(Don't) Deport(ed) (Me)

Spending a Saturday at the New Central Bus Station in Tel Aviv is like...not being in Israel. It's the end of the weekend, the time when all the caregivers and domestic workers in the city are returning to the homes of the employers. And the Station is absolutely flooded with Indian, Sri Lankan, Filipino, Chinese and Nepalese workers...I barely saw Israelis there at all, or they were hidden among the foreign faces. It's like an entire underground population has risen out of no where. Even though I see the migrant workers all the time in the office, it was shocking to witness the massive numbers of them, momentarily stepping out of their usual invisibility.

These are some posters/street art that can be found around this area, where many of the migrants live. There are so many opinions on this: the migrants are good, bad, useful, sly, naive, smart, strong, weak. Whether or not you think they deserve to be here, to work and live and create families here, no one can deny the fact that immigration is a pressing issue in Tel Aviv. An Israeli woman told me to not forget that in my work with Kav La'Oved, I am "only seeing one side of Israel." Absolutely--it is only one side, but one I am glad to be aware of. More than that, I'm proud to be a part of the cause.

A new campaign to protect the children of migrants. These posters are everywhere--car windshields, restaurant and store windows, street corners, building walls, back of bikes...

"גירוש עכשיו" means "Deportation now!"

8.10.09 - 10.10.09

This is an ode to a wonderful weekend filled to the brim with seeing friends and getting to know their families. In an attempt at organization, here we go...

The Serious: Last week I had several talks with great people, and each and every time the topics of converting to Judaism and living in Israel came up (who knew that I would incite such conversations?). Whenever people ask if I'm ready to live here and become Jewish, the answer is slightly...complicated. The last two months have really opened my eyes to both aspects of Israel and Judaism I love and value (i.e. family, tradition, lifestyle) and aspects I do not always understand or accept (i.e. immigration, politics). No place is perfect, indeed. But as many friends have point-blank told me, "Israel is not an easy place to live." A friend from Cornell, a Jewish-American, told me that after two years here she still grapples with being a foreigner at times. I tell people all the time that I love Tel Aviv, since it is the best place in Israel for a liberal non-Jewish Asian-American to live. True fact, but a city isn't representative of an entire country. Most days I am happy with my life here, surrounded by some of the most loving and warm people I have ever met, doing satisfying work that I am passionate about. But sometimes I am still very bothered by the fact that the country, in its foundation, sees my presence as a threat to the Jewish people. While Matan, his family, and our friends are as supportive and encouraging as possible, I need to come to terms with the fact that some people (in Israel and out) will always think that I have no right to be here. Yes, there are probably racist Americans who think that I am not a "real" American. But there's a difference between being born into a country (the US) and then actively choosing to establish a new life in a new country (Israel). And I haven't even gone into the related topics of conversion, religion, God, the army, war...so. I told you it was complicated...:)

The Less Serious: This is the first time I've lived in a city, and I adore it. Next week will be my last in Tel Aviv, which makes me a little teary already. For years I've been jealous of my city-dwelling friends. I'm glad I ended up in rural upstate NY for college, but I'm equally (if not more) glad that I moved out of there and found myself here instead. There's just this buzz that I feel so energized by, the constant movement of people, the density of individuals in one space. The overwhelming number of fascinating streets and corners, cafes, stores, galleries. It is like one big treasure hunt all the time. The apartment is located in such a central spot--I really feel the pulsing of the heart of the city. Plus, Tel Aviv just has this young, liberal, eclectic vibe, with beach-side yoga, vegan restaurants with names like "Buddha Burger," tons of NGOs, and a disproportionate number of people with tattoos of Chinese characters. Tel Aviv won my heart very quickly. BUT despite my love for this city and its beach, art, and culture...I am quite ashamed of how "loose" I've been with my wallet lately (mainly with food, honestly). URBAN LIFE IS EXPENSIVE. I want to keep living in cities. Cities are expensive. I want to keep working with NGOs. NGOs do not equate big salaries. What a dilemma.

