J-RU Part I & II

First off I want to say that I am so sorry that is has been so long since my last post. Things here have been a little crazy so trying to blog in detail about my day seemed daunting at best.

Anywho, let me give you all a short synopsis of what you have missed since the 21st of August....

-I had a week full of Arabic classes
-I went to a beerfest put on by the city of Haifa where a famous Israeli band/hip hop group performed
-I went to Jerusalem- gaaaahh!
-I studied
-I studied
-I did a little bit more studying
-I took an Arabic final
-I went to a club for most people's last night here because the ULPAN was a summer intensive
-I played on the beach
-I moved apartments
-My flat-mate and I made "Mexican Monday" for our Israeli friends
-I spent 9 hours trying to find cheap transportation/hostels/etc in Europe...doesn't exist
-I went to Jerusalem for the second time with my flat-mate, Katie
-I made a traditional Israeli dinner and felt accomplished so I decided to write in my blog :)

Luckily, I have a camera to capture some of those moments so here are a few highlights from my first trip to Jerusalem with my Arabic ULPAN class:

The Wester Wall (male section) where the Jewish men come to pray

The Dome of the Rock

They literally test you on the Koran to see if you can go in

Hello, J-RU!

Some of the best spices I have ever tasted

My spice man, he calls my honey because he thinks Annie sounds like honey

Jewish rugelach cookie...warm and buttery and yum-o

The wall between Israel and Palestine 

My first experience in Jerusalem was one I will always remember, it was my first look into the great religious divide between Judaism and Islam. Upon entering into the Old City it is clear to see the partitioned sections; Muslim, Jewish, and Christian so close together yet so far apart.  Our bus took us up to the temple mount where I was able to see the Jews praying at the Western Wall and then walk through a tunnel-like structure past more security to go and see Al-Asqa mosque and the Dome of the Rock staring at each other across a long expansive courtyard. Two extremely holy sites practically on top of one another...you could cut the tension with a knife.

Because we were all in an Arabic program we focused more on the Muslim sights and had an archaeologist tour guide within the Muslim areas to enlighten us on certain important details we otherwise would have missed-she was wonderful and extremely knowledgeable it was a joy to listen to her.

We explored some more of J-RU but one of the most memorable stops was the jewish quarter marketplace where I bought a few spices that have made me the best chef in the world! Foodnetwork ain't got nothing on me now.

After our fun and games at the marketplace we went to what I thought was a chilling area by the wall separating Israel and Palestine. Our tour guide (whom I found to be a pompous jerk) started telling us some politicized one-sided story of why the wall was there and so I decided to tune him out, instead I took my time to view the intensity of security measures used, the material the wall was built from, the soldiers patrolling the wall, the people entering in and out...it is a sight that will be burned into my brain, like it or not, forever.

We ended our tour on a reflective note, much how I think one should leave Jerusalem, and began our two hour bus ride back to the university.

Struggle city right before the exam

After our trip to Jerusalem we all had to buckle down and study hard because we had our Arabic final two days after the trip, those were not the most pleasant two days but they were necessary because learning a semester's worth of material in 26 days is hard, but of Arabic it is nearly impossible.

Once the final was over, we all had to celebrate! It was a bittersweet celebration. The majority of people had to fly back to their home countries, all of my news friends taken from me in such a short time- it just doesn't seem fair.

Some friends before going out- Elana (center from Canada) Katie (flat-mate) Jamie (American)

Bored and waiting for the bus (we can entertain ourselves anywhere)

Most of the group at the club "Loft" 

On our way back our bus driver decided to turn the bus into a club, so naturally we danced

The Israeli boys thought it was a good idea to BBQ at 5:30 AM...it was delicious

5:30 AM lead to 7:00 AM which lead to sunlight

The sunrise welcoming me back to my room 

Yesterday my flat-mate Katie and I decided that we wanted to go to Jerusalem a second time, but this time to see more of the Christian sites since we were unable to experience them during first trip. Here are some pictures detailing our trip:

The start of the real stations of the cross

Station II (station I is hidden away from the public)

Station III

Station IV

Station V

We weren't really sure what to do here so we followed suit and put out hand where everyone else did...

Station VI

Station VII

Station VIII

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We had to stop for to help this man spell 'clearance' and then we fell in love....with both he and his jewelry. (Joseph the amazing flamboyantly gay jeweler)

Back to the grind, station IX

Station X

Station XI & XII

Station XIII

Joseph of Arimatheas's tomb 

Jesus' tomb

Garden of Gethsemane 

Church of all Nations

Mary's tomb (also I got two marriage proposals from the fellas on the left)

That's right, I'm a Saint

J-RU the second time around was special and memorable in its own way apart from the first trip. For starters, Katie and I did it completely on our own with only a guide book giving us cryptic descriptions of where the stations might be located. We both felt so accomplished as we strolled back into the central bus station to board a bus out to Haifa at 8 that we somehow mistook the international sign for bathroom and ended up crashing an all male jewish prayer wall, one of the more awkward moments in my life. Other than that we made it back safe and sound and with a whole new experience of meeting new people, literally walking in the steps of Jesus, and traveling without a group entering wrong ways (through the desolate Ethiopian Monastery into the Church of the Holy Sepulchre) to find our own Jerusalem rather than the one printed in books.

Love Update: I received some of the most interesting compliments/marriage proposals I have ever heard in my entire life. On the way into the garden one of the taxi drivers kept asking me if I had a special diet that made me so beautiful, I ignored him respectively, but when I came out he (surrounded by all his cabi friends) told me that I had broken his heart and it will never heal again. In addition to that gem of a story, I was walking down a side street stuffing my face full of falafel when construction workers stopped what they were doing and proceeded to cat call me telling me, "you very nice, very nice"- I don't know why I ever learned proper manners, the food dripping down the chin/hand/onto the shirt combo is apparently attractive.

CONGRATULATIONS! You have made it to the end of the novel, you cannot gain those minutes you used reading this back- hope you enjoyed it!

I promise to write more often and write less crapola.

xx