1) You can see the video on YouTube at
http://bit.ly/czPSqv
2) It's also available for download at
http://www.mediafire.com/?k1zm3dfh3kg
3) It will be on the website shortly at
http://www.destinationisrael.com/videos/
(*then look for Oranim 22 or Kibbutz Yehiam in the title)
Sunday, February 28, 2010
Thursday, February 25, 2010
Graduation Day!
I am very tired but we had a lovely graduation and bbq tonight. I made the slideshow for the event. It's about 10 minutes long and will likely be uploaded to the Oranim website within a few days. In the meantime, if anyone is just interested in downloading it, the link to do that is here--> http://www.mediafire.com/?k1zm3dfh3kg
Also, this afternoon they held a goodbye event for me in the after center. It was very very sweet. The kids all said nice things to me and gave me cards and pictures. A few even cried.
Tomorrow, we'll celebrate Purim on the kibbutz. I still don't know what I'll dress up as (a tourist perhaps?). Anyway, I'm off to bed.
Also, this afternoon they held a goodbye event for me in the after center. It was very very sweet. The kids all said nice things to me and gave me cards and pictures. A few even cried.
Tomorrow, we'll celebrate Purim on the kibbutz. I still don't know what I'll dress up as (a tourist perhaps?). Anyway, I'm off to bed.
Monday, February 22, 2010
Trip to the Golan Heights/Last week volunteering
Last week we had an overnight trip to the Golan Heights. We started day one by going to Rosh Pina, a lovely city not far from Sefad. Then we went hiking in the Gilaboon Stream down from the Golan, going through deserted villages and old Syrian army emplacement and waterfalls. It was a LONG and exhausting hike, but very very beautiful. We then went to a bunker at the Valley of Tears and talked about the battle for the Golan during the Yom Kippur war.
At the hotel, we had dinner and met up with the dozen other Oranim groups there. (I even bumped into someone I knew from Capital Camps.) The second day we went to a kibbutz even closer to the Lebanese border than we are. We spoke with the kibbutz security officer and he talked about how the army protects the settlements in the north. We also went hiking in the Banias- one of the Jordan River sources. This hike was also extremely beautiful.
Anyway, this week is our last week volunteering. We're having a graduation ceremony/dinner on Thursday. Friday night will be a HUGE party at the pub for Purim. Then people start leaving the kibbutz and heading home around Sunday/Monday.
At the hotel, we had dinner and met up with the dozen other Oranim groups there. (I even bumped into someone I knew from Capital Camps.) The second day we went to a kibbutz even closer to the Lebanese border than we are. We spoke with the kibbutz security officer and he talked about how the army protects the settlements in the north. We also went hiking in the Banias- one of the Jordan River sources. This hike was also extremely beautiful.
Anyway, this week is our last week volunteering. We're having a graduation ceremony/dinner on Thursday. Friday night will be a HUGE party at the pub for Purim. Then people start leaving the kibbutz and heading home around Sunday/Monday.
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
Sefad, Tel-Aviv/Herzlyia
Wednesday, February 10: SEFAD TRIP!
I finally made it to Sefad for the day. I went with my roommate Emily. It took us three vehicles and nearly 2.5 hours, but we made it. Once in Sefad, it took us another 30minutes to finally orient ourselves and find the things we wanted to see. We spent our day (5 hours) going to various art galleries and shopping/window shopping. The Sefad candle store was really cool. The candles were beautiful and they had some funky ones in various shapes- including a Harry Potter candle in the shape of the broom he flies on.
Our day in Sefad concluded with a FABULOUS lunch. We had a Yeminite version of pizza. It was Lachuh with Sefad cheeses and vegetables on top. Lachuh is a type of bread with a lighter and slighly sticker consistency than a pizza crust. It reminded me a lot of injera, the Ethiopian bread, although thicker than that. The man making the food tried hard to convince me that Italy is not the inventor of pizza, Israelis are. He asked us to repeat the word "pita" to him from a child's point of view. He explained that a child would misprounounce pita to create the word "pizza" and thus is the origin of the name. It was hilarious and silly, but the food fantastic.
Thursday, February 11: Off to Herzilya!
I went to stay with Israeli friends of mine that I know from Capital Camps and stayed with when I first arrived to Israel. They were great hosts for the weekend. I arrived Thursday night, in time for a late dinner of burgers/fries.
