Holidays, Masada, the Dead Sea, and a nap in Ein Ghedi

At 5:51 pm on Sunday, Dr. Medzini was telling my Foreign Policy class about a special ceremony at Yad Vashem to commemorate the Holocaust.  I had woken up at 5:50 pm.  I went to my internship class at 6:30, stuck around just long enough to get attendance, then left with this kid Jake to catch a bus to Yad Vashem.

We got there around 7:30 and quickly realized this was no ordinary Israeli event.  Security was the toughest I’ve seen, and I’ve been to speeches by Netanyahu and Biden.  There were about 25 soldiers milling around just the preliminary gate.  Initial attempts to coax the soldiers into letting us in without tickets were met with a flat “No.”  However, we noticed a dozen or so other people in the same predicament as us, and one lady told us that they always let people in at the last minute.  We decided to stick around for lack of anything better to do, but our hopes weren’t high – especially when the head soldier told us all to go home because “Lo cartisim – lo tov!” (no tickets – no good!).

Just after 8, when we were about to declare it a huge fail, other Rothberg students showed up from Dr. Silberklang’s class.  Dr. Silberklang is the director of Yad Vashem.  They mentioned his name, and the previously stoic guard transformed into a figure of hospitality.  We casually sauntered in behind them (not the first time I’ve done that in the past few days), and got into the ceremony.

Netanyahu, as he is prone to do, gave an amazing speech.  The full text of it can be found here http://www.jerusalemdispatch.com/2010/04/netanyahus-holocaust-day-speech-at-yad-vashem/.  Following his speech, six survivors – each with very different stories – shared their experience and lit one of the six candles to symbolize the six million Jews who were killed.  One of their stories stuck with me in particular – a boy walked among the dead at a concentration camp and was shocked to see one of the bodies was that of his father, with a bullet through his forehead.  His father was clutching a note in his right hand, a note that read: “Whoever reads this, if you find my son… tell him to take revenge.”  The survivor, who now has three kids and seven grandkids, has spent his life traveling and sharing his story with everyone who will listen, and here it is being told to you.  He said that was the best way to take revenge that he knew, to keep the story alive.

The coolest part of the ceremony was the singing of the Hatikvah.  It’s been posted on my facebook.

Overall, it was a very moving experience and I’m glad I missed class for it.  Since I left for my 4 pm class when it was still warm out, I didn’t have a coat, so I was one of the people freezing that Netanyahu talked to in his speech.  “You may be cold now, but in the winter of 1945, it was 35 degrees below zero… and people froze to death!”  Thanks Netanyahu, that really makes me feel warmer.  Actually, now I feel guilty AND cold.  I bet he’s the worst grandparent ever.

This weekend, we went to Masada and the Dead Sea.  The weather was perfect for the Dead Sea, every other time I’ve been there it’s been cold.  We were able to relax and nap in the sea (we napped very creatively this weekend) with the sun beating down on us.  Great time.  Until we woke up and realized we had drifted about 50 feet away from shore, and that the current was making it hard to swim back.  This was far from an emergency – there is no lazier place than the Dead Sea – but it did end up taking about 15 minutes to swim back to shore.  Once back we came up with this game that involved pulling yourself along the rocks like you’re Spiderman.  Little children were walking all around us (this was a theme too) as we aggressively raced in 6 inch water.  It was real mature.

After the Dead Sea, we went to the side of the highway and attempted to hitchhike.  It was Shabbat so no buses were running.  There were three guys and five girls, so we just sat back on a bench as the girls tried to get people to pull over, and then we walked up to the car and got in.  We split up into three cars, one guy in each in case there’s a serial killer, and eventually were able to make it to the base of Masada.  The girls had interesting conversations with the guards working there and we were able to get a free dinner as well as permission to camp out directly underneath Masada, an area typically off limits.  Amazing what a few batted eyelashes can do.  Anyway, the night was great but sleeping simply did not occur.  We really underestimated how hard rocks can be.

We woke up at 4:45 am and started climbing Masada to see sunrise.  Unfortunately, by the time we got up to the top, we realized it was a foggy day and there actually was no clear sunrise.  Oops.  At this point we were exhausted and starving and barely made it down the mountain before collapsing into seats at the hotel’s cafeteria for breakfast (we had to pay for that… different guards).  After eating, our heads started falling to the table one by one as we began taking naps in the middle of the cafeteria.  Somehow, we roused ourselves to leave before all of us were asleep, but it was not a fun walk back to the highway. 

