The last installment was late, but this one is right on time.
Every week, on Wednesday's, we have Israel seminar where we discuss the modern Israeli state. This week, we began discussing the situation regarding the settlements in relation to the 6 Day War. We had two speakers come in to talk to us, but we spent time in class discussing as well. One of the speakers gave a great example about what needs to happen for peace to come to this part of the world.
He said there are three variables: a democratic state, a Jewish state, and the whole land of Israel. He said that you can only have two of those at a time, but not all three. If you have a democratic Jewish state, you have to give up the territories. If you have a democratic state in the whole land of Israel, you have to give up the Jewish aspect of the state. If you have Jewish state in the whole land of Israel, you have to give up democracy.
This is a very simple way of looking at the situation, but also very obvious. Having all three of these together is impossible. If you have to choose, which one would you give up?
Thursday, November 11, 2010
Monday, November 8, 2010
Coolest thing I learned this week (11/8)
It's been a little more than a week, but here is the coolest thing I learned recently:
The Hebrew word for ladybug is פרת משה רבינו. For those of you who don't read Hebrew, that says parat moshe rabbeinu. That literally translates to 'cow of Moses our teacher.'
This is something I've known for a long time, but not one person was able to answer why that was the word. Until last Tuesday...
We were on a field trip to the Academy for the Hebrew Language, essentially a place where a bunch of people sit in a room and make up new Hebrew words. At the end of the trip, I asked our 'guide' why ladybug was called פרת משה רבינו. He didn't have an answer for me at the time, but took my phone number and said he would look it up and call me back.
The next morning, I got a phone call, and it was the Professor from the Academy. He explained to me that in many different languages, including Russian, the word for a ladybug has devine influence. In Russian, it is called the cow of God. When Mendele Mocher Sefarim was creating the word for ladybug (its great, they know who created the word) he was originally going to call it פרת אלוהים, the cow of God, but instead, changed it from God to Moshe Rabbeinu.
Now you may be thinking, ladybug in English has nothing divine about it, but you would be wrong. The Lady of ladybug refers to Mary, mother of Jesus.
For more information, check out the wikipedia page of ladybug, it is very interesting.
I hope you learned something
להתראות
The Hebrew word for ladybug is פרת משה רבינו. For those of you who don't read Hebrew, that says parat moshe rabbeinu. That literally translates to 'cow of Moses our teacher.'
This is something I've known for a long time, but not one person was able to answer why that was the word. Until last Tuesday...
We were on a field trip to the Academy for the Hebrew Language, essentially a place where a bunch of people sit in a room and make up new Hebrew words. At the end of the trip, I asked our 'guide' why ladybug was called פרת משה רבינו. He didn't have an answer for me at the time, but took my phone number and said he would look it up and call me back.
The next morning, I got a phone call, and it was the Professor from the Academy. He explained to me that in many different languages, including Russian, the word for a ladybug has devine influence. In Russian, it is called the cow of God. When Mendele Mocher Sefarim was creating the word for ladybug (its great, they know who created the word) he was originally going to call it פרת אלוהים, the cow of God, but instead, changed it from God to Moshe Rabbeinu.
Now you may be thinking, ladybug in English has nothing divine about it, but you would be wrong. The Lady of ladybug refers to Mary, mother of Jesus.
For more information, check out the wikipedia page of ladybug, it is very interesting.
I hope you learned something
להתראות
Monday, November 1, 2010
My Dvar Torah
Here is the Dvar Torah I delivered this morning:
Abraham Lincoln, president of the United States, 1861 dash 1865
Michael Jordan, NBA superstar, 1985 dash 1993 and 1996 dash 1998 (let’s not talk about the years he played for Washington)
Jacob, son of Isaac, Middle Bronze Age, circa 1800 dash 1653 BCE (give or take)
There is a great short story by Linda Ellis about how the dash of people’s lives are what matter most, not the dates that began and ended them. These three people, Lincoln, Jordan, and Jacob, did great things in their time. But it is not what they did with that time, rather how they did it, that made them great.
In our פרשה this week, תולדות, we learn about Jacob and Esau. We all know the story. Jacob and Esau fight in the womb, Jacob comes out second holding onto Esau’s heel, he exploits Esau into giving up his birthright, then eventually, one day while Esau goes out to prepare food to receive his blessing, Jacob swoops in and ‘steals’ that. It seems that Jacob doesn’t come off as the most honest person in the world.
Before we get into the consequences for Jacob’s actions, we have to look back and see exactly what happened. After Rebekah became pregnant, and she felt some struggling inside her, she went to God and asked מה פיתום, whats happening?. God told her that, “Two peoples are in your belly; two nations shall branch off from each other…the elder shall serve the younger.” When they came out of the womb, Jacob came out second, meaning God prophesized that Esau would end up serving Jacob.
What if Jacob and Esau knew about God’s prophecy before they were born? What if they were not struggling inside to get out first, but rather, to stay in longer? What if Jacob was not holding onto Esau’s heel, rather he was pushing him out first?
If Jacob knew that he was destined to earn the blessing and birthright, and had been humble and patient, he would not have needed to run for his life from his brother, because it is not as important what you do, but how you do it.
There is a great story about Beit Hillel and Beit Shammai from the Talmud Bavli in Eruvin 13b (about halfway down the page if you want to find it). They are arguing for three years about who the הלכה agrees with in regards to pure and impure objects. Eventually, the voice of God comes down from the heavens and says ”אילו ואילו דברי אלוהים חיים, which literally means ‘these and these are words of a living God’.” Essentially saying you’re both right. That is confusing enough, but if you keep reading, you’ll see that even though they are both right, the הלכה will be set according to Beit Hillel. Why? Because “נוחין ועלובין היו, they were patient and humble.” The הלכה was set according to Beit Hillel because of how, not what, they did.
In essence, it is important to always try to do things with intention, to always strive to be the best version of yourself you can be. We do this in prayer when we pray with Kavanah. Saying the prayers fulfills Gods commandments, but praying with Kavanah fulfills ourselves.
And it is not just in prayer that we should use Kavanah. In something as simple as meeting a new person there can be Kavanah. One of my favorite examples of a way we can improve is by not using, what my camp director Jerry Kaye calls, the convention handshake. The convention handshake looks like this. You go to say hi to someone or meet someone knew, shake their hand, but already look past them for the next person you are going to meet. Instead, we should be in the moment; make eye contact, learn the person’s name, use ‘active listening.’ We all know these skills and by using them, we can help fulfill ourselves.
Now, back to our great people.
Within his dash, Lincoln freed the slaves in the south and worked diligently his entire presidency to bring peace back to the country during the Civil War.
Michael Jordan, in his dash, was known as the best and hardest working basketball players ever, he is also know because he won 6 NBA championships, 5 MVP awards, had 14 All star game appearances, 2 gold medals, 10 all NBA 1st team selections, and so on
So what about Jacob? In his dash, he extorted a birthright he knew he would get, usurped a blessing he was destined to have, and was forced to flee his homeland to protect himself from his own brother. But that wasn’t the end of his dash. He was able to make things right. When he met his brother again, he purposefully and meaningfully apologized. When Esau saw this, he was no longer angry with Jacob. Esau forgave his brother and embraced him the way brothers should.
