Spending Time at the Shuk

I wanted to spend my day off in the city. However, with Hamas calling for a "day of mobilization" and Fatah calling for a "day of rage" today* (on top of the fact it's a Friday, which is already usually tense in the Arab quarter downtown) I figured the Old City was probably not the best place to go. So after waking up this morning I decided to head downtown to the Mahane Yehuda market (aka "the Shuk") for a slightly safer location to spend my free time.

After scoping out the market for a good place to hang out, I found a espresso bar on a corner in the busy market with seats looking out onto the booths and people. With strong coffee in my hand and smooth jazz playing in the background, I sat and people watched for a good portion of my morning. 

Literally sitting at a corner in the market enjoying my morning coffee.

And the people watching really was fantastic. Sitting at the coffee bar gave me the perfect spot to become a part of the Shuk experience. I watched locals and tourists wander amongst the piles of products and became a temporary part of the madness.

"See this fish? You want this fish." - the dialogue in my head

This guy.

And this guy.

Soldiers with machine guns buying bread.

Another fish vendor.

I may not speak Hebrew but I was running a constant dialogue of body language, gestures, and facial expressions with each vendor I passed. I was sitting across from the fish vendor pictured above this paragraph as I sat at the coffee bar. Between scooping more ice on top of his displays of fish we exchanged a variety of looks while I sipped coffee across from his stall. I walked past him once I was finished and his otherwise serious face lit up with humor and he pretended to throw the huge scoop of ice at me instead of his fish. We both laughed and I set off to browse the market in the midst of my caffeine high.

Challah for tonight's Shabbat.

I loved the color and texture of these sweets piling out of the store front of a bakery stall.

When I was done at the Shuk I decided it was too nice of a day to just hop on the train back toward campus. So, assuming it was impossible to get lost as long as I walked along the train tracks, I wandered downtown. 

After a passing a few train stops I found myself at a plaza downtown. There a guy around my age sat on a stone barrier playing guitar as everyone meandered about their day. Surprised by his actual musicality and impressive voice I paused a few benches down and sat for awhile enjoying his music. As I sat continuing to just take in the day the weather decided to switch over to a torrential downpour. Continuing I still didn't move he much figured out I was sitting there listening to him so I just gave in and moved next to him. So there I sat in Jaffa square, in the middle of the pouring rain holding an umbrella over a street musician and dueting to pop hits with this stranger in downtown Jerusalem.

Eventually we both ended up soaked through and he gave up on playing guitar. In apprication of my umbrella he joined me in my walk up until the next train station and chatted about his experience in Jerusalem. As he turned back two girls nearby me looked over and asked if he was bothering me. I answered no and before I knew it I was walking with them into exactly where I was avoiding in the first place, the Old City. There I sat making new friends and enjoying fellowship over lunch. 

Eventually I had to wander back into the rain and made my way one train stop further before I finally got on the train and finished my trip back to my apartment.

Old City, New News

Last night there was an assassination attempt on a rabbi here in Jerusalem. The rabbi was apparently a pretty well known and outspoken right-winged spokesperson who advocated for the Temple Mount being taken from Muslim occupation. As if tension hadn't been high enough in Jerusalem before this occurred, Israel responded by shutting down Al-Aqsa mosque (the mosque in the Dome of the Rock complex) for the first time since 1967.

All of this just so happened to occur on the night before and day of my class field trip... to the Old City. My Arabic teacher brought our class down to the Old City and gave us a tour in Arabic. There's always plenty to see in the city, but today had even more going on than usual.

Our view from a roof nearby the Dome of the Rock. 

Since we couldn't get near Al-Aqsa / the Dome of the Rock our teacher took us up onto a roof nearby the complex. From this eye level view of the bright golden dome she gave us the history of the city below our feet. However, just because we were enjoying ourselves above the crowds didn't mean everything was quite as peaceful below. In the middle of our professor's lecture the familiar sound of gunpowder started occurring around us. Students started muttering back and forth to each other. "Gun fire?" "Fireworks?" "It's definitely something being fired." "Fireworks." "Doesn't mean they're not pointed at somebody though." The teacher seemed to pause. However, we were in Jerusalem. It really isn't anything we haven't heard during classes already. Our safety seemingly secure for now she continued on lecturing.

