It was my first week back in Israel and it felt amazing. I LOVE Shabbat in Israel and I love beginning my week with it. To me it’s so much more meaningful and special as the entire country slows down together. We had an on-campus Shabbat and it was really nice to see my friends, re-connect and resume our Muss life again. This week the mini-mester kids arrived and there were only 10 kids in their program because most had unfortunately dropped out due to the war. Nevertheless, it was nice to meet them and have some new blood here so-to-speak. We spent Shabbat sleeping in, tanning, and pretty much just chilling…literally what I look forward to each week.:)

Our first Tiyul back was to Tel Aviv- Yafo. We began the morning by boarding the bus to the beach. I LOVE the beach here. I love jumping in the water, playing in the waves, soaking up the sun and just living life. After we went to the beach, we walked over to an Israeli Innovation Museum. We saw all the things people in Israel have invented that we know of today such as Waze, etc… It was actually very interesting to learn about how much Israel has created in only 75 years of being an official State. After this museum, we had LOTS (lunch on the streets) in the old town of Yafo. I have been to this town with my family but we went to a different area so this was all new to me. I went with 5 of my friends to a cool restaurant and I completely forgot how much I love the food in Israel. It was soooooo good!! After we stuffed our faces, we walked around, window shopped and got ice-cream at our favorite place, Golda. The ice cream in Israel doesn’t compare to what it is back home and I don’t know why but it’s amazing. 

After lunch we went to another museum of Jewish historical art. We saw the different types of art and Jewish origins such as Ashkenazi or Sephardic. There was a gift shop and I bought a little art piece there to take home. This Tiyul was really fun to just be back exploring an learning about Israel. I really love this country if you couldn’t tell. 🙂

We’ve continued to settle back into a routine, attending classes, tanning, working out…just to name a few. Hard life right? One night, we had a guest speaker, Michel Oren, who was the former Israeli ambassador for the US. He shared with us his experiences fighting in the Lebanon War, how we became ambassador, and his experience with anti-semetism as a child. It was really interesting to listen to. How many times do I get to experience someone with this pedigree at home? Umm, none. I love listening to people who have not only done something with their lives but learning how they’ve impacted history themselves. It’s fascinating.

This week we commemorated Yom HaShoah, Holocaust remeberence Day. In Israel, the entire country comes to a stop and memorializes the 6 million Jews that were murdered. There’s also a siren that plays in which everyone stops what they are doing, even people driving will pull over and freeze to memorialize the 6 million lost. It’s a big deal. In America, the holiday is very watered down and the most people do is like a yahrzeit candle.  It was a very sad day especially after being in Poland and seeing all of the camps. 

We concluded the week with another on-campus Shabbat. AP testing is coming up so most people just spent the weekend studying and relaxing. 

This week was a catch-up week and it was really nice to be back with everyone.

Stay Tuned!

Xoxo,