Tuesday August 30, 2011
Today we met up somewhat early 8:45am. I stumbled out of my bed around 8:20. We had a nice breakfast on the deck and discussed our plan for the day. Yesterday Lior went for a run and stumbled upon ancient Quessaria. We decided it would be a nice activity for the morning. We all filled up our water bottles. There are three of us, and we took four bottles, always prepared :). I wore such an Israeli hat from Lior, and the guys used stinky shirts like a kaffiah. (Pictures to come).
A bunch of sunscreen and water before we left...and we were off down the beach. It was a nice walk. We arrived at a private party on the beach, and their security guard told us in hebrew we could not pass. Very Israeli Lior retorted, "it's a beach, we don't want to go to your party." The security guy informed us that the beach is also behind us. Lior said "were walking on the beach this way". We continued along our way through their party, and up some fun rocks. Finall, (only about 15 minutes later) we arrived upon ancient Quessaria. A really great ruin. When we arrived we saw two tour groups, one with older people speaking perhaps Russian. Quickly we determined it was neither English nor Hebrew, therefore not for us. The other group had people who looked our age, and clearly American. We decided to join their group for free, without asking. It was quite entertaining! The group were Americans going to Tel Aviv University, English med school.
We took some entertaining pictures and then went on our way. We were supposed to have lunch with Yael, however, we think we passed on our bad train luck yesterday when we met her. Her car died, and could not meet us. Instead we had lunch here, and have been working on blogs and things of that nature. A nice productive day. The excitement is starting to grow, as it gets closer to our move to our house on Thursday.
As of now we have another roommate joining us Thursday, one Friday, one Sunday. Then we will still await the other two the following week. Irene definitely made a mess of peoples' travel plans.
Tuesday, August 30, 2011
Culture Shock
Monday August 29, 2011
We really accomplished so much, but I wanted to talk a little bit about the conversations we had as well. We really got a chance to speak a lot just the three of us. Brian was in Israel years ago when he was a young kid with his family. Basically Israel is a completely new experience in a new country for him. I don't know if I could take on the adventure he has. I think it is very impressive that he has made this choice. I have always said it would be more of a personal challenge for me to move from New York to California, then for me to move from New York to Israel. Some people find this to be shocking, but I believe it is the truth.
I have the language, whether I chose to use it constantly or not is a different story. I have no issues traveling alone in Israel. Also, I have a lot of family and friends, that I do not feel as if I am in a foreign country, I feel at home.
We spent the day teaching Brian some fun words in Hebrew. One of the first words was, "chofer", in English a digger...which we don't say. It was the first term to describe Lior, someone who likes to talk a lot. Let me clarify that it was not in a negative manner, but in a friendly and endearing one. I am just as much a "choferet" as he is a "chofer". I like to dig while I write these blog posts, much more detail than necessary. We also taught him "humus,tehina, salat, vchips" the quick standard extras to add in shwarma, shipudim, or falafel. We also reviewed the word Yalah, very important when we need to move quickly.
We are also making a list of foods that Brian will taste throughout the year.
Tel Aviv and Yaffo
Monday August 28, 2011
Today we had our first adventure into Tel Aviv. We took a short drive in Lior's car to the train station. Brian had his first lesson of buying train tickets and how the Israeli train system works. The main thing is to remember not to throw away your ticket. When you arrive at your stop you must use your card to exit the station. Not to say you are trapped if you lose the ticket. It just becomes more effort involved.
We had some time to sit and talk more about the program. Mostly we just asked Lior as many questions that we could think of... still trying to get an understanding of what the year might look like. Once our train arrived, we boarded and sat on the second level. Trains have two levels, top is better. The air conditioning on the train is always nice and refreshing.
The plan was to jump off at Bet Yehoshua and meet Yael the program director. When we approached the station, we pressed the button to open the door. To our surprise the door did not open. We quickly ran to the next car to press the button again on another door.
Again... the doors did not open. All of a sudden the train began to move, and we were still inside. It was quite amusing. You know in movies when people stand there awe struck as the train pulls away. That was us! Since we are on our more open schedule, with just the three of us together. The change in schedule was not a big deal. We were quite amused by the whole ordeal. We continued along to Azrieli station in Tel Aviv.
