Shabbat Byachad in Jerusalem!

I'm not going to lie, it STILL has not hit me that I do not live in Arad anymore. It's super weird for me to actually adjust to the fact that I am living in Jerusalem especially when winter break is right around the corner... (Yay for being a nomad for two weeks!)
Anyway..... ever since we have arrived to Jerusalem we have been in the process of settling in. That means lots of unpacking (and realizing what I have lost through the change over) and lots of shopping and maps. We arrived to Jerusalem on Tuesday and that was basically all unpacking and getting a feel for our new home. For those of you who don't know, in Jerusalem, year course lives on a campus called Beit Ar-El. This is not like Arad where we are scattered throughout the city. I am pretty excited to live within yelling distance of my whole section :) Also, I live in an apartment with fourteen other girls and that means that my apartment is super big! Not to mention my room. I am rooming with three of my best friends and we have the biggest room in the apartment!!!!

Our first full day involved a lot of sitting and listening. Here in Jerusalem we are going to be taking Hebrew class everyday along with a few others. We also have the choice to learn full time or do part time learning and part time volunteering. I have chosen to do full time learning because I want to earn a year's worth of credits while on year course. So far I am signed up for Level 7 Ulpan (the highest level), Jewis Art, History of Jerusalem (every class is a trip somewhere in Jerusalem), Judaism through Anthropology, Leadership and the Power of Persuasion. All of these classes have a Jewish base and they all seem very interesting. Also, year course provides a very informal education environment and I think these classes will be very enjoyable because of it. Oh, and my favorite thing about my Hebrew class???? One of the year course staff members is going to be taking class with us! She's the parent liaison and literally everyone loves her! I am so excited that she's going to be taking class with us because we all love her sooo much.
After dealing with all of our classes we went on a scavenger hunt which is meant to show us the important places in Bacca, Jerusalem. We were sent to the mall, a shopping strip on Emek Refaim, the gym/clalit, our bomb shelter (yes I live in Israel so I need a bomb shelter just in case) and lastly the supermarket. Yay food!!!!
After a long day of orientation, my section went exploring at Ben Yehuda street and it was really fun to be out with my whole section again because we have been separated for so long!!!

The next day we woke up bright and early to get to the Jerusalem central bus station to get our bus passes for Jerusalem!!! For those of you who have never had the pleasure of the experience let me paint a picture for you... the rav-cav office (rav-cav is the name of the buss pass) is just as crowded as the DMV. Does that help you understand??? My friends and I explored the bus station while we waited (the station is full of shops and restaurants so it wasn't hard to keep busy). I bought new earphones that finally work!!!!! Not like they are my fourth pair on year course or anything..... ANYWAY this is what my bus pass looks like......

After that delightful experience my apartment and I went to the shuk! Although Machne Ben Yehuda is not as big as the shuk in Tel Aviv, it's still pretty awesome. We bought all of our fruits and veggies and even did some Hanukah shopping for our friends and family. And then we took the bus ride home using our bus passes and feeling very Israeli.
That night when we went out again I got to see two of my really good friends from camp, Eli and Josh, who did year course two years ago!! They thought it was funny to see year coursers hanging out at the same places they did just two years ago. It was really great to see them :)

On Friday we were free until 3:30 so my friends and I decided to take advantage of the free time and so we explored Bacca. We went on this amazing street called Emek Refaim which has so many cool shops and restaurants! Sushi and bagels are a thing in real cities (not Arad). I'm so excited to be able to treat myself to actually good restaurants!!!! We walked around and enjoyed the pre-Shabbat rush. Later we treated ourselves to DELICIOUS sushi!! YUMM. When we got back to our apartments, we dressed for shul and were on our way.

My friends and I attended a modern Orthodox shul called Shira Hadasha. The shul was HUGE and so beautiful!!!! It was so nice to attend services at such a huge place with such a big community. Also, kids from Nativ (the USY year course) were there so it was nice that we weren't the only Americans. Also since Jerusalem is filled with people who have made Aliyah, the service was led in Hebrew and English. I would really like to go back to that shul I really think that it was so special and just being at Shabbat services in the Holy City is a really cool thing. Also the people of the shul always offer their houses for Shabbat dinner so I am definitely going to do that with my friends during my time here. After we got back from services we all had Shabbat dinner together and discussed Jewish Heroes (because that was the theme of this Shabbat Byachad). That night was a closed night, so we weren't allowed to leave Beit Ar-El. So I hung out in my apartment with my friends and it was a really nice and calm night.

