יומ הולדת סמאח לקטורה

Today is the Kibbutz's 35 birthday! All the children had the day off from school, everyone else from work. It's been a fun day. A fun weekend, really. Wednesday we had a Global Chilling Party (some students decided the best way we can fight global warming is if we chill out a little, because everyone too stressed about school). There was good music, great snacks, punch, a drum circle for a little while, and we danced in paint (for an art piece we gave to the kibbutz for its birthday). Yesterday was some activities for the kibbutz, but also just a good relaxing day. I did some cleaning and made PUMPKIN PIE! And then last night was the tradition kibbutz BBQ (the Israelis on Ketura are sooooooooo American. I wonder if the nearby kibbutzim make fun of them here?). Tonight is Shabbat, and there's some talk of a bonfire after dinner. Tomorrow is more Shabbat relaxing and kibbutz birthday celebration, and then to bed early after Havdalah, because the class trip starts Sunday at 5 AM. Here's some pictures of all the fun I'm having!

Tel Aviv at sunset:
From the Old Jaffo neighborhood of Tel Aviv:

After dancing in paint:
Eliot and I switched caps for a little while at the Chilling Party:

I went on a 47 mile bike ride today. At least, that how long I think it was. 122 km, I think I was told? I don't remember. I thought it was straight from Ketura to Eilat, about 50 km. It was not. It was much much longer. With hills. When I reached the top crest of the last hill, and I could see Eilat's hotels, and the sea, and Aqaba over in Jordan, I almost started to cry. It was so beautiful, and I was so tired, and so happy to see my destination. I'm still very tired. And sore. But here's a picture from the Rainbow Gathering that my roommate finally uploaded:

Front row (from left): Anna, Hazem, ME, Ghadeer (my roomie). Next row: Sarah, Moutassem, Khoulud. Behind Sara, you can sort of see Eric's hat. I don't know who that guy on the side making a kissy face is.

It's been a while....

I've been very busy, so I haven't updated much. There's just always a lot going on with school and student life activities, and the need to just have "me-time." But now I have time to say a few things. First, I went to Tel Aviv this weekend! It was very exciting! I didn't really do anything to write home about (as they say) but it was just really nice to get off of the kibbutz and into a real city for a little while. A lot of people were in Tel Aviv, but we all had our own agenda, which was also really good. No one was ever really alone, but its not like the Arava Institute was in Tel Aviv, either. We made some new Israeli friends, which was very exciting. I hope we actually keep in touch, because it was a fun weekend. But friends met in bars are not always reliable to be real friends, so we'll see.
Another interesting fact, I had mammal meat for the first time in 8 1/2 years. About a week ago, I was in Eilat with a few friends and we went to a Brazilian Steak House, the kind where they bring around all the different cuts of meat, and you take little bits of everything. I ordered vegetarian, but decided I wanted some of the experience, so I tasted some Arik's beef. Also this weekend I did the same with lamb. I still can't bring myself to order it on my own, but if someone else is offering me a bite, I figure, Israel is the best place to eat meat. At least here I know the meat is kosher, which means its grown locally (not in giant cow pastures in South America where rain forests should be), slaughtered "humanely" (and not kept in tiny cages until lured to gruesome deaths), and is not pumped full of hormones (not what you might call organic or free range, but definitely a step up from American meat). And its small amounts, but maybe it adds some protein and iron into my meal.
And finally, some observations that amuse me:

• Middle Easterners have no concept of time

• Israelis are very honest, it's part of the "no manners" culture.
  
• Jews have very flat feet and are fuzzy
  
• Israeli pigeons are like NYC pigeons' more attractive cousin. They have prettier coloring on their wings, and they're not as gross and aggressive
• There is a serious cat problem in the Middle East
• And finally, Israeli mosquitoes love me. This one actually isn't amusing anymore. It's sort of a problem. I'm going to try buying new soap and moisturizer, but if the bites continue after that, I think I'm going to go to a doctor to see if maybe they're not bites at all, but some sort of allergic reaction. I'm the only one who has them as many, as big, and as often. I'm scarring from all the scratching. Right now, my arms are covered in anti-histamine ointment, hydrocortisone, and band aids (to stop me from being able to scratch

Science is scary

I have a test tomorrow in Climate Change, and I'm very nervous. I was just looking over the lecture notes, and I think that I understand everything, but I always think that I understand this sciency stuff, but then the exam comes around and its never as simple as it seems, and I get numbers mixed up, and I end up only getting half-points on every question. And that's how I end up with a 100-level natural science evaluation like, "Elizabeth is clearly not a science student, but A for effort!" and with that D in marine biology. Just to make matters worse, the only time the official review session could be is during Hebrew class. Those of us in Hebrew class will be having our own review session, but when its led by the professor, sometimes you get hints on what questions will be asked, and more precise information for the test itself. Wish me luck! The test is at 8 AM.

Booo science

I got my marine biology grade back. I passed, but just barely. I'm really disappointed, because I actually liked that class. It makes me nervous about Environmental Science, though at least I have 3 months to get the hang of it (instead of 6 class days).

On a happier note, my friend Arielle (who I lived with in Cape Cod this summer) sent me a Halloween-y package. Look at my spoils!