Rockin' It with the 'Rents

So I took a hiatus from my blog - and the internet in general - while my parents were here, partially because we did not have internet access at the hostels. I will try to provide a recap of the trip, although it obviously will be lacking many of the details. And hopefully someday I will sort through the billion pictures my dad took and post some on Facebook.

January 19: Parents arrived while I was taking my Archaeology final. I then proceeded to miss my bus stop and had a momentary freak out because I had no idea where I was when the bus driver kicked me out at the end of the line. So my reunion with my parents was even more joyous because I was so relieved to final have reached the hostel! Oh, and apparently Mom decided to pass out on the airplane. And then everyone gave her everything she wanted, so I'm thinking about trying the same trick when I fly home...

January 20: Mount of Olives. We got a late start because we initially got on the bus going the wrong direction. My lovely roomie Annie joined us. Visited the German Church of the Annunciation, located on the Augustus Victoria Hospital complex, and the Russian Church of St Mary Magdalene. We (meaning, of course, me) got a little turned around because the German Church is a little ways away from the rest of the churches and it took us some extra time to find the others, so by then we were running really late. We skipped a few churches because I really wanted to see the Russian Church, and it is only opened on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 10-12. When we finished there we discovered that the other churches were closed for lunch until 2. So we decided to skip them and proceeded to take a very long walk (again, my fault) to the market. Apparently my ability to judge distances on maps is seriously lacking.

January 21: Bethlehem. Visited the Church of the Nativity & the rest of Manger Square, along with the Milk Grotto and Shepherd's Field. Ate at the Tent Restaurant. Didn't have problems with border control or taxis, thank God.

January 22: Israel Museum. And then got ripped off by the taxi who took us from our hostel in West Jerusalem to our hostel in the center of town.

January 23: My 25th birthday! The Old City: King David's Tomb/Hall of the Last Supper; Wailing Wall; Avigad's Wall (aka Broad Wall); Holy Sepulchre; Via Dolorosa. Birthday dinner at Focaccia Bar (which is pretty much my favorite restaurant now) with Annie and the parents.

January 24: The Old City: Temple Mount; Dormition Abbey; Peter in Gallicantu; Garden Tomb. I wasn't feeling well, so at this point, I parted ways with my parents, who returned to the Mount of Olives to see Gethsemane, Church of All Nations and Tomb of the Virgin Mary. I, on the other hand, returned to the hostel and rested. And broke my trusty pedometer, which was extremely sad. (And despite what Annie says, I did not walk the poor thing to death!)

January 25: Picked up the rental car. Had GPS troubles and thus a late start to the day. And then the stupid GPS decided to route us completely around Jerusalem (and around the Green Line), so it took us 3 hours to get to Ein Gedi (instead of 1-1.5). Thus, all we could do this day was one hike at Ein Gedi and a quick look at the ancient synagogue.

January 26: Woke up at 4am to hike up to Masada, only to find out that the hike started at 5:30, not 4:40 as we had been told the night before. Decided that I would hike up and that the parents would join me later, once the cable cars started running. The hike about killed me. Mom (who had been sick for a few days by then, thanks to the busloads of kids who run wild all night long at the hostels) would have never made it. Went to Qumran next and then returned to Jerusalem to get my z-pak for Mom and to return the stupid GPS that decided to quit working. Luckily, the one my parents brought with them decided to work (apparently Dad let the battery die and it doesn't like that). Drove to Tel Aviv and had Burgers Bar for the first time (which is ironic, since there is one right outside the kfar, on the way to the store).

January 27: Alexander Stream (which was not the resort-y type place the national parks website suggested; all we saw was a stream and the sea); Caesarea (which I almost didn't put on the list because I didn't think my parents would like it and they loved it); Tel Megiddo (which has been poorly maintained, which is a tragedy, considering the amount of history the site contains).

