The Fork

Negev Tiyulim

2012-02-04T03:59:00.000-08:00

Arad allows you to experience all different parts of Israel.

The first thing the desert offers is a connection with nature. To begin this connection we went to Ein Ged, a nature reserve, with the cleanest water! Since Ein Gedi is near the Dead Sea, it is close to the lowest point on earth and therefore it is actually sunny outside even in the winter. The sights from above were beautiful. We hiked up to a waterfall and got to go swimming (with our clothes on of course!). And then lucky for us, our clothes were able to dry in the sun! Well, not perfectly of course, because it was so summer sun, but the day was not yet over. Next, we went to the Ein Gedi kibbutz. It is a cozy little place, with a view of the dead sea, and some lovely botanical gardens. I could have spent some more time there.

Next was time for some culture. The Bedouin community is very big in the Negev and we got the opportunity to experience some true Bedouin culture. This time, it was not touristy, we were really going to see the true Bedouin lifestyle. We went to a Bedouin market, with fresh fruit, colorful bedouin bags to put on a donkey, clothes, and more. We were told to avoid any man smoking in a car with a x on him, as they were gold dealers and that is some messy business. Then, across the street, there was an animal market. There were donkeys, chickens, roosters, etc., that were not being sold for meat but rather their byproducts, like eggs. While they were not being sold for their meat, they were still not being treated humanely. There feathers were cut off, and there were strings attached to them, so that they wouldn't be able to fly away. Then we were able to meet a woman who went against her family and decided to go to school for cosmetics. She studied in America and then when she came back to Israel, her family wanted her to get married. When she rejected this, she was forced to stay in her home for months before she got the courage to leave and start her own cosmetic business. The cosmetics were actually really great. The lotions actually helped my dried skin and there were great face washes. She was very successful!

And then for a closer look into the conflict surrounding the Negev, we visited Sderot, En bokek. Sderot is near Gaza and during the Second Intifada there were rockets being shot into Gaza multiple times a day. The people in Sderot have 15 seconds to get to a bomb shelter when the hear: code red. There are multiple bomb shelters along each rode, 15 seconds away from each other. There is one road that is called the more unsafe road in Sderot, because there are only two bomb shelters. We went to a park, and there were no kids in the park, a park made out of bomb shelters (caterpillars, and princess castles), because they were too afraid to be outside even now in 2012, years after the Intifada. Recently, there is about one rocket ever two weeks in Sderot. Some kids are afraid to leave their houses alone, to go to the bathroom alone, etc. So the question arises, why do they continue to live there. There are multiple reasons for their decisions to stay in Sderot. One being that they believe the fighting will follow them wherever they go. Also, they don't make enough money to go live in either Tel Aviv or Jerusalem. The amount of money they make isn't enough to even buy an apartment in Tel Aviv much less raise a family. So they stay, and they make the best of the situation and find all the miracles. Like one time, when two mother were walking their babies in strollers, and the rocket landed in-between them, and didn't go off, and no one was hurt. Or another time, when a father picked up his daughter from the bathtub minutes before a rocket landed right in his tub. And we were able to stand 6 minutes from the Gaza border.

Another community that live in the Negev are the Black Hebrews. They keep an all vegan diet and live in a community in Dimona. Their history begins in with the destruction of the Second Temple by the Babylonians in 70 C.E. There was a group of Hebrew who went into exile in Africa. They continue to practice in their small communities throughout Africa Jewish traditions. They came to the United States through the Atlantic Slave Trade. After being granted freedom, they went to Chicago to form their own community. They kept up with many customs and traditions. Around mid-1900’s, one man had a vision where he was told that him and the rest of the community belonged in Israel. So they went to Africa for two years to prepare and then made their way to Israel. At first, they were granted citizenship, but quickly, the government stopped granting citizenship to these Black Hebrews. They continue to come to Israel and build a community and fight for their right to be citizens. Then more recently, they were just granted citizenship.

Finally, the army. An experience that had a special connection to me, as I am interested in possibly joining the army. Here we got to look around a Nahal base, for the combat soldiers. We got the opportunity to shoot an M16 laser gun at targets on a screen. If I ever do join the Israeli army, I have a lot to learn because I shot maybe 50 bullets and didn’t hit one target.

Dead Sea Hike

2012-01-24T02:21:00.000-08:00

Do you ever get that feeling where you just need to go out and adventure, where you want to wake up with the sunrise and spend the day among nature. Israel really has amazing hiking opportunities, and living in Arad I knew I needed to take advantage of these. A few weekends ago, we wanted to hike but there was supposed to be flash floods and that just wouldn't be safe. So the desire to hike was built up! Then this past weekend we fulfilled the desire!

Friday morning, we woke up around 3:30 a.m. More like I woke up and made sure everyone in the apartment was up and ready to go. After taking our time, layering our clothes like crazy, packing some food and water, we were on our merry way! Destination: Dead Sea. So we started, hiking with the moon to light the way. The night sky was beautiful! Since there aren't any street lamps out in the desert, you could really see the stars, moon and constellations. Lucky for us taking our time in the morning, by the time we hit the trail, after following the road for some time, it was sunrise. It was mind-blowing how one second we were looking at the stars, and then the sun was up and the stars were mere memories. So, we found the blue trail. The blue trail was a good stretch of hike. At first it was pretty simple, walking straight, but soon we got more into the mountains, we were surrounded by desert.

