The Wonder of it All (4/14)

I'm finally adjusted to the jetlag (kind of) and absorbing what NY life is like now.

My first week back has been a bit of a whirlwind. I came back from Israel with a cold (surprise, surprise), and some jetlag. I stayed at mom and dad's house for 2 nights longer than I had planned because I was feeling pretty miserable.

The reason I came home when I did was because of Dad's invitation to take a photo on center ice at Madison Square Garden for being a Rangers season ticketholder for so long. Certainly, taking that photo was a highlight of my first week back. (Unfortunately, the game that went down beforehand was a pathetic showing of the Rangers.) I almost fell asleep at the game (partly because it was boring and the Rangers got crushed 3-0, but also because of the jetlag). I fell asleep on the train coming home and basically slept walked up to my bedroom when we got home from the station. What a night!

I also got to go to the season closer of the game, at MSG, against the Devils. Dad had to be at the Port Washington Education Foundation's gala that evening, so he gave his tickets to Allison and me! It was an afternoon game, so I was much more awake this time, not as jetlagged, although still suffering from this damn cold. The Rangers played much better, to a victory this time that was absolutely crucial in their making the playoffs. With a little help from Tampa Bay winning against Carolina, we secured our spot in the Eastern Division as the number 8 seed, playing the Washington Capitals in round 1. No problem. Happy to watch the Caps go down (I HOPE!) and engage in some more family rivalries, as always.

I've listened to the radio a few times since being home (just putting it on in my room, setting my alarm to go off in the morning, etc.), and I'm amazed at how many songs Adam and I heard on European radio that are being played here. Living in a non-English speaking country and only having access to some music online (thank you Janglo!), I wasn't sure I'd know what's current. But, I've heard:
Forget You -- by Cee Lo Green

On The Floor -- by JLo and Pitbull

Lazy Day -- by Bruno Mars

Grenade -- by Bruno Mars

It was a little weird to hear these songs on the radio after all this time! I'm happy to get back to American radio on the actual radio, and not online somewhere. Makes me smile :)

It's always great coming to mom and dad's house - my bed is super comfortable, dad cooks great homemade food, Yvonne is great company, I can lounge around the living room and watch as much TV as I want, and get a little bit pampered. No complaints here.

The first time I went back to my apartment in Manhattan, it was a little weird. I took the subway uptown from MSG after the Rangers/Devils game, just to check it out and see what the situation looked like before I started moving things in. I discovered that it was a bit of a mess from my last subletter, so it won't be very fun cleaning up but it must be done. I rode on the subway uptown, which was weird. I walked on my block, which was weird. I got into my building and into my apartment, which was weird. After I did some cleaning, I took the bus down to 82nd street to meet Rebecca for a quick bite (early dinner?), which was weird. I sat across from her at the table, and it was weird! It was made even MORE weird by not having felt weird at home. Being at mom and dad's was fine. I didn't feel out of my element at all; I felt very comfortable. However, getting back into NYC was like a new world. I feel a little bit like a tourist - I was amazed at how beautiful the Empire State Building looked a few days ago. I was staring at the list of shops and restaurants on every block; maybe one would be a new place! It will just take some getting used to, I'm sure, and I'll be back to normal.

I'm still getting used to hearing English on a regular basis. It really was in my head for so long, that I just wouldn't hear English walking around on the street, in the grocery store line, or on the train. I'm still slightly shocked when I hear kids playing and talking in English, instead of Hebrew, or French, or Italian. It is definitely nice, because I obviously can talk to anyone and help them if they need directions, or ask a clerk at a store for some help finding an item, but still something to get used to.

All I have right now -- maybe some more will come!

My last week in Israel (3/28-4/5)

After just over one month of traveling, I returned to the Holy Land for a week. A few things were on the agenda:

-- catch up on some much needed sleep. I slept til after 10 or 11 almost every day I was there. JOY!

-- weekend/Shabbat getaway with Steven - to Tel Aviv and (drum roll please) HAIFA! Never been, this will be my only chance before leaving the country! This also meant renting a car and driving there myself! Me, behind the wheel after 6 months of not driving. It felt a bit weird, but it also felt a bit cool. It's not like you just forget how to drive if you don't practice. It just comes right back to you! But, it was definitely a strange feeling to be driving on roads and in places that I had only been in as a passenger in a car or riding on a bus. Coming back from the Goldsmith cousins on Saturday night (last chance to see them and give them gifts from England!), I was behind the wheel when we went through the checkpoint. We weren't stopped, but it just felt weird to be the one driving! Throughout the weekend, we were busy: we had dinner on the beach in Tel Aviv (hooray for good weather), watched baseball at Mike's Place in Tel Aviv (quite a different experience from Mike's Place in Jerusalem), made a quick visit to Caesaria, went to Shabbat services at Or Chadash, dinner at Giraffe (an Asian fusion restaurant), walking down 700+ steps in the Bahai Gardens, which was stunning, but painful on the calves the next day, and seeing the Goldsmith cousins for dinner and hangout time on Saturday night before heading back to Jerusalem.

-- ice skating at Kikar Safra with Avi Mayer! When he posted on Facebook that the rink was coming into town, I knew the dates overlapped a bit with mine, so we made a promise to each other and stuck with it! Of course, Lisa Friedman was there with us in spirit. Avi printed a picture of her so she came ice skating with us. I think she enjoyed it :) And I met a cute little 8 year old boy who I decided is my new best friend slash younger brother. He was so cute, and kept skating near us when we were going around and around. He fell a couple times (unlike Avi or me, who somehow managed to stay on our feet the whole time) but got himself right back up again. What a trooper!

-- Rangers vs. Philly game on Sunday night at Mike's Place. I invited all my Israel friends to come say hi, and/or bye, and/or have some food/drink and/or enjoy the hockey game! I had a really nice turnout of friends from WUJS, Pardes, HUC, and some others. It was a great night with great company, AND the Rangers won! I think it was the first game I had watched in Israel that came out a victory! Finally!

-- "How to Lead a Passover Seder" workshop at HUC followed by Rachel Goldberg's Passover class on Monday night. Seeing as Passover is SO by far my fave holiday, it was no wonder I agreed to go to everything I did on Monday. Shelly, a liturgy professor at HUC led this workshop, geared mostly toward the HUC students who are leading seders in the Former Soviet Union, but opened it to others (including me!). I also got to go to Rachel's class that evening with the new WUJS crew, and surprisingly, they had the room filled! We only had 5 or 6 people on average attending her classes. Either it's still the beginning for them, or they have more people interested in the learning aspect. I loved the class, as usual, and wish I could study more with her. Her approach and teaching style is so engaging, and so "real life." I'm afraid I won't really ever find that same style in a Judaism teacher. She'll be missed!

I had some firsts, and I had some lasts, during my last week in Israel, and it was a great last week to have. I was in many cities, saw many of my friends, and did a variety of activities to keep me interested in being here. I wasn't otherwise really interested in being here, with the exception of seeing friends and family. I am ready to go home; NY is calling my name. I have spent many months away from my parents and my close friends from home. I want to be back in my apartment in NYC. I still have some processing to do of all of the experiences I've had in Israel; it will certainly take some time. But that time to process can begin soon now that I am on my way home.

America here I come!