EIlat Pictures!

Yes, its true, I have finally posted the Eilat pics!!! Check out the gallery! The link is once again www.holylandphotos.smugmug.com
Enjoy!
Jesse

Operation Continues

Hello,
I am still ok, back in Bet Shemesh in Yeshiva. Operation Cast Lead continues. The OP got its name from a popular Chanuka poem that talks about dreidles being cast out of lead. The Israelis are bombing Gaza on a constant basis now, and having just declined a 48 hour cease fire, will continue to do so. They have ammassed a large # of troops at the border ready to go into Gaza for an intense ground opperation if given the order. The IDF has also placed 9,2oo reserveists on call in the event that they are needed to be called up at a moments notice. I have lost count of the terrorists killed so far. When I see an updated # I will post it. I will also be posting any new updates on the OP as they come in from here on out. In case your interested Israel has a youtube channel where you can see actual footage of the IAF and the Israeli Navy Bombing Gaza to kingdom come! The link is www.youtube.com/idfnadesk
Enjoy. Also please note, for those of you who are following the news on CNN or the Times, (or Boston.com who is also owned by the Times), they are extreemly bias. They have some crazy photos that are clearly photo-shopped and staged. If you want good news coming out of Israel www.israelnationalnews.com and www.jpost.com are all over it. I will post again soon,
till then
May The Hand Of G-d Be With The Men And Women Piloting Our Planes, As Well As The Ground Troops, And All Of Israel.
Jesse

Israel Strikes Gaza

I am ok.  I am staying in Jerusalem at the Dan Panorama with my friend and his mom.  Very nice hotel.  Shabbos was pretty good, played a few games of Apples to Apples which they completly redesigned!  All new cards! lol I love that game.  

In other news Israel attacked Gaza this morning in the largest strike casualty wise, anyone can remember.  Reports are saying 100 IAF planes and helicopters flew into Gaza launching many misiles and over 100 Tons of bombs on Gaza security buildings.  The death toll on the Gaza side has now reached 225 people, with over 300 wounded.  www.jpost.com and www.israelnationalnews.com has the latest.  I am going to Massada tomorrow and it is late so I have to go to sleep.  Have a good week,

Jesse

Happy Chanuka!!

Happy Chanuka to all.
Chanuka is interesting here. We all lit together in the dining hall. Lots of Menoras all glowing together. I took some pictures of mine for you to see. Tonight's first, then last nights and others in the gallery I am uploading now. Have a great Chanuka!
Jesse

Update

Awesome! I am back in my room now. We went out into the woods and fields where the Maccabeim fought. We davened Maariv in the woods. Amazing. After that we all piled back into the van and went to meet the man who has figured out exactly which spices are formed together to make the Ketores from the Beit Hamikdash. It was awesome. We got to smell each spice individually, made only from all natural stuff. Really cool. It was really funny, the guy kept going on and on and on and on and we had to go, and every time my Rabbi would start to say something the guy kept interupting him and saying and this next oil is.... hahahaha
Next we went to a little Ma and Daughter pizza resturant, cute little place. We had really good home made pizza, and I had a salad as well. Yum. Then we had a student of Rav Shlomo Carlbach's play guitar and talk to us. Turns out we were on The Moshav, as in The Moshav Band Moshav, Reb Shlomos Moshav. The guy that played for us was the father of the lead singer of the Moshav band. I recorded the songs and will put them up in the morning, my adapter is in school. Till then I need sleep,
GN,
Jesse

Bloggin on the mobile web from my cell phone

We are currently on a Shiur trip. we were told we were going out to eat but we didnt know anything else. Turns out we are going to a concert in the Moshav. Wicked Cool! I have my camera with me but I cant promise any good pics it is night after all. typing on my phone is interesting, lol. The 3G service is really good here, especially in Jerusalem. I have exelent service in jerusalem as well as really fast internet. Thats all for now, I will update more after the concert to let you know how it went. Have a great day,
Jesse

Rain!!!

Hello,
It rained like crazy yesterday, Thank G-d. Water is one thing we need a lot of in this country so thankfully it rained. The air is actually clear here in Bet Shemesh, all the cement dust finally washed out of the air. Real Fresh Air!!!!! Haha.
In other news, Chanuka is coming! Yay! Every day of Chanuka at night we have a different program. That is one thing this Yeshiva doesn’t lack is awesome trips. They really spend good money on them, and the trips as you have seen, rock. They are also putting a ton of money into other things but trips are fun. Lol.
ttyl,
Jesse

Shabbos

Hello,
Shabbos was good. I am not a fan of In Shabboses. I dont really get into it, I would much rather be out traveling the country staying by people I am meeting, making connections. It's much more fun that way. :-)
My friend Nathan was in town at his Rebbe's house, and I bumped into him Friday night. He gave me the address, and I dropped in after lunch. So I got to hang out with him and some of his friends, as well as see the other side of the mountain.
Have a good day!
Jesse

Part 2

Davening at the top of the Mountain was amazing. We reached Shmone Esrai just as the sun was coming over the horizon.

After freezing our butts off we finished up davening and began the hike. It was pretty much a straight forward hike, with some points that were quite strenuous. Before we knew it we were at the top looking out over Eilat, and the first real body of water we had seen in 3 months.

The views were incredible. One of these days I will finish making my way through the 866 pictures I took on the trip and actually upload them! Oy.
Next we started our crazy descent down towards the bus and onward to the hotel. Long story short, it was a long way down and we were all dead to begin with. We trudged our way down, and when we got down lunch was waiting for us by the buses. Yes lunch, we finished around 130 ish. From 430- 130. That was a really intense hike, and I would so do it again.
Our hotel was in actual Eilat, and was a very nice holiday inn. But wait its still the middle of the day. So we boarded the buses again and everyone went snorkeling. If you wanted you could have gone snuba diving. I went snuba diving. It was amazing. We went down into the coral reef in the sea, it was so beautiful down there. For those who don't know, snuba diving is like scooba diving only instead of the tank being on your back, it was on a raft on the surface, and you were connected via tube to the air supply. Very interesting and a ton of fun.
Then we went back to the hotel, and everyone showered. From the hike to the water, we needed it. :-). After chilling around for a little while, we had Maariv and Dinner. After dinner, as dead as we were, we loaded the bus yet again to go bowling. I had a pretty good game, and almost won the prize for best score. I came in at # 3. Then we had the option to go out and explore the town, and with the last bit of energy that I had, I went with a few friends and found the boardwalk style souk. We walked on the beach in the dark for a little while, I love the sound of the waves, and the water splashing around in the darkness. It's amazing.
The next day was the water sports day. The yeshiva sponsored everyone to go out on the water in a glass bottom boat. They also paid for everyone to go banana boating. Now, the guy driving the speed boat that dragged the banana boats needed someone to stay on the boat with him to watch and make sure no one fell off. Well I ran forward and was on the boat before anyone could even think of beating me to it. For those of you who don't know, I love being out on the water, and even better, I love being in a speedboat in the water. Well I got to talkin to the driver of the boat, and I told him about my love for boats and the water, and his response was (in deep Israeli accent) "ok good, you stay on with me whole time then." Sweet! And I did just that! Turns out the boat was 3 months old and had just come in from North Carolina. It was so powerful I was getting thrown about when I was sitting while trying to take pictures. But when I stood up, I got my 'sea legs' back right away. My friend was watching and later told me, I looked like I was born on a boat. He said I looked so natural.
Beautiful boat on a beautiful day on beautiful water. lol. I had the time of my life. When the day was over we went back to the shore, and walked around some more. I got an amazing fruit smoothie. Bannana and Strawberry. The person making it looked at me like I was crazy, she was like you dont want anything else in it? And I was like nope. And it was sooooo good. Yum. Then we came home. That was pretty much the gist of it. Now to catch up on what we did since then.

