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!
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
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