The Not Serious: Thursday night I saw 500 Days of Summer at the Haifa International Film Festival...hehe, international American movie! I also spent a lot of the weekend with my friend Amir, meeting the family's two new kittens (one named Pascal), two new puppies (half St. Bernard), chickens and roosters, frogs, birds, garden hedgehog, Amir's awesome family, and more cats and dogs. And seeing the lychee, mango, cotton, guava, pomegranate, fig, pecan, grape, orange, etc. trees/plants on their land. Amazing. Kittens and puppies and babies (Amir has a new nephew) make the world fuzzy and happy. In another life, I really wish I could go around distributing baby animals and spreading joy and love. In case the whole NGO thing doesn't work out...I also got to have Shabbat dinner with my friend Kesem and her aunt, uncle, and awesome cousins. Dinner started with prayers and ended with chasing each other around with foam swords. Very cultural, indeed...

A funny pic I've been meaning to share--the sign, and then me, Amir, Matan and Kes.

Love-Hate List

Love:
1. The good, cheap, locally made yogurt I eat every morning.
2. Seeing a Filipina woman I worked with an Kav La'Oved at the bus station, and having her say hello because she remembered me.
3. No mice in Tel Aviv because there are too many stray cats. And seeing lots of kittens!
4. Getting invited to sit down and share a meal with our neighbor and her friends the first time we met her, purely do to the goodness of her heart.
5. Hummus.

Hate:
1. The fact I spent weeks buying over-priced yogurt because the good, cheap, locally made yogurt was in a weird looking container and shelved with the milk, not the yogurt.
2. Migrant workers who work for the same employer for 9-12 years and get paid below minimum wage without receiving any benefits they're entitled to for the last 9-12 years.
3. Seeing lots of homeless kittens.
4. The overwhelming number of awesome restaurants and cafes in the city, all of which taunt me to pull out my wallet and buy lots of delicious things.
5. Hummus up north is better than the stuff in the middle of the country. I would love to be proven wrong...on that note!

I LOVE Akko; it's a city in the north, right on the coast, with mad history (Napolean tried to conquer it). Besides being beautiful, it won my heart because 1) it's one of the only cities in Israel where Arabs and Jews peacefully live together and 2) it has the best hummus I've ever had in my life. Matan asked if I was going to take a picture of it, but I didn't because I thought it would not do the Abu Sayid hummus justice. Instead...

This is the line outside of the place. It's small, cramped, and super-speedy. You order and get your hummus within a minute. See the guy waving in line? That turned out to be Matan's cousin getting some hummus, too...

Even though we stuffed ourselves with hummus and pita, I insisted on Baklawa.
AHHH. IT'S SO DELICIOUS. Sigh...

A Most Delightful Day

...occurred exactly 2 weeks ago. I have to document it here on the blog, because I don't want to forget it myself when I'm old and cranky and surrounded by my cats. It starts with a 6:20 AM alarm, because Matan is somewhat crazy and decided he needed to run. I like to run. I just don't like 6:20 alarms. But I couldn't let him out-energize me, so we had a really great run along the beach. By 9:30 AM, I was at Kav La'Oved, and I don't remember the specifics, but I helped some people, which is always a good feeling. I stayed till 3, and left the office pining for food. Israeli food. For weeks, I'd seen the constant crowd outside of Super Falafel. Oh wow, was it super...perfection. I ordered in Hebrew, to the amusement of the Falafel Man, asking for a hetzi mana, or half-order. The falafal was exquisite (and I don't say this about all falafel), crispy on the outside, but hot and soft on the inside. After finishing it on a park bench, I wandered into Halper's Bookstore, one I've been eyeing for weeks as well. It is a total maze of books, most in English--an incredible collection of fiction, history, philosophy, everything...and I even got to chat with Halper himself, who is actually quite famous in the blogging world (http://melchettmike.wordpress.com/tag/tel-aviv/). I headed back to the electricity-less apartment (we knew we'd have to pay at some point) , eating some melted vanilla ice cream for good measure. Matan's sis Nitzan met me then, and we headed over to another place I've been dying to go: 24 Rupee, a vegetarian Indian restaurant. Nitzan and I chatted over some chai until Matan met us there. The food was AWESOME, and served on the typical Indian tin plates, which I really appreciated. As you can see, the place is totally chill and relaxing. We booked it out of there to make it in time for "Not for Bread Alone," a play at the Nalaga'at Theater...the only deaf/blind theater in the world. It was an incredible show, illustrating the dreams of the 11 deaf-blind actors and actresses through sign language, morse code, dance, acting, and the process of making bread (http://www.nalagaat.org.il/bread.php).

