Acceptance

Can you believe that I have been in Israel for almost a month?! I know, I can't either. Most of the original feelings of being overwhelmed have mellowed out and I really feel like I am beginning to settle into my everyday life here. If moving to a different country were like the 5 stages of grief I would be in the acceptance stage. That sounds kind of dramatic and morbid but just go with it. This past week was my first full week in school which was spent observing in the classroom and helping the students in smaller groups. I also got a taste of just how crazy Israeli school children can be when one particularly rowdy 5th grader kept saying "fuck you, bitch" to other students in class. I was of course completely dumbfounded and could only manage to stammer "we don't say that" though I think he got the message from the look of horror on my face. On Wednesday, the principal of the school I am teaching at invited the whole staff to her house for a bbq to kick off the year. Mona (the other fellow that works with me) and I ate a ton and had a great time even though everyone was speaking in Hebrew so we weren't really able to socialize as much as we would have liked. There was also a hired comedian there who told her life story and was pretty funny judging by everyone else's laughter though we obviously didn't understand a word she was saying. On Friday a group of us went out in Tel Aviv for one of my roommates' birthday's and spent the majority of the night trying to find a decent bar which didn't happen. On the plus side, I had actually been to the first bar we went to while I was here on Birthright so it brought back some great memories and made me miss my Birthright fam back home. Today we visited a children's hospital in Tsrifin where we handed out apples and honey and made cards with the patients for Rosh Hashanah. It was a wonderful experience and the kids and their families seemed genuinely grateful for our visit. Tomorrow is my only day in school this week because it's Rosh Hashanah! I am super excited because I am going to have dinner with my friend Gal and her family which will be my first authentic Israeli holiday experience. Ulpan also starts this week which will hopefully help me figure out the difference between savory and sweet burekas at the bakery so I don't accidentally buy mushroom ones when I mean to buy chocolate ones again. Because let's be real, mushrooms are never an acceptable substitute for chocolate. Thanks again for following and Shana Tova!

Hakol Beseder (It's all good)

Hi friends! It's been another busy week here in Israel so I have a lot to update you about. On Sunday we went to Zichron Yaakov where we stopped at the beautiful Ha-Nadiv Gardens which are planted around the tombs of Baron Rothschild (a major Israeli benefactor) and his wife. Then we went to lunch in the town center and surprise surprise I got shawarma. If I don't stop eating it so often I will be at least 15 pounds heavier when I get back. It's so good it's kind of worth it though. After lunch we went to a winery for a tour and some tasting and Amanda (my roommate) happened to know the tour guide which you would think would be a huge coincidence except for the fact that she keeps running into people here that she randomly knows from back home. Jewish geography at its best. We ended the day at Caesarea aqueduct beach which I had been to on Birthright but found just as gorgeous this time around. On Monday and Wednesday we went to Talpiot Teachers College to meet with our pedagogical adviser and talk about our expectations about teaching English to Israeli children. Our madricha (counselor) Inbal came over on Monday night to cook dinner with us and we made shakshuka, a yummy dish that includes crushed tomatoes, red peppers, onions, and poached eggs. Afterwards we played a game that tested our knowledge about our roommates. Sadly, I found out that I don't really know Geoff as well as I thought I did. Good thing we have another 10 months of living together. I do however know that he really likes barbeque flavored Beasley (an Israeli snack food sort of like chips). On Tuesday we went to the schools we will be teaching at to observe a few classes. It was definitely different than what you would expect to find in an American classroom. The kids were rowdier and the English teacher spoke a lot more Hebrew than English to them and they also didn't get that much done during the periods. We officially start teaching on Monday and I am excited to see how it goes. We also started Ulpan this week so I am slowly but surely beginning to pick up some Hebrew. Today we actually went to a park in Tel Aviv and spoke to Israelis as part of the class which was somewhat awkward but everyone we spoke to was a good sport about it. On a side note, I also tried to do laundry for the first time and for some reason the washing cycle took about 4 hours to complete. At one point Amanda had to stage an intervention and make me leave the apartment because I was having a nervous breakdown. Hopefully the next time will be smoother. Tonight I am celebrating Shabbat with my roommates so I have to go help cook. Until next time. Shabbat Shalom!

Shalom!

Yesterday marked the end of my first week in Israel so in the interest of keeping a promise made to friends, family and myself before I came, I am currently sitting in my sweltering room and trying to remember everything that I have experienced thus far. Thankfully I have the schedules for both the Opening Seminar and the first week in front of me so I won't have to rely fully on my own memory. So let's begin at the beginning. After enduring slight delays, getting hot tea poured in my lap by a flight attendant and a stopover in Istanbul I arrived in Tel Aviv a little worse for the wear but still very excited to get to the Israel Experience offices in Jerusalem and meet the other participants. On the suggestion of the program coordinators I took a Sherut (10 person shared taxi) from the airport to Jerusalem and arrived at the offices for check in. Once everyone had arrived and stored their luggage, we had an opening ceremony overlooking Jerusalem and drove to Ein Gedi (a desert oasis located west of the Dead Sea) where we would spend the next four days playing ice breaker games and getting an overview of the program. The next morning we set out for a hike in the Ein Gedi Nature Reserve that included beautiful views of the desert, waterfalls, and a dip in the pools for those of us without 1st and 2nd degree burns (ie not me). I hear it was very refreshing. That evening we celebrated our first Shabbat together and reflected on everything that lay ahead. Here I'll be skipping ahead a little to Sunday when we left Ein Gedi and finally got to see our apartments for the first time. Though I absolutely love the people I will be living with (especially my roommate Amanda!) I was initially taken aback by the state of the apartment upon arrival. It was dirty, messy, and it was clear that last year's participants had just left a bunch of random crap that they did not feel like dealing with. Luckily, my roommates were down for an intense cleaning party which definitely improved the apartment's livability and reduced the likelihood of an impending meltdown on my part. Since then we have gotten our bus passes, met one of last year's fellows who will be mentoring us, gone to a movie, had one on ones with our madricha (counselor), gone out to bars for the first time and participated in a giant scavenger hunt. I was also able to reconnect with one of the soldiers that was on my Birthright trip who just so happens to live in the same city as me! Today I went to the school I will be teaching at and met the head teacher who is both fluent in English and super nice. On Sunday, we have a trip to Zichron (a town located at the southern end of the Carmel mountain range overlooking the Mediterranean Sea) where we will tour a winery and go to the beach. I'm sure I have left out a ton of things that I have also done in the last week but since you probably stopped reading 10 sentences ago I will stop here and catch you next time. Thanks for following along on this journey!