July 30, 2013
I know that i have not posted a new blog entry in a while, but i keep forgetting to! Luckily I have not done too much since the last post and nothing too interesting. This whole weekend I relaxed a lot and went to the pool and did some Hebrew homework and just hung out with friends. My friends and i went out Thursday night to a club on the Namal (Tel Aviv port) called Galena. It was fun because a bunch of the students at the TAU got a table together and we had bottle service and the table that we had was behind the DJ!!! The next day, we were so tired and worn out from the night before, that I woke up at 4pm in the afternoon and didn't actually get out of bed until 6pm or 7pm. My friends and I were all starving so we went to go walk to the mall down the road to get dinner there. Because it was Shabbat, it wasn't open, so we walked down the road to a shopping center where we knew had a bunch of restaurants. Much to our surprise, all of the restaurants were closed except for Dominoes pizza EW! I learned that the whole country basically just shuts down every Friday night to Saturday night. Because I was able to get a lot of sleep and relaxation in on Friday, I was able to have fun on Saturday! I woke up early (for me, 12pm!) and went to the pool with friends and then relaxed all afternoon and early night. Sarah and Paige and I wanted to go out that night, so we tried to go to this bar across the street from the beach, called Mikes Place. We got in and walked around but it was obviously a tourist trap! Everyone we saw there was in their 50's and 60's and EVERYONE was American. We realized we did not want to stay there, so we went to a bar/ lounge across the street and it was amazing. We sat out on the beach, about ten feet in from the waves and relaxed there, drinking a glass of wine and eating pita and hummus. It was a great way to spend a relaxed Saturday night. Unfortunately the weekend was then over and I had to get up for class the next morning at 7:30 to learn more Hebrew :]. On Sunday I had class until 1pm and then went to the pool with my friends and relaxed and met some Israeli friends! Then I went to the grocery store and made myself a delicious israeli salad with cucumbers and tomato and peppers with a little garlic, salt, olive oil, lemon juice, and an avocado spread. It was probably the closest I will ever get to making myself a gourmet meal! I had a test the next morning and my suite mate, Lauren had a bunch of friends over to cook dinner. They were really loud so Paige and I went to King Georges restaurant across the street to study together. We realized that we could not study there if we didn't order anything, so we got wine. It was a pleasant night to study and drink white wine! Yesterday and today I basically did the same thing, went to class, relaxed at the pool, and then relaxed and did homework back at my dorm! Actually, yesterday, my friends and I came up with a long list of things we want to do and places we want to travel to during our six months in Israel. We came up with a lot of places and fun weekend trips! I am so excited to tour the country and area and experience the true Israeli and Middle Eastern vibe! I am planning on going out tonight to a club so I'll let you know tomorrow how it was!
Tuesday, July 30, 2013
Wednesday, July 24, 2013
July 24, 2013
Today was another not too eventful, but relaxing day! I went to Ulpan this morning and it was soooo hard. I am so confused with Hebrew and have a quiz/ test tomorrow. I have a lot of studying and reviewing for it tomorrow and don't even know where to start. Uh oh! So after Ulpan, I went to the pool and relaxing and chilled there for a few hours with Alona and Sarah. It was so nice to lay out there and just really relax and de-stress about Hebrew. While i was there I had a really good Israeli salad with tons of fresh veggies: tomatoes, red peppers, yellow peppers, green peppers, cucumber, and avocado, with a very light lemon and olive oil dressing. It was delicious! Now that I am back from the pool, I have a lot of studying to do and a few homework sheets for Hebrew. I need to prepare for this quiz that I have tomorrow :( I don't have too many plans for tonight but there is a free sushi buffet as a get-to-know-you for dinner, so I am planning to go to that with my friends.