We hiked, stopped to breaks (to eat of course!), and it was only 8 a.m., when we were all ready for lunch! I guess our bodies clock for food were a little off.

Then we found the red trail. After walking for around an hour, we began to be able to see the dead sea. We were almost at our destination. So, we decided it was perfect time to change into our swim suits. After changing, and taking off the many layers (it is always HOT around the dead sea because it is so low in elevation), we walked a little further to get a perfect view of the dead sea! We were there! From the top of this mountain was the most breathtaking view of the dead sea. So we sat, ate, and looked. Then began our descent.

The next day I decided to continue to walk on my sore legs. After getting a really good nights sleep we hiked a different trail right outside of Arad. This time, it was again a beautiful day out, with the sun shining and we came prepared for the bitter cold, bringing layers of clothing. Getting rid of some layers, we wound up spending some time hiking in shorts and t-shirts. Really, it was exciting!

Rwanda Fundraising

2012-01-15T14:00:00.000-08:00

Hey!

So if anyone who reads this blog doesn't know -- I'm going to Rwanda in less than a month to help empower youth, and repair children after the genocide.

Twelve other Year Courses's and I are given this amazing opportunity to travel to Rwanda to work empowering youth in Agahazo Shalom Youth Village. This village allows children ages 15-20 to rebuild their lives after the genocide. Agahazo Shalom is an innovative village, providing a place for the children to not only learn their basic studies, but also develop social and practical vocational skills. It costs 5,000 dollars to provide one child with one year of opportunity at this village. This money goes to the food, schooling, activities, clothing, etc. The goal for my program is to help one child live in this village for one year.

For those of you who have not donated, now is the time to help these children be able to obtain their basic needs and get an education.

Here is the website: http://www.tikkunolamrwanda.causevox.com/

Your help is greatly appreciated!

Arad

2012-01-15T13:56:00.000-08:00

Arad = Desert. Literally, the town is surrounded by desert. You can walk from one end of the town - starting at the desert, to the other - ending in desert, in approximately 20 minutes. While it is very small, I really love it. Every day when I walk to the gym, I see the same people working in the near by shops. You can hike to the dead sea within four hours from the outskirts of Arad. You can bike to Masada and Ein Gedi. So pretty much its an awesome place. Now, I'm not sure if I could live here forever but it is a great place to reflect, relax and get ready for Rwanda.

The program in Arad is really different because there is only about half our section her, the rest are either living on a kibbutz or dong Marva - an army program. In Arad, there is a much greater emphasis on volunteering. I am volunteering at a foster care home called Bait Mazor. This is a home on the outskirts of Arad with 10 kids who either no longer have parents or there were problems at home. The kids all stay for different amounts of time at the house. They each have their own room, they have family meals each day, etc. There are three houses just like this, in the same neighborhood. I go to the house around noon, and help the mom make lunch. The kids come home in the afternoon around 2 p.m. and I work with the kids on school work, hang out with them in the park and talk to them about friends and family. I just got back from one of the kids 10 year old birthday party! Yes, I was lucky enough to be invited. There was a homemade cake (made by one of the older girls) and tons of party games.
These kids all have different situations at home and therefore all spend different amounts of time at this youth village. The mother and father really do a great job of helping to raise theses kids while they are also raising their own three boys. When the kids come home from school, the parents interact with each of them, asking them specific question about school, etc. One of the kids who was raised in the family that I am volunteering with actually came back, after the army, to work as a staff member for the children. It was really special to see her connection with the mother and father, and the children.

Another part of the program is the host families. We were all paired with different families that live around Arad. Two friends and I are paired with the greatest family! We went over to their house for the past two shabbat dinners. They honestly had the most delicious food and I felt like we connected right away. There are three kids in the family, a younger girl 10 years old, and two older brothers, 18 and 22. The host dad own a restaurant in Arad, and the host mom works at the book store in the mall. They were completely welcoming and really enjoy getting to know us. We talked politics, life, future, and family dynamics. Our favorite topic is about our astrological signs!

Next up is Rwanda! We leave in less than a month!

Dominican Republic!

2012-01-10T08:34:00.000-08:00

Tanning, singing Bye Bye Bye with the cousins, salsa dancing, doonebugging, banana boating, and learning about a different culture -- welcome to the Dominican Republic.

Spontaneous trip right here. My entire family was planning on going to the Dominican Republic over Hanukkah -- and I was going to stay in Israel. Five days before the trip I was talking to my parents and mentioned my going to the Dominican with them. They mentioned it to my grandparents who of course, readily agreed with the idea....five days later I was in the Dominican!!

