Rosh Hashanah was wonderful. I spent the weekend in Bat Yam with Motti and his family. I had dinner the first night with 22 (yes that’s right 22) members of his family, his Hebrew speaking family. The food was amazing and everyone was extremely friendly but I am fairly certain I spent a large portion of the evening looking like a deer in headlights because of all the Hebrew flying around my head. Many people spoke to me in English and Motti’s father checked on me every few minutes offering help and even offering me a shot of scotch (don’t worry I politely declined) but for the most part I just sat back and relaxed.
Yom Kippur was not as fun obviously, especially since everyone knows how cranky I get when I don’t eat. Luckily my friends and I made a wonderful pre fast meal which held me over pretty well, but still that not eating thing really takes a toll. However, Yom Kippur here is truly an experience I will not firget. The ENTIRE city shuts down. Everything closes and no cars are allowed on the streets. People walk and ride their bikes down the middle of the road. It is eerie at first but when you stop to take a breath and enjoy the peacefulness of it all, it is a beautiful thing. My friends and I trekked to Kol Nidre services only to find that trying to get into services here is like trying to get into a concert. We were all standing there with our ears to the wall trying to figure out what the Rabbi was saying. I ended up just reading some passages then walking down to the beach with Allie to sit and watch the waves. I know, rough life.
I had two more days of teaching following Yom Kippur before Sukkot started. (FYI- These kids have a seriously sweet deal at the beginning of the year. I am pretty sure they are spending more time out of school than in it in the September/October months. ) Every day I work in the school it gets better. Even though the lesson planning hasn’t really been working out I have had some amazing conversations with these students and they seem to enjoy the time they have with me. Yesterday I was sitting and speaking with a group of 8 students during their English class. When the bell rang we continued speaking and then I told them they could go. They said they didn’t want to. They had a free period and they wanted to stay and talk to me. I wanted to hug them all.
After my successful day at school I went out for a late dinner and some drinks with Hallie. We went to a place near her house called Hashdera 34. If you ever in Israel you just definitely go there. The food was soooo good and the people were nice (not to mention attractive, it is always nice to have a good view while you eat). The bartender came over and made me a napkin out of flower, gave us a couple of free shots and practiced his English with us while I practiced some Hebrew. Throughout the night the bartenders all came over to talk and they spent a good portion of the night singing and dancing behind the bar. Now that I think about it I wonder how any drinks got made last night….
That is all for now. I will write soon to talk about the 10 day vacation I am now enjoying…..
