Sunday
Today was an exciting day on Nativ, because I had my first
real day of Yeshiva classes. I was very nervous, since I have never done this
type of study before. My day started with three and a half hours of Talmud
study. We were studying the holiday of Sukkot, which was exciting because it is
one of the major Jewish holidays that I don’t celebrate with my family at home.
It was very interesting to see the different ways Sukkot should be celebrated
according to the Torah. My chevruta, or study partner, was Lieba a fellow
Nativer. It was especially interesting to see her perspective on things because
she was raised Orthodox, but then took a break from her Judaism and is just
rekindling her connection. I also really liked my teacher, because she clearly
understands what its like to be a student. She understands that we need to take
breaks sometimes and get off topic. I’m not totally sure how I feel about
Yeshiva study yet. While we’re learning I love it, but then once class is over
I start to question if I’m as smart as the other people in my class. Hopefully
as time goes on I can get over this.
After Talmud class we had a break for lunch, but I was
excited to return to the Yeshiva for Ulpan, or intensive Hebrew emersion.
Unfortunately, we found out that after lunch we would be having the first class
of our Jerusalem course, a class that all Nativers take to help us get oriented
to the city we’ll be living in for the next five months. I was excited for
this, until I realized that we would be visiting the City of David and
Hezekiah’s tunnel, a site I have been to twice before. This was also a problem
because it meant I needed water shoes, and I only had 45 minutes to buy some.
Fortunately, Ben Yehuda isn’t to far a walk so I was able to find a pair and
make it back to Beit Nativ with time to spare. The visit wasn’t anything
special; I couldn’t really focus on the information the tour guide was giving
us (there was way to much of it) and I had already seen the sights.
Once our Judaism class ended, we had the chance to buy
machzorim (prayer books for the Jewish Holidays of Rosh Hashanah and Yom
Kippur). The line to pay with a credit card took forever, but I got some
beautiful new books. Then a few friends and I went to Moshiko’s for falafel,
and got ice cream. Then we walked into a toy store, just for fun, and ended up
buying really inexpensive school supplies. It was an amazing accident. We all
decided to call it a night early, because we haven’t been getting much sleep
and we all have class tomorrow.
Monday
Today was the first full day at the Yeshiva. It was longer
then I would have ever expected, and that was with a longer lunch break then
usual. I really enjoyed my Talmud class today though. I studied with a new
chevruta (study partner), Alex. He is a fellow nativer that I have been good
friends with, and I felt like we were at a similar level skill and knowledge
wise.
I had an extremely long lunch break today, because on
Mondays the higher level Ulpan classes meet after lunch. I just hung out with
friends and went with them to Ben Yehuda to get school supplies. Then I had a
three hour Mishna class and I literally could not focus. It was awful. I spent
the whole time doodling and playing tic tac toe with the people around me. Once
we left Yeshiva, I had the most exciting part of my night. Me and a few friends
walked to Ben Yehuda and I got my nose pierced. It sounds so cliché and like
the typical rebellious thing to do, but I decided I wanted it a few months ago,
and knew Israel was the perfect place to get it. Being terrified of needles, I
was obviously freaking out, but it wasn’t painful at all. Needless to say I
kept my eyes shut the whole time and had my friends Sarah and Angela holding my
hands. Once we returned from out piercing adventure, we packed boxed for lone
soldiers. These are Americans who made Aliyah (moved to Israel), and have no
one to spend the holidays with. It felt good to do this, especially since
Angela, one of my best friends, has a sister that’s a lone soldier. The rest of
the night was just hanging out and watching other people do homework (perks of
Yeshiva—I never have homework!) I finally got to skype my best friend Shannon,
which put me in an amazing mood. I’m anxiously awaiting tomorrow night, when
we’re going to the Israel Russia soccer game. Read on to see how it goes.
Tuesday
At the Yeshiva today we had our first Nativ only class;
Nativ Halacha. I think it will be a very interesting subject, but I’m more
excited to bond with the other Yeshiva students. Today we just did a brief
intro to Halacha, nothing too exciting. Our schedule was messed up because of
our Jerusalem Class.
As I explained in Sunday’s writing, I don’t particularly
like the Jerusalem class. This feeling did not subside today. We went to the
old city, and visited two cites. First we went to the Burnt Museum, which
displays the remnants of an ancient house. We watched a 20 minute movie, which
I may have found very interesting if I hadn’t been falling asleep through the
whole thing. Then we went to the site of the temple ruins. We started at the
Southern corner of the western wall, which was most recently excavated. We
talked about the extravagance of the temple, and then watched another film to
help us understand what the temple would have looked like during its existence.
