Tel Aviv is a fantastic place to study abroad, I couldn’t be happier. I love people watching here, there are so many different types of personalities. The open-air market (shook) is a melting pot for an array of religious views, ethnicities and languages. I discovered rather quickly that, although they are usually happy to give directions, people don’t really smile at each other in the streets, which really threw me off; in fact, it upset me a little. I’d offer a subtle smile to those I passed, only to be rewarded with a quick stern gaze. I was like where am I New York? However, Israelis are literally some of the nicest people I have ever met; the trick is to be introduced to them by a mutual friend, if that happens they treat you like a long lost brother. A common metaphor for the Israeli people is that they are all Sabras. A Sabra is a thorny and thick skinned desert cactus, but once you penetrate the rough hide you discover the inside to be nothing but soft and sweet. In restaurants and bars Israelis are more than pleasant and invite conversation, they all think that it is “the coolest thing ever” that I am studying here but not Jewish. (Its discovered that I’m not Jewish when they ask if it is hard to keep kosher in the States.) I get “what are you doing here if you are not Jewish?” a lot, but it is asked in a purely curious way and is by no means negatively framed. Actually, last week a group of soldiers at a bar bought me a beer because they thought it was so cool that I was here (it was not the first beer I was treated to). Tel Aviv is quite clean, gorgeous and is in a fantastic location for traveling throughout Israel. Israel is such an extremely unique place in terms of the environment. It has about 28 different eco-systems all within a piece of land slightly larger than New Jersey. The north is lush and green and the south is arid and beige. I’ve been traveling around the best I can. Jerusalem is a place all must go before they are no longer able to travel. Southern desert hikes are simply stunning and the north offers a quieter and simpler way of life which I immensely enjoyed tasting. The Sea of Galilee was utterly magnificent; I have to admit, standing on its shores I felt religious emotions I didn’t know I had. The rolling green hills adjacent to the sparkling blue water seemed to come straight out of the Bible. I thought to myself, I could be standing on the exact spot Jesus once stood, and then it hit me: I'm in the Holy Land man, this is crazy. My classes are fascinating and my professors are engaging and very intelligent. I also volunteer Sundays, Tuesdays and Thursdays for 3 hours a time at the Arab-Jewish Community Center in Jaffa (Yafo). Jaffa is 2/3 Arab, and at the onset of the British Mandate was the largest city in Palestine. Back then, if you came to Israel by boat you arrived at the Jaffa port. At the AJCC I teach children English, art class, help with homework and head the sports club as well as the chess club. The point of the AJCC is to provide a non-threatening environment where Arab and Jewish children can learn, interact and just have fun together. I really believe in what I’m doing, though it is sometimes disheartening and sobering to see the divide among the children; 10 year olds just have no business thinking along those lines. The 50 minute commute by bus each way is more than worth it. The kids I work with age from 7-12 and about 50% of them speak decent English. The classes are comprised of slightly more Jewish children but it is almost 50/50. About 15% of the Arab children are Christian. I was really taken back at how fascinated they all were by chess, and how something as simple as chess was bringing Arab and Jewish children closer together. But I must say, it is by no means an easy task to teach chess to children that don’t speak English, I had to get a little creative.
^^Jerusalem: Wailing Wall (Judaisim) and the Dome of the Rock (Islam)^^
^^South: Negev Desert^^
^^Jerusalem:Church of the Holy Sepelchur^^
^^Jerusalem: Wailing Wall (Judaism) and the Dome of the Rock (Islam)^^
So I'll be studying at Tel Aviv University (In Tel Aviv, Israel... obviously), from January 26th to June 8th. That's 19 weeks or 133 days, whichever you prefer. Tel Aviv University (TAU) has a student population of 29,000, making it Israel's largest university. If anyone was wondering, I didn't apply through my school or another program or anything, just as an individual to the school itself. TAU has an engineering school, architecture school, business school...you get the idea. I'll be at the school for overseas students. But our dorms aren't seperate, I'll be living among TAU students, not just with other overseas students. Actually,I found out today that I will be living in Brodetsky dorm (its one of the two buildings I spray-painted red, not sure which one. I'll be in a quad of two doubles with a living area and kitchen. I'm not sure if my roommates are abroad students are not. I'll have no meal-plan so will fend for myself which I'm psyched about. 
^Shot from the roof^ 