We waited another hour for some kind person to pick us up (side note: next time I see a hitchhiker, I am giving them a ride, I don’t care if they have bloodstains on their shirt and are wielding an ax) and eventually settled on a sherut.  We got to Ein Ghedi and I snuck in with an Asian tour group with the help of my sunglasses, and then we all found a nice rock alcove beside a waterfall crowded with families and naked Israeli children.  We fell asleep amidst all the noise, even though kids would occasionally stoop down to us and scream in our faces for no apparent reason.  For the most part, our bodies were ignored and stepped over.  I got about four hours of sleep there, and by then it was sundown so we were able to make it back to the bus stop and catch a bus back to Jerusalem.

It was a great trip, not because we saw sunrise at Masada, or fully enjoyed Ein Ghedi, or slept on hard rocks, or hitchhiked with random people – but because we had some awesome conversations and frankly, it wouldn’t have mattered where we were.  Being in the Dead Sea or Masada was just a plus.

I’m glad I finally got around to doing this.  Since there were 8 of us, we were asked at the top of Masada if we were a Birthright group.  I was insulted.  We are OSP (one semester program) study abroad students at THE Hebrew University, not some 2-week Birthright schmucks!  It was a funny feeling doing that stuff on our own leisure though, because I’ve only ever done them on organized trips.

Two nights ago (Monday night), there were crazy parties everywhere for independence day.  Israeli Independence Day is a bit different than the 4th of July.  For one, there's a siren at 11 am, and you can walk to the highway and see cars pull over and their drivers get out and stand in respect of the siren.  It's interesting because not all the cars stop; it's mainly divided by Arabs and Israelis.  Another reason that Israeli Independence Day is different than the 4th of July is that there are crazy parties EVERYWHERE.  The shuk had stages set up, bands, DJ's, drum circles - all alongside carts of fruit!  We went there and then stopped by the Jerusalem Botanic Gardens for an insane party that was co-sponsored by Hebrew U.  Everyone was going crazy and so happy on a level completely different than a usual night going out - there were Israeli flags everywhere, and it was a very prideful night.  Definitely one of my favorite nights here.

Tomorrow morning I'm leaving for Eilat at 6:30 am.  We will be staying at a hostel in Eilat Thursday night, then meeting a Beduoin and traveling to Wadi Ram in Jordan, staying in a Beduoin tent Friday night.  Saturday we are going to Petra!  After this weekend, the only trip left that I have any energy/desire to do is EGYPT, the travel warning has been rescinded so hopefully sometime in May.  

P.S. We recently discovered a bird’s nest, with two baby birds, on the ledge outside our bathroom window.  I could reach down and grab them, but I won’t, because I’m not hungry.  Right now they are huddling under Mommy bird for warmth.  This will be a running update in the blog, I’m gonna call it Birdwatch.

An Epic Guide to Greece

Greece is a beautiful, amazing place, so it’s no surprise thousands of people travel there every year.  I’ve decided to mix things up a bit with this blog and what follows is a cohesive GUIDE TO GREECE in case you ever decide to make the trip.  I had what can only be called the best vacation ever so I highly recommend following this word-for-word to ensure the best possible experience.

Preparation

Preparing for your trip is one of the most important things you can do.  Do not take it lightly.

-Ask other people going to Greece to send you a copy of their itinerary.  This will save you tedious hours of planning and provide an excellent sacrifice to rip up and throw out when you land in Greece.

-Spend an all-nighter packing your possessions into a single duffel bag before your early morning flight.    This will help set the spontaneous mood for the trip, and you should never be rested.  After all, you’re going on vacation.  Bring a sleeping bag, this comes into play later.

Backpacking

There is no better way to assert your independence than to backpack through a foreign country.

-With your single duffel bag, proceed to go straight from the Athens airport to the Parthenon.  Hiking up mountains with a duffel strapped on your back is the surest way to build character and fully appreciate the view once you get up there. 

-Realize that lugging around all your stuff all day is exhausting and overrated.

Housing

Greece has hostels, but if you’re crafty, you don’t need them.

-Never pay for housing.  Find a friend’s grandma’s cousin who is a former travel agent to host you at her house for a few nights, and to plan the rest of your trip for you.  As an added bonus, get her hotel owner husband to book you two nights in five star hotels… for free.

-If the above proves impossible, save precious Euros by sleeping in your sleeping bag outside on a roof.  Tree cover is especially important so that you can sleep in.  Don’t worry about the cracking noises; the roof won’t cave in.  Just don’t stand up and keep your weight dispersed evenly.

-Take unbelievable views from your room for granted.

