the last of the challahs

thats right. its time for the last of the challahs from tel aviv. the last few days have been spent mostly eating and hanging out in obsencely large groups of girls. when i say mostly eating i mean only eating and sometimes sleeping. most of this food i speak of has been fro yo or sushi. yes sushi. we've had lots of outdoor picnics since its pretty hard to fit 25 people into a restaurant but this morning we ventured to benedicts- the best breakfast place in tel aviv- and got a table for 16! lotsss of food! tonight a lot of my good friends are leaving which is going to be really sad and then a group of us who are still here are going to out for SUSHI. yup.
tomorrow (sunday) we'll get up, have some more food, turn in the last of our exams, and head to the airport. hard to believe.
thanks to everyone who has read my blog. its actually been pretty fun keeping this thing updated and i know im going to value having all my experiences written down. cant wait to see everyone at home and show off my tan!
xoxo
dana
pics below: leaving the beach for the last time. and the group of us at our goodbye picnic dinner.

Studying Abroad

Studying abroad..indeed i finally am. Classes finished up Thursday and we had an of the year banquet thrown by our program! We went to a place called "mini-israel" which is exactly what it sounds like- a miniature version of israel. the place has replicas of all the major sites in israel, but tiny, and you walk through and get to see/remember all of your favs! after our tour "through israel" we had a delicious buffet dinner and at our tables, we received tshirts, a cd, and letters from the madrichim (staff leaders of our program). the tshirts were unexpected and so great...except there is no hebrew on them! but still a nice thing! the madrichim prepared a slideshow for us that had tons of pics and videos from our time in israel- really cute! after the "ceremony" we had a party- dancing and free beer for the whole night.
now we move into finals period- i got a beach day in on saturday but sunday/monday have been spent working on take home finals and studying for exams. i have two exams on tuesday and will hopefully finish up my papers on wednesday and get to spend my last few days on the beach of course!
the fosters landed this morning and i cant wait to see them!!!
below is a pic of mini western wall, all of my friends at the banquet, and our tshirt!
xoxo

The Beginning of the End

Hard to believe but it really is the beginning of the end. Currently i have only 12 more days in israel. this past week was a pretty normal one- classes and enjoying the hothothot weather. wednesday i got to meet emma's grandmother who came to israel to visit the family which was really fun! thursday i decided to spend the day in jerusalem shopping around the city for gifts and things to take home with me. my cousin jay and i planned to have lunch and when he picked me up from the bus station, he had his motorcycle with him! so i spent the day riding around jerusalem on a motorcycle- first we had lunch, then drove up to the mount of olives for a view of the city, heading into the old city to do some shopping, and then to ben yehuda street where i continued to shop! it was a long day but i got some gorgeous things and it was really nice to spend a day with my cousin.
Saturday i had a great day! My environment class (israel and the environment) went on a jeep trek through the judean desert aka the west bank. i admit i first drawn to sign up for this trek because then i got to say i went to the west bank...not because the environment or "trekking" in a jeep interests me BUT it was an AMAZING experience. we began the morning at the mount of olives (o wait i had been there 48 hours before) and had brief history of Israel. we then ventured in our jeeps out to the desert- sand, benduoins, and goats made up most of the landscape but it was absolutely beautiful. we came across a few water springs as well which were gorgeous. eventually we came to the top of mountains which overlook the dead sea and there were the most beautiful views of the dead sea with the jordanian mountains reflecting the water. for dinner, we set up came in the desert and had boiled hot dogs and corn! delicious. we then started a fire and roasted marshmallows! so cute! we ended the day with a night safari searching for animals...fairly unsuccessful but still a good time. on our way back to jerusalem, our jeep broke down- woops. there wasnt enough room for all of us to go into the second jeep so halley and i had to hitchike across the jerusalem checkpoint so another car could pick us up...ok semi lie. we were told we were going to hitchike...sadly we arranged for a taxi to take us across the border which was disappointing to us as we envisioned an epic tale about our smuggling through the border but alas we got through. on the other side, i discovered a container for cheese which was none othe than brand name DANA!!!!! it was so great- turns out i am the name of a processed cheese from egypt! i should invest in stocks!
sunday, i spent the day "studying" with friends and then headed down to jerusalem for a final dinner with Ethan and Arielle...WHAT. crazycrazy but in fact arielle and ethan's time in israel is over shortly as well. they left for a three week trip to morocco today and when they return to israel, i will no longer be here! we hung out at arielle's apartment and then headed for dinner at cavalier. turns out netanyahu's father eats at the restaurant EVERY night and was at the table behind us! celeb sightingggg!!!! aside from that, the food was absolutely delicious and we had an amazing last night together in israel. Arielle's being in israel has enhanced my time here in a way i cant even explain - we have had so many great times together and having her with me has made my time in israel even more special than it was already.
back in tel aviv: monday i had my last hebrew class/final exam- thats right im done learning hebrew. its bittersweet of course but im really proud of how much my hebrew has improved and i hope i get to keep learning more and i also hope shir doesnt hate me next year when i try to speak to her in hebrew all the time!! today at sundown marks the beginning of shavuot (the holiday which recognizes when Gd gave the torah to the Israelite nation at mount sinai- thanks!) so we dont have classes today or tomorrow! today, i slept in and then went to the shuk with emma, halley, and her friend from school to shop around for gifts and fun things to take home. i got a lot of tel aviv university clothing and some other stuff! i think im pretty shopped out and have just enough great things to remind me of my time here!
So thats pretty much whats going on! thursday is the official last day of classes and next week we begin final exams. Jaclyn and the foster clan come to israel on Sunday which im SO excited about!!!! and then the packing and goodbye dinners must commence :( its going to be so hard to leave but good to say goodbye at an all time high!
Below are some pics from my jeep trek through the desert- the last is me and my cheese..that yes i picked up off the street :)
xo

