Leaving Ashkelon

I left Ashkelon about a week ago and left behind all of the Otzmanikim I've been living with for the past three months as well as daily Ulpan and consistent volunteering. It was difficult to walk away from each.

While I never really loved the city of Ashkelon itself, I've made endless memories growing close to the other Otmzanikim in the group over the last three months there. From now on it is going to be a big change to not constantly be around the entire group of 38. While I think the initial peace and quiet will be a welcome change, I'm sure I will quickly come to miss the dynamic we've developed and the constant company.

Ulpan was also really beneficial to me. Although not everyone in the group would agree with me about the helpfulness of Ulpan (mostly those who chose not to regularly attend), I can really say I got something out of the class. My teacher, Miri, was an excellent teacher who had a lot of experience working with beginning level Ulpan classes (I changed from Nana's class to better fit my Hebrew level). The class gave me a lot more confidence to then use my Hebrew in the practical necessary ways that come with living in Israel. I would call myself functional after the past three months but far from truly conversational (that's what Part 2 is for...).

My volunteering in Ashkelon was slow to start with all of the holidays at the beginning of the school year. In my last month there my schedule finally began to become more regular and even in the one short month I managed to grow attached to the kids I worked with. Once a week I worked in a preschool with young kids who were adorable and offered me a great chance to practice my Hebrew. The kids in the classroom far outweighed the number of teachers, giving me a chance to offer some assistance once I learned how to overcome the language barrier.

Twice a week I found myself volunteering with a program called Atidim (meaning futures). This after school program, targeting communities in the periphery of Israel, was in Kyriat Gat (a neighboring city to Ashkelon).

Myself and three other Otzmakinim went each week to work with the same group of high schoolers. Once a week we would show the group a movie or TV show in English and have a discussion about what they watched. The other day was more structured because we worked with an English teacher and helped the kids one-on-one with more specific homework assignments. We were all sad to say goodbye to the kids, and were invited back to come visit whenever we're in the area.

In the week since I left Ashkelon behind, I have been busy traveling in Haifa, Tel Aviv, Kyriat Ata, and back to Tel Aviv now before I leave for Istanbul, Turkey in the morning. So far the trip has been relaxing and full of taking in the Israeli sites. I admit I spent a lot of the week in movie theaters trying to catch up with all the movies I've already missed (unacceptable for me!). I'm really looking forward to the adventure of traveling to Turkey beginning tomorrow morning. Once I return to Israel, break will be over, and I'll be headed straight to Jerusalem.

In Jerusalem I will be studying for two weeks with other members of Otzma at Pardes, a non-denominational yeshiva. This will be a great opportunity to study Jewish text for the first time and see what life is like living in Jerusalem. At the end of this program Max, Tali and I will have our big move to Yokneam where we will settle for the next three months. As excited as I am for all the things to come in the next few weeks, I am definitely looking forward to the relief of settling in again and being able to unpack!

...And Looking Towards What's Ahead

(Note: This blog picks up where a previous post at Show Me the Shawarma left off. If you want a recap of the past three months, head over there and check it out! Aren’t crossovers fun?)

So now that our time in Ashkelon has come to a close, what’s next for your intrepid St. Louisans? Well, I can’t speak for Andi, even though my sources tell me she is currently vacationing on the beaches of Haifa before beginning Pardes in Jerusalem in two weeks. As for me, as of tomorrow I am beginning an army program called Sar-El. We will be living on an army base meant for paratroopers, and doing volunteer work there during the week. Mainly, we’ll be packing bags and cleaning guns. From what I hear, it’s actually pretty fun, and hopefully I’ll learn a good amount about the army. We also get kicked off the base during weekends, so hopefully we’ll have some more adventures in Tel Aviv/Jerusalem/Eilat/somewhere fun!

After Sar-El I start a two-week vacation, and my entire family is coming to visit. My parents have never been to Israel, so we’re doing the whole tour. Some places I’ve been to, some I haven’t, so it’ll be interesting. More importantly, it’ll be great to see my parents, brother, and sister-in-law, as I haven’t seen them in months and won’t again until the program ends. Needless to say, I’m pretty excited.
The group seems to be splitting into three categories: Those whose families are coming to Israel, those who are traveling abroad (destinations include Turkey, Germany, and even London), and those headed back to the U.S. In any case, I’m looking forward to seeing my family!

After vacation, we are reuniting in Jerusalem on Jan. 3rd for Part II orientation. Following that day, we are headed up to Yokne’am! We’ve got our apartment, which is fully furnished, although we’ll see what that means. Pictures include a microwave, which is a step up from the toaster oven we have now. Also, I’ll have my own room – even if the picture seems to have a couch/futon and not a bed. Actually, the couch is pretty common here, and can sort of turn into a bed. Also, it actually looks a little more comfortable than Andi’s bed in the other room! Haha, I win! I mean…

We’ll fill ya’ll in on our volunteering more when we get there, but the two main locations are an elementary school and a youth center. At the school, we’ll be working with kids who are a little behind on their English and need more one-on-one time. Also, Andi’s adoptive mom is the principal and my adoptive mom is the assistant principal, so there you go! At the youth center, we’ll be doing anything from playing music to planning events. The main job is to come up with things to attract kids to come. There’s also a chance I’ll be coaching baseball – on my application I guess I put that I liked baseball, which apparently qualifies me to coach. Should be, uh, interesting…

So there it is – the next few weeks layed out for you. I’m losing my Internet connection and computer while on Sar-El, so I’ll try and get something up afterwards as soon as I can. In the meantime, happy holidays and see you in Yokne’am!