It has been pretty normal here. I got a new phone, so that is fun. Now I can blog from wherever I am because I have internet on my phone. Nice. Yesterday we had an interesting trip to the local Tel Bet Shemesh. Tel Bet Shemesh is an archeological dig where the Jews fought against the Philishtim. That was really interesting. One thing about this country that really fascinates me is that I am finding shells everywhere. Everything was under water at one time, and yesterday I found a sponge. Incredible. Thats pretty much it! Ok now to work on the pictures.
Hope you all have a great Shabbos, and look forward to more regular updates on the blog again. As well as more pictures on the gallery. Have a good day,
Jesse

Part 1

Hey sorry this has taken me SO long to post. I have not been on the computer long enough to really type it up. I had written a bit of it but it got deleted, so here goes again.
Day 1. We left Yeshiva early in the morning (around 8) and drove for a while. The first place we stopped off at was a lookout over a massive canyon.
Pictures to come later.

This canyon was caused by a massive meteorite. Can anyone say Run! to dinosaurs much? This canyon was massive! I will be posting more pictures of it to the gallery so you can get an idea of the massiveness of the crater.
We then drove to another lookout which was incredible. From the mountaintop we could see Israel, Egypt, Syria, Jordan, and the Sinai. You could see (as the song says) for miles and miles and miles and miles. ;-)
After that we got back on the bus and drove for another little while until we reached the campsite. At the campsite, we went for a small hike there as well. When I say campsite, it was literally just a mostly flat area in between the surrounding mountains. We hiked into the mountains, well more like in between them. There was a nice trail, it was so beautiful. The mountains were called the Red Mountains because there was so much red in them. We hiked through there and that took about an hour, at which point we returned to the site and set up camp. We all had tents provided by the yeshiva, and I was able to put mine of the fastest. :-) Experience counts. lol. I had a 4 person tent, my two roommates and a good friend of ours.
We got up at 4 am and hiked as I said in the post while on the trip, to our first peak. We there davened Shacharit as the sun rose. I am going to sleep now and will continue later.
Have a good night
Jesse

Back

Sorry I have neglected to post, been really busy getting unpacked and everything after the trip. I am going through all my pictures and working on one big blog post for later. Till then,
Jesse

One long day

We got on the bus at 430 this morning, and were at the top of our first ridge davening by the time vasikin rolled around. We had an amazing day out on the trails. I am literally falling off my feet. I took some time to get the awesome pictures out for you so that you will have something to look at while you should be working. ;-) I am uploading about 35 of my really good pictures and the rest will come later. Good night,

PS. The link for the gallery is www.holylandphotos.smugmug.com

From The Wilderness

We are camped out in the middle of no where, and I still have service.  Day 1 of Hike.  We drove for a long time, and saw a few places.  We stopped at the border of Jordan, Egypt, and Israel.  It was amazing.  I took tons of pictures and will have to upload them later.  

We also stopped at a crater which was from a meteor.  It was a massive canyon, which means that was one huge crater.  Dinosaurs much?  

Now as the sun sets over the camp, and night deepens around us, the cold creeps within us.  The bbqs are lit and we are going to have a big bon fire later.  

Have a good night, I will post in the morning.

Night all,

Hope we dont loose anyone in the dark......  muahhahahahahahahaha

Shabbos In Jerusalem Part 2

Shabbos was a great experience. I was staying in the hotel Lev Yerushalayim, and eating at the Citidel. We davened at the Kotel on Friday night. When I got to the Kotel, the crowds were piling in and it was starting to fill up. As we were davening, I was looking around and I see one of my good friends (FE) coming towards me smiling. His Yeshiva was there for their Jerusalem shabbaton. So I switched to their minyan because it was Ashkanaz, and they were the loudest group there. It was awesome. Then after that I ate at the Citidel hotel, where the food is amazing. Absolutly incredible. I had lamb and potatoes and it was soooooo good. Then sleep. In a big bed. Sweet. The next morning we went to Rav Kahana's Shul. We were walking there and someone approached and asked if we needed a minyan. We said no, and as he was walking away we said we were going to Rav kahana's shul. The guy did a 180 and said perfect your the minyan. It was awesome. Then after shul we walked around the old city and ended up at the kotel. Then we went to the Citidel for lunch. The food was amazing again. So all in all it was a good shabbos. I am writing this quickly cause it is 11:15 pm here and we have a trip in the morning. We have shacharit at 7 am and then we leave on a 3 day hike to Eilat. It is going to be amazing!! I shall be taking tons of pictures and uploading them as I go. Have a good night all,
Jesse

Update

Shabbos was incredible.  I will post tomorrow my adventures.  I am exhausted now.  Good night,

Jesse

Good Shabbos

Hello,
This Shabbos I will be in Jerusalem and saturday night I will be hanging out in Jerusalem. Usually people go to Ben Yehuda, oooooo Ben Yehudah.  I got bored of it.  It is so buy food, buy clothes, by stuff, and eat.  With a little hanging out in there as well.  I prefer the better kept secret, what is popularly known as Amek.  This is the street Amek Refaim.  Much more civilized, fancier resturants draw a different polulation of people, the Talpiot mall (bowling and movie theater and mall) is close by, and it is just a better hang out place.  I might go there depending if I can get a crew together.  If not there is usually someone I know hangin out there anyway. 
I am on a bus right now going into Jerusalem, this mobile internet is amazing.  I have a USB modem that gives me internet over the Celcom cell phone network.  The speed is amazing especially on a bus.  Everyone in the tech world in America is making a big deal out of WiMax the new up and coming 4th Generation mobile internet service.  Well guess what, the cell phone network here is advanced.  I am getting 7.5 megabytes per second, and it is amazing.. I am right now on a us downloading a large file, streaming music over the internet and writing this post, while having 14 tabs open in firefox.  It is great!  lol.  Random tangent.  gtg thats my stop!
Good Shabbos!
Jesse

