Indiana Shosh and the Temple of Awesome

Just kidding there was no temple. But I did feel like I was in an Indiana Jones movie yesterday.  I went hiking in the Negev desert with Sergiu, Ilan and Ziv.  We went to a big crater and hiked these amazingly old trails and ate matzah and nutella at the top of the peak.  Can't really get any better than that right?

So wrong.  We went to natural pools in the crater and watched as crazy people jumped in the freezing water.  We then hiked up another peak, which entailed some rock climbing and dodging of scorpions.  Okay, it was only one scorpion, but still....  We ate lunch with a swiss army knife under the shade of a ridge that looked like a dinasour spine.  I'm sure you're asking who is writing this, let alone doing this, but I assure you it's all me.  Crazy, I know.

We later grabbed some gleeda (ice cream) and played in the colored sand.  There were mounds of red, purple, yellow, and white sand and kids running around with babookim (bottles) making sand art.  Ziv made a really nice one.  Mine ended up full or rocks so I gave up.

Overall it was a fantastic day.  The sunburn doesn't matter, it was a total blast scorpions and all.   Pictures  here!

Latraot!

A little bit of this...

Boker Tov (Good Morning)!  This morning I can turn my head left, right and even up!  I'm still working on down... but hey, you can't have everything right?  :)

In other news, I went on another hike yesterday with my fellow Ulpanists.  We had a guide from the Kibbutz and we went to an entirely new place.  Again, amazing views.  I keep hearing how lucky we are that we are here when it's green.  I think things get really dry over the summer.  And HOT!  So I'm enjoying this mild weather while we have it.

Kita (class) was challenging again yesterday.  We'll see how the test goes.  Que sera sera (Latin not Hebrew).  I'm not going to worry about it too much.

Back to the Macbesa today--homework and studying later.  Perhaps even a nap?

And on another note, thanks for the emails, IM's and texts.  My daily dose of American sarcasm depends on you.

Latraot!

First Official Day

Today was our official start to the Ulpan.  We met with one of the teachers Yochi to asses our Hebrew level.  Even though I don't understand any of it, the fact that I can read puts me in Kita Bet (which is the second level).  So I think I will have my work cut out for me.  Meanwhile, my Spanish is improving in talking with Julie from Columbia and the many Venezuelans.  There are two guys from Mexico who mostly hang out with themselves, but they are hilariously bohemian.  Think: dreadlocks, sandals, and Hammer pants.

After we were assigned to classes I asked Shoshi if I could work with the kids.  She said she will try in a few weeks to put me with the children but that I must learn a some more Hebrew phrases first.  Meanwhile, I report to the office tomorrow for my first day of work.  Still no idea what I am doing.  Kita Aleph (beginning class) starts classes tomorrow.  I start Thursday.  I'm really looking forward to it.

The rest of the day was spent at lunch, a rousingly dull game of Battleship (it really stopped being fun after the age of 8), and then another really great hike!  I'm really enjoying it.  We sat around at the top a bit discussing politics and the IDF (Israeli Defense Force aka the Army).  Many of the guys who are here are Aliyah (becoming citizens) and they want to join the army.  It was interesting to hear how much they already knew about it, and what they wanted to do.

Most people in the Ulpan are actually Aliyah.  I think there are only four of us who aren't.  I have a strong suspicion that there may be some peer pressure to make Aliyah.  But, as you know USC is next up for me.

My shoulders are killing me from the hike... why that and not my legs?  No clue.  But I suspect if I keep this up I am going to be in awesome shape soon.

Dinner is up next.  It's not really a big meal on the Kibbutz--usually leftovers from lunch.  But lunch today was pretty good. There was couscous and some really yummy cheesy things.  I hope there are more tonight.   Later we will go back to help decorate the Chader Ochel (dining hall) for Purim again.

I will leave you with a joke I learned today...

"What sound does an Israeli cow make?"
"Eh.... mooo."

If you've never heard an Israeli talk you probably wont get it.  But to give you a basic idea, "eh" is like the Israeli version of the American "um."


Latraot!

PS. Sorry for the overuse of the word "really"