Starting the Semester

                For future reference, it looks like the normal posting time is going to be around Wednesday morning CT; I can’t seem to get this up any earlier. Quite a bit has happened since my last post; I’ll try to start from the beginning.

                Last Wednesday, we finished our intensive Hebrew course. I got an A+, which was nice. On Thursday, since we didn’t have class, a group of us headed up to see the Temple Mount. We left around 6:15 am and took a bus to the Old City.

                I’m always nervous at religious sites; I’m always ready for someone to come up and complain that I’m not dressed modestly enough or that I’m taking pictures or that I’m talking too loudly or that I’m not supposed to go into one section or another. We made it through all the checkpoints without a problem and put our scarves on to pass the wailing wall, but when we got near the Al-Aqsa mosque, someone stopped us. He started talking in very fast Arabic, then switched to English when he realized we were lost.

                He was concerned because we were wearing jeans and not skirts; luckily, we all had scarves or skirts to put on. I started wondering why there were tourists walking around with uncovered heads and jeans who didn’t have a problem. Then, however, he asked if we were Muslim, and seemed quite surprised when we answered no. After that, everything made sense; if we were Muslims going to pray in the mosque, of course we wouldn’t be wearing jeans. But as we were innocent American tourists, we weren’t allowed in anyway, so it was a non-issue.

                Anyway, we toured the temple mount and tried to figure out who built what, and then we made our way back into the Old City. It didn’t take more than a few hours. A couple people stayed, and a couple of us headed back to our dorms.

                The next day, it snowed. I know – I thought I left Boston, too. Snow here is somewhere between snow in Boston and Texas. On the one hand, people actually believe it can happen, and they don’t get too excited. On the other hand, everything shuts down: schools, workplaces, public transportation. We had planned to do some sight-seeing, but with no buses running, we decided that the better plan was to walk into the Old City and take pictures.

                It’s about a thirty-minute walk from our dorms to the Old City. The snow was the nice, soft, fluffy, clean kind that you actually kind of like – the kind that inspires gangs of boys ranging in age from 5-25 to start snowball fights everywhere. Getting to town involved getting pelted every few blocks, although there were a few snowball fights with adorable little boys that made up for it. In the Old City, we clambered around and took pictures of things in the snow. It was strange to see the markets empty in the middle of the day – the bazaar was like a ghost town.

                As we headed back, people were beginning to resume ordinary life – the snow was melting in full force by around noon – but the buses still weren’t running, so we walked the half-hour back. By this time, though, the snow was the icy, dirty, dangerous kind, and I didn’t feel like leaving my room again after I’d made it back and defrosted.

                I’ve already talked quite a bit, but I couldn’t finish this blog without telling you about starting classes. I’m taking five classes. First, there’s advanced Hebrew, which is pretty much a continuation of intensive Hebrew (same books, same people, same layout) except that we only have it three times a week. Second, there’s colloquial Arabic; I’m still not sure what level of that I’m in. Third, I have an independent study-type formal Arabic, which I haven’t started yet. Fourth, I have a seminar-style class in International Law, and fifth, I have a class on Palestine, which the Professor started off by declaring that “both sides are wrong, and they deserve each other!” I think a lot of people come just to see what he’s going to say.

As it’s still the first week of classes, assignments haven’t really started to pick up yet, so I’m not sure what my workload will be. However, I’m looking forward to learning a lot and doing something besides Hebrew all day. I hope everyone’s having a good week – until next time!

Seeing the Sights

                I’m done with Ulpan! A few hours ago I turned in the three-hour exam, and now I’m officially finished with the preparatory Hebrew course and ready to start the new semester. I know my grasp of Hebrew grammar and vocabulary has improved immensely, but I look forward to continuing to improve it, along with other things. However, more about that next week; this week held more than enough excitement to fill up this page.

                On Friday a couple friends and I went to the Old City. Besides finding very cheap produce, we finally got to see some of the sights. For transportation reasons, we visited everything in reverse order: we started at the Garden Tomb, which might not have a good claim to legitimacy, but is a beautiful prayer garden in any case. Then we went down to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, believed to house the actual sites of the crucifixion and burial (and thus the resurrection). Unlike other buildings, it hasn’t shrunk since I visited it several years ago; it’s as majestic as ever.