Jews for Judiasm

Good Evening,
We just had a very interesting presentation by the director of the Jerusalem Jews for Judaism and she had a very interesting story. She was a Christian Missionary, and step by step became Jewish. She is now working for Jews for Judaism as the director. Her story is great, and she spoke about some of the ways to counter missionaries. Very interesting. She is going on a speaking tour in America and has a few places on the East Coast. If anyone would like to have her come and speak at your shul or otherwise, contact me and she would be happy to add a stop to her trip. If you dont have my email, its ytu159@gmail.com
Otherwise it was a pretty normal day. In response to the comment, I went to the Kotel to daven Vasikin because it is an amazing thing to do. Between doing the mitzva first thing in the morning, to the sunrise you see, it is awesome. I was in Jerusalem the night before and was able to go from there, then went back to Yeshiva. Unfortunately I did not meed any blind people to assist.
I will again be at the kotel this Shabbos, as I will be in Jerusalem again for Shabbos, just me.
Thats all for now I have to run to shiur, maybe I will post later. ttyl,
Jesse

Long day

Today was a long day. It started with Vasikin minyan at the Kotel (sunrise prayers at the Western Wall. I had to be up at 5am. I am so tired. lol. I am going to sleep now. Sorry it is a short post but I am collapsing. Have a good night.
Jesse

Shabbos In Jerusalem

Hello,
Shabbos was amazing. We stayed at the Diaspora Yeshiva in the Old City, which is the famous Reb Shlomo Carlbach Yeshiva. We davened (prayed) at the Kotel on Friday night, and in the yeshiva for everything else. After davening we had a tour of the muslim quarter. Don't worry we had 24 hour security. We walked all over the old city and went up onto the roof of some family. From there we had an amazing view of the city, as well as straight into the courtyard of the dome of the rock. Interesting. Then we walked to the Kotel Katan, which is the other side of the Kotel a little bit further down. It is one of the closest places to the Kadosh Kedoshim we can get to. There were guards there watching the door. Then we sang Am Yisrael Chai, and other songs by the Kotel Katan. It was amazing. Then we had Shalut Shaddus on the roof of the Yeshiva. Then we davened Maariv by Dovid Hamelech's Kever, and sang Havdala in the same place.
On Friday night we had Rav Mati Berger speak to us. He was amazing, and talked about the inner child and the choice we have to be adults or children and stuff like that. He gave a lot to think about.
Saturday, we had an interesting speaker named Gil Lox. He has an amazing story all told in his book Coming back down to earth. I think that was what it was called. He was a good Jewish boy learning knife fighting in Japan. And thats how the story starts. I have to go to sleep so I will write more on him later.
Then Saturday night I had an interesting experience, that I want to tell over.
I was in the main bus terminal in Jerusalem, when a blind guy about my age comes over to my friends and I, and asks if we can help him. So I say "Sure, what do you need?"
So he says I need to get on my bus to Gilo and I dont know where it is. So I said sure. I took his hand and led him upstairs to the information desk. He asked the lady in hebrew to tell me in english where to go and what time the bus was. Amazingly I actually understood the Hebrew. So the info lady told me where it was and we went. We had to go down the 3 floors, outside, across the street, through the underground tunnel, across another street, and then to the left. As I sat him down in the stop he was thanking me like I was going to leave, and I told him I wasn't going anywhere. After all how can a blind guy know when his bus is there?
So I stayed with him, and we were talking the whole time. It turns out he knows 4 languages; English, Hebrew, French, and Arabic, and he is learning German. He was asking me about American politics and how do Americans vote while they are in Israel. So I explained to him about absentee ballots and the works. And then we were talking about studying for the year in Israel. His thirst for knowledge was incredible. He goes to Hebrew U and learns everything there. He was so inspirational, and I felt so good after that. So I just wanted to share that with you,
Have a good night,
Jesse

Concert!!!

Well we just got back into the apartments from the concert at the Yeshiva. It was amazing!!!!
I am processing the photos and videos as I write this. There are a lot of them, so I hope to have them up by tomorrow. We had Shlomo Katz play for us, it was a really moving show. Tonight, and tomorrow is the Yortziet of Reb Shlomo Carlbach, and Shlomo Katz's music is greatly influenced by Reb Shlomo. The pictures of Shlomo Katz are uploading now, and by the time you read this, they should be online in the gallery. The link is once again www.holylandphotos.smugmug.com
So, Thank you to the amazing Shlomo Katz for visiting and playing such a moving concert for us.
I will upload the videos later, I have to edit them a little bit. OK, it is late here and I have to be up early tomorrow, so i'm callin it quits. Have a good night,
Jesse

Much going on

Hello,
Things are starting to get busy as Yeshiva is in full swing. We have full shiur every day and this Shabbos we have a Jerusalem Shabbaton. The whole Yeshiva will be going to the old city for Shabbos, and it will be amazing. I will update you on that trip when I we get back. Unfortanately I cant take pictures. O well. I am working with JCorps here in Israel to set up events and help run everything. An event we are working on is a English speaking comedy event. If anyone has any contacts here in either newspapers or otherwise please send me an email. All help is appreciated.
Thank you,
Good Night All,
Jesse

I fixed it

Guess what?  I fixed the internet.  Thank G-d.  lol I was starting to go crazy already!  I am going into Jerusalem tonight as my work with JCorps continues.  For those of you who don't know, JCorps is an organization that gets people 18-28 together to do Chessed (acts of kindness), while hanging out.  For more info check out JCorps.org 

I am on the planning team for the Israel region, and I work doing technical stuff and anything else that my wide range of interests enables me to assist in.  ;-)  So tonight the 4 of us have a meeting, and I am heading into the big city.  Should be fun.  Till later,

Jesse

Internet down

heyo,
My internet is not working so I am writing from the computer room in school. Therefore my posts will be shorter and probably grammatically incorrect because I dont know how to type on a regular keyboard anymore. ;-) gotta run, I will write more later.
Jesse

Choppers

Hey,
There are choppers that fly overhead every once and a while, and every so often I hear the familiar sound of fighter planes screaming overhead. I have just learned that apparently we are on a flightpath to a base close by, as well as if there is gonna be an operation in Gaza they fly over us. Interesting tidbit.
In other news the weather still cant make up its mind, although it has been nice weather for a few days now. I found a store here that sells Cheese its yay!
For those who would like I have put a chat with me on the side bar of the blog. Any time I am logged into gmail you can chat with me through that, regardless if you have gmail or not. Just start typing, then wait for me to respond. If I take a little bit its cause I haven't seen it and just say hi again or something like that. Be creative. ;-) Enjoy!
Jesse

Time for some campaigning

It is happening on a smaller scale closer to home, for me anyway. The town which we are living in Bet Shemesh is having elections for Mayor. The yahoo group is full of people talking about who is good, and who knows what. It's interesting watching it happen in Israel, as it is the development of a large and fairly new town. We are expanding, and one of the candidates is talking about a full medical center with its own emergency room and everything. It's really intense.
Anyway that was just a small part of the holy land brought to you by the letter Alef and .....
Ok, going to sleep now, till next time,
Good Night