For Shabbat morning Kiddush, we walked over to a beautiful lookout which showed all of Jerusalem from the Old City (the real OC) to the business/New City of Jeursalem. WOW what a sight!!!

We held Kiddush there, we shared stories, we reflected on the week and we continued the topic of Jewish Heroes by discussing controversial Jewish heroes. The kiddush was very relaxing and very beautiful. I want to walk to that lookout point at least once a week and maybe journal or do my homework there. After we got back we ate lunch before going to the kotel! YAY!
We walked to the kotel from Beit Ar-El (only a 30 in walk tops which isn't bad). Once we got there we had about an hour of free time to visit the wall. (I have no pictures because of Shabbat :[ ). I went to the wall and I reflected on my week, thought of goals for this week and for the whole trimester. I also thought about my cousin Tslil and prayed for her like always. This time I also thought about the families in Connecticut and the kids who witnessed what happened. I thought about them and sent them all the love I could. Not a second has gone by without me thinking of those poor kids. Such a shame that the murderer didn't just kill himself and not 26 innocent children and adults.
For Havadallah, we went to a Rabbi from New Jersey's house and all 66 of us crammed into his tiny living room to hear him pray fro the end of Shabbat. he led such a beautiful Havdallah (my favorite service) and I'm so happy we did with him. I hope to be able to go to his house for Shabbat dinner soon he's a very interesting man.

I had a great Shabbat with my section and now that Shabbat is over, my time in Jerusalem really starts! Tomorrow is my first day of classes!!!! Weird that I'm kind of excited to be learning again......
Goodnight and Shavua Tov!

Changeover between Arad and Jerusalem

So between every switch, year coursers get a two day break so that year course staff can prepare the apartments for the new residents. For this changeover, section three left Arad (so sad) and then went straight to the Dead Sea for a bbq and relaxing time. FINALLY I went in!!!! This was literally the first time that I had been into the Dead Sea since at least like fifth grade so I was pretty excited! I forgot how weird it is to float. Sadly this is not the kind of ocean that you can be in for hours so I didn't spend much time there. BUT it is safe to say that the Dead Sea is literally the most gorgeous place....

AM I RIGHT OR NOT????

So that was a very chill afternoon with my whole section which was nice since we've been split up for the past three months!!!

Our next stop was the Bedouin tent!!! All of year course stayed at these touristy bedouin tents where we were served yummy tea while we froze in the middle of the negev. The night was great because I made a lot of new friends from section 1 &2 :) 

Friends from Section 2:

At seven AM we woke up to ride camels!!!  Aviva and I shared one! I absolutely love riding camels it is so fun hehe!

Lastly, section three went on a trip with the "religious year course" (Shalem) to the Judaean foothills where there are over a thousand caves that were used apparently in the days of the Maccabees (very relevant to Hannukah). The trip itself might have been much better if it wasn't freezing and raining. We were all just dying to get to our new home already!!!! 

Stay tuned for my first week of Jerusalem living!!!!!

Sikkum of Arad

And with a blink of an eye, Arad is over... I have already been on year course for over 3 months!!! How crazy is that? In honor of the end of my first trimester, this is a blogpost to just kind of summarize my time in Arad.
I am definitely really happy that I started out here. Because this is my first time away from home, I really feel that Arad helped me adjust. I say this because Arad is a small town, absolutely nothing like Tel Aviv..... Because it is so small I have focused on adapting to daily life on year course and now that I am moving on to a bigger city, I feel more ready.
I had the most incredible opportunity teaching English for the kids of Arad and now that I am living in Jerusalem I will be a full time student. So much is about to change! Although I am so thankful for my experiences in Arad I am beyond excited for what's about to come.
Aside from partying, I had many incredible experiences that were all in the negev. Living in Arad has really helped me appreciate the Southern part of Israel (a place that I had never spent much time in previously). Through going to a indie music festival for three days to spending a weekend vacationing in Eilat, this trimester has really been filled with crazy stories. BUT there is always room for more!!! My number one goal for my time in Jerusalem is to really travel Israel! And most importantly to travel Jeursalem! It's harder to travel from Arad to anywhere but in the negev but now I can go to the North and  central Israel easily11 My friend Aviva and I have already planned a trip to Haifa and Akko! Should be super fun :)
O JERUSALEM GET READY FOR SECTION 3!!!! :)))))))))

Happy Hannukah!!!

