Does Time Fly!

One month has passed since I moved to Jerusalem. In this month I had volunteering, classes, my parents came, trips, and Passover. It was a very busy month but a lot of fun. I love my volunteering. I work in a soup kitchen and it is the best. I really feel like I am helping. My classes are really interesting also. I am in a Holocaust films class and a Big Bang vs. the Bible class. In the Holocaust film class we watch Holocaust movies and analyze them. I really enjoy the class. In the other calss we talk about how science and religion conincide. This class is also very interesting. Ever week we go on weekly trips. I have been on a few in Jerusalem. I went to the Begin museum, Mt. of Olives, and one week we had a sports day where all the sections competed against eachother. That was a fun day. When my parents were here we went to Efrat and also Tel Aviv. It was really nice seeing them and just hanging out. Over spring break I went on a cruise to Greece and Turkey. We left on the Monday of the Seder and got back on that Friday. The Seder on the boat was not what I was used to but it was still a lot of fun. I sat with three of my friends and these two really nice and cute old men. They didn't really speak English so I was able to practice my Hebrew which was a plus. On Tuesday we docked in Rhodos at 7 at night. We got off the boat around 8 and didn't get back on until 4. It was so much fun. We just hung out in Greece and went to bars. We really got to see how the Greece people lived. The next morning we docked in Marmaris at 9. In the morning we looked around and after lunch we went on a really neat jeep ride. It took us to the country side of Turkey and we saw waterfalls and we even "walked on water" like Jesus. It was a really fun day. The next day was out last day on the boat and it was also April Fool's Day. My friends thought it would be funny to tell me that Michael Jordan had died. I was freaking out all day. It was reallly funny. After we got off the boat I headed to Emek Hefer to spend the weekend there. It was so much fun. I then headed back to Jerusalem for the last two days of Passover. This was one of the best Passovers. I was on a cruise, was able to see friends, and I was even able to eat in a kosher for Passover resturant. What could get better than that?

Two nights ago I plulled an all nighter with two of my best friends. We watched the NCAA tourny. It was so much fun and so worth it. Tomorrow I am going on a hike. It's going to be so much fun. I am trying to make the most of the time I have left. I wonder what I can do in two months. WOW does time fly.

SEE YALL REAL SOON.

7 months in Israel

My New Home Jerusalem!

This week we moved into our new home, Jerusalem. In my apt there are 11 girls and I love it. The place we live is beautiful. Most of the kids live on the campus but there is an apt complex that is about 5 min from us. I am so happy that we live in Jerusalem. It is such a great city. This weekend was a closed weekend. On Friday we went to temple and after that we had a pretend bar mitzvah party!!! It was so much fun. On shabbat my apt made a picnic and went to a park and just hung out. It was so nice. I start volunteering tomorrow. I am working in a soup kitchen. It is going to be a lot of fun. I cant wait to explore all of Jerusalem!

Two Months that Changed My Life-Marva!

The past two months were amazing. I was on an army program called Marva. This program is for foreigners who want to experience the army without really joining. It is 8 weeks and each week you do something different. Just like the really army you only go home every two weeks. The first week was all about discipline. This week is when we settled in and got used to our new life. We also shot a M-16. At the end of the week we received our own guns. I named my first gun Fred. Fred broke so I received another one. I named it Roger. The second week was field week. This was one of my favorite weeks. This week was all about living in the field. We learned how to army craw, different positions you use when you are in an attack, and we even learned about night attacks. One night we played this game where we had to climb up a mountain and grab a green glow stick. We could not get caught though. We had to use everything that we learned. I got so close but the segal (commanders) caught me. This week we literally slept in the field and did not shower for a whole week. I loved it. The third week we were up North. This week was ok. It was raining the whole week and we were on buses a lot. We saw some really cool bases and learned about very interesting things but other than that nothing really exciting happened. The fourth week was South week. This was a cool week. We learned about navigation. After we learned about it we got to actually navigate in the desert. The fifth week was supposed to be sports week but it was cancelled. We did not really do anything that excited we just took a few day trips. It was also really rainy this week so we slept in classrooms and not in our tents. The sixth week was also one of my favorite weeks. This week we were on a Golani base. This week we learned karav maga, shot the Tavor and the M-4, saw a real practice attack, and learn how to camouflage. The seventh week we were in Jerusalem. This was a very interesting experience because we walked around in our uniforms and with our guns. People took pictures and thanked us for doing the army. We we able to experience how real soldiers feel. It really touched me. The last week was a wrap up week. This is the week all the segal broke distance. We were able to talk to them like normal people and really get to know them. I love them and I want to go back. Marva changed me. I was always grateful for what I had but after this experience you learn to even appreciate a orange or even a minute for yourself. I move to Jerusalem on Wednesday and I come home in 3 months. Time has flown by but I am looking forward to see what the future has in store for me. See y'll soon!

Half way done or half way to go???

