1 week (almost) down! 23 more to go!

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I've made it to the Holy Land! I arrived last Wednesday at 8:30 PM (Israel time which is 7 hours ahead of Ontario time) There were some glitches and a few ordeals as I was supposed to depart on the 1st... I wont get in to the details of why I didn't leave on my scheduled date because everything is beseder (good) now and I want to keep this entry on as positive a level that I can!!

The flight was not as bad as I thought but maybe because it was a week ago, so much has happened since then, I'm most likely forgetting how cramped and uncomfortable it really was!! Again, it's all beseder!! I'm here and am having the most amazing time!

When I got off the plane, I was greeted by my friend, Nir with a sign that said "Jen C".... it was pretty cool, not gonna lie, I felt a little like a celebrity!!! And as I was hugging him, I felt someone touch my shoulder and turned around to Galia, my best friend's boyfriend's sister!! She had come to welcome me to Israel also!! It made my first few minutes feel so special to see familiar people in a completely foreign place to me. I was so greatful! It all felt so surreal! I had to keep telling myself over and over "I'm actually in Israel!! Me! In Israel! Whaaaaat?!?!?!"

Nir drove me from the airport in to Tel Aviv, it was 18 degrees celcius when I stepped out of the airport. Ahhhh... Yofi!!! Coming from -25, I was to say the least extremely stoked!!

When entering in to the city district, I began to get more and more excited especially to see the palm trees.. which coincidentally enough are my favorite kind of trees. I felt a sudden wave of euphoria and calmness, that I belong here. It was such a beautiful drive with all the city lights and Nir giving me the unofficial "quick" tour guide of Tel Aviv.

We arrived at Hayarkon 48 Hostel which is where I have been staying for the past week. Nir helped me unload all of my stuff and we said our good-byes. What a great guy! (Apparently Israelis are not allowed to stay here, only tourists) I paid for one week in advance, 467 shekels- about $155 Canadian. It's a bit pricey but I have only heard great things about this place which I was soon to find out were all true.

Went up to my room, a 6 bed dorm and met one of my roommates, Marika from Sweden. She's been in Israel for 6 months and loves it. We hit it off right away and I asked her if she had any plans for the evening. She told me it was Reggae night at Mike's Place, a tourist bar up the street and there was this really amazing band playing so I got my stuff settled in and we went. The band was so good!! It was Reggae with a little Israeli twist and I had such a great first night!

The next day, I met some other really cool people from the hostel. Chris kind of took me under his wing on my first official day in Israel. We discovered very quickly that we are fellow Canadians, he's from Vancouver and we definitely hit it off right away! He took me to a schnitzel place that makes the best schnitzel in a pita I've ever had for 20 sheks (which is pretty cheap for Tel Aviv) then we went to the beach (about a 4 minute walk from the hostel) and chilled. He asked if I wanted to go swimming with some other people from the hostel since it was about 25 degrees and not a cloud in the sky. How could I say no to that?!?! Back to the hostel to grab our bathing suits and towels! Back to the beach to meet up with the others and go swimming! I met another fellow Canadian, Amanda from Montreal. She's one of my favorite people here... she's beautiful, so damn funny and someone I click very well with! Deborah from Los Angeles, she's awesome!! She's a flying trapeze girl back in LA and is kind of like the Mom of the bunch! I really enjoy her stories and her kindness! It was truly an amazing first day. Good vibes all around!

Since then, I went out the first 4 nights to some bars and have had so much fun! I've met a really cool guy, Elad at the pool bar, Noga. Just up the street from the hostel. Elad and I have been hanging out a lot and I think I have my first Israeli crush. haha!! Him and I both suck really bad at pool yet we keep playing as a team together... maybe we'll get better!!

The last couple of days I've been a little sick which I'm pretty sure is due to the fact that I've been smoking like crazy (everyone does here), drinking a little excessively and of course there's the -25 degree to +25 degree jump to take in to account. So I've just been taking it easy here at the hostel.

Elad and I might be going up north I think to the Golan heights to do some hiking with him and some other people so I can't wait for that, I'm sure it will be beautiful and there are so many other things I plan on doing but for now, I'm just taking it all in and letting the disbelief wear off. I'm having the time of my life and haven't even been here a full week yet!!! I know I've made such a great decision coming here. And I know it's only going to get better!! My friend Michelle is now coming here on March 3rd because of how much fun I'm having. I wonder if I've started a trend?....

Until next time.... xoxoxo
Jen

PS- Here are some links to my pictures:
Album 1: Arriving in Tel Aviv, Tel Aviv Beach & some beautiful trees
Album 2: More Beach & Tel Aviv
Album 3: Party Pics

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