So on the 24th, I made my way to Ben Gurion Airport. Being Shabbat, there were not very many people at the airport and nothing was really open. So I wandered the circle of the airport for a couple hours before my flight was ready to take off. Let me tell you though, there is a small benefit to it being shabbat, the airplane was also pretty empty. And when I say empty, I mean I had a row all to my self - four pillows and three blankets - so I got a pretty nice sleep. After landing in New York, I followed the signs to get me to a terminal to fly to Atlanta. From Atlanta, I went to the Dominican Republic. Finally, two days later, I landed in beautiful, sunny Dominican.

My first task was finding my way to the hotel. After an hour long taxi ride, I open the door and there is my entire family hanging out in the lobby. My parents, sisters and grandparents knew that I was coming, but not the rest of the cousins, aunts and uncles. So I stepped out to a bunch of shocked and speechless faces! A pretty fun moment for me:)

Honestly, this trip could not have been better and it is all thanks to my Grandparents that I was able to join the family on this trip. The weather was beautiful -- and I appreciate it even more now that I am back in the COLD desert at night. The beach was perfect, the people were great, the food was unlimited and it was just relaxing and perfect. We went out to fancy dinners (and could order whatever and as much as we wanted), celebrated hanukkah, my sister's birthday, my grandparents anniversary. At night, we watched the shows that resort put on - magic, acrobatics, dancing - and then made our way to the nighttime activity - dancing, karaoke, or a romantic evening (okay maybe the kids skipped that one).

One day we were able to go on a tiyul as my Dad so called it. The majority of us went Dune Buggying, but a couple people went horse back riding. I chose the first, and this gave me an opportunity to understand the fear a parents feels letting their kids first drive. I was in the car with my younger cousin, who I let drive me! Besides the swerving, and the busting of the engine, he was a very good driver. But honestly, this adventure was really eye opening to the culture in the Dominican and we saw really amazing sights. First, we went to the sea. Then we went to a water cave. Yes, this did help get the poop off of our bodies. We also saw a village and the village shops where they sell home grown chocolate, coffee, mamajuana, etc. While driving, there were little kids just standing outside of their houses waving to us. These kids were the most adorable children! The culture in the Dominican is very interesting and different and it was really neat to experience even if only for a little while.

Duathlon

2011-12-18T12:48:00.000-08:00

Duathlon: Biking and running.

What is the best way to spend the last Friday living in Bat Yam? Running and biking of course! So on Friday, Lisa and I decided that in order to be fully satisfied with our time in Bat Yam, we needed to do a duathlon! Camelback strapped on, sweaters and snacks stuffed in the backpack, we were ready to do. We started in Bat Yam, and we ran to the beach. Running along the coast of the beach we made it to Shuk HaPishpushim in Yaffo. After looking around the Shuk, and not finding anything we wanted, we were ready to rent some bikes! There is this system in Israel where there are all these different bike rental stations throughout Yaffo and Tel Aviv and you rent and park the bikes at any of the rental stations. You can even bike all the way to Jersualem to park the bike. So we rented them in Yaffo and biked to Tel Aviv where we met up with some friends. Together we all biked and adventured through Tel Aviv. We went from Allenby to park to Rabin Square, just biking around. Once it started getting chilly, and sun down had hit, we hopped on the bus back to Bat Yam to get ready for Shabbat! :) So I am officially fully satisfied with my travels in Bat Yam and ready to move onto the next step of my journey -- Arad.

Hinduism

2011-12-14T07:08:00.000-08:00

Israel, the Jewish state, you would never expect to run into Hindu's. The other night, walking around Tel Aviv, I run into Hindu's. Literally ran into them, they were dancing in the street when my friends and I walked into their dancing. On Friday, my friends and I had a plan to go to Tel Aviv in the afternoon to hang out and then walk around the beach and maybe go to a drum circle. On our way to the beach, we ran into a circle of people singing, dancing, and just having a good time. We were really curious as to what was going on, so we started talking and dancing with them. After an hour going around Tel Aviv, dancing and singing, we wound up at this apartment. Being welcomed in, they continued singing for a little while. The chant they sung went like this:

Hari Krishna Hari Krishna
Krishna Krishna
Hari Hari
Hari Rama Hari Rama
Rama Rama
Hari Hari

After singing, we heard a speaker. This speaker actually spoke in english and it was translated into Russian. Lucky for us we were able to understand. The speaker spoke about the soul, the Atman, and the purpose of life for Hindu's. Everything was about satisfying the Atman, the spiritual being, rather than the physical being. After the speech, there was again more singing. This went on for a while until it was time to satisfy the soul's hunger. So we ate. And the food was DELICIOUS! There was beans, potatoes, salad, pasta, sweet rice, and juice. Being fully satisfied, spiritually and physically, we helped clean up and then continued our night out in Tel Aviv.

Thanksgiving

2011-11-26T07:20:00.000-08:00

Thanksgiving in Israel. Sounds strange, I know, but it was actually wonderful. Yes, I was sad that I was not at home for Thanksgiving, especially because I missed my Grandma delicious carrot mold, but it was a very special Thanksgiving.

