A lot more has happened since I posted yesterday. Just a few things for now, as I'm sitting at a place in Kiryat Shmona, on a computer that isn't mine. I came with Beni up here so he could drop off some of the fire extinguishers from the kibbutz with the guy he works with up here. It just so happens that it's right near the restaurant we didn't get the chance to eat at on the Jeff Seidel trip to the Golan last spring. We ate in our bus instead. It's always fun coming back to places I've been before for totally different reasons. On the drive up here we took the scenic route through the Golan, which was absolutely stunning. It's been raining on and off today- at first we drove through the rain, stopped, it caught up to us, drove through it again and now it's finally caught up with us once more. We stopped a couple of times along the way to get out and look at the Jordan River which, because of the rain, is flowing magnificently.
A little bit about yesterday- I went roaming around the kibbutz, out towards the fields and the date trees. The wind was blowing gently and it was just warm enough to be perfect. I came back, napped for a bit, and then went with Beni and another member of a kibbutz to a local moshav where a lot of Iraqis-Kurds- have built magnificent homes. We were going to inquire about a baker who they wanted to make cakes and cookies for the new cafe they're planning on opening on the kibbutz. It was a small room but there were tiny little cupcake like goodies all over and the aroma was overwhelming. We got to try these little cupcake things that were made of semolina and had dates inside. WOW.
Driving back onto the kibbutz, we drove around where the animals are kept and stopped in the middle of two pens. Water Buffalo. I got to pet water buffalo. One even licked my hand. They're beautiful animals and seemed pretty tame. They don't belong to the kibbutz- they're babysitting in a way, for another place that raises them. However, Beni was telling me they want to try having water buffalo to make mozzarella. I think it would be a great idea. You can't go wrong with homemade mozzarella.
That's about it for now. Another post later!
Monday, January 25, 2010
Sunday, January 24, 2010
A little piece of heaven
I'll post the blog that I wrote while on the bus up to Sde Eliyahu, the Kibbutz I'm staying on for two days, but I didn't want to miss the opportunity to share my first impressions. As soon as I got off the bus, I knew that my stay here would be amazing. I was let off at Tzomet Ein HaNatziv, Ein HaNatziv Junction, which is right by the religious kibbutzim in the area. I waited for five minutes or so for Beni to come pick me up. When I spoke to him on the phone earlier, he told me he'd be coming in a white pickup to meet me. In the five minutes I waited for him, I think I saw around fifteen white pickups. I guess it's the vehicle of choice around here. The area I'm in, the Beit She'an valley is stunning. It's in between the Gilboa mountains and the border with Jordan. The first thing we did was drive to Ein haNatziv, where he showed me the ma'ayan (spring) that they're famous for. I recognized the entrance to the kibbutz from the last time I was up here with Emily and Amit on our way to see Ruvik. We stopped at this kibbutz and tried to gain entrance to see the ma'ayan but since we weren't members of the kibbutz we weren't allowed. This time, however, I was with someone from another local kibbutz so we were allowed in. It's a nice little spring with a rope to swing and jump in from and a little dock. The water was pretty clear and there were some fish swimming about. From there we drove along some small dirt roads to a small waterfall in a cove made by some trees that has resulted from extra water from the pipes that run down into the valley that feed into a hydroelectric plant. I'll hopefully post some of those pictures later.
We drove around the area while Beni explained what we were seeing and a bit of the history of the place. He pointed out the lone wind turbine up on mt. Gilboa. There's only one because the "greenies", as he calls them, said that the noise they make disturb the deer in the area. Just over the ridge from where we were looking is Jenine (sp?) which is, I believe, an Arab village where a lot of fighting took place. At this point we had driven up alongside one of the fish hatcheries in the area. It didn't belong to Sde Eliyahu, but to one of the other kibbutzim. He pointed out some of the birds like the comerant and a kite that was flying by. The comerant is a pest because it eats fish from the hatcheries. The kites on the other hand, along with the kesterals, are used as an active scarecrows. They put meatmeal down on their fields so the comerands will come eat while the other smaller birds who come to nosh on their harvests are intimidated by the bigger birds so they stay away. He explained that they also use owls to eat the field mice in the fields. During the mating season a barn owl couple eats between 2000 and 5000 mice and they have 120 couples spread out over their fields. Pretty ingenious idea.
Before we came onto the actual kibbutz, we drove around the fields. I got to pick some fresh dill, which smelled amazing, and see one of the trucks dump the dill it had just harvested into a big barrel. Sde Eliyahu is known for its herbs, fish, compost, and I think they also have a dairy and meat producing plant as well. We ate lunch in the communal dining hall. I was introduced to a few people and then showed to where I would be staying, the library where his wife works, and then to his house where I am now, using the computer.
An example of how awesome this place is:
"You want tea? Take some of this plant"
"Mmmm it's nana (mint)"
"Here are the cups, here's the teapot. Oh and here, rub this plant and smell. It's lemon. Nana and lemon"
We went out to the backyard and he started collecting something from the ground. Pecans. There's a whole box of them. He said the worst thing about living on a kibbutz is you eat all the time. I'm quite happy with that.
I'm going to go retrieve my camera and wander around. There are a few places I want to explore and take pictures of. Later on I'll put up my post from earlier!
We drove around the area while Beni explained what we were seeing and a bit of the history of the place. He pointed out the lone wind turbine up on mt. Gilboa. There's only one because the "greenies", as he calls them, said that the noise they make disturb the deer in the area. Just over the ridge from where we were looking is Jenine (sp?) which is, I believe, an Arab village where a lot of fighting took place. At this point we had driven up alongside one of the fish hatcheries in the area. It didn't belong to Sde Eliyahu, but to one of the other kibbutzim. He pointed out some of the birds like the comerant and a kite that was flying by. The comerant is a pest because it eats fish from the hatcheries. The kites on the other hand, along with the kesterals, are used as an active scarecrows. They put meatmeal down on their fields so the comerands will come eat while the other smaller birds who come to nosh on their harvests are intimidated by the bigger birds so they stay away. He explained that they also use owls to eat the field mice in the fields. During the mating season a barn owl couple eats between 2000 and 5000 mice and they have 120 couples spread out over their fields. Pretty ingenious idea.
Before we came onto the actual kibbutz, we drove around the fields. I got to pick some fresh dill, which smelled amazing, and see one of the trucks dump the dill it had just harvested into a big barrel. Sde Eliyahu is known for its herbs, fish, compost, and I think they also have a dairy and meat producing plant as well. We ate lunch in the communal dining hall. I was introduced to a few people and then showed to where I would be staying, the library where his wife works, and then to his house where I am now, using the computer.
An example of how awesome this place is:
"You want tea? Take some of this plant"
"Mmmm it's nana (mint)"
"Here are the cups, here's the teapot. Oh and here, rub this plant and smell. It's lemon. Nana and lemon"
We went out to the backyard and he started collecting something from the ground. Pecans. There's a whole box of them. He said the worst thing about living on a kibbutz is you eat all the time. I'm quite happy with that.
