Shalom

The last week has been a whirl of last-minute activities and then, suddenly, good-byes.

On Thursday I took my final exam in Hebrew, which was preceded by a major cram-session on Wednesday night. Fortunately I ended up doing well on the final, but more importantly I feel like I can actually say that I speak Hebrew. Not fluently! But functionally at least. I remember how totally frustrated I felt at the beginning of the year when I couldn’t understand or say anything; now I realize I’ll actually miss communicating in Hebrew.

On Friday I went snorkeling with friends at a beach near Haifa. I will definitely miss living along the Mediterranean. I spent much of the weekend packing, doing errands, and taking care of last-minute things. Then yesterday afternoon the good-byes started in full-force. I leave Israel tomorrow morning.

Today, my last day in Israel, was both overwhelming and gratifying. I feel like a very different person today compared to the person who boarded a plane to Israel almost exactly nine months ago. I have met some incredible people this year, and part of me really does not want to leave. Life in Israel is intense – both intensely good and intensely difficult sometimes – yet despite the challenges involved in living here, I could actually envision myself choosing to do so.

Shavuot

On Thursday afternoon Miriam and I caught a bus from Haifa to Jerusalem, where we decided to spend Shavuot and Shabbat. One of the soldiers who had joined her Birthright trip nicely picked us up at the central bus station and drove us to the Old City, where we checked into the Heritage House for the weekend. Afterwards he took us and another friend from their Birthright group on a quick trip to the Mount Scopus campus of Hebrew University, from which one can look out over central Jerusalem.

Shavuot began Thursday evening and extended directly into Shabbat. Shavuot celebrates the revelation of the Torah on Mount Sinai and is one of the three biblical pilgrimage festivals: During the First and Second Temple periods, Jews traveled from all over the region to Jerusalem three times a year – on Sukkot, Passover, and Shavuot. I was somewhat surprised to learn how important a holiday Shavuot is for observant Jews, since I knew little about Shavuot before this weekend.

On Thursday night, which was Erev Shavuot, Miriam and I were among a dozen guests invited to the elegant home of a large American family who had moved to Israel several years earlier. Dinner started late in the evening and did not end until after midnight, which apparently was not that unusual since people traditionally stay awake all night on Shavuot studying Torah. We walked backed to the Heritage House and at around 2am went to a gathering at a nearby home, where we joined several dozen women in listening to a well-respected Rebbetzin speak about the book of Ruth, which is read on Shavuot. Her lecture was over my head in parts, but I still learned a lot from listening to her. I actually don’t even know whose home we were in – the owner just kept the door open and people wandered in and out throughout the night.

In the early morning hours people from all over the city began walking towards the Kotel (the Western Wall). At around 5am we decided to walk around the heavily patrolled streets of the Old City and soon joined the crowds heading towards the Kotel. A constant stream of people flowed through the plaza’s security gates. The sight at the Kotel was unforgettable: The entire plaza in front of the Wall was packed with thousands and thousands of people.

The crowd buzzed with the sounds of so many people davening (praying). Farther away from the Wall, non-Orthodox Jews congregated to hold mixed-gendered prayer services, which are not possible to hold at the Wall itself since a mehitzah (barrier) divides the men and women’s sides. Children as well as adults hung out towards the back of the plaza to talk and doze off. Near the northern exit, yeshiva and seminary students handed out bottled water and packaged snacks; they must have had a huge supply. Around 6:30am, Miriam and I joined dozens of other college/grad students at an early morning breakfast gathering in the Old City. When Heritage House re-opened its doors at 7:30am, we finally went to bed.

On Friday evening we were guests at the home of a young American couple for Shabbat dinner, along with five seminary girls. Miriam and I were the same age as the wife, yet she seemed a lot more mature in many ways; she had a home, was about to have her first a child, and had prepared an elaborate Shabbat dinner for her husband and guests. Both she and her husband made us feel totally welcome in their home, even though we were essentially total strangers. It was interesting to spend the evening with them and their guests, some of whom were also from New York but from a different world culturally and religiously.

Getting to the apartment itself turned out to be less enjoyable. In order to get to their apartment, which was located in a neighborhood north of the Old City, we had to follow two young men who had been corralled into leading a group of us there. I guess the most direct path was through the eastern section of the Old City, and before I knew it we were embedded in a thick crowd of people heading home for Shabbat dinner through the dark, heavily littered streets of the Muslim Quarter. I had been to the Muslim Quarter plenty of times before during the daytime, but I had been warned repeatedly not to wander into the Muslim Quarter at night. There was no way out however, so we had little choice but to try to keep up with the two young men who had darted ahead in the fast-moving crowd. We emerged unscathed through the Damascus Gate, although unfortunately a yeshiva student the previous week had not been so lucky. In retrospect it was an imprudent if memorable adventure, but I have no intention of a repeat performance.

On Saturday afternoon we ended up having the most interesting of all our hospitality experiences when we went to lunch at the couth vacation apartment of an Orthodox British couple. We were there for over four hours and met dozens of members of their extended family, many of whom were visiting from Europe for the holiday. I was quite surprised at how young several of the mothers were, despite hailing from well-off, well-educated families. Actually it felt as if that afternoon involved one culture shock after another!

Many of the young adults who participate in the Heritage House’s Shabbat/holiday hospitality programs did not grow up in Orthodox families, and most of the people whose homes I went to did not seem interested in “converting” me to Orthodoxy. Actually, I’m not sure whether most of my hosts knew that I am not Orthodox, and I think our British hostess was as surprised as we were to discover that she had incorrectly assumed that Miriam and I were frum, i.e. (ultra) Orthodox. In hospitality situations I never pretended to be more knowledgeable or observant than I actually am, but nor did I usually disclose, muchless broadcast, my Reform upbringing.

When I hear Orthodox Jews speak critically of the Reform movement, part of me wants to defend Reform Judaism for its inclusive social values and community involvement. Yet many of their criticisms ring uncomfortably true: in retrospect I look back on my Reform religous education with amazement at how little I actually learned about Judaism. My classmates and I managed to emerge from years of religious school with no knowledge of Halakhah, only a cursory understanding of the major Jewish holidays, and a rudimentary ability to sound out Hebrew words. Fortunately for me that wasn’t the end of my Jewish education, although it easily could have been.

On Saturday evening we gathered at the men’s hostel, where we had the third meal and Havdalah. Ironically I discovered that the young woman sitting across the table from me had also graduated from Williams. Williams is a small college, yet I seem to run into fellow graduates everywhere. After Havdalah, Miriam and I headed to Ben Yehuda Street a heavily touristed commercial street in Jerusalem. We passed an Asian choir singing in Hebrew (at least, I’m pretty sure that’s the language they were singing in) and a group of young Rebbe Nachman followers dancing joyously around their quasi-psychedelic music-playing mobile (see photo below). As lively and festive as Ben Yehuda Street is, it’s hard to totally forget that the area has been the target of multiple terrorist attacks in recent years.

We stayed at Heritage House on Saturday night so that we could attend classes at Neve Yerushalayim, a seminary for young women, on Sunday morning. I was sort of envisioning a Sunday School-like scenario, so I was skeptical that I would find the classes particularly interesting. To my surprise however, both classes were very compelling, and I found myself wishing that I could spend more time there. Somehow I'll just have to find a way to go back!

Beach party

On Wednesday night the Overseas Department hosted an end-of-semester beach party. Most of the current Overseas students, myself included, will be returning home within the next couple of weeks. My friend Miriam and I skipped the opening volleyball tournament in favor of attending yoga class, but we got to the beach in plenty of time to enjoy falafels, s’mores (stuffed with pink kosher marshmallows), and a bonfire songfest.

Daytime temperatures have started to climb pretty high by Northeast standards (80s and 90s), but at night the weather becomes much more pleasant. I think I actually prefer the beach at night – the cigarette butts in the sand are less visible in the dark, and I can forget about slathering on layer after layer of sand-clinging sunblock. The Haifa shore is well-populated during the evening, with small restaurants and bars that open out onto the beach.

My friend Miriam finished her Birthright trip on Wednesday morning, and fortunately she was able to extend her stay in Israel until Monday. Birthright sounds like a neat experience – many of the Americans I have met in Israel this year first visited Israel as Birthright participants on a free 10-day trip. Jewish young adults, ages 18 to 26, who have not traveled to Israel before on a peer educational trip or study program are eligible. Amazingly enough, since its inception in the winter of 2000, the Birthright program has sponsored 100,000 participants.

To Jerusalem and back x 2

I spent the last two Shabbats in Jerusalem at the Heritage House Jewish Youth Hostel. Heritage House is actually two separate buildings – one for men, one for women – located a block apart in the heart of the Old City’s Jewish Quarter. The women’s hostel is a close-quartered, two-story house with enough bunk-beds for at least thirty guests. Amazingly enough, the hostel is free. Local Orthodox families host students for meals on as part of a Shabbat hospitality program.

I stayed at Heritage House during a previous Shabbat (see blog entry from March 25) and had such an interesting experience that I decided to return. I was somewhat reluctant to go on my own, yet it turned out to be easy to meet other visitors. Two madrichim (i.e. counselors, or guides) welcomed people to the hostel and answered questions about Shabbat observance. Although I am still unfamiliar with some of the halakhic guidelines, I have gained a much better understanding of Orthodox Shabbat observance through my experiences there.

On Friday night I went to dinner at the home of a family who personifies open-door hospitality. The first floor of their home had been transformed into a dining room packed full of guests. There must have been upwards of sixty people, yet the mother had cooked more than enough food for everyone who walked through the door. Her kids busily ferried food to the guests; apparently they do this every Shabbat! I simply cannot imagine a similar scenario happening in New York.

On Saturday I went to the home of a family I had met during my previous stay at Heritage House. Their very cute seven-month-old son quickly recruited me into his fan club of Shabbat visitors. I probably asked them more than my fair share of questions regarding Orthodox observance, but they were incredibly nice about answering them. I was reluctant to return to Haifa at the end of Shabbat. I like Haifa for plenty of reasons, but Jerusalem is as interesting as it gets.

As Shabbat rolled around the following week, a friend and I decided at the last minute to take the two hour bus ride back to Jerusalem. Heritage House was much more crowded than it had been the week before, and I saw lots of tour groups traipsing around the Old City.

On Friday night my friend and I went to the home of a family who lives in one of the best-located apartments in the Old City. The entire family was very nice to us, but what struck me most about them was how funny they were. I had not previously envisioned very observant Orthodox Jews as being particularly humorous, but with this family I had to be careful not to choke on my food while laughing. Unfortunately not every subject of conversation turned out to be so funny. One of their guests was a woman visiting from Paris who plans to move to Israel in the near future. She explained that she no longer feels safe as a Jew in France. She mentioned feeling targeted at work, so you can imagine my shock to learn that she works in a government office.