After creating a Facebook event, inviting everyone and anyone, the Thanksgiving Potluck was ready to go. It was pretty simple, make a dish (alone or with friends) and bring it to the Ulpan building at 8 ish. I was expecting a lot of potatoes, some meat and of course some delicious desserts. I was pleasantly surprised. Not only by the amount of people that showed up, but by the amazing types of food people were able to cook. There was stuffing, chicken, potatoes, cookies, cheese cake, pasta, pumpkin pie, cauliflower, pineapple apple sauce, pear tart, rice, salad, apple cider, sweet potato fries, mashed potatoes, and more. Naming the food doesn't even do it justice, there were so many dishes and it was absolutely delicious!

Before we could eat, we all sat in a circle and said what we were thankful for. The general consensus was that we were thankful for the opportunity to be in Israel on this program with this group of people. After completing the circle, we got food, played music, sang songs and just hung out.

While this Thanksgiving was very different from past years, a picnic outside with friends rather than turkey at my Grandma's house with family, it was very special and memorable.

Ketura Weekend

2011-11-26T07:12:00.000-08:00

I first heard about this program because, Tara Lifland, one of my best friends from home had been eagerly awaiting to go on Year Course for years. At first I wasn't sure, I thought about college, or other year programs in Israel, but in the end I chose to listen to Tara's advice and go on Year Course. While we are on the same program, we are in different sections. So while I am in Bat Yam, she is living in the Negev on Kibbutz Ketura and I knew I had to visit.

This past weekend, I traveled with one of my roommates, Becca, to visit the kibbutz. Coincidently, her best friend from home is roommates with Tara. Traveling to the Negev from Tel Aviv takes a LONG time. We woke up at 5 a.m. friday morning and arrived at the kibbutz at noon. Now that was a lot of travel for me, but it was worth it. So after we arrived, we changed out of our heavy warm clothes (it was rainy and cold in tel aviv last week) into shorts and a t-shirt -- already a good start to the weekend! Now, the kibbutz is just sitting in the desert. Literally, the back yard is desert, and that means some really good hiking trails. After lunch, Tara and I went on a hike, to a lookout point where you are able to see the entire kibbutz from above. After the hike, we got ready for shabbat dinner. While not everyone on the kibbutz is religious, they offer services and a nice shabbat dinner. After dinner people just hang out, waiting for the party to start. There are a lot of kibbutzim near each other in the Negev and they had Pub nights. You travel to a different kibbutz and there is music and dancing. At midnight, people began to leave for Pub night at the neighboring kibbutz. This was a completely different experience, a kibbutznik party versus going out in Tel Aviv. People dress warmly (it gets cold at night in the desert), and comfortably, rather than trying to put on all this makeup and dressing up. Somehow, in sweatshirts and thick layers, we were still able to have a great time!

The next day, we were able to sleep late. After waking up, showering, eating and hanging out, Tara and I went on another hike. This hike was with the kibbutznick children and their parents. Interesting group, yes, and more of a stroll in the desert rather than a hike, but hey it was still great. After hanging out, Becca and I decided to start our travels back to Bat Yam. Since the bus ride was going to be very long, we wanted to split it up, and we stayed the night at one of the scouts houses on our program (he lives in between the Kibbutz and Bat Yam). After staying overnight, we finished our journey in the morning.

Surfing/MDA

2011-11-17T03:26:00.000-08:00

It is pretty simple, you have to get to know people and put yourself out there. For example, the other week, while visiting Tel Aviv, I needed to find a bathroom. In all my searching for a bathroom, I found a surf shop. And of course, we got to talking to the owners of this shop. It is a surf school for kids, they come after school around 3 and spend 2 hours surfing. After, they might stay and work on school work and most of them need help on their english work. While talking with the owners, we got onto the topic of volunteering for them in exchange for free surfing lessons. Our response was an immediate YES! So now, I get to learn how to surf with 6-11 year olds! (and they are basically better than I am) and teach english to these kids every monday afternoon.

Besides volunteering at the surf shop, I am volunteering with MDA (Magen David Adom). After a 10 day, 60 hour course of learning how to be a first responder - learning about different diseases, how to deal with trauma situation, how to give CPR and bandage people - we were able to volunteer in the ambulances. Through MDA, I am really able to see the Israeli culture. Living in Bat Yam, largely an immigrant population and lower class citizens, I see a different side of life. You go into peoples houses and see who they are and how they live. I have been to beautiful houses on the beach, and to dirty one room houses that smell of mold and mildew. I have picked up people who seem to have very few possessions, and others who live lavishly.

You get to people at the worst or scariest time for them, when they are in a situation that they feel the need to call an ambulance. The calls can vary, but generally deal with older people who need oxygen or drunks passed out in the middle of the road. The more interesting calls have involved a heart attack victim, a pregnant woman who started bleeding and lost a lot of blood, a man with hepatitis C that had fallen and hit his head (of course we wear gloves at all times), a man who overdosed on valium and had knives on his table. Then you also get the hurt leg, broken foot, and the kid that fell on the wet floor. Generally, everything is in hebrew, however, since Bat Yam is a huge immigrant population, there is a lot of Russian. While I am not fluent in hebrew (yet), and I don't know any Russian, I am able to understand the drivers and the patients at least enough to know what is going on and what I need to do. Once we take their vital signs, we rush them to the hospital.

