Getting ready for Rosh Hashanah

As I type I am sitting in my hotel room in Eastbourne, I can actually hear the seagulls on the sea, and for that matter the sound of holiday makers enjoying the last of summer. Its actually very summer like. Shortly I will head off to lead the evening services for Rosh Hashanah.  I am feeling pretty up-beat about it. My sermon is good and I am happy with my study session for tomorrow and with my Torah reading (we will have to see how things actually go.)
  But I certainly feel much happier this year than I did last, and so much more so than my first time leading in Coventry.
It has made me think about the past, last year in Manchester, two years ago in Coventry and amazing three years ago in Jerusalem. Before that things blur into the many, many High Holy Day seasons I spent at Menorah.
( I am also getting to grips with Yom Kippur, sermons, readings, and study sessions) but I still have a bunch of stuff to do.
On the new flat front, there is still some stuff to do, admin stuff mostly.  Last week Emily's mum was over from Canada. To help with the move, and it was really really useful to have her around to help. It was also fun, especially I think for Emily.
Mainly work, but some fun things also, a window shopping trip to London proper.
Any this is really no time to be blogging. I am going for a short walk before services.

Shannah Tovah to one and all.

May 5774 be year of blessings and joys for all who read this.

In the final strecht

Today was the last Israel seminar of the year, and tomorrow is all but the last actual day. I think we have class on Sunday and then really soon my class mates start to leave and then I leave...I only have 16 days left thats barely two weeks. And although I would not have believed it possible at the start of this (July 2010) but i really do not want to leave. I have ajusted to HUC and love Israel and have a number of people here to whom I am amazingly close. And I just don't want to go, I really want to see my family and met up with my Friends back home. But I want to go knowning that I'll be back. I am going to miss people like Nathan and Chava, Gavi, Sam (both of them), Iah, Laura, Tina and many more. But I am going to miss Israel most of all. it is going to be hard going from a place that is so vaberant Jewishly to one that is less so. And i know that London is better than where i came from (in terms of its Jewish life that is) but even so.
I am really trying to make the most of these last few days of being in Israel. Then of course there is the little matter of finals and my PhD waiting for me to finish it when I get back home.

Swift to its close

So the year is now rushing on swift wings towards its conclusion. I must say that this is taking me aback a bit. It started so slowly and now, and now. I have read from the Torah last Thursday and that was the last of my 'things to do' not really because there is still lots of stuff to learn and course work to do exam to take etc., and also I am going to be helping Emily with her service but that is voluntery. It was also become very hot again here in Jerusalem as it looks as though the Summer is about to get going. Sigh.

Last night I went to Friday night dinner around at Tinas, my Chuverut partner. Laura was therre along with Jackei from Kita Alef and Jackei and Tina's new flat mate Ester. She is working for a NGO and comes from London always nice to meet another Brit. :)

It was a fun night started with Kabbalat Shabbat at Shir Hadasha (a MO synagogue on Emek) and then dinner. Although Tina and Jackei did play an Apirls fools day joke on me, lots of salt in the dessert. Actualy it was quite funny.

I don't know what the course was but there was a lot of music and shouting and general noies in Abu Tur last night so I didn't get a lot of sleep ah well. Looking forward to April and May and then home.

After the shabbaton

So I have been recovering from the Shabbaton, and have had a tough day at uni although I have had time to go to the Shuk which was good. Bought lost of food, and stuff and had a nice long walk. Learning Pi'el Lammed Hay verbs. Got lots of work to do. so had better get going and do something rather than sitting hear blogging.

Yet another post

So hey not sure what is happening that i am posting again so soon. Mum and Dad have returned to Enland, well actually at the moment they are still on route, it was really nice having them here even for such a short time. I have had my Hebrew oral and i think that it went well. It was about Herod's tomb (which is in a park behind the King David Hotle) .

I also want to reassure anyone reading this that I am okay and well after yesterday's event.

