The Past Two Weeks, Part I- Yokneam

1. I am behind on my posts. I am starting where I left off (about 2 weeks ago) and working my way up. Additionally, the dates do not post correctly. It's really March 26.
2. For some strange reason, I can't respond to comments left on the blog! It may just be the Muss computers. So for those of you I know (Allison, Ari, Erin, Dana)- love you and miss you! And for those of you I don't know, thanks for your support and comments.

So. Two weeks ago. After our Weber afternoon, we boarded a bus to Yokneam, Atlanta's sister city in Israel. We were to be split up into pairs and assigned to host families. Having never stayed in a random person's house before, let alone one who didn't speak my language, I was a little nervous, but I cannot say enough good things about the people of Yokneam. We arrived at a park in the evening to meet the group of kids that would be hosting us and played a round of iniative games and got to know everyone. My friend Hannah and I stayed with a girl named Mor, who was basically the sweetest person ever. Her dad took us home and we went to bed at 9 (they keep us busy around here and we were exhausted). The next day we all went for a hike, and of course, it was absolutely beautiful- the usual rolling hills, agricultural fields, wildflowers, and blooming trees of Israel. It was so interesting to talk to all of the Yokneam kids during the walk, who were mostly our age, because they are about to go the army and we were about to go Gadna the next week (I will explain Gadna in a later post, but basically it's a program that all Israeli kids go on before the army, sort of like a mini- boot camp). Trying to communicate with our language barriers and hearing their different perspectives on life was really cool. We also went for an off-road Jeep ride that day, and I saw what Land Rovers are really supposed to be used for, to say the least. Afterwards, we all departed to our separate homes. Mor, Hannah, and I took a glorious 3 hour nap and then had Shabbat dinner. I have to describe the food, for my own memory's sake, because Friday night and Saturday may have been the most glorious two eating days of my life. I told my family it was like a marathon Thanksgiving dinner, but the reference was a little lost on non- Americans. Still, they served us whole fishes for appetizers, two types of roasted vegetables, meat, a Yemenite baked eggplant dish, potatoes, couscous, raw vegetables and salads, and chocolate cake for dessert- definitely a step up from Muss cafeteria food. Besides the food, my first Shabbat with an Israeli family was quite enjoyable. Dinner was savored and eaten slowly, lasting almost two hours, with plenty of time for conversation, laughter, and digestion in between courses. Afterwards, at around 10, we (the girls) walked for 30 minutes to a friend's house so all of the Weber and Yokneam kids could get together, because Mor's parents didn't drive on Shabbat. At first, the city girl inside of me was a little nervous about walking this long this late at night, but the streets were literally deserted, and Mor told me she did this all the time (I warned her not to in America). It was such a nice feeling- I felt safe and calm, and it was nice to be in fresh air and walk off my meal. It also made me appreciate my life in America a little bit more, because how often do I have to walk half an hour to see my friends? Anyway, we went to hang out with everyone and it was a lot of fun, and we walked back at around midnight with no qualms. Crazy.
Shabbat morning dissapeared into Shabbat afternoon; we woke up at around 11 to awesome meal number 2. The family, who has Yemenite roots, made us two traditional foods- jachnon and cubano. Cubano was like a savory couscous/bread casserole, and it sort of tasted like yeast. The jachnon, however, was a glorious fried-bread-phyllo-dough-esque roll that when eaten with tomato, zoog (a spice blend), and yogurt was absolutely delicious. Brunch was followed by family Rummikub playing, chatting, more food (yes, they fed us dessert after breakfast- traditional Jewish hospitality) and another walk to see Weber and Yokneam friends. Shabbat here was exactly as it was supposed to be- relaxing, free of work, and full of good company- and the cool thing was that the whole city was doing it, not just a select few families. But before we knew it Shabbat ended, and the whole group had a rather tearful goodbye as the Weber kids boarded the bus. I can't speak for everyone, but I think the majority of us felt that even though we had only known our Yokneam families for a few days, their hospitality and kindness made us feel like we were a part of their community. I hope these kids visit us in Atlanta and keep in touch, not only to fulfill the purpose of our city partnership, but because they and their families were wonderful people- I didn't know strangers could be so nice. You guys might not see this, but to the city of Yokneam, our host families, and program coordinators- a million thanks for a wonderful few days.