Tel Aviv Bliss

!שלומ

The day after the hike I rallied to go to Tel Aviv with my friend Michelle. We got up bright and early, grabbed some fresh baked goods, and made our way to the train station.  When we arrived in Tel Aviv we walked through downtown and stopped at a cute bistro restaurant. It's one of the more famous in Israel, especially Tel Aviv. It 's called  Orna and Ella. I ordered these butternut squash pancakes and they were pretty much amazing. After our brunch we walked to the beach and strolled along the coast until we made it to Jaffa.

Old Jaffa was one of the biggest ports in Israel during earlier times and has some very pretty gardens and buildings that are built throughout the town. It was so relaxing to watch sailboats as they cruised by and to be able to walk around beautiful green alleyways. We stopped for some fro-yo (of course) and then went shopping through the Old Jaffa market. I put my bargaining to work and then was on my way to  the old train station.  It was rustic and beautiful. There were multiple photoshoots of wedding couples scattered throughout the area and it just added to the blissful state that defined the day.

We walked through the new Jaffa area, which was noticeably upper class. Boutique after boutique lined the alley and we stopped into an organic market for some smoothies. Mine was made with lettuce, it was surprisingly delicious. We then walked all the way through downtown Tel Aviv back to another train station. We were back in Haifa just in time for dinner and it was nothing short of a successful day.

In other news, recently within the past couple weeks, the American portion of the international school have been holding potlucks in our apartment. They have been total successes every time and it has almost become a tradition of sorts. This will definitely be something I miss when I leave.

The other night me, and a couple other friends hit up the movies here in Haifa. My first Israeli movie theatre experience was well,  the same as an American movie theatre experience. Except for the Hebrew commercials...

We saw the movie Drive  with  Ryan Gosling. It was one of the most awkward and weird movies I've ever seen but hey, it's Ryan Gosling, right?

Before the movie we went to this burger restaurant called Black Burger. It was trendy and really fancy. The food was delish. Oh, I forgot to mention  that in the movie theatres here they sell coffee and gelato as well as the normal movie foods.  I would be at the movies alot more often in America if they did that...

Tonight is the first night of Hanukkah. It's pretty cool being here to experience this. Did I mention the doughnuts? Yeah, well apparently it's a Hanukkah thing here. I've had 3 today. It's a problem. Presents aren't a big deal here either. Apparently it's an American tradition.

Happy Hanukkah!

!חג שמח

סטפני-

PARKOUR!

Parkour: a method of movement focused on moving around obstacles with speed and efficiency.

!שלומ

I'm still chuggin along trying to get this thing updated.

On December 2-3 I joined a group of the international students on a hike through Ein Gedi (aka the Judean Desert). It took us about  three or four hours to get there from Haifa. We were dropped off in the middle of the desert and as the bus faded into the dusty abyss, I felt like I was either on Lost  or in an action film gone terribly wrong. Funny enough, my and me other two friends, Haley and Chandler, wore the exact same colors (blue and black-COMPLETELY unplanned). Thus began our own episode of The Amazing Race. From here on out it was a competition of strength and the will to win and to live. Okay, so maybe not that intense but we did get two days jam packed with the hardest, most intricate parkour moves ever witnessed by man. 

Chandler kicked a rock, once.

I laughed for like an hour.

Anyway, with our  voices howling "PARKOUR" and our feet slipping on every rock in the desert we began our journey. Deserts may seem pretty lame but it was beautiful. It was the same desert Moses came through from Egypt. I can only imagine the crap he got when they realized the giant body of water located in the middle of the desert is the saltiest on earth. You win some, you lose some.

The first day we spent walking on tall plateaus overlooking the Dead Sea, or in Hebrew, ימ המלח   (Yam haMelach). The Dead Sea is gorgeous. It is a bright torqouise-green color that reminds you of the Caribbean. On the Israeli side (versus the Jordan side) you can see five star resorts along the coast , each with their own spa building. Apparently the Dead Sea helps aid people with rare skin disorders and people come from all over the world to get treatment. Pretty cool.  

After lunch we made our way down  (wayyyy down) to the lowest point on earth, The Dead Sea. Of course the first thing we did was get in the water. It was probably the weirdest thing I have ever experienced. You literally float completely above water. Like laying on your stomach is almost impossible due to the fact that your feet almost flip over you. It's impossible to touch the sea floor too. You can bounce and try and get momentum but right before you touch, you bounce back up. It was so surreal. After a series of funny pictures we got out and grabbed some food before heading on the bus to our next site.

We spent the night in a Bedouin tent. It wasn't a currently functioning tent but more of a model of what it would be like to be a Bedouin. It was pretty cool. We slept on little matresses on top of woven mats. It was unbelievably warm as well. We cooked out and then had a short shabbat dinner. Then we star-gazed. It was so cool to see every star in the sky. After a suprisingly comfortable sleep, I woke up early to watch the sun rise over the desert mountains. It was probably one of my favorite moments yet. That sun rise was stunning. God is so cool that he can make things that simple, yet so incredibly beautiful.

The next day of the hike was a sharp climb up a mountain. It was one of the most physically demanding hikes I've ever done but when we got to the top it was so worth it. The view was awesome! We then made our way down and around the moutain to a rift valley. Here, flash floods had cut through the mountain range and formed a cool smooth rocky canyon below. The rock was so smooth that at points we could literally slide down it. It was so much fun and it allowed us to really get going on our parkour moves.

Once we climbed out of the valley we made our way down to a tropical oasis. It was fed by a natural spring and was like walking into a completely different country. There was waterfall after waterfall and the smell was so fresh and clean. We saw rock badgers (they look like gophers) and Ibex's (mountain goats with massive horns). I'm thinking that's where they get shofar's from. After our relaxing afternoon we got back on the bus and headed to Haifa. It was an epic weekend full of unique experiences, and probably one of my favorite things I've done in Israel yet. 