Today was another not too eventful, but relaxing day! I went to Ulpan this morning and it was soooo hard. I am so confused with Hebrew and have a quiz/ test tomorrow. I have a lot of studying and reviewing for it tomorrow and don't even know where to start. Uh oh! So after Ulpan, I went to the pool and relaxing and chilled there for a few hours with Alona and Sarah. It was so nice to lay out there and just really relax and de-stress about Hebrew. While i was there I had a really good Israeli salad with tons of fresh veggies: tomatoes, red peppers, yellow peppers, green peppers, cucumber, and avocado, with a very light lemon and olive oil dressing. It was delicious! Now that I am back from the pool, I have a lot of studying to do and a few homework sheets for Hebrew. I need to prepare for this quiz that I have tomorrow :( I don't have too many plans for tonight but there is a free sushi buffet as a get-to-know-you for dinner, so I am planning to go to that with my friends.
July 23, 2013
Again, I forgot to post my blog from yesterday, so im doing it today. Yesterday, i got up early again for Ulpan from 8:30 to 1pm. It was not as hard yesterday and it was actually starting to click and make some sense! After Ulpan was over, I came back to the dorms for a bit to relax and then Paige, Alona, and I went to the shuk. An Israeli shuk is like a market. It was really cool to walk down the streets and see all of the different vendors selling their produce and handicrafts. It was also fun to bargain with the vendors and try to get good/ better prices for their already overpriced items. Most Israelis' take advantage of Americans because they know that we don't and won't know the difference of how much the goods are and how much they should be. They also know that because of this naiveness, Americans are willing to pay whatever the vendors say the price is. oh well! While I was at the shuk, I bought some amazing looking bright red cherries that taste just as good as they look! I paid full price for the 1/4 of a kilogram that I bought (they were 20 shekels), but as I walked down the street, I found better looking cherries for a much better price actually (only 8 shekels). Its all part of the experience! The three of us had a really good authentic Israeli and Arab meal with grilled chicken, Israeli salad, hummus, falafel, and Iraqi rice. It was a true israeli restaurant. Once I got home from the shuck, I relaxed for a while and did my Hebrew homework and then I went out to a fun and chill bar with my friends. Yesterday was a really nice and relaxing day and night!
Again, I forgot to post my blog from yesterday, so im doing it today. Yesterday, i got up early again for Ulpan from 8:30 to 1pm. It was not as hard yesterday and it was actually starting to click and make some sense! After Ulpan was over, I came back to the dorms for a bit to relax and then Paige, Alona, and I went to the shuk. An Israeli shuk is like a market. It was really cool to walk down the streets and see all of the different vendors selling their produce and handicrafts. It was also fun to bargain with the vendors and try to get good/ better prices for their already overpriced items. Most Israelis' take advantage of Americans because they know that we don't and won't know the difference of how much the goods are and how much they should be. They also know that because of this naiveness, Americans are willing to pay whatever the vendors say the price is. oh well! While I was at the shuk, I bought some amazing looking bright red cherries that taste just as good as they look! I paid full price for the 1/4 of a kilogram that I bought (they were 20 shekels), but as I walked down the street, I found better looking cherries for a much better price actually (only 8 shekels). Its all part of the experience! The three of us had a really good authentic Israeli and Arab meal with grilled chicken, Israeli salad, hummus, falafel, and Iraqi rice. It was a true israeli restaurant. Once I got home from the shuck, I relaxed for a while and did my Hebrew homework and then I went out to a fun and chill bar with my friends. Yesterday was a really nice and relaxing day and night!