Transportation

Driving in Greece is best explained by a Mazda commercial.  Zigzagging roads cutting through mountains, the surreal landscape makes for one of the coolest driving experiences you can ask for.

-Get friend’s grandma’s cousin to work her magic and get you a rent-a-car, even though you have no valid Greek driver’s license.  Make sure the car is stick.  Drive in the most reckless possible way, by passing up slow cars on a two-lane road by driving into incoming traffic.  Don’t worry, it’s how everyone drives in Greece.

-When you get to the postcard town of Meteora, test the limits of your rental vehicle by driving on dirt roads up the side of mountains.  Ignore the steep cliffs at the side of the road. When in doubt, repeat to yourself: “I am invincible.”  Once you get to the top, head over to the monasteries and enjoy a Batman Begins type moment as you cross a shaky bridge and knock at an old steel door that marks the entrance to the monasteries.  “We’ve been waiting for you,” a cloaked figure might say as he peeks through the door welcoming you in.  Optional: spend the rest of your life at said monastery, learning martial arts and training yourself in the art of meditation.

-Don’t pay for public buses, because nobody ever checks your ticket.  The sign threatening a fine of 60x the price of the ticket if you are caught without one is a complete bluff.  Again, when in doubt, repeat the mantra: “I am invincible.”

-Drink on the ferries (see Drink)

-Don’t be discouraged when you see a moped crash into a car and the driver go skidding across the road.  Laugh profusely, pause for a moment to reflect on how desensitized to violence you are, and rent anyway.  Ride without a shirt to maximize showing off how cool you are.  But always wear a helmet (you may be invincible, but driving in between trucks and nearly crashing into dumpsters is enough to scare anyone).  Also, take at least one bad-ass picture with your bike.

-Get pickpocketed on the Metro.  Some people just aren’t meant to carry cameras (sorry Mom and Dad!)

-Optional: Experience a real Greek road rage moment when you unknowingly cut off a red car on the highway.  Allow said car to pass you, with a woman screaming out the window at you.  When you laugh at the situation, make sure not to panic when she throws a water bottle at you and hits the front windshield.  I am invincible.  When the couple repeatedly cuts you off, almost runs you off the road, and gets out of the car at the toll booth and charges towards you armed with a car jack, calmly explain that you didn’t mean to cut them off.  If rational explanation doesn’t diffuse the situation, simply state that you are American and watch as a look of disdain dawns over their faces and they eventually walk away.  Later, marvel at the red paint on the door handle on the driver’s side of the rental car.  Yes, they did get that close.

-Optional: Almost get attacked by a pack of wild dogs when you venture into their territory trying to pee while waiting for a bus.  Don’t back down when they charge at you.  I am invincible.

-Optional: Save a turtle’s life by moving it out of the middle of an abandoned old dirt road that you have no business driving down.  Surely it would have been run over by another car if you didn’t save it.  Celebrate your good karma by backing away from the turtle like a little girl.

Rest Stops

While driving, you will probably get tired of the constant cutting off and near death experiences.  Luckily, Greece has a plethora of interesting rest stops.

-Stop at Thermopylae, home of the famous battle between King Leonidas and 300 Spartans against over 1.7 million Persians.  Realize that you are a coward.

-Follow your nose at the putrid smell of sulfur to a natural hot spring, tucked away a few miles off the highway.  Get in and relax, as you let the hot waterfall pound your back and your head.  Think about what you’d be doing at home and laugh to yourself.

-Notice the abundance of Greek service workers, standing idly by the side of the road with a rake in one hand and a half-hearted attempt at a mound of leaves at their feet.  Greece has 7 public workers for every private worker.  The horribly inefficient government fails to capitalize on the natural beauty and hot springs of the country, instead hiring way too many workers.  Strikes are a natural outcome.

Food

You don’t know Feta cheese until you’ve had it in a Greek salad… in Greece.

-When friend’s grandma’s cousin/travel agent/Wonderwoman isn’t cooking you breakfast, lunch, or dinner, go grocery shopping to save money.  Make sure to buy “Earth Gut” bread, thinking it’s wheat, and be pleasantly surprised when Earth Gut turns out to be pretty much densely packed dirt.

-Steal from the complimentary breakfast at the 5 star hotels by shoving everything into every pocket you have.  Make sure to get caught by the manager at least once, preferably when turning the cereal dispenser at a frantic pace piling Wheaties into a plastic bag.  If questioned, maintain that it is for your friend who is sleeping in.  Feign innocence when it is stated that taking food from the complimentary breakfast is forbidden.