January 28: Haifa. Visited the Stella Carmelite Monastery and then walked down to Elijah's Cave, which turned out to basically just be a synagogue. Then walked back up to the monastery because the cable cars just broke down. Stopped by the Baha'i Shrine and Garden, which were gorgeous. Somehow managed not to find the Mt Carmel national park (also didn't really see any of the burnt forest, which was amazing, considering its extent). Went to Bet She'arim instead, which I really enjoyed, despite my archaeology professor's claim that there is nothing there.

January 29: Nazareth: Mary's Well and the Greek Orthodox Church of the Annunciation; Basilica of the Annunciation and Joseph's Church; Synagogue Church. Stopped at the Cana Wedding Church on the way to Tiberius. Wandered around Tiberius for a bit before heading to the next hostel, which was literally right on the Sea of Galilee. Had its own beach and all.

January 30: Yardenit (the Jordan River). I filled up a 20 oz bottle so we could divide it up later. Then my parents decided it would be better to buy the little bottles they had there that you could fill up. So we bought two, which I filled up. Then we bought two more, which I also filled up. And then we bought two more, which I refused to fill up because the light sprinkle turned into a light rain and then into a steady rain. Drove down to the Bet Alfa synagogue (as a side note, I must mention that my dad was surprisingly fascinated by the mosaic floors - and trust me, over 2 1/2 weeks, I showed him plenty!) and then up in Mt Gilboa to enjoy the views. Went to Belvoir/Kokhav Hayarden, a Crusader fortress which would have had far better views if it wasn't still hazy from the rain. Stopped at Hamat Teverya (aka Hamat Tiberius) because one ancient synagogue with a cool mosaic floor is just not enough for one day. Proceeded on to Capernaum and the Church of the Primacy of Peter. And then Mom decided to fall over a foot high cement block, conveniently placed in the middle of the sidewalk.

January 31: Arbel (which had beautiful views, also the first time I ever heard an Israeli say they hoped it didn't rain!). Tabgha, aka the Church of the Multiplication of the Loaves and Fishes. Korazim (an ancient Jewish site which was not originally on the list but we had some time to kill). Mount of Beatitudes.

February 1: Gamla (which has two hikes to see waterfalls, only they forgot to mention that the second waterfall - on the longer of the two hikes - was completely dried up from the drought) and Yehudiya (which also has a waterfall, one that wasn't dried up!).

February 2: Tel Hazor (similar to Tel Megiddo in its length of inhabitation but not as well known); Iyyon Stream (which was a killer hike but the three waterfalls were worth it); Dado Lookout at Metulla (where one can see Lebanon, along with the snow-capped Mt Hermon, the only place it really snows in Israel); Horeshat (though not really, since the park is only opened in the summer); Senir Stream.

February 3: Tel Dan, which is my absolute favorite - archaeology and lots of water in one place! And it was especially water-y from the winter rains - it felt like the water came from everywhere. My parents were kind enough to indulge me and allowed to explore every inch of the place. I had been there twice before, but there were still parts I hadn't seen. Afterwards was Banias Waterfall (which was pretty awesome too) and Banias Stream (the sacred dancing goats still make me laugh!).

February 4: The only day of the entire trip that was ruined by rain. Attempted to visit Nimrod's Fortress, but the whole point of it is the views, which were nonexistent due to the fog and the rain. Stopped at a waterfall nearby which was the hot spot. Guessing all the Israelis came out to see it because it is only really a waterfall when it rains.

February 5: Made the long drive back to Jerusalem. Back to the Old City so Dad could take pictures of the vendors and then to Sorek Caves. Never saw so many stalactites and stalagmites in such a small area before!

February 6: Went back to the Holy Sepulchre to show the parents the rest of it. Then my parents indulged me and we went to the Rockefeller Museum, which the guide book recommended for "archaeology buffs who don't get their fill at the Israel Museum." I am surprised my parents didn't stone me for all the "rocks" (code for archaeology) I made them see over the course of their visit! Walked from then to Hebrew U (through an Arab neighborhood, down the hill and then up a steeper hill - Mom wanted to kick my butt!) so I could show my parents where I go to school and the infamous botanical garden. Dinner from Burgers Bar, so now I can say I've ate at the one by the kfar. Received word earlier in the day that my parents' flight was cancelled and rescheduled for 7:30am the next day. They decided to take the last shuttle to the airport that night, so we said our goodbyes at 8:40pm. They made it home safely, though they had to run through customs in order to catch their connecting flight.

