. O well, Shaina and I dealt during the week. We went to classes, had lunch straight after (around 1:45), went back to the room, did homework, napped, played on our computers, ate dinner, watched a movie, and went to bed. That was pretty much our routine every day, UNTIL.........

Saturday night (Valentines Day), it was our friend Ariana's 18th Birthday. Which is kind of a big deal in Israel because that is the age that you are officially legal (while in the states it is 21). On Friday Ariana went into the Old City with her friend Margo and celebrated Shabbat there. Then Saturday night, right after sundown, Shaina, Becca, Sarah, and I met Margo and Ariana at Cafe, Cafe, (so good they named it twice Sarah says). We sat down for dinner and the people at the restaurant started setting up all Valentines day decorations. We figured, hey it's Ari's b-day, lets celebrate our "love" for her, and we did. The food was amazing, they have an assortment of different kinds of pastas that you can mix-and-match with different sauces. They also had sandwiches, beautiful salads, and main dishes that mostly involved Salmon, and Tilapia (that's was Becca, Ariana, and I got). We were so very full by the end that we couldnt make room for dessert. However, we definitely made up for it later.

After dinner we took a bus to Ben Yehuda Street and walked to a Bar that was recommended to us by my new friend Shai Bar. Shai was the sheliach ( Israel exchange student/member/helper if you will) last year on Staten Island, and now he is working at the Pisgat Ze'ev Community Center with some of the youth that is there. He called me during dinner and told me about this great place called Goldy's, so we walked down Ben Yehuda and found the bar, which was very packed, but finally got a seat. We had so much fun, we got Ariana a hot chocolate cake, and sang Happy Birthday to her. Then Shai actually joined us for a drink, and so that we could finally meet. He is very sweet, and is a lot of fun to be around, which makes me hopeful that we will be able to work together somehow at the Community Center during my internship. We only stayed out for a couple of hours, because we had class bright and early the next day, for our second week of 5 hour Ulpan, and our final exams.

OK...I know that all of this might seem boring to some people, but these experiences have been really important to me. I have made some amazing friends that are a lot like me (not just because they are Jewish). I have a group of friends that I live with, and ones that live in the student village, and I love them so very much. We have a lot of fun together, and like to go off on little adventures together. Then there are people that I don't get to see as much, my friends in my Ulpan class. They are about 13 people in my class, and I am really good friends with four of them, two of whom are about my mom's age. The younger one's; Sarah, and Virginia, are so sweet. They always help me whenever I am having problems understanding the classwork, and some of the things that the teacher might say that I will miss because I am still writing the previous information down. They are both absolutely wonderful, and I don't know how I would get through these Hebrew classes without them, and their wonderful smiling faces every morning. Jen, is one of my other girls. She is the true mommy of our little group, and I always feel comfortable talking to her whenever I am having a hard time in class. she remind me of my mom a lot, which always makes me feel good when I am really homesick. Jen can just look at me and tell that something is wrong, and she will just look at you with her big mother eyes and ask you to tell her what is going on. She has a very sweet and soft voice, and is always soothing during hard times.
Then there is Ilona. Ilona is from Germany, and is not Jewish, her daughter was taking Ulpan for her schooling so Ilona decided to take it as well, for a new experience. Ilona is a little bit older then Jen and has a couple of grown children, and one grandchild. Ilona is very quiet, especially during class, but she has an amazing mind, and a very loving and spiritual way about her. We think of each other as kindred spirits because both of us love to sing, and feel a deep connection with prayer when we are singing. During our half hour break today, Ilona and I had a very long conversation about our experiences in music and prayer. She told me that when she gave birth to her first child, she was not allowed to see her baby after she was born. The nurses took her away after birth and put her in a room with all of the other new borns until a later time, when the mother was completely healed. Ilona didn't like this at all, and she knew that her baby would not like it either. She knew that her baby was going to cry all night until she could be with her mother. Ilona said that after this notion, she closed her eyes and started to softly sing to her baby as if she was still in the room. She said that she felt like she was in a trance, and couldn't stop until she knew that she had calmed her baby, and that after only a couple of moments she knew that her child was sound asleep. From then on, she sang the same song to her baby every night, and did the same for all of her children. Now her first born is studying at a music conservatory in Israel, and is studying vocal music. That was absolutely amazing to me, I always thought that thing like that could happen, but hearing it from a first person point of view was so beautiful. Ilona and I then went on a tangent about how we feel when we sing, and what our body does when we get so into it that is feels like prayer. We both feel a complete connection to G-d when we sing/pray, and that it does not have to be a specific song in either Hebrew or English, it can be from inside, and when it comes out nothing can touch you, and you can feel a whole new connection to the things around you.

