Relax, Take It Easy

"Relax, take it easy. For there is nothing that we can do."

As I enjoyed a Mika sing-along at the hostel by Masada with my friends, I could not help but think how different my trip to the Dead Sea and to climb Masada was this time around. I was with an unlikely assortment of friends from a variety of backgrounds instead of with just people of relatively similar backgrounds to my own. Most importantly, nobody could make me wear an ugly hat. That also meant that nobody was there to save me from the creepy large old man who asked me to rub natural mud we found in Ein Gedi on his back.  You have to take the good with the bad when it comes to traveling. It is impossible to know what surprises await you around every corner. When I left the United States, these kinds of adventures were exactly what I was perusing.

My trip followed the basic itinerary that we had planned. The first part was, as mentioned before, to the Dead Sea and Masada. My friends from Haifa arrived to Be'er Sheva on Tuesday night, we left Wednesday to go to the Dead Sea, we hiked Masada in time to see the sunrise on Thursday, we visited the beautiful Botanical "Gardens" of Ein Gedi (the flowers were not really in a garden, they were actually just all over the kibbutz) in the afternoon, and afterward we returned to Be'er Sheva. That night we joined a friend of my to search for Chametz (bread) in her apartment. In the process of burning what we found we also burned her table. To add to that night's unfortunate events, I also managed to lose my phone somewhere in the dorms. I have a bizarre, and perhaps paranoid, suspicion that some of the cats that surrounded our nighttime Chametz picnic that night may have found it and made it their toy.

For Passover we went to a Seder run by Chabad on campus. It was a nice gathering of misfits. Other than that, we did not do much during the duration of the first day of Passover/Shabbat except eat some of my favorite Passover goodies like macarons, matzah brie, and matzah pizza.

On Sunday we made or way to Jerusalem for the day. There we randomly ran into a friend from Brandeis on the bus as we were on our way to get me a new phone. She happened to be going to the phone company as well and she was also traveling to Tiberius that day. We took advantage of that huge coincidence to spend the day together. Jerusalem was full of people and delicious food. I got to eat my first kosher for Passover meal in a restaurant and I even got a cup of ice cream after. It was unreal. This theme continued throughout our trip. I never really got used to how all around me there were a plethora of options and how people across the religious spectrum were sitting in the sun enjoying some matzah. It almost felt too easy. Even when I only ate food without kitniyot it still was not very difficult. The food seemed a little strange to me at times. How can a fluffy roll be kosher for Passover?

Tiberius was also packed. The whole city was bustling with tourists and Israelis. To our dismay, it was not as easy as we had hoped to travel to other spots in the Galilee and Golan from the so-called "hub". I refused to let that stop me from having an adventure and I, therefore, made the decision to do a solo bike trip around the Kinneret (65 km or approximately 40 miles). Although I did not get to do any of the hikes I wanted to do, see the archaeological sites, or have some kind of water adventure in the Jordan river, I did get to pass by all of the places I have read and heard about on my bike. This afforded me with a lovely view, people watching opportunities, and a better understand of the lay of the land. On a vacation that had a lot of down time, it was nice to get away and get some exercise.

On Wednesday we saw the sun rise over the Kinneret and set over the Mediterranean Sea in Haifa. The beauty of the sun was slightly outshined by our frantic shopping and cooking to prepare a Freedom Seder in my friend's apartment for Thursday night. I was skeptical about the idea because of all the planning and time it required but, in the end, celebrating the holiday and thinking about both ancient and modern injustice was the perfect way to end the holiday. Being in Israel for Passover was definitely a new experience. I was not totally prepared for how different it would feel or how much I would miss my friends and family. Ending the holiday with nice people and familiar food was extremely comforting.