Jacob eventually made the most of his dash by doing things with intention, with a purpose. He learned that it is not the events and dates, the what, that define our lives, but the dash, the how, that is truly defining. What’s in your dash?
Boker Tov
Thursday, October 28, 2010
Coolest thing I learned this week (10/28)
There was no update last week because of our Tiyul (trip) to the north of Israel, but here is the coolest thing I learned this week.
Janus Corczak was a schoolteacher in Poland and later ran an orphanage in the Warsaw Ghetto during World War II. In 1942 his orphanage of almost 200 students was taken to Treblinka and the Nazis offered Janus the chance to escape and/or switch to the Aryan side. He refused and accompanied his children to the death camp, eventually dying there with all of the children from his orphanage.
This of course is not an uplifting story, but I learned a quote that he said that I will always remember as I continue to teach.
"Children are not little people, they are people"
Its a small distinction, but makes a big difference. If we treat our students like people (equals), instead of little people (inferiors), we will be able to better connect to them and teach them more.
Also, on a total side note, I got the whole Harry Potter series in Hebrew today! I'm very excited to start reading it.
Shabbat Shalom from Jerusalem
Janus Corczak was a schoolteacher in Poland and later ran an orphanage in the Warsaw Ghetto during World War II. In 1942 his orphanage of almost 200 students was taken to Treblinka and the Nazis offered Janus the chance to escape and/or switch to the Aryan side. He refused and accompanied his children to the death camp, eventually dying there with all of the children from his orphanage.
This of course is not an uplifting story, but I learned a quote that he said that I will always remember as I continue to teach.
"Children are not little people, they are people"
Its a small distinction, but makes a big difference. If we treat our students like people (equals), instead of little people (inferiors), we will be able to better connect to them and teach them more.
Also, on a total side note, I got the whole Harry Potter series in Hebrew today! I'm very excited to start reading it.
Shabbat Shalom from Jerusalem
Saturday, October 16, 2010
New weekly update
Hey everyone,
I'm going to try to start a new weekly update called 'the coolest thing I learned this week.'
For this first update, there will be more than one thing, but each week after this will be one thing each week that I am really glad that I learned.
In Hebrew, I learned that the term טיפש-עשרי (tipesh esrei), which literally means silly tens, is the term in Hebrew for teenager.
In grammar (which is where most of the cool things I learn will probably come from), we have been learning how to put the correct vowels in each word. When we started learning about משקל (meeshkal), was when I knew it was an amazing class. Hebrew words that have similar vowels and syllables, have related meanings. For example, colors: כחול, אדום, ירוק, ורוד (kachol, adom, yarok, varod). All of those are color words, and they all have the same vowel patterns (a - 0). That is the most basic משקל, but there are others as well.
In Zionist history, the Scotland national anthem was originally written for a rugby match. That has nothing to with Israel really, but it was a fun fact that we learned.
That's all for now, keep a look out each week around Shabbat for a new lesson that I learned!
Shavua Tov
I'm going to try to start a new weekly update called 'the coolest thing I learned this week.'
For this first update, there will be more than one thing, but each week after this will be one thing each week that I am really glad that I learned.
In Hebrew, I learned that the term טיפש-עשרי (tipesh esrei), which literally means silly tens, is the term in Hebrew for teenager.
In grammar (which is where most of the cool things I learn will probably come from), we have been learning how to put the correct vowels in each word. When we started learning about משקל (meeshkal), was when I knew it was an amazing class. Hebrew words that have similar vowels and syllables, have related meanings. For example, colors: כחול, אדום, ירוק, ורוד (kachol, adom, yarok, varod). All of those are color words, and they all have the same vowel patterns (a - 0). That is the most basic משקל, but there are others as well.
In Zionist history, the Scotland national anthem was originally written for a rugby match. That has nothing to with Israel really, but it was a fun fact that we learned.
That's all for now, keep a look out each week around Shabbat for a new lesson that I learned!
Shavua Tov
Monday, October 11, 2010
Istanbul (not Constantinople)
Its been too long since I've updated the blog, but here goes
I spent 4 days in Istanbul during Sukkot break (because I get a week and a half off during Sukkot). I traveled with Leah and Sarah F and we had a blast.
The first day we got there and decided we were not going to speak Hebrew at all while we were there. Anyone who spoke Hebrew had to pay 10 agurot to the pot, and whoever spoke the least at the end, got the money. So of course, as soon as we get to the airport and look for our bus to the hotel, the person in charge of the group is an Israeli who speaks to us in Hebrew. We made an exception for that.
After settling in to the hotel, we went to a famous Turkish Bath where we went all out and got a full body scrub, massage, and wash. I don't think I've ever been so clean in my life. The massage was described in the brochure as pummeling, and the description was dead on. After that, we walked over to the Grand Bazaar which is like the Arab shuk in the Old City, but 10 times bigger. It was crazy but there was so much to see there. We spent about an hour there (because the girls kept stopping to look at things) before heading back to decide on a dinner place. We ended up going to a place from our guide book that served crepes and Turkish Ravioli (beef ravioli with yogurt sauce on top). It was absolutely delicious.
The next day we started our full day of tourism. We started at the Blue Mosque with is one of the biggest and most impressive mosques in the world. There were literally hundreds of people waiting in line to go in and inside it was just as crowded. From there, we walked about a quarter mile to Hagia Sophia, a church that was later converted into a mosque, and is now a museum. This may have been the biggest building I've ever been in, and that includes the United Center. See my pictures on facebook to try and get a sense of how big that room was. After lunch, we went to Topkapi palace; a huge complex that contained some of the most precious items in Turkish History. It also contained a room that claimed to have various religious artifacts like Joseph's Turban, Abraham's pot, Moses' staff, and many pieces of Mohammed's beard. I believe Sarah summed it up best when she said, "Are they serious?"
That night for dinner we went to the Taksim area, which is the hip, trendy part of Istanbul. We ended up finding a restaurant that had a Prix Fixe menu for $40. 11 cold appetizers, 3 hot appetizers, salad, main course, fruit plate, unlimited drinks (including alcohol) and live music. It was quite possibly the best meal I've had since I came to Israel. And it wasn't even in Israel!
Saturday was another day of touring and we started at Dolmabahce Palace. This is where the Sultan used to live until the mid 19th century. We took a tour of the palace and it was amazing. The rooms and design were outstanding and the main hall was one of the most fantastic rooms I've ever been in. That room also had the heaviest chandelier in Europe, 5.5 tons! The room is still used at times for foreign dignitaries including when President Obama visited recently. We also toured the Harem, which is where the Sultan's mother and all his women lived. That wasn't quite as cool, but it was interesting to learn that at times there were hundreds of women who only wanted to bear the Sultan a son. After the Palace, we visited the New Mosque, which was one of the most serene places we visited. It wasn't as crowded as the Blue Mosque, but just as beautiful on the inside. We also visited the spice Bazaar, which was like the Grand Bazaar, but with a lot more spices and teas. Then we finally got back to the Grand Bazaar to buy soveniers on the way back to the hotel.
Dinner that night was at a fish restaurant overlooking the Bosphorus (the river that Istanbul sits on). They didn't really have a menu, they just brought over a platter filled with fish and asked 'which one do you want?' Then the fish was served whole, with the head, tail, skin, bones, everything still on the fish. I don't like eating fish like that anymore. I like my fish filleted.
