Yom Hazikaron and Yom Ha'atzma'ut

Hey!

NATIV decided that we should spend Yom Hazikaron and Yom Ha'atzma'ut in Jerusalem. They packed us on a bus to Jerusalem at 7:45 AM in order to get to Har Herzl at 10:00 AM for the program there. There was so much traffic that we had to park far away, so we hiked up the mountain to get to the cemetery. At the cemetery we recieved flowers, candles, water, and various prayer cards. Armed with my own flower, candle and card I decided I would make my way through the crowd to get to the top of the mountain for the program. Seeing thousands of people, hundreds of them soldiers of every division, and every rank was an experience I will not soon forget. I ran into one of my good friends and we listened to the ceremony featuring a wonderful speech by Shimon Perez and the normal Yom Hazikaron prayers led by the head rabbi of Israel. It was a unique experience that I am thrilled I got to be a part of. Following our Har Herzl experience we returned to the hostel to eat lunch. Because March of the Living had booked all of the rooms at the Jerusalem Youth Hostel, we were designated a room in the basement to put all of our stuff, they obviously thought we wouldn't go to sleep and we'd party all night for Yom Ha'atsma'ut.

Following lunch we had a program about Yom Hazikaron featuring our staff and the mother of Michael Levin z''l. Most of you know Michael Levin's story, if you don't I encourage you to look it up, it's inspirational, and the definition of what Israel means to the rest of our world. She spoke of Michael as an ordinary teenager, not the hero that we've come to know and love.

We were free to roam around Israel at 4:00 PM. Many activities followed because us NATIVers had about 4 hours to kill until Yom Ha'atzmaut was set to start. So being the creative young adults we are, we decided to sit in a circle and play some games. We played the hate game, which features one person being chosen, and everyone in the circle saying one thing that they really don't like about that person. This led into the "save game." This game is only slightly less morbid. Each person in the circle chooses a person in the circle that they would save, if one were put in that position. This goes around until there is one person left, this person, yes, you've guessed it, they perish in the situation that they would have been saved from. I was in a situation in one of the latter rounds of the game and I was in the final two, one would live, one would die, it was very tense. This guy, Adam Talmud threatened to not save me, if I didn't update my blog, so I promised to update it, and here it is. Hi Adam! Happy? Great, me too.

After these few hours of harmless fun a couple of friends and I attended a Ma'ariv service at the Tayelet, which overlooks the Old City. This featured dancing, singing, musical instruments, and a vibe that could never be matched. I recall that I mentioned that Simchat Torah dancing was a reason for me to stop clubbing, this only encouraged that thought. The unique mix of cultures, whether it be from different countries, or just different backgrounds, the unique Israeli dance style which includes techno break dancing to "B'shana Haba'a B'Yerushalayim."

After this wonderful service we headed to Ben Yehuda Street which was the center of all things Yom Ha'atzma'ut. Concerts, Breslauers, drunk minors, cotton candy, popcorn, and plenty of food created a unique atmosphere that could not be duplicated. I milled around the Ben Yehuda area and then made my way to a huge Israeli dancing gala at the town hall. This was set to last until 7 AM the next morning, I stayed until 2 AM.

Today we had a nice Yom Ha'atzmaut BBQ, or Mankal, it was good food, and good fun. I'm back in Yerucham, and will update more often.

GO MAVS!!!

-Z

Hey All

Hi, So I'm in yerucham right now and we're almost settled.

I'm working as an english helper at the secular highschool and at the yeshiva. It's hard work but it's fun. I'm cooking alot as well. I plan to go to Tel Aviv for the weekend too.

More updates to come....

Brace Yourself

Hey

To all my loyal readers, and you know who you are, I have not posted in a long while because I have not been within internet access. Now I have internet access and I can fill you in on my vacation extraveganza. 

Sunday

On Sunday we traveled down to Eilat. We drove through the West Bank and all that jazz and it was a lot of fun. We travelled through the wide expanse of the Machtesh Ramon, and toured the wonderful, and I mean wonderful, city of Yerucham, where I will be spending my second semester here in Israel. A series of interesting things happened on our trip. The first was on our way to Eilat, at a checkpoint somwhere near the Jordanian border, we were stopped by some Israeli soldiers. We were all prepared for the worst but the soldier just asked us in plain aweful Israeli english, "do you have pen?" Now my dad collects pens, he collects fountain pens and was carrying 3 of his favorite pens in his pocket at the time. So he's prepared to give them a pen. He reaches for his pocket and the soldier says, "no, shit pen. Thus we knew he wanted to keep a pen from an innocent tourist family, so we gave him a bright green pen and were on our way.

Monday

On Monday we woke up early to go to Petra. Petra is cool, look it up, I don't feel like explaining. So we woke up and we're ready to go, and my dad suddenly says..."where's the car key?" We had rented a car, stam. We tear the hotel room apart, looking for this key, we don't find it. It's eventually time to leave and we get on jeeps to take us to the border. On our way climbing down from the jeep my mom finds it in her tote bag. Awesome, Joy, Elation, wonderful start to a day. So we do the border stuff en route to Petra. Petra's in Jordan, just in case you didn't catch that Adam Talmud. Petra is incredible, on the outskirts of an Arab village one walks down a stone path to a narrow gorge that one walks through until the Treasury, it's the 2nd man made wonder of the world. After the Great Wall of China. So, there's this Chzek girl on our tour and she's gorgeous, we'll get to that later. So we walk around and then we're on our way up. Now my parents aren't the biggest walkers and they elected to take a horse and carriage back up to the top of the hill. Now picture, a little horse, carrying my parents, for those of you who DON'T know my parents, think of me, but bigger, on a carriage. Now unique to Petra, the Romans decided to "pave" the road with stones. Now these stones are the size of basketballs, and when a carriage rolls over them, it rocks back and forth. Let's just say my parents were a little shaken up. On our way out of Petra we reached our bus, and we're waiting. We're waiting for this Chzek girl, she's missing 2 hours later she shows up. Now, these Asian-Australian people that were on this tour had not eaten breakfast, and pushing on 2 in the afternoon, they were getting antsy. You think jewish mothers kvetch...asians are so much worse....GAHHH! So, you think I'm done with Monday?.......nope sorry. So on our way back across the border we go through security and I run to the restroom. I had given a bag that I was carrying to my mom to hold while I went and rested. Now as paranoid as Israelis were, they went and looked for me in the bathroom. Talk about odd conversations while you're on the toilet, and talking to a man with an Uzi...hmmm. So I get out, no problem, whatever. So we're waiting for the border police to stamp our passports. So we're waiting, and waiting, and we find out that the computers are down. So we're a bunch of tourists, gone to Jordan for the day, and not allowed back in...ummmmm. Eventually we got back in fine fun vinni vitti veggie...we came, we saw, we ate a salad, lobster bisque...yalla onwards and upwards.