I think that is all. Despite some bumps and bruises, it was a lovely visit overall. It was hard to say goodbye after having them around for 2 1/2 weeks. I missed them before of course, but I think having them here made me miss them more. That and the fact I have a 25 page seminar paper to write, which I have absolutely no motivation to do.

And So It Goes...

Just three days - and two finals - stand between me and eighteen days of exploring Israel with my parents! I can't believe I have already been here an entire semester - almost three and a half months! (Or to really put it into perspective - almost half of Gabby's life!)

This past week was long and not really all that great. Last night was my first good night of sleep in a week, and I'm sure that was only because I took Tylenol PM. My back hasn't really been bothering me more than normal (if it is normal for someone my age to have a certain level of constant back pain!); I just haven't been able to sleep. At least my Hebrew oral exam and final are over! I am also all studied out for my Aramaic and Archaeology finals, but unfortunately, there is still more studying to be done.

I don't really have anything new and exciting to report. Life in Jerusalem is surprisingly similar to life in Ohio. At least my life here is much like my life back home. Just with lots more guns and security. My campus is on the eastern fringes of Jerusalem. There are a lot of maps of Jerusalem that don't even include Mt Scopus, and if they do, it is just barely. In other words, we are far away from everything. The buses are not convenient, and taxis are expensive. And, of course, there is always studying to be done. So sadly I am not living a very exciting life here in Jerusalem.

Ayana (the Israeli who is helping me with my Hebrew through the Language Buddies program) took me to Ben Yehuda and City Center yesterday. There is surprisingly little open on Shabbat, and even that was more than I expected. Just a few restaurants, and most of them were full. I think we went to four different places before we found one that could take us. Ayana has been a wonderful help, and I am sure I have amused her plenty, not only with my horrendous pronunciations but also because everything I say is in the present tense! We just started learning the past tense at the end of the semester, and the verbs we learned are not verbs I commonly use. I also found out something interesting about Israeli universities: not only do they get a half hour break during their 3 1/2 hour classes, they also get two chances to pass their finals AND if they have exams on two consecutive days, they can reschedule one of them! While I benefit from the half hour break, the other two do not appear to apply to RIS. Or if they do, no one told me and so I am taking my exams on back-to-back days. Ayana thought it was horrid that someone would have to do that. In undergrad, I would have more than one final on the same day!

Almost Home!

Okay, not really, since I will be living here in Jerusalem another 6 months. But I am almost home in that I am in my last week of classes and then it's finals. And then it's 18 days exploring Israel with my parents! So I guess "home" is coming to me. :)

Today was my last Jeremiah class, which just felt weird. Of course, Jeremiah and I still have a lot of bonding to do, since I still have 25 pages to write about him. But that's not due until March 22. I can't get over how much time we have after the semester ends to write our papers. My other paper (which is actually a take-home final) is due February 20, a week after the spring semester starts.

It's been weird being in class through the holidays. Thanksgiving was celebrated with a Modern Hebrew midterm (and the first real food I had eaten in nearly 3 weeks, thanks to food poisoning!). Most of my teachers didn't even acknowledge Christmas or New Year's. I guess in a sense it has been nice being in a country that doesn't celebrate American holidays, because I am not constantly reminded of what I am missing out on back home, but there is also just something wrong about being in class the week between Christmas and New Year's. Of course it is also strange to be in the fall semester in January. I know the semester started late - not until October 10th - but still. And recently I realized that this is the first time in my life that I have went an entire semester without a break. Growing up, we had fair time and Thanksgiving break in the fall and spring break in the spring. At Witt we had five days off each semester, and at MTSO we get a whole two glorious weeks off each semester. But since the fall semester starts so late over here, we get to go for 15 weeks straight. I never knew 15 weeks could feel so long - or so short! At least in the spring I will have two weeks off for Passover. I am still trying to figure out what I want to do during that time. Everything in Israel will be shut down for Passover, so I'm thinking road trip. Only with a plane.