I feel like that is how I connect to the Reconstructionist movement. I see an everyday prayer and I make it relate to myself. I can sing the tune, and say the words, but in the end it has a completely new meaning to me, and I feel a more spiritual connection to the prayer, and that I am not just saying it for myself, I am saying it for everyone, and for G-d at times.

I hope that whole shpeal wasn't to "out there" for your guys, but hey, it gives my blog some depth, don't you think??

Blessings,
Em
xoxoxo

"In Your Eyes"

Hey All,

So...in my last post we ended with me going on a tour of Pisgat Zeev, and the community center. Then making Shabbat dinner for my girlfriends in the Kfar Ha'Studentim (Student Apartments).

The tour of Pisgat Zeev was wonderful!!...Karen Kalif, the coordinator of the Pisgat Zeev Community Council, picked me up at my dorm early in the morning and took me and a man from the Staten Island JCC, Alan (he was here with a group, and broke off from his tour to see Pisgat Zeev and the center), to the Community Center. Karen took us on a quick outside tour of the center before going on a driving/walking tour of the different areas of Pisgat Zeev. We met up with some men from the Center who drove us up to the top of P.Z. When we got out of the car we went up a path covered in what will soon be an immense amount of flowers, some were already bloomed, but it was mostly just some green, and buds. At the top was a park, and one of the most beautiful views that I have seen since I have been here. The man that was giving the tour was telling us about how Pisgat Zeev came to be, and how it is one of the largest communities in Jerusalem. We then went to "the fence," which is the border between Pisgat Zeev and the Arab village that surrounds the entire community. The wall of the fence was very high, and we were told that it was originally very small, and a lot closer to some of the houses, and apartments belonging to Pisgat Zeev. It had to be moves back and made higher because the people of the Arab community would throw things at the homes, breaking windows and sometimes injuring the people that lived in them.

We were then taken back to the Community Center where we had a quick tour of the building. It had about 5 levels, all being used for different reasons. The floor that I enjoyed the most was the arts floor. there were rooms for arts and crafts, music rooms, and a dance studio (it was so nice for a community center; marly floors, ballet bars, mirrors, and a piano.) After the tour of the center, we were taken down to the pre-school to celebrate Kabbalat Shabbat with the 2 year olds. They were all so very sweet, and one of the little girls was looking at me the entire time, she was so adorable, and I wished that I didn't have to leave. We then met Yoel and some other people at the mall that was across the street from the Center to have lunch. It was lovely, I met two women, one named Dee who is part of the centers community, and Nanette who's mother and father live on Staten Island, right down the street from Wagner College. Nanette was very sweet, and invited me and my roommate to spend Shabbat weekend with her.

After lunch I rushed back to my dorm to get Shaina and our friend Sarah to walk to the Kfar Ha'Studentim. We walked over and went right up to my friend Ariana's apartment, where we rested for a little bit, and then made Shabbat dinner; Lemon chicken, pasta, vegy's, garlic bread, and wine. It was nice to send Shabbat with my girls, we just hung out, listened to music while I cooked. I think they were a bit scared to get in the way of my creative dinner. After dinner, we cleaned up, sat around and chit chat, then Shaina, Sarah, and I went back to our dorm and went to bed. The rest of the weekend was relaxing, Shaina and I slept in, did out homework, and ordered pizza after Shabbat was "Over," and watched "Across the Universe."

The the then concisted of Ulpan classes everyday, and then trying to figure out our Internet situation. Since Shaina and I had gotten to Israel we didnt have internet in our room. So we had been carrying our laptops to and from school almost everyday (ouch my back!!). It had been and entire 3 weeks of trying to contact the Internet company in Israel; Bezeq, and in true Israeli fashion they ignored our phone calls or just didnt give us the information that we needed, it was very frusturating. Thank god however that I had a mole helping me along the way. My cousins Alon and Debbie have been helping me the entire time, trying to use their own contacts to figure everything out. We finally got a good deal on a modem/internet connection, but we had to travel to the Tachanah Mirkazeet (The Centeral Bus Station) to go to the Bezeq store to pick up our modem. So Shaina and I apprehencivly got onto bus number 28 and payed the 5.90 shekels ($1.50) to ride it. When we got there however (at 6:15pm) it was closed, and we were told that the store closes at 6pm...UGH!!!...it was aweful. We were told that we had to come back the next day, and earlier, so Shaina and I made use of our surroundings and went to the mall that was in the same area. We were with our friend Nicole and we decided to walk around the mall, check out the stores, and get dinner at the GREAT food court that was in there. I got Shwarma on laffa bread (shaven lamb meat on large doughie bread, with your choice of toppings), Shaina got a crepe with nutela (hazelnut chocolate spread) and bananas, and Nicole got Yogurt and a crepe as well. It turned out to be a really great night, and I fugured if all went well the next day we finally have internet. I was wrong...we went back right after our Ulpan class with Ariana and Sarah and got the modem, but the women that gave it to me said that it was just for me, and that I couldnt get a splitter or anything to share the internet connection with Shaina. This was so very frusterating, and Shaina was pretty upset as well, but we figured she could just use my computer until we worked somthing else out. The four of us shopped around the mall, and celebrated Ariana's final papers to finish high school early (she is 17 and graduated early, she is insanly smart...she got into M.I.T.!!!). We ate dinner, walked around, and then headed back to Hebrew U. When we got back we tried setting up the modem and it didnt work, Bezeq didnt tell us that we needed a phone line in the room because the sytem that I was given was dial up...OY!!...so we then called everyone we could and finally got in touch with the right people who were told to come to our dorm in the morning to set up the phone line connection for us.
IT WORKED!!!....WE GOT INTERNET IN OUR DORM THURSDAY MORNING!!!!!...YAYAY!!!

