Exploring my fair city :) Shabbat Shalom!

Hello, dear readers! As promised, now a real post :) First of all, THANKS to those who have commented so far with recipe suggestions -- I can't wait to go back to the shuk and do some more shopping! More suggestions are definitely welcome! This has been a fun but busy week! I’ve spent the last six days spending about six hours per day walking to campus, in Hebrew class, and walking back to the student village. But after class, the fun begins! Amidst homework and studying for quizzes and tests (at least one every other day, yikes), I’ve been on a tour of Jerusalem with the madrichim, gone shopping at the shuk with a few friends, cooked some tasty food, watched several episodes of Boy Meets World, had my first Israeli falafel, done laundry...the list goes on!

Let’s backtrack a bit. On Monday afternoon I decided to check out the library. I found little carrel-esque areas that were fantastic for getting my homework done! I also found a book that MHC Chorale folks from fall 2009 will appreciate (sorry for the poor quality):

Yay, Magyars! Then I had a quiet evening by myself, was exactly what I wanted and needed.

Tuesday was a practical Jerusalem tour with the madrichim (during which Alison and I played the celebrity game for five hours). We met at the north gate of the student village around 4:00pm, then got on a charter bus and headed downtown. Along the way they pointed out a grocery store that’s less expensive than the one next to campus, another of Hebrew University’s campuses, and some other useful and interesting sites. We arrived downtown and Ido, the madrich leading our group, led us through a beautiful neighborhood, the shuk (an outdoor market with fresh produce and lots of other goods, much less expensive than local stores!), and around to a few other sites. He also gave us some great insider knowledge about where to get the best hummus, fresh pasta, a few good pubs, some great restaurants, etc. He also told us a great joke: what should we call the Clinton presidency? SEX BETWEEN TWO BUSHES! Bahaha. This was prompted because we passed a park, and Ido told us not to go there at night. We asked why, and he explained that after a certain hour, if you're there, it's assumed that you're gay, and there's lots of sex in the bushes. Good to know. Anyway, here's a few shots from our wanderings:

We also stopped at a windmill from which we had a gorgeous view of the Old City (which I will be visiting next week)! Absolutely beautiful:

ALSO, a pop quiz! How do you know that this windmill is Jewish?

It’s circumcised, of course!

On Wednesday, Alison, Kate, Alex (someone who arrived a few days ago on the second group flight), and I went to the shuk to do some grocery shopping. Kate and I got a pot (finally!), some pasta, rice, a bell pepper, tomatoes, an onion, plums, apples, pesto, and some chicken. We swung by the market on the way home and also picked up some more milk, hummus, and pretzels. That evening I made some pasta with pesto and tomatoes, and Kate, Alison, Esther, and I watched an episode of Boy Meets World and The Princess Bride together.

Yesterday afternoon Alison and I came back from campus and I hung out and worked on homework and studied at her apartment (which has internet...so jealous), then after a second episode of Boy Meets World, Kate and I went to meet Sarah to get our first Israeli falafel. We went to French Hill falafel, a five-minute walk from the student village, where for 10NIS (about $3) you can get a pita with falafel, some vegetables, hummus, and French fries (???). We took a bite – worth every shekel! So cheap, so close to our apartments, and so delicious. We've agreed that this will become a regular part of our diets. OM NOM NOM. Then I returned home and studied for my exam.

Today was less thrilling – Alison and I walked up to the market to get some basics (laundry detergent, chocolate croissants, Nutella, and Diet Coke) and then headed down to the Dominos five minutes from the student village and bought some lunch. We then did some very expensive laundry (19NIS – ~$6!) and watched The Hunchback of Notre Dame. I returned to the apartment, did my hand washing and some other basic cleaning, and called to deal with the internet company yet again. As I type, I am on hold with them. But I’ve got a movie on in the background and am contemplating dinner :) This evening I’m hoping to get my weekend homework out of the way, catch up with some people on Skype (if the internet company ever answers!!!), and go to bed early.

Since it’s almost Shabbat now (less than an hour away as I write this at 6:30pm), the city will be shut down from then until sundown tomorrow night. But this isn’t a big problem for methis week; what I need is a day of rest! It should be a spectacularly uninteresting day of watching movies, visiting with friends, reading, internet-ing (I hope!), and so on. Only one day of weekend this week – back to class on Sunday!

UPDATE: As I post this a couple of hours later, I have internet in my apartment and my weekend homework is done. Time to relax...ahhhhh!