The next ominous occurrence was once we had returned back to ground level. We headed to the Jewish quarter, but had to walk through the Muslim quarter to get there. Usually the Muslim quarter is bustling with activity. Crowds of people perusing bright cloths and trinkets. Today, the Muslim inhabitants were protesting. All of the market shops were locked shut. A lively market sat empty and harsh. Metal doors and padlocks replaced the usual presence of merchandise and tourists along the narrow streets.

A rare view of an empty market street. It was ominously spooky in real life.

Regardless of the day's conditions, it was still a really cool tour. I finally got a grasp of the Christian and Jewish quarters and even got an inside tour of the Armenian monastery. Amongst all the tension normal life was still going on as usual giving us even more to see and experience than usual.

A bar mitzvah passing us in the Jewish quarter.

The wailing wall with the Dome of the Rock and Al-Aqsa in the background.

To the right of the wailing wall. Right wing Jews were protesting below the viewpoint of this photo.

Outside the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.

So... Our Water Boiler Just Exploded

After a long day of Arabic, grocery shopping, and going to get my student public transportation card I returned back to my apartment to rest up for a bit before my Zumba class this evening. I sat down on my computer about to update my blog when I heard a subtle hiss, a bang, and then a very loud and continuous hiss. Wondering what went on outside I looked out of my apartment to see that it was actually our boiler that exploded! At which point I realized I couldn't find my phone and my Hebrew speaking roommates were gone. 

After running around our floor and figuring out if any neighbors were in and if they knew what to do we realized no one could find their phone or the emergency number. So, I sprinted for the security gate of our apartment complex, praying that whoever was on duty spoke enough English to understand our current trauma.

You can see the resulting clouds from our water boiler exploding from outside the apartment.

Water was absolutely pouring everywhere. Essentially, we managed to unleash a monsoon in the desert. Thankfully one of the guards understood my English and proceeded to put in some sort of call to a walkie talkie. During my sprint our neighbor Lorenzo had managed to find our circut breaker and figured out that there was a water switch. 

Kati and Lorenzo freaking out at me that I would take pictures during an "emergency".

So with an apartment full of water but with none available through any of our sinks, we waiting for maintence to show up. And waited. And waited. Funnily enough, it took over an hour of calling the emergency phone line before they ever picked up. And in Israel, even emergencies are handled at the time of their convienence. So, three and a half hours later, we've still yet to have anyone show up at our apartment and our water is shut off. One can hope we may be able to use our bathroom before everything shuts down for Shabbat (in 2 days). Insha'allah.

So. Many. Cats.

Something I learned immediately upon arriving in Jerusalem is that Hebrew University has a lot of cats. Jerusalem has a lot of cats in general, but our campus and apartment complex has an unusual plethora of cats. Seriously, they're everywhere. So, for the cat lovers who follow my blog, I've slowly been collecting photos of some of our feline neighbors for you to appreciate. It's sort of random, but also just a part of my life now.

On the sidewalk outside my apartment building.

Cat

Noah and Sara grabbing coffee in the campus center. If you look closely directly above Noah's laptop there's a cat napping under the bush outside the window.

القط

Seriously, you're always within view of a cat (or cats).

חתול

This is a picture of the entrance to our laundry room. The chairs are usually being occupied by our feline residents, and if you notice, even the sink counter is housing our furry companions.

This is what happens when Noah sits outside. Seriously, every time.

I was taking pictures from a bench outside my apartment building and this little guy decided to come up and investigate my camera lens.

Classes / فصول

Most of my blogging from Israel so far has been a lot of food, friends, and travel. Obviously, that's just a part of study abroad. But, as the name tends to suggest, there is also a studying component. It just so happens that the studying component is hard.