Sorry I have not written in a while. I did not have a computer, but I finally got it fixed. In the past month and a half I moved to Arad, I had winter vacation, and my Ima even came to visit. When my Ima was here we had a lot of fun. We went to Jerusalem for the weekend and chilled there. We did a flash mob on Ben Yahuda Street, which was awesome. I was able to show her around Bat Yam. I took her to some fun restaurants. I had a great time with her. I am so glad she came. A few days after she left we moved to Arad. For the first few weeks in Arad I had intense classes because I needed to get in all of my credits before I go to Marva. I had class from 9 in the morning until 6:30 in the afternoon. I learned a lot thought. My Hebrew drastically improved. I surly was glad when break started. I met up with my Safta. We went to a Jerusalem for a night, Tel Aviv for the weekend, and then on Sunday we went to Eilat. I had never been so I was very excited to go. While we were down there we went snorkeling, went to Petra, we went shopping, and brought in the New Year. It was a great way to end the year. I am off to Marva on Sunday. Happy 2010! See yall in 5 months.

Thanksgiving!!

Since the last time I wrote a lot of things have happened. First fo all I decided to go in to the army. I am diong a prgram called Marva. This is where I got to the army for 2 months. I start Jan. 3rd and i finish Feb. 25th. The first two weeks are my basic training and the rest of the time we are going to be on different bases throughout Israel. I am so excited. It is going to be a great experience. Another cool thing that happened was my mom came to visit me. It was so good to see her. She came in on a Wednesday afternoon. We went straight from the airport to Efrat. We have really good family friends there, the Stein Family. It was a really relaxing and fun weekend. On Friday we went into Jerusalem and participated in the first ever Jerusalem flash mob. It was one of the coolest things I have ever done. I am so glad i was able to participate because I don't think I will ever get the opportunity to do something like that again. On Sunday we made our way back to Bat Yam. I was really excited for my mom to see my apt. and to meet all my friends. On Monday we had lunch on the beach and then I had Ulpan so she just hung out. After I finished class we went up to Herzaliya to see a friend for dinner and then we went to a Maccabi Haifa basketball game. The game was so much fun and it was good to see Jese. On Tuesday we went to the shuk and the art shuk. It was a lot of fun and we got some really great stuff. After that we had lunch with Lee. It was a lot of fun. After lunch Lee took us all around Tel Aviv. We could only hang for a little because at 3:30 I was meeting with a crew coach. I learned how to crew. It is something I have always wanted to learn so i thought why not learn in Israel, maybe I will pick it up when I get home. After that we had a nice dinner and then I said goodbye. I was a really nice trip and I was glad my mom came.

Today, November 24th, the program took us to an Olympic Museum. It was one of the collest things I have ever been to. I would suggest everyone should go there. Tonight we ware giong to meet Tal Brody. He is a great basketball player and I can't wait to meet him. After taht hte sports track is having a girl's night. It's going to be a lot of fun. I can't wait. Tomorrow is Thanksgiving. W are having one big Thanksgiving feast. It's going to be great. After the feast we are all going to a club. This is going to be on the best weekends in Bat Yam. A week and a half left until I move to Arad.

Just a few things I should say:

1) My hebrew is getting so much better.

2) The trips we go on every Tuesday are amazing. On one we walked around Tel Aviv and they told us about the buildings then we went to this art gallery and the women told us about her family. I would have to say they are one of the most interesting families i have ever heard of. Another trip we went on was to the Bumba factory. We got FREE BUMBA!!!!!

See yall in 6 months.

Rain in Israel??

I forgot to tell yall. For about a week there were storms in Israel. It was crazy. I did not know that it rain in Israel, well that much. Actually before this week I have only seen it rain in Israel for about 10 min. I am happy it rained it just caught me off guard. It was cool though because it made me think about all the storms that I am missing in Richmond.

A month full of fun :)

This month has been full of exciting events. First there was my birthday, which was so much fun. To celebrate it my roommates and I went to beach with a bunch of people and just hung out. The next night we went to Max Brenner and got some chocolate desserts (yummy!). Then the next night there was this big year course party so everyone from all three sections came up and we partied in this great club. I had a really good time just hanging with friends and even meeting new people. Later that week I went to a Maccabi Haifa Basketball game and got to see a really good friend, Jesse Pellot-Rosa. They played against Maccabi Tel-Aviv. It was a really good game and it was really nice to see him play and even see him. I can’t wait to go back up and see him. Then there was Halloween. That was fun. There was another big year course party so everyone came up again. My roommates and I were the Smurfs. It was so cute. Everyone’s costumes were really good. It was weird celebrating it in Israel but it was also really cool. I can’t wait for Purim. Nothing new really came along up until today when I went sky diving. It was one of the most exhilarating things I have ever done. I got a video and pictures which I put on facebook so go look. I am so happy that I went because the sight was amazing. I want to go again. Maybe one day I will be able to do it by myself. In the past month I have done so many cool things. I have been to countless sporting events, gone sky diving, and even had my 18th birthday. I can’t wait to see what the next 7 months have in store for me.