anticrastination

Like a dying beast is the student abroad who realizes they only have a few weeks left in paradise. They become frantic, visiting everywhere they have not yet been, trying foods they have not yet eaten, and filling up their schedules until at last the fateful day arrives when they are left feeling, "if only I'd had more time..."

I'm not exactly a dying beast but I have definitely noticed a change in my own mindset as I recognize I am in the last leg of the trip. For myself, when my own tendency is to become frantic and desperate, the value of disciplined times of reflection are important. Especially while abroad I feel the metaphor of students as sponges is especially relevant. The difference between studying abroad and "normal" university life is that back in the homeland I am soaking in daily life and work and classes, which can get overwhelming at times creating the feeling of being a sponge under a running faucet that can only retain a portion of what being poured into it. Studying abroad is like being a sponge in front of a fire hydrant that has been ripped open and is gushing thousands of gallons of high pressure water. 

So if I'm not careful, if I don't intentionally spend time reflecting, pondering, journaling, and soaking in these experiences, I doubt I'd ever retain even half as much of this experience and my trip will soon become like the Temple Mount: a glittering, golden memory of the past growing smaller and fainter as it shines in the distance.

The end looming near in the distance (whoa, so dramatic) is also a wonderful incentive to get out and do things, go places, and check off those boxes (for those of you who make lists). A departure date reminds me my time is limited and with one year left at South Carolina this is an important observation to take to heart....

I have been busy these past few weeks with schoolwork (yes I do have school), projects, tests, and a few more Israeli holidays and its been a while since I've posted so I'd like to share some random cool things I've been able to do while most of you peeps have been kickin it for the summer (and pictures are worth thousands of words so):

Israel's Memorial Day service at the Kotel (white: navy, olive: army, tan: air force)

Super quality photo of fireworks which marked the beginning of Independence Day

So in Israel most holidays are celebrated from evening to evening (similar to the way Shabbat is set up) and so Memorial Day and Independence Day are back to back. Now there is much to be discussed about the fact that Israel has a solemn day of remembrance of their military followed immediately by an extravagant day celebrating their independence. I spent the start of Memorial day (evening of May 10) at the Kotel where President Rivlin and other ranking officials and politicians and religious men gave speeches (in Hebrew) culminating in singing the Israeli National Anthem. Israelis will tell you that everyone knows at least one friend or family member who has fallen in combat. This makes the day especially poignant and adds to the weight of the moment of silence when loud sirens sound across the country and the entire nation stands still, remembering. Independence day begins the evening of May 11 with fireworks and a party that fills the entire city of Jerusalem so that you can hardly walk down Jaffa Street without being sprayed by something similar to silly string or being hit over the head by these blow-up hammers. I spent the following day celebrating the day with some very generous Israeli friends who invited me to spend the afternoon at their BBQ. I ate some good meat, met some cool people, and did I mention I ate some good meat?

When Israel celebrates a holiday they don't mess around. 

Went hiking in the desert during a heat wave. Went swimming in an oasis. Slept under the stars alongside the mosquitos. Hiked up a couple cliffs. We had fun. Type 2 fun. 

Frisbee tournament in Bethlehem

Powerful grafitti at the wall

Spent two days in Bethlehem participating in an awesome Ultimate tournament put on by Ultimate Palestine. It was a wonderful experience from arriving in the city just as a Nabka demonstration was going by, to playing some frisbee with some wonderful, competitive, and kind people, to visiting the wall. Yom al-Nabka (meaning "Day of the Catastrophe") is held on the same day as Israel's Independence Day and it commemorates the hundreds of thousands of Palestinians who either fled or were expelled from their homes as a result of the events of 1948. The passengers on the train you see in the picture are refugees from different areas of Palestine.

All said, the frisbee was glorious.  The group was mainly Palestinians (with a few internationals and randomly like 5 people from Georgia #smallworld) and it was a wonderful balance of competition and sportsmanship and fun. To top it all off I got a sick T-shirt.

Funny how it only takes about 20 minutes to get to Bethlehem and yet it seems like a world away. 

Made it up to the Temple Mount finally. Next step: get inside.

Cats are still a thing. You'd think they'd grow on you... but they don't.

Am I in Paris?

Fire

Israel literally has a day for bonfires. Lag BaOmer basically celebrates a Jewish Rabbi who was a mystic and revealed something. Apparently boys aged 3 get their first haircut during this time, kids run around and try to collect the most sticks for their fires, etc... For most of the country its a day to have a giant nighttime picnic and make huge fires and eat Kosher s'mores. There were so many bonfires you could smell the smoke as soon as you walked outside. 

When Israel celebrates a holiday they don't mess around.

Oh and there's some sort of lights festival going on that makes it feel like Christmas. 

Israel is a land of contrasts (see above for case and point).

In contrast to the adventures above: I've also been enjoying classes here, in particular my "Art and Science of Negotiation" class where we actually negotiate through certain simulations and exercises. Super useful and interesting learning the Israeli way of negotiating and one good observation has been,

"Israelis start with no and work their way to yes; Americans start with yes and work their way to no"

Coming from the south, where everyone says yes before they say no and where everyone's favorite restaurant says "my pleasure", I don't think I've ever heard "no" mean "maybe" so much. Be prepared America. I'm being trained to not take no for an answer so who knows what I'll be able to do now.

