The Journey Begins

Tuesday
Welcome to Israel! Our flight landed in Israel around 4:20 pm, and I was ready to get off the plane. I collected my baggage, thank goodness none of it got lost, and we headed out of the airport. I was greeted by the Weisbergers, our very close family friends that just moved here. All of the girls jumped on me immediately, and seeing them made me feel instantly at home. I can't wait to spend Shabbat with them at their new house.

After leaving the airport, we went to a random spot. Literally it had no evident significance. Yossi (the director of Nativ) explained to us that we were surrounded by different notable aspects of Israel. On one side we had a mall, which symbolizes the modernity of Israeli society. On another side was a military fort, representing Israel's military power. We also had a beautiful view of the actual country, showing us the transformation from old to new in Israeli society.

After this, we headed to our new home for the next nine months, Beit Nativ. We met our room mates, and mine are Talia, Amanda, and Miriam. I think I'm really going to like them. They seem really sweet and laid back.

We ended the day with a very basic orientation, had dinner and then headed up to crash.

Wednesday and Thursday
Wednesday and Thursday came and went in a blur. We spent basically all of our time unpacking, and going through various orientations to Nativ, Yeshiva (my first semester track), and getting things out of storage that were left to us by past Nativers. I was excited to find shelves that belonged to Elana Pentelnik, one of my best friends from home. I didn't totally finish unpacking, but hopefully that will get done soon. Nothing much else to report for these two days.

Friday
This morning got off to a slow start because I didn't have class, but a lot of the Hebrew U kids had Ulpan. It was a nice chance for me to sleep in and get caught up on rest. For my pre shabbat activities I went to Ben Yehuda street and back twice, with two different groups of people. I got my first falafel of the year! It was delicious. I was also excited to know that I have officially learned how to walk to Ben Yehuda without getting lost. Most of the day was spent hanging out and making friends. Me, Angela, and Ben spent a lot of time hanging out and getting to know each other better. We then started getting ready for Shabbat and I made a weighty decision. I decided that for my time in Israel I will completely keep kosher and Shabbat. I have never done this before, but it will definitely be an adventure. We had Kabbalat Shabbat by second semester tracks, which was frustrating, but we prayed near Yemin Moshe at a beautiful overlook of the old city. Friday night was spent just hanging out, playing games, and getting to know each other better.

Saturday
We woke up this morning eager for our first Shabbat service on Nativ. We had a variety of congregations to choose from, and we were free to go wherever we wanted, as long as we went somewhere. Me and a group of friends decided to go to Yemin Moshe. Our decision was made when we heard that this was a short minyan, know for its delicious kiddushes. I knew the congregation was orthodox (as most are here) but I wasn't totally sure what the appropriate dress code would be. I decided to air on the side of caution, and wore and outfit that covered my knees, ankles and shoulders. When we arrived at the shul, I realized that I had been there before, on pilgrimage last summer. I also observed that all of the women had their knees covered, but many had their ankles and elbows showing, which immediately made me more comfortable. I liked the service, because although there was a mechitzah separating the men and women, I could still see the Torah, and during the Torah processional they brought the Torah to the Mechitazah for the women to kiss. I definitely liked this shul, but I do want to explore other options before I decide where to go on a regular basis. One lesson I did learn: I need to bring my own siddur. While the shul did have extras to use, they were totally hebrew and difficult for me to follow. I'll feel more comfortable with my Sim Shalom that I have come to know and love.

When we came back to Beit Nativ we had some free time and lunch, and then split into our second semester tracks. As always. The Yerucham group walked to the park down the street and participated in an amazing program. We split into small groups and had a discussion about reward and punishment. We discussed if we agree with the idea that good things happen to good people, and if we should expect rewards when we do good things, or if we should just do them for the sake of doing them. After a lot of thought and discussion I came to the conclusion that I don't think good and bad things happen as rewards/punishments because any event in one persons life effects so many people. If something bad happened in my life and I got punished for it, it would effect all my family as well, which is why I don't believe in that. I think things happen as a result of peoples decisions, and they have to live with the consequences.

After the program we had free time. Instead of cleaning the area around my bed I decided to take a shabbas nap which was amazing! Then we went to another discussion based program. Yossi (the director of Nativ) led the program by asking us questions about things relating to our Judaism and Israel. It was harder for me to connect with this program, because I felt like I didn't have time to process before we moved on to the next question. But it did still get me thinking about some questions that could become important to my future.

After that program we were supposed to go to pray, but I was helping one of my room mates deal with some homesickness. After that we went to seudah shlishit (the third meal). It wasn't very satisfying, so me and a group of friends went out for pizza after havdalah. After pizza we came back and just hung out and worked on homework and blogging.

At the end of week one I'm really glad I decided to keep Shabbat. I didn't even miss having technology, and it felt so much more relaxing. I also felt like I could focus more on the people around me, and not worry about keeping in touch with the people back home. So that's the end of week one. I'm excited to see what adventures lie ahead.