Blogs from Jerusalem, Jerusalem District, Israel, Middle East - page 43

Hey y'all. I do realize that is has a been a while since my last post, hence the title giving everyone my current status. And of course, a fair bit has happened since I last spoke. First and perhaps most importantly, I shaved off my beard, as well as most of the hair on my head. That happened on the 30th of March. I had it cut at the barber on campus. That turned out to be a learning experience. I learned, for instance, that a #2 on electric clippers in Israel is very different than a #2 in the US. I came out damn near bald. But I had fun with that. For instance, I got my haircut right after my Arabic class, and upon returning to the dorms, I saw one of the girls ... read more

Am Montag nachmittag fuhr ich mit einem Sammeltaxi nach Jerusalem. Ich lernte im Bus eine andere Berlinerin kennen und wir stiegen in der Altstadt in einem Hostel namens Citadel ab. Am Abend gingen wir aus und trafen einen Kumpel von Asaf, der uns einige Punkte auf unserem Stadtplan einkreiste, die wir sehen sollen. Am naechsten Tag standen wir frueh auf und zogen los. Die Sonne schien und der Himmel war blau, es war ein wunderschoener Tag zum Tourist sein. Wir liessen und viel Zeit und wir sahen beeindruckende Gegenden. Bei Sonnenuntergang fuhren wir wieder zurueck nach Tel Aviv.... read more

Shalom y'all. For most of you who are thoroughly confused by the title of this entry, let me update you are some recent developments in the Middle East, courtesy of the BBC. First, Hassan Nasrallah, leader of Hezbollah in Lebanon, declared that Israel would disappear, and that this is inevitable. This was, of course, in response to the killing of Imad Mughniyeh, a senior commander of Hezbollah. This sounds like quite the magic trick, and as much as I am enjoying Israel, I would like to hear how he intends to pull this off. Next, in probably unrelated news, Shlomo Benizri, an Israeli Parliament member from the Haredi (ultra-orthodox) political party Shas, blamed recent earthquakes in Jerusalem on legal tolerance of gays. Now, Shlomo, I am sure you have your reasons for speaking out, but if ... read more

Salaam, Shalom, Hola y'all. Just got out of another day of Ulpan. Apparently we once again expecting snow tonight. It's a little funny the panic Israelis get into over snow. The Supermarkets are a madhouse beforehand, and when an inch of snow falls, everything shuts down (school, buses, stores, etc.). Only three days left of Ulpan before classes start. last weekend I went with a couple of my roommates went on an organized trip with at least seventy other international students to the Negev ( the big desert in the South). I went to bed at 2 AM the night before, woke up at 5 AM, and we left at 6:30 AM. I slept through most of the three hour ride. Our first stop was the grave of David Ben-Gurion (the first Prime Minister of Israel) ... read more

Shalom. So maybe a week ago it snowed in Jerusalem for about 2 days straight. It also snowed once two years ago, but apparently it normally only snows once every ten years. Two days off from Ulpan for what would have been considered flurries in Washington or Jersey. It was an amazing sight though, and I have plenty of pictures. Though we missed two days, we are only able to make up one, this Friday morning, Feb. 8th. Just about everything here, except for a 24hr. coffee chain called Aroma, closes on Friday around 4:30 PM. Some places open up again Saturday, after sunset, around 6 PM. The bureaucracy here is something to be seen. You wait five hours to get a room that they escort you to. There's another office to get a key ... read more