Oh, I forgot to mention I had my first Israeli McDonald's meal. I got chicken selects and it was actually pretty darn amazing. The McFlurry wasn't too shabby either.

When we got back to the University we watched the SEC championship game. I love rallying for football here. It's funny being asked to explain football to an Israeli. I realize that a guy pushing other guys over to run into a giant rectangle is kinda dumb. But we love it anyway.

סטפני- 

Chi Five for Chaifa! (just add flem)

"Haifa, Haifa, Maccabi Shaylee!"

(that is a terrible transliteration)

A word on Israeli sports:

Football: In America, we say "soccer"

Basketball: Aka a tall Israeli or an American NBA fall out.

All the other teams don't matter.

For being such a tiny country, Israel is pretty rich with sports teams. Every city has one. Haifa's team is the Maccabi's. Our colors are green, black, and white and they sing a song similar to that of which is posted at the top of this page.

Up until now, I have attended two basketball games and one soccer game. Both sports were a blast! The basketball game was held in what looked like a highschool gymnasium, and the soccer stadium was proabably slightly bigger than the one at UF. Maybe...

However, if you ignore the twelve year olds dancing to Lady Gaga in outfits with less material than a loin cloth, it's an exciting and cultural experience. At both the soccer games and the basketball games they have large fan groups that wave flags around, dance, sing, and play giant drums. It's really cool.  The dynamic is just great and especially at the soccer game, it is fun to just stand up and scream, even if you have no idea what everyone around you is saying.

The soccer game was against Akko and we won! It was such a  great game. Saw two yellow cards and a red card. Welcome to Israeli sports. The basketball games have been great too. One of the games we played Tel Aviv and we went into overtime. I taught everyone around us the Gator Chomp when it came to 3-pointers. I can be sure that's why we won.

So if you ever get to Israel, grab your sunflower seeds, Goldstar or medicine-worthy "Capri-sun", paint your body green, and come cheer for Maccabi Haifa.

You'll be glad you did.

An Israeli Thanksgiving

Shalom! Ma Nishma?

(Hey, what's up?)

So...The next few posts are going to be a fast track of what I did over the past month...considering the fact that I never updated this thing. oops.

The night before Thanksgiving was my friend Chandler's 21st birthday.  She chose to celebrate at none other than the infamous Rak Basar restaurant in the German colony of Haifa. The name of the restaurant explains everything:

Just. Meat.

They have every type of meat you could ever imagine and you order it by the weight. This is rather complicated due to the fact that I don't think in kilograms but whatever. It was delicious. The second you walk in the door they hand you a glass of red wine and for five dollars more, you can drink unlimited throughout the night.  I enjoyed my first piece of Israeli cow and it was a great birthday celebration. The next  day was of course, Thanksgiving!

Now. Thanksgiving is probably my favorite holiday of the year (Don't judge me). While I knew it was going to fall short of my parent's amazing cooking, it was pretty fun. During the day, a group of the American international students and I played a game of "soccer" aka "anything goes but let's do something that resembles soccer." It was a blast, and we themed it nothing other than,  North vs. South. Everyone knows the South is the best. 

Because of the pure epicness of this occassion, it has now been turned into a Thursday tradition among the international school. Every week we theme it something different.

That evening I went to class. Now, this is clearly an American phenomenon. Class...on Thanksgiving...what?? However, somehow I made it through the class (only on the knowledge of the dinner-to-come). That night, as an international school, Americans and other students alike, joined together in a somewhat traditional Thanksgiving meal. I will give Israel props for trying hard to get it right. We had turkey, mashed potatoes (they were yellow, I mean...what?) green beans, bread, stuffing and apple pie. Now, the turkey was a little raw and it wasn't green bean casserole, but it was nice to get together and share a little piece of home.  I got to skype my family right as they were about to eat, and as much as I wanted to jump through the screen and eat their food, it was amazing to spend time with them on the holiday.  It was also Doug's birthday, and skyping him was just what I needed. Thanksgiving was a success here in Israel and I cannot wait to see how an Israeli Christmas will be like.

P.S: Israeli's have the hardest time pronouncing the "th" sound in English. It's quite funny.

-Stefani

The Beautiful Cross

Shalom!

The past couple weeks have been extremely emotional and spiritual. I went to Jerusalem for a day tour on the 13th and then came back the next weekend of the 18th-20th. I'm going to combine both experiences for the sake of simplicity. 

Jerusalem is a beautiful city located in the hills of Israel. It's on a mountain and during this time of year, it's pretty cold. I love it there though.

 It's an upbeat city (like all of them here) that has a sense of uneasiness about it.  Everywhere you look there is another pilgrimage group with their bright hats, fanny packs and scarves. The new city looks just like any other city in Israel but the Old City is truly unique. As you walk through the bullet-scarred walls you enter a completely different time period.  Cobble-stone streets laden with shops and historical sites. Everything is made of this particular white-ish stone and it brings a sense of community about the place. 

We made our first stop in the Jewish quarter of the city where we walked through King David's "tomb", and "the room of the last supper." I put quotations around them simply because they are traditional locations, and most likely aren't the historical location. However the location of the Last Supper is expected to be in the general vicinity of the room I walked through. Which is pretty cool. We then visited the Hurva Synagogue. This synagogue had been destroyed three times in the past wars. It now stands beautifully and has a great view of the Old City from the top.  

