Not happy with the army right now.
Why? Because I'm leaving on Sunday and I wanted to see someone before I left...and this Shabbat is a closed one, which means on base. Murgh.
I guess that's life in this country.
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
Wednesday, June 23, 2010
Political Post #1
This blog is generally not a political blog at all. I don't even have a label for politics. But...I live in Israel, and a large part of Israel and being Israeli is politics. The first part is a notice about the True Freedom Flotilla, set to sail to the UN tomorrow. The second part is a letter that was posted by Tamar Yonah, an English-speaking radio talk show host and blogger. I do not know if the letter is real or not, but it's a thought either way. I will put my comments and thoughts about these in a later post.
WHEN: Thursday, June 24, 11:30 a.m.
WHERE: The Queen of Hearts boat
Pier 40 (Houston Street and West Side Highway)
New York City
RSVP REQUIRED TO ACCESS MEETING
Marking the fourth anniversary ofGilad Shalit ’s kidnapping byHamas , the “True Freedom” Flotilla will sail from Pier 40 around the tip of Manhattan and the Statue of Liberty to theUnited Nations to remind the international body and the world of the real siege in Gaza and call for the release of Gilad Shalit . The Flotilla is organized by the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations.
The Flotilla will sail regardless of the weather forecast, as the boats are covered.
The media is invited to remain aboard the Queen of Hearts following the press conference. The Flotilla will depart from Pier 40 at 12:00 noon and will return around 2:00 p.m.
Gilad Shalit was kidnapped from within Israeli territory on June 25, 2006, as part of an unprovoked and well-planned attack byHamas terrorists. He remains held in total isolation with no access to the International Red Cross or other humanitarian bodies. Since his capture, Hamas has provided only two indications that Gilad is still alive – a recorded message of his voice released on June 25, 2007, and a video of him released on October 2, 2009.
PLEASENOTE : Security requires advance notice of all attendees to this meeting. To RSVP for the meeting, please contact the Conference of Presidents at rsvp@conferenceofpresidents.org or 212-318-6111.
Part I:
MEDIA ADVISORY
“TRUE FREEDOM FLOTILLA” TO SAIL TO UNITED NATIONS
UNPRECEDENTED DEMONSTRATION WILL REMIND INTERNATIONAL BODY OF FOURTH ANNIVERSARY OF GILAD SHALIT CAPTIVITY AND
CALL FOR HIS RELEASE
WHEN: Thursday, June 24, 11:30 a.m.
WHERE: The Queen of Hearts boat
Pier 40 (
New York City
RSVP REQUIRED TO ACCESS MEETING
Marking the fourth anniversary of
The Flotilla will sail regardless of the weather forecast, as the boats are covered.
The media is invited to remain aboard the Queen of Hearts following the press conference. The Flotilla will depart from Pier 40 at 12:00 noon and will return around 2:00 p.m.
Gilad Shalit was kidnapped from within Israeli territory on June 25, 2006, as part of an unprovoked and well-planned attack by
PLEASE
Part II:
*Hello Uncle Erwin,***
This is Amir writing you after reading what you sent to my father, Eitan.
As you know, it was my unit and my friends who were on the ship. My commander was injured badly as a result of the "pacifists" violence. I want to tell you how he was injured so you could tell the story. It shows just how horrible and inhuman were the activists. My commander was the first soldier that rappelled down from the helicopter to the ship.
When he touched ground, he got hit in the head with a pole and stabbed in the stomach with a knife.
This is Amir writing you after reading what you sent to my father, Eitan.
As you know, it was my unit and my friends who were on the ship. My commander was injured badly as a result of the "pacifists" violence. I want to tell you how he was injured so you could tell the story. It shows just how horrible and inhuman were the activists. My commander was the first soldier that rappelled down from the helicopter to the ship.
When he touched ground, he got hit in the head with a pole and stabbed in the stomach with a knife.
When he drew out his secondary weapon-a handgun (his primary weapon was a regular paintball gun: "Tippman 98 custom") he was shot in the leg. He managed to fire a single shot before he was tossed from the balcony by 4
Arab activists, to the lower deck (a 12 feet fall). He was then dragged by other activists to a room in the lower deck were he was stripped down by 2 activists. They took off his vest, helmet and shirt, leaving him
with only his pants and shoes on. When they finished they took a knife and expanded the wound he already had in his stomach. They cut his ab muscles horizontally and by hand spilled his guts out. When they finished they raised him up and walked him on the deck outside. He was conscious the whole time.
If you are asking yourself why they did all that, here comes the reason.
They wanted to show the soldiers their commander's body so they will be demoralized and scared. Luckily, when they walked him on the deck a soldier saw him and managed to shoot the activist that was walking him
down the outside corridor. He shot him with a special non-lethal bullet that didn't kill him. My commander managed to jump from the deck to the water and swim to an army rescue boat (his guts still out of his
body, and now in salty sea water). That was how he was saved. The activists that did this to him are alive, now in Turkey, and treated as heroes.
I'm sorry if I described this with too many details, but I thought it was necessary for the credibility. Please tell this story to anyone who will listen. I think that these days you are one of Israel's best spokesman.
*Thanks uncle Erwin, *
* *
*Shabbat Shalom!***
* *
*Amir***
Arab activists, to the lower deck (a 12 feet fall). He was then dragged by other activists to a room in the lower deck were he was stripped down by 2 activists. They took off his vest, helmet and shirt, leaving him
with only his pants and shoes on. When they finished they took a knife and expanded the wound he already had in his stomach. They cut his ab muscles horizontally and by hand spilled his guts out. When they finished they raised him up and walked him on the deck outside. He was conscious the whole time.
If you are asking yourself why they did all that, here comes the reason.
They wanted to show the soldiers their commander's body so they will be demoralized and scared. Luckily, when they walked him on the deck a soldier saw him and managed to shoot the activist that was walking him
down the outside corridor. He shot him with a special non-lethal bullet that didn't kill him. My commander managed to jump from the deck to the water and swim to an army rescue boat (his guts still out of his
body, and now in salty sea water). That was how he was saved. The activists that did this to him are alive, now in Turkey, and treated as heroes.
I'm sorry if I described this with too many details, but I thought it was necessary for the credibility. Please tell this story to anyone who will listen. I think that these days you are one of Israel's best spokesman.
*Thanks uncle Erwin, *
* *
*Shabbat Shalom!***
* *
*Amir***
Monday, June 21, 2010
NY, here I come! (soon)
I'm going back to NY for the summer.
It's weird-- I was so excited to come to Israel, every time I came before, and now when I'm going to NY, I'm just excited to see my family, I'm not excited to be back in NY (except that there are a lot of cheaper things there).
I'm confused.
It's weird-- I was so excited to come to Israel, every time I came before, and now when I'm going to NY, I'm just excited to see my family, I'm not excited to be back in NY (except that there are a lot of cheaper things there).
I'm confused.
Saturday, June 12, 2010
Yay progress!
It's been about a month since I last updated. Tons has happened since then...
-Deposited my first check, which was very exciting
-Miriam found an apartment and that she, Eden, and I are renting
-Ordered checks
-Got my teudat ma'avar
-Was in the MDA EMS Championship up North
-Finishing Ulpan
-Finding a job
-Summer in NY!
So, let's start:
Check: I deposited my first check in my bank account! It doesn't seem like that big a deal, but I did it in Hebrew. I walked into one of the bank branches and said to someone, "Hi. I know this sounds sort of silly, but can you help me deposit this check? I've never deposited a check before and don't know what to do." So she did. And she was very nice and helpful, and said, "There's a first time for everything." And so it was. I successfully deposited my first check. Go me.
Miriam found an apartment and that she, Eden, and I are renting: Miriam found an apartment for us. It's mostly unfurnished-- it has a fridge and stove, closets, and a couple of pieces of furniture, but mostly not. No beds or anything. So we are working on getting furniture. It's 3 bedrooms and a HUGE living room. The kitchen is also big, and there's another side room with the stove and a second sink and a place for the washing machine. There's also a mirpeset-- two of the rooms open to the mirpeset and the third does not. Two toilets and one bathtub/shower. A little more than I wanted to pay, but it's really not unreasonable for what we are renting. The Arnona and va'ad bayit are also more expensive, but that seems to be normal for that area. The landlords are also supposedly good landlords and good people. Our lease starts July 1.
