On Tuesday morning, I journeyed to Yerushalayim (Jerusalem) to meet Renee, one of my very good friends from Akiba (now formally called Barrack), the pluralistic Jewish high school I attended just outside Philadelphia. I bought lunch on Ben-Yehudah Street and then the two of us took a bus to her Midrasha (center for Jewish learning for women). The fast began at five to five, and after praying until eight, the two of us fell fast asleep in Renee's dorm at nine. The next day, Renee attended services while I read, and then the two of us walked around Yerushalayim for a bit. Fasting became easier once we fell asleep again, and finally after some more praying it was time to break the fast! We devoured some ruggalach and then went out to dinner with Jeremy, another friend from Akiba who is currently studying at a Yeshiva (center for Jewish learning for men). As we walked around town, the families of almost every home we passed were building their Sukkot. I loved watching the Sukkot being built on the porches of apartment buildings, seeing so many families taking part in the same ritual all at once. Renee, Jeremy, and I then went into the old city to the Kotel (western wall), stopping often to talk with yeshiva and midrasha friends of Renee and Jeremy and eventually running into more friends from our high-school.
The next day, I took more transportation than I wished in order to meet the Workshoppers on a siyur at the Diaspora Museum located at Tel-Aviv University. The museum was very interesting and displayed information about Jews in the Diaspora--with the view of the Diaspora as an exile--up until the formation of the state of Israel. We discussed the sections of the museum as we went through, and once finished the exhibits we talked about Israel's role today since Jews still choose to live in the Diaspora.
After visiting the museum, us Workshoppers split into groups to eat lunch in a shuk and participate in a fun scavenger hunt designed by our madrichim. We met back together on Rothschild Boulevard, and most Workshoppers boarded the bus back to the Kibbutz while seven of us remained in Tel-Aviv. One of my kvutzamates has an apartment in Tel-Aviv, so the few of us stayed at his place and enjoyed a night of exploring the city and relaxing late at night at the beach.
Back at the kibbutz, the British Shnatties joining us on the program have finally arrived! We're enjoying meeting the newcomers before hiking together on Yam L'Yam.
Today we're experiencing a noticeable change in the weather. Since we've arrived in Israel, each day as been extremely sunny and fairly hot. Today, clouds fill the sky and there's RAIN! Granted, it's only light drizzling, but rain in September here is something to celebrate!
Shabbat Shalom!