I have become very familiar with the hospital in Holon, Wolfson. You begin to recognize the nurses and other MDA drivers and volunteers. The morning, we got a call to an older woman who had hypertension. She was shaking, vomiting, and had difficulty breathing. Every movement for her was difficult and painful. After dropping her off at the hospital, we continued on to the next call. Later in the day, after dropping off other patients at Wolfson, I saw her and her daughter walking out of the hospital, felling better. It was really great to see this woman get better and be able to go home from the hospital. Of course all the patients end up going home and feeling better, but it felt really great to be able to witness their exit from the hospital. The fear was gone, and they were relieved that everything was alright.

So I guess it is pretty clear, but I am really loving my time in Israel and the MDA experience. I would honestly recommend participating in MDA as a great way to experience Israel.

Magen David Adom

2011-10-29T11:11:00.000-07:00

My night of MDA training - Just had a guest lecture on Aran (mass casualty events). Halfway through watching a video of what an Aran looks like, he picks up the phone and tells us a rocket hit a 9 story building in ashdod, and we might have to go their tonight to help; lecture ended early. Kinda made me realize i'm not only practicing to work in an ambulance; I'm doing it in Israel. Thankfully, it doesn't look like it's bad enough for us to have to go there.

Shabbat Dinner

2011-10-23T15:41:00.000-07:00

This Shabbat, my roommates and I decided to make a really nice dinner and invite friends over. While we have cooked a little here and there, some pasta and pizza, it was nothing too fancy. Tonight, we decided, we were going fancy....salmon, chicken, pasta and all with fun spices. After calling my mom to learn a little about cooking, we were ready to start. We had the chicken on the stove, the water for the pasta was boiling, the vegetables (sauce) for the chicken was made and the salmon was in the oven. It was too good to be true. The power turned off.

Immediately, my roommate and I rush into our respective rooms to get our head lamps. Yes, we are that cool. With out headlamps on, and little to no idea what to do, we call our madricha to advise us on where the power box is. After trying to fix the power, we realized that the oven/stove contraption is short circuiting the electricity in our apartment and now we are not able to cook the food at all. This hopeful success was turning into a disaster. Our friends were supposed to be coming over relatively soon and we had no food ready and had yet to shower.

In an attempt to save the meal, my roommate and I knock politely on our neighbors door. In broken hebrew, we get the message across to them that we need help. Asking if we could use their stove to cook, they not only offer us their leftover chicken and salad, but also the man of the house comes to fix our oven. With five young children playing in our apartment, the stove gets fixed. So we resumed making the dinner, this time making sure that we were not overusing the oven/stove contraption.

An hour later than we expected, our friends arrived with more delicious food and our food was ready to be served. I am not sure what we would have done without our great neighbors! We owe them some babysitting and chocolate chip cookies (we offered them dinner but I think they worried about our meal making skills).

I do LOVE Shabbat dinner.

Simchat Torah

2011-10-23T15:21:00.000-07:00

You can never go to a Jewish simcha without dancing the Hora. It is the classic dance that brings people together, whether it be when I danced in Poland at a random Jewish wedding last summer, at my Synagogue in Minneapolis, or in Tzfat celebrating the completion of a year's torah readings. While there is a huge difference in the places, the people, and the situations, the dance is the same.

To celebrate Simchat Torah, Young Judaea presented us with an opportunity to travel to Tzfat, one of the four holiest cities in Israel. When you walk around Tzfat, you can immediately feel the religious atmosphere. There are men in black hats, women in long dresses, and young boys with pais. There is constant dancing, in different shul's through Tzfat and in the street. Simchat Torah is a holiday for constant joy and dancing.

The trip took us on a religious adventure. This started with diving for Tekhelet, a snail that gives the tzitzit the blue color. We learned about the religious significance and the chemical reactions involved in the Tekhelet process. After this, we headed to Tzfat. In Tzfat, we stayed in a hostel/hotel with around 6-8 people per room. After dressing in our religious attire, we prayed ma'ariv and got ready for the Hakafot. Now I said get ready because this is where the dancing comes in. The Hakafot are said in between the dancing around the torah.

As a conservative Jew, it was interesting for me to be in a religious city for a holiday. There was always a mechitza separating the men and women. The men were able to dance with the torah, and celebrate in a very different way from the women. When there was dancing in the streets, the women had to find a location where the men would not be able to see them because women are a distraction and would make the men feel very uncomfortable. The entire concept, while I understand it, is very different to experience. I was initially upset that I was not given all the freedom that the men were given, but I realized that this experience was going to teach me a lot about my opinions on Judaism and it would allow me to learn more about religious Judaism. Besides, I still got to dance the Hora.