New Photos

Hello,
I have just put up new pictures. More to come later. The link in case you forgot, http://holylandphotos.smugmug.com/
Enjoy!
Jesse

Palmach

Today we hiked the path known as the Path of the Lamed Hey. This is the story of the Palmach soldiers who went to help the besieged Gush Etzion. They never made it. We hiked the mountain they hiked to get to the city. It was one heck of a hike. We are all exhausted. It was straight up and right back down again. The view was amazing though. As soon as I figure out how, I will upload all my pictures. I am having some trouble uploading. I am working on it and will let you know as soon as I have new pictures live. Later,
Jesse

My mistake

It was pointed out to me that Obama is only 8 years younger then George W was when he took office. I had forgotten that Ol' Dubya has 2 terms under his belt. Oops. ok.
In other news the world is also in love with Obama, and Asia, Europe, and others welcome him. Interesting.
Tomorrow we will be going on the path of the Lamed Hey soldiers. I will have a better description tomorrow, as well as pictures.
Looks like we get to do the whole election thing all over again, as the Israeli government prepares for elections. Fun. I will keep you all updated on that as it unfolds.
There is a bit of fighting going on in Gaza lately. The IDF went into Gaza and took out 6 militants, and royally pissed off the arabs. The arabs were planning a large kidnapping operation as well as getting ready to launch rockets on Israel. They retaliated by launching those rockets into Israel. 40 rockets and shells were shot into Israel, and thank G-d no one was hurt. More on this story as I get it. But for now, I shall go to sleep,
Good Night America

New President

An interesting process took place yesterday, with record number of people coming out to vote. Over here it was just as interesting, everyone running to the computer to check the news, the interactive maps, just trying to see if there was any change from when they looked 15 minutes ago. Everyone was watching with bated breath to see what was going to happen. There was an interesting statistic on one of the sites, I don't know if I believe it, 78% of Jews voted for Obama.
With a friend base of Muslims, and not the greatest outlook on the scenario here in Israel I would think it would be otherwise. Or maybe it was just that everyone wanted another young Kennedy type in office. Kennedy was 43 when he was elected into office making him the youngest elected president, and definitely a vibrant one. He was the 6th most popular according to a survey taken a few years back.
Obama, who is actually 47, looks 30 and holds a commanding youthful air about him, seems popular on those reasons alone, but lets see how popular he will be behind the presidential desk. He is more then 20 years younger then Dubya was when he took office, and has a young family that people can relate too. While McCain would have (according to analysts ) been better for Israel, Obama does have good qualities as well. He actually went to Columbia and Harvard Law, and seems like a good guy. So try to look at the bright side on this one and maybe he can actually do some good. All we can do is just wait and see. Or you could organize a massive rally against him on the White House lawn..... lol. We shall see how America and the rest of the world reacts. Till later,
Jesse

Internet Issues

Now that I finally got the internet setup in the Yeshiva I can use the school computers to post. The reason I have to do that is because my laptop is messed up and needs to be fixed. When I use the internet on my friends computer and try to access the blog Google thinks that his computer is a spam bot. So this also explains why I have not posted in a few days. Been kinda stuck in a pickle. Any way what has happened in the past few days.... We went to a Tefillin and klaf factory which smelled terrible. The reason it smelled so bad is because they were dealing with skin of cow. yuch. In other news we are in full swing back in yeshiva and are learning again. I have lots of pictures to post and will do that shortly.
In other other news I have effectively taken over the tech end of the Yeshiva and will be working closely with them to bring many of our Shiurim to you via the website. We will also be launching a new video section so that new people looking at the yeshiva as well as alumni can see whats going on here. Well, thats all for now folks, ill post more later!
Jesse

The Rain Continues

Heyo,

Yesterday was a fun day out of school.  We went to a few different places doing Chessed and making a full Chessed day.  The first place we went to was soup kitchens.  The yeshiva split up into a couple of groups and sent to a few soup kitchens around Jerusalem.  I went to one and we peeled vegetables, as well as served food later when it was ready.  After that we went to MADA (Magen Dovid Adom), and had a personal tour of the place.  I will upload the pictures of the trip later.  After that we went to an orphanage.  This was not the type where the kids parents died, or didn't want the kids, this was a rehab clinic for kids whose parents are not fit to take care of their kids.  The kids are sent there by the high court.  You can read all about the place on their website www.sanhedria.co.il

Have a good night all and may the rain keep coming, we know Israel needs it.

Jesse

Vacations over back to work

Hello again dear readers,

Well its back to having structure and normalcy as classes begin again tomorrow afternoon.  Or so it would seem.  As soon as we go back we are out again!  Tuesday is a Chessed day with a choice of options for us to do.  I am not sure which I will be doing yet but as always I will report back here at the end of the day.  Today was kind of a chill day for me.  Got organized and ready to go back to class, got some food supplies and just hung out for a while.  

In other news it rained like crazy here in Ramat Bet Shemesh over Shabbos!  I was out walking back to the dorms Friday night when I thought I saw a flash of lightning.  As I turned on to the main road leading back toward the apartments, my friend and I saw this massive lightning strike on the mountain next to us and then unbelievable thunder!  It was so loud I could feel it vibrating through everything, myself included.  Then we broke into a jog to try and get back to the apartments, while jumping from shelter to shelter, trying to stay out of the sheets of rain smashing down around us, and trying not to get struck.  As we came down the final stretch I could feel the water through my pants as we ran for it.  Just as we reached the door it really came down.  We watched from the inside as the sky continued its onslaught on the world.  By morning it had stopped raining and everything was soaked.  Later in the afternoon we were hanging out inside playing an amazing game of Monopoly when the wind snaked through the hardly open window and blew everything around.   Closing the windows as we went I watched as the storm started up again.  It was amazing.  This looks like it will be a good rainy season for the holy land folks, now lets see some snow!

Have a good night,

Jesse

Hello

I have been just hanging out now that Succos is over, and Yeshiva has not yet resumed.  We are going to be starting regular schedule on Monday.  Simchat Torah in Yeshiva was fun, lots of dancing and singing.  It was really loud, yet still fun.  We got a desk in our room today, and it is feeling quite homey.  haha.  I am so much more productive with a desk.  Anyway, I am going to get some food, ttyl!

Jesse

Been a while

Hey all, sorry it's been so long since I last posted.  

We have been very busy with Yom Tov and the usual.  Eat eat eat, sleep, pray, eat eat eat, sleep, read cause your sick of sleeping, eat, pray........ and then start all over again, you know the drill.  I have only had the time to go online and get rid of the emails I didn't need and that's about it.  I have a whole ton of pictures to post up online tonight as well so check the gallery later tonight.  

So what have I been up to besides eating....

