i love israel!!!

It's been so long since I wrote, it's hard to remember where to start!!!Purim was incredible!! The kibbutz was decorated and we read from the Megillah on Tzuba. I dressed up like a Pink Lady with a friend and we marched in a nearby parade with lots of Israeli kids! It is a fun, fun holiday in Israel with no school!! On Purim, we also had a concert by Dan Nichols, who is apparently a fairly known Jewish rock singer in the U.S.

My Mom came on Tuesday night, an extremely exciting event for her and for me!! Mom stayed at Kibbutz Shoresh, about 15 min. from Tzuba and also just as scenic. Although it seems like a whirlwind, she was here for 8 days. We went on two trips to the north of Israel, learning about the development of Oral Law, the Mishneh, and recently the division of Spharad and Ashkenaz. We also visited Abu Gosh, a close Arab village that has good relations with Tzuba and Israeli communities in general. There we visited a mosque and talked to the Imam, and then, since Abu Gosh is known for its hummus, ate lunch... amazing pita, hummus, etc....!! Mom and I went to Tel Aviv on Saturday, not realizing how much would be closed on Shabbat. We walked from Jaffo, an old Arab village to Tel Aviv along the beach, a very touristy and beautiful area with beach bars and fancy hotels. I did manage to buy some food and a belly dancing skirt which is exciting!! So, we went back on Sunday afternoon and had an amazing time in the markets!! The open-markets are amazing, selling clothes, fresh fruit, almost anything really!! The parents also had their own planned trips, one to the Dead Sea and Massada, and another day to the Holocaust museum. I think Mom had a great time and it was amazing to see her.

Today, we had another trip into Jerusalem to visit an Ultra-Orthodox neighborhood. We are learning about the development of Orthodoxy, so this trip was important to see how they live. Then an Ultra-Orthodox Rabbi came to Tzuba to talk to us... it was very interesting to to hear his perspective on Judaism, the current situation in Israel, etc... but many of us found it frustrating to listen to his opinions on other religions. There is a high alert in Israel now also, so we are not allowed to spend free time in Israel... I suppose people are going a little crazy because of the near elections!! Now I have a week of school and we leave for Europe on Wednesday!

This week has been rather crazy because we are trying to catch up with regular classes after Gadna. We went on a Tiyul on Monday to a Roman Amphitheater and to a cave near Tel Maresha where we crawled in the caves..literally crawling and squeezing and scratching! Today was our Tiyul to two monasteries, the Ark of the Covenant and a John the Baptist Monastery. We are learning about Christianity right now in Jewish History so we also talked to a Franciscan Monk who told us about his lifestyle and about the Monastery nestled in the Judean Hills... which is where John the Baptist may have been hiding...

 Now is a very interesting time in Israel because there are elections in 3 weeks. We are learning about the different parties and will be having a mock election which includes campaigns, posters, and everything. Last weekend in a Tel Aviv market we were given stickers and the usual campaign talks!!

As you may know, my Mom is coming to visit me on Tuesday!! I am very excited and you should all send letters with her, because I really want to hear from you!