גלעד שליט חזר הביתה

2011-10-18T09:19:00.001-07:00

Yehudiah

2011-10-17T15:51:00.000-07:00

*Year Course 2011*

One of the greatest things about Israel is how easy it is to just hike and camp outside. On Sunday my friends and I decided that we finally had the opportunity over Sukkot to go camping. We knew we wanted a water hike in the north, so we went to ask Netta (works in the YC office) for help. Water and north = Yehudiah. Yehudiah is about 30 minutes from Tiberias, right along the Kinneret. This sounded 1) beautiful, 2) adventurous, and 3) like the BEST way to spend Sukkot. We figured out bus plans, borrowed tents, bought nuts and dried fruit and were all set.

Early Wednesday morning (we had to get to the north before the chag started), eight friends and I left Bat Yam and
headed in the direction of Yehudiah. A good
four hours later, we got to Tiberias and found a bus to take us around the Kinneret. All relying on each other to be the one paying attention, we didn't realize that we quickly passed the stop to get to the campsite. After getting off at the wrong stop, and not wanting to spend more money or time on another bus, we decided to start the camping trip off right by walking to the camp site. With two tents, sleeping bags, food, water, etc., we walked a couple hours down road to the camping ground. On the way we were able to see an old Israeli army base where we sat on/in tanks, a new israeli army firing area (where we were not allowed to go into), many cows and horses. So the walk was worth while.

Finally, we made it to the camp site. After setting up tents, and putting our stuff away, we walked up a hill to see the sunset. Being on an adventure, we had to take tons of pictures of the beautiful sunset...with us in it of course. We decided to make it an early night, to be ready for the intense hiking.

Hiking was phenomanel! We started early in the morning, waking up with the sunrise and eating a harty breakfast of bread with peanut butter...delicious, right? We hiked with cows, through water and streams, swam in ice cold "pools", jumped off cliff edges (there were medium height), looked at beautiful waterfalls, and trekked up and down a huge hill into the valley. There are not words to describe the beauty of the hike and the excitement of the entire trip.

Jumping off the cliff was EPIC. I am really going to need to find higher and newer cliffs now, though. The water was deep enough, but the cliff edges were not high enough. It was however, so exhilarating. The water also was a great cool temperature which I loved.

That night we packed up our bags and headed to the Kinneret. We wanted to really be "roughin' it!" for the night. At the kinneret, we pitched up tents along side the water and made food. Okay, we made pasta, but that was a start and it was pretty fancy given that fact that we could only make what we were able to bring with us and would be able to last. The Kinneret over Sukkot is packed with campers, families and friends, eager to spend the night outside enjoying the idea of Sukkot. We visited with other tents, ate some food and enjoyed the night. We wouldn't leave the north without swimming in the Kinneret so of course the next morning we had to swim bright and early.

This was the first of the many adventures I hope to take in the Holy Land. Chag Sukkot Sameach.

The Fast

2011-10-11T00:39:00.000-07:00

Yom Kippur is a pretty amazing in Israel. No matter where you are in Israel, you know it is Yom Kippur. Starting at 3 p.m. the afternoon before the fast, people stop driving on the roads all together. You can sit in the middle of the highway and play a game of Monopoly without fear of being hit by a car.

This fast was one of the easiest ones. I went to Shoham to spend the fast with Omer (one of the scouts). While I unfortunately did not get the chance to sit on the highway, I was stayed up all night playing cards in the middle of the road in Shoham. Shoham is a relatively small town distance wise, however, starting at 9 p.m. after the fast starts, everyone comes to the kikar (grassy center) in Shoham. Literally, everyone of all ages. The little kids are riding bikes, the adults are mingling, and the teens are playing card games. The youngsters and the adults leave around 11 p.m., but the teens stay all night. I stayed up playing cheat, president, yaniv, etc., and speaking hebrew all night with my scout's friends. I guess you could say that I am picking up on the hebrew slang.

Anyway, the kids stay outside until 6 a.m. to watch the sun rise the next morning. This is the signal that it is time to get some sleep. Once everyone leaves the kikar, they go to sleep the fast away. I slept from 6 a.m. until 4 p.m. Now that sounds like I wasted a day, but really, I just exchanged day and night. After we all woke up we walked around Shoham eagerly awaiting the time when the fast would end. This would either be exactly 25 hours after it began or after you spotted three starts in the sky. These happened to happen at the same time for us, and therefore we broke the fast with tea and cakes at 6 p.m. After this we ate the real food.

The Shofar

2011-10-08T14:48:00.000-07:00

To say the least, spending the high holidays in Israel has been very different from my past experiences at Adath. This year I had to make some major decisions on how I wanted to celebrate the High Holidays. I could go to Kotel in Jersualem, go to any shul in Bat Yam, or stay with friends or family. This year I chose to spend the High Holidays very differently from the way I spend them at home. I didn't go to services, I didn't spend it with my family but I had a great experience.

Walking down the street, getting out of a cab, dancing at a club or eating at a restaurant, people would tell me "Shanah Tovah". On Rosh Hashana, I handed out apples and honey to people walking near the Bat Yam mall. I heard a shofar blown in the middle of a busy road and in a park filled with israeli children. The entire country gets ready for the holiday together.

