So last week my some of my professors started talking about midterms. I was like -- hold on a second, the semester is halfway over?!? I've done the year in Israel thing before, so it should surprise, but time has flown by, and life has kept me so busy that I haven't been updating at all. Some highlights ( Read more... )

Its almost Shabbat. Thank goodness. I finally have gotten a taste of the year ahead, and while its delicious, its also pretty exhausting ( Read more... )

Classes. Have begun. I think I am finally beginning to understand what they were telling us all summer about how ulpan was just a warm-up. So far, so good though. Our new Hebrew teacher is pretty awesome, and  while I did really like Tzooki, out class seems a lot more relaxed now (plus way less homework!). Biblical Hebrew seems like it will be ( Read more... )

Took my final Tuesday morning. Done and Done. It wasn't easy, but it wasn't terrible either. It was a little frustrating hearing other students talk about how easy their finals were compared to the work they'd done all summer. For my class? It was all just hard. After we all finished our exams, we had a bit of a ceremony to bid farewell to the ( Read more... )

Wednesday morning I pulled myself out of bed much earlier than usual, met up with Michelle at HUC, and walked to the Kotel. We davened with Women of the Wall, and it was great. I haven't been since my time at Hebrew U, and it was really wonderful to be back. The group was pretty small -- only about a dozen women. After Hallel, we moved from the ( Read more... )

Last night, my mom shared an article with me that discussed some of the goings-on at Kutz this summer. It was an interesting read, and kind of made me wish I was there. Its been three summers since I've worked at Kutz, and I feel pretty disconnected from that community. Nevertheless, the four summers I spent at Kutz had a pretty deep impact on me. ( Read more... )

There are some days that remind me that no matter how much I love this place, I am not cut out to live in Israel. Today's reminder? Israel Bureaucracy. All the other times I've been in Israel, I've pretty pretty insulated from Israeli institutions, minus a few trips to the bank an some exploratory talks with Bezek. This time, however, I'm all in. ( Read more... )

We had the last of our Jerusalem Day tiyulim yesterday. Focused on Second Temple history, we visited Robinson's Arch, The Burnt House, Herodian mansions, and the Kotel tunnels. It was a good day, although it was terribly hot outside and alternating between the heat and the intense air conditioning of the museums was pretty intense. At the end of ( Read more... )

Its only Wednesday, but since I'm done with ulpan for the week, it already feels like the weekend. This Shabbat we have a program Friday night at Harel, the lesser known progressive congregation in Jerusalem. Last Friday we went to Kol Haneshama, so this is two weeks in a row of Progressive Jewish action, which makes me feel like a very good HUC ( Read more... )

Gearing up for Shabbat number four in Jerusalem. I can't believe we've been here that long already. Today has been spent doing Hebrew homework, laundry, and apartment cleaning (exciting, I know). Yesterday was the second of our Jerusalem tiyuls. We focused on the First Temple Era, visiting ancient burial caves, traipsing through Gai Ben Hinnom, and ( Read more... )