                After this, we went down the Via Dolorosa backwards, which was quite confusing since 1) the signs all pointed the wrong direction and 2) we were all Protestants and had to keep looking up which station of the cross we were passing. Finally, we finished at the Garden of Gethsemane. In stark contrast to the last time I was there, this time it was only us, a priest, and a nun in the room. After that it was about time to head home, but I’m sure I’ll be visiting those churches again.

                On Saturday the same three of us went to visit the Tomb of the Patriarchs in Hebron. Getting there required three different buses, and when we arrived we were told that we couldn’t go into the Muslim section because it was too close to noon prayers, and that we couldn’t go into the Jewish section because it was Shabbat. We decided they needed to build a Christian version, and then wandered around the shuk while we waited. I was very happy to find $1 falafel at an outdoor kiosk that was every bit as good as the $7 falafel near our dorms.

                Finally, we visited the Muslim sections of the tombs, but since we were all in jeans, we ended up having to wear these gigantic hoods that made us look like a mix between hobbits and aliens. We took plenty of pictures. I also got the chance to use my Arabic reading signs, which was nice, since I’ll be starting up classes again in a few days.

                On Sunday we started our last week of classes and finished up what we needed to learn before the exam. After class there was a tour of the Knesset. We didn’t see anything actually happening, but everyone took pictures, and the tour guide was interesting and gave us a lot of information about Israeli politics and government.

                By Tuesday we’d covered and reviewed most everything, and in the afternoon all the classes got together and put on a sort of talent show. Everyone sang but our class, who sent up several people (I didn’t volunteer) to do a skit, which was probably not understood by 70% of the room, but which we thought was very funny. After that we watched a TV show episode and then headed home.

                And now? Now it’s over, and I’m sitting in my room looking out the window and planning for the weekend. Most of my plans will depend on the weather. Jerusalem is somewhere in the middle when it comes to snow – it isn’t a once-a-decade phenomenon, like it is in Texas, but it’s rare enough that even a little bit shuts everything down. We’ll see if it snows; either way, I’m glad I’m not wading through snowbanks in Boston. I hope everyone has a good Ash Wednesday and Chinese New Year, and next week I’ll be writing about my actual classes this semester!

Routine and Philosophizing

           I'm sorry I keep posting so late – I’m still adjusting to having school Sunday through Thursday. Although, for being school, language study is pretty relaxing: you only have one class to worry about, and that class is mostly about conversation. After five hours, with breaks in between, you’re done for the day; it makes for a lot of free time that I would be having at Harvard – although with Harvard cancelling school an unprecedented number of days for winter storms, things might even out.

           In any case, this is the second-to-last week of Ulpan, the intensive Hebrew prep course. After this I’ll be going into normal classes, but we can talk about that when it happens. In the meantime, class is going pretty well; I did much better on my last test, which made me much less stressed. It wasn’t so much the grade that worried me; it was that I knew the material, and I didn’t know what had happened and how to fix it. As it turned out, though, the problem was mainly due to a misunderstanding about the instructions, so things are now back on track.

           Today was a particularly tense day in class. We were discussing current events. I’m not sure why the teacher decided to discuss Ukraine in a class that’s approximately a third European, a third American, and a third Russian, but it did make for lively discussion. The program also includes other activities to get us out of the classroom: yesterday we had a lecture on the architecture of Jerusalem and its influences (in Hebrew) and today we spend the better part of an hour learning songs (in Hebrew).

           Outside of class, things are also looking up. I’ve fallen into a sort of routine: every morning I get up around seven, have a cup of tea, and look over class material or philosophize on one subject or another. After class I have lunch and head over to the gym, since after four visits, I finally have my membership. At one point, a friend and I attempted to attend one of the karate classes, but we couldn’t find the building, and when we asked at the gym, they told us we’d have to ask there. Go figure.

           There was a slight disruption in my routine due to a fire earlier in the week. A building a couple of stores down from my normal grocery store burned down, and the grocery store shut down indefinitely because of smoke damage. I’ll have to switch off between going all the way downtown to the market, which is cheaper, or just buying my fruits and vegetables at the supermarket here for convenience’s sake. This week I opted for the grocery store.

           This evening in particular, though , a group of us went down the street from the campus to get hamburgers, which were actually very good and not terribly expensive. (This particular restaurant also had cheeseburgers; I just don’t like them, even in the States.) There are several restaurants around to frequent if I feel the need to leave the coziness of my own room.