More updates to come

Birthday Wishes

Today's my birthday

Thanks for all the birthday wishes I know you're thinking of right now. You're all so sweet, yes even you Mr. Talmud. So what's new?

Friday was spent almost entirely at the Shuk in Jerusalem, I bought some interesting dried fruits and they will serve as snacks for our family's trek down to Eilat and Petra tomorrow. Friday night services was spent at the Great Synagogue, it was nice listening to the choir and cantor, my dad enjoyed it considerably less...but you know how dads are. We then dined at the Prima Royale.

Recently I've considered becoming a Kosher Food Critic, professionally. Or maybe just as a hobby. The Prima Royale dining hall was on floor -3, an appropriate floor for the quality of food they served. Great salad bar, and soup....less great main course, and then an abominal excuse for dessert. It was a nice time though, I was blessed by my parents for the first time since August, so that was very nice too. Shabbat morning we attended Shira Chadasha, an orthdox synagogue in the German Colony. It's a very pleasent service. One of my friends came with us to shul and we were invited to one of NATIV's coordinator substitutes, while the main coordinator is off getting his marriage on. 

It was a lovely lunch, started with hummus and salad and babagenoush (sp?)

The second course was sweet potatoes, rice with zuchinni, and chicken thigh leg combos cooked in a fruit sauce. It was all very tasty. For dessert we had rugelach and fruit salad and tea. It was a very nice home cooked meal. Ending with some singing, and we were off back to base.

I led Mincha at the local congregation at our base then napped.

For dinner we went to a little place called pastabar. It's a neat place that you can get a decent meal for a decent price. Armed with sweet potato ravioli, eggplant lasagna, and pesto fettuchinni, we went to get some coffee at Cup o' Joe.

Tomorrow we head down to Eilat via Yerucham and Mitzpe Ramon to look at my future abode and the giant indent in the ground that we like to call a crater.

I'll see you all next from Eilat...

Shavua Tov,

-Zachary

PS. how do you spell babagenoush? Any ideas if I decide to be a food critic?

Almost Shabbat

So, a couple hours and counting.

Shabbat's upon us and I'm very excited, my parents are too, for this is our first Shabbat together in Israel.

As I reach this point in my relationship with my parents, the fact that I'm growing up and they're also getting better with age, I'd like to publicly thank them for 19 years of hard work, and that they've raised me until the point that I could start to learn how to raise myself.

Think about it this Shabbat, the ones you love, they really love you back. They've invested hard earned time and money on you, and you know what? Even if you don't believe it, you ARE absolutely worth every minute of it. Don't ever forget that.

Shabbat Shalom

PS Give someone a hug today, that you wouldn't normally, it may just make their day.

-Zach

Long time no blog

So, since the opening of the NBA season I haven't blogged. No, no, no. It's not because I'm a devout Basketball fan who watches every game and has no time to blog. It's because I am a die hard student at the Hebrew University. Well, that's stretching the truth a little bit too. I'll start with the big stuff.

Election party at Beit Nativ

Fun, mostly, I went to bed early because of my confidence in the American people after 8 years of getting burning hot steaks shoved up their you know whats. I am alive with the glory of a Black President...fun. 

Thanksgiving at Beit Nativ

Very nice, unfortunately due to my bottomless pit of kindness towards other people, I waited 'till the buffet line was virtually gone, and I missed my chance at a piece of freshly carved turkey...oh well there's always next year. Our staff did a sweet thing and decided to Email our parents telling them to Email our past Thanksgiving guests, or hosts, and have them write lovely lovely letters about how they miss us and all that bullshlacha. It was a very...yes...lovely time. It was capped by a neat presentation by a couple of my friends as part of the Thanksgiving Va'ad (people who planned activities specifically for this turkey feast). Watch out, we're travelling back in time, back to before dinner. Whew...Prior to dinner there was a nice display of talents of the Nativ kids. We had an a capella group featuring my good friend Adam Talmud (whose been begging me to put him in my blog for months) and co. Many videos teased and heightened our hunger towards dinner which I mentioned before.

Midterms

Blah, fine, I did fine, you get the Idea.

Hanukkah

It was nice, we lit candels and what not, played games, unfortunately I was not involved in these activities due to the play I was a part of...

MY FAIR LADY

7 performances. 7 church visits. 7 horse races. 1 bad you know what (yes, ^ that)

It was a great experiance, I'd do it again, though that ^ still haunts me.

New Years

Fun, nothing special

Finals

Hard, long, painful, but satisfying in the end. I haven't gotten my grades back from virtually anything, but I feel confident about it.

I'll update tomorrow...ok Adam, you owe me a conversation, and a comment...ha