Tuesday, July 23, 2013
Day #5 July 22, 2013
I forgot tot post yesterday, so I'm doing it today. Yesterday was my second day of Ulpan classes and we had a new teacher. I did not like her as much because she was not a good teacher, in my opinion! She barely taught us Hebrew and only talked in Hebrew. She said that throughout the next 7 weeks of Ulpan, the two teachers will switch off every few days. After Ulpan, I went to the sports center gym and pool with Sarah, Paige, and Alona. We laid out and relaxed at the pool for a few hours. It was so nice to be able to relax after a five hour Hebrew class. After the pool, we came back to the dorms, got ready, and went to dinner at BurgersBar. This restaurant was so good and it was basically a customization burger place that had salads and wraps and sandwiches too. The most unique thing about this place was that they are famous for all of their sauces. We could choose as many homemade sauces and dressings to put on our food as we want! Then we came back and went to the grocery store quickly to try to find some fresh vegetable and fruits, but there was not a good selection. I am hoping that when I go to the shook tomorrow/ today (Tuesday), I will find some really good fruits and veggies!
I forgot tot post yesterday, so I'm doing it today. Yesterday was my second day of Ulpan classes and we had a new teacher. I did not like her as much because she was not a good teacher, in my opinion! She barely taught us Hebrew and only talked in Hebrew. She said that throughout the next 7 weeks of Ulpan, the two teachers will switch off every few days. After Ulpan, I went to the sports center gym and pool with Sarah, Paige, and Alona. We laid out and relaxed at the pool for a few hours. It was so nice to be able to relax after a five hour Hebrew class. After the pool, we came back to the dorms, got ready, and went to dinner at BurgersBar. This restaurant was so good and it was basically a customization burger place that had salads and wraps and sandwiches too. The most unique thing about this place was that they are famous for all of their sauces. We could choose as many homemade sauces and dressings to put on our food as we want! Then we came back and went to the grocery store quickly to try to find some fresh vegetable and fruits, but there was not a good selection. I am hoping that when I go to the shook tomorrow/ today (Tuesday), I will find some really good fruits and veggies!
Sunday, July 21, 2013
Day #5 July 21, 2013
I had to wake up really early today because it was the first day of classes, Ulpan. For some reason, I could not really fall asleep last night, so it was especially hard waking up today. Just for starters, I have to admit that I think Hebrew is absolutely horrible haha (JK) but it is really really hard. Today was the first day of Ulpan and then class was from 8:30 to 1pm and it is five days a week for seven days. The teacher was really nice but she was teaching SO fast. I do not understand it at all and I can already tell that the rest of Ulpan will be really hard. The one good thing about the class is that I have one of my good friends, Paige, in the class and my suite mate and it is a beginner class, so most of the people dont know Hebrew at all. Other than the Ulpan class, I crossed a lot of things off my list today. I went to exchange money, I got a gym membership at the Elite Sports Center, I bought my books and school supplies, and I FINALLY went grocery shopping. It is really hard to grocery shop because everything is new and different to me and different brands and almost everything is in Hebrew too. It felt really good to accomplish all of these things because I have been waiting for a while to do them. I am still kinda tired from last night and this morning, so I am probably going to take it easy tonight and just relax and do my Hebrew homework. Ill fill you in tomorrow on how this Hebrew homework went!
I had to wake up really early today because it was the first day of classes, Ulpan. For some reason, I could not really fall asleep last night, so it was especially hard waking up today. Just for starters, I have to admit that I think Hebrew is absolutely horrible haha (JK) but it is really really hard. Today was the first day of Ulpan and then class was from 8:30 to 1pm and it is five days a week for seven days. The teacher was really nice but she was teaching SO fast. I do not understand it at all and I can already tell that the rest of Ulpan will be really hard. The one good thing about the class is that I have one of my good friends, Paige, in the class and my suite mate and it is a beginner class, so most of the people dont know Hebrew at all. Other than the Ulpan class, I crossed a lot of things off my list today. I went to exchange money, I got a gym membership at the Elite Sports Center, I bought my books and school supplies, and I FINALLY went grocery shopping. It is really hard to grocery shop because everything is new and different to me and different brands and almost everything is in Hebrew too. It felt really good to accomplish all of these things because I have been waiting for a while to do them. I am still kinda tired from last night and this morning, so I am probably going to take it easy tonight and just relax and do my Hebrew homework. Ill fill you in tomorrow on how this Hebrew homework went!