The first difference between the United States and Israel is the days of the week. The work week runs Sunday through Thursday and the weekend is comprised of Friday and Saturday. Considering Shabbat is from sundown on Friday to sundown on Saturday, that really leaves you with only half a weekend where stores are open and transportation is running. However, I'll get back to the work week...

My work week consists of devoting my time to the Arabic Immersion Program at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. My schedule is comprised of a few components:

1. Core Courses in Arabic

I have 8 hours of Modern Standard Arabic (also referred to as fusha or MSA) and 8 hours of colloquial Arabic (in the Levante / Palestinian dialect) each week. I'm in the Intermediate class for MSA and the colloquial Arabic class is combined levels. My colloquial teacher is from Nazareth and teaches very specifically to her slang where she's from, so slowly but surely I'm starting to sound like I'm from Nazareth.

2. Belief and Ritual in Islam

4 hours a week of everything my Islam Professor at Allegheny College already taught me. However, it is a beautiful 4 hours of classes taught in English. This is something you value when your life is surrounded by Hebrew and Arabic.

3. Co-curricular Activities 

Don't be fooled. These are required classes that they just gave fun names toward. Every week we have "Movies/Storytelling" where we have to watch a movie and discuss it in Arabic afterword as well as "Coffee House" where we speak with local Palestinians in Arabic nonstop for 2 hours. Both of these activities take place in colloquial Arabic.

Additionally, there are a variety of trips throughout the semester. This Thursday we're going on an outing to the Old City in Jerusalem to visit mosques and work on our Arabic in context. Other trips include an outing to Jaffa, cooking workshops (in Arabic), the Islamic museum, and an overnight trip to Nazareth on Christmas.

All in all, Sunday through Thursday my life becomes an abundance of struggling with language, grammar, and vocabulary. However each day I manage to produce a little more Arabic than the last, which I suppose is a lot of the purpose of my studying abroad.

(Belated) Shabbat Shalom!

As if going to the Dead Sea wasn't enough, I returned home on Friday unknowingly about to experience some truly Jewish culture. I opened my apartment door, shoes still covered in Dead Sea mud, to find a frantic apartment. Roommates and friends frantically preparing before the clock hit shkiya (the time when Shabbat starts). But the night was still young.

I was invited to join them in lighting the shabbat candles, and even got to light one personally. A few hours later and a couple of borrowed tables and chairs, my apartment was officially the place to be for shabbat.

It was a wonderful wrap up for my first week in Israel. Apartment mates, neighbors, friends, and family gathered around the table for a delicious meal. Sitting there, surrounded by people who were simultaneously strangers and family, I knew I was home. Conversation soared over plate after plate of food and just as much wine to wash it down. English, Hebrew, Arabic, Spanish, French: it was all heard at the table. People from every corner of the globe sat crowded around my kitchen table bringing their own faith, language, stories, culture to this centering tradition that brings it all back and grounds it in the land we're all experiencing together: Israel.

Sitting at the table.

Gathered around good friends and good food.

Our neighbors Tony and Moses bringing their unique personality to the dinner.

Noah talking while I took a photo that apparently no one wanted to be in.

عين جدي

Friday morning Noah and I woke up with a mission. We were off to visit the Dead Sea. A few hours, a bus ride, and a pomegranate later, we managed to arrive at En Gedi, a beach literally in the middle of the desert.

The sign for the beach along the desert highway.

It was absolutely gorgeous. With mountainous desert in one direction and the sea in the other, the view couldn't be beat. Except, maybe by the experience itself. We quickly hurried down to the shore, ditched our backpacks, and headed straight for the water. 

Noah on the beach before we got in.

At the Dead Sea!

