The holidays bring people together

This was one of the seldom Shabbats that I stayed at the cfar. It is always interesting since it is usually my religious friends and I having services followed by a nice dinner. This week I did it with Leslie Klein(friend from wheels), Jackie Wolf(Indiana/Vandy), and some other cfar kids that I am not very close with. The services were led by a girl with a mind-blowing voice and I was very impressed. Then we had dinner that was a cute potluck consisting of a lot of wine and deli meat(mainly cause it was still Pesach). Luckily there was a huge salad and even some matza brie. Let me say, these kids knew how to drink. I am pretty sure they went through more bottles of wine than people. It was hilarious to see the table go from intellectual conversation of college students to what the latest gossip in their lives were. I could not help but just laugh and smile at everything that was going on. The next day I decided to have a picnic with talia and the rest of the girls. We all brought out blankets, books, and food. It was a beautiful day that we all just appreciated together. Moments like that make everything better. Then they all left to do other things and I was joined by Adina Rosen(wheels staff). We began talking about life and school and caught up with each other. Then the conversation got interesting as we took on the topic of Conservative Judaism. We both have an idealistic view of how to save the movement and give it meaning so that people with understand what they are part of and how it fits into Judaism. We discussed at lengths the steps that need to be taken in synagogues around the country to maintain the youth as well as the elders of the community. One day I will run a shul that people are proud to be part of and has the true ideals of Judaism kept.

That Sunday seemed like half a day to me since that night began the tail end of the Pesach holiday. I was lucky to be able to go grab some lunch with both Adam Weiner and Aaron Leven since they were in town. It was really great for the 3 of us to be together since we all share so much in common and laugh about the good times we spent together and the great times that were ahead of us. That night I was able to celebrate the holiday with Grob since we both stayed at our apartment and cook. I made really good matza lasagna and he whipped up some stemmed vegetables. We had the guys next door join us so that they would not go hungry. It was a very meaningful to do it with josh since he is one of my best friends. The next day I was invited by David Abraham to go to this family that lived downtown called the Amits. They spent the past couple summers at Camp Ramah in Ohio and everyone io know loves them. Let me just say that as soon as I met them I could see what everyone was talking about. The mom Glenda is from South America but made aliyah 20 years ago. The dad Aron is from Denver but also made aliyah 20 years ago. They have 6 kids ranging from 6-18: Elon, Leah, Shamaia, Emanuelle,Hoshea, and Channelle. They are all a handful to say the least. I came to love the family in a heartbeat. They are kind, caring, love guests, and open their hearts to you. As soon as I stepped out of the door to leave, I knew I was coming back really soon to visit again.

As soon as chag was over david and I rushed out of there to change and shower since we had some people to meet up with. Apparently, Daivd landau, meir, fred, and the girlfriends were all in town at the coffee bean and I had to see them. It was an adorable reunion of friends and I love those. Then we met up with some shalhevet people, nativ people, army people, it was an eclectic group that made for an entertaining evening. I could not have asked for a better way to spend my Pesach seeing family, friends, meeting new ones, and traveling. I could not believe it was coming to an end but as always life goes on.

L'Tiyul!!

They say that Tel Aviv is the city that never sleeps which may very well be true but it does not go for its inhabitants. Right now some close friends of mine from LA(Benji Davis, Micah Saeger, Arya Donay) are all living in TA together having a blast. I called them up in the morning to let them know I was coming and wanted to see them but of course they were asleep. I had no time to wait for them so I made my way over there bright and early. Simone was able to meet me on the beach with some of her friends and we just lied out and enjoyed the beautiful beach. It was so relaxing and really made me think of the amazing beached back in sunny Cali that I cannot wait to come back to. After dropping my stuff of at simone’s aunts beach apartment(SO SICK!!) we went to yoga and by we I mean she went and I walked there. I actually went to go meet up with the boys who had finally decided to wake up. We all made dinner together and surprisingly it was delicious. We made some special Persian(Tina Donay recipe) rice along with some meat and potatoes. It was great just being able to kick it with the guys since I rarely get to see them and I really like hanging out with them. After our little man time, I made my way back to simone’s place so we could get to sleep early. She decided that our wakeup call would be at 6:00 (didn’t know that still existed).

The next day’s travel was packed with adventure. We started out by leaving TA early to get up to Nachal Amud (natural valley made from water). It is roughly 13 kilometers north of the Kinneret and beautiful. We got off the bus where the driver told us to and began walking. At first we got slightly lost and started wandering through farmland and hills. It was in the right direction since it was always towards the sea. Eventually after our slight detour, we made it to Shvi Israel (a trial that goes from the north of Israel to the south). We met some nice soldiers that were off for a week and decided to travel and thought they would be nice company. They provided us with food, water, and a map (2 essentials on any hike). We made it after a half days walk to the kinneret and dived in head first. It was a beautiful blue that just calmed every muscle of my body. I got more color than I thought possible and was famished from not eating. We took a bus into Tiberias, the closest city, and looked for some grub. I received a call from David Abraham who invited me to come stay on his kibbutz that night and of course I could not reuse. We took a bus to a nearby junction, tremped(hitched) a ride to get us to the city, and then once more to get us to his kibbutz exactly. When I arrived there, the real party began.

David Abraham is a great friend of mine from back home. He original is from New Mexico, was involved in USY, and graduated from U of A. He is now a commander in a tank unit for the Israeli Army. He lives on Kibbutz Ha’zorea with a couple other people I know(Mike Dolinka, Danny Fleischer, Sivan Ron, Maor Winstein). To my surprise, Benji and Arya also came up to hang out for the night. We started with a concert at the kibbutz that was chill and relaxing. Afterwards we went to a neighboring kibbutz where they have a weekly party. It was a pretty big rager with tons of people my age that are in the army but off for the weekend. I met all of David’s Garin friends and they were all very nice. It was so much fun to go out with the guys and just let loose. I felt all the pressures of school and daily life float away to another time and place. I was enjoying myself and spending time with great company. The night lasted forever and I feel as though we didn’t get back until 6 in the morning. It was one of those nights that I will never forget and always appreciate. The next day David and I drove back to Jerusalem together and spend some long overdue quality time. I could not have asked for a better pesach break.