Winter Break Explorations Part 1

Yes I’m still catching up so get ready to hear more about Tamar’s visit and my Winter Break in Israel…

December 31, 2010 – January 8

It had been a week since Tamar had arrived, and though the week had gone by too quickly it had been full of fun and we still had one more Shabbat to enjoy together before she left for America. Since it was Friday, we returned to the shuk (out-door market) one more time and visited Ben-Yehuda street (the center of down town) for some last minute shopping. We got back in time to grab our already-packed bags and head to the bus; we were going to spend Shabbat at our cousin’s apartment in a northern suburb of Jerusalem. When we got to Shira’s apartment we got an awesome surprise, our other cousin Batsheva, and her husband and adorable baby boy, had been able to come spend Shabbat with us too! We had hoped she would come for Shabbat but had never found out if Shira was able to find another apartment for one of us to stay in. Luckily some neighbors had gone out of town for that Shabbos, so we got their apartment and Batsheva got the extra room in Shira and Yitzi’s (her husband) apartment.  It was so sweet they gave us the extra apartment, and it was nice to have our own space together for Tamar’s last bit of time in Israel, though we spent the majority of time in Shira’s apartment. It was awesome being with more family, helping cook in the kitchen and having a relaxing Shabbat, after all the adventure and nonstop movement that past week. After a delicious dinner with yummy soup, salmon, and salads that I helped make, we played some fun bananagrams (a favorite game of mine) and played with Batsheva’s baby, Meir Simcha. Even though it was New Years Eve, in Israel it’s not really celebrated because they celebrate the Jewish New Year instead, which is like a modified lunar calendar. So around 11 we went to bed and Tamar and I enjoyed being together for one last night.

Bat Sheva, Shira, Meir Simchah, Tamar, and I

Saturday morning we woke up to 2011. Tamar says there were fireworks at midnight and she had even had a short conversation about them with me when they went off, but apparently I was sleeptalking because I had no recollection of any of it! Either way, 2011 wasn’t really our focus, I wanted to have the best time with Tamar, as it was her last day in Israel. We helped Shira get ready for lunch while the men were at shul (the center Jews pray in), and after another delicious meal, there was more relaxing, games, and catching up with the cousins. It was another really relaxing Shabbos, which is always needed after such busy  weeks. After Havdallah (ceremony to end Shabbat), we called our family friends, the Weiner family, who live 10 minutes away from our cousins, because we were going to their house for a visit before Tamar’s flight. It couldn’t have worked out any better, because we were so close to them and Tamar had really wanted to see them before she left Israel. Dinner was delicious as it always is with the Wieners but the real treat was seeing everyone. As I’ve mentioned before, we met the Weiner family when we moved to Baltimore and I was just a baby; it worked out well because they have 3 daughters the same ages as my two sisters and I. Since we had talked to them earlier to make these plans, both Michal and Navaa came in for that Shabbat, not to mention Yael was already there. It was especially great for Tamar to get to see Michal and have a chance to catch up, while Yael and I had some fun together.  Plus, a while ago Imma found a letter that Tamar had written Michal when we were still living in Baltimore and the Wieners were in Israel. There was even a picture included in the letter that I drew for Yael! Even though Imma sent it with family friends a while ago, I waited for Tamar’s visit to reveal the long lost letter. The revelation was worth the wait. Being able to share the surprise with Tamar there made the visit with the Weiners even better. Unfortunately we had to get back to finish Tamar’s packing, which meant we only had a few more hours together, but the last visit with the Weiners was a perfect way to end her visit. We got back around 10, but her sheirut (taxi to the airport) wasn’t coming till 2 am, so we got a few more hours to spend together and have final sister bonding. We watched 2 of our favorite movie – Singing in the Rain and Princess Bride- which helped keep us stay awake and let us reminisce on our fun time together. When the taxi/shuttle thing came for the airport, it turned out my friend Aviva was taking the same one, which was nice that they’d both have someone (plus they got to talk a lot so Tamar got to know another one of my good friend’s better). As I gave Tamar a final hug goodbye, I started to cry unexpectedly, and even though I was so sad to see her go, it was definitely an unforgettable visit and the fact that she was able to come at all was amazing

Tamar, Michal, Yeael, and I altogether after 6 years!