2011 is here!

It's 2011!

New Year's has never been a big holiday for me - most years I am lucky if I make it till midnight, and this year was no exception. I was in a Tylenol PM-induced coma by 10pm on New Year's Eve. [In my defense, New Year's, like Christmas, is not big in Israel. Their new year begins in October.] But even though I do not partake in the festivities of the New Year, that does not mean I do not get excited about the start of a new year. I do not make resolutions, but I can't help but wonder what this new year will bring. This could be the year that I graduate with two masters degrees. This could be the year that Israel and Palestine finally decide to play nice (if only we could be so lucky!). This will be the year that I apply for PhD programs(!). This will be the year that I return from Israel, hopefully still in one piece(!), but a different person from when I arrived. I think I am especially pondering the possibilities because I am here in Israel, in a land where (as an NCIS episode said), tomorrow is never a guarantee. I do not fear for my safety or anything like that, but life seems much more dynamic over here (though, at the same time, it feels as if things today are like they have been for millennia).

At synagogue this past week, there were two American Jews who had been participating in workshops in Israel over the past couple of weeks. The organization (whose name I did not get) brings together 20 people in their early 20s - 5 American Jews, 5 American Muslims, 5 Israeli Jews and 5 Palestinian Muslims. The point of the workshops are to understand one another's faith and perspectives. It sounded interesting, but I couldn't help but wonder - where are the Christians? As I was telling Annie about this, I admitted that there aren't too many Christians living here and that the Christians aren't necessarily the ones who are fighting over the land (I think they are fighting more for the recognition that they do exist!). The battle between Israel and Palestine is almost always thought of and talked about in terms of Jew and Muslim, but there are Palestinian and Israeli Christians, even if they do compose less that 1% of the population. I went on to tease Annie and say that the Christians weren't fighting for the land because we were just waiting for the Jews and Muslims to kill each other so we would be the only ones left standing! Of course, that's not the solution I am hoping for, but I am constantly surprised by how little Christians seem to matter or count over here. There is a disproportionate number of Christians studying at Rothberg, but I am always amused how, in general, people assume that I am Jewish until I tell them my name (although the name "Christina" doesn't always tip them off that I am not in fact "one of them"). Sometimes I joke and say that I am going to start introducing myself as "Miriam" (the Hebrew form of my middle name, Marie). It is just strange to me that people make assumptions about the religious beliefs of others without even talking to them. In the US, I don't assume that everyone I meet is Christian or even religious. I guess it just demonstrates how entirely differently our countries were founded and structured.

Sorry if this post isn't entirely coherent. I woke up this morning not feeling very well, and I currently feel like I am in some sort of fog. Apparently it is my turn to get the bug that has been going around.

Christmas in Jerusalem

Pretty much since I arrived in Israel (if not before), I had people back home saying how amazing it would be to be in Israel for Christmas. The thing that everyone seems to have forgotten is the fact that Israel is Jewish - they don't care about Christmas! The only reason I had Christmas Day off was because it fell on Shabbat; otherwise, I would have been in class. And I admit, I let the lack of festivities get to me a bit. I was bummed to be halfway around the world at Christmastime, bummed that the IDF interfered with our Bethlehem plans, bummed in general.

But, I must also admit, I was pleasantly surprised with how things turned out.

Christmas Eve day, I met with Ayana, my language buddy (a program Hebrew U offers to help international students learn and practice Hebrew). Ayana is a really sweet girl, who not only helps me with my Hebrew but also has been showing me around Jerusalem. And she got all excited this week when I spoke several sentences in Hebrew, all correctly! (Sadly, it is a surprise and reason for celebration - not only did I get the grammar correct, but also the pronunciation!) Anyways, she was supposed to show me around one of the oldest neighborhoods, but I asked if we could visit the Christian Quarter of the Old City because I had heard there were Christmas decorations there. Either I was misinformed or they were all hiding, because we didn't find any! But it was still fun to wander around and talk in Hebrew.

