This past Thursday I skipped Hebrew (rebellious I know) to go on a "yom kef" (fun day) with work! It was awesome. Instead of a normal workday, the company took us all (15 of us) to Jerusalem for the entire day! We met at work at 8:30 and took a minibus from there (Jerusalem is about an hour away from Tel Aviv).
On the bus we were offered some drinks. I had never tried choco before (Israeli chocolate milk which people drink here like water) so i decided to have some. After I start drinking it, the girl next to me explained how back when she was in the army, if you got choco, it was a privilege. But, once you had your glass of choco and your cigarette, you were off to the bathroom. I was like great ... I'm the idiot drinking a laxative on the way to Jerusalem!
We started off the day at the well-known shook Ben Yehuda where we had massive amounts of food for breakfast. (Burekas, eggs, etc). We had a tour guide. And of course she spoke to us in Hebrew. I was happy that I could understand about half about what she was saying, and was able to get the overall gist.
I had been to this outdoor market many times before when I studied abroad in Jerusalem. This time was a completely different experience though because we got an inside tour of many of the shops. We got to sample Halva, Tehina, candy, fruit shakes...
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| Havla and Tehina |
After the tour we had some time to do some shopping. We then went to the old shook near the Western Wall where we went into some fabric shop. We saw textiles that were over $400 a yard. From all the episodes of Project Runway I watched, sounded like a lot.
We then went on a tour of the old city via segways! It was my first time on Segway so I didn't know what to expect. We had two "instructors" who explained to us how to use the machinery... but the directions were given to us in Hebrew. Now was not the time where I only wanted to understand the gist of what was being said! I was handed a release form where I needed to sign. I only signed after I heard the instructions again in English. It was a blast! Only one time I felt like I was holding on for dear life. If you can imagine there's no emergency stop button!
We ended the evening at a beautiful restaurant at the old train station. It was really great and I felt like I really bonded with everyone. It was nice to spend time with them outside the workplace. Since day one though, everyone there has been so welcoming towards me, which has been amazing.
I can honestly say for the first time since I've been here, I'm really starting to feel like I'm becoming part of the Israeli culture.
One of my favorite courses in University was called "language and thought" where we learned how the language your'e born with affects the way we see the world. Language is Culture. Now that my Hebrew is improving, I feel like I am able to follow conversations, and even contribute like I wasn't able to before. I've found the most useful way to improve my Hebrew is to speak with people who need to improve their English. Israelis want to practice their English, so it benefits both of us. I had such a confidence boost the other night when I was with two Israelis who told me my Hebrew was good and my accent wasn't that bad!
Not knowing the language surprisingly has its benefits sometimes. I was out with my roommate Moshe the other night. When we showed our IDs, supposedly I got rejected because it was 26+. I didn't understand what was going on and just walked in liked I owned the place. No one even said anything or tried to make me leave haha.
I gotta give a shoutout to my roommates. They're awesome. I really lucked out considering I didn't meet them before I moved in (crazy I know).
Levi (in the picture) works in some business lounges in some nice hotels in Tel Aviv. The other day he got to spend the whole day with Natalie Portman!!!! He said she ate veggies with Tehina and made her assistant go out and get her hummus! (In case you were wondering what Natalie Portman eats when she's in Israel). Supposedly Ashton Kutcher and Mila Kunis were here a couple weeks ago. Guess I live in the LA of the Middle East!
This was a great week. Shabbat Shalom :)
J
