The trip to the Galilee was a great success. To begin, we paired up and set off into canoes down the Jordan River. Provided with a game in Hebrew, usually given to young children, we quickly became frustrated with our lack of Hebrew animal vocabulary and focused solely on powering down the river. I must say that I chose my partners wisely- Tiffany did a fabulous job steering our canoe away from stationary objects and I did my best, with my little arms, to power the boat forward. After canoeing and indulging in delicious dates and tea, the pack headed off to the Kineret with our loyal guide, Rayut. Rayut explained to us the challenges currently facing the Kinerret and the current state of Israel's water supply (or lack there of- I consider not taking a shower a benefit to the current water condition). We then loaded back into the cars and drove into Tsfat. Unfortunately the time was nearing the start of Shabbat and the village of Tsfat quickly shut down. I, of course, found enough time to locate the nearest ice cream store and treat myself before the start of the holiday. When we arrived in Tsfat it looked somewhat lively, but in a matter of minutes people headed into their homes, closed the windows, and prepared to welcome the Sabbath. Walking through the cobblestone streets, my nose was bombarded with the delicious smells of fresh challah and home-cooked dinners. There is currently a great cultural clash in Tsfat, especially with the recent release of the rabbinical letter denoting the prohibition of renting apartments to Arabs (imagine that, another cultural conflict in Israel...).
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| The group during the hike. |
Leaving Tsfat, we drove to the close communal community of Ma'ale Tzviya where I assumed my position in the kitchen to help with the preparation of dinner. A lot of rice, lentils, and vegetables later we were ready to serve lentil curry to the rest of the group. The dinner, accompanied by delicious homemade bubka definitely filled my void for a home-cooked dinner. After the meal and a possible unbuttoning of the pants, we sat around the table doing our best to sing all of the songs from Rent and any other disney movies we remembered- you are never too old to sing Disney. Free of our sleeping bags, we all snuggled into beds throughout the guest houses of the commune and succumbed to slumber. Despite the comfiness, I was still woken up by the extreme rain storm that passed through at around 5 am. This may have something to do with the fact that I woke up 5 minutes before I had to be at breakfast, but I must say, Sara and I moved faster than I have ever seen to make it to breakfast only a few minutes late. Even with the extreme rain, we voted on proceeding with the hike for the day. This may have been the best hike so far. Descending deep into the valley below the ruins of the Montfort Crusader Castle, we were ready for all nature had to offer. Some of us simply took out our rain jackets at the first sign of rain, and others decided to be a little more crafty with trash bags. Either way, we continued on the hike. The rain brought out the most beautiful colors in the leaves that cascaded along the path. My hiking shoes are still flinging mud everywhere- that's how you know the hike was successful.
Back in Tel Aviv, I have been volunteering more at Save a Child's Heart. If you have suspected already, I have become somewhat obsessed with SACH and I love spending time there. I have a new friend Kenny, who is from Ghana, and his mother Lillian. The other day I went on one of my days off and brought Lillian a bunch of People magazines to read. It was so nice to sit there with here and comment on celebrities and of course one of the issues I happened to bring was the sexiest man alive. It's often hard for the mothers to be in the SACH house because they have no life there. As much as I love spending time with the kids, it's really nice to talk with the mothers and give them somewhat of a mental break. I know I mentioned that I signed up for my first half marathon and I have decided to raise money for SACH. Details will soon follow.
The organization with which I teach English is currently moving locations and they were unsure of the availability of teaching space so I have begun teaching at Mustafa's house. If you remember, Mustafa was one of my favorite students who tried to convince me he was 20, when we all knew he was 50. Along with teaching Mustafa I also teach one of his roommates, Maria. Maria is 28 from Senegal and lives in the room next to Mustafa with her husband and adorable 6 month old baby Fatima. I have a lot of fun teaching the two of them and Mustafa's great smile always makes for a great atmosphere. The other day I went over there to teach and as I was about to leave Mustafa put a box of dates on the table saying that they were for me! It must have been the conversation on fruit we had the week before, where I'm sure I told them of my addiction to dates, but it was a really touching moment when Mustafa gave them to me. Sometimes I am not sure of how much he comprehends, but I know he is working hard and is really appreciative of the fact that I go to his house to teach.
The refugee situation in Israel is escalating and there are a lot of protests against Africans, often being led from the street that I live on. I live in an extremely religious neighborhood with people who are not aware of the situation, although they act as though they know the details. My neighbors are threatened by different peoples and have made it very clear that they will not rent to them. It has been a struggle to live here, knowing that my neighbors are the ones opposing these refugees.
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| Jerusalem |
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| Bethlehem |
Taking a break from the city, my roommate and I hopped into a sherut headed towards Jerusalem. Anna and I spent the day walking through the amazing market of Jerusalem and heading into the gates of the old city. I had been in the old city during the first few weeks I was in Israel, but because of Yom Kippur I was unable to get anywhere near the wall. Armed with a pen and paper, and of course the note Francine entrusted to me, I walked down to the Western Wall. It is unbelievable how many notes are stuffed into the wall, but I did my best to find room for mine as well as Francine's. It is rumored that the fallen notes are merely swept away, but regardless I'm sure the man upstairs reads them. Leaving the wall Anna and I headed toward Damascus gate to meet one of friends. Well... we tried to head toward the gate, but we definitely got lost a few times in the Arab quarter. I definitely saw the same remote control kiosk about three times, but we ultimately made it. The three of us hopped on the 21 bus out of Jerusalem to be dropped off in Bethlehem. It was such a strange experience to just hop on a bus in Jerusalem and drive into Bethlehem. It was going from Worcester to Holden, except here we were going from Jerusalem into the territories. Sitting in the bus, I looked up to the christmas light- lined streets of Bethlehem. Oh yes, I forgot to mention the fact that the reason for the trip to Bethlehem was because it was Christmas Eve. After a quick dinner of 5 shek falafel, we walked into the main square of Bethlehem, next to the Church of Nativity. Thousands of people congregated in the square to listen to Arabic versions of our favorite Christmas songs and of course to see the President, Mahmoud Abbas- who is not a very supported person in the West Bank. The majority of the crowd being men, I was asked a few too many times if I was Arabic. By the end, it became a joke between my friends and I how many people would ask my nationality. I'm guessing it was because of the lack of woman and the sight of a new face. Nonetheless, it was a very interesting and fun evening, but I was definitely ready to get on the bus back to Jerusalem. Don't worry, there was a passport check heading back into Israel (no surprise there), but it was still not as intense as I imagined it would be.
Christmas was spent helping out a local artist with his current mosaic project followed by the classic Chinese food and a movie. We had been on the lookout for a Chinese food restaurant for a few weeks prior to Christmas, and we had spotted one not too far from where we live so we thought this to be the optimum time to try it. Let's just say, it filled our void for Chinese food.