           This weekend, I didn’t feel the need to leave my room at all. I went out for groceries, but other than that I slept late, read my Bible (still looking for a church), and did a lot of philosophizing about life. It was the first real Sabbath I’ve had since I’ve been here, and I desperately needed one. By the end of last week I had sunk into quite the lethargy (which means for me, doing what I have to get done, but having difficulty bringing myself to do it or anything else). However, by halfway through Friday I was full of energy.

           I’ll leave you with one fun note about the buildings here. We have a ton of stray cats around, but they are the best-fed stray cats I’ve ever seen in my life. In addition, they know how to use the elevators; they dash in whenever the door opens and just sit there and wait, and if you let them, they’ll run into your apartment and only come out for food. They’ve got quite the system worked out. However, it doesn’t always work for them; one was quite put out with me earlier when he hitched a ride only to be dropped off back on the bottom floor.

Old City Strawberries

            It feels like it’s been a lot longer than a week since my last post. Maybe it’s because I’ve done so much since then, or maybe it’s because all the events are so spread out that the days seem to last forever. In any case, it’s good to talk to y’all again.

            A few friends and I went to the Old City on Saturday – don’t worry; I have pictures! Living in Jerusalem is interesting; in one sense, this is Jerusalem, the Holy City people have been fighting for years to have control of. In another sense, this is Jerusalem, a large city just like any other, with ordinary people going about their lives. The Old City is a place where Jesus, David, and countless other figures walked. It’s also where you can buy really ripe strawberries for $3.50 a kilo.

            We did buy strawberries, along with a few other supplies, from the Shuk, the outdoor market. This involved using both my Arabic and my Hebrew, which was nice. We also did the Ramparts Walk, which was interesting, and went to the Roman Plaza, which was also holding a contemporary art exhibition. This turned out to be a series of dimly-lit tunnels, one of which contained a small stereo system and a few statues. However, it was still interesting.

            While we were in the Old City, I had shawarma (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shawarma) and mint tea for lunch, which was pretty good. I’ve also had falafel. They tasted better in Jordan, but it’s possible that I was just hungrier; I’m eating a lot more American-style food here, since I’m fixing my own meals. To that end, as I need more and more supplies for my stay, I’m slowly learning to be more self-sufficient, to put down roots and buy what I need on-location instead of trying to pack everything I need from home every time I leave. It helps when American products are available in many stores.

            There’s also been a lot of free food lately, since that’s the preferred method for attracting college students. For instance, I just returned from a discussion group about Israel that provided bagels and toppings, and earlier today I went to a party for Israel’s version of Arbor Day (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tu_BiShvat ), which included sweets and drinks. Two nights ago, I had free lasagna at a lecture by the Colonel formerly in charge of the Israeli Security Fence, who was a very good presenter. And at all of these events, I was told about other events, also with free food, that will take place in the future. There’s no shortage of things to do.

            Class is going fairly well. Every day I end up with more interesting vocabulary – ‘sense of direction,’ ‘controversial topic,’ ‘phenomena,’ and etc. We have discussions on everything from beached whales to homeschooling to ISIS. In addition, we’ve had a tour of campus and a singing workshop – we actually sang one of the songs I learned at Middlebury, but this time I could understand what it meant!

            There are things that I hope will improve over the next few weeks. I’m still unfamiliar with the teachers’ testing format, which docked a few points off my last grade. I’m still trying to figure out what to do for church, so I’ll let you know what happens with that. And I’ve now gone to the gym three times, and I still haven’t received my membership; every time it’s something else, and it’s a perfectly logical reason, but I’d like to have that done and over with already. The last time I went, the lady behind the desk (it’s the same person every time) started muttering to herself in Hebrew that I keep showing up, and I thought about telling her I shared her frustration, but thought better of it.

            There have been some down days lately, but my parents are only a phone call away, I have my books, and the supermarket has Ben & Jerry’s if I really need chocolate. I’ve found friends; last weekend we watched Kingdom of Heaven, about the Crusades, and had strawberries and hot fudge sauce. And I’m in Jerusalem, after all: as one of my classmates said this morning, every day in Israel is a blessing. I’m studying what I love, I’m living in the Holy Land, and I’m doing fine. And strawberries are $3.50 a kilo.