We Go To The Beach Everyday

The title says it all. So "Nile Flu" as it has been dubbed afflicted all 7 of us throughout last week. I wont share details since I try to keep this blog PG but its been a pretty rough week for all of us. Now, most have recovered and those who arent 100%, including myself, are on antibiotics to rid our bodies of Egypt! Early last week, when the "Nile Flu" was just emerging and quite ugly, I of course opted not to go to my classes. After two days of this, I started to get used to it- no waking up early, no walking in the heat, no being bored- the "good life" as Kanye would say. So wednesday, when all my friends went to the beach, i skipped my two afternoon classes and went also!!! The weather is absolutely perfect here - i mean its too hot for my liking but its perfect for obtaining a deeeep dark tan, my only goal in life. We spent the day hanging out, swimming in the Med, and enjoying yummy smoothies from my fav place on the beach. On Thursday, I was still under the influence of the "Nile Flu" and skipped class again! im such a disappointment! But on thursday i have more an excuse because one of my guy friends from Tufts came to visit Israel and we got to have lunch and hang at the beach for the day. I also got to see Arielle and her friend Nani for a while also! Thursday night marked the beginning of my friend Halley's 21st bday so we went out for a nice dinner at an Italian restaurant in Tel Aviv and then to a small bar for her first legal drink. The next day, I didnt go to the beach...believe it or not...in the morning, my art class went on a fieldtrip to a museum in petach tikvah which featured video art that focused on the holocaust. afterwards, we went for a bday brunch for Halleys bday and then rested and headed out for more 21st bday celebrations- my friend from tufts also came which was fun! Saturday we had another beach day, of course! The weather was hothothot and we were in the water constantly- no complaints. My friend joined us as well - loved showing off my beach/home! Saturday we had a low key night at home.
Sunday was mothers day but not in israel..still important!! In honor of my mommy, i got a manicure and pedicure! what a great daughter! Monday (today) marked the beginning of another week of classes, which I have decided I will attend. Today in my Islam/Terrorism/Politics class we began our discussion about the emergence of Hezbollah. We went quickly through the history of Hezbollah and spent most of the time speaking about the present situation between Israel, Lebanon, and Iran. Recently, this topic has been coming up more and more with Israelis and soldiers- and its clear that a serious war is going to break out. Our conversation in class was very direct, without fluff, and it was really the first time it hit me that I am living in a country in the midst of war- i know it sounds strange..i've been living in Israel this whole time (even my birthright trip was during the Gaza operation in 2009) but for the most part, my time here has been calm. now, tensions are rising and israelis, my professors, and friends are beginning to speak of the situation with a more serious tone and more uncertain perspective on the future. It will be hard to go home and watch the conflict unfold from a far -really knowing people in israel, knowing soldiers in the war, and knowing the places i will see on TV.
So there you have it - beach time and war? interesting combination but somehow it feels like home. :)
more updates to come!