The following day I went to lunch at the home of a lovely young family and then spent much of the afternoon talking with other people staying at Heritage House. Many of the guests at Heritage House are Americans, but I also met people from Brazil, France, Australia, Latvia, Russia, Canada, and Israel. I enjoyed spending Shabbat in Old City and taking a break from the rest of the week. I could really get used to this holiday.

Lag BaOmer

From an American point of view, Israelis celebrate a bewildering number of holidays in the spring: Purim, Passover, Holocaust Remembrance Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, and most recently a holiday called Lag BaOmer.

Lag BaOmer marks the 33rd day of the Omer, which is the period of time between Passover and Shavuot. (In truth I don't know enough about Lag BaOmer to explain it coherently, but I found this wikipedia site to be very informative.) Lag BaOmer is basically a celebratory holiday characterized by weddings, bonfires, and other festive events. Despite my previous unfamiliarity with the holiday, Lag BaOmer turned out to be quite a memorable experience.

I attended an enormous Lag BaOmer Gala held west of Jerusalem, in a valley region called Latrun. The event was sponsored by MASA, a joint initiative by the Israeli government and Jewish Agency to promote and finance long term programs in Israel for young adults. I was one of 5,000 people to descend on Latrun's huge outdoor theater Monday evening to celebrate MASA's second anniversary.

The gala was kind of like an enormous, well-orchestrated, glitzy Bar Mitzvah party staring Israel. I don't mean that derogatorily, however. The entertainment may not have been high-brow, but it was fun. The organizers went all out - the gala even ended with a fireworks show! Most of the theater had mixed seating, but there was also a women-only section populated primarily by seminary girls in their late teens. Given the behavior I observed of some of their yeshiva counterparts, I can actually understand why the girls might be cordoned off.

The gala began on a more serious note, with several of the speakers entreating young diaspora Jews to consider making aliyah. I've noticed that Israelis often tip-toe around the subject in front of Anglo audiences, but even Prime Minister Ehud Olmert gave a speech encouraging us to move "home" to Israel.

At the end of evening one of the musicians played a long medley of popular Jewish/Israeli songs. Like most of the audience members I was familiar with many of the songs, but for the first time I was able to actually understand the Hebrew lyrics. I was struck by the irony of a popular song entitled "Od yavo shalom aleinu" - "Soon peace will come to us". The Arabic word for peace - Salaam - features prominently in the chorus. As thousands of young Jews belted out "Salaam", I couldn't help but think about how Israel's neighbors refuse to even whisper "Shalom" in return.

Western Galilee weekend

This weekend I went on an overnight trip to the Western Galilee with a couple dozen other overseas students. In my opinion the biggest upshot of being an overseas student at the University of Haifa is being able to participate in the trips and activities planned by the madrichim (i.e. social coordinators). The overseas students are fortunate to have three very cool madrichim this year, and this trip was unfortunately the last overnight trip of the year.

On Friday morning we headed north to the city of Akko (also known as Acre) which is one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world. My strongest memory of Akko however is culinary as opposed to historical in nature. Uninitiated Westerners may not realize the full potential of mashed chick peas, yet in brief I would suggest that hummus is to Israel what peanut butter is to America. Hummus connoisseurs, such as our devoted madrich Eliad, consider Akko to be a hummus capital. Upon our arrival in Akko we sat down to breakfast in the back alley of a small hummus restaurant. It was a revelatory experience even for the hummus ignoramuses among us.

From Akko we continued north along the coast to Rosh HaNikra, located on the Israeli side of the well-guarded Israel-Lebanon border. Rosh HaNikra is known for its chalky cliffs and grottos (see photo below), which are accessible by cable car. During the Mandate period the British built a railroad connecting Europe to Egypt via Rosh HaNikra. Israeli forces bombed the railroad during the War of Independence in 1948 to prevent Lebanese forces from invading Israel.
We spent Friday evening at a campsite which was fortunately nondescript except for some wild cows roaming around. We had to take turns sitting guard for half an hour during the night; luckily the cows decided to bunker-down elsewhere. In the morning we threw our stuff onto the bus and walked from the site to the trail.

We spent the rest of the day walking/hiking and taking extended stream-side breaks. The Galil is a pleasant place to hike because there’s plenty of shady vegetation without New England-style mud and dampness. We had to wait for the sun to set and for Shabbat to end before heading back to Haifa, since observant Jews don’t use transportation during Shabbat. Admittedly I have no idea why strenuous hiking during Shabbat is okay but being a passive bus passenger is not. Even though the overwhelming majority of students were eager to get on the bus, majority does not rule in such situations, and we waited by the parking lot for two hours before three stars finally appeared and Shabbat officially was over.

Yom HaZicharon and Yom HaAtzmaut

At 8:00pm on Monday a loud siren sounded throughout the country to mark the start of Yom HaZicharon – Israel’s Memorial Day for fallen soldiers and victims of terror. Yom HaZicharon is a day of communal mourning, and, for many Israelis, a day of personal grief.

I was glued to the television Monday evening and Tuesday. Israeli television stations suspend their usual programming on Yom HaZicharon and instead broadcast tributes to Israelis who have been killed in recent years. The tributes – photos, home videos, memories shared by family and friends, poems, songs – were primarily celebrations of peoples’ lives and the legacies they left. Yet watching life after life cut short by many decades was overwhelmingly sad. At the time of their death many of the soldiers were not even old enough to buy a drink legally in the states.

Military service is required of Jewish men and women (although ultra-Orthodox Jews usually evade conscription). Druze, Circassian, and Bedouin men also serve in the IDF, the acronym for the Israeli Defense Forces (Zahal in Hebrew). Israel - with a population of seven million people - is a small country, and virtually every Israeli knows someone, or knows someone who knows someone, who died in military service or a terrorist attack.

The IDF has fought in numerous wars and counterterrorism operations over the last six decades of statehood [War of Independence (1948); Suez War (1956); Six Day War (1967); War of Attrition (1970); Yom Kippur War (1973); Lebanon War (1982); First Intifada (1987-1993); and the Second Intifada (which began in September 2000)]. According to Haaretz and the Jerusalem Post, 138 members of the Israeli security forces have been killed in the line of duty during the past year, bringing the total number of men and women killed defending the state since 1860 to 22,123. Since 2000, more than one thousand Israeli soldiers and civilians have been killed in terror attacks and violence. http://www.israel-mfa.gov.il/MFA

As on Holocaust Remembrance Day, which took place last week, on Yom HaZicharon memorial services are held throughout the country and Yahrzeit candles burn in homes and public places. Public ceremonies were held in military cemeteries and memorial parks after another nationwide siren sounded at 11:00am on Tuesday. Israeli flags are placed on every soldier’s grave, and visitors leave stones (a Jewish tradition) as well as flowers. To the best of my knowledge, there is no Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Israel.

Yom HaZicharon ended Tuesday evening and Yom HaAtzmaut (Independence Day) began in full force. Public festivities and fireworks were followed by a long night of celebration for children as well as adults. I attended a large concert on the beach with a bunch of overseas students. The event was well attended by Israeli teenagers, who apparently are given a lot more social independence than their American counterparts. I don’t imagine that most American parents I know would allow their teenagers to stay out until four or five in the morning, completely unchaperoned. Admittedly security is very tight at many events, but so long as people aren’t carrying weapons or explosives the security guards aren’t particularly interested in how people behave.

The following day many Israelis have outdoor barbeques and gatherings with friends and family. Fortunately we had no active pyromaniacs at the overseas barbeque, but I did see a nearby group’s grill get dowsed with a fire hose. I heard a lot of fire truck sirens - it must have been a very busy day for the fire department!

The state of Israel turned fifty eight this year. It’s simply amazing to think how much has been accomplished in such a short period of time, and even more amazing when you consider the profoundly adverse circumstances under which much of it was achieved.

Weekend in Haifa and the Jordan Valley

On Thursday evening the Overseas Department organized a bonfire on the beach, so I started off my weekend watching the sun set over the Mediterranean Sea. I've never lived near the ocean before, and although I don't spend much time at the beach I love living in sight of it. The Mediterranean makes Haifa feel calmer and more expansive than cities of comparable size and activity.

Early Friday morning dozens of overseas students piled onto a bus heading due East across Israel, towards the Jordan Valley. Our first stop was Bet She'an, a city of biblical note with excavated Roman-Byzantine ruins. Archaeologists believe that Bet She'an passed through Egyptian, Philistine, Hebrew, Greek, Roman, Byzantine, and Arab hands during its longer than three-thousand year history. I decided somewhat randomly to join the Hebrew tour, and ironically I may have absorbed more information in Hebrew than I would have in English since I had to pay close attention to the Hebrew-speaking tour guide!

After visiting Bet She'an we hiked down Mount Gilboa. According to the last chapter of Samuel I, King Saul and his sons were slain at the base of Gilboa in battle against the Philistines. Mount Gilboa is really steep - it's easy to see why Saul and his sons didn't stand a chance at retreating up the mountain. The views from Mount Gilboa - including a bird's eye view of some murky water sanitation pools - did not strike me as spectacular, but apparently the mountain itself is home to a multitude of flora, including wildflowers.

We ended the trip at a national park called Gan Hashlosha, which has a large natural pool that looks like something of a cross between a chlorinated swimming pool and a lake. It's the sort of place I would have loved swimming in as a kid but regard somewhat squeamishly as a adult. I took the plunge anyway; I figure I'm a lot bigger than the fish.

Yom HaShoah

Today is Yom HaShoah, Holocaust Remembrance Day. At 10:00 this morning a piercing siren sounded throughout the country. For two minutes life came to a halt as people all over Israel observed a moment of silence in remembrance of the millions of Jews who were killed in the Holocaust. Yahrtzeit (memorial) candles burned in homes and public spaces, and commemorative events took place around the country. http://www.knesset.gov.il/shoah/eng/eshoah.htm

Last night I watched a documentary shown at the University entitled “Because of that War”. The documentary centered on two famous Israeli musicians, who are second-generation survivors, and their relationships with their parents, who were the lone members of their families to survive the concentration camps. I remember one of the mothers explaining that she felt as if she had become a different person altogether after the Holocaust – not only had she suffered intensely, but her entire life history had been erased. She had no surviving family members or friends, no one who shared her memories. Her Polish town no longer existed. Hearing survivors’ stories make me wonder how anyone could live through the concentration camps, much less rebuild a life afterwards.

Many Israelis are the children and grandchildren of survivors, and the tragedy of the Holocaust is deeply embedded in the collective Israeli psyche. This Yom HaShoah marks the 63rd anniversary of the Warsaw Ghetto uprising. Sixty-three years does not seem like a long time.

Passover in Israel

Passover (Pesach, in Hebrew) began on Wednesday evening. In brief, Passover commemorates the Exodus of the enslaved Israelites from Egypt. For more information on Passover, visit http://www.chabad.org/holidays/passover/pesach.asp?AID=1844

I went to a seder, the ceremonial meal held on the first night of Passover, at the home of a friend whose family lives on a moshav. Like a Kibbutz, a moshav is a community of people who live together and share resources; however, on a moshav people own their own property and work independently. My friend’s moshav is situated on top of a small mountain, from which one can view the surrounding mountains and valleys of the Galilee. A botanist would have a field day gazing at the vast array of plants and flowers that surround peoples' homes. I imagine it would be wonderful to live in such a peaceful place.