Christmas morning, there was worship at the Lutheran Church of the Redeemer in the Old City. I spent last Saturday with a group of people from the congregation (including the

pastor and his wife), and they had invited me to worship. My roommate Annie asked to come with me, which was really nice. She wanted to share Christmas with me, since I celebrated Chanakuh with her all eight nights. It was a lovely worship service, not very large, with all the good Christmas hymns. And the sermon just happened to be well-suited to Annie, as it included reference to Rabbi Hillel and the story of a picture (right) sketched on Christmas Eve during the battle of Stalingrad by Kurt Reuber, a German Lutheran fighting for the Nazis. What makes the drawing so special is that he drew Mary and baby Jesus with Eastern features - as the pastor said, "he saw the face of God in the face of the enemy." It does make one think - during these times of restlessness and uncertainty, do we see the face of God in the face of the enemy? Both the Israeli and the Palestinian - the Jew, the Christian, and the Muslim - contain the image of God. We all share the Hebrew Scriptures, we all read Genesis 1 - "And God created humanity in God's image, in the image of God, God created humanity, male and female, God created them" (v. 27). I think it becomes a little harder to view the enemy as an enemy when we remember that person was also created by God, in the image of God.

After worship, we still had some time before the Christmas brunch back at the pastor's house, so Annie and I decided to wander around the Old City, which led to us getting rather lost in the Old City. After awhile, I got a little overwhelmed and panicky, but luckily Annie kept her cool and eventually we not only found a gate, but the gate we actually wanted. I had gotten to the point that I told Annie I didn't care which gate we found, I just wanted out of the Old City! From there, we caught the bus to the LWF compound, where the pastor lives, even though we were a little early. (Not only did I want out of the Old City, I also wanted to get far away from it!) The brunch was lovely and the food delicious. It was a gorgeous day - clear blue skies, in the 60s - so we ate outside on the pavilion, overlooking Jerusalem and the Old City. The view was too beautiful for words. We ended up staying longer than I had anticipated (in part because some people had problems getting there, thanks once again to the Bethlehem checkpoint), but it was such a lovely time. I think Annie and I were the first to leave, too. But as I told Fred and Gloria, some of us had homework to do - and class today!

I spent a nice portion of my afternoon and evening talking to my parents (and later, my brother) on the web cam. And my mom bribed the dog with treats so I could see him too. In between I did homework, or at least pretended to!

All in all, it was a nice Christmas. Obviously I would have preferred to have spent the day with my family, but it was a great alternative. Earlier in the week, I had talked with some Jewish classmates about Christmas, and one of them remarked, "I love being in Israel for Christmas" because Christmas is a non-event here. In America, the Christmas season starts the day after Thanksgiving (if not before!) and it is everywhere, in your face, all the time. Jews (and others who don't celebrate Christmas) cannot escape it, whereas Chanakuh is at best an afterthought. (Chanakuh is admittedly a minor holiday in the Jewish year, but none of the Jewish holidays receive any real public attention or appreciation.) So, in a sense, being a Christian in Jerusalem is a bit like being a Jew in America. The conversation definitely made me think. I am often aware of my minority status here (although I can "pass" for a Jew, until someone asks my name - somehow "Christina" just doesn't sound Jewish!), and Christmas has been no exception. But like my experience with the Bethlehem checkpoint last weekend, I look at this as an opportunity to get a glimpse - however small - of what others experience all the time.

Bethlehem Blues

So I decided to get me some Christmas, which meant a trip to Bethlehem was in order.