The sensation of being in the Dead Sea was like something I had never experienced before. There's this feeling of weightlessness, I heard one tourist describe it as feeling like an astronaut. The buoyancy truly is incredible. Effortlessly, my body floated well above the water. There's an entirely new point of balance that's different from any other time swimming prior so it's a little freaky, but at the same time I imagine it'd be nearly impossible to drown. But then the water itself is different too. The water is insanely salty. My lips would burn and reactively licking it would just cause my mouth to taste like it was full of tablespoons of salt for minutes after. It felt cool on our skin though. Noah described it as taking a bath purely in essential oils, which is completely accurate. If you rub essential oil on your arm it would be nearly the exact feeling of your skin while in the Dead Sea.

This is a picture Noah took of me floating in the Dead Sea. I'm literally just sitting on top of the water.

Hanging out at En Gedi.

It was such an awesome experience and the perfect way to spend my first weekend is Israel. Nothing like a little sun, a lot of salt, and good company!

Home is Where the Bombs Aren't

Another fun little fact about my life in Israel is that I'm actually living in a bomb shelter. Certain rooms in apartments throughout the buildings are designated safe rooms. In case of an alarm we are supposed to go into the room and secure the window and door. The bomb shelter for my apartment is literally my bedroom.

With that little tidbit, I figured I would take this post to give you a little virtual tour of بيتي, or my house.

This is the main common area of our apartment. It's sort of a combined living room / dining room / kitchen.

This is a close up of the door you can see down the hallway in the previous photo. It's the outside door to my bedroom. I have a secondary door that shuts behind that one as well.

This is my bedroom / bomb shelter.

This is what my window looks like when it's all closed and locked up. Technically there's another solid metal barrier I can slide across between the metal blinds and the glass.

Another culturally interesting part of my room (and our apartment, and most dwelling areas in Israel) is this Mezuzah which is attached on doorways about 3/4 way up to the top of the door frame. Inside the case is a scroll which is inscribed with specific verses from the Torah.

Between freshman year in Ravine (literally a building in the middle of a ravine), sophomore year in Baldwin (a freshman only dorm), and junior year in a bomb shelter, I think I may be collecting some of the most interesting college housing experiences.

Wednesday Night Challah*

*pronounced like 'holla'

Today progressed like the typical school day with my biggest plan being to run to the grocery store for the first time after classes. On my way back Noah and I pass his neighbor who debates saying something to us and then just mysteriously says, "they'll fill you in" before he walked out of the apartment complex. Laughing at the weird and ominous interaction we enter his apartment building where we find a group of people gathered in the lobby all on their phones. I'm not sure who talked first, but the first words that registered were "terrorist attack".

In case you haven't seen the news yet, there are plenty of articles you can catch up on (such an article can be found here) but the general points are that an Arab man drove a car onto one of the light rail platforms where he killed an infant and injured a handful of people. 

The craziest part to me is that it's literally the train stop right after the one we use to get to campus. The light rail is a train that runs into the city, and I had literally been on it only 24 hours prior. I'm also planning on going on it again tomorrow. It's weird how such crazy events can just happen and life goes on like normal. 

The incident happened at Ammunition Hill where you see the flame. It's roughly just over a mile from where I live, although so far I've taken the train from Giv'at-Ha Mivtar (French Hill) past Ammunition Hill toward the city.

Although it wasn't entirely like normal. Security was walking around the apartment building complex telling people to close windows and stay inside so as to avoid any tear gas that may be traveling via wind from where rioting broke out after the incident. I guess there's a first time for everything, so now I can add avoiding tear gas to that list.

Staying in was pretty great though. Noah and I were eating dinner in my kitchen when my roommates walked in with friends and challah dough. What was sort of a crazy evening turned into a really awesome night where I got to eat and hangout with good company. 

My roommate preparing the challah dough.

The challah pre-oven.

The best part- enjoying the bread! The two girls to the left of me are my roommates Leslie and Joelle.

As sad as I am that people were severely hurt today, at least I can be thankful for a lot of positives, including good food and great company!

