tiyul: galile #2

Today's tiyul brought us from home to home across Israel's Galile region-- first, a family of four living in a Bedouin-style tent to be closer to the land. Next, our guide's mother, one of the chalutzot, or pioneers, who came to Israel in the forties. Later that afternoon, we visited an Arab village; all 33 of us huddled into a stranger's basement sitting room, drinking small styrofoam cups of hot tea and listening to Aubrey's summarized translations of the man in the kafiya who explained to us the challenges an educated Arab faced in today's Israel. Discrimination in jobs, land rights, representation in the government-- the list was brief, but hit all the points that we take for granted as citizens of any country. Strange and somewhat depressing to see such a thoughtful, intelligent man inform us that our Promised Land and his Holy Land was also a land where he couldn't get a decent paying job.

In between housecalls, we returned to the misty hillsides of Zefat to visit the Artist's Quarter in the rain. Everyone says that Zefat is beautiful in the summer, that it's really too bad we couldn't see it in the sunshine, but I like it better the way I've come to know it. There's something about the place, with its crooked, Harry Potter-esque alleyways and lampposts, the music playing in small stone courtyards, the lovely overlooks of the mountains below-- I think if the mist lifted, it wouldn't be nearly as romantic, nearly as magical. Me and Jacqui looked through the shops, I couldn't find a keychain tacky enough for my liking, and we purchased hot chocolate and ice cream, respectively.

Dinner tonight was in the restaurant of a Yemenite Jew whose name I can't remember. I have no idea what any of the food was called but it was all delicious and I ate so much that, to be perfectly honest, I spent the entire 2.5 hour bus ride home wanting to vomit on myself. For those of you readers back home-- brace yourselves for the new Dory. She has gained the Freshman 15 a year early and she will kill a man for a choclate covered Oreo. Except that she doesn't have to, because her roommate Sam buys them on a regular basis and pretty soon she'll have a heart attack and drop dead.

True story.

Nothing else to report for tonight. Go Home Day is drawing ever nearer (10 days technically, but I'll round down to nine). I'm not really sure how I feel about it-- I miss everyone, to be sure, but saying goodbye to my friends here is defenitely going to smart.

Expect lots more entries before I leave! It's not over till...till it's over. Actually, more like until finals are over.

You get it.

xoxo