After lunch, aka an embarassing amount of falafel, we made our way to the Western Wall (Wailing Wall). This is the Western wall of what was the temple mount. This wall is considered the Holiest place in the world for Jews because it is the closest they can get to what once was the temple. Here you can see both women and men alike praying against the wall and placing their pre-written prayers in the cracks of the wall. The wall is literally overflowing with small pieces of paper. It's awesome to see. The wall is divided by gender, and it's sad to see that the woman's side is probably a third of the side of the men's.  The Dome of the Rock(where Muhammed is believed to have ascended to heaven on his night journey) is now located on the temple mount and is open to non-muslims only 2 hours a week.  We didn't make it to the temple mount but I definitely want to try and get there before I leave. The Dome is certainly a site to see for sure. We then went on a digital tour of what the temple mount may have looked like. The video was pretty cool, and then to bring it together we walked around the temple mount. Here we saw the remnants of the ancient marketplace and road and also saw remains of the Roman structures that were built near it. 

The end of this first tour took place at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. My first experience inside can only be described as conviction slapping me straight in the face. Walking up the hill of Calvary and standing next to where Jesus was crucified was nothing short of overwhelming. I couldn't help but tear up. The group we were with was mostly secular and historical and it was upsetting being guided in that way. I was more upset than anything that here, where Jesus sacrificed His life for us, people are leaving without ever hearing the gospel and they are seeing it purely as a tourist location to check off their list. The second visit was much lighter, don't worry.

I visited Jerusalem again, a week later. This was probably my favorite trip so far. Me and two of my friends made a weekend trip in order to do all the Christian sites that we missed the week prior. After the two-hour bus ride we arrived in the crazy Jerusalem bus station. If it gives you an idea of the security here, we had to put our bags through a metal detector (like at the airport) in order to get into the bus station. Intense.

Our first major stop in Jerusalem was to go right outside the Old City walls to a place named The City of David. Here we toured through an underground tunnel that was used to channel water into the city. We caught a glimpse of Hezekiah's tunnel on our way through. This is a water tunnel (the water can go past your knees) that flows under the city. It was too cold to do it, but one day I will. We got some cool views of the new city before heading back into the Old City. Here we grabbed lunch (falafel, again) and went shopping in the shuk. The shuk is huge and they have every thing you could ever want from Jerusalem. 

Being on a Friday, things started to shut down and we got out of the cold and rain in order to get ready for dinner. The pickings are slim on Shabbat, especially in Jerusalem, but we found a cute pasta place in the new city to have dinner at. It was dry, warm, and a lot of fun.

We walked through a shopping plaza on our way back to the hostel and it was truly nice to just enjoy being with friends in such an awesome place.

The next day was packed full. We woke up and grabbed some coffee at the only place we could find and then began our walk of the Via Dolorosa (Way of Grief). This is the traditional path that Jesus walked with the cross up to Golgotha. It was an indescribable experience walking that road. Every now and then you would see a group of Christians carrying a cross as they walked up. It was beautiful. At every location it was a constant reminder of how merciful God is and how much pain and suffering Jesus went through for us. I have pictures at every station except the 9th (we couldn't find it!) on my facebook. The second time in the Holy Church was a much better experience. I had time to reflect and pray and just felt alot better about everything while in there. We then walked through the Old City until we made it out to the main street. Here we walked across the way to the Mt. of Olives.  After walking through flooded dirty streets (we even saw a dead rat. gross.) we made it to the Church of all Nations. This is a beautiful church attached to the Garden of Gethsemane where is traditionally believed to be where Jesus prayed before being betrayed. After this we made our way up the mountain (literally) and stopped at the church of Dominus Flavit which is where  Jesus wept over the destruction of Jerusalem. On our way up the mountain we walked onto the cemetary on the Mt. of Olives. This cemetary is extremely important to the Jewish people and only important figures get buried here. Jesus will actually be coming back right above it!  

Drenched and cold, we finally made it to the top of the mountain and visited the Church of Ascension. This ex-mosque is the traditional location of where Jesus ascended to heaven. However, sadly it is down trodden and taken poorly care of. We even got kicked off the property by a guy who was trying to make us pay to visit it. (It was free). After a bus ride back to the Old City we shopped. We met a guy, who we now call "Dad" and spent about an hour in his woodshop learning about his family and his way of life. He was baptist, and got so excited when I told him I was as well. He even let us watch his shop for a little while, we told him we made him a millionare. That might've been a stretch..We also met a family of Arabs who owned a scarf/fabric/jewelry shop and spent a lot of time with them as well. Most of them had spent a decent time in the U.S so it was interesting getting their perspective. They taught us like ten different ways to wear a scarf and were just really fun to be around. Another guy we met along the way was Victor. He was an older man who had worked in the Israeli film industry and apparently is a millionare. He told us about his life and children and how he works in Jerusalem for fun because he is an artist. He sold my friend a plate for her mom and even gave her a free one because he was so nice. It's the moments like these that make Israel so amazing. After shopping we found a daint Arabic cookie shop in the Christian quarter. Here we were offered a free cookie, and ended up buying like ten more. They were delicious. I must get back there so I can bring cookies back to the states. When dark came, we went into the new city to eat at a cute cafe, did I mention it was warm?

The next morning we woke up really early in order to get a head start on the day. We visited the Wailing Wall again, placed a prayer in the cracks, and then made our way to the temple mount entrance. Unfortunately the line was much longer than we expected, and we couldn't get up on top. We then packed up, stopped for brunch at Aroma (a coffee shop here) and made our way to the Holocaust Museum.