חג חנוכה שמח!
My roommates and I lit the candles together for the first night and Arad is filled with lights everywhere. There are huge menorahs lit in the town center! Being in Israel for Hannukah is going to be such a memorable experience!!!

Last night was our last free night in Arad. Today is a day dedicated to packing and cleaning.... Not fun. Tonight our whole section is getting together to lit the candles and tomorrow we are off to the dead sea for our camping trip!!!!! I cannot wait!!!
Definitely going to miss arad thoughhhh.

Siyur to an IDF Base and The Air-force Museum!

This past Thursday we took a trip to visit a real IDF base and the Air Force Museum as our last siyur during our time in Arad. We went to go visit a base that serves for basic training so all of the soldiers had just arrived about two weeks prior. Some of the commanders on the base were American so they spoke to us about their time in the army and talked about making Aliyah and how they got to be where they are standing right now. I was very interested when the girls spoke because they talked about the different jobs that women in the army do (not EVERY job in the army means you go and fight). For example there was a girl who worked as a spokesperson for the "Nahal" brigade. She works with the press and with social networks to get the correct information to the public. So cool!

Than we went to this room with a huge screen and shot M-4 that had a laser inside. Definitely not as cool as shooting a real gun (my friends who did marva learned to shoot a real M-16), but still fun!

After that, we went to go look around and see where the soldiers lived (in tents). I felt so weird walking around with my sunglasses and my camera while these guys are working their butts off in basic training. I could hear them talking about us in Hebrew and saying how we're probably on Birthright (biggest insult). Safe to say it was super uncomfortable but still cool to see a real base.

Next stop was the IDF's Air Force Museum!!!
Very cool to visit this place especially since the Air Force is very important in my family. My dad was a commander and my mom was a photographer in the Air Force!

Plane with the "remove before flight" tags

seat in a plane that ejects in case of danger

plane that has struck down 13 targets

Our final week in Arad!

I cannot even believe that it is already the final week of our first trimester in Arad. It seems like only yesterday that I was on that direct flight and meeting my section 3 family for the first time. Funny to see how things have changed since then...
My final week in Arad has been filled with so many goodbyes. Although Arad isn't the most interesting place in Israel, it has been my home these past three months and I have really enjoyed my time here. This week was my last at volunteering. Because I work at the elementary school and the middle school I had two last days. My last day at the middle school was so nice and fun! The teacher and I have a great relationship so he wrote me a poem! This is what it said:
Dear Edden,
Volunteers come
And volunteers go
One like you
I've yet to know

The kids adore you
You're full of pep
Never a dull moment
You're always in step

Malibu to Arad
A long way to go
You've done Young Judaea proud
And have just so much to show

We will miss you dearly
The zion, het and tet kids will cry
I will miss you the most
It is very difficult to say goodbye

Please stay in touch
I will always be here for you
I hope the feeling is mutual
And you feel like this too

IS THAT NOT THE CUTEST THING IN THE WHOLE WORLD?! I am so happy I got to work with this man we have become so.close and I am really going to miss him and all of my kids once I get to Jerusalem! My last day was filled with goodbyes and "don't go" pleads from my kids. My heart melted when my ninth grade boys wrote "Edden we will miss you" all by themselves through a game of hangman... TOO CUTE

My eighth graders:

Word Searches

Noa and Yael the scouts :)

9th graders!

7th graders! (my favorite class)

Tomer (He won't listen to anyone but me!)

Roee and yael :)

Later that day we had "sikkum" of Arad as a whole. It is so surreal that this trimester is over....
The next day was my last day at the elementary school and it was basically the same story. I was very sad to part from these adorable little kids. I mean it hasn't just been a few weeks, I've been here for three whole months! That's a really long time and I have really connected with these kids.. I am really going to miss this place and my volunteering.

3rd graders!

5th graders!

Malka!

Today (wednesday) was a day devoted to cleaning! My apartment organized everything and we cleaned the whole apartment! I've even packed a whole suitcase already (space bags to the rescue). All of the Aradians went to Sde Boker to cheer on our friends in Marva for their closing ceremony. I'm so proud of them!!! It was so beautiful I need to go back to that place asap! Lastly was a celebratory dinner with my roomies for the end of Arad at our favorite bar "Muza"! We even have enough money left over in the stipend to pay for our wine! Cheers to a great week and hopefully an even better weekend! :)