She finally updates!

I haven't written in this blog since the beginning of December. I kept meaning to write, but things kept happening and my list of what to write about kept getting longer and longer. I figured instead of putting this off any further, I would just try to summarize a few of the amazing things I have been up to lately.

Before winter break, I got the chance to go to Bethlehem for Christmas Eve. Unfortunately, it started pouring rain right as we left Jerusalem, but it was still a great adventure. Arabic was the only language spoken there, so we did our best to figure out what was happening and where the holy sites were that we should visit. We managed to get outside the church of the Nativity, but only after standing in a rainy moshpit did we learn we needed to get tickets in advance. Oh well!

Christmas tree in the center of Bethlehem

In February I went on a trip up north with several classmates and my friend Jessica who is studying in Jerusalem for the semester at Betzalel (an art school). We visited Haifa, Akko and my new favorite place in Israel, Rosh Hanikrah. Rosh Hanikrah is along the coast next to the Lebanon border and is the the only coastal part of Israel that is rocky, and not sand. The rocky shoreline is now filled with caves and grottos hollowed out by the waves crashing into the  rocks. It is one of the most beautiful places I have been to. Our trip up north also included an epic meal in the old city of Akko and visiting the Bahai Gardens in Haifa.

 View from Rosh Hanikra

One of the grottos at Rosh Hanikra 

Amazing feast in the old city of Akko 

Part of the Bahai Gardens in Haifa

Also in February my parents came to visit me. This was their first time ever in Israel, and I am so happy that my studies here provided a chance for them to finally get to visit Israel. They went on week and a half long tour of the country, which included five days in Jerusalem! We ate at some fabulous restaurants, did lots of shopping (thanks for the new boots Mom and Dad!) and got to enjoy some of Israel's sites.

Ross's at the Israel Museum

Last weekend I participated in program called Perspectives, where we traveled around Israel for a day and a half hearing different Jewish-Israeli narratives on the Israeli-Arab conflict. As Michael Klein Katz would say, "It was transformational". I could write for pages about the trip and how much I learned, but i will try to keep it semi-short here. We met with a variety of people including Danny Tirza, who is the architect behind the security fence; a peace activist who runs a Palestinian-Israeli radio station; a woman who was evacuated from her home during the Gaza disengagement and now lives in a caravan just over the border in Israel; a teacher who lives in a Kibbutz right by the Gaza Border and works to teach peace and tolerance to teens traumatized by the incessant rocket fire from Gaza; and Jewish Israelis who live in Nokdim, a Jewish settlement inside of the West Bank. It was an amazing experience getting to hear narratives about the conflict I had never heard before. I learned so much and while I still may disagree with the viewpoints of some people, I feel I can finally understand their viewpoints and ideology.

Below is an excerpt I wrote for one of my classes, after returning from Perspectives:
"Personally, I have spent this year trying to develop my concrete viewpoints of Israel. Am I pro-one state or two-state solution? What are my thoughts on the Wall being divided by gender? Do I agree with religious settlers? How do I feel about the disengagement of Gaza? After serious reflecting and process and on all these question and more, I’ve realized I am pro-dialogue. There are so many narratives to the story of Israel, both internal and external to the Jewish people living here. As I have traveled around Israel hearing many different stories and hearing the passion with which people talk about their different viewpoints, I have come to understand so much more about Israel and Israelis. I don’t necessarily agree with everyone I have spoken with, but after talking with them I understand where they are coming from. After each meaningful conversation I have, I always walk away wishing everyone else could have heard this conversation and then perhaps that will lead to peace and a better Israel. I have decided I am comfortable with being in flux about my views on topics within Israel, because that flux allows to me consider different perspectives that I hear. I just want to make sure I am open to hearing different narratives and continue processing my thoughts on it all."

Bomb Shelter in Nitzan, a caravan city where people who were evacuated from Gaza in the disengagement still live. Nitzan has at least one bomb shelter on every block. 

Gaza Border

On top of all these exciting adventures, I am still going to school and loving all my classes; especially my Bible class. I am taking pretty much all the same classes as last semester, only without the History of Zionism and second temple history, but adding Rabbinic texts lecture and translation classes. Between school and homework, I am trying to take in as much of Israel as I can before I move back to the states in just under two months. Its been such an amazing experience so far, and I want to continue getting out everything I can from this year.