If any of you are ever in Tel Aviv, I highly recommend this itinerary for a day...

Gilad Shalit

I found out about the story of Gilad Shalit because of the white and blue bumper stickers everywhere here. As you can see, there's an image of his face, the Israeli flag, and the words, "Welcome to the next millennium." The stickers came out 1000 days after the capture of Gilad, a means of reminding the country of his absence and the likewise hope for his return. The country has not forgotten...there is practically daily news about him in the papers and in TV.

Gilad Shalit, an Israeli soldier who is now 23 years old, was captured by Hamas in 2006 and taken into Gaza. For almost 4 years, the country has been waiting for some sign of his well-being, his life. On Sept. 30th, Israel said that it would release 20 Palestinian women accused of attempted homicide in exchange for a videotape of Gilad as proof that he was alive. The video was released to the public last Friday, October 2, around 4 PM. Those 20 women have subsequently been released.

Around that time, Matan, our friend Kesem and I were sitting at Art d'Coco, a pretty nice restaurant known for its massive assortment of desserts. A flatscreen TV was playing scenes of chocolate-making, while the waiters buzzed around serving big salads and beautiful cakes and mousses. Suddenly, before I fully realized what was happening, the TV was switched to the local channel, the volume turned all the way up. The music playing in the restaurant stopped, along with the whirring of blenders and kitchen preparation. Everyone in the place turned towards the TV, twisting to watch the clip. Mothers shushed their kids. The video played, mere minutes. But everyone was visibly touched; you could sense the somber atmosphere, mixed with some relief and suspicion as well. The video is from September 14, two weeks before.

It was a moment I will always remember because it illustrates one of Israel's strongest traits so well...the respect, value, and worth they hold for their soldiers, for their people. It was touching to witness it: collective anticipation, followed by hope. We had some great conversation that afternoon about war, the army, views on life and death, morality and ethics. I admire Kes' ability to see the bigger picture, so to speak, to serve her own country while remembering the importance of human life for all.

I encourage you to watch the video--here's a copy with English subtitles. 2 minutes 51 seconds...and then much more to ponder in your own head. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=edwwLIjSWR8

The Ins and Outs of Fasting

Monday, 28 September, 2:08 PM
It's remarkable how slowly time goes by when you don't plan your day with meals. I've never done it before, so I've never known this phenomenon. But it's only 2 PM and it feels so much later. We've spent the day so far reading a lot (ironically, I finished Lewis' On Christianity), practicing some Hebrew, looking at photos, blogging for me, and talking of course. Oh, and we read Chapter 19 titled, "Getting Serious: Yom Kippor" out of Judaism for Dummies. They sum up today as a time to "reflect on the previous year, let go of grudges, ask forgiveness from people, and see a bigger picture." Matan learned some new things, too. :)

I'm not praying, but I am thinking and reflecting on the year. We first discussed who we need to ask forgiveness from. And for me, those people are all the ones I am closest to. Because it was with them that my temper was the worst, my patience the shortest. I have hurt my parents before, and I think it's because selfishly I know they will always unconditionally love me no matter what I do. This is no new revelation by any means, but it's not something I think about regularly either. My mom just sent me an e-mail that my parents bought their tickets to go to Taiwan on October 15, leaving 3 months later. I'll arrive on December 16th, and I'm so glad we'll all be there together. As I get older, and even since I've left Cornell, I realize how valuable it is to be together when we can.

The book also included, "Yom Kippur is an ideal time to remember that all human beings make mistakes; the important thing is to continually review your life, learn and grow...By showing up and trying, you fulfill the spirit of the day." Just last night, I was having a bit of a hard time, feeling like life here is so different and foreign than anything I've known. I have high expectations for myself--to feel comfortable socially here, to establish new friendships, to have fulfilling work, to learn more Hebrew...and often I think I forget that these things don't happen in a month, or three, or even a year. It takes time to make a place for yourself somewhere new, especially somewhere as new as Israel is for me. I keep comparing life here to life at Cornell, ignoring the fact that life at Cornell when I first arrived was no picnic either. So, it's nice to get a reminder that I should struggle as a human. Goals sometimes aren't accomplished on time or as you expected, and what counts is your ambition and willpower in the end...the "bigger picture" so to speak.