If you want a humbling experience, this is the place to go. I don't think I have ever gotten extremely sad so quick in my life. The museum was made beautifully and each room was packed with artifacts and history. We were there for three hours and I could have been there at least twice that amount of time. Pictures weren't allowed inside, but I can tell you it's an emotional rollercoaster. From the shoes, to the gas cans, to the video testimonies of survivors, to the entire library of names upon names upon names of people who died. Video after video showed you the unimaginable, the unthinkable. Humans at their very worse. We watched a video of people throwing emaciated bodies on a truck and saw people getting shot into their own grave. It gives me chills just thinking about it. In the children's memorial there was a dark room where all you could see was blackness and all you could hear was the name and age of children who died. Surrounding the museum is a garden of trees planted in honor of victims, and then many memorials were set up for fighters and others who helped end the war. There was nothing like that experience. I can honestly say I will never be the same.

-Stefani

Knock knock. Who's there? Armageddon. Armageddon wh.....

Shalom!

So in the last post I completely forgot to mention Halloween. I had the exciting experience of celebrating Halloween in a Jewish country and it was awesome. A group of us international students got all dressed up and went to our favorite local bar The Irish House for a Halloween extravaganza. Irish House always has bogo wine and beer on Sundays and Mondays so we usually pick one of those days to get together as a group and go out. Halloween was conveniently on a Monday this year so it was perfect. There was face painting, Halloween decor, and costumes everywhere. Me and  four other friends dressed up as Lonely Island songs. I went as "Like a Boss." Some other featured were "Lazy Sunday", "Captain Jack Sparrow", "Dick in a box" (they wrote Richard Nixon inside a shoebox, pretty hilarious), and "I just had Sex." Lucky for me, I looked like a classy business women. Classy Halloween #forthewin.

First American Holiday in a foreign country = success

(I'm interested to see how Thanksgiving is going to turn out).

The rest of this post is going to take place on an adventure through the Galilee.

I went on a study tour of the Galilee on the 6th of November with some students at the University. The trip was to target contemporary Israeli issues but I just wanted to go really close to the West Bank and be around where Jesus grew up. We first passed through the Valley of Jezreel which contains the Valley of Megiddo. AKA where the end of the world will take place. Mt. Megiddo in Hebrew is Armageddon. So that's where the word we use is from. After our preview of the end of times we made our way to Mt. Gilboa. Here is where King Saul was defeated by the Philistines in 1 Samuel. It's also located extremely close to the West Bank. So, like any adventurous group of college students, we got as close as we could. Due to a barbed wire electric fence we couldn't get closer than like a mile from the border but it was still pretty cool being able to see into the West Bank. I may or may not be visiting for real in December.

 shhhh.

After we got down from Mt. Gilboa we made our way over to the Israeli/Jordan border.  Also known as the Jordan River Valley.  We stopped at a memorial site for 7 teens who were shot by a terrorist right near the border. It's sad that people can be so cruel. We were also like ten feet from the Jordan border (right next to the electric fence) but having been to Jordan already, I felt like a champ. I caught a glimpse of the Baptismal spot of Jesus on the way to Tiberias. It was through a bus window so it wasn't very clear, but I hope to go back to it soon. While in Tiberias we visited these heated water springs. They were steaming  in the crisp air and it was actually really cool. We then took a slight detour to see some ruins from an ancient synagogue. There was a huge mosaic on the floor that showed pictures of menorahs, Roman Gods, and a horoscope calendar. Apparently, it's a pretty big deal.

Next stop: food.

I enjoyed some falafel in a pita (topped with french fries and chicken nuggets (shnitzel)). It was delicious. And on the way out of the city, I couldn't help but drop 3 shekels (about 80 cents) on a massive powdered doughnut. SO worth it.

On our way to our next destination we passed by the beautiful Kineret (Sea of Galilee) and also by the Mt. of the Beatitudes.  It was so cool being able to actually picture the Sermon on the Mount. The next stop was an old Kibbutz where women were first allowed to work in the fields. It wasn't my cup of tea but it was interesting none the less. Our last stop on the tour was another pretty kibbutz that had a history in Israel's wars for independence. We went on top of a look-out that was dedicated to the owner's son who died in Lebanon. It was a sad but triumphant story and just another reminder to us of the terrible things that still happen here as Israel continues to fight for their rights as a state.

Stefani    

 

Who is Aviv and what was I supposed to Tel him?

Food Coma: (n.) The state of being so stuffed with calories that your body shuts down. May be paired with sudden paralysis, brain inactivity, lethargy, and an uncontrollable need to do absolutely nothing. Often leads to a state of "veggin out." (see: Max Brenner). 

Shalom!

The past few weeks I have been putting the "study" in study abroad. I was pretty sure those two words translated into "unending fun" and "vacation." I feel misled.

However, among the indefinite Hebrew lectures and eternity-long periods of Biblical Theology and Rabbinic Literature, I found relief. The first of these couple adventures is my trip to Tel Aviv. 

I got to ride on a train for the first time EVER and it was glorious. The rattling rails and  slightly-too-small isles had me reminiscing about , dare I say, Hogwarts? 

I'm still waiting for that letter.

Tel Aviv and Haifa are polar opposites. I once heard the saying: 

"Haifa Works, Jerusalem Prays & Tel Aviv Plays."

It's an accurate depiction.

Within the first hour my roommate lost her wallet.

We cheered to hope and optimism at a nearby wine bar. (I finally found a wine I like! It's a Reisling) 

The wallet has yet to be found, but the wine was just what three stressed out ladies needed.

The next morning was a glimpse of Heaven. Two Words: Max.Brenner.

It's basically a restaurant catered to women of the world, you guessed it. chocolate. I'm talking chocolate everything. I had a dark chocolate latte to drink with a waffle sundae (two waffles, two scoops of dark chocolate ice cream, carmelized bananas, chocolate syrup, a BEAKER full of hot fudge, whipped cream, and nuts). If you know me at all, you know I finished every last bite of that beast of a breakfast. When I had successfully put myself into a food coma (see above definition), it was time to beach it. The beach was nice, but I think Haifa's is better. We watched as windsurfers hovered in mid-air and took a well-needed time of reflection. Next to us was a guy carving an intricate sand-castle (and by sand castle I mean more like a nail looking statue). He was legit. He used a special utensil to carve it while his friend sprayed water over it to keep it moist. I wish I could've seen the end product.  