The first days I went up to Efrat with my friend.  We stayed by family friends of his and they were good hosts.  I had a good time there.  I also have a friend in Efrat so we met up as well.  My friend and I kept 2 days of Yom Tov, even though most people took the easy way and only kept one.  It was a little awkward as the family we were staying at since they went out at night, then were working during the day to get ready for a family get-together and we couldn't really help.  But in the end it ended up being ok and an experience to add to my growing list.  

Due to the fact that we kept 2 days we only had one day of Chol Hamoed before Shabbat so we just went back to the dorms and chilled there.  For Shabbos I went back to my cousins in Quarne Shomron, and returned the favor to my friend who took me to Efrat by dragging him with me.  :-)

I am on my way back to the dorms now and will most likely be up all night because the Red Sox are playing a playoff game tonight.  One of my friends from Yeshiva is a Sox fan and has a MLB.tv account so we can watch the games.  Time to break out the hot chocolate and make some mac and cheese and enjoy the game!  Go Sox!!!!  ok enough ranting.  

Tomorrow the school has the option of going ATVing (All Terrain Vehicle) and I am most likely going to go.  More money, oy.  

Then the last days I need to stay in the Yeshiva because we have to be in for Simchat Torah.  I shall be making the rounds of the Bet Shemesh people in know for meals.  :-)

After it's all said and done we should actually be starting some kind of a regular schedule and stick to it.  I am gonna go work on posting those pictures now before I forget, so I will speak to you all on the flip side!

Jesse

Been Busy

Hello again,

Sorry it's been a bit since I posted.  I have been a bit busy on vacation.  Shabbos I stayed in even though it was an out shabbos, and had meals out by people I know in Ramat Bet Shemesh.  Last night I went to go bowling in Talpiot, and since the lanes were all closed, we played pool instead.  It was a really nice place in a mall.  They have a movie theater there as well, so I have to check that out.  Also, thank you to all of you who sent me emails with things to do here.  I am working my way through them gathering information about each activity.  Thanks again.  Today I went on a nice 4 hour hike in the mountains and of course took Tons of pictures.  I am uploading them to the Gallery now.  Also included in the gallery is some awesome night pictures I took last night, some older amazing sunset pictures, and the pictures I took of Jerusalem and Ramat Bet Shemesh when it rained.  Enjoy!  

Jesse

PS The link for the gallery in case you forgot is http://holylandphotos.smugmug.com 

Post Yom Kippur

Hello,

I hope you all had easy and meaningful fasts.  Mine was ok, although I got a little light headed in the middle.  I made it through though.  The davening was interesting.  There was a lot of singing which I like.  We are officially on vacation!  For a little while anyway.  I will be taking more pictures and posting them up here.  Have a good night,

Jesse

Long Day

So, in the end I only ended up doing 2 Succos, but ok.  I am calling 2 more tomorrow that I know who I can help also.  Building was fun, and that was pretty much the whole day.  Shiur in the morning then building in the afternoon.  Eat and crash at night. 

I have been helping my friends with their computer problems or technology problems as always.  How do you do this, why is this stuck like that, the usual. 

Before I forget I want to ask all my readers, my friends and family for forgiveness for any harm I may have caused you and anything like that.  And I publicly forgive you.  Ok now that that is done, I can go to sleep peacefully.  J

It is starting to get colder here at nights, it’s nice.  No real rain yet except for that little spritz we had before.  The cool nights are nice.  They usually roll in as the sun goes behind the mountains.  Just like living back in New Hampshire.  Hot like crazy during the day, and cold at night.  I shall post at least once more before Yom Kippur Bl’n.  Have a good night, and see you all in the mornin,

Jesse

Early Night

New week, Different Chag, More Food (only the night before)! More Repentance! More Yeshiva Fun!

Sorry I didn't post last night I fell asleep early.  Tonight I am making sure to go to sleep early, because tomorrow is a big day.  Tomorrow we are building succos for families in Bet Shemesh that need assistance.  Single parent families, homes where money is tough, and the like will be getting visits from teams of guys sent to build a Succah for the Chag.  I am excited for this project, and if you know me you know I love building, and working with tools.  They say we will only have time to build one maybe 2 Succos, we shall see about that.  I will push my team and we will do more!  We will go on to 3 even 4 Succos!  Onward!  

In other news as you most likely can tell, I am feeling much better.  I am going to sleep early tonight though just to make sure.  So that said.....zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

G'night all,

Jesse

Shabbos in the Holy City

Hello all,

This Shabbos I am on the road at a friends families apartment.  The apartment is in Yemin Moshe.  It is absolutely stunningly beautiful up here.  We are going to be davening at the Kotel tonight.  It should (like everything else in this country) be an interesting experience.  Ok, I use that term too much.  

In other news I had Pizza Hut for lunch and we got KFC takeout for dinner.  All kosher, how do you like that?  We got instant Chicken soup, and all kinds of other nosh.  Gonna be a weekend of food, but then again we're Jewish, when is it never a weekend of food?  

Life is becoming pretty much routine here, yet it still is enjoyable because we are in Israel.  There are certain liberties I miss, but we manage.  I am finding more places in Israel that have things to do other then shop, and sharing them with my friends.  Turns out you dont want to go to the movies, the quality is bad, the screens are usually scratched, there is the smoking intermission, and people talk constantly.  I have learned that there is bowling in 2 places.  Eventually, when I make some money, I will go and have a look see.  It is crazy in this country its just spend, spend, spend.  I am trying to do some tech jobs making money, but then again 50 Sheck an hour is not $50 an hour.  Ok, world economics 101 lesson one is over.  Time to go do the whole Shabbat bit, so Good Shabbat to all, and I will post again Sat night!

Jesse

Call it a bit of a color refresh

You may have noticed, I changed the color sceme of the blog.  I got bored of the old one.  Color refresh eh?  Ill try others over the year.  Enjoy!

Jesse

Happy New Year!!!

Confetti all around.  How are you all?  I am good.  I finally found a radio station that will stream out of the US, I was getting bored of my playlists.  Rosh Hashana was amazing in Yeshiva.  Meals out were a lot of fun.  One of them was the most intesting.  I met a man in the supermarket a few weeks ago.  He said he had just made aliah and wanted to have guys over from the yeshiva.  He was from UK, and many other random places that I cannot remember.  So we had it checked out and since he is legit i took a friend of mine and we went for a meal.  It was amazing!  He is so funny, and I love the accent.  And he has the cutest kids!  We talked and talked and it was the best meal we have had since we got here.  My friend agrees.  We were there the latest out of anyone who went out to a meal as well.  We didnt even get back until 1:30 am!  But it was so much fun!

Btw I am uploading the bulk of my pictures to the New Gallery like I posted before.  Its the same site, you can see all the galleries there.  www.holylandphotos.smugmug.com

Enjoy!

Jesse

PS Safe and easy fast to all.  

Full Picture Gallery is live!

Last Post of the year....

The new Gallery is live!  I have uploaded my first days photos.  Enjoy!  I have shots of a lookout we went to, as well as the view.  Also included is our trip to the Kotel.  Enjoy and Happy New Year!!

http://holylandphotos.smugmug.com/

Next Post in Yerushalayim!