That night Shaina and I went to Debbie and Alon's home in Reut for the night to do our laundry, eat dinner, sleep over, and celebrate finally getting internet. It was really nice being able to spend more time with my cousins (even though I know that I will be spending time with them anyway while I am here). Shaina and I slept in REAL BEDS...and relaxed until Debbie drove us back to our dorm to get ready to go to our new destination for Shabbat weekend.

I had been in touch with Nanette during the week, and we decided to go to her Yishuv (settlement) called Kochav Vashachar which is translated as "Dawn Star." Shaina and I got onto a free bus that took you right to Kochav Vashachar (about a half hour north east of Jerusalem, on the border of the Jordan valley). What I was unnaware about was that Kochav Vashachar was an Orthodox community. I emmediatly thought, "Oh my goodness, this is going to be a VERY new experience." When we got there Nanette picked us up and drove us to her home that over looked millions of mountains and valleys that I could sware went on forever. Nanette set us up in the guest room, and we went to meet her children and husband. Avraham (Avi) is her husband, and she has 3 kids; Shallie who is 12 years old, Mayeer who is 7, and Leah who is 3. They were all very sweet, and spoke both in hebrew and english with us (Shaina and I got a little practice in...yay!!). After we settled in, we got dressed conservativly (leggings, boots, skirt, longsleepshirt, scarf) and walked to Friday night services.

Now, this was very new for me so I didnt know what to expect. Avi and Mayeer went into the mens door and Nanette, Shaina, Shallie, Leah, and I went through the womens door, in the back. We walked up a bunch of stairs and finally got to the top balcony, where all the women were praying. We sat in the back and followed along as much as we could ( Shaina is in the Reform movement, and I am in the Reconstructionist movement), and directly in front of the balcony was a curtain to sheild the view to the bottom section where the men were praying. Nanette told us that this is done because the men feel destracted by the women, and that it is easier for men to doven, while women are not as focused. This was very different for me, but I took the experience with a grane of salt, and tried to understand the traditions that I was being a part of for the first time. After services, we walked bakc to the house and have a lovely meal, prayed, sat and talked about the Torah portion of the week, then went to bed.

Shaina and I decied to sleep in on Saterday until everyone got back from morning services. When they all got back we had a nice lunch, and discussed again that weeks Torah portion. After we cleaned up Shaina, Nanette, Leah, and I went for a walk around the community and played with Leah on a small playground byt he house. When we were finished we walked back to the house and sat outside with the kids Nanette and Avi. Avi was asking me about the Reconstructionist movement, and it ended up turning into a discussion about the differneces and similarities of the Orthodox movement vs. Reconstructionist. I knew right away this was not going to go well. I tryed to explain my views and how I was brought up though the conservative movement and that it wasnt a good fit. Avi kept on telling me and Shaina about the Orthodox movement and how it is the "right way" of liveing as a Jew. I took in everything that he was saying, and tried to understand his veiws. I understood them, but I beleived in my Reconstructionist views. I also tried to explain to him that in every movement you are still learning the same Torah as every jew in the world. All of the rules, and ideals, and beleifs are the same, but each movement educates themselves differently in order to understand what they are learing, and finding a new way of connecting that information to your individual personality. He still dissagreed with me, and I figured that I ahd to choose my battles and that everyone in the world (especially if your Jewish) is going to have a different view and you can't change the minds of old traditions vs. new traditions.

It was a wonderful weekend no matter what. I left Kochav Vashachar with some wonderful experiences. I can got a closer look into a movement that I was almost scared for a long time, and realized that it was really a beautiful way of liveing. While I did not agree with some of the things that were going on I did find everyone to be very happy and loveing, and feeling a closer connection with G-d because of the way that they lived. I just hope that I can some day feel the same way that an Orthodox Community can feel, but with a Reconstructionist frame of mind.

Love and Blessings,
xoxoxo
Em