As we are walking off the beach I hear the sweet oh so angelic sound of nothing other than: the voice of a frat boy.

"Are they Americans? Dude! They haaavvee to be Americans!"

Was it that obvious?

Anyway, we stopped to humor these two lively characters and  found out that they were Americans too, surprise! Funny enough Ari Sagbag (yes his name was Sagbag) was from the same town as one of my friends. It's one small world.

Later that evening we took a nice trip to the police station. First police station experience ever, and it was in Israel. Pretty awesome. Don't worry, it was to try and get information on my roomate's wallet. Lame story, yeah I know. After the police station we went to a nearby pub and had one of the best dinners since I've been here. The bar was really chill and everything was perfect. They served us pasta as an appetizer (FO FREE) and  the food was great. If my future plans fall through (haha what future plans?) me , Chandler and Haley have some pretty legit ideas about a cool bar we could start up. Thanks Tel Aviv!

The food part of this story (let's be honest, the best part of this story) met it's awesome end with some good ole fro-yo  AKA my addiction.  The place was super cute and we got to swing on swings...inside a buiding...while eating fro-yo. 

I know  you are jealous.

Later in the evening we and a group of awesome girls from the international school went to a club at the Tel Aviv port. What's interesting about this is that all the clubs are in old warehouses, so as you are walking around the port everything just looks like an industrial area. Don't be fooled, it's not. After an insane amount of unnecessary pushing and shoving (nothing about this country is organized, except maybe their army) we got in and had a blast dancing to a great mix of American and Israeli remixes. 

The next morning breakfast was served on the beach. Me and Chandler shared a massive breakfast of bread, toppings, and an omelet. sooo gooood. After this we made our way to the Tel Aviv Museum of Art. It was pretty interesting seeing the old and modern forms of art expressed in Israel. It was like getting the all-around experience. There was everything from Israeli artists to Picasso to contemporary art. They had these awesome programs where you would stand in front of it and it would paint you with either sketch or oils. It was the bomb dot com. After visiting the main museum we made our way to an off-campus site where the museum was featuring street art of Israel. This exhibit was probably my favorite. Everything had so much passion and emotion.  You could feel the pain and triumph of this country by looking at how the locals express themselves. I was sincerely moved and impressed. It was nothing like the negative conotation graffiti gets in the U.S.  The experience was truly unique.

After a quick lunch/dinner/linner? at an artsy sandwich shop we made it back...to none other than...Max Brenner.

It's sad and pathetic but you don't understand till you have been there. Judge all you want, I'm not ashamed.

I ordered a dessert called chocolate pizza and it was decadent. (dough with chocolate sauce, and melted chocolate pieces). 

I will never forget you, Max Brenner.

After once again returning to a food coma we made our way to the train station. After a relaxing ride on the train we made it back to Haifa and eventually back to the University. My first taste of Tel Aviv was stressful but exciting. I cannot wait to go back and explore more!

-Stefani

     

#ancientworldproblems

SHALOM!

Two posts in one night? I am on a roll!  Procrastination overwhelms my life. 

So after my hike through the Northern Galilee I went on a trip to Jordan with four other girls. We left Haifa for Nazareth and after a failed attempt of bartering for a decent taxi price we made it to the bus station with large holes in our pockets. Nazareth was nothing like what I had imagined it would be. It was crowded and dirty and had an Arab majority. Apparently only 45% of the people there are Christian. We did drive by the Church of the Annunciation, which is said to be the location Mary met the angel Gabriel. That was pretty cool. I would like to go inside and see it. Hopefully I can make it there before I leave.

Passport? Check.

Money? Check.

Ipod? Check.

Ice cream for breakfast? Check?....

In case you were wondering, ice cream for breakfast is delicious. Don't judge. The bus ride to Amman, Jordan was about 5 hours. This includes multiple Chinese firedrills around the bus to cross the Israeli-Jordan border. When we got into Amman we managed to make it alive to our hostel after sitting through an hour of straight traffic and honking. I thought Israel was bad. There are literally no traffic laws in Jordan. None. I think we might've seen one or two stoplights. It was probably one of the most insane driving experiences I have ever had. And it was only the beginning. The people at the hostel were so so nice. If you ever want to go to Jordan stay at the Abbasi Palace Hotel. After a complementary cup of tea (or coffee if you can handle it) we went out on the town. 

A couple notes on Jordan:

1. Where are all the women?  Not out, that's where.

2. Dress like a saint. Or as close as possible.  (Put the ankles and shoulders away!)

3.  Tell the taxi driver what you will pay. In Jordan it works. In Israel they kick you out.

4. Eat whatever you find in front of you. You will be surprised what tastes amazing.

The night was spent eating at a local restaurant (I had lamb and rice inside a pastry with a dipping yogurt) and visiting the Roman theatre nearby. It was awesome. Apparently early Christians would sneak into the theatre and hold services when the Romans weren't nearby.

We woke up to the sound of the calling of prayer and made our way to the bus station. We loaded up on the bus and made our way out of town before the sun was even up.

Petra is in the middle of the desert.

I had never seen that much sand before. Petra is one of the wonders of the world and is located outside of the town Wadi Rum. We spent the entire day roaming through the stone city. It was nothing I had ever seen before, nor will see anywhere else. Imagine an entire town carved out of stone. Giant slabs of stone. In order to get to the city you have to walk through The Siq. This is a giant canyon of red stone that towers over you that is created by nothing other than natural forces. No water involved. Water canals were carved in it to serve water to what was the ancient community. Bedouin people now inhabit Petra and I definitely had my fair share of offers for rides in a "nice air conditioned taxi" (aka a horse or donkey). I wish I could describe the experience but the only word I can think of is awe. I could barely take it in. The amount of work and history that resides in the monuments of Petra is massive. My outstanding moment in Petra was definitely riding a camel.

