back and ready to roll!

Me with the Bosphorous! 

Okay, so I'm really excited right now. I'm currently sitting in my dorm room overlooking the beautiful city of Haifa, drinking mate, and listening to endless tracks of Natasha Koroleva -- my favorite Russian, totally old school pop singer.

I have so much to write about that it is not even funny.  Yesterday, on my way to the Shuk (which is the outside market where everything is fresh, cheap, and delicious), I came across a Russian music store.  The shuk is an area of town called Hadar aka the Russian part of town. I swear that 90% of the population is Russian. It blows my entire mind. Over and over again. Seriously. Over and over and over.  Anyway, I was able to buy an MP3 cd of Natasha's songs (68 tracks!) for only 20 shekels which is around $6.00.  Suhhhweet. My roomates are going to hate me.

Anyway, I digress.  Things here are in the process of transition. Ulpan is over (thank god) and the new semester has begun.  This university is so absolutely unorganized. I have no idea when classes are, where they are, and what I am going to be doing. They give us a 2 week grace period where we can choose what to go, but I've realized that they do this in order to get their shit together.  Ahhhh... Israel.  Can't say I'm surprised.

Okay, now to discuss Istanbul. Holy cow.  I was blown away. Beautiful beautiful city.  I think being one of the only "foreigners" at Oregon made me feel more international than I was because I haven't really actually travelled that much and seeing places that I've studied and heard about was so incredibly fulfilling and amazing.
So...where to begin.  I travelled with 4 other girls and 1 boy.  Big group.  Our plans fell together last minute so everyone was frazzled and unorganized.  Nobody had written down the address of our hotel and we realized this only upon arriving to the airport.  One cab driver thought he knew the way, but because of our large group we were split up into two cabs.  Our driver lost the first driver and BOOM we're lost. Luckily, we had a boy with us. We kept on stopping and the driver kept on driving our male friend out of the car towards other cab drivers, convenience stores, etc.   He knew no English and we no Turkish. Oy. Vey.  Somehow we made it to Hotel Hatay.  Somehow I ended up with the room that smelled like sewer. It was an experience. Great location though and I really can't complain that much. We saw so many unbelievable things -- the Blue Mosque, Hagia Sophia, palaces, underground watersheds, and endless Mosques. The weather was unbelievable.  My favorite thing was taking a two hour ferry ride along the Bosphorous and seeing the entire "coast" of Istanbul -- both the European and Asian sides.  Ahh.

It was such a strange experience. At one moment I felt like I was in any developed, western culture, and in the next I felt like I was floating through areas of Muslim religiosity and judgement.  It was very interesting to be coming from Israel, a clearly Jewish way of life, to Istanbul, where no matter what, I felt like I was in a Muslim-dominated society.

The bazaars there are unbelievable and go through various allys of the city.  The smells, tastes, and scenery was breathtaking.  A lamb gyro = $1.00, a freshly grilled fish sandwich = $2.00. The shopkeepers are aggressive and are always willing to haggle down a price just to get people into their restaurant, shop, etc.

Despite any low times (ie slipping on a Lays chips sign and messing up my knee, or ripping part of my arm off in the shower (just a small chunk), the trip was absolutely mesmerizing.  After utilizing a million modes of transportation to get back to Israel, I felt this weird sense of comfort upon landing. Not in a zionist kind of way, but in a -- i'm so totally more familiar and comfortable with this place only because I spent the previous few days being so out of my element.

OH! Funny story.  I've totally been schmoozing up with Ukrainians everywhere I go. The shuk, the bus, and on planes. On our way back from Turkey (BTW Turkish airlines is GREAT!), there was a group of 31 Ukrainians and Moldovians who were travelling to Israel to see its holy sites.  They were an off-set of old-believers. Hella relig. We schmoozed like there was no tomorrow.  It was so unbelievable and I felt so comfortable in this weird way. I feel like being here has made me understand my culture a little more -- especially in the sense that I realize that I have so much far more to understand.  At the Shuk, everyone speaks Russian and I spend time translating for my friends who want meat, cheese or whatever.  I made a joke being like "great to know russian and no hebrew in this country!" This was mind blowing to me. The russians stick together in Haifa the same way that Latinos stick together in the U.s. I know, duh duh duh.  But, becuase I'm more closely linked to this group, I can really understand how and why this happens.  Ahhhh.. I love it. I'm learning in ways that I really did not expect to. It's like when you learn things that you've always known. The best.