Making Connections... Electronically and IRL

Posts are coming pretty slowly due to the lack of Internet near my apartment. However, I'm still making an effort to try and bring you updates. Seriously, the effort is real, but I'll talk more about that later.

I've been pretty lucky so far in Israel. My housemates are fantastic. There's another Arabic Immersion student from England and two other Jewish Israeli girls and me. Additionally, I've already sort of found home in another apartment as well. The lack of Internet tends to bring people together in the only location near our apartment complex that has wifi. In one of the apartment complex buildings there is a rather small room with free wifi. There, only a few hours into my stay in Israel, I found myself accidentally surrounded by some of my favorite people in Israel so far.

A combination of jet lag, lack of understanding of Hebrew, and a distinct lack of knowledge of our geographical region led us to find food in the only way we knew how... the mini mart next to the computer room. A few bags of chips, popcorn, and containers of hummus later, we were gathered for our first meal in Israel. 

Gathered around our first official "meal" in Israel.

From the left is Shemei (from California), Luca (China), Sara (Italy), myself (American nomad), and Noah (New York and pretty much everywhere else).

Since then I've found myself gathered around that apartment and those people pretty often. In fact, I'm currently gathered in the only other place we've been able to find wifi... right by the elevators outside Noah and Sara's apartment. What can I say? Life is certainly interesting!

Sarah, Noah, and I in the semi-dark hallway trying to get our Internet fix.

Apartment Complex(ities) in Jerusalem

When I had finished my first day of classes I attended a sort of international student tutorial trip on how to find your way downtown, where’s good to eat, where’s good to shop, and how to get to the old city. Due to my long day I didn’t even manage to get back to my apartment until well after 10:00pm.

My first downtown view of the Old City.

After returning I packed up my bag and walked to the nearest wifi hotspot in a building a little ways from my apartment. Unintentionally, the night wore on full of cultural conversations with others in the computer center until it was after 2:00AM. Returning to my apartment, I realized I had a problem. My roommates had gone to bed, dead bolting the door.

After about 10 minutes of knocking and ringing the door buzzer I heard the sound of water from a sink… in the apartment behind me. Slightly mortified, I knocked on my neighbor’s door praying I hadn’t ticked off my whole floor in my loud attempt to wake my own roommates.

It took an awkwardly long time before the door cracked open and one of the guys who lived in the apartment peered at me. At first I figured he was probably just confused as to why his brand new hall-mate was knocking at his door at 2:30AM on a Wednesday morning, however he greeted me, “Oh thank God! I thought you were security!” Confused, I stepped into the smokey apartment.

Apparently he was drunk. And, as he explained to me, once well liquored up he likes to attempt to cook. He had set the fire alarm off trying to make Cajun chicken. I pleaded my case and he let me borrow his cell phone to call my roommate… who didn’t answer. Just to make sure I wasn’t crazy, I had him check the door and spend a few minutes leaning against the buzzer to no avail.

A little concerned due to having spent the better part of half an hour switching back and forth between knocking and rapidly hitting the buzzer, I cursed the fact my roommates had ever called themselves “light sleepers”. And, a little shook up, I turned to the only place I could think of – technically the only other apartment I know. I went to go beg for help from my friends.

Knocking on their apartment at 2:40AM also didn’t help a whole lot. I took the stairs back out of the building and circled around the side. I knew my friend Noah was probably still awake as he had been hanging out in the computer center with me. Thankfully, he had also left his window open. With an awkwardly loud and echo-y whispered shout of his name, he actually appeared in the window. I tried to quietly yell my story to him, before I decided to just run back up the stairs.

Acting every bit my savior, he marched back over to my apartment building with me where he held the buzzer nonstop for a good 5 minutes before I finally heard shuffling footsteps inside. By the time I had the door open whoever had woken up had disappeared. I went to enter my dark apartment, thankful that even if I may have terrorized my roommates only two days in, at least I have friends willing to come to my apartment at 3:00 in the morning and terrorize them with me.