Jesse

Shana Tova!

Hello all,
I apologize for not posting so much these past few days. We have been very busy here, and I have been a little under the weather. There is something going around our apartment (15 guys crammed into an apartment), you can imagine something will eventually make its way around. I am feeling better now, I was just really tired. Or maybe thats due to the fact that I never get any sleep. O well.
We had a Hachnasat Sefer Torah here last night. That was a lot of fun. We have been busy getting ready for Rosh Hashanna. It should be an interesting experience to be having the High Holidays in the Holy land. Not only that, but in yeshiva as well. All the students were arranged to 3 meals and we have to find one on our own. The good thing is if you cant find a meal the Yeshiva still has food here.
We have seen some amazing sunsets here and I have only been able to get pictures of some of them. Of Course as always the best sunsets are always on Shabbat!!! Not fair! o well.
It has actually been raining here. Not a lot, but a drizzle here a drop there. Nonetheless it is still raining.
Anyway I would like to wish everyone a Happy Rosh Hashanna! We should all be inscribed in the book of life, and have a great, successful, prosperous, healthy, happy, Simcha filled, amazing new year!!
Please Mochel me as well. Thanks! I am working on the pictures now and hope to have them up shortly as well. Have a good Chag!
Jesse

Just a quick post before shabbat

Hello,
Sorry I could not post yesterday, as the servers for Blogger were down. We had an amazing Shiur by Rabbi Kwalwasser. It is hilarious. The link is http://levhatorah.org/shiurim/fileDL.asp?id=137
I will update more Motzei Shabbos, So Good Shabbos all!!!
Jesse
PS IT RAINED TODAY IN ISRAEL!!!!!

Almost forgot to post

Well I had fallen asleep early, then I realized, I did not post!  Well that just wont do, so here we are.  Today was a normal day, long, but normal.  I uploaded the videos from the Chaim Dovid concert so here they are!  

I am working on a new photo service, which should allow me to display all my photos for you all to enjoy. I hope to go live with that over the next 2 days. Have a good night all, and I hope you enjoy the videos!
Jesse

I gotta stop with these late nights!

Hey,

Today would have been an early night because we dont have night shiur on Tuesdays, but instead tonight we had an amazing concert in the old city!  Chiam Dovid played for us at the exact yeshiva he learned at, which happens to be the one Reb Shlomo taught at!  The concert was amazing seeing as I am a huge Chaim Dovid fan.  I have videos and will post them as soon as they are uploaded.  I got a cd and had it signed.  

After that we went to the Kotel to say Slichot.  It was an amazing experience, with tons of people there.  Just like in the pictures.  Now I have my own pictures, of course!  Anyway, I will write more tomorrow because I am so tired I can hardly think.  Good night all,

Jesse

The day is done

Going to sleep now, very late after tracking the nights events.  There was the terror attack in Jerusalem where 17 were wounded and the only death was that of the terrorist, Thank G-d.  Also Thank G-d I was not near where it happened, and I am fine.  Some events that may have slipped the news are 2 other incidents.  

Firstly there was an arab terrorist woman who sprayed toxic acid in a soldiers face while driving by at a check point.  He now may need surgery and will lose his vision as well.  The woman was arrested, and associated with another similar incident.  

Secondly there was a group of travelers kidnapped in Egypt, and 2 of them were to thought to have been Israeli, thank G-d they are not.  The Egyptians want $15 million ransom.  You can find the article here: http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/127714 

 Other then that my day was a normal day at the Yeshiva.  I found it interesting that as soon as the terror attack happened in Jerusalem everyone became a tight knit network of information sharing so that everyone could have the latest news.  Even students from other yeshivot.  With the use of cell phones and texting we all communicated rapidly to keep everyone informed.  Since I have internet access, my room sort of became the command center of all this.  It was a  interesting process, and experience.  All part of living in the holy land, and living through its daily trials.  

I guess this has also become somewhat of a news blog as well, seeing as I am on the ground here with this network I speak of feeding me info.  I will try to update the blog as soon as something happens.  Have a good night all, and keep it here for the latest in the daily life of a student in the holy land.  

Jesse

Update 2

All of the victims apparently suffered light and moderate injuries, and hospital officials negated earlier reports that two people were seriously injured. Doctors report that the victims were soldiers who had gone to the Old City to participate in the selichot prayers traditionally recited before Rosh Hashanah.

Update

Ten of the wounded were evacuated to the Hadassah Ein Kerem hospital, and all of them are conscious and in good condition.

Six other victims suffered light injuries and were rushed to Shaarei Tzedek.

I'm ok

There was a terror attack in Jerusalem.  I am ok, and everyone from my yeshiva was safely in the dorms.  Here is the latest article from Arutz Sheva.  

(IsraelNN.com) An Arab terrorist ran over a group of pedestrians shortly before 11 p.m. Monday night at Kikar Tzahal near the Jaffa Gate in Jerusalem. The terrorist was shot and killed.

At least two people were rushed to the hospital in serious condition, and approximately 12 others suffered light to moderate wounds.

The terrorist was driving a private vehicle when he attacked opposite Jaffa Gate. A group of IDF soldiers who were touring the Old City at the time witnessed the attack and opened fire, killing the driver before he could cause further damage.

Day 13

Today was pretty normal.  It was a long day.   Our schedule goes from 7:45 am till 10:40 pm, with 2 breaks.  Its still a long day.  I am starting to learn Hebrew by assimilation.  It's amazing here.  The different parts of Israel are like their own world in itself and going to all of them is quite the experience.  Some of my pictures that I have been taking for the Yeshiva are now on the Yeshiva website.  There is one of me with my hair all crazy messed up cause we had just finished swimming.  oops.  I am designing T-shirts for the school.  Any ideas?  Post them in the comments below.  That’s basically it for now, see y'all on the flip side,

Jesse

 

Day 12

Shabbos.  I slept.  The end.