A huge amount of effort goes into preparing for the seder meal. I was simply amazed by how much food my friend’s mother made, even with the help of her family members. Passover presents a culinary challenge since no leavened products, called “chametz”, can be eaten during Passover. Chametz is defined as wheat, spelt, oats, barely, or rye flour that has been mixed with water and allowed to ferment before being baked. Matzah, in its numerous incarnations, takes center stage for the week.

Before Passover, observant Jews clean their homes scrupulously to make sure that all chametz has been purged from the premises (even pet food that contains chametz cannot be present inside the house). In order for Jews to keep chametz products that they don't wish to discard or donate, there is a tradition of "selling" chametz. A Jew is allowed to sell his chametz to a non-Jew and arrange to buy it back after the holiday. Today, the tradition of selling chametz is largely symbolic as opposed to pragmatic.

During Passover, observant Jews use separate sets of dishware and cutlery that have not been contaminated with chametz. In grocery stores in Israel, aisles selling chametz are covered with sheets for the duration of the Passover. Most kosher restaurants and bakeries are closed for Passover since enormous effort would be required to make a food establishment Passover compliant. In any event, there is likely to be enough food leftover from the seder to last people for quite a while!

Maccabi Haifa

Soccer, known as cadoor-regel ("football") in Hebrew, is hugely popular throughout Israel and is especially popular in Haifa. Haifa is the proud home of Maccabi Haifa, the best soccer team in Israel and a competitive team in the European soccer circuit. On Saturday evening, amongst a sea of green Maccabi Haifa fans, I watched Maccabi Haifa win yet again with a 2-1 victory over Maccabi Netanya.

I can't pretend to thoroughly understand Israel's soccer culture, but I got some sense of it last night. Security is tight at the games, mostly for purposes of crowd control. We were searched for the usual contraband, and we were forbidden to bring any bottles of any sort into the stadium (lest we give into the temptation to aim one at a person's head). Once admitted through tight revolving gates, we could not move between stadium sections or exit and re-enter the stadium for the duration of the game. The primary food sold was unshelled sunflower seeds - the stadium floor was a featherbed of seed husks by the end of the game. Maccabi Haifa fans come to watch the game; they certainly don't come for the amenities.

Saturday night is a school night in Israel since the week begins on Sunday, but at least half the fans were school-aged boys bedecked in green Maccabi Haifa jerseys. Seats are an option, not an assignment, and groups of boys spent the game on their feet, chanting tirelessly. The game was not especially exciting given the low score, but I like watching soccer and I was impressed by how well the teams played. Plus I enjoyed watching their fan base!

Hebrew

I took my Hebrew midterm this morning, so I am now officially on spring break. (Unofficially, however, I still have plenty of work to do before Passover starts Wednesday evening.) I’m glad I studied hard for the midterm - my teacher, as always, expected a lot from us. On a day-to-day basis I am usually most aware when I don’t understand something in Hebrew, but the midterm made me realize how much Hebrew I really have learned since September.

One of the reasons I find Hebrew particularly interesting is that it is simultaneously one of the most ancient and most modern languages. Although Hebrew has been used liturgically for thousands of years, modern Hebrew did not become a codified language until the beginning of the twentieth century. Since the 1920s, millions of people have learned modern Hebrew, and Israelis have managed to develop a rich literary culture during the past several decades.

And the winner is...

Yesterday was Election Day in Israel. Of course as a non-citizen I could not vote, and apparently I was in good company even among enfranchised Israelis – voter turnout was the lowest in Israeli history. Yet even if this election was relatively mundane compared to previous ones, the results indicate how dramatically party politics in Israel have changed since the last national elections in January 2003.

[Israel’s Parliament, the Knesset, consists of 120 seats. In national elections, the number of votes that a party receives dictates the number of Knesset seats allotted to it. Since no one party in Israel has ever received a majority of Knesset seats through this system of proportional representation, a coalition government is formed after each election. This coalition, which is headed by the party receiving the most votes, must consist of at least 61 seats. The leader of the party that receives the most votes becomes Prime Minister of Israel.]

In the 2003 elections, the Likud party won a landside victory with 38 seats in the Knesset. However, in November 2005 – just over a month before he suffered a major stroke – Prime Minister Ariel Sharon left Likud and formed a new centrist party, Kadima [see blog entry from November 29th]. Kadima, now led by Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, won yesterday’s elections with 29 seats; Likud retained only 12. For much more detailed information I refer readers to an excellent wikipedia entry: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Israel_legislative_election,_2006

Election Day is a national holiday in Israel, so schools as well as other public institutions were closed. I spent the day with friends in Zefat exploring the art galleries and the shops of Old City. Driving to Zefat is a harrowing experience due to the winding mountain roads leading up to the city, but it was well worth the trip (well, easy for me to say; I wasn’t driving). In Zefat, as in Haifa, I saw elections posters plastered everywhere. However I also saw people wearing orange, representing their support for Jewish settlements in the West Bank and Gaza. One of the major issues in the elections concerned the future of Jewish settlements in the West Bank (the settlements in Gaza were dismantled in August) since the new government will have to decide whether/how to proceed with unilateral withdrawal from the territories.

Shabbat in Jerusalem

With no foreseeable plans for shabbat, my friend and I decided to take a bus from Haifa to Jerusalem Friday morning. Upon arriving in Jerusalem we checked-in to the Heritage House, an Orthodox youth hostel that provides young adults with free accommodations and home-hospitality for Shabbat meals. The hostel runs on donations, and families throughout the city kindly open their homes to its guests for Friday dinner and Saturday lunch.

We spent Friday afternoon wandering around the Jewish Quarter as store-owners closed shop and residents prepared for Shabbat. At sunset we welcomed shabbat amongst thousands of Jews of all denominations at the Western Wall, known as the Kotel in Hebrew. (The Wall is sometimes referred to by non-Jews as the “Wailing Wall”, because onlookers apparently thought that the traditional Hebrew prayer intonations sounded like wails. The worshippers at the Wall however are praying, not wailing, and the term “Wailing Wall” is not used in Hebrew.)

My friend and I followed our assigned host and his sons back to their home, weaving first through the Arab Market and then along the outskirts of Mea Shearim, a strictly ultra-Orthodox neighborhood in central Jerusalem. The streets of Mea Shearim were lined with young boys playing tag and their elaborately dressed elders walking to and from synagogue.

On shabbat the men in Mea Shearim wear lengthy black robes and wide circular fur hats known as shtreimels in Yiddish. Nearly all of the men sport long beards and curled, shoulder-length sideburns known as payeses. Women dress less uniformly than the men, but their clothes are always very modest. Entering Mea Shearim is like entering a time-warp: Twenty-first century Jerusalem transforms into an Eastern European ghetto from hundreds of years ago.

Our hosts lived in a more modern neighborhood north of Mea Shearim. Even though we had never met before, they went out of their way to welcome us into their home. As it turns out, our hosts were truly a phenomenal family – all eighteen (yes, 18) children of them.

The children ranged in age from pre-school to mid-twenties. Most were present at shabbat dinner, and the older ones were accompanied by spouses and babies of their own. To my complete surprise, each and every one of the children was well-mannered, neatly-dressed, attractive and charismatic. None of the minor pushes and shoves escalated into fights; on the contrary, the kids got along enviably well. Somehow the mother had found time that day to cook an elaborate sabbath meal for over two dozen people; I think she is basically superhuman. She even took time to walk my friend and I part way back to our hostel at the end of the evening. I was pretty amazed by the whole experience.

On Saturday we were assigned to another host family for lunch, and again we lucked out - our hosts were a young couple and their very cute infant son. They entertained nearly a dozen guests, and without hesitation simply added another place setting when someone would walk in through their open door. Shabbat meals are as much about food for thought as for consumption, and we had some animated roundtable discussions during the three hours we spent at their home.

Experiences like the ones I had this shabbat challenge some of my ingrained assumptions and values. The Orthodox women I met were highly educated and well acquainted with feminist ideologies; yet they had chosen, first and foremost, to be wives and mothers. I have a hard time imagining myself (or most of my female friends for that matter) sacrificing careers and financial independence in order to marry young and raise a family. Yet I came away from the weekend with a great deal of respect for the women and families than I met.

co-existence

My five suitemates and I convened this evening to reassess the house-keeping schedule, and as we pondered the merits of a microwave purchase, one of my suitemates commented that we might be the most diverse group of suitemates in the world. Although I don’t know if we’re actually the most diverse suite in the world, I think we’re probably one of the most diverse in the Middle East.

The six of us speak five native languages (Hebrew, Arabic, Amharic, Dutch, English), we practice - or choose not to practice - three religions (Judaism, Christianity, Islam); we were born on four continents; we are different races, ethnicities, nationalities, etc. Like all suitemates we have occasional disagreements, which in our case usually relate to cat-boundaries or dish washing negligence, but most of the time we get along without effort.

From what I’ve observed, most students at the University seem respectful of each other despite significant political, cultural, and religious differences. Although some Jewish and Muslim students here are religiously observant, many are completely secular. Admittedly, I don’t exactly see Jews and Arabs holding hands with each other, but it’s not like there are two such distinct groups as the “Jews” and the “Arabs” anyway. Among the Arabic speakers are Muslim Arabs, Christian Arabs, Bedouins, and Druze. Among the Jews are sabras (native Israelis) and substantial populations of Russian Jews, Ethiopian Jews, South American Jews, and Anglo Jews. Leaders in the Middle East could learn a lot about co-existence from observing the students here.

Church in Tiberias

This weekend I attended services at a Mormon church in Tiberias with friends of mine from Haifa. Tiberias is a small city located on the Kinneret, the place where Jesus is believed to have walked on water and prophesied. I had never been to Mormon services before. Services were conducted in a combination of English, Russian, Spanish and Hebrew! After services the congregation divided into smaller discussion groups, so I sat in on the young women's lesson. The topic of the day happened to be homemaking, which surprised me a little; I don’t think such a lesson would go over well at my religious school. I can just imagine parents’ reactions if their daughters emerged from class as aspiring homemakers.

After services my friends took me to Capernaum, an archaeological site of a synagogue where Jesus is said to have preached. Then we continued North to Qazrin, a partially-restored, Talmudic-era village. Man, I am really glad I didn't live back then; those were seriously cramped, dark, stone houses with very short doorways.
The lower Galilee is quite picturesque, with lots of rolling hills and vegetation this time of year. Even just driving around was enjoyable, and that says a lot given my general aversion to Israeli motorways!

