Yom Ha'atzmaut

It seems like it's always a holiday in Israel (at least that's what my mom says). Last week was no exception, two in one week. I'll let Max tell you about his Yom HaZikaron experience (Memorial Day) and instead I'll focus on Yom Ha'atzmaut (Israeli Independence Day). It came at the beginning of last week, so pretty quickly after the move to Jerusalem. We were all in a rush to get settled so that we could make the most of the experience, for most of us the first time we've celebrated the holiday in Israel.

As all holidays start at sundown Yom Ha'atzmaut started Monday night. That night I went with friends to explore the celebration on Ben Yehuda street and the surrounding area. We found people of all ages from all different sects of Israeli society excited and thrilled to welcome the holiday. It seemed like there was another stage with another band playing every couple of blocks. The party went on until all hours of the night with kids running around, teenagers standing in packs, families trying to stay together in the chaos, and of course us. There were blow up toys with the Israeli flag and water guns and glow sticks.

The night was held in stark contrast to the way I spent my previous evening, at a very emotional ceremony marking Memorial Day in Israel and all of the fallen soldiers. You never would have known hours before this enormous street party people were mourning everyone they knew and didn't know. The contradiction was difficult to wrap my head around but at the same time the juxtaposition managed to make each experience more powerful in and of itself.

The next day all of Israel spends the day in the same way: barbecuing. So in true Israeli fashion, we had a barbeque. But because we were too lazy to leave our dorms and because a park in the center of Jerusalem would have been impossible to penetrate, we didn't travel too far. We had our barbeque in the open courtyard/quad we have next to our building (all within the same complex of our dorms). The rest is pretty predictable: good food, good company, and a lovely farmer's tan for me. It was a great way to spend the entire day (especially since I started work the next morning). It was relaxing and delicious and we still felt like we were taking part in the holiday's tradition.

Part III Check-in

This week marks the beginning of Part III of OTZMA, which is the more “professional development” part of the program. Rather than be scattered in small towns all throughout Israel, the group has now been split into a community in Tel Aviv, a small group down on a southern Kibbutz, and the remainder in Jerusalem, which is where I am. From now until the end of the trip, we will all be working in various internships at non-profit organizations. I will be working at the Jewish Agency in the Partnerships division, where I will be working on an upcoming international conference as well as doing some work with social media (which is, as you’ve noticed, something I’m quite familiar with).

Our apartments here are really fantastic – maybe even the nicest that OTZMA has ever had! We are living in the student dormitories in Hebrew University on Mt. Scopus, which is about a 30-minute bus ride from the center of town (and my new office). All of the new Jerusalem residents were taken aback by how nice the apartments were. We’ve been fully equipped with new couches and chairs, a large kitchen space with four gas burners (Sidebar: This is the first time I’ve had an apartment here where I haven’t needed a match to light the stove), a full size refrigerator and freezer, and plenty of cupboard space. In our single rooms, we have a full-sized mirror, a good amount of shelves and hanging space for our clothes, a very large desk, drawers, and another large amount of shelf space. Currently, I’m sitting at our kitchen table looking out of the full-wall windows on the beautiful Hebrew U quad.

The apartments are meant for five people, but there are four of us living in my apartment – Jeremy (from San Francisco), Ari (from Milwaukee), and Alex (from New Jersey). All four of us were already very close – Jeremy was my roommate during Part I in Ashkelon; Ari and I were very active in BBYO at the same time in high school, and he was also a member of AEPi while at Wisconsin; and Alex is a recent graduate from Wash U, so she and I have been able to bond over shared St. Louis experiences.

Andi is also living in Jerusalem, but I’ll let her fill you in on her side. Needless to say, we are all very excited to be living here in Jerusalem, for our upcoming internships, and for our great new living spaces!