Tuesday, October 2, 2007

Jam Packed...

Wow, it's been absolutely crazy here! Since the moment I arrived I've been around and about.
Erev the Chag, my mother let me know that I had a date on Motzei Shabbos, with several backups if the first didn't work.
So, instead of going out to a Simchas Beis Hashuevah like I usually do, I went to a hotel lounge. Thankfully, I found a place where there wasn't a single person I knew. As a matter of fact, the hotel was virtually empty.

That's because the hotel in question was in East Jerusalem, and aint no religious Jews hangin' out there!

Sunday was exclusively me-time. I went shopping for gifts, and then went visiting my various and sundry friends who are lucky enough to live here. I stopped in at a yeshiva that caters to "at risk" (ugh...that name!) kids, where a lot of my friends volunteer. They were having their own party, with a band, and they let me sit in on the bass for quite some time. After that, I went to Doodlehead's apartment, and chilled there for a while.

Later that evening, I attended a parlor meeting for Operation Open Curtain. OOC is one of the original programs created to do kiruv in Russia, and my parents are very involved with the organization. I go to this parlor meeting every year, and I see people that I only see at these gatherings. It's actually a lot of fun, and very inspiring.

Monday I went for a round two with this girl. We went to this park about 20 minutes outside of Jerusalem, and there are natural springs there. It's really nice, and just walking through the whole place took several hours.

Today I went to Bethlehem and Hebron. I haven't been there in quite some time, so it was pretty shocking when we got near Kever Rochel and had to go through this whole corridor made out of huge, twisting, concrete walls. Shocking and saddening. Every year the place changes even more...

I took pics, but I forgot the USB interface for my camera, so when I get back, I'll add the pics...

10 comments:

Anonymous said...

damn shell shock, from bet lechem and chevron tends to keep me away

Anonymous said...

which "at-risk" yeshiva was it?

Anonymous said...

Enjoy the rest of your time in Israel...

David_on_the_Lake said...

Hey I went to Russia with OCC a long tiume agoooo

David_on_the_Lake said...

Thats OOC

the dreamer said...

have a safe trip back!
wow, i miss that place already...

Anonymous said...

You made the girl meet you in East Jerusalem?
*sigh* boys...

Shmuel said...

Pleats - Actually, I picked her up in a cab. How's that for class? :)
I was hoping to get a big cab, so it wouldn't be uncomfortable in the back. I asked the dispatch to snd a mercedes, and what pulls up? A Skoda, for crying out loud...

Anonymous said...

Ok, chatasi. I'm (semi)impressed.
I figured you had pulled the, "Were dating in Israel, which means you're meeting me there" shtick.
However, when a date got us lost in East Jerusalem, I was ready to *kill.*

Anonymous said...

Hello David_on_the_Lake how are you tell me about Russia food.