Purim

Today is Purim. Schools and universities are closed, but most stores and businesses remain open since work is permissible on Purim, unlike on some other Jewish holidays. Young Israelis often celebrate Purim by partying, drinking, and dressing in costumes, but Purim also has religious significance. The Megillah, (i.e. the book of Esther), is read out loud in synagogues, and hearing it is considered to be a very important mitzvot (commandment). In Orthodox communities, even babies are brought to the synagogue on Purim during a Megillah reading in order that they too may fulfill this mitzvot. Some observant Jews fasted yesterday for the Fast of Esther, which commemorates Esther’s fast prior to approaching her husband, the King, with a plea to spare the Jews’ lives. For those who are unfamiliar with the story of Purim, I have included a brief synopsis below:

Esther was a young woman living in Persia, who was chosen for marriage by King Ahasuerus. She was instructed by her uncle, Mordecai, not to reveal her Jewish identity, and her husband, the King, did not know she was a Jew. Haman, an advisor to King Ahasuerus, hated the Jews because they refused to bow dow to him. The king gave Haman permission to do what he wanted with the Jews, and Haman made plans exterminate them all. Mordecai persuaded Esther to speak to the king on behalf of the Jewish people. However, anyone who came into the king's presence without being summoned could be put to death, and Esther had not been summoned. Esther fasted for three days to prepare herself, then went to the king’s chambers at risk to her life. He welcomed her. She told him of Haman's plot to kill the Jews, and the king intervened on Jews’ behalf. The Jewish people were saved, and Haman was hanged on the gallows that had been prepared for Mordecai. (paraphrased from http://www.jewfaq.org/holiday9.htm)

Chag Sameach (Happy Holiday)!

Kittens

One of our resident felines recently gave birth to three kittens, who have decided to colonize our entryway/ patio. At first I was pretty alarmed at the thought of having even more cats to contend with, but I have to admit that the kittens are really, really cute. I can't believe I'm such a sucker, but I actually have started to put food out for them (big wonder they don't leave, right?). It's a trial and error thing - tuna and yogurt are big hits, bananas and rice cakes are no-gos. One of my suitemates has started to cook for them, which crosses a line in my opinion, but then again she didn't ask my opinion so I've refrained from giving it.

One afternoon after a heavy rainstorm I noticed the kittens were absent from their usual perch. I couldn't imagine where they had gone, given their limited mobility at this stage, but I didn't give much thought to it. Until, that is, I opened my room door later that evening and saw one of the kittens sprint across the linoleum and into my suitemate's room, where I discovered it's siblings and mother as well!

Shabbat in Zefat

I spent a fascinating shabbat in Zefat, a holy city in the north of Israel that is home to a vibrant Hasidic community (for more information on Zefat, see my previous blog entry from September 25th). The Hasidim, who can be easily identified by their distinctive garb, are ultra-Orthodox Jews who emphasize Jewish spirituality and mysticism, as well as rabbinic leadership. The Chabad-Lubavitch Hasidim are one of largest Hasidic groups and are known for their widespread Jewish outreach efforts. Along with two dozen overseas students from the University of Haifa, I experienced shabbat Chabad-style through a shabbat hospitality program at the Ascent Hostel in Zefat.

On shabbat, observant Orthodox Jews do not work, write, turn on/off electricity, use transportation, bathe, touch money, carry heavy objects, rip things, etc. On Friday mornings and afternoons, in preparation for shabbat, people busily shop, cook, decide which lights/appliances to leave on, phone family and friends to wish them good shabbos, and even pre-rip toilet paper. I can’t say I was such a fan of every aspect of shabbat observance, but it felt great to turn off my cell phone, put aside my work, and unwind from the week.

On Friday evening we went to shabbat services at one of the many Hasidic synagogues in the old section of Zefat. During services the men daven (i.e. pray) on the ground floor of the synagogue while the women daven on an upper balcony, shielded from sight behind a mehitza (trans: “partition” or “barrier”), which in this case was a thin white curtain. The women, who stood in the packed balcony throughout the 1½ hour-long service, would intermittently push their way towards the mehitza to take a peak at the men singing, dancing, and praying vigorously below. The men sounded like they were having a pretty good time, but the women’s section wasn’t particularly lively. I was kind of jealous of the guys in our group, since they got to actually see what I could only hear.

After services, we went to Chabad families’ houses in small groups for dinner. I walked with four other students to our assigned destination, and when our hosts answered the door I assumed there must be other families in attendance given all the children darting around the room. But I was wrong; our hosts had seven (going on eight) children under the age of thirteen, and it took me several minutes actually to count them all since they kept appearing, disappearing, and reappearing in rapid succession. I don't know how the mother maintains her sanity amidst the chaos, but apparently she does, and I very much enjoyed talking with her. To my complete shock, I discovered that we have very similar backgrounds. She grew up as a Reform Jew in an East Coast suburb with which I am quite familiar, attended a small, rural liberal arts college, and came to study in Israel after graduation. I can’t even comprehend what it would be like to make such a radical life transition, but I’m certainly glad that I had the opportunity to meet her and catch a glimpse of such a different way of life.

Fulbright trip

On Monday and Tuesday of this week I joined a dozen Fulbright students, scholars and their families on a two-day tour of northern Israel. Our first stop was Zippori, a two-thousand-year old archaeological site featuring well-preserved tile mosaics. My attention span proved insufficiently enduring, but the mosaics were pretty impressive. I fail to comprehend, however, what would have possessed someone to create a depiction out of thousands and thousands of such tiny tiles!

We continued on to the Kinneret (a.k.a. the Sea of Galilee) where we enjoyed a lovely lunch at Desks, a restaurant situated on a pier that extends directly over the sea shore. Afterwards we endured a harrowing ride (harrowing, at least, for the acrophobes among us) to the top of Mount Arbel, from which we had fantastic views of the Kinneret and surrounding towns. We spent the night at the HaGoshrim Kibbutz hotel in Kiryat Shemona, within sight of the Lebanese border. The accommodations were surprisingly pleasant, and I couldn’t have asked for more interesting, eclectic company than my fellow Fulbrighters.

We spent the following morning at the Banias nature preserve at the foot of Mount Hermon, in the Golan Heights. The scenery visible from the trail was really spectacular.
On the way to lunch we took an unplanned detour…to the Naot factory! (Naot is an Israeli brand of shoes/sandals renowned for their comfort and considerably more expensive abroad than in Israel). I think nearly every Fulbrighter bought at least one pair of new shoes. And I finally got the hang of European shoe-sizes! Not that I need any more sandals…

We had a late lunch at an outdoor, stream-side restaurant called Dag al HaDan. I would highly recommend the place, so long as you don’t mind dining next to ducks, chickens, peacocks, and other forms of (live) poultry. Afterwards the van transported us back to our respective host-towns, to the mild chagrin of most of us onboard.

click on the link below to view my photos of the trip (you will need to log in. username: deborahhemel@yahoo.com, password: deborahhemel).
http://www.snapfish.com/photolibrary/pageindex=0/t_=34757088

Second semester

My second semester in Haifa began this Monday. My main focus this week has been to finish a pre-final draft of the review article I am writing about the neurobiological and psychological relationship between injury and posttraumatic stress disorder. I have read hundreds of journal articles by this point in my research, and fortunately I have found the subject to be very interesting. Checking all the references and ironing out the ambiguities, however, is not so exciting.

I keep expecting to run into friends from last semester, but most of my overseas friends have gone home; now there’s a whole new group of overseas students. The Israeli students are busy studying for exams since their first semester extends into February, so campus is pretty quiet at the moment.

My Hebrew class this semester is way harder than last semester. But the teacher is great and I don’t mind doing the work since I want to improve my Hebrew skills as fast as possible. I feel so frustrated when I can’t express myself to other people because of the language barrier! And when someone speaks to me in Hebrew, I am never entirely sure I understand what they are saying since I don’t recognize every word. Usually people are nice about it, but not always.

As much as I like living in Israel, at times I think that I would always feel like a foreigner here. No matter how hard I try, I will never be nearly as comfortable in Hebrew as I am in English. And there are many aspects of Israeli culture that I still don’t understand or know how to respond to effectively. It strikes me as rather ironic that in America I am identified as a “Jew”, and in Israel, in turn, I am identified as an “American”.

media vs. reality

It’s been quite a while since I’ve updated this blog - due to the semester break and subsequent inertia - and as most readers are probably aware, the political scene in Israel has changed pretty dramatically in the meantime. Ariel Sharon remains hospitalized; Ehud Olmert has become acting Prime Minister and is favored in next month’s elections; and Hamas won the Palestinian elections to the surprise of the Americans and Europeans (if not so much to the Israelis).

Despite the media bonanza, life in Israel doesn’t actually seem different now as compared to a couple months ago. It’s surprisingly easy to forget sometimes that Israel is in the Middle East. Israel may seem like a frightening place to Americans who only see news clips or read front covers, but I think the media presents a pretty distorted image of life here. I don’t mean to minimize the threats that Israel faces from some of its neighbors; I just hope people abroad realize that life here is far more “normal” than they might imagine.

Family trip

My semester ended on December 29th, and no sooner had I finished my Hebrew final exam than my family arrived in Haifa!

We spent a couple of days touring Haifa (for references regarding my tour-guide abilities you can contact a family member...But please disregard any references to sore toes; it wasn't my idea to build Haifa on the side of a mountain =) I thoroughly enjoyed showing my parents and brother around my new city of residence. My family hadn't been to Israel in nearly a decade.

We headed to Jerusalem for New Year's. We spent an afternoon with my mother's extended family, and my brother and I met several of our third cousins for the first time since we were children. We also got to see other friends of mine and my family's during our stay. Our hotel was located in East Jerusalem, which is predominantly Arab. I had never been to East Jerusalem before, and I'm glad I had a chance to see part of the area. Below is a photo of the shuq (market) in the Muslim quarter of the Old City.



I flew back to New York with my family, where I will spend the remainder of my semester break. Within hours of our repatriation, the news of Ariel Sharon's stroke hit the airwaves. Like millions of Israelis and Jews who span the political spectrum, I am hoping against the odds that Sharon makes a full recovery.

PTSD presentation, Psychology Seminar

At the end of the fall semester, each student in my Honors Psychology seminar gave a final presentation on a research topic of her choice. My four classmates chose fascinating subjects: leadership psychology in the IDF; eating disorder prevalence among ethnic groups in Israel; attitudes towards pre-natal screening in Israel; coping strategies in response to trauma.

My presentation was entitled "Exposure to Terrorism and the Development of PTSD: Contemporary Israeli research on Risk factors, Protective factors, and Coping strategies". For my presentation I prepared a handout for my classmates, which you can view on Adobe by clicking on the title of this blog entry ("PTSD presentation, Psychology Seminar"). The handout (which is basically an outline of my presentation) is not as polished as a paper would be; for a complete list of references feel free to contact me at DeborahHemel@yahoo.com.