Day 11

Friday, glorious Friday....
The day I get to traverse all over the country all by myself.  So I begin to plan my trip.  I realize I have to go into Jerusalem first in order to get there.  That means time to kill, which means meeting up with someone.  Seeing as a fifth of the country is Yeshiva/Seminary students chances are I can find someone to chill with for a few hours.  So I make a few phone calls and sure enough what do ya know someone was available.  Not just someone, and actually not a yeshiva student, but a friend who made Aliah 3 years ago.  I met up with them and they showed me all the important shops and places to buy things, because that all tourists ever do in this country.  But in all seriousness there are things I need so that was good.  Then we realized I was gonna be late.  So I begin the trek up the hill to the main bus terminal.  I arrive at the gates with just enough time to make it to the bus.  Now, being the stupid American student that I am, like a genius I forgot to factor in the massive all powerful metal detectors at the door that make the lines go to the moon and back.  As I make my way through the line I am getting more and more nervous as my Uncle told me that the bus I am on is notorious for leaving exactly on time if not 10 minutes early.  So there I am praying like crazy that by some miracle he will still be there by the time I am cleared to enter.  I get through and blast my way upstairs to the bus and I was trying to find which door was the right one to go through.  I find the correct door and thank G-d the bus is still there.  I am the second to last person on the bus.  The driver is a nice guy and he speaks English.  Turns out I am 7 Agurot short and don't have another cent on me.  I turn around to the guy in the front seat and innocently say Slicha (please)??  And sure enough he gave me 7 Agurot!!  I had such good luck that day.  When I got off the bus there was a Chiyal (solder) who got off behind me.  He had  helped me in telling me which stop to get off, and he asked me where I was going.  I told him I had cousins here and turns out he knew them.  So he got a ride with us!
I arrived at my Uncles, had some warm fresh out of the oven potato kugel and all was good.  Then it was Shabbos.  And that is the end to my saga of traveling the land.
Jesse

Day 10

Wow, we have only been here for 10 days.  It feels like so much more.  We are starting to really settle in here and get used to the schedule and what not.  Today we had a Tiul, a Trip.  We started out with going to the beach.  We went to a beach in Ashdod.  It was beautiful.  The water was a nice shade, it was warm and amazing.  Extremely salty though.  It was like swimming in the dead sea only you could actually swim.  We spent all morning there just hanging out, swimming, and playing sports.  After that we drove to the caves of Bar Kochba.  We had a tour guide with us showing the way, don’t worry (mom).  The Caves were incredible.  We were walking through history.  The caves were the exact same caves they used when fighting the Romans.  Inside the caves were pitch black.  We had flashlights, but at certain points turned them off just to feel the darkness.  It was really a great experience.  The silence inside the caves almost hurt, and the darkness was complete.  No light whatsoever.  

After the caves we went to a settlement where there were Gush Katif refugees living.  It was a 'temporary' place for them.  G-d should help them and the govt. should get in gear and actually give them what they promised.  The tour guide was one of the refugees.  He gave a nice talk.  I will be posting his whole speech as soon as it finishes uploading to youtube (read tomorrow).  I want to post a story that he told later on about an incredible miracle that happened to him, and the type of things that go on in holy places like Gush Katif.  They had one of the best agricultural systems in the world.  This was only a bit unusual considering they had nothing but sand to work with.  They worked the land over and over again until it gave forth food.  When the arabs took over the land after Israel forced our brothers out, the workers who had been working in the green houses could not grow a thing.  They worked in the green houses and new the exact way to make it work, yet they could not grow a single thing!  This is the hand of Hashem.  This is one of the things that happens in a place like Gush Katif.  In the words of Ari our tour guide, “the land is literally waiting for us to come and take it back”.  The following is a story that happened to him. 

 

Ari was driving on the road next to the beach with his wife on their way back home from a wedding on the beach.  As they were driving they heard shots being fired.  As they got closer they saw the terrorist in the road shooting directly at them.  He told his wife to get down as he floored it while trying to run over the terrorist.  He missed, but also was not hit.  He dropped his wife off at home.  He then sped off to get the others, as he was part of the security team for their town.  They all go back to the scene, and the army says that they had it under control.  So the team went to go protect the village in the event that there were more terrorists.  After the situation was over and the terrorists dead he was telling the story over to a reporter.  He said “thank G-d the terrorists sent us operatives who were cross-eyed”.  The commander of the unit who handled the terrorists came over and said there is one thing incorrect about you story.  The terrorists were not cross-eyed, the terrorists were real professionals and they had come from the ocean in full scuba gear. 

They found out  that the terrorists had shot 15 shots at the van and not one had made contact. The commander said I am not religious but, (pointing to the sky) someone is watching out for you.  They later found out the terrorists were part of a special Hamas unit and were sent to kidnap him and his wife.  Thank G-d they did not succeed. 

 

That’s all folks, off to bed for tomorrow is travel day to cousins in Karnei Shomron for  Shabbos. 

Day 9

Hellooooo.  I have a cell phone!  Yay! I cant believe I actually went a whole week without having one!  Here is the # in case you need me: 0543518312

Anywho, today was a good day.  In the morning we had normal shiur. Lunch was some pasta thing because it just so happens that Both ovens are broken.  After lunch we had a break and that is when I got my cell phone.  I couldn’t believe it, my Hebrew was good enough that through writing stuff down on a pad and their broken English I actually set up a plan all by my onesies!   I was happy.  

The rest of the day proceeded as normal.  Mincha, Shiur, more shiur….yada yada yada.  Then back to the dorms.  Tomorrow we  go to the beach!!!!  We will be going to Ashdod to the beach for the morning.  It will be the last real swimming opportunity of the season.  I am excited, cause I love Beaches!!! And I get to take tons of pictures!!!!  After that we are going to the Bar Kochba caves.  We will be going spelunking, and will get to see the same caves that Bar Kochba hid in so long ago.  Pictures of course will follow.  Okdokie, its late as always so I shall sign off for another night,

Good night all,
Jesse

PS:  Here are some of my latest pictures.  Enjoy!

Day 8

Hello, and welcome back to daily coverage of life as a teen living in Israel for a year,
I am your host Jesse, and I am that teen.  

Ok random intro over.  Today was a normal day.  We are beginning to get into the normal grind of things.  We have a pretty intense schedule that spans till 10:45 at night, but we have large breaks thought the day, so its not so bad.  Life in a construction zone is becoming normal, and everyone is adjusting to the daily changes.  

It is interesting to watch as people meet new people.  The questions they ask; what’s your name, where ya from, what kind of music you into (my personal favorite)?, and by then you have enough for a conversation.  Meeting people is a dynamic that is essential for a program like this to survive.  The Yeshiva has a very family atmosphere, and everyone is becoming close friends here.  I was remarking to a friend earlier today, I am pleasantly surprised, everyone in the grade is nice.  There isn’t anyone who I despise as of yet (which happens to be unusual), and its lookin like it may only improve.  

In other news one of my new friends and myself are starting up a canteen business.  I shall update you all on how that comes along.  We hope to be up and selling within the next few day.  Any ideas of items to sell feel free to tell me in the comments!  Thanks in advance!  Ok, time for sleep, Have a good day and I’ll see you all when the Earth makes another rotation!

Jesse

 

Day 2 Updated

For anyone who is interested, I have posted the video of Rav Mo's introduction to the lookout.  Just look back to day two!

Jesse

Exhausted as usual. The classes a amazing, and the trek from the dorms to the Yeshiva is not that far, but it still is tiring. The food is ok. We had chicken tonight and I was presently surprised. So Tomorrow I am going into Ben Yehuda (The largest social scene in Israel). I finally figured out how to get a slideshow of my pictures out to you!
Enjoy!