P.S. I will try to post pictures from Masadah, Gadna, etc... as soon as possible

I just returned yesterday from a week long experience in the Israeli Army!!! It was an amazing week, extremely tiring and frustrating, but also fun and rewarding. We got uniforms-pants, a shirt, a belt, a canteen, a coat, and a hat, which we wore at all times around the base except while sleeping. We slept in tents of 9 people on cots and had inspections of our beds and areas each morning. Our group was divided into Tzevets of about 15 people and we each had a mefaked/et (commander). Mine was an incredibly petite woman named Neta, but we didn't know her name until the last day. She did not smile or show any emotions for the whole 5 days! Each morning and evening we went to flag-raising and lowering ceremonies where the mefakedet hamachlakah, the samal, and the mefaked hapluga(I don't know the english terms, but they're higher up and scary!)... We always had to stand in hachshev/attention when around any of the leaders which is feet at a 90degree angle, hands behind back in a diamond, water bottle touching left foot, and jacket behind your feet. Oh, and  THIS WAS ALL IN HEBREW!!! Punishments for being late or talking were usually push-ups, but being talked to by the samal should have been enough!! Everything is timed and I now know how to count incredibly well backwards in Hebrew! I've had enough of making 2 lines and a chet for ever!!! The food was actually pretty good.. but I was really hungry by meal time. We spent one day in the field after an hour and a half walk/run in silence... It was really hard because we were learning war tactics like crawling and walking in the field. So, my arms and legs were very bruised from running and crawling from 'bombs' and the enemy...It was also incredibly hot because Gadna is in the Negev Desert and we had to wear long sleeves and pants!We also had some lessons about the Israeli flag and heard stories about Israeli soldiers. We also got to talk to our mefakedet about Israel and why it exists. We had daily duties like cleaning the kitchen which took about 3 hours! We had to clean everything and a man inspected everything after we cleaned it... mostly it was fun, but hard. We ended up cleaning the kitchen twice because a different Pluga got in a fight and weren't doing their jobs. If we did a good job, they gave us chocolate milk in a bag after!! We also had to clean the bathrooms and around the tent areas many times.  We also had competitions with other groups with push-ups, crunches and other exercises. The last few days we spent learning about the M16 and then shot 10 bullets. It was one of the most scary experiences of my life to realize that I was actually shooting bullets out of the gun. But, now I know the power of one, and how to take it apart and put it together. It was a very difficult experience for some people and for me also, but I enjoyed it. The last day, with 5 minutes left, our mefakedet sat down with us and smiled and said 'hello.' It was like emotions breaking, the moment she smiled she was more of an equal. We got to ask her questions and talk to her as a normal person! She is 20 and just went into the army and is very cute. She says she will come visit us at Tzuba!!! Anyway, the end was amazing and everyone was very proud of themselves for completing it.

This week has been crazy!!! Last Thursday I left for the week, beginning with the Old City of Jerusalem. Then we drove south through the desert to the Dead Sea. Driving through the desert we passed Bedouin tents in the sand dunes and camels standing by the side of the road. When we stopped for lunch, I saw a camel up close:).. After this, we were driving along the border of Israel and Jordan until we reached the Dead Sea.... I forgot to mention how hot it was-stifling!! We went to Qumran, where the Dead Sea Scrolls were found! The landscape was amazing-the Dead Sea with huge sand dunes and date palms growing all around. After this we went to Ein Gedi, a nature preserve in the desert with natural waterfalls!... the scenery reminds me somewhat of the Grand Canyon. The hike was long and hot but we finally reached some water and splashed around in it. We spent the night at a hostel right on the Dead Sea and woke up at 3:30 AM on Friday to hike Masadah. Masadah is a palace created by King Herod that later became a Roman garrison. The hike was definetely one of the most difficult that I have done-stairs and stairs in fairly warm weather! But, the sunrise at the top was definetely worth the hike! Later that day we went to the Dead Sea where we swam and lay in the sun! The hotel gave us mud which felt amazing on the skin. The sea is beautiful with salt formations around the outside. The bottom is rock hard and if you have any small cuts you definetely don't want to go in, but everyone floated!!! It was the wierdest feeling because I didn't need a floating device to just lay on my back or stomach forever!

After the Dead Sea, we drove to Kibbutz Lotan which is 20 min. from the southernost point of Israel. We spent 2 nights on the Kibbutz which is a reformed and ecologically minded kibbutz. Basically they try to recycle everything so the buildings are created with tires and mud... it's really interesting! The last night we went to Eilat, the southernmost point of Israel, bordering Jordan and Egypt, where there is an amazing open-air market. I bought "Israeli" pants which are called fisherman pants.. I'll take a picture and post it sometime! Also some other clothing because everything is very inexpensive.