Ordered checks: I ordered (and picked up) my checks. I have to go back to the bank, though, because it showed that it took 9 shekels out of my account when it wasn't supposed to because as an olah chadasha I get 3 checkbooks free. There's someone in the branch who speaks English and she's been wonderful; I'll go talk to her.
Got my teudat ma'avar: Went to Misrad Hapnim to fill out the form, gave in the pictures, and paid. Miriam went to pick it up from the post office (because it was sent registered mail) and they wouldn't let her because she didn't have my ID with her. Murgh. I SIGNED the form so she could pick it up...and they still wouldn't let her. So I went to the post office and got there at 5:57-- it closes at 6. Someone was there at 6:03 and they wouldn't let him in. I'm very glad I got there on time. So I now have a teudat ma'avar, which is like a temporary passport. You can't get an Israeli passport until you've been a citizen for a year, but you need to travel on an Israeli document when leaving Israel so you get a teudat ma'avar until you can get your real passport. So I have one now.
Was in the MDA EMS Championship up North: SO MUCH FUN! It was 3 days of challenges and working with new people and just...fun. The theme was "From Gilboa to Carmel," which were the two regions that won the last Championship (it's every 2 years); Carmel won again this year from MDA (BLS and ALS), and Spain (BLS) and Canada (ALS) won this year from the international teams. I was on the Irish team with a driver from Netanya.
Finishing Ulpan: Tomorrow is my last day of classes. We have to be out by the 15, but I'm teaching a course starting Monday, so I'm moving out Monday morning. I have almost everything moved out; Basi came on Thursday night and picked up some suitcases and stuff, I brought one home on Friday, and I have some other random things to pack up that I'm just going to have to bring to the course, and we still have quite a bit from the kitchen. And the stand dryer. Miriam is going to be taking stuff. I don't know how, but we will have to make it work-- we have to have things out and in some order. Alan came on Friday and took a bunch of stuff-- a suitcase of kitchen stuff, and the oven-- to his machsan.
Finding a job: Work in progress. There was somewhere that wanted me to come work, but it was mornings, and before I finished Ulpan and I wanted to finish Ulpan. I'm now looking for jobs, preferably in schools or gan or ma'on. Afternoons work too; I definitely wouldn't mind working in the afternoon. The system is very different here in that there are more part-time positions and very few full-time positions available. I don't really know how benefits work here-- full-time/part-time. Are they different? How? What am I entitled to as an employee, etc. Tips anybody?
Summer in NY!: I'm going back July 4-August 31. It's going to be interesting, because I'm still a citizen-- I'm not giving up my American citizenship, I don't want to-- but in a way I'll be a tourist. I don't live in NY anymore, and...I think that's going to be a shock when I first get there. Of course I remember how things look and all that, but it's...my parents' house feels like home. It feels funny to say that NY, though, is home. I'm not sure that it is anymore, at least it's not completely home.
-Deposited my first check, which was very exciting
-Miriam found an apartment and that she, Eden, and I are renting
-Ordered checks
-Got my teudat ma'avar
-Was in the MDA EMS Championship up North
-Finishing Ulpan
-Finding a job
-Summer in NY!
So, let's start:
Check: I deposited my first check in my bank account! It doesn't seem like that big a deal, but I did it in Hebrew. I walked into one of the bank branches and said to someone, "Hi. I know this sounds sort of silly, but can you help me deposit this check? I've never deposited a check before and don't know what to do." So she did. And she was very nice and helpful, and said, "There's a first time for everything." And so it was. I successfully deposited my first check. Go me.
Miriam found an apartment and that she, Eden, and I are renting: Miriam found an apartment for us. It's mostly unfurnished-- it has a fridge and stove, closets, and a couple of pieces of furniture, but mostly not. No beds or anything. So we are working on getting furniture. It's 3 bedrooms and a HUGE living room. The kitchen is also big, and there's another side room with the stove and a second sink and a place for the washing machine. There's also a mirpeset-- two of the rooms open to the mirpeset and the third does not. Two toilets and one bathtub/shower. A little more than I wanted to pay, but it's really not unreasonable for what we are renting. The Arnona and va'ad bayit are also more expensive, but that seems to be normal for that area. The landlords are also supposedly good landlords and good people. Our lease starts July 1.
Ordered checks: I ordered (and picked up) my checks. I have to go back to the bank, though, because it showed that it took 9 shekels out of my account when it wasn't supposed to because as an olah chadasha I get 3 checkbooks free. There's someone in the branch who speaks English and she's been wonderful; I'll go talk to her.
Got my teudat ma'avar: Went to Misrad Hapnim to fill out the form, gave in the pictures, and paid. Miriam went to pick it up from the post office (because it was sent registered mail) and they wouldn't let her because she didn't have my ID with her. Murgh. I SIGNED the form so she could pick it up...and they still wouldn't let her. So I went to the post office and got there at 5:57-- it closes at 6. Someone was there at 6:03 and they wouldn't let him in. I'm very glad I got there on time. So I now have a teudat ma'avar, which is like a temporary passport. You can't get an Israeli passport until you've been a citizen for a year, but you need to travel on an Israeli document when leaving Israel so you get a teudat ma'avar until you can get your real passport. So I have one now.
Was in the MDA EMS Championship up North: SO MUCH FUN! It was 3 days of challenges and working with new people and just...fun. The theme was "From Gilboa to Carmel," which were the two regions that won the last Championship (it's every 2 years); Carmel won again this year from MDA (BLS and ALS), and Spain (BLS) and Canada (ALS) won this year from the international teams. I was on the Irish team with a driver from Netanya.
Finishing Ulpan: Tomorrow is my last day of classes. We have to be out by the 15, but I'm teaching a course starting Monday, so I'm moving out Monday morning. I have almost everything moved out; Basi came on Thursday night and picked up some suitcases and stuff, I brought one home on Friday, and I have some other random things to pack up that I'm just going to have to bring to the course, and we still have quite a bit from the kitchen. And the stand dryer. Miriam is going to be taking stuff. I don't know how, but we will have to make it work-- we have to have things out and in some order. Alan came on Friday and took a bunch of stuff-- a suitcase of kitchen stuff, and the oven-- to his machsan.
Finding a job: Work in progress. There was somewhere that wanted me to come work, but it was mornings, and before I finished Ulpan and I wanted to finish Ulpan. I'm now looking for jobs, preferably in schools or gan or ma'on. Afternoons work too; I definitely wouldn't mind working in the afternoon. The system is very different here in that there are more part-time positions and very few full-time positions available. I don't really know how benefits work here-- full-time/part-time. Are they different? How? What am I entitled to as an employee, etc. Tips anybody?
Summer in NY!: I'm going back July 4-August 31. It's going to be interesting, because I'm still a citizen-- I'm not giving up my American citizenship, I don't want to-- but in a way I'll be a tourist. I don't live in NY anymore, and...I think that's going to be a shock when I first get there. Of course I remember how things look and all that, but it's...my parents' house feels like home. It feels funny to say that NY, though, is home. I'm not sure that it is anymore, at least it's not completely home.
Sunday, May 9, 2010
How do you know what's right?
How do you know what's right? I mean...now...I just...I'm questioning...
Did I do the right thing by making aliyah? I was so sure that this was right for me, that I wanted to be in Israel. And I am. I'm so sure that this is the right place for me and that I should be here.
But I’m also questioning if I shouldn’t have stayed in NY and shouldn’t have left some people.
Would staying there have just been safe? Coming to Israel was definitely a leap of faith on many levels and in a way there’s not a day that I don’t have some regret, or twinge of missing NY…home…something.
It’s so hard to be here. I love it and it's in a way easier to be here, I don't have to explain things. But it's so hard emotionally. You're missing things and people and you can't be there for your family and friends the way you were before and you want to and it just hurts.
You know there are other people who are going through this, and went through this, but somehow it's not your situation and it's just not the same.
I understand what Mom was saying about me being lonely. Mom, if you're reading this (not that I think you know it exists or know how to find it, but all the same)-- don't worry, I'm fine. I promise. I just miss the usual birthday routine.
Did I do the right thing by making aliyah? I was so sure that this was right for me, that I wanted to be in Israel. And I am. I'm so sure that this is the right place for me and that I should be here.
But I’m also questioning if I shouldn’t have stayed in NY and shouldn’t have left some people.
