The 3 P's of 2nd Semester

As commonly heard around the HUC community, the 3 P's of second semester are Purim, Pesach, Packing. Since we checked Purim off the list last week, we've just got Pesach (Passover) coming up in three weeks, and then we Pack to go home! WOW!

I arrived back in Israel on February 2nd after an amazing and life-altering winter break at home. The last month and a half back in Israel have been very busy and exciting. Here are a few updates...

School...
has been BUSY! While I only have two new classes this semester (and neither of them are too different from stuff we studied before), I feel so much busier than I did last semester! I am really enjoying my new Bible class, where we look at selected stories, translate them from the original Hebrew, and analyze them based on all sorts of factors and view them from different perspectives (Orthodox v. Reform v. Bible as literature). We've also had a constant slew of visitors here in Jerusalem. First, the head of the Rabbinical School from the Cincinnati campus came to speak with the Cincinnati-bound students. Then, the entire Central Conference of American Rabbis (organizational body of American Reform rabbis) had their annual convention here. We met with various committees, attended services, and had all kinds of delicious food compliments of the rabbis. I ran into a few rabbis from home, some young rabbis that I knew when they were HUC students in Cincy, and even a friend of my parents who is now a rabbi! After the CCAR convention was over, the Women's Rabbinic Network held their own conference for a few days. The WRN is a special professional and support network for women rabbis in the States. They invited the female rabbinic students in our class to have a reception with them to talk about their careers as women rabbis and talk about our experiences. We've also been on a day trip for school, and have a four day trip to the Negev desert in the South next week!

Engagement Parties...
were held in Jerusalem! My wonderful friends Jaclyn, Ari, and Joel planned not one but TWO engagement parties for me (and Sean, in spirit) the week I returned to Israel. The first was a complete surprise... our head of student affairs, Nancy, asked if she could chat with me, and then we walked into the Moadon (our student lounge) together. I noticed that half of the Mo was closed off, and wondered why Nancy and I were going into the partitioned area. As soon as we entered, I saw the three planners holding a giant "Mazel Tov" sign and ALL of my classmates standing there with blowers and balloons! They also ordered a beautiful, delicious cake for me (and everyone else to eat). That evening, we had a smaller celebration, attended by my close friends in the class. Everyone got all dressed up, made desserts and brought champagne to Ari's balloon filled apartment to celebrate. It was really wonderful to get to celebrate with my HUC family!

my surprise party sign (now hanging on my wall)

Purim...
was very cool and very unique in Israel! Purim is a rabbinically decreed holiday, celebrated in the Hebrew month of Adar (usually March); Purim is celebrated on the 14th of Adar in most places and on the 15th in walled cities (ie. Jerusalem). The story is that when Jews were under Persian control in exile, Haman, the royal advisor to King Ahasuerus, planned to kill all the Jews. We celebrate the fact that Queen Esther, a (secret) Jew herself, and her uncle Mordechai, foiled Haman's plot. I did a group costume with Ari and Joel that was awfully rabbinic and dorky, but very fun- we were "Al Shlosha D'varim" (On Three Things the World Stands)- Torah, Avodah (worship), G'milut Chasadim (acts of lovingkindness). We made t'shirts and each were one of the things (guess which I was)! We had a big Megillah (scroll, in this case Esther, the story of Purim) reading and fun service at school, and I was one of the Megilalh readers- I learned Megillat Esther trope (the cantillation) just for the occassion! After the service and reading, our class had a dinner and funny beit cafe ("coffee house"- open mic/talent show sort of thing)- Ari and I did a Debbie Friedman singalong and parody. A bunch of us also went out downtown to see the crazy, drunken, Purim madness of Jerusalem. The next day (we had two days off of school!), Joel made a great Purim Seudah (festive meal) for a bunch of our friends- it was delicious!

G'milut Chasadim, Avodah (hiding his weird straight hair under a hat), and Torah

Roadtripping...
to the northwestern coast in a little hatchback car with a broken CD player is fun! Joel, Ari, and I rented a car last weekend, and spent about 36 hours touring the northwest coast of Israel. Joel, being the only one who can actually rent a car, graciously agreed to drive. We set out early Friday morning, and first drove to Caesaria, a city with Roman, Herodian, Byzantine, and Arab periods. Along the beautiful Mediterranean sea beach, there are ruins from many of these time periods.

Caesaria

That afternoon we drove to the most northwestern point in Israel, Rosh Hanikra (Head of the Grottoes), which sits right next to the border with Lebanon. We traveled by cable car down to the grottoes to see the beautiful caves and water that flows through them. We also stood next to the border and took the requisite photo! I had been to both of these places on my first trip to Israel in 2004, but it was really wonderful to experience them both again.

Ari's excited to see the grottoes!

inside the grottoes

sunset over the Mediterranean Sea at Rosh Hanikra

the Israeli-Lebanese border at Rosh Hanikra

After spending about 45 minutes driving in circles to get to our little hostel in Haifa, we unpacked and set out to see Haifa at night. We ventured into Haifa's German Colony, where we ate dinner at a wonderful Middle Eastern/French fusion restaurant called Douzan that was absolutely delicious. We spent some time walking around the neighborhood and taking pictures of the Bahai'i Gardens (night shots are important!), and then had tea and hot cider and played cards (our usual) at Fatoush, another restaurant in the area.

Joel and me in front of the Bahai'i Gardens at night

Saturday morning brought our visit of the Bahai'i Gardens in Haifa. The Bahai'i Gardens are the site of the Shrine of the Bab, the burial place of the Bab, the predecessor of Baha'u'llah (the founder of the Bahai'i faith which is headquartered in Haifa). They are, simply put, ASTOUNDING. We only walked around part of the massive Gardens, near the Shrine, but you get the idea. On our way to view the Gardens from the top down, we made a quick, fun stop in the Haifa sculpture gardens.

the Bahai'i Gardens

hanging in the sculpture gardens

view of the Bahai'i Gardens from the top, looking over Haifa

Saturday afternoon was spent in Akko (Acre), just north of Haifa. Akko is a "mixed city," though Jews all live in the newer parts of the city, while the Arabs all live in the "Old City" (where all the interesting stuff is!). Akko is one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities of the world, dating back to the time of the Pharaoh Thutmose III (1504-1450 BCE). The Old City is interesting and beautiful, with remanants of Crusader, Muslim, and Ottoman periods. Today, Akko is a mostly a small fishing harbor city. We ate lunch in a little hummus place, walked through the Shuk (market), visited the Al-Jazzar Mosque, walked the wall ramparts, went to the harbor, and checked out some cool things that we didn't really go into, like a fortress.

view of Akko and the Al-Jazzar Mosque

fish at the Shuk in Akko

the coast of the Mediterranean Sea in Akko

On the way back to Jerusalem, we decided to relax and prolong our vacation with a stop in Zichron Yaakov, established in the late 1800s by the Baron de Rothschild. Zichron Yaakov, which we visited with school a while back, is a quaint little town, filled mostly with historical buildings, cute restaurants and coffee shops, and fun jewelry and craft stores. We stopped for some coffee, dessert, and cards, and then made our way back to Jerusalem. I had never been to Akko, nor had a spent much time in Haifa in the past, so I was really glad to have seen both last weekend. All in all, a great trip!!

So anyway, that's the update on the last month and a half of my life. My mom arrives in just two weeks, and Pesach will start during her visit, so we're well on our way to the 2nd of the 3 P's!