Sunday we only had a half day so we went to the Prince's Mosque and the Chora Church. The Prince's Mosque was slightly different than the other mosques because it was more symmetrical. We ended up just sitting on the floor for a while because it was very calming to be there. The Chora Church is still full of mosaics and frescoes that were created hundreds of years ago and are some of the most impressive pieces of art I've seen.
When we finally got back to Israel, we spoke nothing but Hebrew all of the way back on the Sheirut. And in case you were wondering, I won the game and got about 90 cents in prize money from Leah and Sarah.
Until next time...
I spent 4 days in Istanbul during Sukkot break (because I get a week and a half off during Sukkot). I traveled with Leah and Sarah F and we had a blast.
The first day we got there and decided we were not going to speak Hebrew at all while we were there. Anyone who spoke Hebrew had to pay 10 agurot to the pot, and whoever spoke the least at the end, got the money. So of course, as soon as we get to the airport and look for our bus to the hotel, the person in charge of the group is an Israeli who speaks to us in Hebrew. We made an exception for that.
After settling in to the hotel, we went to a famous Turkish Bath where we went all out and got a full body scrub, massage, and wash. I don't think I've ever been so clean in my life. The massage was described in the brochure as pummeling, and the description was dead on. After that, we walked over to the Grand Bazaar which is like the Arab shuk in the Old City, but 10 times bigger. It was crazy but there was so much to see there. We spent about an hour there (because the girls kept stopping to look at things) before heading back to decide on a dinner place. We ended up going to a place from our guide book that served crepes and Turkish Ravioli (beef ravioli with yogurt sauce on top). It was absolutely delicious.
The next day we started our full day of tourism. We started at the Blue Mosque with is one of the biggest and most impressive mosques in the world. There were literally hundreds of people waiting in line to go in and inside it was just as crowded. From there, we walked about a quarter mile to Hagia Sophia, a church that was later converted into a mosque, and is now a museum. This may have been the biggest building I've ever been in, and that includes the United Center. See my pictures on facebook to try and get a sense of how big that room was. After lunch, we went to Topkapi palace; a huge complex that contained some of the most precious items in Turkish History. It also contained a room that claimed to have various religious artifacts like Joseph's Turban, Abraham's pot, Moses' staff, and many pieces of Mohammed's beard. I believe Sarah summed it up best when she said, "Are they serious?"
That night for dinner we went to the Taksim area, which is the hip, trendy part of Istanbul. We ended up finding a restaurant that had a Prix Fixe menu for $40. 11 cold appetizers, 3 hot appetizers, salad, main course, fruit plate, unlimited drinks (including alcohol) and live music. It was quite possibly the best meal I've had since I came to Israel. And it wasn't even in Israel!
Saturday was another day of touring and we started at Dolmabahce Palace. This is where the Sultan used to live until the mid 19th century. We took a tour of the palace and it was amazing. The rooms and design were outstanding and the main hall was one of the most fantastic rooms I've ever been in. That room also had the heaviest chandelier in Europe, 5.5 tons! The room is still used at times for foreign dignitaries including when President Obama visited recently. We also toured the Harem, which is where the Sultan's mother and all his women lived. That wasn't quite as cool, but it was interesting to learn that at times there were hundreds of women who only wanted to bear the Sultan a son. After the Palace, we visited the New Mosque, which was one of the most serene places we visited. It wasn't as crowded as the Blue Mosque, but just as beautiful on the inside. We also visited the spice Bazaar, which was like the Grand Bazaar, but with a lot more spices and teas. Then we finally got back to the Grand Bazaar to buy soveniers on the way back to the hotel.
Dinner that night was at a fish restaurant overlooking the Bosphorus (the river that Istanbul sits on). They didn't really have a menu, they just brought over a platter filled with fish and asked 'which one do you want?' Then the fish was served whole, with the head, tail, skin, bones, everything still on the fish. I don't like eating fish like that anymore. I like my fish filleted.
Sunday we only had a half day so we went to the Prince's Mosque and the Chora Church. The Prince's Mosque was slightly different than the other mosques because it was more symmetrical. We ended up just sitting on the floor for a while because it was very calming to be there. The Chora Church is still full of mosaics and frescoes that were created hundreds of years ago and are some of the most impressive pieces of art I've seen.
When we finally got back to Israel, we spoke nothing but Hebrew all of the way back on the Sheirut. And in case you were wondering, I won the game and got about 90 cents in prize money from Leah and Sarah.
Until next time...
Monday, September 20, 2010
How do we find God?
One day this will be a D'var Torah
Today I had an amazing moment of self-discovery.
We were discussing in our Emek Dvar group how valuable this year can be for us to struggle with our thoughts and opinions because it is our last chance to do that before people will expect us to help them with their opinions. While discussing how valuable internal dissonance can be, I thought of a line from the Gemara (Talmud) I learned last year:
אילו ואילו דברים אלוהים חיים
These and these are the words of a living God
This is referring to a discussion between Beit Hillel and Beit Shammai where (surprise surprise) they have different opinions. The Gemara tells us that each of these opinions are correct, 'These and these are the words of a living God.'
Now how does this relate to internal dissonance?
When we are struggling internally with conflicting thoughts within us, those are the times that God is alive within us! God comes alive for us when we struggle with conflicting view points. It is within our struggle, within that dissonance, that we can find God in one way or another.
When you have an internal struggle, don't be frustrated, be happy. That is when God comes alive for you. Don't worry about finding an answer one way or another, just don't give up the struggle, because when you stop struggling, you lose God.
Today I had an amazing moment of self-discovery.
We were discussing in our Emek Dvar group how valuable this year can be for us to struggle with our thoughts and opinions because it is our last chance to do that before people will expect us to help them with their opinions. While discussing how valuable internal dissonance can be, I thought of a line from the Gemara (Talmud) I learned last year:
אילו ואילו דברים אלוהים חיים
These and these are the words of a living God
This is referring to a discussion between Beit Hillel and Beit Shammai where (surprise surprise) they have different opinions. The Gemara tells us that each of these opinions are correct, 'These and these are the words of a living God.'
Now how does this relate to internal dissonance?
When we are struggling internally with conflicting thoughts within us, those are the times that God is alive within us! God comes alive for us when we struggle with conflicting view points. It is within our struggle, within that dissonance, that we can find God in one way or another.
When you have an internal struggle, don't be frustrated, be happy. That is when God comes alive for you. Don't worry about finding an answer one way or another, just don't give up the struggle, because when you stop struggling, you lose God.
Yom Kippur in Jerusalem
Yom Kippur was an amazing day in Jerusalem. There was absolutely nothing open or happening in the entire city. After services (that overlooked sunset over the Old City), everyone walked down to Emek R'faim to just walk around. Since there are no cars on the streets, everyone just walks down the middle of the streets instead of needing to use the sidewalks. While walking around, I ran into Ari and Lital and then the Klein-Katzs. There are also kids (and some adults) riding around on bicycles because it is the only chance for them to ride without cars around, and if you know how Israelis drive, thats very important.