Would staying there have just been safe? Coming to Israel was definitely a leap of faith on many levels and in a way there’s not a day that I don’t have some regret, or twinge of missing NY…home…something.
It’s so hard to be here. I love it and it's in a way easier to be here, I don't have to explain things. But it's so hard emotionally. You're missing things and people and you can't be there for your family and friends the way you were before and you want to and it just hurts.
You know there are other people who are going through this, and went through this, but somehow it's not your situation and it's just not the same.
I understand what Mom was saying about me being lonely. Mom, if you're reading this (not that I think you know it exists or know how to find it, but all the same)-- don't worry, I'm fine. I promise. I just miss the usual birthday routine.
How do you know what's right?, part II
How do you know what's right? I mean...now...I just...I'm questioning...
Did I do the right thing by making aliyah? I was so sure that this was right for me, that I wanted to be in Israel. And I am. I'm so sure that this is the right place for me and that I should be here.
Did I do the right thing by making aliyah? I was so sure that this was right for me, that I wanted to be in Israel. And I am. I'm so sure that this is the right place for me and that I should be here.
How do you know what’s right? I mean…now…I just…I’m questioning…
Did I do the right thing by making aliyah? I was so sure that this was right for me, that I wanted to be in Israel
But I’m also questioning if I shouldn’t have stayed in NY and shouldn’t have left some people.
Would staying there have just been safe? Coming to Israel was definitely a leap of faith on many levels and in a way there’s not a day that I don’t have some regret, or twinge of missing NY…home…something.
It’s so hard to be here.
Saturday, May 8, 2010
Birthday thoughts
I haven't forgotten about Yom Hashoah, Yom Hazikaron, and Yom Haatzmaut. I will also have Yom Yehushalyim to add to that list very shortly. But put those on the side for now.
My last birthday in Israel was at a very different point in my life. I was still living at home with my parents and I was in Israel on vacation. Not, you know, for life. The night before I was staying at Hannah's apartment with Eden and we broke out the cookies at midnight-- Stella D'oro Swiss Fudge cookies. Yummy. I opened one card and left the rest for the morning. The next morning we went to out 88-hour/natan course and I had a surprise birthday party with the um...yeah, the most interesting birthday cake I had ever had.
This year is completely different. I'm in Israel, but I'm living here...as in, not on vacation. I'm living here. My family sent cards and I supposed I could put them (or at least the card from my parents) on the table for the morning, but that definitely loses something. Even though I knew that every year there was going to be a card waiting for me when I got downstairs, it was always nice and exciting.
I also don't really know what to do for my birthday party this year. I don't have an apartment that I can really have friends over in because I live in a merkaz klita [absorption center] that happens to be sof ha'olam s'molah [end of the world, take a left]. Bars are not my thing. I decided to either do light dinner (bagels, salads, etc.) in the park, or dinner at a restaurant. The thing with a restaurant is that you have to make reservations and really know how many people, etc. In the park (or in an apartment) you can get a couple of dozen bagels, spreads, drinks, and snacks and people can come in and out. I don't really care, it's about the people.
My last birthday in Israel was at a very different point in my life. I was still living at home with my parents and I was in Israel on vacation. Not, you know, for life. The night before I was staying at Hannah's apartment with Eden and we broke out the cookies at midnight-- Stella D'oro Swiss Fudge cookies. Yummy. I opened one card and left the rest for the morning. The next morning we went to out 88-hour/natan course and I had a surprise birthday party with the um...yeah, the most interesting birthday cake I had ever had.
This year is completely different. I'm in Israel, but I'm living here...as in, not on vacation. I'm living here. My family sent cards and I supposed I could put them (or at least the card from my parents) on the table for the morning, but that definitely loses something. Even though I knew that every year there was going to be a card waiting for me when I got downstairs, it was always nice and exciting.
I also don't really know what to do for my birthday party this year. I don't have an apartment that I can really have friends over in because I live in a merkaz klita [absorption center] that happens to be sof ha'olam s'molah [end of the world, take a left]. Bars are not my thing. I decided to either do light dinner (bagels, salads, etc.) in the park, or dinner at a restaurant. The thing with a restaurant is that you have to make reservations and really know how many people, etc. In the park (or in an apartment) you can get a couple of dozen bagels, spreads, drinks, and snacks and people can come in and out. I don't really care, it's about the people.
Thursday, April 29, 2010
I sort of forgot about this. I've started journaling again, in an actual handwritten journal, and this kind of fell by the wayside. Sorry. Let's try this again.
First of all-- pictures. My internet here kind of sucks, so once I get back to NY (more on that at a later point in time) I'll upload from my first 6 months as an olah.
So-- Pesach. This is what I wrote in my iGoogledisrael column:
This was my first Passover (Pesach) in Israel, and my first Pesach as an Israeli. One thing that separates Israel from the rest of the world is the number of days in the holiday. Outside of Israel there are 8 days to Passover, and in Israel there are 7—so there is one less holiday-day (called “chag”) than outside. As a new Israeli, the concept of having only one day of chag is a little weird, because it kind of feels like half of the holiday is missing. In a way it is, but it’s still odd to have only one day.
Another difference is that you have to check EVERYTHING for not only being kosher for Passover (Kasher l’Pesach, or abbreviated as “kashl“ap”), but also checking to see if it’s kosher for Passover for everyone, or only for those who eat Kitniyot (legumes and such, including rice, beans, and corn; Jews of Sefardi descent eat them, Jews of Ashkenai descent don’t). There is a lot in Israel that is kosher for Pesach that may contain kitniyot, including drinks, snacks, even yogurt. Outside of Israel, especially in North America where I am from, things will generally not be on the kosher for Passover shelves if they have kitniyot in them, or they will be in a separate area. Here they’re very mixed in and you have to check things very, very carefully.
As far as the products—in Israel there is a law that chametz (leaven) products cannot be displayed for public sale. In North American, if you’re not in a kosher grocery store, then there is usually a part of the store sectioned for Passover products. In Israel, they drape plastic tablecloths over the non-kosher l’pesach areas and put a sign on them that says “chametz.” And anything else is kosher for Passover, however you have to check it for kitniyot.
And since it’s a national holiday, many people are off or take off from work and participate in the Israeli pastime of hiking and camping. The North is just starting to bloom, and many people go camping on the Kinneret and in other areas of the Galil and Golan. Another popular spot is the Dead Sea. One other thing—the buses, at least the Jerusalem buses, alternate the route number and direction with “Chag kasher v’sameach”—“A kosher and happy holiday.”
Passover in Israel…nothing like it.
My Pesach went like this:
-Seder. One day of chag. BBQ for lunch...mmmm!
-Feel like I'm missing half of the chag, so I listen to my aunt and uncle having a seder in the background, sit with them to be social, and then watch Numbers on the computer.
-Plan on relaxing at home
-Nix that plan and go to the Kineret
-Go to Karmiel overnight to see a friend
-Go to Tzefat and spend a day-and-a-half there. Intense.
-Go back home for Shabbat
-Spend Sunday getting ready for more chag
-More chag. One day again. Again, feel like half the chag is missing.
-Undo Pesach
-Isru chag. Have off from Ulpan, go back to Jerusalem
And that was Pesach. It was weird having to check things so much for things being kosher l'pesach NOT l'ochlei kitniyot. Even the Nestle cocoa, which I got in NY and was kosher l'Pesach...not here! It's l'ochlei kitniyot! Tricky things!
Yom Hashoah, Yom Hazikaron, and Yom Ha'atzmaut to follow. As well as Lag Baomer, which is this upcoming Motza"sh.
First of all-- pictures. My internet here kind of sucks, so once I get back to NY (more on that at a later point in time) I'll upload from my first 6 months as an olah.
So-- Pesach. This is what I wrote in my iGoogledisrael column:
This was my first Passover (Pesach) in Israel, and my first Pesach as an Israeli. One thing that separates Israel from the rest of the world is the number of days in the holiday. Outside of Israel there are 8 days to Passover, and in Israel there are 7—so there is one less holiday-day (called “chag”) than outside. As a new Israeli, the concept of having only one day of chag is a little weird, because it kind of feels like half of the holiday is missing. In a way it is, but it’s still odd to have only one day.