My friend Bethany lived in Bethlehem for a year and a half and is dating a Palestinian, so when she heard I wanted to visited the city, she invited me to join her yesterday. She was going to the Lutheran World Federation compound on the Mount of Olives in the morning to bake and decorate Christmas cookies at the pastor's house. She was running late, so she decided we should take a taxi instead of walking. The taxi driver was a Palestinian, and Bethany started speaking to him in Arabic. In the course of the conversation, she told the driver she had lived in Bethlehem and he said he lived in Bethlehem. She told him we were going there that afternoon, and he said he would take us there for free, on his way home. I was a little suspicious of this offer, not because he was Palestinian, but because this young man was a complete stranger, but apparently that is just Middle Eastern (or at least Palestinian) hospitality.

We arrived at the compound and got to work with the cookies. It turned out just to be the pastor's wife, two other ladies, Bethany, her friend Britt and me. Britt was also going to Bethlehem with us, as she and Bethany had appointments to get their haircut. Baking the cookies was a lot of fun. Instead of decorating the cookies with icing, we used glaze made out of egg yolks, painting the cookies before baking them. I was not very good at it, so most of mine were just solid colors, instead of some of the intricate patterns and designs of the others. But in the end, they all tasted equally yummy!

When it came time to leave, Bethany called the taxi driver and we met him near the Old City. On the way to Bethlehem, he showed us where the 1967 lines were, compared to where the security wall was built and where the checkpoints are. There is a village that is half in and half out, and the people living there have to go through the checkpoint to make a u-turn to go through again, just to go to Bethlehem. Our driver was telling us about his family. One of his parents is a Palestinian from Bethlehem and the other is an Israeli from Jerusalem. As a result, he is a Palestinian with a Jerusalem card, but his family must maintain two homes - one in each city. His older siblings do not have Jerusalem cards, but his younger brother (who is still a minor) does. Apparently the older ones had some sort of "mark" on their record that allowed IDF to deny them cards. I didn't quite understand all of it, but I'm not sure he really does either. It is an example of the randomness of the occupation.

And then there was the checkpoint. We were stopped and the driver had to show his papers and we had to show our passports. We thought that would be it, and we would be on our way. No. We had to pull over, and they started questioning our driver. They kept calling him over and sending him back. Apparently a couple of months ago, he had received a call from someone claiming to be from the Tel Aviv police who wanted to ask him some questions. He asked how he could know that she was really with the police, which is a valid question. He asked her to send him the questions in the mail and he would answer them, to which she agreed. Well, the questions never came and now he is "wanted." The police jeep came and six armed soldiers got out, ready to arrest him. They kept trying to get him to let us girls go (as if he was holding us hostage!), though I suspect it would have been much worse for him if we would have left. Finally, the decision was made that if he could get someone to come and co-sign that he would appear in court tomorrow (today) in Tel Aviv at 9am, he could go. His friend came, another Palestinian (which surprised me - I figured they would require him to have an Israeli vouch for him). We then had to wait for the document to arrive from the other checkpoint, just a few minutes away, but it took over 30 minutes for the police jeep to return with it. All in all, we were held up for nearly two hours. The driver was so apologetic, when we just felt so bad for him (and Bethany and I were on the verge of going over and decking one or two of the soldiers, we were so frustrated with them!). And the thing is, as much as it sucked for us three girls, it was one day for us. That is the kind of thing the Palestinians face everyday.

By the time we got to the hair salon, we were almost two hours late. They told Bethany and Britt they could take them in five minutes, no problem. Of course, five minutes turned into ten and

then fifteen. They finally took Britt and washed her hair, but then she just sat there, waiting. After nearly an hour, Bethany (who was all worked up and stressed out) decided she wasn't going to wait anymore, so the two of us left and went to Manager Square (right). We saw the Christmas trees in the peace center, where Bethany had worked. From there, we walked over to a shop that was recommended to me (where I bought presents for Gabby instead of for my parents!) and then we visited the Milk Grotto. Bethany decided to go back to the hair salon to see if they could cut her hair now. They were finishing up with Britt, so we parted ways with Bethany (who had a party to go afterwards) and went to the infamous Bedouin shop, owned by the even more infamous Majdi. He made us tea and told us stories and promised that any time we came to Bethlehem he would pick us up from the checkpoint and take us around. He even said that when our families come (since Britt's family is coming for Christmas and my parents are coming in January) that we would show us around Bethlehem and take us to Hebron. After we made our purchases (another present for Gabby and one for Jackson, but also