Last night, after dinner, we took a walk. Matan had told me that biking is huge on Yom Kippur, and I don't think I quite understood him. Barely anyone drives on Yom Kippur, religious and secular alike. So suddenly, in the middle of Tel Aviv, there were practically no cars to be seen. I think we saw three during a 2.5 hour walk. The streets are filled with people on bikes and rollerskates, parents pushing toddlers in strollers, old couples walking hand in hand, kids on every kind of bike/tricycle/rolling thing imaginable. And everyone is just moving along in the middle of the street! We walked in the middle of a four lane highway for a while, and saw absolutely no car the entire time. It's magical--a kid's dream come true. Rotshild Blvd. was hopping with young families, dogs, kids. It is a sight worth seeing. Matan and I talked about what it would take for the US or NYC to do this for a day. It's hard to say...religion and tradition and history are strong influences. Not something you can create out of thin air.

Tuesday, 29 September, 10:57 PM
We broke fast yesterday with bread, grapes and tea at first...I felt funny afterwards, tired and groggy, like when I'm on Benadryl. I didn't expect to feel it so much, but even today I was a bit off. Matan went off to buy some more food last night for dinner, and came back with Honey Nut Cheerios and milk. It was perfect...and forever I will connect my first Yom Kippor with Cheerios!

I went to Kav La'Oved for a few hours today, but the electricity in the building went out so just about everyone went home. By chance, our friend Omer was in Tel Aviv so we ran some errands with him before having a HUGE hummus lunch at Abu-Adam's...with a shot of black coffee afterwards. Matan and I spent the rest of the day doing something we've both been meaning to...BUS-HOP. As in, get on buses without knowing where they're going, get off when we feel like it. We rode on the 4, 13, 16, 26, 27, and 28. I think that was it. 13 was the best--it took us on a huge loop all the way to North Tel Aviv, which neither of us had seen before (actually, it wasn't that exciting, as it's where all the crazy expensive apartments are). I HIGHLY recommend bus-hopping to anyone, anywhere. It was really fun, we saw so many new parts of the city, walked around Florentine (Tel Aviv's Soho supposedly) drinking chocolate milk, and finished the day off with ice cream. Believe me, it's definitely a good use of time.

On the Topic of Water

We're back! The backpacking trip was incredible...the desert is so vast and so completely different from anything I've ever seen before. Endless and majestic, and humbling. It demands admiration, if not respect. You don't mess around in the desert...or you're going to find yourself in a pretty difficult situation. Fact of the day: carrying water is heavy. It's something I took for granted in the past--being able to find a water source like a river or lake instead of having it all on your back. But I was also rather spoiled, going with Matan and two friends, Amir and Shaked. Their packs definitely took a bit more of the load than mine.

Day 1: On Thursday morning, we started in Be'er-Sheva, shopping for food: bread, tuna, lots of canned things, coffee, chocolate wafers...chocolate spread (a beloved Israeli necessity). We took a bus to Arad, right on the edge of the Judean desert. From there, we hitchhiked to the trailhead and began. Within a couple minutes, Amir started explaining to me how deserts are made. This guy knows his stuff--he was a nature guide for a year, and just has an amazingly impressive knowledge of Israel's nature and history. It was so nice for me to have him as this personal guide on the whole trip, sharing bits and pieces of interesting facts about which animals populate the desert, how certain landscapes were formed, constellations, the history of Jewish rule, the Roman siege. He also has an appreciation for the basic pleasures of life. A couple hours in, Amir announced it was time for tea. At this point, he pulls out some plant he had picked earlier and makes a fantastic sweet tea, pouring it into four little glass cups brought specifically for this purpose. Oh luxury!

Where to next?