Friday, February 12: My friend dropped me off in Old Yaffo, where I started my day of walking nearly half of Tel-Aviv. The weather was beautiful and warm and sunny, clear blue skies. I walked around Old Yaffo for only a short while, I didn't really know what sights I was supposed to see there and I think I missed the must-see sights. Then I proceded to walk up the boardwalk, along the coast and then over into the city to the HaCarmel market. I walked through the food/clothing/stuff side then through the artists market. It was very crowded. I also sat and listend to a band (The Band Holler on their Just Married Tour). They were really good.
I grabbed a passion fruit smoothie (with mango and something else- YUM) and started my walk towards Dizengoff Centre. Around this time, someone stopped me on the street and asked in hebrew: Do you speak English?
Not registering what he actually asked, I responded in hebrew: Yes, a little, a little. (This is my token answer when people ask me if I speak Hebrew)
Anyway, then he proceded to ask in English about the bus system and how to get to the train station. I answered in English that I don't know much about the busses, showed him on the map where to catch them, and told him I don't know why I answered that I spoke only a little English. **He looked very confused. I wished him luck and continued walking. It was funny.
In Dizengoff Centre, which is an unusually large mall, although on Friday's they have a food market and a designer clothing market inside the mall. The food market was AMAZING. It was like a cheaper much better version of Taste of Bethesda. I started my eating with a Kuba, which is similar to a samosa as it's a doughy, meat filled item. I think I've had them before but never as large as this one, which was like the circumference of a bowl. Quite tasty.
Then I ruined my second course by being swayed by the pasta stand. Not only was it only okay pasta, I should have kept walking because afterwards I found the second floor of the food market. Oh well.
The market was comprised of dozens of stands with food from a baked potato bar to sushi, chinese food, pasta, local cuisine (kuba, stuffed peppers, etc), and dessert stands as well.
Anyway, around 3pm I made my way to the bus staion to grab a bus before the stop running for Shabbat and headed back to my friend's place. I joined them for dinner at their family's house, but before that watched a documentary about/interview with Rupert Murdoch's mother. Very interesting.
Saturday, I spent the day on the beach in Herzilya. It was hot and sunny but the water was still to cold to swim in. Instead of heading back up to the kibbutz late saturday, which is when the trains start running, I decided to spent the night and head back on Sunday morning. I watched "Far and Away" a 1992 movie with Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman. It was about Ireland and the US in the 1890's. Pretty good and really nice to sit on a couch and watch a movie in english.
Tomorrow we have an overnight trip to the Golan Heights & Hula Valley with the whole group/Oranim. On Friday, I'll be celebrating Purim with the kids in my center. Next week we have our group graduation--I'm busy making the slideshow for it. Then next friday we'll celebrate purim on the kibbutz in the pub. And then that's that. The program ends. I don't fly home for another week, leaving saturday march 6. I'm still unsure what I'll do during that week and where/if I'll travel.
I hope everyone is surviving the snow and staying warm. (and I apologize for mis-spellings and awkward sentences, I'm supposed to be leaving for work any minute...so I had to rush this update a bit)
I finally made it to Sefad for the day. I went with my roommate Emily. It took us three vehicles and nearly 2.5 hours, but we made it. Once in Sefad, it took us another 30minutes to finally orient ourselves and find the things we wanted to see. We spent our day (5 hours) going to various art galleries and shopping/window shopping. The Sefad candle store was really cool. The candles were beautiful and they had some funky ones in various shapes- including a Harry Potter candle in the shape of the broom he flies on.
Our day in Sefad concluded with a FABULOUS lunch. We had a Yeminite version of pizza. It was Lachuh with Sefad cheeses and vegetables on top. Lachuh is a type of bread with a lighter and slighly sticker consistency than a pizza crust. It reminded me a lot of injera, the Ethiopian bread, although thicker than that. The man making the food tried hard to convince me that Italy is not the inventor of pizza, Israelis are. He asked us to repeat the word "pita" to him from a child's point of view. He explained that a child would misprounounce pita to create the word "pizza" and thus is the origin of the name. It was hilarious and silly, but the food fantastic.
Thursday, February 11: Off to Herzilya!
I went to stay with Israeli friends of mine that I know from Capital Camps and stayed with when I first arrived to Israel. They were great hosts for the weekend. I arrived Thursday night, in time for a late dinner of burgers/fries.