Again, I had extreme difficulty staying awake. We were supposed to end at the
Western Wall, the part of the ruins that is considered most holy for Jews, but
due to time constraints we were unable to make it. Luckily, the old city is
only about a 20 minute walk from Beit Nativ, so I can go back to the wall
whenever I have time. In terms of my
outlook on the class, I tried to apply my usual positive attitude to the
situation. I decided that the silver lining of the class is that we walk to
almost all the sites in Jerusalem. This is really going to help me get
acquainted with the neighborhood I’m living in. So in that way, the class will
be extremely beneficial.
After everyone returned from classes we had the opportunity
to do something not all Nativers do; go to a sporting event. We headed to Tel
Aviv for the Israel v. Russia soccer game, which was a world cup qualifier. The
game was fun, but nothing like what I expected. The seats weren’t assigned, so
there was nowhere to sit, meaning my friends and I stood for most of the game.
I was hoping for an Israeli victory, but alas they lost 4-0. Oh well, at least
I still had fun.
We returned back from Tel Aviv fairly late, and I had to get
up early on Wednesday so I just headed back to my room. I skyped my mom to say
happy birthday, and then headed off to bed.
Wednesday
I consider myself to be a Conservative Jew. To quote Rabbi
Wise, a Rabbi who taught me at my Sunday night school for high school aged
jews, “Conservative Judaism is a mix between tradition and modernity.”
Essentially, this means that Judaism stays true to the principles laid out in
the Torah, but is also willing and able to change with the times. In America,
no one questions this. However, that is not the case in Israel. You are either
religious or secular. There is very little in between. I experienced this lack
of middle ground first hand today. The Yeshiva took us on a tiyul (trip) this
morning to go out and experience nature. We were davening (praying) shacharit
(the morning service) when a man who worked at a café next to where we were
praying starts shouting at us in Hebrew. He assumed that because we were
praying, we belonged to the ultra- orthodox sect of Judaism. He proceeded to
tell us that all we do is pray and study, that we do no work, and that we’re a
drain on society. He even went so far as to blast music out of the café
speakers to try and interrupt our service. It was amazing to me that this man
felt such deep anger toward the religious members of society. This will always be
a struggle in Israeli society, finding the balance between secular and
religious aspects of life, and it makes me appreciate my Conservative Judaism
and its acceptance in the United States so much more.
That experience aside, I didn’t get much else out of the
tiyul. I wasn’t sure why we were there, other than to get out of the Yeshiva.
Also, the topics we discussed revolved a lot around agriculture, which isn’t
relevant to my life at all. That aside, it was nice to get out of the Yeshiva
and spend time outside.
After finishing my classes at the Yeshiva, me and my
roommate Miriam decided to go to the old city and try to find Hadaya, one of
our favorite jewelry stores. Unfortunately, we didn’t know where it was, and
realized once we were already part way there that we wouldn’t be able to make
it before it closed. The trip wasn’t a total loss though, because on the way
back we found a pharmacy that sells the cream I have to put on my new piercing,
and Miriam found an Israeli straightener.
When we got back to the room, one of our other roommates
Amanda wanted to get out of Beit Nativ, so we decided to have roommate bonding.
We went to a cute café and shared a meal and talked. It was so much fun and it
was nice to go out and talk as a room.
Thursday
Thursday was another boring day. I only had my morning class
at yeshiva, because in the afternoon we had Jerusalem class. Today we focused
on Christianity, visiting sights such as the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. I
found it really interesting to learn about the Christian theology and why they
find certain sights important, but as always the historical facts put me to
sleep. I feel bad not paying attention because I want to know this stuff, but I
just don’t find it interesting.
Right after class, I left for Shabbat at the Weisbergers. I
was so excited to see them, because they are basically family to me. Mitch was
already in Jerusalem, so he drove me back to Even Shmuel where they live. The
girls attacked me when I got there, and I was so happy to see them. After
saying hello, Tracy and I went grocery shopping. This was a crazy experience.
Things were so hectic with people preparing for Shabbat and Rosh Hashanah.
After shopping, we went home and headed to bed early.
Friday and
Saturday (Shabbat)
Elizabeth and Jacklyn had to get up at 3:15 am to go on a
field trip to Jerusalem. It was crazy early, but it was fun to see them so
excited. Tracy and I spent all day Friday cooking to get ready for Shabbat and
Rosh Hashanah. We had a relaxing Shabbat, playing games, doing puzzles, and
just hanging out. Also, I met the Weisbergers friend Moshe. He was very funny,
and I’m sure we’ll be spending lots of Shabbatot together with the Weisbergers.
Once Shabbos ended, I took the bus back to Jerusalem. It was my first time on the
bus in Israel. It was an experience, but I’m glad I know the bus route to Even
Shmuel now. Arriving back at Beit Nativ it was like I had been away for months
instead of days. It was great to see how close I have gotten with people in
just a little under two weeks. Can’t wait to see what adventures this week
holds.
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