EGYPT! :)

Ok so im feeling muchmuch better and ready to report about my amazing weekend in Egypt!
We left Israel on thursday morning and flew "air sinai" to cairo. upon arrival we got a really cool visa which definitely is the best thing in my passport and were met by a company representative named Islam. sidenote: i traveled with 6 girls from my program. Islam lead us to our bus which drove us through cairo to giza where are hotel AND THE PYRAMIDS were located. the pyramids were honestly located across the street from our hotel! unreal. we checked in and immediately got lunch poolside at our hotel. after lunch, we spent the day laying out by the pool, reading, and tanning until our next meal and then bed.
830 friday morning we met Islam in the lobby of the hotel and he introduced us to Amir, our tourguide, and our security guard!! hardcore. we started the day by driving to Memphis to see the famous Ramses statue which is ENORMOUS! there are lot of other sculptures and artifacts at memphis but the Ramses statue was unreal. next we drove to Sakkara to see the famous step pyramid. also in sakkara we got to go inside a pyramid and see the inscriptions and hyrogliphics which was really cool. after Sakkara, we visited the "oriental carpet school" in giza. for many families, school is too expensive so they send their children to carpet school where they learn to make carpets and get paid a little when things sell from the store. about 10 little boys around age 9 showed us how they hand make each carpet. it was really cool to see but also really sad to see how poor the children were and they kept begging us for money. after the carpet school, we went to a papyrus store and got a demonstration about how to make papyrus paper. after this we headed to the hotel for lunch and anxiously awaited our visit to the great pyramids!
after lunch, we drove into giza to visit the great pyramids! theres not too much to say they are just amazing and it was pretty surreal getting to see them - and you can sit on them, who knew! we drove a little to a spot thats great for panoramic shots and got to take some amazing pictures. next we went to the sphynx which i was really excited about. Amir talked to us the whole time and gave us lots of info and history! after the pyramids, we went to a perfume shop (something egypt is very famous for)- we got to smell lots of different perfumes and i bought one for myself to put in the perfume bottle arielle got for me on her trip to egypt. after a longlong day we headed back to the hotel for some relaxation, dinner, and hookah (very egyptian!)
830 on saturday we met amir again in the lobby of the hotel and our new security guard who was much more friendly- in fact it turned out his wife's name was Dina which he couldnt decipher from Dana and so he took a great interest in me and at the end of the day tried to adopt me as his child. nice. we began our day in the koptic area of cairo - meaning the christian area. we first visited a few churches and amir gave us the history of the christian people in egypt and about the different denominations found. next we to a SYNAGOGUE- direct quote from amir: then we will go to a synagogue...a jewish temple..you know what is?. the ben ezra synagogue is very small and not an active temple but has my illegally taken pictures show it is really beautiful. there is an active synagogue in egypt but we didnt get to go there. after this, we left the koptic area and went to the citadel, where the important mosques of cairo are located. the mosque was built after the famous blue mosque in istanbul so it was cool to see since we had visited that mosque when we were in turkey. next we went to the egyptian bazaar/market. our security guard helped us bargain our way through in arabic and everyone got some really nice stuff. im really sick of bargaining though its just a pain- i bought a scarf for 50 egyptian dollars and he first offered me 150 egyptian dollars...no fun bargaining him down to that price- im ready for fixed pricing again. after the bazaar we ate in a local restaurant and headed for the egyptian museum. how to explain this place? well there are over 160,000 pieces in the museum and apparently, the collectino stored in the basement puts the total at over 200,000. the museum is a mess- things are scattered everyone and info is legit handwritten on index cards but aside from this it is UNREAL. they have so much stuff that has stayed in unbelieveable conditions. and its all SOOOO OLD. the best part of the whole museum was the mummies! real bodies, bones, hair, teeth, nails- it was disgusting and amazing at the same time- and they have a good amount of personal info on each mummy that they have. it was too cool. they also had a mummy room for animals which was interesting but the people room was awesome! no pics allowed but i do have some on my phone of course! its too cool not to share! after our trip the museum we returned to the hotel for some rest and pool time.
saturday night however we skipped dinner at the hotel and went on a NILE CRUISE! Islam and my security guard father brought us 20 mins away from the hotel to the nile and to our boat which had pharoah on the front! we set sail and had a delicious buffet dinner followed by bellydancing shows and other random performances. it was so much and the city was much more nice looking in the dark. dont think i mentioned this before but Cairo is a veryvery poor city and it was scary and pretty unreal seeing the conditions that people lived in- such a contrast to the rich history that survives in the country.
after our nile cruise, we went back to the hotel, got some sleep, and woke up in the morning to return to tel aviv. it was a good feeling coming home but i really enjoyed my trip to egypt and hope to go back some day to explore other parts of the country like alexandria and luxor. also coming back made us realize that it was our last trip out of israel and the next time we leave, we wont return for a long time which is really sad. may 30th is approaching faster than i ever thought possible but i think the next four weeks will be some of the best!
below are some pics from egypt!! enjoy and let me know if you'd like the link to my entire album!
xoxoxo