-Go to Passover services at the Athens Chabad.  Spend half an hour trying to find it, only to get there on time because dinner starts thirty minutes late.  Eat lots of matzah; it’s the only time you’ll be able to find it.

Drink

This one’s to you, Dionysus.

-Ouzo.  10 Euro, gigantic, tastes horrible.  Mix with “Freeway’s Orange”.  Don’t forget to gag when the taste is coupled with a nauseating ferry ride.

-Make sure to try “Mythos”, the Greek beer of choice.  Best when served on the rocks.

-Laugh at the locals when they warn you not to drink the tap water.  Drink it anyway.  I am invincible.

Sights

Greece is littered with thousand-year-old ruins.  If you don’t get enough of them in Chicago, try to make time for them on your vacation.

-I don't know what this is but it seemed important.

-Make a non-typical pose in front of the Erechtheum and realize afterwards that you just looks stupid.

-Visit the first theater in the world and put yourself in the mind of the first actors.

-Walk into archaeological sites in Athens without purchasing tickets.  If questioned, feign ignorance of the English language and use whatever other languages you have at your disposal.  “Slicha?  Anee B’Yisrael.  Anee lo mevene Anglit.” “¿Que?  Yo no comprendo.  Lo siento.” “Te-sugar-dream” (thank you in Turkish).  “Ef-kar-eesh-tov” (thank you in Greek). 

-Go to the Oracle of Delphi and the archaeological museum there.  Debate stealing a rock.  Settle for doing the Heisman stance

*People went to the Oracle of Delphi for 2000 years asking for sage advice.  Delphi was believed to be the center of the world, the point where the two eagles Zeus sent in opposite directions across the world met.  The Oracle, originally a young woman who inhaled hallucinogenic fumes from the mountains, would often run off with young men, leaving the oracle seat vacant.  Therefore, the oracle became customarily a woman over 50.  When Alexander the Great traveled to the Oracle of Delphi and asked if he would conquer the world, the oracle gave him a typically vague answer.  Unsatisfied, he grabbed her by the hair and pulled her, until she cried, “Ok ok, you are unbeatable!”  He then threw her to the ground, saying, “I have my answer.”

-Travel to Olympia to see the site of the first Olympic Games.  When the man behind the ticket counter explains that the visiting hours for the site ended over 2 hours ago, walk past him and climb the fence, enjoying the site on your own terms.  Sneak into roped-off areas into the ancient locker rooms and training arenas, getting serious goosebumps, and pose at the spot where the Olympic Flame was originally lighted.  Have a footrace on the old Olympic track.

Ancient locker roomStealth.

-Go to the quaint, tiny island of Egina for Easter.  Attend Mass after drinking heavily, entertaining yourself by burning your friends with candles, and try not to let people know you're Jewish because this is when you killed Jesus.

-Avoid the overhyped, touristy island of Mykonos.  It’s a trap!  Nobody in Greece goes there because it’s ridiculously expensive, and the clubs don’t even open until the summer crowd. 

Miscellaneous activities

-Play football outside next to WWII fighter jets

-Run up the tallest mountain in Athens and have the best meal of your life at the top, with the Parthenon and modern Olympic stadium juxtaposed in the background

-Take pictures in museums posing as the statues, and only pretend to delete them when security guards demand that you show some respect.

-Pass time during Metro rides arguing who would win in a fight, a silverback gorilla or a mountain lion

One-Word Summary of the trip

Baller.

There's a bunch of funny videos that still need to be uploaded, and another huge batch of pictures, so I'll add them to this when they're up.  

***

I have one more trip (hopefully) lined up: a weekend trip to Petra, Cairo, and scuba diving in Eilat.   Two world wonders in four days.  Let’s go.

Daniel

Passover in Greece: Something Interesting

So I ran the Jerusalem Half Marathon (somehow), waved the team flag at a Jerusalem basketball game, and saw Mosh Ben-Ari in concert without having to buy tickets (thank you apathetic Israeli security).  Quick recap before something interesting:


-The Jerusalem Half Marathon was really cool.  The route was a mix between dirt paths, the streets, and up the sides of mountains.  Incredibly scenic.  There was a really long uphill which almost knocked me out between miles 5-8, but after that it was pretty much smooth sailing to the finish.  I guess I'm in better shape than I thought.  This made me want to run Chicago again, and they sent me an email with the following header about 3 hours ago which really got me thinking:

Registration Approaching Capacity for the 2010 Bank of America Chicago Marathon

I considered it, then forgot about it, then got another email 3 hours later:

Registration Has Closed for the 2010 Bank of America Chicago Marathon

AGH!!!  It filled up a full MONTH before it reached capacity last year, which was a record time already.  Ridiculous.  Since when do Americans care about exercise?