After that, Dusty, Allie, Brian, Leah, and I all walked to the Kotel in the Old City just to see what it would be like there. Surprisingly, it was very quiet. I expected there to be hundreds and hundreds of people there to pray, but it seemed like any other time at the Kotel.
During Yom Kippur day, the city was still totally serene with no cars and people walking in the streets. We prayed again overlooking the Old City and then had a break fast in the Moadon at HUC. I didn't go to N'eilah because I was helping to cut bagels (surprise surprise) and after that, had another break fast at my apartment.
The hardest part of this Yom Kippur was the fact that it fell on Shabbat, so we had school Thursday; Friday and Saturday was Shabbat/Yom Kippur; and it was back to school on Sunday. There was no real weekend or time to catch up on sleep and homework so Saturday and Sunday night were both very stressful to get caught up on sleep.
Look for a new update next week after I get back from ISTANBUL!
L'hitraot from Jerusalem
After that, Dusty, Allie, Brian, Leah, and I all walked to the Kotel in the Old City just to see what it would be like there. Surprisingly, it was very quiet. I expected there to be hundreds and hundreds of people there to pray, but it seemed like any other time at the Kotel.
During Yom Kippur day, the city was still totally serene with no cars and people walking in the streets. We prayed again overlooking the Old City and then had a break fast in the Moadon at HUC. I didn't go to N'eilah because I was helping to cut bagels (surprise surprise) and after that, had another break fast at my apartment.
The hardest part of this Yom Kippur was the fact that it fell on Shabbat, so we had school Thursday; Friday and Saturday was Shabbat/Yom Kippur; and it was back to school on Sunday. There was no real weekend or time to catch up on sleep and homework so Saturday and Sunday night were both very stressful to get caught up on sleep.
Look for a new update next week after I get back from ISTANBUL!
L'hitraot from Jerusalem
Friday, September 17, 2010
High Holidays in Jerusalem/School
High holidays have arrived and they are something to see here in Jerusalem. Rosh Hashanah this year was on Wednesday night through Friday evening, and of course shabbat started Friday night, so the entire city was shut down for 3 days. There were no busses, no stores, no restaurants. Some people were still driving, but it felt like a three day long shabbat. Normally that would be a good thing, but after a while it becomes a little overwhelming being totally shut out of the world for 3 days. That Saturday night the world came back to life and it felt like the country breathed a sigh of relief that we could all go out and spend money again.
Tonight is Yom Kippur which means that there won't be a single thing open in the whole city. Normally on Shabbat there are a few places open, but tonight, there will be nothing. After services, it is apparently a tradition for everyone to go out on Emek R'fayim (a street near by) and just walk around, and all the kids go out on their bicycles. I'm really excited to go see this because there will be no cars anywhere so we can walk in the street and really enjoy a night with nothing else going on.
School so far has been great. Most of my classes are really exciting, and also done entirely in Hebrew, which is a great challenge. The history classes are a real struggle because I don't like learning history but hopefully they will get more exciting after Sukkot break when we start to get into a routine.
Sukkot break starts on Tuesday after class and lasts until the first week of October so I have a week and a half off. I'm taking a three day trip to Istanbul with Sarah and Leah and then I'll be hanging out in Jerusalem/Tel-Aviv for the rest of the break.
I hope all of you have a שנה טובה ומתוקה and גמר חתימה טובה. A good and sweet year and are written in the good book, the book of life.
Shanah Tovah from Yerushalayim
Tonight is Yom Kippur which means that there won't be a single thing open in the whole city. Normally on Shabbat there are a few places open, but tonight, there will be nothing. After services, it is apparently a tradition for everyone to go out on Emek R'fayim (a street near by) and just walk around, and all the kids go out on their bicycles. I'm really excited to go see this because there will be no cars anywhere so we can walk in the street and really enjoy a night with nothing else going on.
School so far has been great. Most of my classes are really exciting, and also done entirely in Hebrew, which is a great challenge. The history classes are a real struggle because I don't like learning history but hopefully they will get more exciting after Sukkot break when we start to get into a routine.
Sukkot break starts on Tuesday after class and lasts until the first week of October so I have a week and a half off. I'm taking a three day trip to Istanbul with Sarah and Leah and then I'll be hanging out in Jerusalem/Tel-Aviv for the rest of the break.
I hope all of you have a שנה טובה ומתוקה and גמר חתימה טובה. A good and sweet year and are written in the good book, the book of life.
Shanah Tovah from Yerushalayim
Tuesday, September 7, 2010
My Teaching Philosophy in 2 Sentences
This should have been posted weeks ago but I'm finally putting it up now. If I had to describe my teaching philosophy in two sentences, this is what it would be (thanks to Sam Pearlson for finding the right words for me)
If you bring the knowledge into the classroom, it stays in the classroom.
If you bring the knowledge into the student's lives, it stays in the student's lives.
If you bring the knowledge into the classroom, it stays in the classroom.
If you bring the knowledge into the student's lives, it stays in the student's lives.
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
It begins officially
Today was the first day of school...kinda...we had a class, but it wasn't a full on class...but there is much to get to before that.
Ulpan finished last week and on the last day each class had a test then had to perform a song/parody in hebrew for the rest of the Ulpan. Our class performed All the Single Ladies by Beyonce and I learned a simple version of it on guitar for the performance. We had to slow it down because the words were too hard to do quickly in Hebrew but it was really funny and we were able to dance during the chorus.
After Ulpan, I went with 9 other people to Haifa for the vacation before classes started and it was a blast. We stayed in a 3 story, 5 bedroom house for the 5 nights we were there (and it was only $30 per night per person) with a view overlooking the sea. We visited the Baha'i gardens, took 2 days at the beach, a few of us did a pseudo-hike, and we drove up to Rosh Hanikra and Acco for a day.
Three crazy/great things happened that weekend
1. One night at the house, we had just finished our delicious homemade lasagna for dinner and there was a knock on the door. I went to answer the door, and there were two people from next door who were also having a large get together and they came to offer us extra food they had. We unfortunately did not need any more food but one of the people who came over was a member of the Mishlachat at OSRUI last summer and was on the Moshavah staff. Of all the places to run into a random person, I never thought a house in Haifa would be the one.
2. Friday night we went to services at Or Chadash, the progressive synagogue in Haifa. After the meal we split into pairs to go to 5 different host homes for Shabbat dinner. Leah and I went with the Ivtsan family who were two parents and 4 daughters (but one was in the army so not at dinner). They made us a fantastic home cooked shabbas meal and we sat and talked with them for a few hours in total Hebrew (for the most part, sometimes it broke down). We also tried to make Avital, the youngest (12) speak English because she was going to Boston in a few weeks and needed to practice. While we were talking, they mentioned J.J. Keki a few times and we got to talking about the Abayudaya (Jews by choice in Uganda) and I mentioned that I had visited them a few years ago and we talked about them for a while, again, all in Hebrew. After dinner they gave us their phone numbers and email and told us we could be in touch if we needed anything.
3. Saturday morning we had Shabbat services in our house, just the 10 of us, with me, Sarah Weiss and Brian Nelson playing guitar/leading. We didn't necessarily plan out a service ahead of time, just did whatever came to us as we went, doing as much of the music as we could, and chanting other portions when necessary. We also had few Tanachim, so we were able to read Torah and Haftarah even without a scroll. It was one of the more meaningful and relaxing Shabbat services I have been a part of and it was a pleasure to be able to lead a service like that for my peers at HUC.