So, I'm a little bored at the moment.  I have a class today at 3 pm, but little to do before that. I don't do well when I don't have things to do which is probably why I am actually blogging.  Everything starts next week -- my fieldwork with the Arab/Druze, my internship, actually knowing my class schedule, and I think I'm going to be tutoring an Ethiopian child in English.

Since I have time, I'm going to include a few photos in this post.

Yes, that's the Hagia Sophia behind us! Lucy, me, Lauren and Dahlia

Lucy with the Hagia Sophia. Amazing. 

Leah, Lucy and I in the Hagia Sophia. 

Our group with the H.S. from me CW: me, Dahlia, Lucy, Lauren, Jace and Leah.

Inside the Blue Mosque. 

Jace in this underground watershed... ah.. the name is escaping me!

Topkapi palace!

Inside Topkapi. amazing!

off to istanbul!

Okay. I'm back.  

So.. I never thought that it would be this difficult to blog. I can't get myself to ever do it! I've just been so busy and overwhelmed and stimulated that I have been putting off this blogging thing more and more.  I'm trying to force myself to do it right now...but we will see how far that will go.  

So guys.. big news.  1) I bought my tickets to Ukraine. OH MY GOD. Totally epic. I'm going to be there in just over a month. OH MY GOD.  March 25-April 5 will be magical and life-affirming. I've been waiting for this since I was 8 months old. I really can't believe it is actually happening.  And, the funny thing is that I will be leaving the country I was born in on my 23rd birthday... only to spend a million hours on a layover in the Prague airport. But, it's okay. it's going to be more than worth it.  

Life in Israel is coming together pretty nicely. I really like the people i spend my time with. We're an interesting group filled with crazy people who make me laugh and really feel comfortable in this place... you know, most of the time.  I feel semi bipolar here.  One minute i'm laughing hysterically and the next I am incredibly homesick for my fools back on the west coast.  I think life has been moving so quickly and I haven't been able to really catch up. But, its challenging and fabulous in a lot of different ways.  

Tomorrow is the last day of my intensive Hebrew ulpan. THANK THE LORD. I am so over it. I really enjoyed my teacher Chava. She's this forty-ish year old orthodox Israeli woman who loves Hebrew and conjugating everything she can get her hands on. She really pronounces the "xxxxxx" sound and glares at you when you sigh a little too deeply. We all had to do project presentations (aka present a dialogue with bad acting) and my partner and I played two grandmothers making a cake. It was great.  Well XXXxava... peace out as of tomorrow. Hebrew has been real, but my mind is rotting and I can't wait to be stimulated academically in a totally different way... my kinda way. Anyway, enough about that.  

I really thought that living here would be different.  I can't even explain it. I feel like such a foreigner in the U.s. but here, I'm such an American. Academically speaking I came into this experience with a particular mindset of this place and I have been proved wrong over and over again.  This country is not black and white and there is no way around that.  There are so many things going on in so many manifistations and there is no way to categorize anything into any kind of box or shape or anything.  I'm having such a love hate relationship with this place. I still don't know how to really express what I am thinking or feeling.  

This campus is gorgeous but so separated from the city. You need to take a bus to get anywhere -- which is totally weird for me.  So many Russians. I can't get over it.  