-Jerusalem basketball game: Final score was something like 104-52.  Yeah, they doubled the other team's score.  The 100th point was an alley-oop dunk and I won a long-running debate when it turned out there WAS room on the high-school style scoreboard for the extra "1".  Here's a picture of me waving the flag:

-Mosh Ben-Ari blends rock and reggae into a distinctly Israeli style of music.  It's really soothing.  Check him out:  Cool song

As is the case with anything in Israel, we got within 15 feet of him.  Everyone started dancing near the stage at the end.  Dude has crazy dreds.

Drum-roll please...

SOMETHING INTERESTING

After the Jerusalem vs. Tel Aviv quarterfinal soccer game tomorrow night, and after my Yam al Yam trip from Thursday to Sunday (Sea-to-sea hike from the Mediterranean to the Sea of Galilee) I'm going to Greece for 8 days.  I get there on the first night of Passover.  Sucks to not be in Israel for Passover, right?  WRONG.  

Something Interesting

That's right.  Guess where Santorini is?  Greece.  I'M WHERE THE PLAGUES ACTUALLY STARTED.  CRAZY.

not gonna have regular access to a computer for 2+ weeks, but I'll fill you in afterwards because I'm such a nice guy.  I got a new camera too, so there will be pictures (don't worry Mom!)

Hag Sameach,

Daniel

First Buzz Cut, Joe Biden, and the Coolest Class Ever

First of all...

HAPPY 16th BIRTHDAY HANNA!!

If you don't wreck the car you'll have a belated gift from me when I get back in June.  Ok on to 3 events in the past 3 weeks of my life, because I took way too long to blog since Istanbul.

1) Buzz Cut

Christina from South Africa who speaks Swahili gave me the cut.  I now look 50% more Israeli.

2) Joe Biden

I went to Tel Aviv at 5 am on Thursday to see Biden speak at TAU.  We got there 2 hours ahead of time and, just like with the Netanyahu speech, were able to easily and inexplicably get unbelievable seats.  We got 2nd row seats, only about 15 ft from Biden.  The coolest thing about it was that we sat directly behind the bigshots in the first row.  NAME DROPPING ALERT:

Before and after the speech, I talked with these people:

Tzipi Livni

She will likely be PM of Israel after next elections

Dennis Ross

I saw a man hand a brown envelope to him and say "Give this to the President".  He was not talking about the President of Tel Aviv University.

/END NAME-DROPPING

The actual speech was amazing.  Biden spent a lot of time fluffing up Israel before criticizing its decision to form 1600 new settlements in a controversial area in East Jerusalem, a decision with terrible timing because it threatened to undermine the indirect peace talks that Biden came to Israel to promote, between the Palestinians and the Israeli government.  The full text of the speech can be found here but I recommend watching it here because then you can see me!  I'm first visible at 1:00:17 when the camera zooms out, leaning forward in a white shirt in the 2nd row next to my friend Mike in the blue shirt.  If you pause it, you can see Tzipi in the first row with red hair four seats to the right of me, and Dennis is sitting next to her on the left.  There were a ton of other bigshots but those were the two I spoke with.

Basically we told them we were Americans studying abroad and they were very happy to hear, and they even seemed a bit surprised that we were in the second row.  I don't know how it happened either.  But it was so cool to talk to them, and they told us we were Israel's future.  Just watching them throughout the speech was an amazing glimpse at the front stage of international politics.  It made me feel like I could do it.

There is one regret to that amazing experience.  As some of you may recall, I happen to own an Obama mask that Dad gave me as a gift for Halloween.  I left it at home.  I didn't think of this until after... but what if I had snuck the mask into the speech, and put it on?  You can see how close I was to Biden - he would've HAD to notice his boss staring at him from the second row.  It would probably throw his speech off, I imagine he would've had to say something about it.  I could've been on the front page of CNN!  But I wouldn't want to throw off Biden... maybe if I put it on before asking him a question during the Q and A, and then asked him something like, "Great job, Joe.  You're doing great.  Look, do you wanna grab lunch later?"  If only I had the mask...

3) The Coolest Class Ever

I'm in this class called Archaeology of Jerusalem, a class that anyone studying at Hebrew U needs to take.  Last week we spent the class walking around the Old City of King David, which dates back to the 1st temple period (1000 BCE).  This week, we talked more about what we saw.  