Hanukkah in Haifa

This week is the height of the holiday season in much of the Western world, yet life in Israel continues more or less as usual. Although Hanukkah is a major cause for celebration among young Jews living in Christendom, Hanukkah is nevertheless a holiday of relatively minor religious significance. Israelis do celebrate Hanukkah of course: menorahs, latkes, gelt, dreidle, sufganiyot...etc., but there are no lavish Christmas celebrations to compare with. Hanukkah in Israel is not a particularly commericialized holiday; nor is Christmas for that matter. The small Christian minority in Israel is primarily Orthodox, and Orthodox Christians celebrate Christmas on January 7. I have to admit that as an American it felt a little unusual not to see any signs of Christmas, but it was also a big relief not to have to do any holiday shopping or feel like I was missing out on something.

Although New Year's is celebrated in Israel, for most Israelis it is considerably less significant than Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year. New Year's Eve is called "Sylvester" in Israel to distinguish it from Rosh Hashanah. (Why "Sylvester"? Well, in the Catholic Church, Saint Sylvester's Day is celebrated on December 31st. Of course it seems pretty strange that Israelis would name a holiday after a Catholic Saint, but there's a twist: in the 4th century A.D., Saint Sylvester - who was reportedly a vicious anti-Semite - convinced Constantine to prohibit Jews from living in Jerusalem. Israelis therefore call New Year's "Sylvester" as a way to mock, not to honor, Saint Sylvester).

Happy Holidays!

crunch time

The end of the semester for Overseas students is quickly approach- ing, which means it's crunch time for everyone, including myself. Next week I have two PTSD-related presentations and a final exam in Hebrew. Although none should require semi-heroic efforts a la Williams, I nevertheless had a lot of work ahead of me this week and therefore have chosen to post three photos and briefly describe them.
The top photo is a distant view of the University of Haifa campus. The tower in the upper left hand corner, known as Eshkol Tower, is the highest point in Haifa and can be seen for miles around. The photo to the right was taken from the opposite perspective - it is the view of Haifa as seen from the University campus. The third photo is a random shot of a rooftop garden in Haifa. As in many urban areas, property is tight in Haifa, so people make the most of any spare space!

Wadi Nisnas

This afternoon I went downtown with an Israeli friend who mentors me in Hebrew (in theory I mentor her in English as well, although her English is nearly perfect). We went to Wadi Nisnas, a densely-populated, historic Arab neighborhood in the center of Haifa. Within the last several years, the area has been rejuvinated by a public art campaign intended to attract visitors as well as wealthier tenants. Murals, modern sculptures, and other works of art blend into the scenery; it takes a discerning eye to notice many of them. Haifa has the reputation of being the most pluralistic of Israeli cities, and relations between Jews and Arabs are cordial if not necessarily warm. Wadi Nisnas must have a large Christian Arab population given how many Christmas items I saw in the area. This weekend I plan to go to a festival there known as HaChag Shel HaChagim (i.e."The Holiday of Holidays" - Hanukah, Christmas & Ramadan). Apparently the festival has been going on for 10 years, which is pretty impressive given how rough the last five years have been in terms of Jewish-Arab relations.

Research

Research and writing have consumed much of my time this past week: By Friday I plan to give my advisor a rough draft of the review article I am writing about the relationship between physical injury and the development of posttraumatic stress disorder. I find the research to be very interesting but the writing process to be much less so.

Coincidently, this week the subject of my psychology seminar is combat stress reactions. Although combat stress reactions are certainly detrimental from a military standpoint, and although post-combat stress reactions can interfere negatively with a person’s functionality, I wonder to what extent such reactions are normal (verses to what extent they are actually pathological). I mean, what should be considered a normal/appropriate reaction to combat (or any other type of intensely traumatic experience)? Could it be possible that certain situations/events are so inherently psychologically traumatic that those who emerged unscathed are the ones who should be considered psychologically unsound? The more I read about the psychological effects of war and terrorism, the more thoroughly appalled I am by both, and the more respect I have for my Israeli peers who have almost universally served in the military and coped with the threat of terrorism.

Grand Canyon

Saturday night is a popular time to go shopping in Israel since many stores, which are closed during shabbat, re-open after sunset and stay open late. So tonight a couple of friends and I decided to head to the “Grand Canyon” (canyon = mall, in Hebrew), to do some much-needed clothes and food shopping. Although it would be considered mid-size by American standards, the Grand Canyon is the largest mall in Israel, and it is a notable attraction in Haifa. Superficially, the Grand Canyon looks pretty much like any mall anywhere, but spending a couple of hours there on a Saturday night proved to be a distinctly Israeli cultural experience.

Mall outings appear to be whole-family ventures for many Israelis, and while women wander through the stores, wayward husbands can find collective refuge around a huge TV screen that airs Saturday-night soccer games. Soccer is almost pathologically popular in Israel, and Haifa is the proud home-base of Maccabi Haifa (the first-place soccer team in Israel). During a previous trip to the Grand Canyon, I froze in fear when I heard a massively loud roar emanate from one side of the mall, only to realize moments later that Maccabi Haifa had just scored a game-tying goal against Maccabi Tel-Aviv.

I quickly discovered that searching for suitable pants in the Grand Canyon would be a fruitless endeavor on my part. Although many Israeli women are quite slight, apparently even those who aren’t are willing to pretend otherwise for fashion purposes. My friends and I also determined that we are at least one clothing-size larger in Israel than in America, even for sweatshirts and the like. A penchant for tight-fitting clothes and a dearth of obese Israelis have clearly made their marks on the Israeli clothing industry.

The Grand Canyon has an unexcitingly transnational food court (i.e. McDonalds, Sbarros, etc.), so my friends and I went to a sushi bar in the mall instead. There were no English menus, but we successfully navigated the menu in Hebrew! I was quite excited – after all, being able to order food from an entirely Hebrew menu is something of a milestone for me.

Our last stop was the supermarket, which is in the basement of the mall (supermarkets in Haifa are housed in larger commercial complexes; stand-alone supermarkets don’t appear to exist). I wound up standing in line for the registrar behind several young ultra-Orthodox men, who appeared to be shopping for a considerably large number of people. They haggled over the price of nearly every item with an exhausted-looking clerk and then proceeded to pay with a complicated combination of cash, credit cards, and food-stamps. After they finally complete their purchases, they attempted to sell me their left-over food-stamps; I politely declined the offer. I realized that they are probably among the thousands of unemployed yeshiva students in Israel who opt out of army service but, to the frustration of many Israelis, nevertheless depend on government assistance.

weekend in Jerusalem

I spent the weekend in Jerusalem on a trip organized by the Overseas Department. The weather was unbelievably warm! I love spending time in Jerusalem since there are so many sights to see, and so many interesting people to observe.

We arrived in Jerusalem on Friday morning. Out first stop was Armon HaNatziv (trans: the Commissioner's Palace. During the mandate period, Armon HaNatziv was the location of the British High Commissioner's house). Armon HaNatziv affords visitors a beautiful view of the old-city of Jerusalem (see above photo). We spent the rest of the morning touring around the Jewish quarter of the old city. In the afternoon we went to Mea Shearim, a densely populated, ultra-Orthodox neighborhood in Jerusalem. The ultra-Orthodox of Mea Shearim include the Mitnagim (European traditionalists) and the Hasidim. Mea Shearim is something of a world unto itself. The residents dress the way their ancestors did hundreds of years ago in the ghettos of Europe. Before entering the neighborhood, the females in our group changed into long skirts and sleeved-shirts in order to comply with modestly standards. Photographs are not allowed, and tour groups are not particularly welcomed by the residents.

We did some pre-shabbat food shopping at Jerusalem's outdoor market, which was totally chaotic. As shabbat nears, the vendors drop their prices in order to get rid of perishables that will not last through to Sunday, when the market re-opens. The vendors shout out their prices as customers push and shove in the search for last-minute bargains.

Shabbat starts early in Jerusalem in December since the sun sets around 4:30. After sunset we walked to the Kotel (i.e. the Western Wall) which was packed with worshippers. Because men and women pray separately at the wall, I was only able to observe other women closely, although I could certainly hear men chanting furiously on the other side of the mehitzah (i.e. prayer partition). The women at the wall ranged from secular to ultra-Orthodox, from infant to elderly, from very pale to very dark. I am continuously amazed by the diversity of my co-religionists.

On Saturday we walked around some of the newer parts of Jerusalem and then headed to the Christian quarter of the old city. We toured the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, which is built on the place where Jesus is believed to have been crucified. The Church was interesting, but very crowded, and unfortunately I wasn't able to fully grasp its significance. I think that the Eastern Orthodox and Roman Catholic Churches share dominion over the church, which is beautiful and quite ornate on the inside.

We spent part of the afternoon in the Arab shuk, which extends through the Christian and Arab quarters. The shuk mostly consists of long, narrow alleyways lined with vendors selling colorful items. The vendors can be somewhat aggressive in selling their wares, and buyers are expected to bargain. I think it's fair to say however that I am not a good bargainer. Since the items are already quite cheap by American standards, and since I imagine that the vendors have a hard time earning a living, I feel badly trying to bargain for a lower price.

One of the most fascinating aspects of the shuk is how capitalism seems to be a much more powerful force than regional politics. For example, t-shirt vendors commonly display Israeli Army shirts next to Free Palestine shirts, and Muslim vendors sell menorahs, crosses, and plenty of other Jewish and Christian religious items. Politically-incorrect humor also abounds, as these two t-shirts clearly demonstrate!

click on the link below to view my photos of Jerusalem (you will need to log in. username: deborahhemel@yahoo.com, password: deborahhemel).
http://www.snapfish.com/thumbnailshare/AlbumID=32857943/a=34757088

Israeli politics

I have been a derelict blogger for the last week or so, mainly because few notable things have happened to me personally in the past week. But notable changes have certainly occurred within the Israeli government, which I will briefly explain and reflect upon.

[Background information: Israel’s Parliament, known as the Knesset, consists of 120 seats. In national elections, each voter casts his/her vote for one of many political parties, and the percentage of votes that a party receives dictates the number of Knesset seats allotted to that particular party. Since no one party in Israel has ever received a majority of Knesset seats through this system of proportional representation, a coalition government is formed after each election. This coalition, which is headed by the party receiving the most votes, must consist of at least 61 seats. The leader of the party that receives the most votes becomes Prime Minister of Israel. The two largest parties in the Knesset for the last several decades have been Labour and Likud. In terms of political orientation, Labour is considered left-of-center and Likud is considered right-of-center.]

Until last week, Ariel Sharon (Israel’s current Prime Minister) was the leader of the Likud party, which he helped found three decades ago. However, due to an array of political and ideological rifts within the Likud party, Sharon announced on November 21 that he would leave the Likud party and form a new party, which he recently christened Kadima (trans: Forward). As a result, national elections have been scheduled to take place at the end of March, and they will be hotly contested.