Another difference is that you have to check EVERYTHING for not only being kosher for Passover (Kasher l’Pesach, or abbreviated as “kashl“ap”), but also checking to see if it’s kosher for Passover for everyone, or only for those who eat Kitniyot (legumes and such, including rice, beans, and corn; Jews of Sefardi descent eat them, Jews of Ashkenai descent don’t). There is a lot in Israel that is kosher for Pesach that may contain kitniyot, including drinks, snacks, even yogurt. Outside of Israel, especially in North America where I am from, things will generally not be on the kosher for Passover shelves if they have kitniyot in them, or they will be in a separate area. Here they’re very mixed in and you have to check things very, very carefully.
As far as the products—in Israel there is a law that chametz (leaven) products cannot be displayed for public sale. In North American, if you’re not in a kosher grocery store, then there is usually a part of the store sectioned for Passover products. In Israel, they drape plastic tablecloths over the non-kosher l’pesach areas and put a sign on them that says “chametz.” And anything else is kosher for Passover, however you have to check it for kitniyot.
And since it’s a national holiday, many people are off or take off from work and participate in the Israeli pastime of hiking and camping. The North is just starting to bloom, and many people go camping on the Kinneret and in other areas of the Galil and Golan. Another popular spot is the Dead Sea. One other thing—the buses, at least the Jerusalem buses, alternate the route number and direction with “Chag kasher v’sameach”—“A kosher and happy holiday.”
Passover in Israel…nothing like it.
My Pesach went like this:
-Seder. One day of chag. BBQ for lunch...mmmm!
-Feel like I'm missing half of the chag, so I listen to my aunt and uncle having a seder in the background, sit with them to be social, and then watch Numbers on the computer.
-Plan on relaxing at home
-Nix that plan and go to the Kineret
-Go to Karmiel overnight to see a friend
-Go to Tzefat and spend a day-and-a-half there. Intense.
-Go back home for Shabbat
-Spend Sunday getting ready for more chag
-More chag. One day again. Again, feel like half the chag is missing.
-Undo Pesach
-Isru chag. Have off from Ulpan, go back to Jerusalem
And that was Pesach. It was weird having to check things so much for things being kosher l'pesach NOT l'ochlei kitniyot. Even the Nestle cocoa, which I got in NY and was kosher l'Pesach...not here! It's l'ochlei kitniyot! Tricky things!
Yom Hashoah, Yom Hazikaron, and Yom Ha'atzmaut to follow. As well as Lag Baomer, which is this upcoming Motza"sh.
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
Missing home?
I miss my family and friends. Just one of those moments.
I would like my room and my bed that I've was sleeping in since we moved into the house. My pillows, my quilt, and my Booba. Or the bear one of my friends gave me that I slept with when I was in the dorm and my Booba was at home.
I want to sleep against the blue corduroy backrest pillow that Elissa swiped repeatedly.
I would like to go to sleep with my sister in the other bed in my room and talk as we both fall asleep and then remember to tell her that I love her and give her a kiss before we both pass out. Or go to sleep in her bed because mine is covered with stuff (read: clothes).
Not be able to fall asleep or want to read before I sleep so I pick up one of the books along the wall or next to my bed and know that I will always have something to read because the wall is lined with books.
To walk in to my room and see the collages on my walls, the pictures, the posters, the lyrics.
Looking into my mirror and seeing the photos stuck in the edges where the mirror and the wood framing meet and looking down at my dresser, full of photo frames and tchachkes that mean something.
My stereo. With a record player. It took me 3 years to find it.
Being able to call my parents and sisters and many friends without even thinking about it. And walking home phone calls with Sara...I miss those...
I'm home here, but I miss my home in NY.
I can't really figure out this "home" business...Israel is home in that it feels right here. I guess that's what home is, where it feels right. And it's ok for both Israel and NY to be home. But it feels weird to call NY home because it feels not right there, but it feels right to be in the house I grew up in, with everything familiar.
I would like my room and my bed that I've was sleeping in since we moved into the house. My pillows, my quilt, and my Booba. Or the bear one of my friends gave me that I slept with when I was in the dorm and my Booba was at home.
I want to sleep against the blue corduroy backrest pillow that Elissa swiped repeatedly.
I would like to go to sleep with my sister in the other bed in my room and talk as we both fall asleep and then remember to tell her that I love her and give her a kiss before we both pass out. Or go to sleep in her bed because mine is covered with stuff (read: clothes).
Not be able to fall asleep or want to read before I sleep so I pick up one of the books along the wall or next to my bed and know that I will always have something to read because the wall is lined with books.
To walk in to my room and see the collages on my walls, the pictures, the posters, the lyrics.
Looking into my mirror and seeing the photos stuck in the edges where the mirror and the wood framing meet and looking down at my dresser, full of photo frames and tchachkes that mean something.
My stereo. With a record player. It took me 3 years to find it.
Being able to call my parents and sisters and many friends without even thinking about it. And walking home phone calls with Sara...I miss those...
I'm home here, but I miss my home in NY.
I can't really figure out this "home" business...Israel is home in that it feels right here. I guess that's what home is, where it feels right. And it's ok for both Israel and NY to be home. But it feels weird to call NY home because it feels not right there, but it feels right to be in the house I grew up in, with everything familiar.
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
Reflections on One Seder
Somehow...it doesn't quite feel like Yom Tov with only one day of chag. I suppose that's normal-- but...it feels...missing something- wait, let's rephrase that so it's proper English and makes sense: it feels like something is missing. As much as the two-day yom tov was long, it feels like something is missing now. Like it's only half of a chag.
My aunt and uncle are doing a second seder; that's also weird, to have a second seder going on in the background while I'm sitting here tapping away on the computer.
Sunday, March 28, 2010
Pesach in the Holy Land
Subtitle: My first chag as an Israeli
Pesach is one of those holidays that is so darn family-centered. Growing up my parents, sisters, and I always went upstate with my father's parents, my aunt, uncle, and cousin (my dad's sister and her family), and my mom's parents (my mom is an only child). And there were 12 of us in the house, plus the dog-- Bubby and Zaidy (my dad's parents)'s room, my aunt and uncle's room, my family's room, and my Grandma and Grandpa (my mom's parents)'s room. The kids all slept in in their parent's rooms/in the couch when passed out from exhaustion at the seder.
We had our traditions-- the kids rotated setting the table/serving/cleaning up; 2 kids per seder and the rest of the meals were 1 child each. My mom brought the European kiddush cups for the seder, four of them in four different sizes. There were originally 3 in the set from my great-grandparents, and then a fourth one was added from a family friend. Only the largest two were big enough to actually have enough wine from, but we used them anyway. My Zaidy, my Grandpa, my dad, and my uncle each had a seder plate, and everyone had their own kiddush cup. My Zaidy's was red/maroon glass, my Grandpa's kiddush cup was green with a glass insert, my dad's was silver with his name, and my uncle's was silver also. My cousin had his own, too, also silver. My Bubby, Grandma, and aunt used glass ones, and my mom and sisters and I used the European cups and sometimes supplemented with other cups.
The way Pesach went in my house was a couple of weeks before Pesach, my parents would go upstate and bring stuff up, and then a few days before my Bubby and Zaidy would go up and supervise the cleaning lady. In our house in the city we would clean and get the house Pesachdik because my dad came back over chol hamoed to work. My Grandpa made the charoset in our house, with my little sister and I as taste testers; mostly wine, but he always made one container with grape juice.
We would all get upstate, and my Bubby and Zaidy would already be there, usually my aunt, uncle, and cousin as well, and my Bubby would be making chremzel (matzah meal pancakes) for us to eat. We would unload in between eating, saying hi, and petting the dog.
Once everything was in and we were ready to get ready for the seder, my Grandma would do the eggs, whoever was on duty for the seder would set the table with my Bubby, my Bubby would make the salad, my mom would be heating the food up, and my aunt would be doing the seder plates and whatnot. Everyone was doing something.
