israel slideshow.

call me and i'll dictate as you watch...

sunset, camels and exercise?

jerusalem at sunset from har herzl:

me, shonna, humphrey:

eden and i making stronger abs. or butts. or something:

full disclosure: feeling left out.

for the first time ever i'm feeling left out regarding not participating in the wonderful world of facebook.

i have my reasons, and contrary to popular belief, it's not to be different or special or to be "better than you" (someone once told me that. i laughed). it's mostly because I DON'T HAVE TIME to be a stalker. (and.. i'm not a huge fan of social networking)

but in this moment, i'm really wishing i was connected to my new jew friends.

stalker? connected? stalker? connected? THE PRESSURE.

salt makes your body float. and burn.

eden, me, shonna. floating in the dead sea.

this will be the last time.

i can say "it's my first day of school" for a very long time. 

here's to the LAST semester of my masters in counseling psych program. 

a-freaking-men.

OH MY GOSH! how was israel?

don't feel guilty if you've asked me the above question. a better response when seeing me would be "welcome back." the reality is that israel was great.. i was safe. i had fun. i'm home now. but that question is SO HARD TO ANSWER.

on shabbat the rabbi talked with us about explaining incredible experiences [like birthright]. IT'S SO HARD TO DO. we just sound foolish when we try to put words to experiences that don't deserve words. "it was great. it changed me" blah blah blah. doesn't that sound ridiculous? it sounds so lame. even stale. some experiences in life don't get to be summoned into sentences. they are worth so much more than that.

really i should just say: you won't understand. even if you've been to israel, you didn't do it with me and thirtyfour other jews. you didn't ride on our bus and stay in our hotels and listen to efrat and laugh with alex or at judah or eat the same meals over and over and over again or meet the maxes or sean or share with graham and hear his encouragement or listen to debra so eloquently explain things i didn't know existed or watch eden and shonna prance around the room or see the sites or smell the marketplace or spend days with soldiers- kids who have to give up at least two years of their lives to fight for something they believe in. for me to explain all of this is a waste. neither of us will fully understand.

how about you ask me what i learned. i bet i can [soon] answer that. maybe that will help you understand, too?

what did you DO in israel, emily?

well that's easy to answer. here goes:

monday- arrived in the evening, got to know everyone at the hotel, etc.

tuesday- jewish quarter, old city walking tour, western wall, drove to the dead sea

wednesday- woke up at four in the morning to hike masada at sunrise, floated in the dead sea, got an israeli massage, had too much fun in eilat

thursday- hiked to mt. zephachot, hung out in eilat, stayed in a bedouin tent

friday- rode a camel, went to ben gurion's grave, welcomed seven israeli soldiers, went to the jerusalem marketplace, celebrated shabbat

saturday- walking tour of jerusalem, ben yahuda street

sunday- went to yad vashem (holocaust museum), har herzl, stayed and danced on a kibbutz

monday- went to mt. bental, hiked on the golan, wine tasted and doggy paddled in hot springs

tuesday- toured tzfat, learned about kabballah, said goodbye to our dear soldiers, watched obama get sworn in, danced the night away in tel aviv

wednesday- went to independence hall, planted a tree and hung out in jaffa

thursday- traveled for more than thirty hours back to san francisco, which came complete with a man who had cocaine and razor blades in his mouth, crying babies and adolescents who won't take off their bangles to get through security. 

i lost my eyelashes at the kibbutz.

that's not a joke. i really did. only about two millimeters of them but it's enough to notice when i'm applying mascara. someone poked me in the eye when the soldiers were making us reenact the first day of boot camp. i guess i shouldn't complain because i don't ever have to be a soldier. but, seriously, will they grow back?

here are a few photos. 

at the top of masada at sunrise. me & shonna.

sunrise at masada, overlooking the dead sea.
at ben-gurion's gravesite. me, alex (staff member), eden & shonna
a painted door in tsfat. i liked it.
a bit overexposed. the marketplace in jerusalem right before shabbat.

i love orthodox jews. they live a fantastic life.

quite possibly my favorite photo of the entire trip; prayers at the wailing wall.

i miss you israel.

i miss you hummus and cucumbers and beets and hard boiled eggs.
i miss you bus and bus driver lazer, even though it sometimes smelt like cigarettes and perfume.
i miss you tour guide efrat and your logic and weather advice.
i miss you alex and having the opportunity to make you lose your hair.
i miss you judah and your endless bag of tricks. and your pistachios.
i miss you wailing wall and old city; forgive me for turning my back on you.
i miss you bedouin tent and saleim and bonfire.
i miss you vodka and diet sprite. mostly diet sprite. it's everywhere in israel.
i miss you underground and orange dresses and hipster boys and bathrooms.
i miss you jetlag who woke me up for five am conversations.
i miss you orthodox jews, including your curls and beautiful children.
i miss you hikes and pink exercise pants.
i miss you sean and me spilling your drink three times. i owe you.
i miss you graham and the way you "have to tell me something important."
i miss you eden and your disturbing picking.
i miss you shonna and all of our sharing: beds, clothes, chapstick, shekels, etc. (i washed the dress!)
i miss you special cow chocolate with the fireworks.
i miss you pringles at ten in the morning after a long night.
i miss you dana and nofar and our little common secret.
i miss you kosher food. just kidding, i despise you. where's the ice cream?
i miss you sam and eric. mostly your musical skills.
i miss you debra and your eloquent words which describe new things for me.
i miss you soldiers and your maturity. well, most of the time.
i miss you hotel room at the dead sea, which came complete with a three am cat fight.
i miss you israel, your history and depth changed me.

back in the us.

landed in chicago, waiting to go to san francisco. i will never fly iberia or american airlines again. more to come soon.