Ulpan. Hebrew word that translates to "studio", which apparently translates in English to "a room that is filled with hopeful students that are probably clueless of the effects of being subjected to ridiculous amounts of Hebrew being crammed into their brains in an incredibly short amount of time." The good news is I have learned more in the last week and a half than I did all semester...or that is bad news, depending on how you look at it. I find myself thinking and answering myself in Hebrew, my English conversations are intermittently mixed (unintentionally) with Hebrew words and phrases, and soon I will probably be dreaming in Hebrew. Basically Hebrew has been my life ever since June 23rd. The amount of hours I spend in class Sunday through Thursday outnumber the hours I spend sleeping in a week. My current schedule looks like this: I go to class, study, eat, nap, eat, and study...and eat (I'm still eating what seems like non stop, and I still don't know where it's going...I've gained a whole 3 pounds since December). When my eyes start to cross I crawl out of my room to visit with my awesome new roommates, one of whom is a classmate from my Hebrew class at OU...what are the odds?? Of all the apartments in all the buildings, she was moved into mine. Amazing.
The thing about ulpan is it makes the time fly by. My time in Israel is winding down, as my roommates and I just realized we have a little over 3 weeks left of class, and I leave the next day. Soon my countdown will shift from days to hours. My time in Israel has been an experience I can hardly put into words, which was the purpose for this blog, and though I am more excited than I can convey at the thought of going home, at the same time I am in no hurry to leave this amazing place. To say Israel is a unique and special place is a gross understatement. For example, whenever someone says anything to me about seeing all the Apache helicopters (Apache AH 64D Longbows to be exact) landing nearby and daily circling overhead (here in the Student Village usually low enough to see the pilots' faces), my response is "welcome to Israel." A couple days ago a "suspicious device" was reduced to toast downtown, and I heard a rumor that there was a bomb scare at Hadassah Hospital, which I walk by daily to and from school. But as I've mentioned before, this is the norm in Israel. Unfortunately.
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| Apache Longbow; releasing anti-missile flares |
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Anti-Semitism and terror threats aside, I am fascinated with the effects and influences of religion here. In terms of anything and everything to do with life, it is the basis, the foundation, the cause, the reason...the fuel for the fire. If I were wearing close-toed shoes, I would have to remove them to count how many times the Temple Mount has been closed to tourists due to an outburst of violence. I will never forget the yelling and the anger in the faces of the Haredi at the Women of the Wall service, nor will I forget being closely followed and occasionally yelled at (in Arabic) on the Temple Mount, or being kicked out of the White Mosque in Nazareth by a very not-so-happy Muslim. Needless to say, most (if not all) of my experiences here where religion is concerned have been anything but pleasant...tense is probably a good word. Frustrating is another good one. These experiences remind me why I hate religion, and it makes me appreciate even more what Jesus did on the cross. Love. Mercy. Grace. We need a lot more of these I think.
Well my Hebrew is calling my name (in English), but I will write more soon. !להתראות
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