Much of the strife within Likud surrounds the issue of unilateral disengagement (i.e. Israel’s military and civilian departure from the Gaza Strip and outlying West Bank settlements) sans concessions from the Palestinian Authority. Sharon presents himself as a centrist who wants to finalize the borders of Israel once and for all, regardless of whether the Palestinian Authority gets its act together to partner in the process. In other words, if Sharon and his supporters have their way, Palestinian statehood may become a de-facto reality.

David Brooks, a New York Times columnist, wrote an excellent op-ed on Nov. 17 that I think accurately reflects Israelis’ current disengagement mentality. (Unfortunately I can’t link to the article since it’s only available to subscribers, but I’ve included an excerpt.) Brooks writes, “The second intifada, coming on the heels of Yasir Arafat's rejection of a deal at Camp David, cut some visceral bond that used to join the two peoples. The Israelis are separating themselves from the Middle East emotionally and psychologically…The dream of peace has been replaced by another dream, the dream of disengagement…The security barrier has not only reduced suicide bombings; it has also helped change the nation's psychology. On the Israeli side of the barrier, there is increasing safety, prosperity and normalcy.”

After reading Brook’s op-ed, I realized to my surprise that I have hardly heard Israelis talk about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, much less the peace process. My guess is that the vast majority of Israelis are too busy living their own lives to waste any more time or energy working towards a bilateral peace process that, sadly, doesn’t seem likely to progress any time soon.

Miri Messika

Tonight I went to a concert given by Miri Messika, a popular Israeli singer who released her first albumn this year. I was a little skeptical about buying a ticket since I knew I wouldn't be able to understand the lyrics, but one of my suitemates is a huge fan and insisted I come to the concert. I'm so glad I did! I really enjoyed the music. We sat in the third row, and afterwards my friend convinced the stage manager to let us go backstage to meet Miri. She was friendly and totally unpretentious. When she found out I was American, she asked me to help her write to a fan in English! To listen to audio-clips from Miri Messika's CD, click on the link below:
http://www.israel-music.com/miri_messika/miri_messika/

Frustrations

Soccer practice this afternoon was pretty intense. My teammates seem like nice people for the most part, but some of them play quite aggressively. For example, a couple of them shoot on goal as if the purpose is to kill the goalie; even if they’re only a few feet from goal, they’ll slam the ball with as much force as they can muster. (And forget shin-guards or goalie gloves - I mean, who needs protective gear when you’ve served in the Israeli military?)

After soccer I went to a yoga class, which was conducted in Hebrew, of course. I was managing fine by copying my classmates, but then the instructor insisted we close our eyes...big problem since I don’t understand yoga instructions in Hebrew! Later in the evening I decided to give an Israeli folk dancing class a try, but I quickly discovered that it’s not much fun when you can’t understand the instructions and everyone else is already familiar with the steps. I walked home feeling pretty defeated and plopped down on a kitchen chair; which promptly and spectacularly collapsed beneath me. I gazed up from the floor at a concerned suitemate who, after disposing of the remnants of the chair, asked if I would help her decipher an essay in English she needed to read for homework.

I eagerly agreed. But an hour later I was forced to admit that I could not understand even a single paragraph in the entire essay. The essay was some metaphysical rumination on sexual expression, and I wasn’t even familiar with much of the vocabulary. My suitemate stared at me with disbelief when I apologized and admitted that I couldn't understand the essay, muchless explain it to her. "But it’s written in English!" she exclaimed. "Sort of" I replied, and retreated to my room, where I promptly called my mother and announced I was coming home, just in time for Thanksgiving.

[end note: I'm not really coming home of course. But I am just crossing my fingers (& toes) that things go a little easier tomorrow.]

weekend in Haifa

My weekend was relatively uneventful since I stayed in Haifa and caught up on work and sleep. On Friday night I went to services at a Reform synagogue called Or Hadash (i.e. New Light), then out to dinner and to a bar with friends. On Saturday I went for a run in the park and felt my heart leap to my throat when I noticed that the young boy I passed was playing with a gun. I realize the gun must have been a toy (really, it must have been a toy, right?), but I question the judgment of any parent who would allow a little boy to run around with such a realistic-looking firearm. I mean, the Middle East has plenty of real weapons; I see no need to add fake ones to the equation.

Today I went to a local hospital to take a physical fitness test, which is a required procedure for anyone who intends to play a team sport. The doctor I met was from Uruguay, so we spoke in some combination of rudimentary Spanish and English. The fitness test turned out to be a treadmill-based endurance test. During the test my thorax was decorated with a handful of sticky electrodes that were hooked up to a loud, beeping monitor. I guess my heart passed the test since the technician said something in Hebrew and then sent me on my way.

As I returned home in the dark, one of my feline nemeses slipped through my legs and into the suite. Unfortunately this occurs with some regularity, and it usually takes me several minutes of prodding to get the cat out. But I simply could not convince this one to leave without risking bodily injury to myself, so I had to sacrifice a rather expensive can of tuna to lure him out onto the patio. The same cat sits outside and hisses so loudly some nights that I am unable to sleep. I guess I am no longer the indiscriminating animal-lover that I used to be.

Shabbat

It’s been a loooong week, but luckily the weekend starts early here. There are no classes on Friday or Saturday because of Shabbat, and Sunday is a regular work day in Israel. During Shabbat, which begins at sundown on Friday and ends at sundown on Saturday, almost everything shuts down in Israel, including stores, facilities, and even public transportation. Compared to most cities in Israel, Haifa is relatively functional during Shabbat since some restaurants and cafes stay open, and there is limited bus service. The majority of Israelis don’t actually observe Shabbat according to Orthodox religious law, but Shabbat is nevertheless an important cultural phenomenon. Regardless of their religiosity, most families have Friday night dinner together, and peoples’ schedules revolve around this weekly event.

Families in Israel tend to be close-knit, at least in comparison to families in America. Israel is a small country (approximately the size of New Jersey), so even families that are geographically dispersed within Israel don’t actually live very far apart. But extended families often choose to live in the same vicinity anyway. Israeli society is very child-oriented, and emotional independence from one’s family is not cultivated to the same extent that it is in America. For example, my Israeli acquaintances are shocked to hear that I spent entire summers away from home starting in elementary school and that I only returned home from college during extended breaks.

Last week I have the privilege of meeting with a psychiatrist who is well-known in Israel for his work on anxiety disorders, including posttraumatic stress disorder. He has practiced for many years in Manhattan as well as Israel, so I asked him what he thought the main differences are between practicing psychiatry in Israel versus in New York City. He explained that main difference has to do with his patients’ ties to their family. In New York he said that his patients often complained of loneliness and alienation, whereas in Israel his patients complain more often of suffocation. He explained that because his Israeli patients have fewer degrees of personal freedom, their behavior is generally less neurotic than the behavior of his NYC patients, who can easily assume anonymity.

This weekend I have lots of research to do about the relationship between injury and PTSD, and on Monday I have a midterm in Hebrew. Even though I can see why Israelis embrace their Shabbat traditions, I have to admit that I find the shut-down of campus facilities, such as the library and computer labs and food sources, to be pretty frustrating. Now that I’m accustomed to the schedule though, I am able to plan my week more effectively than I could at first. There doesn’t seem to be any religious life on-campus, so ironically I attend Shabbat services less frequently in Israel than in America.

Language lessons

The tension in my suite is palpably high at the moment after an explosive argument occurred between two of my suitemates regarding kitchen hygiene. I’ve witnessed plenty of disagreements between room/suitemates in my day, but this one was especially memorable given the volume at which it was conducted, the hysteria involved, and the fact that I could understand much of what was shouted even though the argument occurred primarily in Hebrew (apparently English curse words are well entrenched in the Hebrew lexicon).

This week I went to practice with the University’s women’s soccer team for the second time. We play indoors, at least for now, and practice is only once a week, although I don’t know if it will become more frequent. I don’t understand what’s going on, so I just try to follow what other people are doing. To highlight the extend of my cluelessness, I didn’t even realize I was attending tryouts – I simply thought anyone could join the team. But apparently I made the team, and fortunately once we start to scrimmage the language requirements are pretty minimal.

I cannot communicate at all with the coach without a translator. He doesn’t speak a word of English, and I have a hard time understanding his Hebrew, which might be because he has a Russian accent. A couple of my teammates speak Spanish, so sometimes they’ll translate something into Spanish, which I can then understand. The diversity of languages spoken here is absolutely amazing (and, sometimes, incredibly confusing). Just walking down the halls of the University of Haifa I’m likely to hear Hebrew, Arabic, English, Russian and Spanish. And of course people speak other languages as well, but I can't necessarily identify them in passing.

the Negev

This weekend I went on a camping trip in the Negev desert in the south of Israel. I was one of fifty students who went on the trip, which was arranged by the Overseas Department. On our way to the Negev we made several stops, the first of which was at a huge outdoor market in Be’er Sheva. Then we visited a remote, irrigated vineyard which is part of a developing agricultural enclave in the desert. We stopped at the graves of David Ben-Gurion (the first Prime Minister of Israel) and his wife, Paula Ben-Gurion. We walked along the edge of a development town called Mitzpe Ramon, from where we had incredible views of the Ramon crater.

We spent the night in a huge, communal, Bedouin-style tent at a campsite in the middle of the desert. The following day we went hiking in the Negev, which is absolutely beautiful. The desert is strangely similar to the ocean in that both seem endlessly expansive. The weather was lovely. It’s amazing to be able to wear a t-shirt outside in November.

On our way to the Negev we drove along sections of the “security barrier” which separates Israel and the West Bank. The barrier has been an extremely controversial issue in world politics, and Israel has taken a lot of heat for constructing it. I don’t mean to minimize the controversy, but I was shocked to see how minor the barrier appeared. I was expecting to see a hulking, formidable structure, yet the fence sections were barely visible, and I would have thought the wall section was just a regular highway barrier if I hadn’t been informed otherwise.

click on the link below to view my photos of Jerusalem (you will need to log in. username: deborahhemel@yahoo.com, password: deborahhemel).

http://www.snapfish.com/thumbnailshare/AlbumID=31812302/t_=34757088

concert

Tonight I attended an outdoor concert on campus featuring a famous Israeli singer named Rita. I’m not a huge fan of her repertoire, but I think it’s cool how she and other popular Israeli musicians integrate Western and Eastern musical styles.

I get the sense that celebrities in Israel aren’t idolized to the same extent that they are in America. I mean, it didn’t seem like Rita was on some alternate plane of existence. She appeared at ease with the audience, whose members were enthusiastic but appropriately behaved. She even meandered through the audience at one point and solicited song requests during her encore.

Blog Launch

Dear friends and family,
Thanks for checking out my blog! Launching it took longer than expected due to somewhat limited internet access, but now it's up and going - I will be adding new posts a couple of times a week. The posts are ordered chronologically, with the earlist posts at the bottom of the page and the newest posts at the top. Feel free to leave comments, questions or suggestions.