Purim and mum and dad

We are having fun, on Saturday night I took mum and dad to Havdalah at HUC, although it was a small turn out, and then we went to the old city and the westernall...on Suday we went shopping at the Shuk which both mum and dad liked a lot. Latter that evening we all went to Kol HaNeshamah (where we went for Friday night as well) to hear the Megilah read. Its been lots of fun so far. :)

Today they went on a tour of Jlem while i stayed home at the flat to get ready for my Hebrew oral examination tomorrow and to do some other things as well

Started well.

Hey today started well but went down hill fast. :( woke up early enough to get a bit of extra study done and some work and then headed into school. On the way I met a friend who I knew worked for part of the year in JLem so that was nice, and the morning service at HUC was great it was led in a style i like and the drash was great...and I wasn't even that concerned about the exam i had coming up, I had revisied hard for it and new most if not all of the new vocabuary I need for it. Then I sat the exam, and let us say that I don't think it went well. Although I am hoping it wasn't quite as castrophic as i fear it may have been. It was the kind of exam where you want to get up in the middle and scroow your exam paper into a ball and though it into the bin on the way out, and then keep going to the air-port and then away from here to alomst anywhere. (I am not feeling quite that down right now but still very very grummpy.

Then I had a class on second temple history i dont think that i took all that much in because i was still a little hept up after exam. Then we had a Biblical History Tiylal to the Israel musem...which would have been good if I had not been so very very tired.
We had a Tiyal yesterday as well. As part of Israel Seminar to Tel Aviv, which was interesting. We went to the cemitary which I liked because i always enjoy them and Tel Aviv Old Cemitary is an especially good one. I also liked Bialik's house and the walking tour and it was so so nice to get to the beach even if only for a few minutes and to be able to dip ones toes into the sea. lovely.

Brake

My short brake is almost over, which is a shame but i am ready for the term to begin for really, and it will be very nice indeed to do something other than Modern Hebrew. In fact we do lots and lots of things so i am going to be rather busy. We start tomorrow with Israel Seminar and then things go on from there.
My hoilday included quite a bit of cleaning, which isn't too bad because I quite enjoy it and the flat needed/needs it. And getting ready for semester tomorrow. But I did get to hang out with Laura, we went to the Old city, which I hadn't really been to the whole time I've been here. (I know I have gone to the Kotel twice, once on Tish ab Av and once with women of the wall) but this was a propper trip we did go to the wall again. And around the Jewish area and then the Shuk and some of the Muslem part and finally the Chirstain section. Before we headed to King George the 5th Street and did some book shopping. Today I am just resting and doing a very little cleaning. Although I did have to get up early to go for my LD Hebrew lesson Yossi says that I am getting better but I am still finding it very hard work.

A short brake

At the end of the Ulpan and before we start our Fall Semester (which looks like it is going to be both interesting and very hard work) we have a short, and I mean very short brake. Friday is Friday here, although it is filled with the stuff of life: Cleaning and wahing and generally getting ready for shobbos, this Friday was quite stressful because we had to going down town to try and sort something out, which cut into what little time we actually had. The Vice Prinicle of our College was in Israel so he came to Friday Night dinner to see how we (all the LBC Students were doing and to general say hi and make sure that we are getting everything we need.), that was really nice and we had a plesant meal together earlier we went to Kol HaNeshamah, and I went there the next day also for Shabbat Mornng. In the evening Laura came over and we had the traditional Saturday night meal (leftovers) and we had a fun evening I have persuaded Laura to learn chess. (I love chess) and we had our first game. We also went for an evening walk, not far but we got some beautiful views of the oldcity, from two directions. And then today some more cleaning of the apartment (Which is looking really raher nice at the moment.) And later I will do some work before heading out to meet up with Laura again.
I am starting to really really love it here and to appericate quite how lucky I am to be here. Although I will almost certainly need reminding of that at a later date when I am struggling to keep my head above water workwise. But at the moment all is good and things are going well. :)