This year I spent Rosh Hashana in Kiryat Ono, right outside Tel-Aviv. I stayed with Hadar, one of the scouts on my program and three other girls. Hadar's house was absolutely beautiful! When we arrived, we relaxed a little before getting ready for the BIG dinner. When I say big, I really mean it. There was more family there than I could ever imagine. It felt like I was at a bat/bar - mitzvah friday night dinner. This huge family dinner provided me a good opportunity to work on my hebrew! We honestly ate all night, from about 8 until 12. There were 8 different kinds of meat, salads, side dishes, nuts, desert, wine, beer, etc. It was wonderful to eat a Jewish mother's (and one who really knows how to cook) home cooked meal after having to buy and make my own food for the past month. The next day, we went on walk throughout Kiryat Ono. On our walk w met a nice religious man. This man, after asking us if we were Jewish, offered to help us complete a mitzvah for the holiday by blowing the shofar. Blowing the shofar is a very meaningful task and with his eyes closed people gathered around to hear the shofar being blown. Little did this man know that his little son who was standing up in his stroller started rolling silently down the hill. Before he could know what happened, my friend went to stop the stroller from moving. When the sound of the shofar was complete and the man opened his eyes, his son was right where he left him. So I guess my friend wound up completing two mitzvot that day.

Becca (my roommate), who also came to Kiryat Ono, and I decided to go for a walk in the park. The parks in Israel are the hang out spot for young families during the day. There were tons of families there spending Rosh Hashana together. In the middle of the park, there was a religious father and son teaching the children about the holiday. There were about 40 children and parents gathered around to learn and listen to the sound of the shofar. The sound of the shofar is extremely special, especially hearing it all around Israel. It doesn't matter where you are, there will always be someone with a shofar.

What continued to amaze me was how universal Rosh Hashana was for everyone. I went the seshek, a pretty big Isareli party after the holiday and in the middle of the night they not only wished everyone a "shanah tova", but also played a song for Rosh Hashana.

So while I didn't go to services, I completed the mitzvah of listening to the shofar, worked on my hebrew and had an overall amazing holiday.

The Beach

2011-09-27T04:03:00.000-07:00

It is always beautiful is Bat Yam and after volunteering the other day, I decided to enjoy the sunshine at the beach. After walking along the beach, Leah (another girl on my program) and I decided that we wanted to learn how to surf, it didn't bother us that there weren't any waves. So to give you a little background information on the beaches of Bat Yam, there are lifeguard stands spread throughout the beach, each with 3-4 guards. Being that we did not see any surfers, waves, and we didn't have any clue how to surf, we decided to ask the lifeguards for assistance. The lifeguards unfortunately had to work at the time and couldn't teach us, but they allowed us to use their surf boards to practice the basics. The only issue was that we didn't even know where to start! After laughing at our inability to surf, the lifeguards gave us a little introduction to surfing and we were ready. While we probably didn't look to professional, I am determined to work at it, and hopefully there will be waves next time.

After cleaning the surf board, we decided that we wanted to snorkel. Knowing the lifeguards were friendly, we asked them if they knew of a place near by to snorkel. Getting the answer we hoped for, they let us borrow their equipment. We swam out to this rock (which is also a TON of fun to jump off) and looked at the fish and coral underwater. Let me tell you, I loved it!

We realized that we better start heading back because we had a Rwanda meeting soon and we wanted to eat before we went. We had this sudden craving for a fresh fruit smoothie. On the way to my friends apartment, we picked up peaches, mangos and bananas for 6 NIS. Pretty good deal right there. We cut up the fruit, added some milk and made a delicious smoothie. Then we were off to learn about Rwandan history.

אביתר בנאי

2011-09-24T03:31:00.000-07:00

Tel Aviv is the hot spot for night life! I am not just talking about clubs and bars, open through out the night, I am talking about concerts and restaurants. The other night I went to a Eviatar Banai concert at a student center. The concert was filled with teenagers involved in the Scout program. The Scout program is actually the cool thing to do in Tel Aviv. It is similar to USY and BBYO but a step more intense.
The concert was phenomenal! I would recommend everyone listening to his music.

;

Gabi Sorto (my roommate), Gili, Merav Lachman (a tzofa), Hadar Itzhaki (a tzofa), me

After the concert, we ate at Japanika, a delicious sushi restaurant. While eating sushi, I saw a wedding, a party bus and someone who worked at Camp Ramah. She made aliyah and was visiting her cousin in Tel Aviv who was also on a year program. As I said above, Tel Aviv is the hot spot. There are always interesting people there to watch and interact with.

Stand with Israel

2011-09-24T02:53:00.000-07:00

Let people know you stand with Israel. This past week has been pretty busy in the United Nations. Friday, after addressing the General assembly, Mahmoud Abbas's made a bid for Palestinian statehood, according to the '67 boarders, avoiding diplomatic negotiations with Israel. This request is being brought for discussion in the Security Council. The Security Council is made up of 13 nations, 5 of which are given veto power. The United States is one of these five nations.