Saturday, July 20, 2013
Day #4 July 20, 2013
Today was a more quiet and uneventful day. I woke up late again, at 1pm (I think I am still jet lagged). THen my friend Paige came into our room again and we figured out what we wanted to do for the day. We all decided to go to the beach, but we wanted to go to one of the closer ones, so we could walk there. As we were walking to the beach, the three of us saw some guys from our program who were also trying to get to the beach, so we walked with them. On our way, we were walking down the main street that the dorms are on, Einstein street pronounced like Einsthine (the Israeli;s pronounce every syllable), and a Sherut drove past us, motioning for us to get in and they would take us to the beach. I think the Sherut driver overcharged us because he knew that we were Americans and didn't know Hebrew and didnt know the difference! The driver also dropped us off about 15 minutes away from the beach, so we had to walk the rest of the way; we got our exercise. The beach was so nice and relaxing; we laid out on our towels and went in the Sea and played in the waves. While we were there, an Israeli man came up to us and started flirting with us. On the beach, a guys' way of flirting is asking a girl if they have a lighter and then trying to smoke with the girls. We told him that we did not have any lighters and that we didn't smoke, but we still had a funny conversation with him in English! After the beach, we went back to the same restaurant as last night, King George. I learned that because of Shabat, most places and restaurants close Friday night at sunset and don't open back up until Saturday night at sunset. This is why King George is one of the only restaurants that is open. At the restuarant, we had the most awkward waiter. He tried to flirt with us using pick up lines like "what time is it?" or asking about a scar on his face. The only thing was though, was that he didn't know any english at all. One of the girls who we went to dinner with, Alona, is fluent in Hebrew, so she translated the conversation with the waiter. Other than the beach and dinner, I came back to the dorm and just relaxed and got ready for going out somewhere tonight. Tomorrow is my first day of class so I'm excited to start learning Hebrew!!!
Today was a more quiet and uneventful day. I woke up late again, at 1pm (I think I am still jet lagged). THen my friend Paige came into our room again and we figured out what we wanted to do for the day. We all decided to go to the beach, but we wanted to go to one of the closer ones, so we could walk there. As we were walking to the beach, the three of us saw some guys from our program who were also trying to get to the beach, so we walked with them. On our way, we were walking down the main street that the dorms are on, Einstein street pronounced like Einsthine (the Israeli;s pronounce every syllable), and a Sherut drove past us, motioning for us to get in and they would take us to the beach. I think the Sherut driver overcharged us because he knew that we were Americans and didn't know Hebrew and didnt know the difference! The driver also dropped us off about 15 minutes away from the beach, so we had to walk the rest of the way; we got our exercise. The beach was so nice and relaxing; we laid out on our towels and went in the Sea and played in the waves. While we were there, an Israeli man came up to us and started flirting with us. On the beach, a guys' way of flirting is asking a girl if they have a lighter and then trying to smoke with the girls. We told him that we did not have any lighters and that we didn't smoke, but we still had a funny conversation with him in English! After the beach, we went back to the same restaurant as last night, King George. I learned that because of Shabat, most places and restaurants close Friday night at sunset and don't open back up until Saturday night at sunset. This is why King George is one of the only restaurants that is open. At the restuarant, we had the most awkward waiter. He tried to flirt with us using pick up lines like "what time is it?" or asking about a scar on his face. The only thing was though, was that he didn't know any english at all. One of the girls who we went to dinner with, Alona, is fluent in Hebrew, so she translated the conversation with the waiter. Other than the beach and dinner, I came back to the dorm and just relaxed and got ready for going out somewhere tonight. Tomorrow is my first day of class so I'm excited to start learning Hebrew!!!
