Pasta fun!

Last night, Sarah imparted her Italian wisdom on Jenn, Allie and I and taught us how to make pasta! The first step is mixing the flour and egg. After letting it rise you roll it out and cut it into the length you want. The last step is hanging it to dry. It was so messy, but so fun!

drying the pasta

when you don't have a rolling pin... use a wine bottle! 

 covered in flour! 

waiting for the pasta to dry!

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ready to eat! 

Making waves in Tel Aviv

For the next part of break, I headed to Tel Aviv with Jenn, Allie, Sarah and Julie. We stayed in a great hotel next to the beach and spent friday and saturday on the shore and in the water. Friday night we went to services with Beit Tfila at the Port. It was amazing to relax and hang out with great friends!  Here are some of my favorite pictures from the trip.

Summer break - part 1

This week, on Tuesday I had my Hebrew final and on Wednesday I had my Biblical History final. I am happy to report that I passed both classes! On Wednesday to celebrate, we had a screening of the movie Keeping the Faith at school.

Hanging out on the lawn, with snacks a good movie and great friends!

The next day, the break relaxation continued when Jade came over and we made sweet potato fries and white cheddar and apple grilled cheese for lunch! So nice to hang out with friends, make yummy food and relax! 

Perfect Shabbat!

With the stress of finals, a quiet and relaxing Shabbat was definitely what I needed. Lucky for me, my good friend Allie felt the same and we had a relaxing Shabbat together!

Before heading to services, we decided to make our desert. The night before when she came over we picked out a recipe for m&m cookie bars.

After making our dessert, we headed to services at Kehillat Har-El, which is quickly becoming one of my favorite Shabbat places. It reminds me so much of home and TBT. We were given to honor of leading the congregation in the lighting of the Shabbat candles!

Following services we came home and had candles, kiddush and challah.

Then we proceed to cook our dinner- peppers stuffed with quinoa and roasted potatoes and squash. Of course after that it was time for cookie cake! Perfect and relaxing evening!

Rehovot and Tel Aviv trip!

On Thursday, I left from school to go to Rehovot to visit Chen! I hadn't seen her since winter 2011! We hung out at her house, caught up and made awesome shakshuka! 

Friday morning I left Rehovot and took a sheirut (shared taxi) to Tel Aviv where I met my school friends. Allie and I made the most of our day in Tel Aviv, going to the artists market, shuk, dziengof shopping mall and the beach!

Friday night, we all met for services on the pier! It was beautiful and we watched the sunset! 

     

top 5's from pre-ulpan

During orientation, preulpan was asked to lead a portion of the oneg shabbat. We decided to impart our wisdom from living in Jerusalem for a month on our classmates:

The Top 5 Things We Learned in Pre-Ulpan

1. There is a rule for everything in Hebrew, but it only applies 60% of the time.

2. If you would like to know more about Dr. Ticho’s house, life in Meah Shearim, or the Dead Sea Scrolls, please see a pre-ulpan-ner.

3. It’s easier to just show your watch to someone than to try and tell them the exact time in Hebrew.

4. During your 30 minute break, you CAN make it to Mamilla and back with a new skirt, Tums, lotion, and Aroma ice kafeh.

5. According to your ulpan book, there are only 5 names in all of Israel: Yossi, Ruti, Danny, Dinah, and Rinah.

The Top 5 Guessing Games to Play in Israel

1. Baby screaming or stray cat?

2. Wig or awesome hairdo?

3. Am I allergic to this?

4. Car alarm or traffic jam?

5. Gunshots or fireworks?

Top 5 Things to Remember During Emergency Situations in Israel

1. Drain-O is sold at most supermarkets and corner stores.

2. Empty fridge on Shabbat? Want bacon? Craving cheeseburgers? It’s all on either Hillel or Shammai.

3. Everything will always break at 4pm on Friday. And no, there isn’t anyone available to come out and fix it.

4. When that happens, frantically call Nancy 4 times and then call Keith Eiser.

5. There is no such thing as an emergency to Israelis.

Top 5 Things We Will Miss From the US/Canada

1. Good, non-instant coffee.

2. Having a car.

3. One-stop shopping.

4. Hot water in the morning.

5. Mexican food.

Top 5 Fun Facts About the HUC Jerusalem Campus

1. The fountains only run when important people are on campus (and for the record, they ran for ALL of pre-ulpan).

2. The wineglass in the 101-102 bathroom has been there since June 1.

3. Ben Sira is not only the closest chummus to campus, but also the best.

4. If you don’t have time to take a shower in the morning, the guy in the courtyard with the power washer will be happy to give you a shower for 10 shekels.

5. SOMEONE has a gate key. Please identify yourself.

Top 5 Things The Stranger at Your Apartment Door is Looking For

1. Money. Tzedakah, Vaad Bayit, money.

2. Looking for the people who lived there 15 years ago.

3. To fix something you never realized was broken.

4. Asking you to tone down the rowdy bentsching on Shabbat.

5. Money.

Top 5 Things Only Americans Do in Israel

1.  Say “slicha”

2. Tip the cabbie.

3. Wait in line.

4. Take coffee to go.

5. Wait forever at a restaurant, expecting someone to deliver the check.

Top 5 Things to Know About Israeli Food

1. Idaho is far away from Israel, so potatoes are not brown.

2. Cucumbers are the lettuce of Israel.

3. You can buy your weight in tomatoes for 15 shekels, but in order to buy a single steak, you’ll need to dip into your student loans.

4. Chummus is a sauce, a side dish, a main course, and can also be used as a burn ointment.

5. If you haven’t been to Marzipan bakery, there will be a hold put on your registration until the situation is remedied.

Mexibbat

On Friday, I was able to host 30 of my classmates for Shabbat. Missing America I decided to do what I hope will be the first of many themed Shabbos dinners - Mexican Shabbat. As the main course, I made a Mexican casserole and my classmates brought amazing sides!

For services, I attended the Great Synagogue. The Cantor was phenomenal and the building was gorgeous!

                                               

                                                             The beautiful sanctuary

                                              Fun with friends at my apartment!