Then the guys came home from shul. Treasure would let us know. Eventually the guys would pick their matzahs, everyone would end up with a Haggadah (usually the same ones, although it always took 20 minutes to pick...), and we would start. Zaidy made kiddush, the Grandpa, then my dad, then my uncle, then BZ. For Karpas, my Bubby would make the salt water (with pepper too) and put it in two white bowls with the same cups every year. Once Yachatz happened, we (the kids) would tell our fathers/grandfathers that we would "keep" the afikomen safe and make sure it was in a safe place until the end of the seder. My BZ took his dad's, and us girls (my sisters and I) would split up between my dad, Zaidy, and Grandpa. Usually my dad gave it to my mom to hold and Lis got it; Andrea got Grandpa's because she sat next to him, and I got my Zaidy's. Once Andrea got married and went to Seder with Yoni's family, I took Grandpa's. And we would go through the seder, reading and talking. Ma Nishtana, Lis and BZ did. We used to do the multi-lingual thing, but then it got tiring. Of course there were the classic moments of, "And the rasha says, 'What kind of crap is this?'" and divrei Torah and comments interspersed in Maggid and in-between. Motzei everyone did on their own-- but until that happened... We got to shulchan orech-- no matter who was on duty, I served soup. My thing was soup. Is soup (as in, I know what everybody in my family wants and can tell you-- clear soup, veggies, no veggies, only certain veggies, noodles, kneidel, how much...it's kinda freaky/cool). Then came tzafun, aka negotiations. We used to negotiate individually, but eventually we all (all 4 of us cousins) negotiated together as a group, on one night for both sedarim. It was a game: we would hide the afikoman, we would say we won't give it back, my dad would threaten to eat another piece of matzah instead and not wait for the afikoman and we would talk to my Zaidy. Grandpa always agreed right away, or before my Grandma died he would "consult" with her. But it was just so much fun. As the seder went on, though, there would be different people "taking breaks" by falling asleep on the couch or going to their beds. At Hallel and Nirtzah, we would go around during Echad Mi Yodeah and Adir Hu, etc., taking turns reading. If I close my eyes-- actually, I don't have to, I can just picture it-- I can still hear almost hear my Grandma's voice, and I can still see and hear my Grandpa reading from the large print Haggadah in his English-Hungarian accent. I miss it. I miss them.
After Grandma died it wasn't the same-- close, but still felt her missing. And then Andrea got married and they were by us once, but after that went to the hotel. And last year Grandpa died so that was one less person at the table. And this year...well, this year, I wouldn't be there, my aunt and uncle came to Israel because BZ is here for the year, and so my Bubby and Zaidy and parent and Lis would have been the only ones. And that's depressing. So Bubby, Zaidy, my parents, and Lis went to the hotel and they're going to get to spend the Seder with Andrea and Yoni and Squishy-- one, at least. The other seder they're doing with Yoni's family.
I'm having a hard-ish time. Remember how my mom didn't want me to be lonely? I'm not lonely, but I do miss my family and friends back in NY. I think I feel it a little more acutely because of the break-up and not having that person like before, but it's also the first time I'm away from my family and missing the real traditions that we do every year and the...just the home and family. Sukkot isn't as much, because I went away for the last days anyway so it was kind of whatever. But Pesach-- we were all together. And there was always too much food and too many drinks and everyone getting on each other's nerves and being in and out and...this Pesach is going to be hard. Good, nice, different, but hard.
I also realized that I can't not live in Israel, but I definitely left someone I very well could have married. I'm having a bit of a down moment.
Wednesday, March 24, 2010
Two posts in one
First Post:
Yesterday I had to go from Beit Yehuda in Givat Massua to Rechaviya; I needed the 13. I could have taken the 12 the other way to meet the 13, but the person at the front desk said I could also catch the 13 at Malcha. I didn't remember that, but I figured, "Well, that's the direction I need." So I asked the bus driver where I catch the 13. He asked me, "Where are you going?" I told him, and he goes, "You should have taken the bus the other way." Well, I hadn't...so he told me what buses to switch to and someone else chimes in, and then the front part of the bus was debating which was the best way for me to get where I needed to go. Only in Israel.
Second Post:
Two years ago at this time I was back in NYC. March 25, 2008, was my return flight to NYC after spending about 9 weeks in Israel.
I did not want to be back, I did not want to be back. It was more like a vacation or short trip in between being in Israel.
And here I am now, March 25, 2010, getting ready for my first Pesach as an olah, as an Israeli, and planning my trip back to NY from Israel. This time when I book a round-trip ticket it will be from TLV to JFK/EWR and back to TLV.
It just keeps hitting me...I live here. I live here. I. LIVE. HERE. ISRAEL. This is freakin' awesome!
Yesterday I had to go from Beit Yehuda in Givat Massua to Rechaviya; I needed the 13. I could have taken the 12 the other way to meet the 13, but the person at the front desk said I could also catch the 13 at Malcha. I didn't remember that, but I figured, "Well, that's the direction I need." So I asked the bus driver where I catch the 13. He asked me, "Where are you going?" I told him, and he goes, "You should have taken the bus the other way." Well, I hadn't...so he told me what buses to switch to and someone else chimes in, and then the front part of the bus was debating which was the best way for me to get where I needed to go. Only in Israel.
Second Post:
Two years ago at this time I was back in NYC. March 25, 2008, was my return flight to NYC after spending about 9 weeks in Israel.
I did not want to be back, I did not want to be back. It was more like a vacation or short trip in between being in Israel.
And here I am now, March 25, 2010, getting ready for my first Pesach as an olah, as an Israeli, and planning my trip back to NY from Israel. This time when I book a round-trip ticket it will be from TLV to JFK/EWR and back to TLV.
It just keeps hitting me...I live here. I live here. I. LIVE. HERE. ISRAEL. This is freakin' awesome!
Friday, March 19, 2010
The weekend
In Israel, the workweek is a little different than in America.
In America, the workweek is Monday-Friday; typical business hours are 9-5. In Israel, the workweek is Sunday-Friday; typical business hours are anything from 8-6:30, with 2-3 hour breaks in the middle, and many places will open Sunday or Friday, be closed any day from Monday-Thursday, and often end their day at 12:30.
My week goes from Sunday-Thursday. I have classes from 8:30-12:45 Sunday-Thursday, and then Thursday-Saturday (Shabbat, here) I am free. Why is this nice? Why is this not nice?
I love having Friday free (not everybody has this, but many people do). I can get ready for Shabbat and not have to be pressured to do things in the 2 hours that I have once I get home from work. Or have to worry about having enough time to get to my destination before Shabbat.
Why is this not nice? Because when I want to do something on Motzei Shabbat, or when I take my Shabbat afternoon nap, I have to take into account that I have class at 8:30 am on Sunday morning. I miss my Sundays. But Fridays here are sort of like Sundays. Except that you have to be ready for Shabbat by the time sunset hits. Rather, 18 minutes before to light.
Another thing about Shabbat here- since pretty much everybody is Jewish, everybody wishes each other Shabbat shalom-- from the bus driver to the cashier in the supermarket to the garbage man to the taxi driver! Not everybody is Jewish, but most of the people that I am in contact with are, anyway. It's so nice.
שבת שלום לכולם! Or, Shabbat shalom everybody!
In America, the workweek is Monday-Friday; typical business hours are 9-5. In Israel, the workweek is Sunday-Friday; typical business hours are anything from 8-6:30, with 2-3 hour breaks in the middle, and many places will open Sunday or Friday, be closed any day from Monday-Thursday, and often end their day at 12:30.
My week goes from Sunday-Thursday. I have classes from 8:30-12:45 Sunday-Thursday, and then Thursday-Saturday (Shabbat, here) I am free. Why is this nice? Why is this not nice?
I love having Friday free (not everybody has this, but many people do). I can get ready for Shabbat and not have to be pressured to do things in the 2 hours that I have once I get home from work. Or have to worry about having enough time to get to my destination before Shabbat.
Why is this not nice? Because when I want to do something on Motzei Shabbat, or when I take my Shabbat afternoon nap, I have to take into account that I have class at 8:30 am on Sunday morning. I miss my Sundays. But Fridays here are sort of like Sundays. Except that you have to be ready for Shabbat by the time sunset hits. Rather, 18 minutes before to light.
Another thing about Shabbat here- since pretty much everybody is Jewish, everybody wishes each other Shabbat shalom-- from the bus driver to the cashier in the supermarket to the garbage man to the taxi driver! Not everybody is Jewish, but most of the people that I am in contact with are, anyway. It's so nice.
שבת שלום לכולם! Or, Shabbat shalom everybody!
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
My head is clear now / I know I'm right / I will not fear now / I will not fight -"Reach," Caren Tackett
I am no longer dating the person I was for the past 2 months. So why is this going in my aliyah blog- what does this have to do with my aliyah process?