End of summer Ulpan

At last the summer ulpan is over, not that that is the end of my studying modern Hebrew, and I will in fact miss my Ulpan teachters Tammy and shelly. In the end my overall score was 90%, which was made up from attandace and participation in class, homework, quizes, tests, and the final examination. I am happy with my overall result as i can now go on into the accademic year proper.
Yesterday we had a serisis of seminars on aspects of the yomim norim. (the High Holy Days), which were, at least for the most part interesting. Now i have to clean the flat and get ready for shabbat. And then we get a nice if short hoilday and i may actually get the oppintunity to explore Jerusalem. I am also pleased to say that it is cooler in Israel than it has been.

Getting to Isreal, and lots of Hebrew

So I am now in Israel! The flight was ok and after a longish taxi ride I reached the apartment Naomi and Emily where already there. I was feeling rather ill after all the travelling and the heat here. The flat is lovely though and I think that Abu Tur is fantistic. The next morning I had six hours of Ulpan starting fritst thing so I headed off feeling sharted. Reut is a fantastic teach and I have made lots and lots of progress in just the few days Tuesday, Wednesday and Thrusday...tomorrow is Friday and I only have lessions in the morning. In addition to lots and lots of Hebrew I have had meetings both at HUC and elsewhere. So things are really busy and I am so tired!
But it is totally briliant to be in Jerusalem...it is so lovely...and even in the midist of my business I have found time for a few moments of enjoyment (Maybe 35 in total) but even that small amout makes me want to stay here for as long as possible. I have also been so lucky with my flatmates...Naomi and Emily are simply the loveliest people that you could ever want to meet. And I am sure that we are going to surport one and other and become amazing friends.

More on Hebrew

So I am making me an amazing amount of progress with my Hebrew. Ruet is an amzing teaching and we have rushed though and though lots of material, both book one Safer sheli kita alef and safer pu'al alef sheli (my first Hebrew verb book), I have even started reading simplified news papers. I still don't know if I will am going to have done enough to pass my exam. I have however done most of my preparations i am bouncing between really excited and horribly nervious. Up and down, up and down, up and down. Its very tirying. But whatever happens I have learnt a lot of Hebrew and am looking forward to going to Israel and meating Naomi and Emily in the really world and being in our flat.

Things move on again

So things are really moving on at a pace. I have signed the lease on the flat in Jlem and sent off the signed contract by post as well as wiring the depost to my landlord. I also feel that I am getting to know my flatmates to be although only via Facebook and texts and emails. I still need to get my visa sorted although I have all the documentation that i require so it should be relatively straightforward to sort it out. (That said nothing else has been as easy as i had hopped it would be). As I write I still haven't heard from LBC about either the finanices or the results of my Hebrew exam. I am hopeful that all that will change this week.

Jerusalem

Hey things have changed and moved on again. I think that fingers crossed I have a place to stay in Jerusalem. Thanks to the amazing Emily :) if things work out how I hope they will and as things are planned at the moment, then there will be four of us sharing a really nice looking apartment in Jlem. So now all I have to do is get my visa, and plan tickets and of course pass my Hebrew exam.

Hebrew exam and J-lem

Well things are moving on at a pace at the moment. So I am revising away for my Hebrew exam which i sit in ten days time so there still is time (if not plenty of it), to do more revision. I have had one practice session over a past paper with Devorah (i think it went okay maybe even well) I am not worried about the grammar part of the exam as my Hebrew grammar is really pretty good. But some of the other parts are really very difficult.
I also may have found flatmates for when I am in J-lem they are really nice and i am hopeful it will all workout well. But even if it doesn't I am getting to know some of my future fellow students at HUC; and so far they're all really lovely and friendly. So I am starting to go from nervious to excited. :)
Apart from that I am working away on my thesis, which is really taking shape, although it is hard for me tell whether it is anygood or not (I think its okay-good but not great). There are still lots of little and not so little things to get sorted before I move to Israel and start on my rabbinic course but at the moment I am in a good place. Re-starting meditation as help there I think.