What you are looking at is proof that Jews were in Israel first.  And it was discovered less than 5 years ago.  Let me back up:

There are these seals called bullaes used during the time of the First Temple that were wrapped around letters.  The seals said the name of the person who sent the letter.  Because Hebrew is a very old language, we can tell that the one above belongs to Gedalyahu, and it was one of two seals found in the past 5 years in the Old City.  The other seal found belonged to someone named Yuchal.  There is a third seal, which was found earlier, that belongs to Gemaryahu.  Do the names sound kind of weird?  They should.  They are Biblical names.  From the Old Testament: "So the officials took Jeremiah from his cell and lowered him by ropes into an empty cistern in the prison yard. It belonged to Malkijah, a member of the royal family. There was no water in the cistern, but there was a thick layer of mud at the bottom, and Jeremiah sank down into it." [Jeremiah 38:6]

Gemeryahu is believed to be Jeremiah.  The spelling is a common way to spell Judean names from that historical period.  They are very similar, but it could be a coincidence.  The recent discovery of seals belonging to Gedalyahu and Yuchal, however, also match up with names in the Bible - the very people who threw Jeremiah into the pit!  This is strong historical evidence that events from the time of the Bible are found in the city of David.

I wish I could write the entire 4 hour lecture down here, but I simply don't have time.  It was filled with historical evidence - from the Old City of David, that we walked through just last Monday, which lies not 5 miles from where I sleep at night - that events from the Bible happened in the Old City.  This is why I came to Jerusalem.

Schedule for the next 21 days:

Thursday, March 18 - Jerusalem Half Marathon.  Haven't been training at all.  Should be fun.

Friday, March 19 - Climb Masada in the morning (it's going to be a tough 24 hours for me).  Ein Ghedi hike during the day.

Saturday, March 20 - Dead Sea and Jerusalem Basketball Game vs Bnei Hasharom

Thursday, March 25 - Sunday, March 28 Sea to Sea trip.  Hiking from the Mediterranean to the Sea of Galilee. 

March 29 - April 6 Greece

THANK YOU MOM AND DAD!!!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY HANNA!!!

Love and miss you all (especially Mango, she keeps getting comments every time I use my credit card),

Daniel

Istanbul...

Not Constantinople!

The above picture is courtesy of Hannah Gerstenblatt's camera.  I lost mine in Istanbul, so my camera is somewhere in Istanbul, not Constantinople.

Turkey was awesome. We flew out on Wednesday night and got into the very cozy Sultan's hostel around 10 pm. I don't know how this hostel is in business; it must be losing money. $8.50/person/night, and it includes FREE complementary breakfast (tons of hard boiled eggs, yogurt, granola, and rolls), FREE coffee and apple tea until 6 pm (apple tea is the staple drink of Turkey, it's amazing, tastes just like apple cider but a little tangier), and FREE internet/tv (proud to say I barely utilized that) to go along with a very nice location, right in the heart of the old city, about two blocks from all the sights. I got more than my money's worth just with breakfast, we stuffed rolls and hard boiled eggs in our pockets like packrats and ate them throughout the day while walking around the city.

The city is gorgeous. On a scale from 1 to 10, pictures don't do it any justice. There are two HUGE mosques, the Blue Mosque and the Hagia Sophia, that are impossible to miss. The outside of the Blue Mosque is shown above, and the inside looks like this:

I bet the maintenance guys are happy the chandelier is so low to the ground, I can't imagine replacing light bulbs on the ceiling.

                                              

Outside from the imposing mosques, another highlight of the trip had to be the Grand Bazaar.  It's like the shuk, but about 10x as big and with a much bigger variety of things for sale.  Imagine Mall of America outside, spread out all on one floor.

This photo courtesy of Lindsay Weisberg

None of us had phones while in Istanbul because our Talk n Save are only set up to work in Israel, so one of the bigger challenges of the trip was staying together while we were in the bazaar.  I made things tough on everyone when I peeked my head in a rug shop and saw the two owners taking a break eating a meal.  I was about to leave but they beckoned me in, sat me down, and started feeding me while asking me where I was from.  It's painful that I had to type that out, because it was such a normal thing for them, it's custom to invite strangers in to eat if you are in the middle of eating, and just being hospitable is a part of their culture.  But it doesn't really work like that in America, especially in the malls.  I had a great talk with them and completely forgot to tell anyone where I was.  I emerged about 25 minutes later, full, knowing the full life story of Mohommed the Turk (he's got an uncle in New York), and saw the frantic faces of everyone I was with.  Oops.