On the way back from Haifa, Dusty and I stopped in Kfar Saba to meet my mom's friend Sharon. We accidentally got off at the wrong bus stop (only one stop early, so it was ok) and Sharon picked us up and brought us over for lunch. She has a huge house, which is necessary because she has 5 kids...all out of the army. There I got another home cooked meal (theres a pattern to where I'll go) and was able to pass on a gift from my mom to her. When we left and finally got back to Jerusalem, the busses were so crowded that we just walked home from the Central Bus Station, about a 45 minute walk, with all of our bags (and my guitar).
Then today we had our first day of class, which was an Israel seminar day. We talked about Israel for a bit but ended by 1pm because it was planned to be a short day. Tomorrow is another short day ending at 130 and then Sunday is the first full week of classes.
I'm really excited to be back in class and starting to learn. I've been getting a bit restless these last few weeks because there has not been that much going on, but soon the hours of homework will start to pile up and I'll always be busy.
לילה טוב מירושלים
(goodnight from Jerusalem)
Ulpan finished last week and on the last day each class had a test then had to perform a song/parody in hebrew for the rest of the Ulpan. Our class performed All the Single Ladies by Beyonce and I learned a simple version of it on guitar for the performance. We had to slow it down because the words were too hard to do quickly in Hebrew but it was really funny and we were able to dance during the chorus.
After Ulpan, I went with 9 other people to Haifa for the vacation before classes started and it was a blast. We stayed in a 3 story, 5 bedroom house for the 5 nights we were there (and it was only $30 per night per person) with a view overlooking the sea. We visited the Baha'i gardens, took 2 days at the beach, a few of us did a pseudo-hike, and we drove up to Rosh Hanikra and Acco for a day.
Three crazy/great things happened that weekend
1. One night at the house, we had just finished our delicious homemade lasagna for dinner and there was a knock on the door. I went to answer the door, and there were two people from next door who were also having a large get together and they came to offer us extra food they had. We unfortunately did not need any more food but one of the people who came over was a member of the Mishlachat at OSRUI last summer and was on the Moshavah staff. Of all the places to run into a random person, I never thought a house in Haifa would be the one.
2. Friday night we went to services at Or Chadash, the progressive synagogue in Haifa. After the meal we split into pairs to go to 5 different host homes for Shabbat dinner. Leah and I went with the Ivtsan family who were two parents and 4 daughters (but one was in the army so not at dinner). They made us a fantastic home cooked shabbas meal and we sat and talked with them for a few hours in total Hebrew (for the most part, sometimes it broke down). We also tried to make Avital, the youngest (12) speak English because she was going to Boston in a few weeks and needed to practice. While we were talking, they mentioned J.J. Keki a few times and we got to talking about the Abayudaya (Jews by choice in Uganda) and I mentioned that I had visited them a few years ago and we talked about them for a while, again, all in Hebrew. After dinner they gave us their phone numbers and email and told us we could be in touch if we needed anything.
3. Saturday morning we had Shabbat services in our house, just the 10 of us, with me, Sarah Weiss and Brian Nelson playing guitar/leading. We didn't necessarily plan out a service ahead of time, just did whatever came to us as we went, doing as much of the music as we could, and chanting other portions when necessary. We also had few Tanachim, so we were able to read Torah and Haftarah even without a scroll. It was one of the more meaningful and relaxing Shabbat services I have been a part of and it was a pleasure to be able to lead a service like that for my peers at HUC.
On the way back from Haifa, Dusty and I stopped in Kfar Saba to meet my mom's friend Sharon. We accidentally got off at the wrong bus stop (only one stop early, so it was ok) and Sharon picked us up and brought us over for lunch. She has a huge house, which is necessary because she has 5 kids...all out of the army. There I got another home cooked meal (theres a pattern to where I'll go) and was able to pass on a gift from my mom to her. When we left and finally got back to Jerusalem, the busses were so crowded that we just walked home from the Central Bus Station, about a 45 minute walk, with all of our bags (and my guitar).
Then today we had our first day of class, which was an Israel seminar day. We talked about Israel for a bit but ended by 1pm because it was planned to be a short day. Tomorrow is another short day ending at 130 and then Sunday is the first full week of classes.
I'm really excited to be back in class and starting to learn. I've been getting a bit restless these last few weeks because there has not been that much going on, but soon the hours of homework will start to pile up and I'll always be busy.
לילה טוב מירושלים
(goodnight from Jerusalem)
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
Educational messages from Mr. Holland's Opus
Sunday night we had a pot luck dinner for Ed students and watched Mr. Holland's Opus. Sally gave us a list of educational messages from the movie and I liked just about all of them. Here are a few of my favorites:
A great lesson can be rowdy and fun.
A teacher has 2 jobs: to fill the students' minds with knowledge and to give those minds a compass so that the knowledge doesn't go to waste.
I will use anything if it will help me to teach a student.
One who can't teach a willing kid to learn something is a lousy teacher.
The most important teacher your child will ever have is you (the parent).
Teachers touch lives.
If you teach and ever get frustrated or think you aren't appreciated, watch the last 10 minutes of this movie; it will make you happy.
A great lesson can be rowdy and fun.
A teacher has 2 jobs: to fill the students' minds with knowledge and to give those minds a compass so that the knowledge doesn't go to waste.
I will use anything if it will help me to teach a student.
One who can't teach a willing kid to learn something is a lousy teacher.
The most important teacher your child will ever have is you (the parent).
Teachers touch lives.
If you teach and ever get frustrated or think you aren't appreciated, watch the last 10 minutes of this movie; it will make you happy.
Saturday, August 7, 2010
Halfway through Ulpan
So its been a while since my last update, but here goes anyways.
Ulpan has been going great. Four days a week of classes and a 5th day of something else (we'll leave it at that). Ulpan is challenging because I'm in the highest class and there are some very good speakers in the class, but I'm doing my best to keep up and I'm relearning a lot.
Outside of Ulpan I have been spending a lot of time playing scrabble and bananagrams. Bananagrams is like scrabble but on crack. You just make words as fast as you can and then get new letters to make new words quickly as well. I'm am not doing it any just in my explanation (sorry Susan) but its fun. I also got my first BINGO in scrabble (using all 7 tiles in one play)! But I forgot what word it was....alas.
I also bought a cheap guitar for the year because we have a very musical class and I want to be able to play guitar with everyone. The best part is I also bought a cheap gig bag that I can bring home at the end of the year so I don't always have to lug my guitar around in its heavy case.
Tonight we are having havdallah for the interns as they are leaving us soon, but after that there is a David Broza concert that we are all going to. I'm uber excited for that because I had to work most of the time he was performing during the folk arts festival in June.
I'm going home on Thursday for the weekend for Scott's wedding and staying there until Monday, just a 5 day trip. It should be tons of fun I just hope I can stay awake for everything!
Thats all for now,
Shavua Tov from Jerusalem
Ulpan has been going great. Four days a week of classes and a 5th day of something else (we'll leave it at that). Ulpan is challenging because I'm in the highest class and there are some very good speakers in the class, but I'm doing my best to keep up and I'm relearning a lot.
