Adventures in May and June (and July!)

I’ve been up to a lot in the past two months. In May I took a trip to Akko and Haifa with Devora and Jayne. We explored the Old City of Akko, spent Shabbat in Haifa, and then on Sunday I went to some museums while Devora and Jayne went horseback riding. It was a lovely trip.

In the beginning of June I finished ulpan in Jerusalem and went to Turkey for two weeks. I was primarily in Istanbul, but I also took a short trip to Ankara. Turkey was an absolutely fascinating country, and it reminded me a lot of Israel. Both are countries that are deeply struggling with the role of religion in public life, that are both very modern and ancient, and that don’t really belong to one continent. I loved going to all different types of mosques in Istanbul, and I also visited some historical sites. I tried to visit the Jewish community in Istanbul, but they didn’t let me into the synagogue.

The day after I got back from Turkey was Tel Aviv Pride! It was lots of fun, although it did make me miss Boston and Boston Pride. Right after that, I started Sar-El. Sar-El is a program for foreigners who want to volunteer for the Israel Defense Forces. For the past three weeks I’ve been living on an Israeli army base, wearing a uniform, eating in the Hadar Ochel (dining room) with soldiers, and helping out on the base. My group fixed electronics, cleaned the dining room, and did some painting. We also just spent time hanging out with soldiers and getting to know them.

Now I’m off to Egypt! I plan to spend a couple of days in Cairo, and then I’d like to go to Alexandria, Luxor, and Aswan. But I have to be back in Israel by the middle of July, because my family is coming to visit! I can’t wait!