אני כאן

אני כאן.

Ani Kahn- I am here.

I got here last night. I've already lost track of time; it seems that the one day (and a few hours) we've spent here have multiplied. I know where we go to eat, I know where I can explore with friends, I know where we pray, I know where we get lectured and are taught. It's not quite home, but it's certainly getting there.

This blog is meant for documenting my journey. I'm doing a terrible job of that thus far. Let me start over. Sunday morning, Sandy came over. We spent the day pretending I wasn't leaving and throwing things into a suitcase as though I might be sleeping over at her house for a few weeks. All was peachy and fun and happy until the doorbell rang and Mrs. Mattei took my baby away (Ramones reference. It's okay if you don't get it.) The tears we shared at the door were my last so far, I'm proud (and a bit ashamed) to say.

My mother and I left a few hours later. After half a Baumgart's sandwich, a few Aerosmith songs, and a rushed advice session (think "Israeli men will want you, keep yourself covered", and "Don't do anything stupid."), we arrived at Newark where my mother freaked because she missed the parent's meeting (think: "Don't worry, guys." and "Your children are safe with us"). Checking my luggage was the calmest bit of the process: the bag that Sandy and I packed was underweight, if you can believe that (high five to us, Sandy!) Then came the actual goodbye. Mom gave me a big hug, got teary eyed, and said how much she'd miss me. Then I met up with Meredith (think: UMC, NFTY GER, etc) and her bag of cookies that Adam had baked (god bless the kid) as we headed through security. After feeding a security lady three bite sized Adam Cohen cookies, we threw our stuff in a room with what seemed like a million teenagers who (unsurprisingly) seemed whole-heartedly disinterested in our entrance. Nothing new there.

Skip a few hours of awkward, forced chatter and some hugs with long-lost camp friends. Fast forward to an airplane. I've never been on such a large aircraft. There was room to stretch and skip around if I wanted to. 120 participants for EIE were on the plane, but there were still around a hundred other passengers there. I feel horrible for them: I've never been around such rowdy teenagers in such a public place. 10 hours on a plane with over a hundred kids who didn't have enough sense to use their "inside voices". I ended up bitching about the noise about 6 hours in, after I woke up for a fourth time to twelve people sitting in the row of four seats next to me. Obnoxious, no? The rest was uneventful. EXCEPT: i saw the sunrise from across the ocean! too cool. 

Fast forward to our arrival, by bus to Kibbutz Tzuba. (Which, for the record, is 20 minutes from Jerusalem and about 45 from Tel Aviv). Stepping off the bus into the new and previously uncharted (by myself) territory which is Kibbutz Tzuba in the nighttime, I was struck by one thing: the smell. I don't think I'll get used to it. It smells like...flowers. And fruits. And candy. And honey. And pine trees. It smells delicious; sometimes I think I can taste the air. We couldn't see much in the dark, but we went to dinner, had mini orientation, and located (and unpacked) our rooms. They look a bit like town houses (pictures to come later), but the insides are set up like suites. I have three roommates (suitemates? housemates?). They're all nice and fairly boring so far (I'm not allowing myself to judge as it is only the first full day and that's just not fair). We're a bit cramped on elbow space, and my bed is on the floor, but besides that it's fine.

I've been exploring nonstop with some friends. We found this absolutely beautiful garden, filled with orange and pink flowers and crazy shrubbery and cacti. There are wooden benches with roofs to sit beneath and rocks to drag your feet through. Looking to the east there is a breathtaking view of what may or may not be Jerusalem (don't laugh at me and my lack of knowledge. I'm learning). I've been back about four times today. It has easily become my favorite place on Tzuba. We also have visited a playground which has a GIANT HAMSTER WHEEL, and another neat (and unreachable) garden-type place which was perfect for sunset watching. My camera is proving to be a great investment. Unfortunately I left the instruction booklet at home...

Besides exploration, we've met with our teachers for the semester, learned all of the rules

(like six times), gotten a tour, and eaten a few meals. The food is really good, but Stephen wasn't

lying about the raw fish thing. I haven't eaten any yet-I probably won't. Besides the fish, there's an

incredible selection of vegetables and grains and other such wonders. The tomatoes are amazing.

I could live off of them alone.

What else? The jetlag is killing me. It's about 12:30 am and i'm so ridiculously tired but I can't

sleep because my brain is all screwy. We're waking up at 7 tomorrow for our first field trip, so I should

head to bed soon. We're going on an archaeological dig. Sounds good to me =] I'm going to steal a rock

to bring home. Scratch that, I mean pebble. My bags were heavy enough on the way here.

Tata to my three blog followers (i don't like that you guys are called 'followers'. it creeps me out.)

Hope to hear from you soon!

Write me letters?

leave my voicemails?

They would make me really happy.

Love to the birthland from the homeland.