This break was an interesting test of my resolve to speak Hebrew even when I am not in Be'er Sheva. It has been difficult to keep speaking Hebrew with my international friends in Haifa. That is especially true when there are people around who do not speak English. The refusal of certain people to speak to me in Hebrew is eye-opening. I can relate to the fact that perhaps they are intimidated or afraid. It is more difficult for me to grasp how they actually will do slightly rude things to avoid me because, I am assuming, they really do not want to use Hebrew. On the bright side, I do not need to take part in a ton of small talk and it gives me a little confidence boost that my Hebrew is good enough to confuse other people studying Hebrew. When I am with my close friends here I have been speaking half Hebrew and half English. It has been enough that I have still learned some things since vacation started and have not forgotten anything but it is not enough that I feel I have truly succeeded in maintaining my language pledge to speak only Hebrew when possible.

I am excited to return to Be'er Sheva after Shabbat ends. I really want to jump back into pushing myself to learn Hebrew. I am really hoping that I can convince myself to try more new things. I only have eleven weeks left! By the end of that time I want to be able to say that I saw what I wanted to see and that I learned as much Hebrew as I could. There are many day trip adventures for Be'er Sheva that I would like to do and I have plenty of Hebrew to study. I think I have relaxed enough for now.

אנשים טובים (good people)

"אנשים טובים יודעים את הדרך ואיתם אפשר לצעוד" (Good people know the way and it is possible to walk with them.)


Some aspects of my life in Be'er Sheva have become relatively routine. First, there are classes. My body automatically walks to the correct building for class every morning (Sunday through Thursday). Each morning I begin with an hour and half of Hebrew class. My teacher, Irit, is kind and very skilled. Each day Hannah or I give a presentation. She teaches us words related to the subject we present. Afterward, we learn some grammer and/or read a story. If there is time we might watch a movie or sing songs. On Sundays and Tuesdays I have two other classes in the afternoon. Israeli Society is taught by a religious, Jewish, politically conservative, middle-aged man. We talk about Israel from a sociological perspective. The class is mostly informal. The professor asks us a lot of questions and expresses a lot of opinions about the society here. I find the course to be interesting (it links very very well with my interest in social justice for Israel) but thus far it is very basic. Our professor spends a lot of time talking about simple concepts, for example demographics, as if we do not understand him. The class is just three people and the two other students both speak Hebrew better than me. If I can understand him and I am getting frustrated with his constant desire to explain everything excruciatingly slow, I cannot imagine how they feel. Fortunately, my second class is moving at a much quicker pace. We are studying film and media in Israel. I am learning fun words and phrases like "identity" and the "melting pot". After classes I usually have plenty of homework to do. I spend a significant amount of time doing exercises, reading, and writing in Hebrew. Outside of my studies I tend to relax by cooking and keeping in touch with friends and family via Skype. I have also gone to fitness classes (my favorite being Zumba) in the dorm I live in. I know all the important things like where to buy groceries, how to get to the market, and I can basically navigate the area surrounding the university. I am really happy that I am starting to feel more at home here.


There other aspects of my life that make this experience much more of an adventure than a routine. Last week I went on a bike trip with the Student Union here. This week I went on another trip with them to see an area with a lot of flowers and to watch the sun set. The bike trip was great exercise but it was very hilly and was, therefore, little scary. The walking trip was also scary but in a different way. There was a lot of forced mingling on the trip and it required me and my friends to interact with particularly flirtatious Israeli men. A group of them were very amused that I would not speak English to them and made a game out of trying to force me to speak to them. Otherwise they were very nice. They even helped me to climb a frightening ladder to reach the top of an old look out tower. After sunset we had dinner and a dance in a student village close to Be'er Sheva. It was nice to dance and spend time with Israelis but I was not fond of how touchy they were getting. One Israeli friend of mine actually asked me if we were okay or if we needed him to help us. We did not take him up on the offer but we did leave the party on the first bus back to campus. 


I went to another party this week called "beer and singing" (rough translation). From what I understand, it is a common type of party in Israel. I was invited by my Israeli friend (the same one mentioned above) that I made through a program connecting foreign students to Israelis. The party consisted of one hundred or so college students in the backyard of somebody's house in a residential area on a Tuesday night. A band, couches, and straw mats were set up outside. A white sheet was tied between a tree and the fence. They projected the lyrics to each song the band played unto the sheet. All the songs were old famous Israeli songs. In the back of the house, there was a cut-out counter where they served beer. All around people were smoking, drinking, talking, singing, and dancing. It was the most authentically Israeli party I have attended. At around midnight the band stopped playing and most people cleared out. We stayed a while and mingled. Meanwhile, somebody played acoustic guitar to small circle of people. On the way back to our dorm we picked up some pizza and talked some more. It was very possibly the most fun I have had in Be'er Sheva.