Outside of Ulpan I have been spending a lot of time playing scrabble and bananagrams. Bananagrams is like scrabble but on crack. You just make words as fast as you can and then get new letters to make new words quickly as well. I'm am not doing it any just in my explanation (sorry Susan) but its fun. I also got my first BINGO in scrabble (using all 7 tiles in one play)! But I forgot what word it was....alas.
I also bought a cheap guitar for the year because we have a very musical class and I want to be able to play guitar with everyone. The best part is I also bought a cheap gig bag that I can bring home at the end of the year so I don't always have to lug my guitar around in its heavy case.
Tonight we are having havdallah for the interns as they are leaving us soon, but after that there is a David Broza concert that we are all going to. I'm uber excited for that because I had to work most of the time he was performing during the folk arts festival in June.
I'm going home on Thursday for the weekend for Scott's wedding and staying there until Monday, just a 5 day trip. It should be tons of fun I just hope I can stay awake for everything!
Thats all for now,
Shavua Tov from Jerusalem
Wednesday, July 21, 2010
School has begun....kinda
It has been a while since I've been able to update my blog, so this is gonna be a long post (probably, I haven't written it yet so I don't know). I was going to update it yesterday, but my internet broke, more on that later.
Last week was orientation and those were some of the longest days ever. Each day of orientation lasted at least 8 hours and were full of speakers and group discussions. It wasn't so much of an orientation to school and life in Israel as it was an orientation to the major ideas of why the YII program exists.
Orientation went from Monday night through Shabbat services. After services, I went back to Gan Sacher to play ultimate frisbee with some Israelis I met last week at the park. They play a pick up game each week and told me I could bring with some friends. I plan on going back every week that I'm in town and the weather is nice to play.
On Sunday, Ulpan started. Sundays are normal days in Israel, but the week ends on Thursday. Friday we have all day to prepare for Shabbat and Saturday is of course Shabbat so we don't have class. Ulpan is an intensive Hebrew program for 4.5 hours each day to help everyone become more comfortable with Hebrew and be able to speak and read it. I am in Kitah Hey, which is the highest kitah, so our class is entirely in Hebrew and moves very fast. We read short stories in Hebrew and learn dikduk, grammar. The class is definitely a challenge but I like it because I'll learn a lot more in this class than any other.
Also, since I'm an education student, I have a weekly Seminar with the other ed students. That is on Mondays from 330-530. In 12 days, my group of 3 has to give a 50 minute presentation about the book we are reading; The School and Society and the Child and the Curriculum. I can't say it is a riveting read, but it has some interesting concepts.
Monday night-Tuesday was Tisha B'Av. That holiday commemorates the destruction of both Temples in Jerusalem as well as pretty much every other bad thing that ever happened to the Jewish people. We still had class for a while on Tuesday, but then had an extended Mincha service and were given a text packet to study if we chose to. I ended up sitting on the roof of my apartment with Leah and Dusty, two other students, and studied the texts for over 2.5 hours! And we only got through 3 pages of the packet! It was a great experience and I'd love to continue working in chevruta the rest of the year.
Now I'm working on reading my book and getting my work done because Monday night is Ari Rosenberg's wedding and thats gonna be one crazy night.
Erev tov from Jerusalem
Last week was orientation and those were some of the longest days ever. Each day of orientation lasted at least 8 hours and were full of speakers and group discussions. It wasn't so much of an orientation to school and life in Israel as it was an orientation to the major ideas of why the YII program exists.
Orientation went from Monday night through Shabbat services. After services, I went back to Gan Sacher to play ultimate frisbee with some Israelis I met last week at the park. They play a pick up game each week and told me I could bring with some friends. I plan on going back every week that I'm in town and the weather is nice to play.
On Sunday, Ulpan started. Sundays are normal days in Israel, but the week ends on Thursday. Friday we have all day to prepare for Shabbat and Saturday is of course Shabbat so we don't have class. Ulpan is an intensive Hebrew program for 4.5 hours each day to help everyone become more comfortable with Hebrew and be able to speak and read it. I am in Kitah Hey, which is the highest kitah, so our class is entirely in Hebrew and moves very fast. We read short stories in Hebrew and learn dikduk, grammar. The class is definitely a challenge but I like it because I'll learn a lot more in this class than any other.
Also, since I'm an education student, I have a weekly Seminar with the other ed students. That is on Mondays from 330-530. In 12 days, my group of 3 has to give a 50 minute presentation about the book we are reading; The School and Society and the Child and the Curriculum. I can't say it is a riveting read, but it has some interesting concepts.
Monday night-Tuesday was Tisha B'Av. That holiday commemorates the destruction of both Temples in Jerusalem as well as pretty much every other bad thing that ever happened to the Jewish people. We still had class for a while on Tuesday, but then had an extended Mincha service and were given a text packet to study if we chose to. I ended up sitting on the roof of my apartment with Leah and Dusty, two other students, and studied the texts for over 2.5 hours! And we only got through 3 pages of the packet! It was a great experience and I'd love to continue working in chevruta the rest of the year.
Now I'm working on reading my book and getting my work done because Monday night is Ari Rosenberg's wedding and thats gonna be one crazy night.
Erev tov from Jerusalem
Monday, July 12, 2010
Wait....I have to go to school?
So orientation started tonight and goes all day tomorrow and pretty much the whole week. Before we get into that however, plenty has happened in the meantime.
Shabbat afternoon I went to Gan Sacher to hang out with Ari Rosenberg and Alexis and there was an ultimate frisbee game going on that I ended up joining. It was a mix of Israelis and Americans and they told me they meet there every Saturday at 2, so I may have found my Shabbat afternoon activity for the summer. Then that night we went out to watch the 3rd place game of the world cup and found ourselves in a bar that could show us the game, but not play the audio. So we watched the game while listening to MTV songs. It was great.
Before going out to the game, I stopped by HUC for Havdalah of alumni day (that was happening all day) and noticed a nametag that said "Irwin Zeplowitz." I thought to myself...that name looks really familiar, I think he was the Rabbi at my synagogue when I was born and lived down the street from me. So I went to introduce myself and lo and behold, it was him! Not only was it him, but he was there with his wife and traveling with another couple...the Echales. They have been family friends of ours since I was born as well and it was the most random connection I've made so far in Israel. It will definitely be hard to top. We got to talking and they asked how Beth was and I got to tell them that she is here in Jerusalem as well. After that they offered to take us out to dinner and who am I to say no to good free food?
So on Sunday night, myself, Beth, the Zeplowitz's and the Echales' went to dinner at Beit Anna Ticho (the Ticho House) and what a great meal it was. We got blintzes and knishes and an amazing spinach ravioli with fresh pesto. And then for dessert the warm chocolate cake with vanilla ice cream....delicious! That is for sure a restaurant to bring my parents to (so I don't have to pay for it....please mom and dad?)
Monday evening a scary thing happened. I had to go to orientation for school, which meant I was no longer free to do whatever I wanted all day. It was a little bit disappointing because there is so much more to do and see in Jerusalem, but it is also nice to finally have something concrete to do with my time. During orientation, on a whim, I decided to invite a few people over for dinner when we were finished. There ended up being 7 of us total for dinner at my apartment and I made a yummy pasta with red pepper, onion, carrot, and garlic. It was really good. I hope the people that came over don't think I can really cook though, that's my one go to meal. Nothing else comes out that good.