finally a gift for my parents), Majdi insisted on taking us back to Manager Square, where we were meeting up with the pastor, his wife and the assistant pastor. We were supposed to go see the Christmas tree lighting and the parade, but we had missed them. So instead, we decided to get dinner. On the way, we saw three other young people who are part of the church, so we picked them up and they texted their two friends whom they had been separated from to meet us at The Tent Restaurant, the Bedouin restaurant that I didn't get to enjoy in 2009 because hiking up the

Herodium in 110 degree heat all but killed me. There were ten of us, and we just had the

assorted salads with pita, and it was delicious. The pastor and his wife, bless their hearts, picked up the entire tab. The ten of us then piled into the 8 passenger van and the pastor switched into his chauffeur role and drove us all home. Luckily, some of the kids live in Bethlehem, so only seven of us had to go across the checkpoint, which we crossed with no problem.

All in all, it was a very long, exhausting and stressful day. I was able to enjoy some Christmas, although it was overshadowed by the ridiculousness of the IDF and the rudeness of the Arabic taxi drivers in Bethlehem (which I left out of the story for simplicity's sake, but let me assure you, they were awful!) But I guess that is Christmas in the Holy Land - nonexistent in Israel and big business in Bethlehem.

Fires & Festivals

Happy Chanakuh!

One of my favorite parts about living in Jerusalem is being immersed in the Jewish culture and customs. It has been so much fun celebrating Chanakuh with Annie, my Jewish roommate. We light the candles every night (though I do not always stay up until they burn out), and last night we made latkes, potato pancakes. For those of you who have never had latkes, they are kind of like hash browns but with egg added and fried into little patties. Another Chanakuh delicacy is sufganiyot, jelly-filled donuts with powdered sugar on top.

The biggest news in Israel right now, of course, is the Haifa forest fires that have already claimed 41 lives since they started December 2. What makes the fires so bad is that there has been no rain - in the two months I have been living in Jerusalem, we have had one light sprinkling that lasted only a few minutes (although they are calling for rain in the morning!, even if it is only a 30% chance). In addition to the "deadly inferno," there have been several arsonist fires started in the region. You can see a map of the fires here. Two teenage boys have been arrested for starting the original fire through negligence, although the trial will surely be a political nightmare, since the boys are from a Druze village and the family is claiming the boys are being framed (implying that the arrest was racially/ethnically motivated), not to mention the fact that the four different articles I read all contained different information on exactly how they are said to have caused the fire. The Haifa fire is the worst fire in the nation's history, and help is pouring in from all over the world. Even Palestine, despite all the hostilities since the peace talks collapsed, has offered aid:

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas also offered to send help, which he conveyed in a rare telephone conversation with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The two are believed not to have spoken since US-brokered peace negotiations collapsed in September.

This whole situation is such a tragedy. 12,000 acres of forest and 5 million trees have been destroyed. 17,000 people have been evacuated. 41 people have died. And all during what is supposed to be a fun holiday season. In fact, Haifa hosts an annual "Holiday of Holidays" event that celebrates Chanakuh, Christmas and Eid al Adja - the December holidays of the world's three major monotheistic faiths - and the day before it started, the area went up in flames. I was supposed to be in Haifa today with a group of the graduate students from RIS to celebrate the holiday season, but that trip, of course, was cancelled.

On a much happier note, my parents have finalized many of their plans for their visit in January. The plane tickets have been bought, and the hostels have been booked. (Of course, we are supposed to spend two days in Haifa, so the itinerary might have to be adjusted, but at the moment, I am more concerned about the people than about our vacation plans!)

Shalom, and for my Christian brothers and sisters celebrating the Second Sunday of Advent, may the Peace of Christ be with you!