This Shabbat was also especially fun. I spent it at a student village named Ashalim in the Negev. The village is part of an organization called Ayalim.  Their mission is to populate the "periphery" with students. In the case of Israel the periphery is the area people do not currently live. For example, the Galilee, Negev, and Golan. It can be challenging to live in an unpopulated area where you need to build yourself and plan a village yourself. Students living there through Ayalim receive free transportation to their university, subsidized housing, and a scholarship for their studies. In return they volunteer and help build these villages. The students who choose to live there want to help realize Ben Gurion's dream of making the desert bloom. The idea of these villages is that these students may choose to continue to live in the periphery once they see that they can do it and once they meet other young people that want to do it with them. It was amazing to see what the students in Ashalim have built in nine years. I stayed in a house that they built a year ago. It was definitely not perfect but I cannot even begin to imagine how much pride the students feel living in place they designed. Although they have accomplished a lot, the students were humble. I was part of a group of foreign students and a couple of Israelis to join the village for services (they have a Rabbi), a potluck Shabbat dinner, a walk in the empty desert surrounding their village, and an open dialogue. It was both an informative and relaxing Shabbat. I was incredibly impressed by them and their hospitality. I have reservations about Zionist organizations settling in Israel because of the reality that Israel is not currently an exclusively Jewish state; however, I think that the people in Ashalim are actually quiet open-minded. It was also beautiful to see secular and religious people with very different ideologies living together and working together. Visiting Ashalim was for me a refreshing taste of what Israel, in my opinion, should and could be.

Today I was officially accepted as a volunteer for Beit Enosh. Beit Enosh is a place where people with mental illnesses can socialize and be rehabilitated. They are given the freedom to come and go as they please. In the morning and afternoon they can choose to join activities where they are taught skills to help them be functional and happy members of society. The people who work there are also available to help people organize outings. Their building in Be'er Sheva is just a couple minutes from my dorm. I will be volunteering there three hours a week. Today I went to have an orientation interview with the man who oversees the volunteers. I was was ecstatic when I learned that my duties will include assisting in a dance activity they do every week! 

I am excited to get started at Beit Enosh but I will not be beginning until after the Passover break. Emma and Rebekah, my friends who are currently studying in Haifa, are coming to Be'er Sheva on Tuesday. (We are reuniting the dream team after a month apart).  On Wednesday we are traveling, along with a friend I made here, to the Dead Sea, staying near Masada that night, and climbing Masada in the morning. We will return to Be'er Sheva on Thursday night. Friday night is Passover. We are still not 100 percent sure on our plan for the Seder but we have many options. On Sunday we are traveling, along with a friend of Emma, to Jerusalem for the day and then to the Galilee/Golan (using Tiberias as a jumping off point) until Thursday. Thursday morning we want to see the sun rise on the Kinnert and travel to the West to see it set on the Mediterranean Sea. I will spend Shabbat with Emma and Rebekah in Haifa and travel back to Be'er Sheva in time for my classes on Sunday.

As you can imagine, between classes, homework, volunteering, and trips, I am speaking a lot of Hebrew at this point. Everyday speaking Hebrew is less exhausting than the day before. There is still a lot for me to learn and it is difficult for me to see the improvement I have made. Though I can tell that I really am really learning when I am able to have complex and candid conversations with Israelis and when I can understand newspaper articles in Hebrew. Against my nature and my best efforts, I have had to become accustomed to making embarrassing mistakes. I have grown a thicker skin and now I am much more willing to sound like an idiot than ever before. I have had the fortune of meeting very kind and understanding people who do not judge me...too much. Every time somebody compliments my Hebrew, I feel a little bit better and regain a piece of my confidence back. It is a testament to the kindness of my new friends and acquaintances that I have done so many cool things this week and that I have been able to advance my Hebrew speaking skills.