Research troubles

The process of doing research at the University of Haifa is much more difficult and costly than this pampered Williams graduate would have imagined. To begin with, the library is only open until 7:45pm Sun-Thurs, until 1:00pm on Friday, and not at all on Saturday. Printer function/availabilty is unreliable, and you have to pay to print! The University library doesn't have an extensive collection of medical journals, which means I'll have to use the InterLibrary Loan system a lot (as in the states, the InterLibrary Loan system enables you to access journal articles and books that your home library doesn't have in its physical or online collection). To my shock, I discovered that you have to pay for each ILL request!! At Williams I was accustomed to accessing nearly anything ever printed, almost immediately, for free. Clearly I'm not at Williams anymore (but then again, I'm not paying Williams tuition either).

inspiring Israelis

Last night I met up with an Israeli friend who I know from Nesiya, a summer program in Israel for American and Israeli high school students. I was amazed by all she has done since I last saw her. She served in the military after high school and is starting her third year of studies at Hebrew University in Jerusalem, which is generally considered the best university in Israel for the social sciences. She has traveled all over the world working for various Jewish and Israeli organizations, and she recently returned from visiting Ethiopia, where she was born. Not to mention that she speaks three languages fluently (Hebrew, English, and Amharic)!

This afternoon I met with the Director of Women’s Programming at the Koby Mandell Foundation (http://www.kobymandell.org/index.html), a therapeutically-oriented nonprofit that is dedicated to helping family members who have lost relatives in terrorist attacks. I learned more about her role as a group therapist for bereaved mothers, and she gave me the names of several people to contact who may be able to help me with my research.

Walk on Water

Once a week on Wednesday afternoons I attend an Honors Psychology Seminar (in English) with four other American students. The seminar has proven fascinating so far – this week we discussed the intergenerational transmission of trauma between Holocaust survivors and their descendents.

Tonight there was a showing of the Israeli movie "Walk on Water" in the student center. The movie is in Hebrew, German and English (with English subtitles during the Hebrew and German parts). The protagonist is a good-looking, undercover mossad agent whose parents survived the Holocaust. He is ordered to befriend the grandchildren of a Nazi in order to discover his hiding place. The ending seemed a bit contrived in my opinion, but the movie was thought-provoking on many levels. Among other things, the movie reinforced the ongoing influence of collective memory in contemporary Israeli society.

integration

My living situation has greatly improved with the addition of my three new suitemates. Not only is the suite more lively, but several of us spent hours scrubbing the kitchen/living area, which is now relatively functional. We also made it clear to another suitemate that dishes must be cleaned in a timely manner and that cats need to be fed OUTside. So now it is more pleasant to spend time in the suite, which is beginning to feel more like a home away from home.

This afternoon I met up with a friend from Scarsdale who is also living in Israel for the year. It was great to hear about her experiences and to be able to relate to someone from a similar background. Her boyfriend is a student at the University of Haifa, and he seems like a really nice guy. He emigrated from Argentina three or four years ago knowing only limited Hebrew, and within a year he had started taking a full load of university courses in Hebrew! I am amazed at how quickly new immigrants seem to integrate into Israeli society. Israel may be one of the few countries in the world where immigrants (albet Jewish immigrants) are genuinely welcomed by the government and the populace.

new suitemates

I have three new Israeli suitemates, all of whom seem quite nice. Of my five suitemates, four are Israeli and one is from Holland. Two of the Israelis study communication disorders, one studies psychology, and one studies Literature and English. I am surprised by how many hours of scheduled classes the Israeli students have. Many have upwards of thirty class hours a week! And most complete their BA in only three years. The students here apparently work very hard.

The Israeli university system is more like the European system than the American system. Israeli undergraduates study one or two subjects, and the university system is state-financed. There are increasing numbers of private colleges, but public universities still dominate. Tuition at the University of Haifa and other public universities is incredibly cheap by American standards (about $2000 for the year), but many students are financially independent, and salaries are lower here than in the US. Israelis are absolutely shocked to hear how much money American undergraduates pay for private, much less public, university education.

University

Today is the first day of classes for Israeli university students. Suddenly the campus is packed! Navigating through the crowds is a little daunting, but it’s exciting to see so many people around.

Most Israeli undergraduates are considerably older than their American counterparts. After high school, Israeli males are required to serve in the military for three years, and females are required to serve for two. Many Israeli students take an additional year or more to travel or work, so most undergraduates are in their mid-twenties. Even though approximately 1,500 students live in the dorms, a large majority of students live at home, or in their own apartments, and commute to campus.

The University of Haifa student body consists of an unusually high percentage of Arab Christians and Muslims, Druze, and recent Jewish immigrants from Ethiopia, Russia, Argentina, and other places. In fact, my guess is that sabras (native Israelis) are a minority of the student body.

So far I have not observed any anti-American sentiment among Israeli students. Most are excited to meet Americans and have gone out of their way to be welcoming. I am shocked at how fluently most of the Israeli students speak English. Many have spent time in the states or have American relatives, but even some who have no American connection have managed to pick up an American accent from watching television and movies.

Rambam medical center

Yesterday morning I met with my advisor and the head of the Psychiatry Department at Rambam medical center. Getting to Rambam was quite a challenge. Even though the hospital is all of 5 or 10 miles away from where I live, the buses take forever and a taxi would cost at least ten times as much as the bus. I left the University an hour early and took a bus part of the way and a taxi part of the way, but even so I barely made it on time.

Once I got to the hospital campus I went on a meandering search for the Psychiatric center, which turned out to be a well-hidden, one story building at the periphery of the campus. I walked by several inpatients lounging outside and by a spotted cat basking in the sun. Upon closer inspection however I discovered that the cat was dead.

The meeting went well, and it was decided that I would begin conducting a literature review for a journal article about the relation between physical injury and the development of posttraumatic stress disorder. I think the project sounds quite interesting, and I’m glad to have a well-focused assignment to work on. I think my biggest challenged will be finding sufficient internet access. For such a high-tech country, I'm surprised at how limited internet access is for students. Internet access is not provided free in the dorm rooms, and although there are computer labs on campus, their hours are limited. There are two wireless areas, but even those are only open during the day, and not on the weekend. I'm trying to pay for internet access in my room, but the set-up, apparently, is a slow process.

Tel-Aviv

I spent the last two days in Tel-Aviv at a Fulbright orientation. Tel-Aviv is a very modern city, and in some respects it’s like any city anywhere. But the promenade along the beach is remarkable, as is some of the architecture.

Two days ago a suicide bomber killed five civilians when he exploded in a marketplace in Hadera, a city located midway between Haifa and Tel-Aviv. A representative from the American embassy in Israel informed us of the attack during a security briefing at the Fulbright orientation. This was the first suicide attack that has occurred since I arrived in Israel. I felt very sad for the victims and their families, and I thought of the numerous times I have shopped in similar markets in Haifa and Jerusalem. Of course I am scared of suicide attacks, but I don't allow such brutality to affect the way I live my life here. In many ways I feel safer in Israel than I do in America. I think the suicide bombers greatly underestimate the strength of Israeli society. Israel is a vibrant, prosperous country, and Israelis have not succumbed to fear; if anything, they seem to live more fully in the face of adversity.

CATS

The stray cat situation on campus is out of control. Of course I feel sorry for the strays (even if they do leave unsightly deposits of feathers and fur balls around campus), but their presence inside our living/kitchen area is impinging on my culinary freedom. Yesterday morning I was graced with companionship of an unusually aggressive orange tabby whom a suitemates has befriended with spaghetti remnants. This cat would not leave me alone, but my timid attempts to chase it outside were thoroughly unsuccessful. I decided to try to ignore it…but as I was eating breakfast the cat attacked me in an attempt to grab part of my banana (since when do cats even like fruit?). I narrowly escaped to my bedroom. Hard to believe I used to want to be a vet!

cultural differences

This morning as I walked from the dorms to the gym, I discover that the academic buildings were packed with students taking university entrance exams. Many of the female Arab students were entirely cloaked, except for their faces. Suddenly I felt extremely self-conscious in my gym attire. At Williams I wouldn’t think twice about walking across campus in gym clothes, but no females wear shorts in public here.

Exploring Haifa

I’ve spent the last two days trekking all around the city of Haifa in an attempt to get a more thorough lay of the land. I’m exhausted, but I’m happy to report that I have a much better understanding of the geography of the city and the public transportation system.

Yesterday I went to the shuk (marketplace) before it closed for Shabbat. The shuk was a seriously intense experience. There were endless vendors selling all kinds of produce and other items, and customers flooded the stalls as Shabbat neared and prices fell. I bought loads of fruit, but I’ve eaten a lot of it. That’s the problem with grocery shopping – it feels like an endless process because you buy the food, then you eat it, and then you have to go shopping all over again.

Jerusalem

I have spent the last five days in Jerusalem for Rosh Hashanah break. Even though I haven’t been to Jerusalem in six years, the city feels very familiar to me. I spent the first night with a friend from Williams. The subsequent three nights I spent at the home of my mom’s second cousin, who is in Jerusalem for the year studying to be a rabbi. She and her husband were incredibly kind to me, and I really enjoyed staying with them. I also got to meet another one of my mom’s second cousins and her daughter, who moved from New York to Jerusalem nearly a decade ago. My mother’s cousins are the only family I have in Israel.

On Erev Rosh Hashanah I went to services and dinner at Hebrew Union College (HUC)with other university-age students and rabbinical students. The panoramic windows afforded a breathtaking view of the city of Jerusalem.

On the afternoon of the first day of Rosh Hashanah, HUC students led us on a tour through the Old City of Jerusalem on the way to Hezekiah’s water tunnel, where we held a brief Taschlich service (Taschlich is a symbolic ceremony where Jews throw small pieces of bread into a flowing body of water to represent the casting-away of last year’s sins). As those of us from HUC walked through the Dung Gate on our way to the tunnel, we inadvertently joined a parade of joyous yeshiva students and a variety of others Jews heading towards the same place. Walking down the hill from the gate to the tunnel was a surreal experience. Behind us stood the golden Dome of the Rock mosque, and below us lay the excavated remains of the First Temple. Ironically, this year the first day of Rosh Hashanah coincided with the first day of Ramadan.

As we paraded down the hill, armed soldiers patrolled beside us and above us, and small groups of Arab bystanders watched from the side of the road as we walked by, less than an arm’s reach away. Some of the bystanders stared at us quietly, but several of the young men and boys shouted and taunted us as we passed. I wish I had thought to wish them a “Ramadan karim”, or happy Ramadan. I would like to have more opportunities to interact positively with Israeli Arabs, but opportunities for dialogue, especially in English, appear to be scarce.