We reached Masada National Park right before sundown, a massive fortress located on a plateau in the desert. Masada was built strategically by King Herod as a refuge from his enemies. After his death in 4 BCE and the addition of Judea to the Roman Empire, the Romans overtook it. 60 some years later, Masada was taken back by Jewish rebels during the Great Revolt of the Jews; Masada was the last rebel stronghold in Judea. When the Romans completed their siege ramp and began attack, the Masada leaders decided on a group suicide, to die in a state of liberty and rebellion, to "let our wives die before they are abused, and our children before they have tasted slavery" (as documented by the historian Josephus Flavius). On Thursday night, we got there in time for an awesome light and sound show. Sitting on bleachers with a full view of Masada, the history of the siege and rebellion was told as a story (voices and all!) with different parts of the fortress lit with different colored spotlights. We went to bed soon after, preparing for an early morning...

A view of Masada and the Judean Desert

Day 2: We woke up at 5:20 AM (to Matan's frustration; he championed for a 5:40 alarm) to climb Masada in time for the sunrise. I was REALLY excited about this. Emma did this when she came to Israel two years ago, and it was one of her favorite parts. The place was surprisingly full of tour groups, families, and tons of school children. They were all really loud and...awake. It was a beautiful sunrise, surrounded by the crumbling stone and living history, black ravens swooping gracefully. We spent the rest of the morning exploring the different parts: cisterns, bathhouses, a Byzantine church, the old Synagogue, the two palaces, storerooms, and more. Even some of the exquisite mosaics have been preserved. We took our time, and headed out in the late morning.

Masada scene: bird on tree, men prayer, and the Israeli flag.

I couldn't have planned it better myself!

Matan, Amir, and Shaked hanging out in a cistern

Day 2 was HOT. Definitely aware of being in a desert with the relentless pounding sun. But some of the views were breathtaking--huge canyons with remarkable cliffs. The day was full of these gorgeous views, and talking a lot about the differences between Chinese and Hebrew. It's only when you have to explain a language to someone else that you realize how complicated and bizarre it is. It was really fun, though, and accentuated by the guys belting out a lot of Hebrew songs throughout the day. We reached the end of the trail and hit highway 90 (oh, do I know my Israeli highways or what?) by early evening, hitchhiking again to reach Ein Gedi, some 20 minutes away.

Amir leading the way as we headed up that trail

Contemplating a Bedouin existence

And there was the Dead Sea. We went right into the water, and I spent the first 10 minutes freaking out. The water was so beautiful; it looked like a sheet of glass, reflecting all these hues of pink and gold and purple from the mountains at sunset. And it felt so weird! Perfectly silky and smooth, PLUS you're just sitting there, chillin', floatin'. 33.7% salinity. We also slathered ourselves in Dead Sea mud. Not so much because any of us believed in its amazing "cosmetic capabilities." More so it's really fun to have an excuse to play in mud.

Day 3: I woke up, sat up, and realized I was facing the Dead Sea straight on, the reflection of the sun nearly blinding off the water. After another delightful breakfast of bread and chocolate spread, we headed for En Gedi Nature Reserve, known for all its sweetwater springs, cliffs, and natural greenery in the middle of the desert. Parts were like Paradise...lush green tress and teal pools nestled on the edge of golden brown, sandy cliffs, with the desert spreading out beyond. It was a lazier day, less climbing and more splashing around in pools and waterfalls. It was also the day I discovered the award-winning combination of matza topped with canned vegetable spread, tuna, and onions. Somehow I'm the only one who was really impressed by this...We planned to spend the night there, but were ahead of schedule so we took a bus back to Jerusalem in the evening.

One of the En Gedi trails

Remarkable colors together, with the Dead Sea

This was only my second backpacking trip, but I'm hooked of course. I'm lucky to have a lot of friends who let me tag along. :) It was so different from the other one in Colorado, and I'm already dreaming of the next one (Taiwan has some incredible rainforests...). The company was superb, the food delicious (I love that part about camping), the nature absolutely phenomenal. We spent a lazy day yesterday recovering, eating big meals and napping and going to the beach.

So, today is Yom Kippor. I started this blog talking about water, and I should mention that while the trip included downing extreme amounts of water to stay hydrated...right now we're fasting for 24 hours, a break from both food and drink. I'll for sure be writing again today, with some reflection on the year. I'm glad for the excuse to do that. Sometimes I feel like I've been moving so fast, I've barely processed what's been going on. So, we have about 7 hours left, and I'm looking forward to the day. Not quite a trek through the Judean Desert, but a different kind of challenge...