February 21, 2009

My three months in Jerusalem has defiantly flown by! Before I know it, I’ll be settling into my third and final three months in Israel which will be at a Navy Academy on a beach in the city of Akko. I have heard Akko is one of the few cities in Israel where Jews and Arabs live side-by-side. I am excited to see how a city such as Akko operates peacefully after hearing of many other areas in Israel where it seems impossible for such normalcy and quietness to exist.  

I am also proud to celebrate a big 102 on my Arabic midterm last week! Who knew I would be reading and translating sentences in Arabic, as well as writing my own sentences and phrases in only three months?

February 10, 2009 

 Although I missed an auspicious election in America this year (even though 70 of us still crowded around the TV half way across the world to watch the important inauguration), I am fortunate to be in Israel for her election of a new Prime Minister. I went to a rally hosted specifically for English speakers where Bibi Netanyahu-the candidate running for the Likud Party which is known to be more right wing-spoke of his policies and goals for Israel. No unilateral withdrawals that will turn territory over to terrorists was just one of his policies regarding Gaza.

Prior to elections there was some tension in the air with elections coming up- I think everyone was hoping to continue with the respite of war that we have unfortunately become too accustomed to in the past several days. With elections coming up though, everyone living in this surrounding area couldn’t help but think of just how much longer it will be until fear is again instilled in daily life. 

 Luckily, today, Tuesday, was the national holiday here for election voting and although every business was closed and everyone was roaming the streets with the optimism of a new vote casted, there was pure quiet in terms of violence. I decided to volunteer today with several friends for the Likud campaign by visiting the campaign’s central office where we were given Likud hats and T-shirts in order for us to hand out English pamphlets on the streets to encourage those who hadn’t voted yet to do so. It was amazing to feel as though I was taking part in this year’s Israeli election and by doing so, helping to change history.

Last Shabbat our group traveled to the north of Israel to Tzfat, the mystical and Kabbalistic (which has been made popular by the pop star Madonna) center of Israel.

We visited two graves – out of the many righteous people buried in Tzfat – of the men who helped create the Friday night Shabbat Service that has now been integrated into every Jewish community as a means of celebrating Shabbat. We continued with many inspirational and Kabbalistic speeches throughout the weekend as well as dancing and singing.

February 3, 2009

After learning in our Zionism class about the mass immigration, or Aliyah, of Sephardic Jews to Israel after the establishment of the State in 1948, we went as a class to visit one of the communities from this Aliyah, the Yeminite community.

Bringing many warm and lively traditions of their own, we were able to partake in the Yeminite dancing, foods, and cultural dress that they brought with them to the ‘melting pot’ of Israel.

Even though I am living in Israel I never knew that just a bus ride away was an extremely unique and deeply rooted culture of Jews living amongst another deeply rooted culture of Jews. Yet, the Yeminite community has managed to integrate into society without losing all of the traditions they brought along with them. It was defiantly a once-in-a-lifetime and unforgettable experience!

The war appears to have quieted down a bit – the media as well as the atmosphere on the streets are two very good yet, I’m afraid to say, temporary signs.