Day 1 – Thursday Dec 30:
After 24 hours of travel I am EXHAUSTED. I roll my luggage into my new little room and sleep for 9 hours…. waking to a dinner at Adam’s mother’s house, a beautiful apartment and an even more beautiful vegetarian dinner of: a bean and lentil salad, a green salad, a grain and vegetable soup, some delicious Israeli chicken substitute, and this vegetable dumpling amazingness. The dinner conversation was one of the state of Israel, its issues, its history, and possible resolutions. Believe it or not, the conversation was not for my education but, instead, was typical meal-talk here in Israel.
We followed dinner with a trip to an Israeli night-club party called Milk & Honey where some people are apparently turned away for not looking “cool enough.” We were not turned away, but were asked to pay to be cool – 30 shekels. The music was this awesome sensual, rhythmic vibe and I learned on this night that in Israel is totally acceptable to smoke in Israel. And the ash tray? The floor.
Day 2 – Friday Dec 31:
I woke up ready to take on this new country. Adam (my best friend that I live with) was off at work, and Gil (his partner) was studying, so Gil was nice enough to pull up a Google Map and show me how to get to the mall, an art walk, and the open-aire market (called the shook). He then handed me a key to the bike lock and sent me on my way.
And THIS is where the adventure really began! It was absolutely liberating to ride through the streets of this unknown city, alone in unchartered waters. I could not have loved it more if I was guided. Knowing only a few street names and being unable to read the signs on the stores, it was a trip full of exploration and analytical deduction (fun!).
For most of the trip I will have to make a video to really deliver the idea, but I will say that the open-aire market was the most incredible thing I have ever experienced. It’s basically a 12-block street full of open shops. Some of them are market-like, full of typical grocery items sold at a very low price. Others are simply stands full of the most colorful, delicious looking produce and herbs that you will ever see. The vendors shout out in Hebrew things like “POUND OF POTATOS 1 DOLLAR!! POUND OF ONIONS 2 DOLLARS!” Except that they’re speaking in liters and shekels.
The art-walk was equally as awesome. Blocks and blocks of artists with their personal artwork on display, most of which was deeply reflective of the culture and religion of the place. They were not pushy, but instead allowed you the space to stop and appreciate their work. There were also musicians and other street performers enjoying the opportunity to share their art. Their hats were full, indicating the deep appreciation of the art-walks participants.
This is something that I have noticed since I have been here. Getting on the bus to Jerusalem there was a deaf man with a sign indicating that he was collecting money for the hearing-impaired to buy hearing aids. I saw 5 people in front of me stop, read the note, and hand him shekels. The spirit of giving here, as far as I can tell, is very much alive.
Also at the shook I saw an adorable dog crossing a major street called Allenby in traffic, almost being hit by several cars. He was a medium-sized light-brown long-haired dog. He seemed scared and excited, and people were calling out to him but he did not stop. I noticed that when I whistled he seemed to have a slight reaction. I heard one woman nearby say, “What a stupid dog.” Apparently here in Tel Aviv it is normal to allow your dog to roam the streets… but most dogs no better than to run in front of cars.
I followed the dog for several blocks, being careful not to scare him into the street, and finally persuaded him to come and let me pet him. I picked him up and found an English-speaking person with a cell phone to call the owners who met me and took their dog with much excitement. This was a fun immersion exercise I made up! It also made me ridiculously home-sick for my dog, Swasi.
This was New Years Eve Day and Adam and I went out to the local hummus bar to celebrate where we ordered a DELICIOUS cucumber salad and all-you-can-eat warm hummus bowls. These are served with pita and a plate full of olives, pickles, chilies, and onions. Apparently onions are the typical hummus dip. Delicious!
New Years Eve night we went back to Sheila’s house (Adam’s mom) and her best friend was there with her two 12-year-old twins (a boy and a girl). These 12-year-olds proceeded to teach me the Hebrew alphabet, how to say it and write it in print and cursive. It was an amazing experience to be taught grammar and literacy by two young people. They sat for 2 hours and instructed me, carefully and patiently correcting throughout the lesson. Since then I have been practicing my alphabet every day through writing drills and attempting to read signs, which is great fun, especially when I read a word I recognize.
I think that’s enough for this day… New Years Eve was great fun! This city never sleeps.
Day 3 – Saturday Jan 1:
Spent the day inside, recovering from a glitter incident! L A tiny piece of glitter got under my eye-lid and scratched and scratched. I ended the night with an eye-patch that kept my eye from moving, because every movement was devastatingly painful. It was a miserable day.
Fortunately, my good friend Jordan who I haven’t spoken to for many years is now in Ukraine with the Peace Core! Ukraine happens to be in the same time zone as I am, so she and I stayed up until 5am celebrating jet-lag and catching up on 4 years of life. It was amazing!
Day 4 – Sunday Jan 2:
I awoke at 2:30pm with much confusion. This is the payment for hours of enjoyment in the middle of the night. I spent the day cleaning and unpacking… creating my own personal space in Israel. It is very cute and I love it. Pictures/ videos to follow.
This night we went out on the town and saw two separate concerts within a block of one another at really cool venues and walked to a few different night clubs. It’s amazing how accessible everything is for the lively pedestrian.
Day 5 – Monday Jan 3
Trip to Jerusalem! This is a city so densely packed and colorful. I cannot even begin to describe it the way my videos and pictures will. I biked into the middle of the city and had a highly-confusing post office experience. The bus station encounter was even more confusing, navigating through so many signs written in Hebrew. But I finally mounted the bus and paid my 34 shekels for a round trip ticket.
At the central bus station at Jerusalem I met my high school best friend, Ben, who I discovered to be in Israel my second day here (thank you Facebook). We took another bus which climbed up the hills of Jerusalem to the country’s best hospital, overlooking the entire valley. It was BEAUTIFUL!
We then climbed down into the forest where we foraged for mushrooms and other delicious herbs. Having been an organic farmer for 2 years and a gardener for one more, he is very familiar with the seasons and styles of all of the different plants, and educated me on the plant-life of Israel. A subject so far from my own typical interests, it was an intriguing and stimulating adventure. Also in the forest we found an old structure that looked like an ancient bath house. No signs. No huge to-do. Just the remains of ancient building. (so cool!)
Back in Jerusalem we went to a nice fish restaurant where I fell into a sleepy trance from the immense physical and mental labor of the day. I began to wonder how I would make it home… The 20 minute walk back to the bus station was all that I could handle before falling asleep for the hour-long bus ride back to Tel Aviv. But there’s nothing like a 20-minute bike ride home on a cold night in an unfamiliar city to wake you up!
Day 6 – Tuesday Jan 4:
And here we are, in today. While you all are just waking up its 7pm here.
I actually woke up incredibly homesick and second-guessing my decision to move sooo far away from my home, family, and friends. But, I quickly decided to do something different with my time.
So I spent the day working, creating a CV, looking for my Ulpan program (Hebrew-immersion program), and thinking generally about the logistics of the trip. I walked to a café nearby to have my first cup of coffee in a week (which was INCREDIBLE!). Such a delicious cappuccino. And soon I will be cooking dinner with Adam for a little dinner party!
Suffice it to say that what has so far been a grand adventure will only get grander…