I was quite happy that was the station we chose, because I knew there is an Aroma in the mall. For any of those who do not know. Aroma is similar to Starbucks...but SO MUCH TASTIER! Lior said that he doesn't understand Americans' obsession with it. Even though he doesn't understand, he decided we should begin with a nice coffee. We were off in search of Aroma! To my surprise we could not find it. We decided to go to the very top level and enjoy a nice coffee from the random coffee place located there. It was nice...not Aroma standards, but it was fun. And obviously with our luck of the day we passed Aroma on our way out of the mall.
Then we took a taxi to HaBima (the Israeli National Theater). From there we walked down Rotschild Boulevard, through tent city. I experienced a bit of culture shock. Several nights before the beginnging of our program I joined my aunt and uncle at the social justice demonstration in Jerusalem. I was in quite awe of the numbers of people ranging in age joined together to stand up for the unfair conditions. People had brought couches, tents, beds, everything. It is really a true tent city. There are signs all over with different slogans discussing different unjust issues. As we walked along we had a very nice conversation about the Israeli government and people's concerns and issues at the moment.
Then we walked into where Israel became a state. We are going to go on a study tour at some point this year, so we just stopped in for a quick look. Then we continued to walk to the neighborhood Neve Tzedek. It is amazing how quickly the loud hustle of Tel Aviv life dissapastes when you walk into Neve Tzedek. It is a neighborhood that has been restored and is quite snobby. Nice expensive cafes, quiet streets, a nice world inside of Tel Aviv.
We found our way to the Suzan Dalal center. It was nice to read the information and take a short break from the wonderful sun and heat. Then we went to the tahana center, and saw a cool architectural exhibit of seniors in college. Finally we walked into yaffo to have some tasty lunch.
One very important thing Lior has taught us....water water water. You don't need to be thirsty, Lior says drink and you begin to drink. Let me explain that we do not walk around with small bottles of water. No our bottles carry 1.5 liters each. We didn't drink enough in the beginning, but we definitely made up for it! We even stopped along the coastline to take pictures of our water drinking skills!
After we were rehydrated we went to meet Lior's older brother. He works in a very interesting building. 300 years ago it was a "hamam" a Turkish bath house. Now it is a wedding hall. The architecture is very beautiful.
At last we took a nice quiet cab ride back to the train station. Before our stop we jumped off quick and met Yael the program director and Michal the leader of the group that will live in Akko. We spoke for a short while and then jumped back on the train to venture back to beautiful Quessaria.
We had some nice time to relax, ate some dinner, and began to be more productive toward our program. We worked on making a to do list of things before we move to our house in Rehovot on Thursday. It was a fun evening and pretty productive. It's nice that we are here already and can create some fun things for everyone who has yet to arrive. The best part is that neither Lior, Brian, or myself consider ourselves artistically inclined. However, I'm sure it's the intention that counts.
Finally we decided to get some sleep. I didn't realize how much we saw and walked until sitting to write it all down. We still have to teach Brian how to play shesh besh, it's on our list for tomorrow.
Today we had our first adventure into Tel Aviv. We took a short drive in Lior's car to the train station. Brian had his first lesson of buying train tickets and how the Israeli train system works. The main thing is to remember not to throw away your ticket. When you arrive at your stop you must use your card to exit the station. Not to say you are trapped if you lose the ticket. It just becomes more effort involved.
We had some time to sit and talk more about the program. Mostly we just asked Lior as many questions that we could think of... still trying to get an understanding of what the year might look like. Once our train arrived, we boarded and sat on the second level. Trains have two levels, top is better. The air conditioning on the train is always nice and refreshing.
The plan was to jump off at Bet Yehoshua and meet Yael the program director. When we approached the station, we pressed the button to open the door. To our surprise the door did not open. We quickly ran to the next car to press the button again on another door.
Again... the doors did not open. All of a sudden the train began to move, and we were still inside. It was quite amusing. You know in movies when people stand there awe struck as the train pulls away. That was us! Since we are on our more open schedule, with just the three of us together. The change in schedule was not a big deal. We were quite amused by the whole ordeal. We continued along to Azrieli station in Tel Aviv.
I was quite happy that was the station we chose, because I knew there is an Aroma in the mall. For any of those who do not know. Aroma is similar to Starbucks...but SO MUCH TASTIER! Lior said that he doesn't understand Americans' obsession with it. Even though he doesn't understand, he decided we should begin with a nice coffee. We were off in search of Aroma! To my surprise we could not find it. We decided to go to the very top level and enjoy a nice coffee from the random coffee place located there. It was nice...not Aroma standards, but it was fun. And obviously with our luck of the day we passed Aroma on our way out of the mall.