Friday, July 19, 2013
Day #3 July 19, 2013
Today was the third day of my adventure in Tel Aviv. After a long night out last night and going to bed really late, my roommate and I both woke up this morning/ afternoon at 2pm (and were still exhausted)! We decided to give the beach a try today, so my roommate and our friend Paige attempted to walk there. We were making our way and then realized that we walked down the road to the Dov airport, and not the beach. At this point, we had no idea where we were going, so we found a cab and headed towards the beach. WOW, this beach was incredible! Although we got there really late in the afternoon, around 3:30pm, it was still so crowded and so hot. We walked around a lot and then found a nice area to lay our towels down. The beach was so pretty and the weather was incredible. Paige and I got so hot that we had to go into the water to cool off. It was my first time in the Mediterranean Sea. Once we were cooled off, we laid out a little more and then had lunch/ dinner at a cafe on the water. The food was delish! The weird thing that I realized about the food though, is that everything was Kosher. I ordered a chicken caesar salad but since it had chicken on it (meat), the dressing could not have any dairy in it, so it tasted very different than the traditional casaer salad. The three of us then headed back to campus because we had an orientation mandatory pool party at 7pm. This pool party was not your average party. As soon as we walked in, we had to sit in rows of chairs and there was an interactive, worldly music concert. The leader of the band introduced us to all sorts of different and really cool instruments from around the world. He taught us how to play them and had volunteers from the audience come up and play them/ mostly embarrass themselves. After this interesting concert, we hung out at the pool for a little bit and then headed over to King George restaurant for a late dinner and glass of wine. I was really tired from last night and today, so I decided to take it easy tonight, so I just came back to my dorm, hung out with friends and now I am going to bed!
Today was the third day of my adventure in Tel Aviv. After a long night out last night and going to bed really late, my roommate and I both woke up this morning/ afternoon at 2pm (and were still exhausted)! We decided to give the beach a try today, so my roommate and our friend Paige attempted to walk there. We were making our way and then realized that we walked down the road to the Dov airport, and not the beach. At this point, we had no idea where we were going, so we found a cab and headed towards the beach. WOW, this beach was incredible! Although we got there really late in the afternoon, around 3:30pm, it was still so crowded and so hot. We walked around a lot and then found a nice area to lay our towels down. The beach was so pretty and the weather was incredible. Paige and I got so hot that we had to go into the water to cool off. It was my first time in the Mediterranean Sea. Once we were cooled off, we laid out a little more and then had lunch/ dinner at a cafe on the water. The food was delish! The weird thing that I realized about the food though, is that everything was Kosher. I ordered a chicken caesar salad but since it had chicken on it (meat), the dressing could not have any dairy in it, so it tasted very different than the traditional casaer salad. The three of us then headed back to campus because we had an orientation mandatory pool party at 7pm. This pool party was not your average party. As soon as we walked in, we had to sit in rows of chairs and there was an interactive, worldly music concert. The leader of the band introduced us to all sorts of different and really cool instruments from around the world. He taught us how to play them and had volunteers from the audience come up and play them/ mostly embarrass themselves. After this interesting concert, we hung out at the pool for a little bit and then headed over to King George restaurant for a late dinner and glass of wine. I was really tired from last night and today, so I decided to take it easy tonight, so I just came back to my dorm, hung out with friends and now I am going to bed!
Thursday, July 18, 2013
Day #2 July 18, 2013
Today is the second day I am here. Now that I am fully moved into my dorm/ apartment, I can start to have fun! We had to wake up early this morning because we had a campus tour at 9am (too early for me), After that, we had a mini orientation session and learned all about the campus and the things it has to offer to us! Then I had to go get my Israeli Phone. It is a very old-fashioned phone, not a smartphone and no keyboard. It is so annoying to use because when I want to type a word, I have to type each key a few times to get the right letters. It is SO ANNOYING haha! Once I got my Israeli phone and phone number, I was able to start adding friends numbers to it, so I can communicate with them. In the afternoon, I went to lunch and bought more organizing things for the apartment with my roommate and a girl that I just met, Paige, and her roommate. They are both really nice and fun! Once we got back, we had a team building/ getting to know you activity and I met a lot more people. Soon I have to go to a dorm rules and regulations meeting for everyone living in the dorms. I really don't have a plan for the rest of the night, probably just going to dinner, getting ready, and going out to the Tel Aviv bars and clubs for the first time!