I'm going to go retrieve my camera and wander around. There are a few places I want to explore and take pictures of. Later on I'll put up my post from earlier!
Saturday, January 16, 2010
Down time in the Holy Land
It's been a while since I've last written and a lot, well in some ways a lot has happened. I've been on two more village visits, Beit Sahour and Ein Rafa. We went to Ein Rafa on the 9th around 4 pm. It's really close, only about fifteen to twenty minutes outside of Jerusalem, but it took us a while to get there because of traffic into the rotary by Abu Ghosh, an Arab town known for it's amazing hummus. It's where all of the secular Jews go on Shabbat to have lunch. Sounds kind of like what my family did on Christmas day, except we went to Dim Sum!
Ein Rafa was pretty great. We ran the clinic on an enclosed court with about fifteen kids to start off with. All of them were boys in the beginning ranging in ages from 7 to about 12/13. Towards the end, more kids showed up including some older boys and girls. By the end there were about 26 kids, which was pretty impressive. They were a rowdy bunch of kids- throwing frisbees everywhere, even kicking them like soccer balls sometimes, but they were good and seemed pretty into what we were doing with them. We set up two teams like we did in Be'er Tuvya to have some mini competitions and all of the kids really got into them. A couple times they all got down on one knee and made chanting sounds with gestures at the other side. It was their way of getting them pumped and riled up. This time around it was a little harder to communicate with them because I don't know any arabic and they didn't speak much english. The local coach and the area coordinator helped out, but when I was with them in smaller groups I found myself trying to show rather than tell them. It worked out in the end but it was a bit frustrating at times.
On the 14th we went into the West Bank to Beit Sahour, a Palestinian village with a large Christian population. It took us over an hour and fifteen minutes to get there on a trip that shouldn't have taken longer than 45 minutes because we made a wrong turn (miscommunication with the coordinator we were picking up) and got stuck in a really long line of traffic. The drive to the school led us through winding roads, up and down very steep hills- but that's the area for you. As soon as we arrived at the school, we were beckoned by the coach to come drink tea with him. Of course it was delicious and full of tons of sugar, but it was a nice little pick me up before starting our clinic. At this village visit there were more girls than boys. I think there were about 18 total kids and they were probably from 6-10th grade or so. A few older boys showed up later. The coach this time was extremely helpful, coming around showing the kids what to do, encouraging them- but then again he's the sports coach at the school in a program with about 100 kids. They girls were good- there were some who were more athletic than others but they all seemed to enjoy themselves immensely.
Other than village visits, I've done a little walking around and exploring, although I hope to do more of that in the next week. There are parts of Jerusalem I want to roam around and definitely other parts of the country. I think I'm going to head up to Akko, which is where the holiest place for the Bahai is, but is also apparently a pretty great place, and maybe a day trip up to tzfat.
Today I went into Tel Aviv for Ligat Cova 8, a HAT frisbee tournament for anyone who wants to sign up and pay. I got to Tel Aviv really early because I walked with Aliza and Hanan to the Reconstructionist Minyan downtown at HUC. Unfortunately I couldn't go to both that and the tournament, although I would've loved to go. The weather was spectacular today. Bright, sunny blue skies. 75 degrees. When I got to the fields where there were supposed to be frisbee players gathering, I was suprised to find what seemed to be a rugby tournament. I've never actually seen a rugby game played. I'm not going to lie, it's a bit weird. I finally spotted some lone discs floating here and there and found my way over to those who were gathering to play. Apparently someone is supposed to check that the fields are free but that someone forgot this time around. It ended up being ok. We made fields a little bit further down. There were 4 teams and each team played three games. We didn't win any of our games but we did tie for the spirit award. I just had a good time playing frisbee and hanging out with some cool people.
That's it for now. Hopefully I won't take so long to write another post!
Ein Rafa was pretty great. We ran the clinic on an enclosed court with about fifteen kids to start off with. All of them were boys in the beginning ranging in ages from 7 to about 12/13. Towards the end, more kids showed up including some older boys and girls. By the end there were about 26 kids, which was pretty impressive. They were a rowdy bunch of kids- throwing frisbees everywhere, even kicking them like soccer balls sometimes, but they were good and seemed pretty into what we were doing with them. We set up two teams like we did in Be'er Tuvya to have some mini competitions and all of the kids really got into them. A couple times they all got down on one knee and made chanting sounds with gestures at the other side. It was their way of getting them pumped and riled up. This time around it was a little harder to communicate with them because I don't know any arabic and they didn't speak much english. The local coach and the area coordinator helped out, but when I was with them in smaller groups I found myself trying to show rather than tell them. It worked out in the end but it was a bit frustrating at times.
On the 14th we went into the West Bank to Beit Sahour, a Palestinian village with a large Christian population. It took us over an hour and fifteen minutes to get there on a trip that shouldn't have taken longer than 45 minutes because we made a wrong turn (miscommunication with the coordinator we were picking up) and got stuck in a really long line of traffic. The drive to the school led us through winding roads, up and down very steep hills- but that's the area for you. As soon as we arrived at the school, we were beckoned by the coach to come drink tea with him. Of course it was delicious and full of tons of sugar, but it was a nice little pick me up before starting our clinic. At this village visit there were more girls than boys. I think there were about 18 total kids and they were probably from 6-10th grade or so. A few older boys showed up later. The coach this time was extremely helpful, coming around showing the kids what to do, encouraging them- but then again he's the sports coach at the school in a program with about 100 kids. They girls were good- there were some who were more athletic than others but they all seemed to enjoy themselves immensely.
Other than village visits, I've done a little walking around and exploring, although I hope to do more of that in the next week. There are parts of Jerusalem I want to roam around and definitely other parts of the country. I think I'm going to head up to Akko, which is where the holiest place for the Bahai is, but is also apparently a pretty great place, and maybe a day trip up to tzfat.
Today I went into Tel Aviv for Ligat Cova 8, a HAT frisbee tournament for anyone who wants to sign up and pay. I got to Tel Aviv really early because I walked with Aliza and Hanan to the Reconstructionist Minyan downtown at HUC. Unfortunately I couldn't go to both that and the tournament, although I would've loved to go. The weather was spectacular today. Bright, sunny blue skies. 75 degrees. When I got to the fields where there were supposed to be frisbee players gathering, I was suprised to find what seemed to be a rugby tournament. I've never actually seen a rugby game played. I'm not going to lie, it's a bit weird. I finally spotted some lone discs floating here and there and found my way over to those who were gathering to play. Apparently someone is supposed to check that the fields are free but that someone forgot this time around. It ended up being ok. We made fields a little bit further down. There were 4 teams and each team played three games. We didn't win any of our games but we did tie for the spirit award. I just had a good time playing frisbee and hanging out with some cool people.
That's it for now. Hopefully I won't take so long to write another post!