all of us sitting on the great pyramid

me in front of the great pyramid! cant even get the whole thing in!

me in front of the sphynx and another pyramid

all of us in our modest robes supplied by the mosque at the citadel

a woman wearing a full burka outside the egyptian museum

EGYPTTTTTTTT :)

so currently i am dealing with illness :( egyptian food did not agree with me.
in this state i cant do a blog entry about egypt justice but i didnt want you all to think i forgot about you or had given up on my blogging! i will be back for a detailed blog about my trip once im feeling better but i will say it was an AMAZING trip - met expectations and exceeded them veryvery much!
xo

Tiyul LiHaSafone (trip to the north!)

This weekend, my program took us on a trip to the north of Israel. I had been to the golan heights during birthright and done some hiking and stuff there but since being in Israel this time, I havent made it north of Akko- which is a shame because the north of israel is SO beautiful! so we left early friday morning and drove up the coast to the northern galilee. we spent the day in the mountain doing random activities like blind folded trust walks and some ropes work -pretty day-campy but alot of fun. after a day of driving and playing, we went to our hotel which was a kibbutz in nahariya. the kibbutz was right on the beach and we got to hang out there for a little (and nap) before dinner and bedtime at the kibbutz...other people went to the pub at the kibbutz but i was too tired :(
the next morning we woke up early and headed to see the caves at rosh hanikra. rosh hanikra is located right at the border of lebanon (like u can see lebanon) right at the north western tip of the country. we took "the worlds steepest cable car" down to the caves which were soo beautiful. there was some mystical spiritualness happening there but i just thought it was pretty. after we went up to the israel/lebanon border control which is the only place where people can pass through the border..but not even people just UN personel and soldiers (the only other way to get back and forth is to fly) here our tourguide spoke to us about 2 soldiers that were kidnapped many years ago and after much negotiation their bodies were brought back through that border. this transitioned into a discussion about Gilad Shalit who was kidnapped 4 years ago by hamas and has captivated the country and been the subject of many failed peace discussions. after our time at rosh hanikra, we went to a hike in the valley of kizev- a gorgeous valley the top of which is the village where gilad shalit is from. once down in the valley, there was a stream that continuously got in our way and most of the hike was us perfecting the art of not falling into the stream as we jumped from rock to rock to get across the stream. i was one of few people who did not fall into the water. success. the hike was so gorgeous and along the way we stopped for discussion with our tourguide about the history in the north of israel and also about gilad shalit. after the hike, we returned to the kibbutz for some rest and dinner. that night we were supposed to go to the town of rosh pina but we couldnt :( so we went into nahariya instead and got fro yo...yofi.
on sunday, we awoke and drove an hour or so east towards the golan. we did another hike through the amud stream/valley which was beautiful as well- we were a "bit" sore from our hike the previous day so it wasnt as joyous a hike but it was still beautiful. after this hike, we drove to the yarden river to go rafting!! it wasnt the most intense rafting but it was alot of fun and i was lucky to not fall in or die while hitting a tree/rock which was what my boat did the majority of time. after some rafting we changed clothes and started our three hour bus ride back to tel aviv..of course with a quick stop for some FALAFEL! yumyum
the trip was quite exhausting but it was so much fun! my bus was basically a largeeee group of my girlfriends and we got to have lots of bonding time while sweating and getting to see some beautiful parts of Israel. next up, is another 3 days of school before jetting of to EGYPT! this is the big trip i've been waiting for allll semester and i am sososoo excited its finally here! its getting more and more evident how little time we have left in israel which is really sad but also making us concentrate on making the best out of the 5 or so weeks infront of us! i know it has sounded like im never leaving but just so everyone knows i do have a flight home and i will return to the states on may 30th!
thats all for now! xoxoxo