Day 6

Sunday. It is really annoying waking up on a Sunday and knowing that not only do you have school, but it is the first official day of classes. Well its gotta happen on someday, so it may as well be Sunday. We met our morning rebbis. My morning Shiur Rebbe is amazing. He has a style for teaching that really hits the soul where it is most needed. The same is true about my night seder Rebbe. The room we were in today was way to hot, so my Rebbe said lets take a walk. We walk up the block to a dead end. We sit outside and just relax, getting to know each other and learning the introduction to the Shiur. The yeshiva is very well run, and I am happy here. Anyway I am dead tired. I will upload the pics tomm and write more then. Have a good day,
Jesse

Day 5

Today was Shabbos. Shabbos in Israel is amazing. We had a tish Friday night that was amazing. The singing shook the brand new concrete walls! Shabbos morning davening was also amazing. A lot of singing, dancing, really getting into the davening. I even got an Alia. After davening we had the kiddush with food from the famous Marzipan. It was delicious. Then I had to go, as I was going to my cousins for lunch. So I hiked the hill and thank G-d found the place ok. After that I came back to the dorm and chilled with the guys. Then came the amazing Saturday nights on Ben Yehuda street. We went, and i saw a few people I knew, a few friends from the Boston area even. We got back and I am beat, so I am going to call it quits for tonight.
Jesse

Day 4

Friday, glorious Friday. Woke up early for davening as always. Then after breakfast i remembered, o yea we have the rest of the day off. Sweet! Yep Friday is a day off for us. So naturally I went to the Makolet (shopping center) and got nosh for Shabbos! I also got internet for the first time today. One of my Rabbiam allowed me to use his wireless to check my emails. I had a ton! And sure enough, my cousin from the same town imed me and I was able to meet up with them. Fantastic. After going to them, I went back to the Yeshiva and everyone else was not back yet, so I collapsed into bed for the next 3 hours. I was dead tired. The walking here is all up hill, and its incredibly hot. It is really tiring. Anyway, time to say Good Shabbos....
Jesse

Day 3

Today we went to what some may call an oasis. It was this private park nearby that had a pool and grassy area. We had a BBQ and games of football, and soccer. There was also a stage, where some of the guys played. I took a video of them and will be posting as soon as they are available. This was a real short day. I took a bunch of pictures but no where near what I took yesterday. Anyway off to Shiur, ttyl
Jesse

Day 2

Today was a long day. Davening was at 7:45 in a local shul, as the Bet Midrash was being finished today. For breakfast we had bagels with cucumbers and cream cheese and regular cheese. After that we had official orientation in which they told us what a man can do and what he cannot. The place is pretty laid back. Its nice, the people are friendly, but there seems to be some clicks forming for the time being. My theory is that once everyone starts meeting each other, as apposed to just staying with the people they know, the clicks will fade away. Also most likely once classes actually start it should help as well. Or maybe that’s just wishful thinking. After the orientation we had lunch and time to by sefarim. We had free time after that for 3 hours which myself and my dorm mates went to the local supermarket and bought the place out. We needed basic supplies, and since it is hot as hell here (especially in these concrete rooms) we bought a fan. What a difference it makes. We also stocked up on food, nosh and the classic Israeli Peanut butter and chocolate spread sandwich ingredients. Oh and I almost forgot, MENTOS!!!! And gum. We next boarded the busses for Yerushalayim! On the way there we stopped off at Har Har-El. This is a lookout that the Israeli army used during the 6 day war. Full video explanation by Rav Mo (Rabbi Mordachai Kaplan): After eating dinner at the lookout we boarded the busses for the Kotel! As we approached we made a pitstop. We stopped off at the first place where we can see the Kotel from a distance. At that point since the great big palace in the sky has not come to earth yet, we tore Krea (tearing the shirt for mourning. You do this if you have not seen the temple mount in the past 30 days.). After tearing, we began to sing and dance to the tune of Yiboneh… Pictures of that included in the gallery as well. Then we boarded the busses and drove to the Kotel. As we walked down the hill towards the last remaining intact portion of the Bet Ha-Mikdash the anticipation grew. I have not been here in 5 years and couldn’t wait to see it. As I rushed down the stairs the Kotel itself came into view. As always it was breathtaking. It was night and the whole plaza was lit up bright. I took tons of pictures there. Color, natural, and black and white. We davened Maariv at the Kotel with the entire Yeshiva, and that was an amazing experience. We were then allowed to wander around the Kotel plaza, meet up with friends, take pictures, and the like. When we left everyone was dead tired. Most of the bus slept on the way home, myself included. That was our day today. Maybe one of these days I will get internet and actually be able to post these logs to the blog. Anyway I am beat, so I’m gonna call it quits. Good night all, Jesse

Day 1

Go to airport, yada yada yada.  We had to wait on the longest line I have ever seen just to get our luggage checked in.  Picture 3 different Yeshivos/Seminaries just waiting in a long line and that’s what I had to go through.  While standing on this size record breaking line I started talking to the people around me.  I met an African American woman on line behind me and she became good company.  We talked for most of the time on the line, and she was very friendly.  When we reached the area where El-AL asks you those questions (did you pack your luggage? Have you brought anything for anyone? Etc….) I, like everyone else was asked the questions.   After they had determined that I was in fact not a terrorist, and I was not carrying anything questionable they went on to the lady behind me.  The guard took one look at her, another guard came over, and after a quick exchange in Hebrew, turn to the woman and say those dreaded words.  “Ma’am, would you please come with me.”  I have no idea what happened to her, or where she went after that.  (Good luck to her wherever she may be.)

Then continuing in line I was told to approach the security counter.  Everyone in front of me had to have their baggage checked through the radiation scanner, I although was for some reason allowed to omit that part of the process.  The kid behind me (also going to Lev Hatorah) did have to have his scanned.  Thus is the end of part one. 

After just making it through security in time to board the plane, we took off for the holy land.  I of course loved the takeoff as always.  Unfortunately I had an isle seat in the middle row and could not take pictures out of the window.  Luckily I sat next to a pleasant and friendly person as apposed to what could have been worse.  The movies on the plane were scant, although the one I did watch was actually quite good.  It is called Entrapment, with Sean Connery and Catherine Zeta Jones.  Other then that was Speed Racer which I saw in theaters and thought it was an hour and a half too long. 

Many many hours later we landed in Tel Aviv, with the passengers applauding as we touched down.  It was quite interesting.  We proceeded to get off the plane and get our luggage, at which point we were joined by Lev Hatorah madrichim (A madrich is like a dorm counselor).  From there we went to the Yeshiva, ate dinner (I traveled 7,000 miles to get Pizza!), and then had time to do what we want.  This brings me to now when I am writing this.  I have already unpacked, met all the important people at the yeshiva, set up my electrical system, speakers, dart board, the works.  The dorms are actually large houses, and each bedroom is a different set of guys.  I have 2 other in my room, and I know both of them so everything is Kosher here.  As for the buildings?  They are mostly finished.  There are wires hanging down from the ceilings in the Bet Midrash, but the dorms are 'done'.  Now it is time to go to bed.  Good night all.

Jesse