Thursday, January 7, 2010
Village Visit #1: Be'er Tuvya
I just got back from a 3 hour walk around Jerusalem. That's pretty much all I've done since I got here. Today I met a friend for shawarma downtown, after which we walked, well more like strolled, to the old city, wandered around there for a bit, then headed back. Three hours later I'm back in her apartment nice and relaxed on her couch, wanting really badly to take a nap, but that probably isn't the best thing for my jetlag.
It's already been two days since the first village visit, even though it feels like forever. On Tuesday January 5th, Becca Polivy (one of the organizers of Ultimate Peace here) along with two other volunteers and I drove to Be'er Tuvya Regional school which is on the Be'er Tuvya moshav. A moshav is kind of like a kibbutz, but not everything on a moshav is shared. In the past decade or so, kibbutzim and moshavim have started to look more and more alike, but that's not really important. Earlier on in the day I met up with Alanna, someone I used to work with at camp who is now here for her third year of Rabbinical school.
At 2:30 I walked over to Becca's house, met up with her, and then we walked to meet up with Jacki, another volunteer who lives in Natanya and is here working for Habonim Dror (a socialist labor zionist movement). We were picked up by the fourth volunteer, Jez, also part of Habonim Dror, I believe, who is from the UK. We arrived in Be'er Tuvya a little bit before 4 pm and found our way to the space where we would be running our program. It was a small sized gym, probably the size of a gym you'd find in an elementary school in the states. I was introduced to Inbal who works with the Peres Center for Peace, and another woman who is the Israeli coordinator on this side. There were 8 kids and one coach there. 7 of the 8 kids were girls, one boy, and I think about 4 of the 7 girls had been to Tel Aviv last April for Ultimate Peace in the Middle East. I knew this because I recognized one or two of them from the team I coached, which was pretty exciting. Jacki started off by talking a bit about Ultimate in Hebrew, although most of the kids already knew what she was talking about. There were two girls from the school who had never played before, but when we got them tossing, they all looked like naturals. It was great seeing the girls who play Basketball with the Peres center playing so hard and it looked like they were having a great time. We ran a bunch of drills with them, ending around 5:20, after which I got a chance to speak with Inbal about getting the opportunity to interview some of the kids and getting my written consent forms to them and their parents. Truthfully, that's the only thing I'm worried about dealing with and making sure happens. I have some more work to do on my IRB proposal and a few articles and books to read while I'm here, but there is definitely plenty of time to do that in the next few weeks.
After the program, we killed some time at a place called Bilu Junction, which was basically a pretty good sized mini mall, equipped with bungee jumping for kids and even a little ferris wheel thing. We got food and sat in a cafe that had wireless, which was nice because I got the chance to talk to a few people online. Around 8 we drove to Rishon Litzion to go to a frisbee practice with the local team there, The Holylanders. Yeah, I know. Great name, right? It was fantastic. I played frisbee from around 9 to 10:50. I'm glad I'm here for the month of January because it means I get to be outside and moving. I got a ride back to Tel Aviv and from there caught a bus to the Bus station in Jerusalem. I was exhausted by that time so I figure I'd just hop in a cab back to my friend's place. As I was telling the cab driver where I wanted to go, another guy came and said he was going to a place close to where i was going. We get in the cab, and start driving, and the guy starts telling the cab driver that he should take him first then swing back and drop me off. I was too exhausted to protest, so I just sat in the back and listened to the conversation upfront. I caught most of what they were saying. Long story short, I was in the cab for a lot longer than I should have been, but paid less than I would have because the guy gave me 25 shekels for a trip that cost 45 total. Actually, I probably would have paid 20 shekel either way. After the guy was dropped off, the cab driver turned to me and said, in hebrew, I thought you two were together when he first got in. I didn't agree to what he was saying. Riding alone is better. And all I could mutter was yes. I agree. I was really happy when I finally got out and made it to my friend's apartment by 12:30. Another late night, but it was a fantastic day.
Yesterday, I got up late and walked downtown by myself, walked through Ben Yahuda, up to the Shuk (the open market) and then headed back. The rest of my day consisted of a nap, hanging out and relaxing, and going to a local bar with one of my friend's housemates.
Things are going well. Relaxing mostly. Spending time outside. Hope the cold isn't too bad at home! Saturday I'm going to Tul Karum which is in the West Bank. I'm really excited!
There are a few things I'd like to do while I'm here, like spend two or three days in Tel Aviv and go to the beach, maybe even make it to Tzfat this time (a really cool ancient city), and just spend time walking around. It's nice being able to do research and relax at the same time.
It's already been two days since the first village visit, even though it feels like forever. On Tuesday January 5th, Becca Polivy (one of the organizers of Ultimate Peace here) along with two other volunteers and I drove to Be'er Tuvya Regional school which is on the Be'er Tuvya moshav. A moshav is kind of like a kibbutz, but not everything on a moshav is shared. In the past decade or so, kibbutzim and moshavim have started to look more and more alike, but that's not really important. Earlier on in the day I met up with Alanna, someone I used to work with at camp who is now here for her third year of Rabbinical school.
At 2:30 I walked over to Becca's house, met up with her, and then we walked to meet up with Jacki, another volunteer who lives in Natanya and is here working for Habonim Dror (a socialist labor zionist movement). We were picked up by the fourth volunteer, Jez, also part of Habonim Dror, I believe, who is from the UK. We arrived in Be'er Tuvya a little bit before 4 pm and found our way to the space where we would be running our program. It was a small sized gym, probably the size of a gym you'd find in an elementary school in the states. I was introduced to Inbal who works with the Peres Center for Peace, and another woman who is the Israeli coordinator on this side. There were 8 kids and one coach there. 7 of the 8 kids were girls, one boy, and I think about 4 of the 7 girls had been to Tel Aviv last April for Ultimate Peace in the Middle East. I knew this because I recognized one or two of them from the team I coached, which was pretty exciting. Jacki started off by talking a bit about Ultimate in Hebrew, although most of the kids already knew what she was talking about. There were two girls from the school who had never played before, but when we got them tossing, they all looked like naturals. It was great seeing the girls who play Basketball with the Peres center playing so hard and it looked like they were having a great time. We ran a bunch of drills with them, ending around 5:20, after which I got a chance to speak with Inbal about getting the opportunity to interview some of the kids and getting my written consent forms to them and their parents. Truthfully, that's the only thing I'm worried about dealing with and making sure happens. I have some more work to do on my IRB proposal and a few articles and books to read while I'm here, but there is definitely plenty of time to do that in the next few weeks.
