It's been some time--a few good things to report.
Two weekends ago, I went with our program to the Negev Desert for a great weekend of hiking a relaxation. We went to the second largest creator in Israel (and therefore the second biggest creator in the world). The Dead Sea made for a great float and the Bedouin tent, though rather commercial, didn't disappoint with regards to dinner. An amazing Bedouin spread. We hiked in Ein Gedi, an Israeli national park and saw ruins from at least a few years ago.
This past Friday, I made my way to Jerusalem for a morning hike with a few friends. We hiked around the Jewish National Fund forest (the JNF plants trees all around Israel). It felt odd that the entire forest had been planted by humans at one point. We started at the JFK Memorial and worked our way to a monastery that was established by disciples of St. John. The JFK Memorial probably used to be powerful but it is so poorly maintained that it's tough to feel any emotion for a president that I wasn't alive for. The memorial is maintained by an American organization so they must not get here too often. Consistent with most other buildings or structures in Israel, there are names of benefactors all over the memorial. I don't really understand why names of donors need to be on the monument itself, but they did make for some great pleasure reading.
Last night brought St. Patrick's Day to Israel. Though far from Boston, Israelis certainly enjoy the chance to be Irish. Nonetheless, I felt like I was almost back in America with all of the English being shouted at "Molly Bloom's", the pub we went to. Outside the pub, the street was closed off and at one point, boos erupted as a police car drove through the mass of people. Lots of green hats, loud Americans, and Guinness. Plenty of fun. In a strange twist of fate, I found myself with 3 girls who at one point all went to Tevya with me (summer camp that I used to go to). A friend of mine was visiting from Sevilla, Spain, another girl studied in Tel Aviv first semester and now works here, and the 3rd girl is studying in Barcelona and is in Tel Aviv visiting friends. Needless to say, it was wild to have a little bit of New Hampshire in the middle of Tel Aviv.
Starting on Thursday is the holiday of Purim, a Jewish holiday that celebrates the survival of the Jewish people in Shushan, Persia a few years ago. Purim is special in that one is supposed to drink sufficient amounts such that one can't tell apart two of the main characters in the story. Of course, Purim is a lot of fun in Providence and Maine, but it is taken to the next level in Israel. I've been told that Purim in Israel is the equivalent of Halloween in America, however, it seems to be embraced to a much greater extent than Halloween is in the States. Whereas Halloween loses its appeal after middle school, the Purim spirit burns strong in Israelis. Costumes are being sold everywhere and special Purim cookies are popping up in markets. I learned a little bit about Purim when I was in Jerusalem on Friday--that walled cities in Israel celebrate the holiday for 2 days rather than 1. Furthermore, because the 2 days would straddle Saturday (Shabbat), it will go for 3 days in walled cities. It should be a rowdy weekend in Jerusalem.
My family arrives on Thursday and will be here for 10 days. We'll be traveling all over the country as well as venturing into Jordan (Petra). I'll do my best to provide updates as we travel and put up pictures as well.
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