When it comes down to it, if there is a vote, Obama said that it would be vetoed by the United States. According to Obama, “peace will not come through statements and resolutions at the U.N., if it were that easy, it would have been accomplished by now.” The goal with the US veto is to get the two leaders, Benjamin Netanyahu and Mahmoud Abbas to begin peace talks again.

While the United States stands with Israel as it has for ever, it is still important to let your representative know how you feel. Email your congressional representative, let them know who you are, and let them know that you support Israel. Our congressional representatives represent US, the people, and as the people it is our job to let them know how we feel about political issues.

visit capwiz.com/aipac/ to find your elected official email and correspond with them!

The Start

2011-09-17T03:25:00.000-07:00

There must be a mistranslation because I thought I was going to volunteer at a farm today, but when I showed up I realized it was a garden. And then my job was to weed the garden for four hours with eight other volunteers from my program. Literally, I sat in sand (I guess they farm in sand rather than soil) and pulled weeds. In the end though, I did really enjoy it. The decision for where to volunteer was tough. There were around 30 different options, ranging from helping in a kindergarten to marine volunteer work. Believe me, I would love to be able to experience all of them. There is making sandwiches, working at a soup kitchen, helping animals, farming, working in ambulances and more. My initial decision was to work in the ambulance, however, that volunteer work doesn't start for a couple of weeks so I wanted to do something else while I was waiting and that is how I wound up weeding the garden for four hours.

There are many rising political issues in Israel right now. The other night, we were able to experience one first hand. We went to Tel Aviv and walked around, "tent city" along Tel Aviv's Rothschild Boulevard, set up as a protest for the rising cost of living. The protests began about a month ago, so they were coming to an end. At the end of Rothschild Boulevard, there was a meeting being held to decide whether or not to leave the tents up or not.

"Approximatley 300,000 people gathered Saturday night in Tel Aviv, 20,000 participated in Jerusalem, 3,000 in Kiryat Shmona, 5,000 in Modi’in,1,000 in Hod Hasharon and 1,000 in Eilat. However, those close to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu claimed that the media had inflated the numbers of participants in the protests" - Ha'aretz

There are many decision that need to be made, and some of them will not be mine. These decisions are made and will have a impact on others. These tents were a peaceful protest in an attempt to make the government understand that there was a problem with the rising price of living in Israel. Israel came together to make this statement. As a whole we are always much stronger than the individual.

for more information about the tent city:
http://www.haaretz.com/news/national/israel-s-labor-federation-demands-government-lower-cost-of-living-1.375727
http://www.haaretz.com/news/national/more-than-300-000-demonstrate-across-israel-to-protest-high-cost-of-living-1.377295

Or Chadash

2011-09-07T14:24:00.000-07:00

אור חדש

SUNS UP!
I wake up every morning with the beautiful sunrise (our windows must be kept open...its so humid in Bat Yam). A new light shines every morning!
As a Kochavim staff member, at Camp Ramah in Wisconsin, we sang this song (Or Chadash) every morning with our 4th graders. When I woke up this morning, the song came into my head (the tune is really good). Later, I got an email from my camper this summer, telling me that this song was stuck in her head during her swim practice. Yes, this song must be catchy! But, more than that, this song has significance. The beautiful sunrise continues to happen every morning.

Onto more about my trip: I am all showered, half unpacked, and settled in my apartment in Bat Yam (half because one of my bags took 3 days to get here!!!). I live in the apartment with three other girls, Abby, Becca, and Gaby. Luckily, we are all easy going and get along really well. It really hit us that we were living in Israel yesterday when we went shopping at the םופר דוש, yes, it is said exactly as it sounds! It is a supermarket with inexpensive food, right below the mall. Living in our own apartment, we needed actually grocery shop (and actually make the food we bought) for breakfast, lunch and dinner. As part of the Young Judaea Year Course program, they provide apartment stipends each month for food. Therefore, we have to make decisions about what food to buy as an apartment. Let me tell you, this is a lot more difficult than it sounds. Luckily, we have had food for the past two days, so we must have done something right!

2011-09-03T23:02:00.000-07:00

The Fork (in the road)

The Road Not Taken

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;

Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim
Because it was grassy and wanted wear,
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,

And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I marked the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way
I doubted if I should ever come back.

I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I,
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.

--Robert Frost

You might ask, why is this blog called "The Fork"? Well, I happen to have an answer to that question. As every senior comes to realize, high school is almost over and that means it is decision making time! For me, the decision I had to make was not only what college I should go to but whether or not I should take a gap year and go to Israel. Travel or study....seems like a pretty tough decision right there. Seriously though, while this idea of a gap year program almost feels natural (the Jewish community does a good job of advertising trips to Israel), there are still more people who tend to go to college. I, however, decided to go to spend this upcoming year traveling, volunteering and studying in Israel, Rwanda, and hopefully other parts of Europe. So here I am, 'I took the road less traveled by', all my bags are packed and i'm ready to go.

השנש הזה בירושלים!