After the program, we killed some time at a place called Bilu Junction, which was basically a pretty good sized mini mall, equipped with bungee jumping for kids and even a little ferris wheel thing. We got food and sat in a cafe that had wireless, which was nice because I got the chance to talk to a few people online. Around 8 we drove to Rishon Litzion to go to a frisbee practice with the local team there, The Holylanders. Yeah, I know. Great name, right? It was fantastic. I played frisbee from around 9 to 10:50. I'm glad I'm here for the month of January because it means I get to be outside and moving. I got a ride back to Tel Aviv and from there caught a bus to the Bus station in Jerusalem. I was exhausted by that time so I figure I'd just hop in a cab back to my friend's place. As I was telling the cab driver where I wanted to go, another guy came and said he was going to a place close to where i was going. We get in the cab, and start driving, and the guy starts telling the cab driver that he should take him first then swing back and drop me off. I was too exhausted to protest, so I just sat in the back and listened to the conversation upfront. I caught most of what they were saying. Long story short, I was in the cab for a lot longer than I should have been, but paid less than I would have because the guy gave me 25 shekels for a trip that cost 45 total. Actually, I probably would have paid 20 shekel either way. After the guy was dropped off, the cab driver turned to me and said, in hebrew, I thought you two were together when he first got in. I didn't agree to what he was saying. Riding alone is better. And all I could mutter was yes. I agree. I was really happy when I finally got out and made it to my friend's apartment by 12:30. Another late night, but it was a fantastic day.
Yesterday, I got up late and walked downtown by myself, walked through Ben Yahuda, up to the Shuk (the open market) and then headed back. The rest of my day consisted of a nap, hanging out and relaxing, and going to a local bar with one of my friend's housemates.
Things are going well. Relaxing mostly. Spending time outside. Hope the cold isn't too bad at home! Saturday I'm going to Tul Karum which is in the West Bank. I'm really excited!
There are a few things I'd like to do while I'm here, like spend two or three days in Tel Aviv and go to the beach, maybe even make it to Tzfat this time (a really cool ancient city), and just spend time walking around. It's nice being able to do research and relax at the same time.
Tuesday, January 5, 2010
A Return to Israel, Ultimate Peace Style
As per the request of my mother and one of my teammates on BomBARDment, I have reinstated the use of my Israel blog. This time, however, I'm returning on a trip that is turning out to be half vacation half work. I'm doing research for my senior project at Bard on Ultimate Peace, an organization whose mission is to build bonds of friendship through Ultimate Frisbee, especially between kids in conflict zones. It's a pretty sweet and interesting idea, and this month, I'm going to be traveling with volunteer coaches to each of 7 communities, some in the West Bank, some in Israel, to participate, observe, take notes, and hopefully return to interview some of the kids and coaches.
It amazes me that I have yet to be in Israel for a full day, and yet I feel like I've been here for a week. It seems like this entry resembles the first entry of this blog, because what I'm about to recount was a pretty hellish flight experience, not unlike my trip from EWR to Heathrow and from Heathrow to TLV. Let's rewind quickly to January 3rd at around 5:30 pm. I'd just gotten back from seeing The Tempest at Drew (which by the way was great) and I wanted to check in online. As I was putting in my information, I noticed that my flight was recorded as being delayed. No, it wasn't just delayed, it was pushed back 7 hours and 10 minutes from 10:50 pm to 6:00 am the next morning. I was now scheduled to arrive at 11:20 pm. Great. Just what I need, another long shitty flight to Israel. I kept tabs on the progress of my flight and low and behold, it stayed the same. To add on to that, when I called Continental Customer service the last time, the southern man I spoke to informed me that Terminal C was on lock down and everyone had to be evacuated and go back through security. So not only was my plane delayed because they were "switching equipment"-- what they really mean is they switched our plane and made us wait more-- but the Terminal was craziness. Luckily I only live 10 minutes away from the airport, so I got there around 2:15 am. For a 6:00 am flight. The kiosk, I was informed, wasn't supposed to open until 3:30 am. Keeps getting better. However, they opened it just for the Tel Aviv flight and about twenty minutes later I was sitting outside of the security zone of gate C-138. Long story short, the flight got moved back again to about 7:50 am take off time. Apparently there's a curfew at Tel Aviv that shuts off any planes from landing between 1 and 3 am. Something about needing to process the people from international flights who arrive before then. Well, people jumped to conclusions with this informationg, got angry, mob around the desk, people yelling, and the captain eventually came out and clarified that this meant we were going to try to land BEFORE 1 am, around 12:30 am. He told everyone "no one is disseminating false information." I just sat there chuckling to myself.
The plane boarded and I had a great seat, 18A, window and close to the exit of the plane so I wouldn't have to wait to get off when it landed. I walk up to my seat and there's someone in it. "I think we've been double booked." Girl sitting next to person in my seat, "Oh, actually I booked my ticket late and wanted to sit with my boyfriend, would you mind trading seats?" "I mean... I guess. It's a long flight, you two should be near each other." "Are you sure?" "Yeah... it's fine" (while thinking in my head just great). "Where's your seat" "Oh, it's in the back, 44f"
44f was the second to the last row in the middle. ARG. Last time I do that. I ended up switching to the row next to me to a window seat. We had to keep the blinds shut most of the time but it was still worth it.
When I got in, it was 1:20 am. Passport control lines were fine but of course I got stuck in the one that had a broken computer. I probably stood there for fifteen minutes with one person in front of me without moving. Finally moved, my bags came off the conveyor belt within two minutes, which was fantastic. I found a sheirut and I made it to Rehavia, to Aliza's apartment by 3:30 am. Fell asleep at 4, woke up at 8:40 am to start my day. And that will be a story for tomorrow.
PHEW
I'm here. I'm excited. Get excited
It amazes me that I have yet to be in Israel for a full day, and yet I feel like I've been here for a week. It seems like this entry resembles the first entry of this blog, because what I'm about to recount was a pretty hellish flight experience, not unlike my trip from EWR to Heathrow and from Heathrow to TLV. Let's rewind quickly to January 3rd at around 5:30 pm. I'd just gotten back from seeing The Tempest at Drew (which by the way was great) and I wanted to check in online. As I was putting in my information, I noticed that my flight was recorded as being delayed. No, it wasn't just delayed, it was pushed back 7 hours and 10 minutes from 10:50 pm to 6:00 am the next morning. I was now scheduled to arrive at 11:20 pm. Great. Just what I need, another long shitty flight to Israel. I kept tabs on the progress of my flight and low and behold, it stayed the same. To add on to that, when I called Continental Customer service the last time, the southern man I spoke to informed me that Terminal C was on lock down and everyone had to be evacuated and go back through security. So not only was my plane delayed because they were "switching equipment"-- what they really mean is they switched our plane and made us wait more-- but the Terminal was craziness. Luckily I only live 10 minutes away from the airport, so I got there around 2:15 am. For a 6:00 am flight. The kiosk, I was informed, wasn't supposed to open until 3:30 am. Keeps getting better. However, they opened it just for the Tel Aviv flight and about twenty minutes later I was sitting outside of the security zone of gate C-138. Long story short, the flight got moved back again to about 7:50 am take off time. Apparently there's a curfew at Tel Aviv that shuts off any planes from landing between 1 and 3 am. Something about needing to process the people from international flights who arrive before then. Well, people jumped to conclusions with this informationg, got angry, mob around the desk, people yelling, and the captain eventually came out and clarified that this meant we were going to try to land BEFORE 1 am, around 12:30 am. He told everyone "no one is disseminating false information." I just sat there chuckling to myself.