Well, for starters, we have a lot of mutual friends-- many of whom form a strong social network and support for me. We started dating about a week and a half after I got here. Which is interesting timing because I had just gotten here, and it's not like there was anything going on before I got to Israel.
He is also an oleh, although he's been here longer than I have. We were looking for different things in the relationship. So it ended.
And so went my first relationship in Israel. And now I am single again. But not to worry-- it's Israel! Everyone wants to set anyone single up!
Well, for starters, we have a lot of mutual friends-- many of whom form a strong social network and support for me. We started dating about a week and a half after I got here. Which is interesting timing because I had just gotten here, and it's not like there was anything going on before I got to Israel.
He is also an oleh, although he's been here longer than I have. We were looking for different things in the relationship. So it ended.
And so went my first relationship in Israel. And now I am single again. But not to worry-- it's Israel! Everyone wants to set anyone single up!
Friday, March 5, 2010
Purim x2
There's Purim and there's Shushan Purim. Shushan Purim is celebrated in walled cities, such as Jerusalem. And it's celebrated indeed!
I decided I was going to celebrate regular Purim. This year was a little more complicated because Purim fell out on a Motzei Shabbat, which meant that I would have to be outside of Jerusalem on Motza"sh to hear Megillah, and since Megillah is read before havdalah, I would have to be whereever I was going to be for Purim, for Shabbat.
Purim:
I went home (Chashmonaim) (as a side note, I was home for the past month of Shabbatot. That is so rare; the last time I was home for a month was the month before I made aliyah) for Shabbat. And heard Megillah in Chashmonaim. Then I went to Yosef's because he was having a party at his house. I borrowed a sari/saree from Shana and even though Madoor (an Indian guy from Ulpan) showed me how to tie it and he helped me pin it where it was supposed to, it took me about 20-30 minutes to wrap; man, those things are complicated. When you don't know what you're doing. On Sunday morning I heard Megillah in Raanana and I was supposed to go back to Chashmonaim for seudah...which I thought was at 3...and turned out to be at 1:30. I found this out at about 11:30... I quickly packed up my stuff and Yosef took me to the bus. I waited for the bus. And waited. And then one of the buses drove by, stopped about 3 feet from the curb and said that the buses aren't stopping at that stop, but only certain stops including Aluf Sade. Ok, fine, take a bus to Aluf Sade. And again, wait. And wait. And it's now 1 pm. There was no way I was making it to seudah because of all the traffic. Back-up plan: Call Eli and Avi and see if I can come to them for seudah. And they said yes! Yay! ...Ok, go back on the bus to Bar Ilan and follow the directions to the supermarket, pick up stuff, and go to Eli and Avi's. Oh, yeah, and in the rain. Yay! (I'm not sure if that was sarcastic or not; you decide).
Seudah was really nice. Really nice. It was a bunch of people from Bar Ilan, most of whom I'd already met. I wore my sari, but it kept getting the way, like every time I bent down. I have to learn how to work it. I did figure out a way to tie it up, but it didn't look so good. Whatever; I'll practice more.
After 6 pm the buses were running normally, so around 7:30-8 I left Eli and Avi's and went to the bus and got home. :)
Shushan Purim:
Monday morning I went into Jerusalem (I stayed in Chashmonaim overnight so I didn't have to worry about hearing Megillah in the morning, because outside of walled cities it wasn't Purim anymore) and went to the Sadehs for seudah. It was the first time I met Yaffa and the rest of the kids (well, the rest of the boys anyway; the one girl wasn't there) and it was a lot of fun. The seudah was long and crazy and there was tons and tons of food.
Aside from the seudah, Jerusalem itself was nuts. There were firecrackers and fireworks being set off everywhere you turned-- pretty, but I'm pretty sure that there were lots of burns and other injuries, seeing as it was mostly kids who were doing them. For a shock, there were lots of drunk people...gee...
The best part, though, was the buses. The buses normally have the route number and the direction written on them-- for Purim it alternated between the route number/direction and the route number/פורים שמח ("Purim sameach"-- Happy Purim") and the music on the buses was Purim music. I love it...can't wait for Pesach!
That's one of the amazing things about being here, about living in Israel. It's MY country, MY holidays, and MY people. I mean, people gave bus drivers mishloach manot (aka shalach manos, aka packages of food that you give out on Purim)-- think about this! Do people give the bus drivers in New York candy canes on Christmas? Or candy bars on Halloween? I love it.
I decided I was going to celebrate regular Purim. This year was a little more complicated because Purim fell out on a Motzei Shabbat, which meant that I would have to be outside of Jerusalem on Motza"sh to hear Megillah, and since Megillah is read before havdalah, I would have to be whereever I was going to be for Purim, for Shabbat.
Purim:
I went home (Chashmonaim) (as a side note, I was home for the past month of Shabbatot. That is so rare; the last time I was home for a month was the month before I made aliyah) for Shabbat. And heard Megillah in Chashmonaim. Then I went to Yosef's because he was having a party at his house. I borrowed a sari/saree from Shana and even though Madoor (an Indian guy from Ulpan) showed me how to tie it and he helped me pin it where it was supposed to, it took me about 20-30 minutes to wrap; man, those things are complicated. When you don't know what you're doing. On Sunday morning I heard Megillah in Raanana and I was supposed to go back to Chashmonaim for seudah...which I thought was at 3...and turned out to be at 1:30. I found this out at about 11:30... I quickly packed up my stuff and Yosef took me to the bus. I waited for the bus. And waited. And then one of the buses drove by, stopped about 3 feet from the curb and said that the buses aren't stopping at that stop, but only certain stops including Aluf Sade. Ok, fine, take a bus to Aluf Sade. And again, wait. And wait. And it's now 1 pm. There was no way I was making it to seudah because of all the traffic. Back-up plan: Call Eli and Avi and see if I can come to them for seudah. And they said yes! Yay! ...Ok, go back on the bus to Bar Ilan and follow the directions to the supermarket, pick up stuff, and go to Eli and Avi's. Oh, yeah, and in the rain. Yay! (I'm not sure if that was sarcastic or not; you decide).
Seudah was really nice. Really nice. It was a bunch of people from Bar Ilan, most of whom I'd already met. I wore my sari, but it kept getting the way, like every time I bent down. I have to learn how to work it. I did figure out a way to tie it up, but it didn't look so good. Whatever; I'll practice more.
After 6 pm the buses were running normally, so around 7:30-8 I left Eli and Avi's and went to the bus and got home. :)
Shushan Purim:
Monday morning I went into Jerusalem (I stayed in Chashmonaim overnight so I didn't have to worry about hearing Megillah in the morning, because outside of walled cities it wasn't Purim anymore) and went to the Sadehs for seudah. It was the first time I met Yaffa and the rest of the kids (well, the rest of the boys anyway; the one girl wasn't there) and it was a lot of fun. The seudah was long and crazy and there was tons and tons of food.
Aside from the seudah, Jerusalem itself was nuts. There were firecrackers and fireworks being set off everywhere you turned-- pretty, but I'm pretty sure that there were lots of burns and other injuries, seeing as it was mostly kids who were doing them. For a shock, there were lots of drunk people...gee...
The best part, though, was the buses. The buses normally have the route number and the direction written on them-- for Purim it alternated between the route number/direction and the route number/פורים שמח ("Purim sameach"-- Happy Purim") and the music on the buses was Purim music. I love it...can't wait for Pesach!
That's one of the amazing things about being here, about living in Israel. It's MY country, MY holidays, and MY people. I mean, people gave bus drivers mishloach manot (aka shalach manos, aka packages of food that you give out on Purim)-- think about this! Do people give the bus drivers in New York candy canes on Christmas? Or candy bars on Halloween? I love it.
Sunday, February 28, 2010
Sorry...
I've been a bit slow in writing lately...sorry.
It's been the usual crazy here. Life.
I just finished teaching a MDA Chul course and the rest of the week has been exhausting. Actually, the past 3 weeks...I'm not sure where they went.
Let's see...bit things that have happened in the past 3 weeks...
I'm more comfortable shopping in Hebrew.
I still haven't gotten my kupat cholim card. However, I have used the kupah's services (see previous posts), and most recently for a toe that got infected. Fun-fun...I know you're all dying to hear about it, but I'll spare you the details.
