So I wrote this on the plane on my trip back from Israel on January 18th, 2009 (I was there on a Taglit-Birthright trip from 1/7-1/18, GMU, Rutgers, and one Binghamton!). Hope you enjoy!
As I sit on this 11 hr. 56 minute airplane ride back to New York with a desire to kill the obnoxious, rude, and loud little orthodox girls who have prevented me from grabbing even a wink of sleep for the past hour and a half, I decided now would be a good time to write down my feelings about the past 10/12 days.
I can honestly say that these past days in Israel have truly been an eye-opening and thrilling experience. I'm exhausted, my lips are overly chapped from scaling Masada and the salt of the Dead Sea, and my legs probably look incredible from the hours of walking and hiking but I couldn't feel happier or luckier that I had the option to come on this journey.
For starters, my view of Israel before this trip has definitely changed. Before, I thought of Israel as a war-ridden country whose landscape probably reflected that. Well, over 1,000 pictures later, boy was I wrong. Israel's landscape is beautiful. Starting in Jerusalem, I got to see the beauty of the old Holy city. With it's stone streets, buildings -everything-, I cannot think of a prettier city I've ever seen. Then, the beauty of Rosh Hanikra with the beautiful grotto's etched into the mountains was breath-taking. Some of the sunsets we saw were so beautiful, but NOTHING compares to a sunrise atop Masada (despite Sarah's way to cheery wake up at 4:15 am and the 20 minute hike up in the cold). The views from up there were inspiring. This is also comparable to the jeep tour up a mountain whose name escapes me at the moment but had a view of like three different countries from its peak. The Dead Sea was also incredibly gorgeous with its salt crystal beach and awesome and clear bright blue-green water that twinkled in the sea (it was also cool to be at the lowest point on Earth!). We lucked out with the weather and were able to see Jordan clearly on the other bank. We really lucked out with the weather throughout the trip, truly enabling us to see many things Gilad was even surprised by. The En Gedi nature reserve was beautiful as well. I especially enjoyed the optical illusion created by looking at the waterfall for a few seconds then looking away. Gazing at the stars in the desert by the Bedouin tent was really, really something. i could have sat and gazed and enjoyed the silence forever.
Another aspect of the trip I was surprised I enjoyed was all of the history and stories we were told. I've never taken a more educationally stimulating trip. by the time we made it to the Roman-Byzantine ruins, I was already starting to put the ruins back together in my head and tried to imagine the people of the era doing what they did based on Gilad's stories. The legends and stories passed around generations are amazing! From the story of the bride who plunged into the waters at Rosh Hanikra to avoid an arranged marriage to the bloody tale of the end of the people who lived atop Masada, I was so enticed by everything Gilad had to tell us, even if I sometimes fell asleep during his lengthy and passionate speeches.
The people also make the experience. At first, I was really nervous because I only knew three other people on the bus, but now I can say my family has grown by 45 new members. I say family because Avrahm Infeld was a truly inspiring speaker who I'll take many things from, the first being that JUDAISM IS NOT A RELIGION, it's a way of life and we're all a giant family. And you can never leave the family once you're a part of it (no matter who you convert to or what you think...there is no such thing as a Jewish refugee anymore.) My family now has 32 Rutgers students/staff, 1 Binghamton student, 3 GMU students, 5 Israeli soldiers, 1 Israeli tour guide, 2 Israeli guards, and 1 very nice lady who's daughter made Aliyah and sat next to me on the plane ride to Israel. I've got to say I don't think we could have had a better group of people. There was no huge drama and we could all hang out together, as a bus. Sure, we all had people we preferred to be around but we all loved each other. I'm really glad, in retrospect, that it was not all GMU students because now I have so many more new friends. I've got to say, having our 5 very different soldiers aboard for 5 short days was truly the biggest revelation for me. From late nights with No'a and Ariel at the Kibbutz Gonan, I learned that a girl is a girl no matter where she is from, soldier or not. She was nervous about her English and the way she looked and boys and had experienced heart break, just like the rest of us. Watching her videos on her phone with her friends also helped me realize this. Talking to Israelis and listening to them speak also made me realize how much more knowledgeable Israelis are, especially listening to Gilad. they know so much about their country and I probably couldn't tell you very much about America, let alone be able to fluently speak another language to communicate with some tourists. Seeing and experiencing the different cultures of such a small country was very interesting. I greatly enjoyed a small market we went to the afternoon before our first Shabbat (in Jerusalem). It was fun seeing the hustle and bustle as everyone gathered dried fruit and nuts and meat and all sorts of things for Shabbat. It was nice to be in a country where you're surrounded by Judaism, it truly helps one get in touch, no matter how religious you are, because it's normal there. The country literally stops on Shabbos. Walking through the town Shabbat morning was also cool because we got to see different levels of Judaism. Staying in the Bedouin tent and experiencing their music, dining, and hospitality was really cool (and the tea was delish!).
I'm sure there are many things I'm forgetting or had a lack of place to put, like Ben Yehuda Market, Akko, and camel riding, but I've got tons of pictures and souvenirs to remind me of this trip. But, the physical things are just a reminder of all of the memories and inspirations and friendships I've gained from this trip to Israel. And I think, sitting around our bonfire last night in the middle of the desert, isolated from any distractions, laughing over superlatives, sharing our favorite parts of the trip and roasting potatoes (yes, Israeli s'mores ;]), I realized how much I was going to miss this trip <3
Saturday, January 31, 2009
First Post/Friendship
Soooooo this is my first post....