The plane boarded and I had a great seat, 18A, window and close to the exit of the plane so I wouldn't have to wait to get off when it landed. I walk up to my seat and there's someone in it. "I think we've been double booked." Girl sitting next to person in my seat, "Oh, actually I booked my ticket late and wanted to sit with my boyfriend, would you mind trading seats?" "I mean... I guess. It's a long flight, you two should be near each other." "Are you sure?" "Yeah... it's fine" (while thinking in my head just great). "Where's your seat" "Oh, it's in the back, 44f"
44f was the second to the last row in the middle. ARG. Last time I do that. I ended up switching to the row next to me to a window seat. We had to keep the blinds shut most of the time but it was still worth it.
When I got in, it was 1:20 am. Passport control lines were fine but of course I got stuck in the one that had a broken computer. I probably stood there for fifteen minutes with one person in front of me without moving. Finally moved, my bags came off the conveyor belt within two minutes, which was fantastic. I found a sheirut and I made it to Rehavia, to Aliza's apartment by 3:30 am. Fell asleep at 4, woke up at 8:40 am to start my day. And that will be a story for tomorrow.
PHEW
I'm here. I'm excited. Get excited
Monday, May 11, 2009
The Pope and the WB
I was awoken this morning to the lovely sounds of police men and IDF soldiers shouting directions over a mega phone and a helicopter roaring above. The Pope has officially come to town. There is currently a ceremony (tekes in hebrew) at Yad Vashem, the new Holocaust memorial museum with Shimon Peres, the current president of Israel. He was greeted by three "children of Israel" a girl with an australian accent, a boy who spoke in Hebrew and a girl from Nazareth who welcomed the Pope in Arabic. It's interesting to witness this kind of ceremony because it is evident that it is very much a presentation, a staging of sorts. It is conducted in a manner much like a performance, but I suppose that's the way when any influential political or religious figure visits. Pope Benedict visiting Israel is very important because of his stand against anti-semitism, although he allowed an excommunicate Bishop who does not believe in the Holocaust to re-enter the church. I know he is controversial on many topics but it is still interesting to see interactions like this between the Catholic church and Israel.
In other news, on Saturday, Rachel, Talia and I went on a day trip to the West Bank. I hadn't gone in with any expectations and I came out with a bit of a new perspective of the situation in Israel. We took one of the Arab buses to Ramallah, as they are the only mode of public transportation you can find on Saturday until Shabbat is over. I had never seen the "Green Line" before, the wall that separates Israel from the West Bank, from Palestine, and as we rode up to it I realized how massive it was. Once on the other side, one could see that the graffiti stretched for miles. Most of it right near the checkpoint was absolutely exquisite. I remember one large section was painted with "David Copperfield Was Here." I'm not sure what it was referring to, but it took up a large section of the wall, sticking out amongst the smaller signs painted around it. There were portraits of various leaders as well as phrases in Arabic. WOW.
Ramallah is a huge city, one of the most affluent in the West Bank. Some of the houses were grand one family houses that looked like they had come out of some of the more affluent areas of Israel. Downtown was bustling with people, but for some reason, the bus station was shut down, so we took a shuttle the hour ride to the checkpoint in Nablus; from there we took a cab to the Old City. Once in Nablus, we wandered around for a bit in the Old City trying to find Jacob's well and the church that was associated with it. We had no idea what the church was called, and although Rachel's Arabic was pretty good, she didn't know the name for well. We asked directions from two women who pointed us in one direction, telling us to go straight for a long time and then when the road curved to the right the church would be on the left. 15 minutes of walking later, we figured we weren't getting anywhere and should find our way back downtown to another church. The next church we found ourselves at was an old Anglican Church, still in use. The owner of the church let us in and, although Rachel tried to get across what we were looking for, he didn't understand Jacob fromt he bible, the well, or a church that we were looking for. He did, however, find us someone who spoke English who told us where we could find a map. We were on the search for the tourist center. Now, when you think of a tourist center, I would imagine the first thing that comes to mind is not a small kiosk in the middle of a busy intersection in the city center. Well, that's what we got. We were about to walk past it when I noticed the peeling red letters on the top of the kiosk. We didn't end up getting a map, but we did end up finding the "only tour guide in Nablus" complete with an ID card that stated just this. He wanted 200 nis for the tour for the three of us, about three hours, but we got him down to 40 nis each, which was well worth it. The tour that we were about to embark upon would definitely open up my eyes to the situation in the West Bank, in Palestine, and how those citizens see their situation. He spoke as if he were reading from a script. He would repeat himself when we asked him questions, not quite answering them, but giving us information nonetheless. He studied at the University in Jordan for four years and was asked to be an English teacher back in Nablus, after which he retired and became a tour guide.
Our first stop was a soap factory, one of the 12 in Nablus, but it was not working anymore. There are only two working soap factories because of the lack of interest in the soap and the fact that it cannot be exported to neighboring Arab countries (which we were told many times, a result of the "occupation" of the West Bank by Israel). As you walked across the room with the soap on the floor, you slid on the slippery surface. He showed us how the soap was cut into blocks and then showed us the room where the soap was stored; there were stacks of soap everywhere, stacks that could not be sold. He took us through a lot of the Old City, pointing out Churches and Mosques that had changed hands, surving one purpose during Roman times, then another during the Byzantine Era, Turkish rule, etc. It was all fascinating information, but the most interesting part of the trip, for me at least, was hearing him talk about the occupation and what it had done to Nablus. One of the first things he told us was that Israeli media will try to protray Nablus as a very dangerous city full of terrorists, warning tourists not to come (which he attributed to Israel wanting to destroy their economy), when, as he reinforced many times, the people in Nablus are very friendly and welcoming, and we were safe especially with him as our tourguide. It's true that we didn't run into any problems with anyone and everyone Rachel asked directions for was very helpful.
He took us to a few noteable places: a Turkish bath, a center for herbs and coffee, where we had strong, bitter Bedouin tea, and a few places that are representative of the struggle that has been going on for many decades. One of these places was a house that was completely blown up in 2002, killing every family member inside. He told us the Israeli army had given no warning beforehand as to their intentions and the sign that commemorated the act was called a "massacre committed by the Israeli army" with a heading that said "never forgive, never forget." I don't know the details of the situation, but I do know that there was most likely a good reason for blowing up the house, not to say that it was either wrong nor right. It's just very interesting how both sides portray the same thing.
We also got to see the site we had come for: Jacob's well, which was right outside of a refugee camp on the edge of the city. The church the stands over the well was seriously damaged during an earthquake in 2005, so the church that we saw was newly renovated and gorgeous. The Well itself was pretty cool to see; we even got to drink some water from it, which is supposed to bring good health.
