"Jerusalem.... If I forget you...." It really is amazing how at home I feel in Jerusalem! Before I share my Jerusalem adventures lets recap the last week......
There is not a lot to do on the Kibbutz so I decided to do a day trip to Tiberius, an ancient city banking the shores of the sea of Gallilee. The town contains the burial sites of two very famous rabbis - Maimonides and Rabbi Akiva. I went for a wander down to the waterfront and watched the many Christian tourists boating across the lake for their own personal "Jesus experience". I had a few errands that I needed to run including getting myself a sim card (my israeli number is +972 52 290 1728) and getting a haircut. I then grabbed some kosher McDonalds and then headed back to the Kibbutz.
I joined my family for Seder on Kibbutz Lavi (the kibbutz famous for making shule furniture). Hillel, my cousin Gatit's husband is from this Kibbutz so we joined his family for a lovely Seder. The Seder was really nice with dvrei Torah in Hebrew, English and Swedish! The food was divine, the company was amazing and we did not finish to after 2 in the morning!
After Yom Tov I jumped on a bus to Jerusalem. I met up with my good friend Michael, who has recently moved to live in Israel, and he helped me check into my accommodation. I am staying at a Yeshiva (a religious school) called Ohr Someach where I plan on studying for the next few months. The campus is nice and the people are really friendly with interesting stories to tell. Classes do not start here until a couple of weeks so I am lucky that I can sleep and eat there in the interim. The location of the Yeshiva is relatively central - 15 minutes walk to Geula/Mea Shearim (ultra orthodox neighborhood), 40 minutes walk to the old city (or a 10 min bus ride) and about 40 minutes walk to the downtown/ben yehuda area. Jerusalem have just recently installed a tram ride that stops outside the yeshiva and goes directly to downtown via the old city - however they are still testing it and it may be a while before we can actually use it!
That evening I was invited to an amateur production called Jewtopia. I managed to score free tickets because Michael knew one of the actors. The play was a hilarious parody of modern Jewish life, focusing primarily on the Jewish dating scene. After the play I headed to the old city to soak up some of the culture. The old city of Jerusalem is my most favorite place in world! With an intense blend of Jewish, Muslim and Christian culture, amazing souks, imperial walls and its feeling of ancientness - anyone who travels there is bound to be inspired.
Shabbat was a really nice experience, as I was invited to join my friend Suri with her good friends out in a place called Efrat. Eftat is a religious village in the Gush Etzion bloc and it was truly amazing to be able to walk around the town without seeing a single car! Shabbat was very chilled and peaceful - just what I needed!
Sunday night / Monday was the last day of Chag and Michael and I went to eat by a nice chabad family in the old city. We davened at the Kotel amidst the hundred of ultra-orthodox dudes wearing striemels and long black coats. It was nice to spend chag in the old city as you can really feel the atmosphere! It was also interesting to see the hundreds of Christians parading around for the Easter celebrations.
Yesterday afternoon was the last few hours of Pesach. I went along to a Seudat Mashiach which is a Chabad tradition of welcoming the Mashiach. It is said that the Jewish Messiah will come during Passover so in the last few hours the Chabadnicks make a crazy meal of Matzah and wine to welcome his arrival! Wow did i eat sooooo much Matza!!! It was a great experience with plenty of singing, dancing and words of wisdom!
Ok ... well that is about all that has happened recently! I will be spending the next few months in Jerusalem but I do plan on doing a few small side trips around Israel - there is so much to see here! I hope everyone is well!! Enjoy the Chametz!
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