It is time now for sleep because I have to be at HUC at 830 in the morning for 9 hours of orientation! OY!
Until next time,
Lila tov from Jerusalem
Shabbat afternoon I went to Gan Sacher to hang out with Ari Rosenberg and Alexis and there was an ultimate frisbee game going on that I ended up joining. It was a mix of Israelis and Americans and they told me they meet there every Saturday at 2, so I may have found my Shabbat afternoon activity for the summer. Then that night we went out to watch the 3rd place game of the world cup and found ourselves in a bar that could show us the game, but not play the audio. So we watched the game while listening to MTV songs. It was great.
Before going out to the game, I stopped by HUC for Havdalah of alumni day (that was happening all day) and noticed a nametag that said "Irwin Zeplowitz." I thought to myself...that name looks really familiar, I think he was the Rabbi at my synagogue when I was born and lived down the street from me. So I went to introduce myself and lo and behold, it was him! Not only was it him, but he was there with his wife and traveling with another couple...the Echales. They have been family friends of ours since I was born as well and it was the most random connection I've made so far in Israel. It will definitely be hard to top. We got to talking and they asked how Beth was and I got to tell them that she is here in Jerusalem as well. After that they offered to take us out to dinner and who am I to say no to good free food?
So on Sunday night, myself, Beth, the Zeplowitz's and the Echales' went to dinner at Beit Anna Ticho (the Ticho House) and what a great meal it was. We got blintzes and knishes and an amazing spinach ravioli with fresh pesto. And then for dessert the warm chocolate cake with vanilla ice cream....delicious! That is for sure a restaurant to bring my parents to (so I don't have to pay for it....please mom and dad?)
Monday evening a scary thing happened. I had to go to orientation for school, which meant I was no longer free to do whatever I wanted all day. It was a little bit disappointing because there is so much more to do and see in Jerusalem, but it is also nice to finally have something concrete to do with my time. During orientation, on a whim, I decided to invite a few people over for dinner when we were finished. There ended up being 7 of us total for dinner at my apartment and I made a yummy pasta with red pepper, onion, carrot, and garlic. It was really good. I hope the people that came over don't think I can really cook though, that's my one go to meal. Nothing else comes out that good.
It is time now for sleep because I have to be at HUC at 830 in the morning for 9 hours of orientation! OY!
Until next time,
Lila tov from Jerusalem
Wednesday, July 7, 2010
Adventures in the Old City
Its been one week since I left Chicago and Jerusalem is finally starting to feel like home. I know where most of the main places are that I'll be going to this year, and I've eaten enough falafel and schwarma for a month! I've also taken two fun, yet different, trips into the old city.
On Monday I went to the Old City with four classmates, Marina, Brian, Ari, and Alexis. We just decided to wander the streets for a while and see what we found. We went in through the Jaffa Gate and walked through the Arab Shuk and Cardo (main street in the Jewish quarter) for a while and then grabbed lunch nearish to the Kotel. After lunch we decided to keep walking through the Shuk and just explore with no real direction to where we were going. The only thing I knew I wanted to do was buy a board for sheishbeish (backgammon) so I could sit around in Jerusalem and play. Sheishbeish in Jerusalem is like chess in New York City. People will just sit around on the streets and play. I hope to spread my love of sheishbeish to the rest of the HUC students this year.
Today, Wednesday, I went to meet Beth at the Old City so we could see a few of the NFTY-ites in Israel including Emma, my past-president at LCTY (my youth group in Highland Park, IL). After we saw her and the rest of her group, we met with Sam and Henry, Beth's friends, and the four of us got to experience two of the cooler things to do in the Old City. A few days ago, Sam made friends with someone in the park at random, and that person happened to be a bigshot at the Kotel and invited Sam to come for a tour of the caves under the wall. Before touring under the city however, we first went through the Chain of Generations Center, a brand new artistic exhibit right next to the Kotel exploring how all Jews are connected from Abraham to the modern day. It was amazing. Pictures will be on facebook soon.
Then we had about 2 hours before our tour under the wall began so we walked to the Church of the Holy Sepulcher and saw where Jesus was crucified and buried. It is a very impressive church and had the feeling of a Dan Brown novel while inside. So many things seemed to exude symbolism and I don't think I understood even a small part of it.
Then the tour under the Western Wall was very fun. We walked the entire length of the wall that stood outside the second Temple from over 2000 years ago. The wall was constructed by King Herod right around the turn of the calendar from BCE to CE. It was great to see how impressive just the foundation of the wall was. The second layer of stone, was one giant stone that weighed over 500 tons (thats 1 million pounds folks). Its unfathomable to think about how they would have moved that stone into place.
Now I'm resting and trying to take care of my blisters. Too much walking in this city has not been good for my feet. I popped one blister (it kinda exploded when I did that, and I'm sure you didn't need to know that either) and the other one isn't too bad, so I'll let it be for now. They are definitely smaller than the blister after my marathon, but much more painful.
Orientation starts in 5 days so I still have time to explore more places in Jerusalem and hope to do that before I'm in school 5 days a week.
Erev tov from Jerusalem
On Monday I went to the Old City with four classmates, Marina, Brian, Ari, and Alexis. We just decided to wander the streets for a while and see what we found. We went in through the Jaffa Gate and walked through the Arab Shuk and Cardo (main street in the Jewish quarter) for a while and then grabbed lunch nearish to the Kotel. After lunch we decided to keep walking through the Shuk and just explore with no real direction to where we were going. The only thing I knew I wanted to do was buy a board for sheishbeish (backgammon) so I could sit around in Jerusalem and play. Sheishbeish in Jerusalem is like chess in New York City. People will just sit around on the streets and play. I hope to spread my love of sheishbeish to the rest of the HUC students this year.
Today, Wednesday, I went to meet Beth at the Old City so we could see a few of the NFTY-ites in Israel including Emma, my past-president at LCTY (my youth group in Highland Park, IL). After we saw her and the rest of her group, we met with Sam and Henry, Beth's friends, and the four of us got to experience two of the cooler things to do in the Old City. A few days ago, Sam made friends with someone in the park at random, and that person happened to be a bigshot at the Kotel and invited Sam to come for a tour of the caves under the wall. Before touring under the city however, we first went through the Chain of Generations Center, a brand new artistic exhibit right next to the Kotel exploring how all Jews are connected from Abraham to the modern day. It was amazing. Pictures will be on facebook soon.
Then we had about 2 hours before our tour under the wall began so we walked to the Church of the Holy Sepulcher and saw where Jesus was crucified and buried. It is a very impressive church and had the feeling of a Dan Brown novel while inside. So many things seemed to exude symbolism and I don't think I understood even a small part of it.
Then the tour under the Western Wall was very fun. We walked the entire length of the wall that stood outside the second Temple from over 2000 years ago. The wall was constructed by King Herod right around the turn of the calendar from BCE to CE. It was great to see how impressive just the foundation of the wall was. The second layer of stone, was one giant stone that weighed over 500 tons (thats 1 million pounds folks). Its unfathomable to think about how they would have moved that stone into place.