All in all it was a great trip, definitely eye opening. The West Bank, from what I observed, works and operates as an autonomous country, despite the fact that it is occupied. A two state solution, from how I see it, is the only real answer to the issue at hand, but it all depends on what each side is willing to give up, and at this point, I know Israel does not want to give up East Jerusalem (where I currently am studying) to Palestine for their capital.
I'm looking forward to going back to the West Bank at least once more before I go, preferably to Ramallah to actually explore and to Bethlehem.
In other news, on Saturday, Rachel, Talia and I went on a day trip to the West Bank. I hadn't gone in with any expectations and I came out with a bit of a new perspective of the situation in Israel. We took one of the Arab buses to Ramallah, as they are the only mode of public transportation you can find on Saturday until Shabbat is over. I had never seen the "Green Line" before, the wall that separates Israel from the West Bank, from Palestine, and as we rode up to it I realized how massive it was. Once on the other side, one could see that the graffiti stretched for miles. Most of it right near the checkpoint was absolutely exquisite. I remember one large section was painted with "David Copperfield Was Here." I'm not sure what it was referring to, but it took up a large section of the wall, sticking out amongst the smaller signs painted around it. There were portraits of various leaders as well as phrases in Arabic. WOW.
Ramallah is a huge city, one of the most affluent in the West Bank. Some of the houses were grand one family houses that looked like they had come out of some of the more affluent areas of Israel. Downtown was bustling with people, but for some reason, the bus station was shut down, so we took a shuttle the hour ride to the checkpoint in Nablus; from there we took a cab to the Old City. Once in Nablus, we wandered around for a bit in the Old City trying to find Jacob's well and the church that was associated with it. We had no idea what the church was called, and although Rachel's Arabic was pretty good, she didn't know the name for well. We asked directions from two women who pointed us in one direction, telling us to go straight for a long time and then when the road curved to the right the church would be on the left. 15 minutes of walking later, we figured we weren't getting anywhere and should find our way back downtown to another church. The next church we found ourselves at was an old Anglican Church, still in use. The owner of the church let us in and, although Rachel tried to get across what we were looking for, he didn't understand Jacob fromt he bible, the well, or a church that we were looking for. He did, however, find us someone who spoke English who told us where we could find a map. We were on the search for the tourist center. Now, when you think of a tourist center, I would imagine the first thing that comes to mind is not a small kiosk in the middle of a busy intersection in the city center. Well, that's what we got. We were about to walk past it when I noticed the peeling red letters on the top of the kiosk. We didn't end up getting a map, but we did end up finding the "only tour guide in Nablus" complete with an ID card that stated just this. He wanted 200 nis for the tour for the three of us, about three hours, but we got him down to 40 nis each, which was well worth it. The tour that we were about to embark upon would definitely open up my eyes to the situation in the West Bank, in Palestine, and how those citizens see their situation. He spoke as if he were reading from a script. He would repeat himself when we asked him questions, not quite answering them, but giving us information nonetheless. He studied at the University in Jordan for four years and was asked to be an English teacher back in Nablus, after which he retired and became a tour guide.
Our first stop was a soap factory, one of the 12 in Nablus, but it was not working anymore. There are only two working soap factories because of the lack of interest in the soap and the fact that it cannot be exported to neighboring Arab countries (which we were told many times, a result of the "occupation" of the West Bank by Israel). As you walked across the room with the soap on the floor, you slid on the slippery surface. He showed us how the soap was cut into blocks and then showed us the room where the soap was stored; there were stacks of soap everywhere, stacks that could not be sold. He took us through a lot of the Old City, pointing out Churches and Mosques that had changed hands, surving one purpose during Roman times, then another during the Byzantine Era, Turkish rule, etc. It was all fascinating information, but the most interesting part of the trip, for me at least, was hearing him talk about the occupation and what it had done to Nablus. One of the first things he told us was that Israeli media will try to protray Nablus as a very dangerous city full of terrorists, warning tourists not to come (which he attributed to Israel wanting to destroy their economy), when, as he reinforced many times, the people in Nablus are very friendly and welcoming, and we were safe especially with him as our tourguide. It's true that we didn't run into any problems with anyone and everyone Rachel asked directions for was very helpful.
He took us to a few noteable places: a Turkish bath, a center for herbs and coffee, where we had strong, bitter Bedouin tea, and a few places that are representative of the struggle that has been going on for many decades. One of these places was a house that was completely blown up in 2002, killing every family member inside. He told us the Israeli army had given no warning beforehand as to their intentions and the sign that commemorated the act was called a "massacre committed by the Israeli army" with a heading that said "never forgive, never forget." I don't know the details of the situation, but I do know that there was most likely a good reason for blowing up the house, not to say that it was either wrong nor right. It's just very interesting how both sides portray the same thing.
We also got to see the site we had come for: Jacob's well, which was right outside of a refugee camp on the edge of the city. The church the stands over the well was seriously damaged during an earthquake in 2005, so the church that we saw was newly renovated and gorgeous. The Well itself was pretty cool to see; we even got to drink some water from it, which is supposed to bring good health.
All in all it was a great trip, definitely eye opening. The West Bank, from what I observed, works and operates as an autonomous country, despite the fact that it is occupied. A two state solution, from how I see it, is the only real answer to the issue at hand, but it all depends on what each side is willing to give up, and at this point, I know Israel does not want to give up East Jerusalem (where I currently am studying) to Palestine for their capital.
I'm looking forward to going back to the West Bank at least once more before I go, preferably to Ramallah to actually explore and to Bethlehem.
Saturday, May 2, 2009
A Weekend By the Kinneret
I've realized that I'm not that good at keeping up this blog thing. I thought I'd want to sit down and write about everything that's been happening, but I guess I'm almost to busy doing to remember to write a bit here and there. There's a lot (as always) to catch up on and I don't want to sit here for hours recounting everything that's been happening so I'll break it up (as usual) and hope that those who have been waiting for the following posts will enjoy reading them!
Yesterday, Emfish, Amit (an Israeli counselor from camp who lives in Jerusalem) and I drove up to the North near the Kinneret to visit Ruvik, the head of the aquatics program at camp. He had been bugging us to come visit him the whole semester and we finally made time to do it, and I'm really happy I did because I think it's been one of the best experiences I've had since I've been here. Of course it's always enjoyable to visit places in and around Israel, to go hiking, to see the cities and experience the nightlife, but it's another experience entirely to be with people who know the history of the area and who have lived there their whole lives. When we got up to the north at around 1 in the afternoon, we met Ruvik on the Kibbutz and followed him as he dropped off his eldest granddaughter to his son's house on a nearby Moshav. Moshavim and Kibbutzim used to be very different villages, but it has become harder to distinguish between the two aas kibbutzim have shifted from totally socialist/communal areas to more independent ones when it comes to the people who live on them.