Even though I hadn’t gotten much sleep the night before, after staying up late with Tamar, I had to wake up early Sunday morning; we had to move out of our rooms so they could clean them and put us in new rooms for winter break, since most people would be traveling and not be on base. It was also weird being back because break had started Thursday night, but I’d been too busy with Tamar to realize, so a lot of people had already left for vacation and Nativ was pretty empty. By the time I finished rushing around with suitcases and boxes I was pretty worn out but glad to be done with that stress, and I had a great afternoon to look forward to. Since I knew I’d be missing Tamar like crazy, Yael had promised the night before that she’d spend the day with me and go shopping to help distract me. We were able to kill two birds with one stone- cheer me up and find 2 amazing dresses for Yael’s cousin’s Bar Mitzvah! Plus I found an awesome pair of jeans, another bonus to the afternoon. Seeing Yael was fun as always, and it was nice to have a day out on the town. That night Dena Rapaport was also able to stop by. She wanted to comfort me after Tamar’s recent departure, plus she brought me back a few treats from home , including letters from my Imma, Grams, Aunt, and cousins!(she had just been back in Cincinnati for the week). It was great as always to see Dena, just hanging out and sharing stories about Cincinnati and Tamar’s visit. And the goodies from home were an extra comfort.

I decided that after the nonstop moving with Tamar’s visit, which had been like starting winter break a week early, that Monday was a good day to just debrief and take a day off from everything – it was winter break after all. My body really appreciated sleeping in and I spent most of the day relaxing and working on my blog (as you know, I was and still am, very behind on it). After a busy day I was glad to get a call from my friend, Jake Gillis, who was in Israel on a program through his college, he had free time for the afternoon and night. The whole evening went perfectly! I got to see Jake and we walked around Emek Refaim, a cute area with lots of restaurants and shops, and even saw a couple of his friends.  Though Jake had to disappear for dinner with his group, I already had plans for a Sushi dinner date with Dena Rapaport that we had organized the night before. I hadn’t had sushi in far too long and greatly enjoyed me tuna-avocado-carrot- roll, but not nearly as much as the fun time with Dena. My night wasn’t over after dinner though, because Jake had more free time and wanted to meet up again and take advantage of the time that we were both available in Israel. We wound up going to a karaoke bar with some other mutual friends on Nativ; it was definitely a new experience for me, but I was very amused and even got up and sang with Jake for one song (though I let him do most of the singing). It was definitely an experience, but it was nice to have such a packed evening after a boring morning – no matter how relaxing and necessary it was.

It was so great to see Jake

Dena and I had such yummy sushi

Kareoke was a very interesting experience

After enjoying a day of vegging around, I decided one more was in call for my winter break before I started my adventures around Israel. I tried working more on my blog of course, plus I did a looot of research and planning for my trip I wanted to take Sunday and Monday. I even tried to go to the Israel Museum, but after we missed the bus, it was too late to catch the next bus before the museum would close. Instead of the museum I got to cuddle up with a book, before I got to go out to dinner with the Seidenbergs! Alex Freedman married Laura Seidenberg literally the day before I came on Nativ, but since Alex is our cousin we got to meet Laura and her family a few more times before the wedding. Since they were in Israel they invited me out to dinner to the Anna Ticho House. Not only was I excited for the restaurant that I’d heard great things about, but the Seidenbergs are such a warm and loving family and I couldn’t wait to spend the evening with them. Even though Laura’s youngest brother, Adam, couldn’t join us for dinner, he was on his high school Israel trip and staying at Agron, so I had already been able to see him.  I was really excited to see Laura’s sister, Lindsay, and her parents, and the evening wasn’t a letdown.  Not only was my sweet potato soup and Anna Ticho Salad delicious, hearing about the Seidenberg’s visit in Israel was really interesting and made for an awesome dinner.

Wednesday finally arrived and after Tamar’s visit, I was finally going to be doing more travel during winter break. Tali Marcus and I were going to Tel Aviv, and she even got us a place to stay. After taking the bus we arrived to her family friends, Mary and Alberto. They were so cute. Apparently Tali is friends with their grandkids and knows them from Boston, before they made aliyah (moved to Israel).  Mary had plates of fruit salad all set up, and then fed us lunch – she even made a special vegetarian soup just for me!  They were so cute and kept making sure we had enough to eat, plus they had such cool stories about making aliyah to Israel; after lunch they told us how to get to the center of Tel Aviv and when we asked what time we should be back, Mary said, “Any time, your big girls, we trust you”-it was so cute! With Mary’s directions and my newly acquired “knowledge” of Tel Aviv after Tamar’s visit, we made it to Allenbees, which is the road with all the fun and cheap shops near the beach.  It was fun walking around but Tali and I had heard of a gluten-free falafel place from my family friend, Michal Weiner, who has celiac disease, like Tali. We knew it was near Rabin Square, near the Dizengoff mall, so we grabbed a bus and enjoyed some window shopping for a while. Tali was really excited when dinner time arrived. Since she’s celiac she can’t eat falafel because the pita is made of flour, of course, and everywhere else they put flour in the falafel balls. This was Tali’s first falafel since coming to Israel (and since being diagnosed with celiac diseas), and I think the 4 month wait made it even yummier. After such excitement, we found a movie theater in the Dizengoff mall; apparently it only showed “small” films that don’t play in a typical theater but that just made the experience even better. We saw some Woody Allen movie call, “When you meet a Tall Dark Stranger,” and it was definitely off the beaten path. There wasn’t even a real plot or ending to the movie, it was like life, there are no happy or sad endings, it just keeps going on. It was definitely weird and has some funny moments, plus our movie tickets included free ice cream which is where we went to next. With free ice creams in hand, we walked around the Tel Aviv streets window shopping at the higher-end shops that we didn’t get to see on Allenbees and enjoying the nice weather. Even though it was pretty early, Tali and I were exhausted from our travel and walking around all day so by 10 we decided to find a bus to get back to Mary and Alberto’s… which was another tiring adventure in itself. We walked around for an entire HOUR! Apparently the bus that we needed to get back to the apartment didn’t stop on Dizengoff Road so we had to walk all the way to Rabin square to find the right bus stop. Rabin Square is the square where Yitzchak Rabin, one of the best Prime Minister’s of Israel, was shot right after a rally in Tel Aviv in support of his peace-making plans. Yitzchak Rabin was all into making peace, such as with Egypt. Unfortunately not everyone agreed with his treaties and a disgusting extremist shot him just because he opposed Rabin’s ideologies. It was really intense being in the square at night and I decided that “getting lost” had been a blessing in disguise since I got to re-see the square and think about Rabin and Israel.