As much as I love Jerusalem, I also find that being there feels strangely unsettling. Jerusalem is supposed to be the capital of the Jewish homeland, yet as I walk the streets of the Old City I feel almost like an outsider. I am not Orthodox, I am not Israeli, and I am not sure I am welcome by many of the Jewish residents, much less the Arab residents. Even at the Kotel (the Western Wall) I feel more like a spectator than a participant. I am surrounded by observant Jews, yet I find that I am more ambivalent about my Jewish identity in Jerusalem than in many other places.

click on the link below to view my photos of Jerusalem (you will need to log in. username: deborahhemel@yahoo.com, password: deborahhemel).

http://www.snapfish.com/thumbnailshare/AlbumID=30260584/t_=34757088

Clubbing

Last night a large group of us went to a night club called Horva in downtown Haifa. The club scene here is pretty wild. Things don’t really get going until after midnight. I was unimpressed by the clothing trends – some of the girls left far too little to the imagination, and most of the guys donned tight muscle t-shirts. I found the whole scene rather sketchy and hedonistic. And trance/techno music is totally not my thing. A lot of people seemed to be having a great time though.

The taxi ride back to campus was an experience I hope never to repeat. The driver was very old, drunk, or probably both. I happened to be the only passenger sober enough to be concerned about his inability to stay in one lane. I seem to be a magnet for bad cab drivers in this country!

International Israel

Tonight an Israeli student took a small group of overseas students to a cool pub downtown. We saw a live Israeli band perform, which was exciting because American music had unfortunately inundated the country at the expense of Israeli music.

I’ve started to establish a daily routine of sorts, with ulpan in the morning, classes or research in the afternoon, and some sort of social activity most evenings. I’m working hard at learning Hebrew since I really want to be able to understand more of what’s going on around me.

I’ve enjoyed talking to many of the European students I have met here, especially since they tend to be older and more mature than the Americans. Some of the European students are not Jewish, and I give them a lot of credit for coming to study in Israel. Most of the Europeans are from Germany, Holland, the Czech Republic and Denmark, and a few are from Hungary, Poland, Russia, and other places. One of the students in my Hebrew class is from Japan! Unfortunately she doesn’t really speak English, and our Hebrew isn’t conversational yet, so I haven’t been able to talk to her. There are growing numbers of Asian immigrants in Israel, mostly from Thailand and The Philippines, who come here as agricultural laborers and caretakers.

Beach

Even though I’ve been here for a week and a half, I still wake up disoriented nearly every morning. It takes me a couple of seconds to realize where I am, and even then it’s hard for me to actually believe that I really am in Israel, and that America is half a world away.

Today I went to the beach in Haifa for the first time. I’m not much of a tanner since I turn lobster red in about five minutes, but I love walking along the beach. And the Haifa beach is beautiful if you just ignore the cigarette butts scattered in the sand. I couldn’t believe how warm the water was! I’ve never had the fortune of living near a beach before.

Zefat and the Golan Heights

Yesterday the Overseas Department arranged a group trip for about forty of us to go to Zefat, one of the holy Jewish cities in Israel. During the 16th century, after the Jews were expelled from Spain, Zefat became home to many revered Jewish philosophers and theologians. Zefat is also the birthplace of Kabbalah, or Jewish mysticism. The ancient town is home mainly to ultra-Orthodox Jews and artists. There are many beautiful synagogues in Zefat, and cars cannot drive down the narrow cobbled streets. I wish I could have taken photos of some of the ultra-Orthodox yeshiva boys since they are fascinating looking with their identical school uniforms and long sidelocks. But the ultra-Orthodox do not appreciate being photographed by tourists, and I can understand why.

After Zefat we went to Rosh Pinna, a preserved Zionist settlement from the first European aliyah (migration) to Israel during the late 1800s. I wasn’t particularly intrigued, but maybe that’s because I have a short attention span for ruins and the like.

We camped out near a Druze holy site that has something to do with holy trees, but I didn’t understand much beyond that. The campsite freaked me out a little. I’ve done plenty of camping, but this campsite was rocky, littered, and full of very hardy briars, one of which rudely punctured my rear end as I slid into my sleeping bag. We made the best of the situation though, and fortunately most of the people had a good sense of humor. I was shocked to discover that some of the students on the trip had never gone to the bathroom outside before! I don’t understand how it’s possible to reach your early twenties without even peeing outside, like at least a dozen times.

The following day we went on an all-day hike in the Golan Heights, which in my opinion is one of the most beautiful parts of Israel. (Israel captured the Golan Heights from Syria during the Six Day War in 1967.) During the hike we passed through an amazing variety of desert and forest areas. Parts of the hike were treacherously steep, even for experienced hikers, and I’m impressed that everyone emerged relatively unscathed.

click on the link below to view my photos of Zefat and the Golan Heights (you will need to log in. username: deborahhemel@yahoo.com, password: deborahhemel).

http://www.snapfish.com/thumbnailshare/AlbumID=31008065/t_=34757088

Zikharon Yakov

I spent this evening with my advisor’s family in a lovely town called Zikharon Yakov (trans: In memory of Jacob). Zikharon Yakov is bordered on one side by the Mediterranean and on the other side by a large nature preserve owned by the Rothschild family. Baron Rothschild and his heirs donated the necessary funds to develop the surrounding towns, and many members of the family are buried in the area. The downtown area of Zikharon Yakov, which is home to artisan shops and restaurants, looks like a quaint, well-preserved European village. My advisor’s children speak English fluently and were totally delightful.

I took a train back to Haifa, which was a brief but interesting experience. The train was packed with soldiers, and as I made my way to an empty seat I brushed up against several of their weapons. They hardly noticed, but that’s as close as I’ve ever come to a machine gun.

The taxi ride from the train station to the University was not fun...First the driver tried to cheat me by starting the meter before dropping his friend off in the opposite direction, and he then proceeded to take an absurdly long route back to the University at a frighteningly fast speed. In the meantime, he busied himself trying to set me up with one of his friends, and when I declined the offer, he decided that perhaps I should date him instead of his friend. He wouldn’t let me pay until I gave him my number. I should have given him the wrong number, but I didn’t think quickly enough.

I can’t tell whether some of the young Israeli men I encounter are simply very friendly, or whether they really are somewhat aggressive. Yesterday an archaeology student offered to take me diving, and this morning another guy offered to take me to the beach this weekend (never mind that he’s old enough to be my father). I smiled and said that maybe I’d see him there...which I hope doesn’t actually happen.

Jackal dung

Today was my second day of Hebrew class. It was pretty boring since I already know how to read and write. Yesterday afternoon I met with my project advisor, who seems very nice. I probably won’t get started on my research until after the holidays, but I’ve got plenty of material to read and people to contact. Just getting settled seems like a full-time job.

My first attempt to go to the gym today ended remarkably poorly. I managed to gather the numerous forms and hand over a large wad of cash for a gym membership, but when I tried to enter I was told that my sports sandals were unacceptable footwear. I tried to explain that I didn’t have alternative footwear (I didn’t go into detail about why my sneakers were drying...they had required a serious cleaning after I stepped in some jackal dung the previous day). The gym monitor saw no humor in the situation and hauled me upstairs into the managers’ office, where several people in succession explained to me in broken English that my American sports sandals were quite unacceptable by Israeli standards. Oh man, give me a break.

I miss laizze-faire New York.

Adjusting

Jet-lag is rough. I woke up at the crack-of-dawn, so instead of staring at my ceiling I went for an intensely hilly run in the nature preserve alongside the University. The amount of litter is spectacularly unattractive, especially near the picnic areas. I nearly had heart failure when I saw a jackal dart into the bushes as I rounded a bend. Unfortunately there are numerous swaths of burned patches throughout the preserve. During a hike yesterday, our guide explained that arson has become a common type of terrorist activity since fires are disruptive and a drain on local resources.

In the morning I took a Hebrew placement test, (which I zipped through since I hardly remember any Hebrew). In the afternoon I sat in on a class entitled Ethnic Groups in Israel, which I think will be very interesting since my Jewish education has been primarily Euro-centric. Other than Hebrew and an Honors Psychology seminar, I won’t be taking any classes "for credit" since I’m here primarily to do research. The highlight of my day was a trip to the largest mall in Israel – the Grand Canyon! It's a creative play on words (at least from an American perspective) since "can-y-on" means "mall" in Hebrew.

Trials and Tribulations

Moving to a foreign country can be so frustrating! I finally managed to purchase a cell phone, but I can’t figure out how to use it because I don’t speak Hebrew. My internet access is limited since I don’t have access in my room, and I hate feeling so isolated from friends and family. I can’t understand food labels, or menus, or signs, or just about anything else for that matter. I’m totally dependent on the good-graces of English speakers. Even though most Israelis speak at least some English, my life here would be much easier if I could speak Hebrew. Daily tasks here seem to take much effort. Good thing I don’t have a return plane ticket, because I would seriously consider using it.

First Day

This morning the overseas students were taken on a whirlwind tour of campus. Then we piled into several sheruts (shared taxi-vans) to go downtown before the stores closed for Shabbat (most stores in Israel close from Friday afternoon to Saturday evening). After the half-an-hour ride, I emerged thoroughly nauseated onto the broiling streets of downtown Haifa. Frighteningly enough, New York drivers are tranquil in comparison to their Israeli counterparts.

Haifa is a port city on the Mediterranean Sea, and the University is located atop Mount Carmel at the edge of the city. We wandered around downtown with one of the madrechim, (i.e. guides/counselors) from the Overseas Department. I was fascinated more by the people than by the sights. Israelis are incredibly diverse. Most American Jews are of European descent, but in Israel there are Jews from all over the world, including the Middle East, Ethiopia, India, Central Asia, and South America. Some Israelis dress in a variety of religious garb, but most dress like Westerners. And I often can’t tell by sight who is a Muslim, a Christian, or a Jew.

click link below to see my photos of Haifa (you will need to log in. username: deborahhemel@yahoo.com, password: deborahhemel).

http://www.snapfish.com/thumbnailshare/AlbumID=31008495/t_=34757088

Arrival

I arrived in Israel on Thursday, September 15th via a 12 hour red-eye from JFK. I can hardly believe I am actually in Israel. From my vantage point in America, Israel seemed like such a distant and foreign place. So much has happened since I was last here six summers ago.

Upon my arrival at the University of Haifa I was shown to my room, which is a single bedroom in a six-person suite with a shared kitchen/living area. One of my suitemates is from Holland, and the rest will be Israeli. My room is decently sized, and I have my own bathroom. But the place requires extensive cleaning. I don’t think anyone has dusted or scrubbed in years. And the kitchen is a sanitary disaster.

Most of the Israeli students won’t arrive for at least another month. Classes at the University don’t start until the holiday season ends at the end of October. But classes offered by the Department of Overseas Studies, including Hebrew instruction, being in mid-September, and there are nearly one hundred foreign students enrolled this semester. Many of the students are American and Canadian juniors studying abroad, but some are recent college graduates like myself, and about a third are European graduate students.

click link below to see my photos of the University of Haifa (you will need to log in. username: deborahhemel@yahoo.com, password: deborahhemel).

http://www.snapfish.com/thumbnailshare/AlbumID=31007983/t_=34757088