Then we took a taxi to HaBima (the Israeli National Theater). From there we walked down Rotschild Boulevard, through tent city. I experienced a bit of culture shock. Several nights before the beginnging of our program I joined my aunt and uncle at the social justice demonstration in Jerusalem. I was in quite awe of the numbers of people ranging in age joined together to stand up for the unfair conditions. People had brought couches, tents, beds, everything. It is really a true tent city. There are signs all over with different slogans discussing different unjust issues. As we walked along we had a very nice conversation about the Israeli government and people's concerns and issues at the moment.
Then we walked into where Israel became a state. We are going to go on a study tour at some point this year, so we just stopped in for a quick look. Then we continued to walk to the neighborhood Neve Tzedek. It is amazing how quickly the loud hustle of Tel Aviv life dissapastes when you walk into Neve Tzedek. It is a neighborhood that has been restored and is quite snobby. Nice expensive cafes, quiet streets, a nice world inside of Tel Aviv.
We found our way to the Suzan Dalal center. It was nice to read the information and take a short break from the wonderful sun and heat. Then we went to the tahana center, and saw a cool architectural exhibit of seniors in college. Finally we walked into yaffo to have some tasty lunch.
One very important thing Lior has taught us....water water water. You don't need to be thirsty, Lior says drink and you begin to drink. Let me explain that we do not walk around with small bottles of water. No our bottles carry 1.5 liters each. We didn't drink enough in the beginning, but we definitely made up for it! We even stopped along the coastline to take pictures of our water drinking skills!
After we were rehydrated we went to meet Lior's older brother. He works in a very interesting building. 300 years ago it was a "hamam" a Turkish bath house. Now it is a wedding hall. The architecture is very beautiful.
At last we took a nice quiet cab ride back to the train station. Before our stop we jumped off quick and met Yael the program director and Michal the leader of the group that will live in Akko. We spoke for a short while and then jumped back on the train to venture back to beautiful Quessaria.
We had some nice time to relax, ate some dinner, and began to be more productive toward our program. We worked on making a to do list of things before we move to our house in Rehovot on Thursday. It was a fun evening and pretty productive. It's nice that we are here already and can create some fun things for everyone who has yet to arrive. The best part is that neither Lior, Brian, or myself consider ourselves artistically inclined. However, I'm sure it's the intention that counts.
Finally we decided to get some sleep. I didn't realize how much we saw and walked until sitting to write it all down. We still have to teach Brian how to play shesh besh, it's on our list for tomorrow.
The Beginning
The original plan was for me to meet Lior and three people from the program at the airport. Although Hurricane Irene had other plans in store. Everyone's flights were completely cancelled and had not been rescheduled. Plans change quickly when a hurricane is involved. In the end I met, Yaron, and Brian at the airport. We had a large van drive us to our first seminar. Although, the other people weren't able to join us yet, we had a nice slow transition into our program.
The "hotel" is very beautiful. We are a very short walk from the beach, the amazing Mediterranean Sea! We spent the first night getting adjusted and learning about the original plan for the seminar was... We have a classroom with two air conditioners! Lior gave us an introduction to the year plan and then we had a nice dinner. Over dinner we decided it would be fun for Brian to experience Tel Aviv and see the tents of protest on Rothschild.
After dinner we watched the hilarious Simpsons episode when they journey to the Holy Land. After that we decided to watch the movie Blow. I forgot how amazing and intense of a movie it is, brilliant acting! After the movie we decided to have a late start the next morning to allow ourselves sometime to relax and take in this new experience. It was a wonderful informative beginning. I think this will become more clear once more people arrive and we are able to dive into our work.
The "hotel" is very beautiful. We are a very short walk from the beach, the amazing Mediterranean Sea! We spent the first night getting adjusted and learning about the original plan for the seminar was... We have a classroom with two air conditioners! Lior gave us an introduction to the year plan and then we had a nice dinner. Over dinner we decided it would be fun for Brian to experience Tel Aviv and see the tents of protest on Rothschild.
After dinner we watched the hilarious Simpsons episode when they journey to the Holy Land. After that we decided to watch the movie Blow. I forgot how amazing and intense of a movie it is, brilliant acting! After the movie we decided to have a late start the next morning to allow ourselves sometime to relax and take in this new experience. It was a wonderful informative beginning. I think this will become more clear once more people arrive and we are able to dive into our work.
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