Tali was really happy with her first bite of falafel!

What an interesting movie....

Free ice cream tickets!

After a great night’s sleep – in a real bed – and a yummy breakfast courtesy of Mary and Alberto, Tali and I headed back to Allenbees for a second round of shopping.   Tali was actually going to meet up with friends from home that were on a different “year abroad” program in Israel, once I returned to Jerusalem that evening. One of her friends, Julia, from junior high was visiting Israel too and had nothing to do all day so we invited her to hang out with us. After walking around the shops on Allenbees – and finding slippers for Tali – we went through the shuk (outdoor market) and bought delicious strawberries and sunglasses for me. After talking with Michal Wiener earlier, she had given us a list of some gluten-free restaurants, including the falafel stand from the night before. We walked and walked in search of “Fresh Kitchen”, but our persistence paid off. The restaurant was really cute and “fresh”; with each dish the menu gave symbols that said if it was vegetarian, vegan, low-cal, etc… and most importantly, Gluten Free! Julia, Tali, and I all really enjoyed our lunches, and I was especially pleased with my Brocoli and Mushroom Pesto Salad – I had really been craving broccoli so it hit the spot just right! After such a filling meal, we all enjoyed a walk along the beach before it was time to head back to Mary and Alberto’s so I could get my stuff and head back to Jerusalem. Though I was exhausted from another day of adventure, it wasn’t over once I got back to Jerusalem… I went straight to the Weiner family to have a sleepover with Yael.  Even though we had planned to stay up all night watching movies, we passed out in front of “Guys and Dolls” by 11o’clock, but spending more quality time with Yael before my move to Karmiel was super fun… not to mention I got an invite to continue my stay through Shabbat, an offer I couldn’t refuse.

Tali, Julie, and I, loved Fresh Kitchen

Though I was staying over a second night for Shabbat, I hadn’t gotten any clothes and still had a few things to take care of that Friday before the evening. It worked out perfectly that Beth had to go to work that morning, so she was able to drop me back at Nativ. After I had showered, unpacked from Tel Aviv, and repacked for Shabbat at the Weiners, it was finally a good time to see Mattan Silberstein, my staff from my summer program two years ago. The summer before my senior year I went on USY’s Eastern Europe / Israel Pilgrimage, where I traveled through Prague, Vilna, and Poland, the first two weeks and then explored Israel for 4 more weeks. Not only was the trip life changing, I made great friends and also bonded with my staff. I was so excited Mattan was in Israel and it worked out so well that neither of us had plans for Friday day. It was so great showing Mattan how much I knew the city and had grown up since Pilgrimage. I showed him my special stands at the shuk (outdoor market) and had fun hearing how his Israel trip had been so far. Seeing Mattan made for a great afternoon and when I got back to Nativ, I had just enough time to get ready before the Weiner’s picked me up for the weekend. We were lucky with the schedule again, as they were able to pick me up on the way to Friday night services. This week was a special Friday night service at their synagogue with special songs to make for an even more joyous welcoming of the Sabbath. From services we went back to the Weiner’s for a delicious dinner –as always, and another fun sleepover with Yael!

Seeing Mattan was great!

Saturday morning was just like I’d hoped. I always have the most relaxing time at the Wiener’s, especially when it’s Shabbat –which always makes for a perfect vacation. Yael and I slept in and then relaxed/talked all morning. After lunch we resumed our “hanging out” time and played Bananagrams. I really didn’t want to go back to Nativ that evening and leave my “restful resort” and fun with Yael, but I knew I had to get back and get ready/pack for the next part of my Winter Break Explorations…