Haven't updated for a little while....

Sukkot Break 

"got my toes in the water, ass in the sand,
not a worry in the world, a cold beer in my hand,
 life is good today!" - Toes by Zac Brown Band

Madeleine and me!  We are adorable :) 

So, break was pretty interesting.  I feel badly, I wanted to go and do stuff but I had such a good time just hanging out in Ashkelon.  I worked on my Hebrew and although I wish I was doing a bit better, I do not feel like I am doing badly.  I spent decent amount of time hanging out at the beach and relaxing with my friends.  It was nice because the group was dispersed, so we went out in smaller groups with whoever was around and I really enjoyed it.  I felt like I got to know everyone on the trip better.

Last Thursday I got a call from Frenchie so went to Ashdod to visit him with Madeleine.  We had a good time Thursday night although I was pretty confused for the majority of the evening.  Most of Frenchies friends spoke French and Madeleine does too so I was a bit out of the loop.  We still had a great time though.  The bar that we went to is right on the beach in Ashdod and one of the girls we were with got a bagel and lox and only ate 1/2 of it.  At one point M looks around and goes "what would happen if that bagel just disappeared?"  Then we shared it and it was amazing.  Best bagel ever (and my first in Israel!)  Madeleine went home Friday afternoon and I stayed and hung out with Frenchie until the next night.  He was a very good host and made me some very fancy meals (schnitzel with hummus and cheese on pitas lol) but it was perfect.  I hope I get invited back at some point!  :)  

Sunset on the Beach in Ashkelon

It was nice to have a place to stay for a couple of days without roomies (as much as I love mine, sometimes you need a break)!  I didn't get to do much in terms of exploring Ashdod because it was Shabbat and Frenchie was sleeping most of the day Friday.  I didn't feel that comfortable exploring by myself and I didn't want to leave his place unlocked while I went out.  So, I caught up on True Blood and took advantage of having a comfortable mattress and complete control over the A.C. and just laid in bed.  Good way to spend the last few days of break.


Now we are back into the swing of things and I am really excited about the next couple of months.  I got my volunteer placement (although I haven't heard from them yet!) and it should be pretty cool.  I didn't think that I wanted to teach English but after spending a day with ITC - the teaching track - I realized it was pretty rewarding.  I got placed with Atidim (not sure I spelled it correctly) and will be working with underprivileged but gifted youth.  From what I understand they are likely to be in high school.  I'm pretty excited about it but it looks like I won't get to go until next week.  


So I totally forgot to write about the Potluck dinner that we had!  It was pretty awesome.  It started with about 5 of us that decided that an OTZMA shabbat potluck sounded like a good idea.  So, word about this event spread and there ended up being 14 or 15 people there!  It was pretty cool.  Everyone made yummy food, some more interesting than others, and pseudo-Rabbi Amir said the prayers.  Of course we forgot to discuss whether or not the meal would be Kosher so we failed a little on that front, but whatever.  It was a great time and throughout most of the meal we got to hear about Amir, Lauren and Eli's adventure on the first few days of break.  Sounded pretty crazy!!!  Here is Lauren's retelling of the story in her blog.


I need to go visit my host family soon.  I am missing them even though I only met them for a few short days.  I feel bad because I told Osi I would visit and then I didn't.  I wasn't feeling well for several days though, so hopefully she will understand and forgive me.  I may even go this weekend!