After meeting his son Ofir, Ruvik took us to a place on the Jordan River where you can rent canoes. Of course, he knew the owner and along the way ran into a lot of other community members he knew. We took two canoes, Emily and Ruvik in one, Amit and I in the other, and had a very nice, relaxing time, canoeing up and down a part of the Jordan. All along the banks you could see garbage left behind by the people who had celebrated Yom Ha'atzmaut (Independence Day) there along with campsites, people fishing, and just lounging around. As we turned around and headed back to the banks of the river, we were welcomed by the beautiful sounds of a band. It was a mixture of jazz, folk, rock, and almost rap, with one guy singing and playing the flute, another singer, a woman who sang and played tuba and trombone, a guitarist, drummer and bassist. We sat, listening the music, while enjoying a cup of tea that was steeping on a nearby fire. There were kids running around all over the place, one who was naked especially caught my attention. He was definitely enjoying himself running around without a care in the world, hopping from rock to rock. It seemed like a great communal place to come enjoy the banks of the river, go for a swim, use the swinging rope to jump into the water, listen to music and just chat.
After we left, Ruvik drove us to the place where he teaches sailing on the Kinneret. He is a PE teacher for the local, private school that all the Kibbutzim in the area send their kids to. He has been teaching there for over thirty years. The grounds of the school itself are gorgeous. There are flowers all over the place and as you walk along the paths, you pass one-level buildings that serve as classrooms. There's a bomb-shelter, but, as he explained to us, when he was in school there, there was only a bunker that they used to jump into every time there was an air raid. It's so amazing that he went to the school and now teaches there. When we returned to the kibbutz, we met his wife, after which we took a bunch of communal bikes and rode around the Kibbutz. I'm forgetting something- an explanation of the Kibbutz we were staying on. Kibbutz Degania Bet is one of the oldest Kibbutzim in Israel. It is right next to Kibbutz Degania Aleph which is the oldest, I believe. Degania Bet turns 90 next year, Aleph 100. Ruvik's great grandfather was one of the first people to build the kibbutz. His grandparenet, parents, and he were all born on the kibbutz. Thus, the best place to observe the generations of the kibbutz, to get a feel of who lived there, was to visit the cemetary. He brought us to the graves of his great grandmother and grandfather to show us the difference between the two graves because his great grandfather was one of the first founders and his great grandmother came half a year later. The graves are labeled differently- the grave of his great grandfather said "one of the first founders of the kibbutz" and his great grandmother's just referred to the group of Halutzim (pioneers). We then showed us the grave of his father. It was amazing seeing three generations in the same place, which, I must say, is placed where you can see the most spectacular view of the valley where the Jordan used to run, which is now green, lush, and fertile. We continued biking through the kibbutz to the cow barn. He tried to give us a taste of fresh milk but the spout wasn't working. It's ok though, I got to see the cows being mechanically milked. They manually attach metal suckers to the udders and when the cows are done they follow a path along the barn by themselves because they know there is food awaiting them at the end.
Outside of the barn, we picked these delicious berries called "etz tutim" (tree strawberries) which look a bit like blackberries/raspberries but don't taste quite the same. We continued on, seeing the different houses of the kibbutz, passing through one of them where new houses are being built for people who want to live on the kibbutz but not become members. Apparently it's a new way for kibbutzim to make money because they can't make enough themselves. Times are definitely changing for kibbutzim.
We went back to Ruvik's house and relaxed until 7 and then walked over to the dining hall to have Shabbat dinner. We sat at a table with Ruvik's sister, her husband, her daughter and son-in law, their baby, and Ruvik's mother. Four generations at the same table! WOW. We enjoyed a good meal, chatting, after which we returned back to his house, relaxed a bit more, and then went to a local bar/restaurant on the Jordan, close to where we had been that afternoon to grab some drinks and talk. That was pretty much the rest of the night. We returned back to the kibbutz and I stayed up until 12:30 to register for classes (5:30 pm EST) and then hit the hay.
Today, Emily and I woked up at 11:30 and about fifteen minutes later we were on the road to the Golan Heights. Ruvik took us, with Amit at the wheel, through the Golan to the Golan heights where we got to see some of the most spectacular views of the Kinneret, Israel and Syria. Accompanying everything we passed and every lookout point we stopped at was an explanation of the history of the area and how it connected to the fight for the land. We passed by a valley in Syria where Ruvik pointed out one of the seven bridges that Hagana and the other groups who fought for the independence of Israel blew up so that no one could come in or out of Israel during the war of independence. They never repaired it. It's an interesting feeling driving on a winding road right next to the border of a country like Syria. There isn't a neon-colored line separating the two countries, no big tanks or men with guns, just a barbed wire fence with a bit of no-man's land in between. On the other side of the road were hills that are still covered in land mines.
It was getting late in the afternoon and we were getting hungry so Ruvik took us to his favorite falafel place in Masadeh, about an hour from where we were. The place was swamped with people but the food was delicious! Falafel, Lebaneh (soft goat cheese), pita, hummus, tehina, fulla beans, salad, and pickles. Mmmmmm Israeli food. Our next stop was a place I had been on birthright, which was an army base in the Golan heights from which you could see a large part of Syria. Ruvik and Amit pointed out the place where 12 Israeli tanks had defeated over 400 Syrian tanks during the Yom Kippur war. It was so important to defeat them where they had, because if they had failed, the Syrians had a direct route right down to the Galil with nothing to stop them. Amit pointed out one of the nearby Hills called Avital, which is the base for a lot of Israeli intelligence, but no one knows what goes on there. We continued on our little trip, Emily and I fell asleep in the car for a bit, and were woken up when we came to our last stop- the Northern part of the Jordan. After we got out and walked around a bit, we headed back to the Kibbutz and stopped at Glidat, the chocolaterie, named for the woman who started making chocolate on the Kibbutz. She learned in Belgium and brought it back to Israel. Emily and I got ice cream and I bought a sampling of chocolates to bring back to share with my friends here. I haven't tried any but I'm sure they're going to be delicious.
Over all it was a fantastic trip. Relaxing. Informational. I got to see a lot of what I'd seen before but from a new perspective. I would not mind coming to live on the kibbutz for a couple months, working, biking around, hiking, and just being with Ruvik and his family. It was nice meeting them and realizing who he is and where he comes from. It made me think of him differently.
That's all for now. My next update will be going back about a month now to Ultimate Peace. Mom, I know you're waiting for it. I promise, it's coming! (along with my Greece update)
Yesterday, Emfish, Amit (an Israeli counselor from camp who lives in Jerusalem) and I drove up to the North near the Kinneret to visit Ruvik, the head of the aquatics program at camp. He had been bugging us to come visit him the whole semester and we finally made time to do it, and I'm really happy I did because I think it's been one of the best experiences I've had since I've been here. Of course it's always enjoyable to visit places in and around Israel, to go hiking, to see the cities and experience the nightlife, but it's another experience entirely to be with people who know the history of the area and who have lived there their whole lives. When we got up to the north at around 1 in the afternoon, we met Ruvik on the Kibbutz and followed him as he dropped off his eldest granddaughter to his son's house on a nearby Moshav. Moshavim and Kibbutzim used to be very different villages, but it has become harder to distinguish between the two aas kibbutzim have shifted from totally socialist/communal areas to more independent ones when it comes to the people who live on them.