After the initial fear of falling off  while the camel gets up and down it's easy riding. They are oddly graceful animals. I also got to ride a donkey. I felt terrible taking it up a huge mountain. They are working animals, but still. After staying in Petra for the sunset we left and ate a hearty dinner at the Cave Bar. It is literally as it sounds. It was a bar made out of an ancient cave. The food was delicious. We spent the night at another great hostel and then left Petra in the afternoon to go back to Amman.  

The second time in Amman was less of a culture shock. We made it back in the late afternoon and decided to eat dinner at the most famous shawarma joint in the world. It's called Reem. The king and queen of Jordan eat there! It was delicious and only one Jordanian dinar! ($1.50). Fatty had two (don't judge me). Then we found the local dessert shop and I tried an Amman favorite. It was melted cheese with caramelized sugar and pistachios on top. It doesn't sound good, but it was amazing.

The next morning we attended a Turkish Bath. It is basically a day spa. They gave us massages, let us sit in the steam room, sauna,  hot tub and scrubbed off all our dead skin. It was definitely worth the invasive technique they used. That afternoon we  left Amman to go back to Israel. I bought a Jordanian scarf as my souvenir. 

Israeli customs doesn't like me.

I was stopped at the border (again) and they legit checked me for weapons. I'm saying hands on searching (and not the mediocre kind like in America. I'm talking jail style) and  metal detection. Sometimes I think they do it because they are bored.

All in all, we made it back to the University in one piece and I had a blast in Jordan. The trip was way smoother than I even imagined. 

Did I mention I ate Jordanian McDonalds? They have a menu item called a McArabia. I got a cheeseburger (can't have them in Israel).  It was a little different, but still delicious. 

If a Bedouin invites you to a bbq in the middle of Petra (nothing nearby), it's probably in your best interest to say 'no.'

Did I also mention that riddles from Arabs are way funnier than American ones?

(Oh the life of a study abroad student)

Stefani

Savior, He can move the mountains. Me? I just climb them.

Shalom Chaverim!

(Hello friends!)

I have  been terrible at updating this. So we are going to do a fast track  of what I have been up to in the past couple weeks. This post is going to cover my 3-day hike to the Sea of Galilee. I have officially been in Israel for almost a month (man, time flies!) and other then all the people I love in artzot habrit (The U.S.) I really don't miss  the states that much. If you have ever been to Israel, you know what I mean. There is like a  natural pull of the soul to be here. Luckily for my soul, I'm not going anywhere just yet. Not a moment goes by that I don't see God's hand print on this nation. 

Israel eretz yefa.

(The country Israel is beautiful).

Unfortunately, the 11-day Sukkot holiday break is over and now I have to return to the real world of getting a college education. But in honor of my lack of productivity in anything school - related let's go back in time to my YAM el YAM hike (Literally, Sea to Sea).It all started on a hiking trail about an hour-ish North of Haifa.  Here, 35 students joined me on what would turn out to be a very rewarding yet exhausting trip.  If I could sum it up in two words : organized chaos.  We marched through the mountains (they might be hills, I'm not sure. I'm a Florida girl.  If it's above sea level, it's a mountain) and saw a part of Israel that can only be seen by being completely immersed in it. We camped underneath the stars bare-bag-on-dirt and lived off of dried fruit, nuts, and peanut butter. We hiked through creeks, springs, forests, and even climbed a few cliffs. The scenery was like an oasis in a desert.  There was a point on the trip where we could see the border of Lebanon. It's hard to miss the bare sand of Lebanon when it's against the lush green vegetation of Israel. The guide (oddly enough named  Israel) told us that it's because Lebanon doesn't have laws regulating overgrazing. However,  my reasoning is because Israel is the chosen land of God's people. He could make it however he wanted and it's no surprise to me that the fertility and beauty of Israel beats any of it's neighbors by a ten-fold. 

Can you tell I'm in love? 

Anyway, we hiked up the largest peak West of the Jordan River and the views were phenomenal. We also visited a Druse Prophet (a small religion prominent in the Northern Galil) grave site and  the ruins of a Crusader castle.  The Northern Galilee was probably everything I could have wanted it to be. I'm  jealous Jesus got to spend so much time there.

Then there was the  Sea of Galilee.

It was an amazing feeling to finally get to our destination after 3 long days of hiking. The sea is relatively large and surrounded by mountains. Tiberius (the newer version, not the one from the bible) is located on the water and it  was hard to believe  a multitude of miracles happened there.  The water was cold and murky and the geographic location was perfect for a storm. Based on the boats they were using I'd be scared to get out and walk on water too. Speaking of walking on water, 

I tried. I failed.

(I wasn't on my A game.)

I'm glad I got to experience Israel on that level. It felt real and as tacky as it sounds I felt as though Jesus was walking beside me. Showing me the land as He knew it. The land He grew up on. Jesus spent three years in Tiberius and part of His ministry was done in the Galilee. I'm still getting used to being where He grew up.

The rest of my trip took place in the country of Jordan. 

Stay tuned.

In the words of my  Turkish neighbor, "Why would you go live outside for three days? Don't you know we worked for 2000 years to get hot water and electricity?" 

At about the 2nd day, I couldn't have agreed more.

But after I am risen again, I will go before you into Galilee.

Matthew 26:32

Stefani

Let Go of My Akko!

Shalom!

I'm going to get better at posting on this, I promise!