Sightseeing was great, but since we were there for 5 days, we had time to do non-touristy things too, and those ended up being the most fun parts of the trip.  The first morning in Istanbul, we (Me, Isaac, Mike, and Sarah) all went for a jog around the city.  Our hostel is prime location so we got straight to the Bosphorous River, which runs through Istanbul and literally divides Europe from Asia.  That was one of the coolest running experiences I've had.  A bunch of young Turkish students started chasing after Isaac at one point, thinking he was Ussain Bolt.  Here's the river:

Not terribly exciting... BUT LOOK AT THE BOARDWALK!!!

You walk down that boardwalk, and you feel like a celebrity.  All the restaurant owners are standing out waiting to approach you as you walk by.  We literally didn't walk five feet down that boardwalk without someone trying to get us into their restaurant with special deals.  None of them really understand the word "free" though.  They say it to get your attention, but it doesn't mean anything.  Here is a typical way they would approach us.

"Hello, can I just say one thing?"

"Sure"

At this point, 2 different conversations will follow, depending on if you're a girl or guy.  

GUY

"I give you special deal.  Here is menu but don't look at prices, I'll give you a special deal."

"Ok.. what kind of special deal are we talking about?"

"Everything... FREE!"

"You mean, on the house?  Free?  We don't have to spend anything?"

"Yes, yes... FREE!  All... FREE! Special deal."

Then if you are naive enough to believe that there IS such thing as a free lunch (only if you stumble in on rug shop owners in the Bazaar), you will eat the meal and then receive the bill.

GIRLS

"You are beautiful.  I want you in my restaurant."

"Haha... what's so special about your place?"

"We have nice... chairs"*

"Sorry, we are gonna keep walking around, maybe we'll come back!"

"I hope you come back!  If not you break my heart."

*This was a verbatim quote from one flustered restaurant owner.  After walking around all day though, the nice chairs were appealing

Ironically, we passed on all of them and settled at probably the most expensive restaurant on the boardwalk, where I got a fish (which was delicious, to be fair) for about 24 Turkish Lira (about 16 bucks).  The best food opportunities in Turkey are buying from the street vendors.  They all have delicious rolls or drinks or clam, all for just one lira each.  Impossible to resist.  That's like not even 70 cents.  

The last day of the trip was by far the best one.  We took a ferry to Prince's Island, and fed the birds that flew alongside the boat during the ride by throwing bread crumbs at them.  They would swoop and dive to catch the bread in midair before it hit the water.  Then I came up with the genius idea to catch one of the birds.  I used the string from my 1 Lira Turkish top and tied it to a 1 Lira breadroll and waved it over the side of the boat, hoping to reel in a big bird.  I didn't have any luck, but I had fun trying:

When we got to the island, we rented bikes and rode around for about an hour.  We found a crazy high hill and pushed our bikes up it, then saw this really old church with intricate artwork at the top of the hill.  There was also a restaurant, so of course we had to get a beer and sip on it while looking out at the amazing view.  Then, we rode down the hill, which was not as fun as it seemed it would be because the rental bikes don't really have brakes.

All in all, Turkey was incredible and I wish I still had my camera but the memories will live on forever.  I definitely want to go back sometime.  There was one interesting piece of news waiting for us when we got back to Israel...

http://www.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/europe/02/22/turkey.sledgehammer.arrests/index.html

THAT HAPPENED WHILE WE WERE THERE!  Didn't hear a word about it.  Crazy.

Bibi Netanyahu, End of Ulpan, and a Negev weekend

Lots to update on:

Bibi

Last Wednesday (the night before my Ulpan final), I walked five minutes out of the Kfar Studentim (student village) to the Hyatt Regency hotel nearby to see PM Netanyahu speak.  I walked into the hotel unnoticed, waited in a line for security, and after about half an hour was ushered into a small conference room, with probably less than 200 people.  I grabbed a seat in the fifth row and sat down with the translator headphones I had been given upon entry to the conference room.  About 15 minutes later, the Prime Minister of Israel walked into the room.  Take a look at the view from my seat:

Absolutely surreal.  Imagine if Obama were to speak in the small gym at Aptakisic, and all you had to do to get in was to literally walk in (and pass through a metal detector), and then once in, you got fifth row seats with virtually no effort at all (I could have gotten a seat in the first row but it was all the way at the end; still I kind of regret not shaking his hand because it would have been so easy to do so).  That's what this was like.

