It's May 1st!

Happy Birthday Dad!!!

It's May 1st which means I've been here just about 5 months. I can't believe it. Finally, after experiencing so many ups and downs, I've come to learn that no matter how many ups and down I have, there will always be more. There are always going to be those times when I really miss home, really miss eating Friday night dinner with my family. Today it's my dad's birthday and I'm so excited for him! I wish I could be there to help celebrate but instead I will send my love over a skype call. It's definitely not the same. Nontheless, after every month that has passed I notice that I am more comfortable in this country. I can now navigate the bus and train system more smoothly which is a major accomplishment (It seemed SO complicated at the beginning).

So almost a month has passed since I last wrote...here's what's happening:

- School is going really well. I'm still loving my Hebrew course. I love my teacher. She is enthusiastic and she really inspires me to conquer this language.
I had my first tests in the university courses. Archeology, Israeli Society. My Kabbalah course required an essay. I'm doing great in all the courses. I'm in the process of writing a midterm essay about some aspect of education for Arab women for the course Education on the Margins.

-Education on the Margins course focuses on education for Arab women and ideas of liberation for Arab women - whether or not Western standards of liberation can be applied- and on and on. My professor is the first female Bedouin Professor so she has some extremely different perspectives on Israel. I cannot type out the conflict that surrounds the issue of Bedouins and the Israeli government. You might have to Wiki that : D

She took us on a field trip of a Bedouin Arab school near Be'er Sheva. The school is multiple caravans painted and decorated. There are 900 students and 30 computers. The school has permission to be there from the government. However, because of government policies there is no water or electricity supplied to the school. So the school has to steal water and use generators. The generators are a horrible source of energy as they are not sufficient or sustainable. It is ruining the environment around the school. So why doesn't the government just provide electricity? It's a mess. However, these lucky 900 kids (who come from different Bedouin villages) have a beautiful school and very dedicated teachers.

-Three major holidays have passed since I last wrote. Holocaust Remembrance Day, Memorial Day, and Independence Day.
All of these holidays are very different and so much different than any holiday in the U.S. There are ceremonies all over Israel for Holocaust Remembrance Day and Memorial Day. On Memorial Day, NOTHING is open. No Memorial Day sales, whatsoever. On the eve of Memorial Day the alarm that runs all through Israel is sounded and everyone stands still for that minute. People get out of their cars, stand in their houses, stop whatever they are doing. During the next day another alarm is sounded and the same thing happens. It is a spooky sound and a somber event.
During Indepedence Day there are free concerts and fairs in every city around Israel. I went to see the events in a town called Kiryat Atta. Idan Raichel performed there. He is a famous Israeli singer who performs with Ethiopian singers. Afterwards, I went to a bbq on the beach which lasted until 4 am. Probably the latest bbq I've ever been to.
During the day everyone has BBQs and hangs out with family and friends.
Let me just add that these are all holidays for the Jewish population of Israel. The Arab population of Israel does not celebrate these holidays.

- Lately I've been learning a lot of raelly interesting information in my courses. Some of the info is hard to digest sometimes, though. My Israeli Society course has been focused recently on the Jewish settlers in the West Bank and those who used to be in Gaza. At times the settlers are violent toward the Arab cities that they settle it. Somtimes they are not. It's hard to understand the reasonings and actions behind these settlers sometimes. I don't understand all of the history of Israel yet and so I don't always know what to believe or think. Yes, I do believe that the Jewish people have a right to be here. But how is it accomplished? How is it legitimized? I feel very confused at times. I'm not much of this makes sense, but my ideas and feelings don't really make sense so it all fits : D

-I've done some really amazing hiking recently. I will add pictures of names of the locations soon. It included caves, rivers, rappeling down ropes, cows, yummy sandwiches.

-Last thing to mention: After living here for 5 months, I finally watched Don't Mess With the Zohan. Amazing. I can laugh even harder now that I've experienced the real Israel and just how much hummos Israelis really eat.