Ulpan is going. It's a little hard, because I already speak it and it's hard to get the grammar and dissect it once you already use it. And since I learned to speak the language with Israelis who don't exactly always use proper grammar...So I'm working hard.
What else? Not much else going on. I have to remember to apply for a teudat ma'avar at the end of March. I have to also find out what's going on with some things for the summer in NYC. And that's about it.
I'll update on Purim after they both happen.
It's been the usual crazy here. Life.
I just finished teaching a MDA Chul course and the rest of the week has been exhausting. Actually, the past 3 weeks...I'm not sure where they went.
Let's see...bit things that have happened in the past 3 weeks...
I'm more comfortable shopping in Hebrew.
I still haven't gotten my kupat cholim card. However, I have used the kupah's services (see previous posts), and most recently for a toe that got infected. Fun-fun...I know you're all dying to hear about it, but I'll spare you the details.
Ulpan is going. It's a little hard, because I already speak it and it's hard to get the grammar and dissect it once you already use it. And since I learned to speak the language with Israelis who don't exactly always use proper grammar...So I'm working hard.
What else? Not much else going on. I have to remember to apply for a teudat ma'avar at the end of March. I have to also find out what's going on with some things for the summer in NYC. And that's about it.
I'll update on Purim after they both happen.
Friday, February 5, 2010
עשיתי שופינג...עוד פעם
But this time I went on my own to Rami Levi. I think I like Shufersol (spelled like Supersol, pronounced differently. Or the same, depending on who you ask) better. But there's different ones: Shufersol Deal, Big, and Sheli. Sheli is more expensive than the others, but I usually go to Deal or Big. I like it so much better than Rami Levi-- Rami Levi is supposed to be the cheapest supermarket, but I really like Shufersal better.
I've been here just over a month, and it's been hitting me at random times-- I live here. I LIVE here. I live in Israel, it's my home, my heritage, and I live here.
It rains-- I say, "Baruch Hashem." Because we need the rain. Here I can't bring myself to say that the weather sucks when it's rainy and miserable out...because we need the rain.
Back to being in Israel for a month:
I do and I don't feel like an olah chadasha. I definitely do when it comes to doing things online, like banking and my cell phone. And learning to do banking here-- completely different. I have only a checking account, but there is a minimum that they charge every month here-- they call it, "d'mei hanhala"-- like an account fee. My bank is, I think, 13.5 shekels per month, but because I'm an olah chadasha I have half-fees for the entire first year. Also, the banks here charge for EVERYTHING. You don't get statements in the mail, but you can print them out at the ATM at the bank (3.5 shekels). If you withdraw or deposit money it's 1.6 shekels (including hora'at keva payments (hora'at keva is when you give your bank account info to a company such as your kupat cholim or your cell phone company and they take out the money directly every time you owe them. It's like scheduled payments). If you go to a teller, it's 6.3 shekels. (I think the numbers are correct; I'm not totally sure, but it's something around those numbers.) And you can only do many things at your branch-- meaning the one where you opened your account. If you need an ATM card, if you want to order checks, if you need to do anything with phone/internet banking, if you have to update your information...pretty much the only thing you can do at any branch is take out/deposit money. So b'kitzur, banks here are annoying. Keep your American bank accounts also-- they earn much more interest, especially the internet banks.
What else? Aha, yes, the health care system. I have been using that one. I was sick last week-- at first I was just congested, and then my decongestant and ibuprofen weren't working and that was bad. So I went to the main branch of my kupat cholim and the doctor looked at me and gave me a prescription for an antibiotic and decongestant. And the next day I had a fever and was dizzy and nauseous and felt like a truck ran over me (minus the broken bones and internal injuries part) so I went back to the clinic and this time the doctor actually examined me-- listened to my lungs, checked my temperature, did blood work, etc. I ended up getting a liter with pramine. I'm doing much better now. And just to discuss how much everyone in Israel really does say, "Come for Shabbat"-- right before I left, the nurse who was doing my IV says, "Here is my phone number, my wife's name is _____, we live in _____, call her and you'll come for Shabbat." Absolutely only in Israel.
Anyway, it's almost Shabbat here. More later!
I've been here just over a month, and it's been hitting me at random times-- I live here. I LIVE here. I live in Israel, it's my home, my heritage, and I live here.
It rains-- I say, "Baruch Hashem." Because we need the rain. Here I can't bring myself to say that the weather sucks when it's rainy and miserable out...because we need the rain.
Back to being in Israel for a month:
I do and I don't feel like an olah chadasha. I definitely do when it comes to doing things online, like banking and my cell phone. And learning to do banking here-- completely different. I have only a checking account, but there is a minimum that they charge every month here-- they call it, "d'mei hanhala"-- like an account fee. My bank is, I think, 13.5 shekels per month, but because I'm an olah chadasha I have half-fees for the entire first year. Also, the banks here charge for EVERYTHING. You don't get statements in the mail, but you can print them out at the ATM at the bank (3.5 shekels). If you withdraw or deposit money it's 1.6 shekels (including hora'at keva payments (hora'at keva is when you give your bank account info to a company such as your kupat cholim or your cell phone company and they take out the money directly every time you owe them. It's like scheduled payments). If you go to a teller, it's 6.3 shekels. (I think the numbers are correct; I'm not totally sure, but it's something around those numbers.) And you can only do many things at your branch-- meaning the one where you opened your account. If you need an ATM card, if you want to order checks, if you need to do anything with phone/internet banking, if you have to update your information...pretty much the only thing you can do at any branch is take out/deposit money. So b'kitzur, banks here are annoying. Keep your American bank accounts also-- they earn much more interest, especially the internet banks.
What else? Aha, yes, the health care system. I have been using that one. I was sick last week-- at first I was just congested, and then my decongestant and ibuprofen weren't working and that was bad. So I went to the main branch of my kupat cholim and the doctor looked at me and gave me a prescription for an antibiotic and decongestant. And the next day I had a fever and was dizzy and nauseous and felt like a truck ran over me (minus the broken bones and internal injuries part) so I went back to the clinic and this time the doctor actually examined me-- listened to my lungs, checked my temperature, did blood work, etc. I ended up getting a liter with pramine. I'm doing much better now. And just to discuss how much everyone in Israel really does say, "Come for Shabbat"-- right before I left, the nurse who was doing my IV says, "Here is my phone number, my wife's name is _____, we live in _____, call her and you'll come for Shabbat." Absolutely only in Israel.
Anyway, it's almost Shabbat here. More later!
Sunday, January 31, 2010
עשיתי שופינג...
Transliteration: "ahseetee shopping"
Translation: "I did shopping"
There is an actual word for shopping- k'niyot. But why not just say shopping? Sure!
I did shopping. It was an adventure. Micha and I went shopping-- actually Kaufy took us to Mega and helped us do our shopping. We ended up with a bill of about 500 shekels-- but that was for 2 of us.
Anyway, it's weird shopping where you don't know the layout of the supermarket or what's a good price or what's normal. And things are in Hebrew and kilos and grams and milliliters and liters...but I did it!
And next time I'll have a better idea of what I need, etc.
I'm sorry for the lack of postings lately. I've been busy settling in and then I was sick last week (more on that next time) and tomorrow and Tuesday are also crazy...tomorrow I have to go to the bank and pay for Ulpan and deal with health insurance issues and go shopping. And Tuesday I have meetings and probably more health insurance issues or going up to Chashmonaim or something...
Translation: "I did shopping"
There is an actual word for shopping- k'niyot. But why not just say shopping? Sure!
I did shopping. It was an adventure. Micha and I went shopping-- actually Kaufy took us to Mega and helped us do our shopping. We ended up with a bill of about 500 shekels-- but that was for 2 of us.
Anyway, it's weird shopping where you don't know the layout of the supermarket or what's a good price or what's normal. And things are in Hebrew and kilos and grams and milliliters and liters...but I did it!
And next time I'll have a better idea of what I need, etc.
I'm sorry for the lack of postings lately. I've been busy settling in and then I was sick last week (more on that next time) and tomorrow and Tuesday are also crazy...tomorrow I have to go to the bank and pay for Ulpan and deal with health insurance issues and go shopping. And Tuesday I have meetings and probably more health insurance issues or going up to Chashmonaim or something...
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Sunday, January 24, 2010
אההההה....איך אומרים...