So much has happened since Friday...I can't believe I've already been here for a week and a half. I'm loving it! I thought I would do my posts as they would be in Hebrew which is from RIGHT to LEFT. Odd huh? Now you know how I feel.

Holla out to my fellow left-handers : The school supplies here put the spiral on the right side, AKA easier to write without the spiral thing bumping into your hand. My conclusion? God was left handed. 

He is perfect after all.

Saturday (Shabbat)

As you might remember from my Jewish culture lesson: Friday and Saturday this past week were  part of the Jewish holiday Yom Kippur. This means there is nothing going on in the town. On Saturday morning, me and a couple friends decided to have a cultural experience at the local reform synagogue. We walked (no transportation, remember?) about two miles to the synagogue and sat through part of the service (it went all the way to 6 at night!). It was in all Hebrew so I didn't understand a word of it. But it was pretty cool because the rabbi invited all the international students (us) up to stand next to him while he read/sang  the Torah portion. It was exciting being so close to it. Around sundown I went on a hike with a couple students to the  Carmel National Park which is right next to the university. As we walked up to the trail entrance, we were overcome with the intricate sounds of modern Arabic music and the smell of what I want to think is hookah smoke, but in reality was more like that of a green leafy species found common in the U.S. The trail wraps around Mt. Carmel and the sunset from the park is phenomenal. The return to the university was driven by an instinct so strong it can only be considered part of my being: college football (more importantly, GATOR FOOTBALL). Some of the students here from UF joined me to watch the game on my laptop. Sadly the luck wasn't in our favor but "in all kinds of  weather we all stick together." The gator nation really is everywhere!

Sunday (Yom Rishon)

I spent all day Sunday in a city just north of Haifa named Akko (AHH-koh). This city is rich in history even back as far as Paul's missionary journey. Most of what I experienced was from the Crusader period (not the proudest part of Christian history, but nonetheless) . We stopped first at the founding site of the Baha'i religion (they just love their elaborate gardens) and it really was breath taking. We then ventured to the Old City of Akko where we ate probably one of the top 10 best meals of my life at a fancy, yet humble Arab restaurant. We ended up with 11 toppings on our table for our pitas with a salad and french fries. And that's just the appetizer! We were brought a platter of meat fit for a king with sausage, chicken breast, chicken cutlets, and beef liver. It was all delicious and I even tried liver for the first time. I'm not sure I will ever forget the consistency of that. I tried Arabic coffee as well. It's definitely got a kick! You have to sip it slowly, that's how strong it is. We then traveled under the city through a series of tunnels that the Crusader's once used to get around. On the other side we wandered into a beautiful Arab market that hosted a variety of products from scarves to hookahs to spices and veggies to even bootleg movies and cd's.  It was probably one of the coolest cultural experiences I've had so far. After the market we made it to the Crusader fort. It is a large fort built during the Crusader period that was eventually sacked by the Persians and buried underground. Interestingly enough, parts of it still haven't been excavated.  We crawled through the sewage/escape tunnels (it's a good thing I didn't have dessert) and made our way out of the city after trying some good ole Israeli ice cream. 

Monday (Yom Sheni)

After an eventful  holiday weekend it was back to class. I'm getting more confident in my  Hebrew and I can say it's probably my favorite class. Monday was uneventful for the most part. However, we have adopted a tiny kitten (it has a new name every day) that was found downtown abandoned by it's mother. We have nursed it back to health and it loves being around our dorm. It's pretty much the cutest thing ever, other than my cat Zoe back home.  I'm calling it Armageddon.

Tuesday (Yom Shlishi)

A couple fun facts for today:

1. The toilet paper here has hearts on it. Talk about a great bathroom experience.

2. No corn syrup. What does this mean? Coke = delicious.

3. "Throw up" in Japanese = gurrrrrraaaaa. I have no idea how to spell it, but that's what the word sounds like. (the context wasn't as bad as you think).

Today was spent in class and I have officially spent 3 hours contemplating the problem of whether or not Adam and Eve had children before or after they sinned. (Thanks Rabbinic Literature!) I enjoyed a relaxing afternoon and attended an open mic event held for the international students this evening. It was fun and I've probably had my fair share of free pita and hummus for awhile.Tomorrow will be spent at the shores of the beautiful Mediterranean. It is my goal to come back to the states looking Israeli. (I still working on ze accent). I officially have a break off of school till the 24th of the month. I swear Israeli's  don't actually study. It is a study break due to the Jewish Sukkot holiday (It's not really celebrated too heavily in the United States). 

  

So the whole shorter post thing was kind of an exaggeration...if this bothers you try the following exercise: Stare at the nearest 5 pound book (this could be a bible, encyclopedia, biology text book etc...)  and then stare at my blog post. I know, I know, you feel like a new person. I'll be here all night.

If you want  a visual experience of Israel check out my facebook!

Deal Reached to Free Israeli Soldier

V'ahavta et Adonai Elohecha, B'chol L'vav'cha, Uv'chol Naf'sh'cha, Uv'chol Modecha.

Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength.

-Stefani

A Dog On The Roof & A Cat Named "Moo"

Shalom!

So I have officially been in the Holy Land for six days. Haifa is beautiful! Where to start?

    Let's try the beginning. 

   

      I left on October 1st from Tampa to the city of Philly where I would catch the second leg of my trip to Tel Aviv. Philly was gloomy but nothing could  dim my excitement. As I wandered through the airport searching for the perfect Philly Cheese steak and the gate to my flight, I approached what looked like a security checkpoint. To my surprise, it was a flight gate! Not just any, but mine. Complete with high walls, security, and metal detectors. Israel is what I like to call, "All talk, and all action." The 11 hour flight to Tel Aviv was ironically, a flight to hell. What started out as a perfect seating situation (Nobody next to me, YES!) turned into two people next to me (Mother and child) and a motion sick man in the row right by mine. Praise the Lord for earphones! 