Last week, we went on a trip to Zicharon Yaakov -- the site of the first Aliyah and then to Cesearea. Zicharon Yaakov was really interesting.  One of the Rothschild brothers heavily financially supported the establishment of many immigrant settlements in this region and it is interesting to think a about what this place would be like had these financial investments not been made.  Again, totally confused in a lot of different ways. Politically, emotionally, academically, blah blah.  I am never going to forget this place because I broke my camera here. I almost cried. Luckily, I was able to buy the exact same one. Not gonna cry over spilled milk... bug man! Common!

Cesearea was AMAZING. I can't believe we were there.... just breathtaking.  Except we almost got locked in.  

And, I dont know if it is Israel...but I am SO CLUMSY. holy shit. I cant stop staining my clothes, falling, or consistently losing my balance. WTF?   

Okay, I'm tired. My pitiful attempt at a post. I promise I'll post as soon as I get back from istanbul.  

love.

lila tov haverim! My hebrew skillz have totes improved. woolah! 

Hello from Israel...

Ahhh!  I have been totally avoiding this blog entry.  I've been putting it off for weeks now. I guess I have been too stimulated and overwhelmed to actually sit down with my thoughts and write about everything going on within me and around me.

So, where do I begin.  I'd like to put out the fact that this is a public blog and because of this certain details regarding places, things, names, etc are underrepresented or left out completely, blah blah blah.  You get the picture.

Let's start at the beginning. I had an absolutely stressful and totally chaotic trip over to this side of the world. How ironic that the day that I need to leave SF one of the largest storms in history takes over the region.  Originally, I had two hours between my connecting flights in Philly. I get to the airport, after almost not surviving the drive due to high winds, falling trees, and dead birds scurrying through the skies, and they inform me that my flight is around 3 hours late. What does this mean? Won't make my connecting flight and will have to wait 24 hours, outside of security, in the lobby, for the next flight to Israel out of Philadelphia.  F U U.S. Airways.  As it turned out, my first flight ended up leaving 1 hour after scheduled departure. I'm going to cut this story short and tell you that I only had 12 minutes to BOOK IT through Philly's airport to make my flight to the holy land. AND I DID IT! I was the last person that got on the plane -- totally sweaty and frazzled. I spent the proceeding 12 hours talking to Chavarifkashomana and yedidyamalikablahblah about Israel, their orthodoxy, and their apartment in the old city. They informed me that they knew that I would find religiosity in Israel.

Ori and Ofer met me at the airport.  SO STRESSED OUT. Somehow, after surviving a train full of soldiers with rifles, we made it to Haifa. I spent the next four days hanging out with Ofer, his family, and Adi. Really pleasant.

So, I just realized that I really don't have time to talk about everything going on -- but I will make a better effort to write in this thing when incredible things happen.

So the short story: I was totally thrown off my feet -- physically, emotionally, etc. I was in culture shock, sleep deprivation, and totally hormonal. I forgot how to make friends, feel confident, and be in a new environment. It was like my first day of high school or college again. Like, really, I feel like i took three steps back in that first week.  Things have really picked up.  I'm living in a campus dorm with 5 other girls -- 3 Israelis, 1 Cherkasy Arab, and 1 German Ukrainian.  I spend five hours a day taking Ulpan. They put me in a low level  (sorry JCHS) and then it was too easy. After they didn't want to move me up after my request, I got angry because I didn't think they should feel so powerful. After a huge struggle they moved me up higher. Then, it was too hard. But, I've used my noggin' and caught up.  So hard. I really like Chava, my ridiculous Israeli teacher, and all the people in my class.  

Israel is amazing on so many different levels. I do not make this statement in a zionist kind of way, but in an energy type of manner.  There is something here that we just don't have at home. It's magic. Like, really. I can't really explain it. There is a passion here that seeps from the water, the land, and the air. It's something unbelievable and contagious.

So, what's up for today?  Hebrew class for five hours and then a hike to see Elijah's cave!  Who is Elijah? Check this out: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elijah  Then, they are taking us to some hip bar where they can place 40 Americans into a corner and convince them to drink. Ha!

Off to shower. Pictures to come later today.  More entries on their way.