Ulpan began last week. I'm in kitah daled (ulpan goes in alphabetical levels alef-vav, vav being the highest level) in my ulpan. I'm in Ulpan Etzion in Jerusalem. What's unique about this ulpan is that there is the option to be an internal student (live in the absorption center) or an external student (live outside the ulpan). I'm an internal student-- aside from it being MUCH less expensive, it's nice because I get to get the full experience and not have to worry about when the last bus is to get back to my apt.
I'm still waiting for one roommate to arrive, but Eden and I have set up a LOT of stuff already, which will be good when Miriam (our third roommate) arrives.
Back to classes-- more about the accommodations later. I'm in kitah daled-- the ulpan only goes up to daled. They were trying to have a higher class, but in the end I don't know if they didn't have enough people or if they didn't have a teacher, but daled is as high up as it goes (but the level that's being taught is actually higher than daled). We are doing grammar and "reality"-- reading articles, listening to the news headlines, etc. It's a work in progress. There are about 15 people in my class, give or take, but the classroom is small so it's kind of tight space-wise. There are levels/classes alef 1-4, bet 1-3, gimel, and daled. Gimel is really big-- something like 30 people, I think. Most of the classes have 2 teachers; my class has 2- Mira on Sunday, Monday, and Wednesday; Esther on Tuesday and Thursday (like many other places in Israel, Ulpan Etzion is on a Sunday-Thursday schedule). I already have a test on Wednesday-- grammar (masculine/feminine plural nouns and adjectives). I actually remember this from about 6th grade- maybe 7th or 8th, but definitely Mrs. Eshed's class. I had a green/blue 5-subject notebook and I remember the list of words that look like they are masculine but are really feminine (it's a difference in conjugation). Brings back memories... One of the things the teachers are really concentrating on is higher-level vocabulary and proper, higher-level grammar and language use, beyond what's spoken on the street. I will update you as classes go on. But so far I like my classmates and my teachers.
Ulpan Etzion is housed in Beit Canada, which is a merkaz klita, or absorption center, in Jerusalem. There are other programs housed here as well, but I don't really know much about them. Beit Canada is pretty much the edge of Jerusalem, but there are 2 bus lines (one that goes downtown) that come every 20-ish minutes.
Although the previous location of Ulpan Etzion was sooooooo much better and central to, well, everything, one advantage of Beit Canada over the old location is that the rooms are real apartments with proper kitchens-ish. The kitchens come with a fridge and 2 gas burners, and of course a sink. Eden and I bought a kumkum (electric tea kettle like thing), a toaster, an iron, and Rita and Dov lent us their old toaster oven, which is really quite large. It's really a mini oven-- and it works nicely; I already baked cookies in it :) The way the apartment itself is set up is: you walk in and immediately to your right are 2 closets and to your left is a table; in front of you there is a bathroom and the kitchen (yeah, they're right next to each other...I know...). If you make a left and walk just past the table you walk into a small bedroom which is Eden's. If you walk just past the table and make a right you walk into a large room (separated from the eating area by a doorway-- I need to get a curtain for it) with 2 beds, 2 desks, and 2 shelves (1 double, 1 single) which is my and Miriam's room. The bathroom is pretty standard-- toilet, sink with a mirror above it, shower (not a shoilet) with a folding rack that we haven't figured how to fold back up so it just stays down... The kitchen is really small; it has a fridge, small counter with 2 drawers (dairy silverware drawer, pareve silverware drawer) and 1 cabinet (medium, no shelves, dairy dishes) beneath it (we usually put the dishes to dry on this counter), a sink with cabinets above (1 small, 1 large, 2 shelves each, that we use for food) and beneath it (1 very large but no shelves-- just an open area; we put cleaning supplies and bags under here), and then another counter that we put the oven on and the burners are on with a large cabinet with 2 shelves under (meat silverware/dishes, and pareve dishes). We put the kumkum on this counter too. The toaster, which we haven't used yet, sits on top of the fridge with the aluminum foil, saran/cling/plastic wrap, cereals, paper towel roll, and containers (we got a set of containers in 3 sizes for storage). Not that we really need to cook because we get lunch and dinner every day; we are responsible for breakfast, but that's not too intense. I did make myself a grilled cheese sandwich in the oven yesterday, though.
What else? Well, the heating doesn't really work...we have 1 small radiator in the eating area that works but the big heater in the big room doesn't work and it's a bit chilly.
I think that's about it. So far so good.
More about shopping adventures next time!
I'm still waiting for one roommate to arrive, but Eden and I have set up a LOT of stuff already, which will be good when Miriam (our third roommate) arrives.
Back to classes-- more about the accommodations later. I'm in kitah daled-- the ulpan only goes up to daled. They were trying to have a higher class, but in the end I don't know if they didn't have enough people or if they didn't have a teacher, but daled is as high up as it goes (but the level that's being taught is actually higher than daled). We are doing grammar and "reality"-- reading articles, listening to the news headlines, etc. It's a work in progress. There are about 15 people in my class, give or take, but the classroom is small so it's kind of tight space-wise. There are levels/classes alef 1-4, bet 1-3, gimel, and daled. Gimel is really big-- something like 30 people, I think. Most of the classes have 2 teachers; my class has 2- Mira on Sunday, Monday, and Wednesday; Esther on Tuesday and Thursday (like many other places in Israel, Ulpan Etzion is on a Sunday-Thursday schedule). I already have a test on Wednesday-- grammar (masculine/feminine plural nouns and adjectives). I actually remember this from about 6th grade- maybe 7th or 8th, but definitely Mrs. Eshed's class. I had a green/blue 5-subject notebook and I remember the list of words that look like they are masculine but are really feminine (it's a difference in conjugation). Brings back memories... One of the things the teachers are really concentrating on is higher-level vocabulary and proper, higher-level grammar and language use, beyond what's spoken on the street. I will update you as classes go on. But so far I like my classmates and my teachers.
Ulpan Etzion is housed in Beit Canada, which is a merkaz klita, or absorption center, in Jerusalem. There are other programs housed here as well, but I don't really know much about them. Beit Canada is pretty much the edge of Jerusalem, but there are 2 bus lines (one that goes downtown) that come every 20-ish minutes.
Although the previous location of Ulpan Etzion was sooooooo much better and central to, well, everything, one advantage of Beit Canada over the old location is that the rooms are real apartments with proper kitchens-ish. The kitchens come with a fridge and 2 gas burners, and of course a sink. Eden and I bought a kumkum (electric tea kettle like thing), a toaster, an iron, and Rita and Dov lent us their old toaster oven, which is really quite large. It's really a mini oven-- and it works nicely; I already baked cookies in it :) The way the apartment itself is set up is: you walk in and immediately to your right are 2 closets and to your left is a table; in front of you there is a bathroom and the kitchen (yeah, they're right next to each other...I know...). If you make a left and walk just past the table you walk into a small bedroom which is Eden's. If you walk just past the table and make a right you walk into a large room (separated from the eating area by a doorway-- I need to get a curtain for it) with 2 beds, 2 desks, and 2 shelves (1 double, 1 single) which is my and Miriam's room. The bathroom is pretty standard-- toilet, sink with a mirror above it, shower (not a shoilet) with a folding rack that we haven't figured how to fold back up so it just stays down... The kitchen is really small; it has a fridge, small counter with 2 drawers (dairy silverware drawer, pareve silverware drawer) and 1 cabinet (medium, no shelves, dairy dishes) beneath it (we usually put the dishes to dry on this counter), a sink with cabinets above (1 small, 1 large, 2 shelves each, that we use for food) and beneath it (1 very large but no shelves-- just an open area; we put cleaning supplies and bags under here), and then another counter that we put the oven on and the burners are on with a large cabinet with 2 shelves under (meat silverware/dishes, and pareve dishes). We put the kumkum on this counter too. The toaster, which we haven't used yet, sits on top of the fridge with the aluminum foil, saran/cling/plastic wrap, cereals, paper towel roll, and containers (we got a set of containers in 3 sizes for storage). Not that we really need to cook because we get lunch and dinner every day; we are responsible for breakfast, but that's not too intense. I did make myself a grilled cheese sandwich in the oven yesterday, though.
What else? Well, the heating doesn't really work...we have 1 small radiator in the eating area that works but the big heater in the big room doesn't work and it's a bit chilly.
I think that's about it. So far so good.
More about shopping adventures next time!
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