After meeting his son Ofir, Ruvik took us to a place on the Jordan River where you can rent canoes. Of course, he knew the owner and along the way ran into a lot of other community members he knew. We took two canoes, Emily and Ruvik in one, Amit and I in the other, and had a very nice, relaxing time, canoeing up and down a part of the Jordan. All along the banks you could see garbage left behind by the people who had celebrated Yom Ha'atzmaut (Independence Day) there along with campsites, people fishing, and just lounging around. As we turned around and headed back to the banks of the river, we were welcomed by the beautiful sounds of a band. It was a mixture of jazz, folk, rock, and almost rap, with one guy singing and playing the flute, another singer, a woman who sang and played tuba and trombone, a guitarist, drummer and bassist. We sat, listening the music, while enjoying a cup of tea that was steeping on a nearby fire. There were kids running around all over the place, one who was naked especially caught my attention. He was definitely enjoying himself running around without a care in the world, hopping from rock to rock. It seemed like a great communal place to come enjoy the banks of the river, go for a swim, use the swinging rope to jump into the water, listen to music and just chat.
After we left, Ruvik drove us to the place where he teaches sailing on the Kinneret. He is a PE teacher for the local, private school that all the Kibbutzim in the area send their kids to. He has been teaching there for over thirty years. The grounds of the school itself are gorgeous. There are flowers all over the place and as you walk along the paths, you pass one-level buildings that serve as classrooms. There's a bomb-shelter, but, as he explained to us, when he was in school there, there was only a bunker that they used to jump into every time there was an air raid. It's so amazing that he went to the school and now teaches there. When we returned to the kibbutz, we met his wife, after which we took a bunch of communal bikes and rode around the Kibbutz. I'm forgetting something- an explanation of the Kibbutz we were staying on. Kibbutz Degania Bet is one of the oldest Kibbutzim in Israel. It is right next to Kibbutz Degania Aleph which is the oldest, I believe. Degania Bet turns 90 next year, Aleph 100. Ruvik's great grandfather was one of the first people to build the kibbutz. His grandparenet, parents, and he were all born on the kibbutz. Thus, the best place to observe the generations of the kibbutz, to get a feel of who lived there, was to visit the cemetary. He brought us to the graves of his great grandmother and grandfather to show us the difference between the two graves because his great grandfather was one of the first founders and his great grandmother came half a year later. The graves are labeled differently- the grave of his great grandfather said "one of the first founders of the kibbutz" and his great grandmother's just referred to the group of Halutzim (pioneers). We then showed us the grave of his father. It was amazing seeing three generations in the same place, which, I must say, is placed where you can see the most spectacular view of the valley where the Jordan used to run, which is now green, lush, and fertile. We continued biking through the kibbutz to the cow barn. He tried to give us a taste of fresh milk but the spout wasn't working. It's ok though, I got to see the cows being mechanically milked. They manually attach metal suckers to the udders and when the cows are done they follow a path along the barn by themselves because they know there is food awaiting them at the end.
Outside of the barn, we picked these delicious berries called "etz tutim" (tree strawberries) which look a bit like blackberries/raspberries but don't taste quite the same. We continued on, seeing the different houses of the kibbutz, passing through one of them where new houses are being built for people who want to live on the kibbutz but not become members. Apparently it's a new way for kibbutzim to make money because they can't make enough themselves. Times are definitely changing for kibbutzim.
We went back to Ruvik's house and relaxed until 7 and then walked over to the dining hall to have Shabbat dinner. We sat at a table with Ruvik's sister, her husband, her daughter and son-in law, their baby, and Ruvik's mother. Four generations at the same table! WOW. We enjoyed a good meal, chatting, after which we returned back to his house, relaxed a bit more, and then went to a local bar/restaurant on the Jordan, close to where we had been that afternoon to grab some drinks and talk. That was pretty much the rest of the night. We returned back to the kibbutz and I stayed up until 12:30 to register for classes (5:30 pm EST) and then hit the hay.
Today, Emily and I woked up at 11:30 and about fifteen minutes later we were on the road to the Golan Heights. Ruvik took us, with Amit at the wheel, through the Golan to the Golan heights where we got to see some of the most spectacular views of the Kinneret, Israel and Syria. Accompanying everything we passed and every lookout point we stopped at was an explanation of the history of the area and how it connected to the fight for the land. We passed by a valley in Syria where Ruvik pointed out one of the seven bridges that Hagana and the other groups who fought for the independence of Israel blew up so that no one could come in or out of Israel during the war of independence. They never repaired it. It's an interesting feeling driving on a winding road right next to the border of a country like Syria. There isn't a neon-colored line separating the two countries, no big tanks or men with guns, just a barbed wire fence with a bit of no-man's land in between. On the other side of the road were hills that are still covered in land mines.
It was getting late in the afternoon and we were getting hungry so Ruvik took us to his favorite falafel place in Masadeh, about an hour from where we were. The place was swamped with people but the food was delicious! Falafel, Lebaneh (soft goat cheese), pita, hummus, tehina, fulla beans, salad, and pickles. Mmmmmm Israeli food. Our next stop was a place I had been on birthright, which was an army base in the Golan heights from which you could see a large part of Syria. Ruvik and Amit pointed out the place where 12 Israeli tanks had defeated over 400 Syrian tanks during the Yom Kippur war. It was so important to defeat them where they had, because if they had failed, the Syrians had a direct route right down to the Galil with nothing to stop them. Amit pointed out one of the nearby Hills called Avital, which is the base for a lot of Israeli intelligence, but no one knows what goes on there. We continued on our little trip, Emily and I fell asleep in the car for a bit, and were woken up when we came to our last stop- the Northern part of the Jordan. After we got out and walked around a bit, we headed back to the Kibbutz and stopped at Glidat, the chocolaterie, named for the woman who started making chocolate on the Kibbutz. She learned in Belgium and brought it back to Israel. Emily and I got ice cream and I bought a sampling of chocolates to bring back to share with my friends here. I haven't tried any but I'm sure they're going to be delicious.
Over all it was a fantastic trip. Relaxing. Informational. I got to see a lot of what I'd seen before but from a new perspective. I would not mind coming to live on the kibbutz for a couple months, working, biking around, hiking, and just being with Ruvik and his family. It was nice meeting them and realizing who he is and where he comes from. It made me think of him differently.
That's all for now. My next update will be going back about a month now to Ultimate Peace. Mom, I know you're waiting for it. I promise, it's coming! (along with my Greece update)
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