Today is the second day I am here. Now that I am fully moved into my dorm/ apartment, I can start to have fun! We had to wake up early this morning because we had a campus tour at 9am (too early for me), After that, we had a mini orientation session and learned all about the campus and the things it has to offer to us! Then I had to go get my Israeli Phone. It is a very old-fashioned phone, not a smartphone and no keyboard. It is so annoying to use because when I want to type a word, I have to type each key a few times to get the right letters. It is SO ANNOYING haha! Once I got my Israeli phone and phone number, I was able to start adding friends numbers to it, so I can communicate with them. In the afternoon, I went to lunch and bought more organizing things for the apartment with my roommate and a girl that I just met, Paige, and her roommate. They are both really nice and fun! Once we got back, we had a team building/ getting to know you activity and I met a lot more people. Soon I have to go to a dorm rules and regulations meeting for everyone living in the dorms. I really don't have a plan for the rest of the night, probably just going to dinner, getting ready, and going out to the Tel Aviv bars and clubs for the first time!
Wednesday, July 17, 2013
Day #1 July 17, 2013
Today was the first day of my Israeli study abroad experience. It has been a long day and it started out at O'Hare airport in Chicago. I had a 2 hour flight, which actually felt really fast, a 4 hour layover (it was supposed to be 6 but the flight was delayed), and a 10 hour flight into the Ben Gurion airport in Tel Aviv. It took a while for me to get my two HUGE 50 pound bags and to get them to the bus. After a lot of lifting and rolling and carrying heavy bags, we got to the bus and it was about a 30 minute ride to the University of Tel Aviv. Upon our arrival there, we got out room assignments. I was really nervous to find out who my roommate was because I decided to do random. I got up to the room and she was already there. Her name is Sara and she is really nice and from what I can tell, as of now, she is really similar to me! The two of us, and one of my suit mates and her friend all went to the mall down the road and bought bedding and towels and cleaning supplies and toiletries. As soon as we got back, I started to unpack all of my things and worked hard, trying to get them to fit in my little closet that I have to share with my roommate. Eventually, I was able to find space for everything! After relaxing a bit, at 10pm, we realized that we had not eaten ALL day and were starved, so we tried to order a pizza for delivery. It sounds easy, but the website was only in Hebrew and both of us don't know any. haha!
Today was the first day of my Israeli study abroad experience. It has been a long day and it started out at O'Hare airport in Chicago. I had a 2 hour flight, which actually felt really fast, a 4 hour layover (it was supposed to be 6 but the flight was delayed), and a 10 hour flight into the Ben Gurion airport in Tel Aviv. It took a while for me to get my two HUGE 50 pound bags and to get them to the bus. After a lot of lifting and rolling and carrying heavy bags, we got to the bus and it was about a 30 minute ride to the University of Tel Aviv. Upon our arrival there, we got out room assignments. I was really nervous to find out who my roommate was because I decided to do random. I got up to the room and she was already there. Her name is Sara and she is really nice and from what I can tell, as of now, she is really similar to me! The two of us, and one of my suit mates and her friend all went to the mall down the road and bought bedding and towels and cleaning supplies and toiletries. As soon as we got back, I started to unpack all of my things and worked hard, trying to get them to fit in my little closet that I have to share with my roommate. Eventually, I was able to find space for everything! After relaxing a bit, at 10pm, we realized that we had not eaten ALL day and were starved, so we tried to order a pizza for delivery. It sounds easy, but the website was only in Hebrew and both of us don't know any. haha!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)