Friday, February 12: My friend dropped me off in Old Yaffo, where I started my day of walking nearly half of Tel-Aviv. The weather was beautiful and warm and sunny, clear blue skies. I walked around Old Yaffo for only a short while, I didn't really know what sights I was supposed to see there and I think I missed the must-see sights. Then I proceded to walk up the boardwalk, along the coast and then over into the city to the HaCarmel market. I walked through the food/clothing/stuff side then through the artists market. It was very crowded. I also sat and listend to a band (The Band Holler on their Just Married Tour). They were really good.
I grabbed a passion fruit smoothie (with mango and something else- YUM) and started my walk towards Dizengoff Centre. Around this time, someone stopped me on the street and asked in hebrew: Do you speak English?
Not registering what he actually asked, I responded in hebrew: Yes, a little, a little. (This is my token answer when people ask me if I speak Hebrew)
Anyway, then he proceded to ask in English about the bus system and how to get to the train station. I answered in English that I don't know much about the busses, showed him on the map where to catch them, and told him I don't know why I answered that I spoke only a little English. **He looked very confused. I wished him luck and continued walking. It was funny.
In Dizengoff Centre, which is an unusually large mall, although on Friday's they have a food market and a designer clothing market inside the mall. The food market was AMAZING. It was like a cheaper much better version of Taste of Bethesda. I started my eating with a Kuba, which is similar to a samosa as it's a doughy, meat filled item. I think I've had them before but never as large as this one, which was like the circumference of a bowl. Quite tasty.
Then I ruined my second course by being swayed by the pasta stand. Not only was it only okay pasta, I should have kept walking because afterwards I found the second floor of the food market. Oh well.
The market was comprised of dozens of stands with food from a baked potato bar to sushi, chinese food, pasta, local cuisine (kuba, stuffed peppers, etc), and dessert stands as well.
Anyway, around 3pm I made my way to the bus staion to grab a bus before the stop running for Shabbat and headed back to my friend's place. I joined them for dinner at their family's house, but before that watched a documentary about/interview with Rupert Murdoch's mother. Very interesting.
Saturday, I spent the day on the beach in Herzilya. It was hot and sunny but the water was still to cold to swim in. Instead of heading back up to the kibbutz late saturday, which is when the trains start running, I decided to spent the night and head back on Sunday morning. I watched "Far and Away" a 1992 movie with Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman. It was about Ireland and the US in the 1890's. Pretty good and really nice to sit on a couch and watch a movie in english.
Tomorrow we have an overnight trip to the Golan Heights & Hula Valley with the whole group/Oranim. On Friday, I'll be celebrating Purim with the kids in my center. Next week we have our group graduation--I'm busy making the slideshow for it. Then next friday we'll celebrate purim on the kibbutz in the pub. And then that's that. The program ends. I don't fly home for another week, leaving saturday march 6. I'm still unsure what I'll do during that week and where/if I'll travel.
I hope everyone is surviving the snow and staying warm. (and I apologize for mis-spellings and awkward sentences, I'm supposed to be leaving for work any minute...so I had to rush this update a bit)
Thursday, February 4, 2010
rain again.
Well, I was hoping to go to Sefad today but it's raining and way too cold. I heard snow was predicted for nearby towns, but I haven't yet heard if there is any. Not much new since returning from Jerusalem. We had another Israeli movie night and saw "Sweet Mud" (Adama Meshuga'at). It was a movie about a family living on a kibbutz. It depicted many of the harsh realities of kibbutz life, when children still lived in the children houses and before the many changes that kibbutzim have now experienced. They showed the abuse and gossiping, etc. It was kind of a depressing movie but the Israeli's in the room agreed it was realistic to their experiences.
I have about three weeks left on the program and then an extra week an Israel (the first week in March). I'm busy planning trips for my last weeks in Israel and for the first few weeks back in the USA. So far on the agenda in Israel: Tel Aviv, Rosh Hanikra, Safed, Jerusalem, Dead Sea and Ein Gedi. Back in the USA: New Jersey/New York, San Francisco, Bloomington and Chicago/Highland Park.
Hope all is well stateside. Time to head to work.
I have about three weeks left on the program and then an extra week an Israel (the first week in March). I'm busy planning trips for my last weeks in Israel and for the first few weeks back in the USA. So far on the agenda in Israel: Tel Aviv, Rosh Hanikra, Safed, Jerusalem, Dead Sea and Ein Gedi. Back in the USA: New Jersey/New York, San Francisco, Bloomington and Chicago/Highland Park.
Hope all is well stateside. Time to head to work.
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