The first week was all about getting to know the group and doing some hiking in the desert. For our first night we stayed in a Bedouin tent they fed us an excellent dinner and taught us about their lifestyle. The next morning we got up early to beat the heat and take a hike in Nachal Tamar. The hike was more difficult then I thought it would be but we still had a lot of fun. There were parts where we had to use latter and roads to get down the hike!! After our hike we got to take a trip to the Dead Sea, we stopped at a resort and got to use their access to the sea and their pool. It was such a relief to go swimming it was insanely hot at the end of the hike. The dead sea is the most incredible blue color but just like the weather the water was really warm! We were told by our tour guide that the part of the dead sea we were swimming in was man made and being used for its minerals. After the dead sea we went to the kibbutz where we would be spending the night and ate dinner. We had one more bonding activity before we went to bed.
The next day was another early morning we were told that, that days hike would be easier and we would be hiking to a waterfall. The hike was in a place called Ein Gedi park. Most of the hike involved walking through the water to get to the waterfall. It was beautiful when we finally got to the waterfall we all went swimming and stood under the water. It was definitely nice to get cooled off in the middle of the hike before we headed back to the bus.
That Sunday we went to Ashquelon for the first time to see our new home at Merkaz Klita Beit Canada. We are staying in absorption center for new immigrants most of which are from Ethiopia. Im living with three other girls in my apartment, who I absolutely love. We got a chance to put our stuff in our rooms and then we were expected to come down to the court hard of the center because some of the kids had planned a show. The little Ethiopian girls did a very cute dance for us and we got a chance to play with the kids for the first time. The kids are super cute but a little crazy and rambunctious!!
During our first week in Ashquelon our job was to get some what acquainted with the city. We found that we were only two blocks from the beach!! It is a 10 minute walk for us to be lying on a beach of the Mediterranean. We took our first trip to the grocery store that week and it was quite an experience. My lack of hebrew was on full display as I struggled up and down the aisles trying to find what I needed to fill our empty apartment. It was one of the most stressful shopping experiences I have ever had. Our madrachim took us on a tour to the closest shopping area.
After our week of getting to know Ashquelon we started Ulpan I was placed in Kitah Alef, which is no surprise since I didn't know how to read or write. The first day of class was a whirlwind with a lot of vocab being thrown at us and I left leaving extremely overwhelmed.We had only one other day of class that week and then it was Rosh Hashanah.
For Rosh Hashanah I went to Beit Sha'an to meet my adoptive family. I will be going to see them every so often over the course of my year. I will be living in Beit Sha'an for the middle 3 months of my program. The holiday was very nice. The family was very large and very welcoming. The language barrier made things a little difficult but many of the family members spoke english well. On the day of Rosh Hashanah my host family took me too the natural springs near their house. It was so beautiful there were a bunch of very big pools and there were tons of people there swimming. It was a great way to spend the holiday! The food was great and we ate so much!
I headed back to Ashquelon for my first full week of Ulpan and it was a lot to take in but I have learned so much and feel like I'm making significant progress in learning hebrew! We also did some volunteering during the week with a group called Anosh. Anosh is a group that helps adults with mental health disorders. We were asked to help paint and renovate some of the members apartments. It was hard work but we got the job done and got the whole apartment painted!
We spent Yom Kippur in Jerusalem. The first day we got there we had a day of seminars which included torah yoga!! We were left to do our own thing for services for Friday and Saturday night. I went with a big group of people went to Hebrew Union College for reform services. Where services were held there were huge glass windows that provided an amazing view of the old city! It was unreal it definetly added to the meaning of the service being able to look out at something so beautiful. On Saturday I decided that I would skip services and experience Yom Kippur on the streets of Jerusalem. I took a walk around the old city and stopped at the Kotel. The most amazing part of being in Jerusalem of Yom Kippur was that no one drives their cars so everyone walks in the middle of the road and ride around on bikes. The whole city shuts down and it is so peaceful.
Im sure there is lots more to come in my new life in Israel!!!
That Sunday we went to Ashquelon for the first time to see our new home at Merkaz Klita Beit Canada. We are staying in absorption center for new immigrants most of which are from Ethiopia. Im living with three other girls in my apartment, who I absolutely love. We got a chance to put our stuff in our rooms and then we were expected to come down to the court hard of the center because some of the kids had planned a show. The little Ethiopian girls did a very cute dance for us and we got a chance to play with the kids for the first time. The kids are super cute but a little crazy and rambunctious!!
During our first week in Ashquelon our job was to get some what acquainted with the city. We found that we were only two blocks from the beach!! It is a 10 minute walk for us to be lying on a beach of the Mediterranean. We took our first trip to the grocery store that week and it was quite an experience. My lack of hebrew was on full display as I struggled up and down the aisles trying to find what I needed to fill our empty apartment. It was one of the most stressful shopping experiences I have ever had. Our madrachim took us on a tour to the closest shopping area.
After our week of getting to know Ashquelon we started Ulpan I was placed in Kitah Alef, which is no surprise since I didn't know how to read or write. The first day of class was a whirlwind with a lot of vocab being thrown at us and I left leaving extremely overwhelmed.We had only one other day of class that week and then it was Rosh Hashanah.
For Rosh Hashanah I went to Beit Sha'an to meet my adoptive family. I will be going to see them every so often over the course of my year. I will be living in Beit Sha'an for the middle 3 months of my program. The holiday was very nice. The family was very large and very welcoming. The language barrier made things a little difficult but many of the family members spoke english well. On the day of Rosh Hashanah my host family took me too the natural springs near their house. It was so beautiful there were a bunch of very big pools and there were tons of people there swimming. It was a great way to spend the holiday! The food was great and we ate so much!
I headed back to Ashquelon for my first full week of Ulpan and it was a lot to take in but I have learned so much and feel like I'm making significant progress in learning hebrew! We also did some volunteering during the week with a group called Anosh. Anosh is a group that helps adults with mental health disorders. We were asked to help paint and renovate some of the members apartments. It was hard work but we got the job done and got the whole apartment painted!
We spent Yom Kippur in Jerusalem. The first day we got there we had a day of seminars which included torah yoga!! We were left to do our own thing for services for Friday and Saturday night. I went with a big group of people went to Hebrew Union College for reform services. Where services were held there were huge glass windows that provided an amazing view of the old city! It was unreal it definetly added to the meaning of the service being able to look out at something so beautiful. On Saturday I decided that I would skip services and experience Yom Kippur on the streets of Jerusalem. I took a walk around the old city and stopped at the Kotel. The most amazing part of being in Jerusalem of Yom Kippur was that no one drives their cars so everyone walks in the middle of the road and ride around on bikes. The whole city shuts down and it is so peaceful.
Im sure there is lots more to come in my new life in Israel!!!