    

     Tel Aviv was beautiful (There's a pattern here...) and once I found the sherut (group taxi) all that was left between me and Haifa was two hours of crazy driving and beautiful countryside. Now, by 'crazy driving' I don't mean Gainesville on a game day or downtown Miami or even (to my astonishment), Orlando. I'm talking no speed limit, oneinchfromeachother, horn blaring, lights flashing, swerving turns, leaving-the-seat driving. This was nothing short of insane. I did reach Haifa (alive) and settled in with my 5 other roommates. Four Americans, one German. However, we are visited every day multiple times by a mother cat named "Moo". Named so by her black and white coat. She is so sweet and will even come inside our apartment. 

     The first night we were invited by our madrichim (social coordinators) to explore the night life of Haifa. We took the bus downtown-ish to a pub. After finding an English menu, and meeting our cute waitress (whose favorite English word is "Appetizers"..as we found out) we ordered a pizza (Yes, my first meal in Israel was pizza) and an Israeli beer. The drinking age here is 18, and for trying beer for the first time in my life it was actually pretty good. It was fun getting to know some of the other students over a meal and to my surprise, the International School here currently represents: Germany, USA, Czech Republic, Ukraine, China, Japan, Cambodia, Romania, Canada, and a few more. So cool!

     Day two: Monday: Woke up to orientation alllllll daaaaaayyyyy. Luckily, the weather was AMAZING. No humidity + sun + 70 degrees = heaven?!? Later that day we went on a tour of the city. We visited the Baha'i Gardens (briefly), got food at the shuk (an outdoor market- kinda like the one in Aladdin), ate free homemade falafel, bought like ten pounds of baklava from an Arabic dessert shop, visited an old monastery that is built over a graveyard, saw a dog lying on the roof of a house (yes, a roof), and watched the sunset over Elijah's cave. Literally, the Prophet Elijah stayed in a cave right by where I was standing. I didn't get to see it, but I will. 

     Day three: Tuesday: AKA the first day of class. So to make a long story short, I can't read Hebrew. The University is in all Hebrew. It is hard to find your class when everything is in Hebrew. Got lost. Way lost. Missed class. Embarrassment. Bad start of the day. However, my roommate and I re-visited the shuk after getting lost on the bus (it's an inconvenient pattern I'm seeing) and got more food for the week. Now, let me clarify something. Food here is like this: Bread, Pita, Hummus (correct pronunciation, America: hoomoos), and Vegetables. I have recently branched out into the realm of cereal, peanut butter and mac n cheese (the brand here is called 'Wacky Mac'-rather humorous). Then in the evening we as an International School, probably about 70 of us, got together and did team building games for fun.

    Day four: Wednesday: Class was much easier to find and I began my studies in Hebrew! The classes here are extremely long (2-3 hours). Lame! But at least there is always a great view out of the nearest window. The University of Haifa is pretty much the "cherry on top" of Mt. Carmel. It's high up. After a brief meeting about hiking trips in the afternoon, (I will be hiking from the Mediterranean Sea to the Sea of Galilee next week. Yes! The Sea of Galilee! SO PUMPED) we visited the mall. It's pretty much legit. Three stories of stores and food for pretty decent prices. Too bad I don't have room in my suitcase for new clothes. More updates on the hike to come, if I walk on water...I'll let you know. 

    Day five: Thursday: Class. Class. Class.    Alefbetvetgimeldaletheyvavzayinchettetyodkafkhaflamedmemnunsamechayinpeyfeytzadikkoofreyshshinsintav.

     You just learned the Hebrew alef bet. After class and dinner a group of students and I met  up and went to an Israeli club named Loft. It was so fun! Israeli clubs are way more fun than American clubs and it was a fun experience being able to sing all the American songs with the Israelis and other international students. The bus ride home however, was a freak show! Picture this: 40 people packed on a bus. One homeless guy violently banging on the bus windows so we will pay his fare. One drunk guy puking all over the floor and it dripping towards the back of the bus. Four guys spitting sunflower seeds all over the bus and screaming at other passengers. The bus driver finally lets the homeless guy in, and then five minutes into the ride, all of the homeless guy's stuff flies everywhere and just adds to the excitement of the ride home. A kind Israeli citizen looks at us and says "Please do not think this represents the country. It is usually not like this. This is a freak show!" Well said my friend. Well said. 

   Day six: Friday. Today. Sabbath. Shabbat. Etc.

         Today I didn't have class and never will on a Friday while I'm here. In Israel, Friday's aren't work days. They are considered a weekend day. However Sunday is not. Sunday is considered a week day and the first day of the week at that. So we as students get to take advantage of the best of both worlds and have three day weekends every week. Today is the beginning of the two day holiday of Yom Kippur. It's a high holy day for the Jewish religion and is a day of asking God for forgiveness of your sins and fasting in order to be nearer to Him. Pretty beautiful, actually. The whole country shuts down after the sun sets. To fill in the little amount of time we had today to utilize the public transportation (it shuts down early on Fridays & especially Yom Kippur) we went to the beach. It's beautiful! The sand is soft and brown and the water is a bright clear blue. The Mediterranean Sea is just gorgeous. Tonight I am joining in on the festivities of Yom Kippur and fasting water and food till tomorrow at sun down. Since the sun has set there has not been one car on the interstate (that was almost 4 hours ago). It's crazy the dedication they have to holidays in this country. Sometimes I wish America was like that. 

g'mar chatima tova

May you be sealed in the book of life

Traditional Yom Kippur Salutation

Stefani

1. Learn more about Yom Kippur!
2. My school abroad!