Winter Break

As my first semester in graduate school ended, two weeks of vacation began. We celebrated the end of the semester on New Years. There were lots of visitors in Jerusalem and I was so happy to celebrate the new year and my first semester ending with both new friends from HUC and old friends from home as well.

My parents arrived a few days later and we spent the remainder of the break traveling all over Israel. I had lots of fun showing them Israel (as they had never been before) and even enjoyed a few new places myself (Bet Sh'an, the Underground Bullet Factory, Atlit and the Tower of David Light Show-Highly recommended!) I also got to get out of Israel for a bit when we went to Cairo for three days. Some of the "Chailights" from the past two weeks include (in no particular order):

-seeing my parents
-my parents liking my apartment
-delicious meals
-my dad losing lots of things including a camera case at the kotel and then being able to find it at the lost and found
-Old City tour with Gingy
-The Underground Bullet Factory
-Crazy city of Cairo
-surviving as a passenger in cars in Cairo (even though there were four lanes there were never fewer than 7 cars across the highway!)
-riding a camel for my first and LAST time
-being offered a job for my good bargaining skills
-belly dancer on the Nile River dinner cruise
-Hanging out with the Kaplan family



I'll think of more highlights later. For now, I'm exhausted from a really great two weeks with my parents. School starts again on Sunday, and I will try to blog as much as possible this semester as well.