So I was in the bathroom (where all good ideas occur) when I decided I should start keeping a diary, then I figured the likelyness of this happening was slim to none, but if I made it electronic I would be more likely to do so! Soooo here it is! (I just realized I say so a lot)
I guess my first post should be about how I've been feeling for the past couple of days.
Today, I took a walk down to the lake outside the Concert Hall to just think about things, and after a conversation with my mom for a while, I sat for like five-ten minutes just thinking about everything. There's one thing that's been perpetually on my mind, and thats friendship. What is friendship? I would define it as the relationship between two people who enjoy each others company, are there for each other, and share a level of trust. There's a couple of people in my life that I've recently become distant with or have completely lost contact with and that makes me really upset. I've pondered what good friends these people were to me in the past and how these reactions represent our relationship. For example, one person was upset with something I had done, but this action shouldn't have been a surprise. Now, I haven't spoken with this person in over two months (I believe) and didn't see them during this time either, whether it be alone or in a group. This feels like forever because this person was a good friend and a close confidant. It amazes me how such a trivial thing that shouldn't come as a surprise could ruin such a long lasted (since fourth grade) and great friendship. Especially since this person told me that they weren't mad. Another example is a close friend I've become distant with over the course of many months. There's a number of reasons I think this is occuring, reasons of which I don't feel like getting into but are along the nature of rediculousness. These are two friends I miss very dearly and just an example of what not to do as a friend.
Another problem on the friend front is the feeling of people getting bored with me. I find that this happens to me more often than I believe it should, and this bothers me. What happens is I'll meet someone new and talk to them all the time for a long time and then they'll just stop talking to me. I don't understand why this happens and it hurts me a lot. It's pretty easy to gain my trust and I fall very easily, so when this happens I get frustrated and confused and I start to feel less worthy and down on myself. I often find myself wondering why this has happened or what I did that could have driven the person away. I usually find out it wasn't me but find it hard to believe, regardless. I've been hurt many times and very badly because of this happening and I'm sick and tired of it.
One thing I value very much is the being of my best friend/brain buddy/ Wondertwin #2, Stephanie. You'll probably hear about her a lot. She's helped me through many things and we're always there for each other. This is a friendship that I know I will have forever and if I ever have 0 friends, I'll always have her to talk to and hang out with. This is the best kind of friendship there is. :)
I'd love to keep talking about my feelings but these are the biggies on my mind right now and I've got to go watch the Mason vs. ODU game on Comcast with my friends and hum pep band tunes because we're not there right now as a pep band and that makes us sad :(
Until next time, here's a random thing for you to ponder: ‽ INTERROBANG!
So I was in the bathroom (where all good ideas occur) when I decided I should start keeping a diary, then I figured the likelyness of this happening was slim to none, but if I made it electronic I would be more likely to do so! Soooo here it is! (I just realized I say so a lot)
I guess my first post should be about how I've been feeling for the past couple of days.
Today, I took a walk down to the lake outside the Concert Hall to just think about things, and after a conversation with my mom for a while, I sat for like five-ten minutes just thinking about everything. There's one thing that's been perpetually on my mind, and thats friendship. What is friendship? I would define it as the relationship between two people who enjoy each others company, are there for each other, and share a level of trust. There's a couple of people in my life that I've recently become distant with or have completely lost contact with and that makes me really upset. I've pondered what good friends these people were to me in the past and how these reactions represent our relationship. For example, one person was upset with something I had done, but this action shouldn't have been a surprise. Now, I haven't spoken with this person in over two months (I believe) and didn't see them during this time either, whether it be alone or in a group. This feels like forever because this person was a good friend and a close confidant. It amazes me how such a trivial thing that shouldn't come as a surprise could ruin such a long lasted (since fourth grade) and great friendship. Especially since this person told me that they weren't mad. Another example is a close friend I've become distant with over the course of many months. There's a number of reasons I think this is occuring, reasons of which I don't feel like getting into but are along the nature of rediculousness. These are two friends I miss very dearly and just an example of what not to do as a friend.
Another problem on the friend front is the feeling of people getting bored with me. I find that this happens to me more often than I believe it should, and this bothers me. What happens is I'll meet someone new and talk to them all the time for a long time and then they'll just stop talking to me. I don't understand why this happens and it hurts me a lot. It's pretty easy to gain my trust and I fall very easily, so when this happens I get frustrated and confused and I start to feel less worthy and down on myself. I often find myself wondering why this has happened or what I did that could have driven the person away. I usually find out it wasn't me but find it hard to believe, regardless. I've been hurt many times and very badly because of this happening and I'm sick and tired of it.
One thing I value very much is the being of my best friend/brain buddy/ Wondertwin #2, Stephanie. You'll probably hear about her a lot. She's helped me through many things and we're always there for each other. This is a friendship that I know I will have forever and if I ever have 0 friends, I'll always have her to talk to and hang out with. This is the best kind of friendship there is. :)
I'd love to keep talking about my feelings but these are the biggies on my mind right now and I've got to go watch the Mason vs. ODU game on Comcast with my friends and hum pep band tunes because we're not there right now as a pep band and that makes us sad :(
Until next time, here's a random thing for you to ponder: ‽ INTERROBANG!
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