Welp, if you've made it this far thanks for following along and mulling over my musings. No, this isn't my last post, but I thought I'd say thanks.

If you have any questions for me about my time here feel free to comment or send me a message or write it down and as me when we hang out and you buy me food (wow, what a great idea Nathan I'm definitely going to do that now!)

ALSO, its not too late to visit! haha

downhill

Nothing like a week without bread to make you appreciate the delicious taste of freshly baked pita.

(Sidenote: Kosher-for-Pesach bread is the worst. Beware and stay away at all costs)

During Pesach (Passover) in Israel leaven is not sold in most stores and restaurants throughout the nation and especially in Jerusalem. And most shops are closed anyways for the 7 day holiday as people travel to visit family for the Seder and then across the country in their rush to find water somewhere. The Dead Sea, Sea of Galilee, Ein Gedi, Tel Aviv beach and other locations where water happens to accumulate are very popular destinations during the week. For the sake of helping visualization: I remember driving home from the Dead Sea while on the other side of the road a line of cars as far as the eye could see were driving along the winding road beside that great bathtub of saltwater. Each car packed with towels, BBQ equipment, food and family; the perfect combination for a day of fun in the sun.

But, alas, the bread has returned and the sun is shining and its all downhill from here.

Thanks to the English language downhill can mean many different things so clarification is needed here. What I mean is in contrast with the first portion of my stay. These past few months could be described as uphill: from actually living on a hill to learning how to live in Jerusalem to learning how classes and schedule and life works at the University to meeting new people. This uphill portion can sometimes carry with it the feeling of slowness while working through these challenges but once at the peak one looks behind them and it all seemed to have happened so fast.

From here on out it will be a downhill climb. Just as long a distance as when uphill but seemingly easier. I look ahead and see myself again commenting on how fast time flew by. This observation has inspired me to even more seize the moments along journey back and make the most of where I am. When I come down from this Mount and return home I hope to have cherished my time and not rushed downhill.

Probably the best part about Pesach (the worst being the lack of bread), was the two weeks I got off of University which allowed for plenty of adventuring time.

First, a hiking trip to northern(ish) Israel:

After an exciting pre-Pesach "hike" trip along two portions of the Yam'v'Yam I decided to venture outside of Israel to one of the few surrounding countries which is relatively welcoming to those people with an Israeli VISA on their passport: Jordan.

Jordan was a wonderful and refreshing time visiting with friends, hiking through Wadis, BBQing on roofs, going to large flea markets (aka outdoor thrift stores), and getting my mind blown by the overwhelming beauty of carved rocks in Petra. 

After Jordan I spent Seder weekend with the very gracious and hospitable Ezer family. The weekend was full of great conversations about Dostoyevsky's Crime and Punishment, why Hebrew sounds worse than Arabic, how difficult it is for Israelis to get a drivers license (let alone a car), the richness of the English language, the impact of the four sons mentioned in the haggadah on education in Israel, etc... I played some Peter, Paul and Mary songs on guitar and we sang John Denver together. Seder and dinner was very enjoyable and I even got to use my Spanish in conversation with their aunt from Argentina! The next day we visited the grave and park commemorating one of the Zionist movements greatest benefactors Mr. Rothschild. (Apparently the Hebrew or Israeli version of Fiddler on the Roof says "If I were a Rothschild..." instead of "If I were a rich man..."). And after the park we sealed the successful weekend with some delicious banana chocolate icecream which brought back sweet memories of banana pudding from home.

Lastly, I gallivanted across Israel seeing some interesting sites from lesser known ones like Lachish (a critical fortress that guarded the main road from Egypt to Jerusalem with its really old siege ramp) and Susya (considered one of the first messianic communities as documented by a Hebrew mosaic and home of some really awesome underground tunnels used as escape routes in defense against invading nomads) to more popular sites like Masada, Qumran, Ein Gedi and of course the Dead Sea.

Lachish

This is what they do in Supermarkets to cover up all the foods with leaven so the store is still Kosher but so they don't have to throw out food.

Sunset

Masada

Me and an Ibex that wanted a photoshoot

The crew, the van, the view

Amazing being able to travel to sites thousands of years old. Literal thousands of years old. I once made an offhand comment when we were somewhere. A guy mentioned a building was like 500 years old to which I said "Wow, that's pretty old". He laughed and said "In Israel if its not over a thousand years old its still young!" At this point I feel like I could pick up a random rock off the ground and there is a 90% chance it is older than the United States of America. 

After all these travels it was interesting to return to Jerusalem and to my apartment and feel like it is a place where I can feel relaxed and comfortable. Funny how just two months ago I was traveling here all the way from my home country and just these past two weeks I was traveling around the region only to return to my "home" here in Jerusalem. Excited to continue exploring Israel in the upcoming months learning more and more about the people, the culture, the politics and the business environment here, but also I am excited to have that feeling of returning amplified when I travel down from Mount Scopus to America.

Cherishing my time here while it lasts (as I cherish how delicious real bread tastes after a week of matzah).

"Wherever you are be all there"