Now I'm resting and trying to take care of my blisters. Too much walking in this city has not been good for my feet. I popped one blister (it kinda exploded when I did that, and I'm sure you didn't need to know that either) and the other one isn't too bad, so I'll let it be for now. They are definitely smaller than the blister after my marathon, but much more painful.
Orientation starts in 5 days so I still have time to explore more places in Jerusalem and hope to do that before I'm in school 5 days a week.
Erev tov from Jerusalem
Saturday, July 3, 2010
First Shabbat
Just finished my first shabbat in Israel and what a great day it was.
I started with services at Kol Haneshemah with a handful of HUC students and got to see the Klein-Katz's, who have not changed one bit. Then we walked back up to Lincoln (pronounced Link-o-lin) for Shabbat dinner at another student's apartment. She made a home cooked dinner that was fantastic and delicious and I'm not even sure what most of the food was. Dinner did not start until after 9pm and we didn't finish and leave until almost midnight! I was so tired from dinner that I fell asleep around one, and woke up at 2:30....the next afternoon. I slept for over 13 hours and it was amazing.
I woke up today and finally got a chance to unpack and get myself settled in the apartment. I'm am now officially moved in and almost ready to call this place home. I just need to get into a bit more of a routine before it feels totally natural.
Tonight a group of us went out to Ben Yehuda street for dinner and I got to see Beth (and I had to give her back her adapter for the electric outlets) and then we walked a bit up Ben Yehuda street. While walking, we came across a youth group looking for people to Israeli dance with them, so we did Hava Negilah and Mayim in the middle of the street! It was one of the funnier things I've done since I've been here.
Now I'm back and just relaxing at the apartment. Tomorrow is registration at HUC and a 4th of July BBQ. Thats all for now. Hope to here from everyone soon.
Shavua Tov from Jerusalem
I started with services at Kol Haneshemah with a handful of HUC students and got to see the Klein-Katz's, who have not changed one bit. Then we walked back up to Lincoln (pronounced Link-o-lin) for Shabbat dinner at another student's apartment. She made a home cooked dinner that was fantastic and delicious and I'm not even sure what most of the food was. Dinner did not start until after 9pm and we didn't finish and leave until almost midnight! I was so tired from dinner that I fell asleep around one, and woke up at 2:30....the next afternoon. I slept for over 13 hours and it was amazing.
I woke up today and finally got a chance to unpack and get myself settled in the apartment. I'm am now officially moved in and almost ready to call this place home. I just need to get into a bit more of a routine before it feels totally natural.
Tonight a group of us went out to Ben Yehuda street for dinner and I got to see Beth (and I had to give her back her adapter for the electric outlets) and then we walked a bit up Ben Yehuda street. While walking, we came across a youth group looking for people to Israeli dance with them, so we did Hava Negilah and Mayim in the middle of the street! It was one of the funnier things I've done since I've been here.
Now I'm back and just relaxing at the apartment. Tomorrow is registration at HUC and a 4th of July BBQ. Thats all for now. Hope to here from everyone soon.
Shavua Tov from Jerusalem
Thursday, July 1, 2010
Arrived in Jerusalem
What a 24 hours (or so, I have no clue how long its been since I left home). I'm here updating from my apartment in Jerusalem. I live at 6 Mapu (pronounced mah-poo) which is by far the funniest street name of anyone at HUC this year. I left Chicago Thursday afternoon and flew to Rome, stayed there for 4 hours in the airport, then got my connection to Tel-Aviv where I boarded a Sheirut to my apartment in Jerusalem. The Sheirut took me straight to the apartment so I didn't have to try to find it.
Ryan met me here when I got in and showed me the place. It's great. A little grungy, but lots of good space. We went so I could buy soap and shampoo and shower, because I had been wearing the same clothes the whole time I traveled and I felt dirty. After showering, I met up with a group of about 10 HUC students at someones apartment. I'm not totally sure where it was, but I found it eventually.
From there I walked with Marina (Marz) to HUC to meet up with Beth and Sam and we walked to Ben Yehuda Street so I could get a falafel to make my arrival in Israel official. I got to see Beth's place then walked back to my apartment. However, I ended up going the wrong way from Beth's and ended up in Mea Sh'arim (the extremely orthodox community) and had to turn around and go back. I won't make that mistake again.
Now its time to go to bed and get ready for Shabbat tomorrow. I still have to unpack and Ryan and I are going to buy things that we need for the apartment during the day tomorrow (like a blanket, thank god I stole one from Alitalia!).
Lila Tov from Jerusalem!
Brian
Ryan met me here when I got in and showed me the place. It's great. A little grungy, but lots of good space. We went so I could buy soap and shampoo and shower, because I had been wearing the same clothes the whole time I traveled and I felt dirty. After showering, I met up with a group of about 10 HUC students at someones apartment. I'm not totally sure where it was, but I found it eventually.
From there I walked with Marina (Marz) to HUC to meet up with Beth and Sam and we walked to Ben Yehuda Street so I could get a falafel to make my arrival in Israel official. I got to see Beth's place then walked back to my apartment. However, I ended up going the wrong way from Beth's and ended up in Mea Sh'arim (the extremely orthodox community) and had to turn around and go back. I won't make that mistake again.
Now its time to go to bed and get ready for Shabbat tomorrow. I still have to unpack and Ryan and I are going to buy things that we need for the apartment during the day tomorrow (like a blanket, thank god I stole one from Alitalia!).
Lila Tov from Jerusalem!
Brian
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
Leaving Tomorrow
Well....Its just over 24 hours until my flight to Rome then Tel-Aviv and I'm trying to fit all of my belongings into my luggage. This may be the first time I haven't had extra room while packing!
I'm living on 6 Mapu with Ryan Daniels, who I met last year at the Cornerstone Conference. He was the Eisner Liaison so we spent some time together and got to know each other a bit. Then when the YII facebook group started, we found each other while looking for roommates, realized we knew each other, and decided to live together. After some initial trouble with the apartment (apparently it lived up to its 'poo' name) it is looking good for my arrival and I can't wait to see it.
If you want to reach me in Israel, the first few days I will probably not have my cell phone yet, because HUC is not open Friday or Saturday and that is where my phone is now, so you will have to email or skype me. Once I have my phone, I will post my number and you can call me if you want. I am not bringing my current phone so you shouldn't call it at all this year, because I'm not checking my messages until May.
Thats all for now. Let me know if there are certain things from Israel you want to hear about, and I'll be sure to write about them in future updates. Next time from Jerusalem!
I'm living on 6 Mapu with Ryan Daniels, who I met last year at the Cornerstone Conference. He was the Eisner Liaison so we spent some time together and got to know each other a bit. Then when the YII facebook group started, we found each other while looking for roommates, realized we knew each other, and decided to live together. After some initial trouble with the apartment (apparently it lived up to its 'poo' name) it is looking good for my arrival and I can't wait to see it.
If you want to reach me in Israel, the first few days I will probably not have my cell phone yet, because HUC is not open Friday or Saturday and that is where my phone is now, so you will have to email or skype me. Once I have my phone, I will post my number and you can call me if you want. I am not bringing my current phone so you shouldn't call it at all this year, because I'm not checking my messages until May.
Thats all for now. Let me know if there are certain things from Israel you want to hear about, and I'll be sure to write about them in future updates. Next time from Jerusalem!
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