Wow, my second week here in Israel has been absolutely amazing. It feels like I have been here forever and yet I’m still a newbie, in a new country, new school, with new friends, teachers, classes, new food, procedures, and not to mention a new place to live. It’s A LOT and yet it feels like I’ve been here for awhile.

The group of students in my program have all bonded pretty quickly and we are now one big group. I love how everyone is starting to get to know each other, connect and form relationships. 

I have started to branch out from my usual group of friends and I have found that I love getting to know people. It’s funny because I started this journey not knowing anyone, a bit nervous if I would make friends, connect with people and even like it for that matter,  but I’ve made the best friends. I love them and I am so excited. My roommates are very nice, and though I am not as close with them yet, I am excited to get to know them more. I like them because we are all clean people, so there are no problems with messy areas yet. 

Anyway, I have really started to find a routine even though our schedules are unbelievably busy. This is what a basic school day looks like for me. I wake up around 7:00am and quickly get ready for my Israel Studies class at 7:45. Then I continue with my general studies classes and meet up with friends for lunch. After that, I have more classes and end the day by getting ready for dinner.

My favorite thing about being here is that school doesn’t follow a regular schedule every day. Usually, we have at least 1-2 Tiyul (trips) where we learn and visit different places in Israel. So far, we have been on three trips. I love going on tiyuls because it connects me with my Jewish roots as we visit historical places all over Israel.

This week, we went to Jerusalem again for Shabbat. This was my absolute favorite day I have spent here in Israel. On Shabbat, we went to the Kotel. There were hundreds of Jews singing, dancing, and praying. It was amazing to watch. I was with all the girls in my program as boys and girls are separated at the wall. All the girls formed a huge circle and we started singing Jewish songs, which then expanded and more women joined in. None of us knew each other, but we were all singing, dancing, and having fun together. It was absolutely amazing, and I was having the time of my life. 

The next day, we went to an Orthodox Synagogue in the middle of Jerusalem. I do not come from an Orthodox background; my family is more on the Conservative/Reform side. However, sitting in the synagogue and listening to the Rabbi was extremely impactful as I realized Judaism comes in many different shapes and sizes. People tend to draw harsh lines on whether someone is Reform, Conservative, or Orthodox, and it has caused Jews to become separated from one another. This experience of me sitting in the shul was really eye-opening as I saw the different ways of praying. Even though I hardly understood most of what the Rabbi was saying as it was all in Hebrew, I still felt connected to the words he was sharing. It was a surreal experience as I am usually not the type to enjoy going to synagogues.

My second week here has been amazing, and I cannot wait to share my new stories and adventures next week.

Stay tuned!

Xoxo,