His speech was very different from the kinds of political speeches you'd here in the US.  "Bibi", as he is affably nicknamed, wasn't running for anything.  There were no lofty words of hope or change.  And he wasn't particularly PC either, at least in the English translated version of the speech I heard.  He told it how it was.  At first, he started talking about the city of Jerusalem, how it was the home of the Jewish people, and how small it was - he pointed up and mentioned a soldier's name who had been killed just three years earlier, two stories directly above where Bibi was standing.  He discussed this soldier's sacrifice and tremendous courage for about five minutes of his 35 minute speech.  The anecdote wasn't used as an emotional rallying cry - there was no push to fight back, to retaliate.  Instead, Bibi waved his arms to the left and the right, mentioning how the streets around the hotel (the same streets I walk every day, running around Hebrew University) had a remarkable coexistence of Arabs and Jews, and he expressed the belief that one day, the rest of the country would get to that point.  How it was possible.

The most surprising part was when Bibi dovetailed his speech into a rant against Iran.  It's clearly the #1 issue, but he didn't speak in the careful, balanced tones I expected from a politician.  He told us, after mentioning that he was aware there were a lot of Hebrew University students in the small crowd (we all cheered) that he was telling us the same thing that he told Obama five days ago, and Hillary three days ago.  He told us how he had been warning against Iran's nuclear presence for seven years and that finally, now, the cat was out of the bag for everyone and there was no denying the truth.  The only remaining question, he said, was how the international community would respond - would they impose the sorts of strict sanctions against Iran that were necessary for Iran to hold off on the nuclear program, or would they allow Iran to set off a nuclear arms race in the Middle East, threatening not only Israel but the entire world?

Bibi never came across as pleading, or desperate, or helpless.  But it took me a while to realize that his speech was a cry for help from the international community.  Israel can't stop Iran on its own.  This was such a different tone from the sorts of speeches I was used to hearing, how "WE" need to do this or "WE" won't stand for that.  This was very clearly a diplomatic call for help against Iran.

It was an amazing, unforgettable experience to get that close to a world leader, especially the PM of Israel.  I kept wondering how it was so easy to just walk into the hotel and see him - why would he give a speech there?  Well, Israel's a small country, and he wanted to be at the furthest east point possible to make a statement - like Israel still has a presence in East Jerusalem.  Why weren't more people there?  Most Israelis are making about 1/2 as much money as Americans, but they are paying the same price for everything - they are more concerned with getting by than listening to schemes about international politics.  Even so, the ones who were interested have the opportunity to see the PM in such an intimate setting so often - he was in Herzelia (right next to Tel Aviv) and Eilat just a few weeks before - that it's not really that huge a deal.  Israel's a small country, I have to keep telling myself, and the football stadium-sized speeches that I'm used to just don't happen here.  There's not enough people.

End of Ulpan


I got an 84 on my Ulpan final (somehow, without studying), and while the final grade is still pending, it doesn't matter at all because the credit doesn't transfer.  School starts today (Sunday), with my first class at 4:30 - Foreign Politics of Israel.  I've heard so many good things about this class, and it's probably my most anticipated class of the semester.  The professor, Medzini, is supposed to be amazing, and I'm signed up for another one of his classes - The Middle East: Coexistance and Rapprochement - so hopefully the hype is true. After that, I have an internship class from 6:30-8:30.  It's kind of a weird time for classes but I like having free time during the day; now I finally can go pick up toilet paper.

Negev


We spent the weekend in a small town called Arod, in the middle of the Negev desert.  After getting up at 6 am on Friday, we got there at 8 and promptly spent the next five hours hiking in the desert.  It was awesome.  Here's a pic of the view:

We went bug catching and caught a scorpion, lizard, and millipede.  The guide knew EVERYTHING there was to know about bugs, and just desert life in general.  Throughout the hike, he stopped us multiple times to eat the plants.  They were delicious.  We collected them and made tea and fried them into chips later in the hike.  Shabbat was another amazing dinner, and then Saturday largely consisted of laying out in the 80 degree sun, listening to music, talking, and reading.  We got an intense game of whiffleball going later.  Overall it was an extremely relaxing weekend, I got some color, and I learned the best way to poop in the desert: hold a friends arms and both of you lean back at once (didn't try it, it was just one of the guide's words of wisdom).

After just getting back from the Negev, it's hard to believe I'm headed for Istanbul in four days, or that Purim is in a week.  Crazy.  And I am really really starting to appreciate the constant warm weather - why do we put up with snow in Chicago?  WHY????  IT'S SO NICE OUT ALL THE TIME HERE.  WHY DO WE LIVE WHERE IT'S FREEZING AND SNOWING FOR HALF THE YEAR?  IT MAKES NO SENSE!!!

shalom