I was thinking today about all the interesting social experiences I'm having in Jerusalem, and particularly at the Center. Partly because of my own choice, and partly because of responsibilities I've been given, I've had to "put myself out there" several times, in many different ways since being here. I've been up in front of people a lot, playing sports I'm not used to, singing alone/with others, teaching, speaking, etc etc. I've really opened up to these people, partly out of necessity, partly because I wanted to. I guess that's part of what makes this experience so unique: these people know me a lot better than a lot of people do, for better or for worse. I kind of like that.
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Ok. Happy Fourth of July everyone! I hope you had a great one because I sure did!
Being in Israel I wasn’t quite sure how to celebrate but finally a group of us decided there was no better way to commemorate our independence and government than to see someone else’s….riiiiight?…..even one so strange and different from ours….so yes. I toured the Supreme Court (hooray for justice!) and the Knesset (executive/legislative).
At the Supreme Court we sat around and waited awhile for a tour to start, but finally someone told us that the tour guides are on strike right now, so we didn't get a guided tour. We walked around in the building a little, and even got to go in to see a case. Of course, it was all in Hebrew so we didn't understand a word, but it was cool to watch. They totally busted a lady for taking pictures in there. (I might have snapped a couple too…..so sneaky….eh?)
(that's right. I wore red/white/blue on the Fourth...it was awesome)
The people behind me in this picture are Druze. Which is a religion sort of split off of Islam, but instead of Abraham being the patriarch, it’s Jethro the Midianite….and they believe in reincarnation….im not actually sure about other things…but…..they dress in black and wear white fedoras and there were a hundred or so walking around the building. Turns out they came to represent themselves and that some sort of legislation was going down that concerns them…so we maybe came on a sort of historic day for them….kinda cool.
Afterwards we sat in the Wohl Rose Garden in the same area, which is basically just a nice park, and ate our lunches….we took creepo/artsy/model pictures and it was just really nice to be able to have spontaneous fun with people.
notice the awkwardly positioned leg and feet.
i dont really know why im putting some of these pics up...sometimes i just think im really funny.....
Finally, we went to the Knesset. They took us on a tour, and it was very interesting. It was kind of like going to the Capitol building. We had to show our passports to get in. We saw the room where the legislative branch meets. Their seats are arranged in the shape of a menorah on the floor. The seats that we sat in were really comfortable. :)
One of the most interesting things about the day was that it was the 4th of July, and we were at another country's government buildings. It did make me appreciate my life more. I missed being home today, just a little bit.
Knesset! hooray for government!
For dinner back at the Center tonight, we had a fun barbecue. The kitchen worked really hard, and the Jacksons, one of our service couples, talked to them about how to make American food. We had hamburgers and hot dogs, potato salad, potato chips (my favorite part!), coleslaw, and more stuff like that. It was so good. For dessert there was sort of real apple pie and really good ice cream, and brownies. We sat out on the balcony and had a 4th of July party looking out at Jerusalem! We sang the Star Spangled Banner, and it made me miss home again.
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American food!
We had bobbing for apples, fishing for candy, and face painting. Brother Emmett and Brother Manscill, our religion teachers, bobbed for apples against each other, and got soaked. Mike, Courtney and I got red, white, and blue hand prints on our faces. I looked like an Indian. Blake got smallpox painted on his face. Heather was Spiderman. I'll post pictures soon. When it got dark, we did sparklers on the balcony. It was one of the funnest nights of the whole program so far.
Happy Fourth of July!
Okay, first of all, your awkward foot pose is so totally Urban Outfitters-esque. In the other one it looks like you discovered a new insect and were trying to think up a good name for it. I love them both. :)
ReplyDeleteYour hotdog bun looks so good and not like the bleached nothingness one buys at the store! I've been thinking about a good bun recipe so i myself can avoid it.
Lastly, I will say that things are pretty cool here in UT. Just doing classes (bookbinding!!!) and art history (eh) and finishing up my BFA art show. Should be good!