Back to the Holy Land

I'm back in action here in Kibbutz Ga'aton.

I got back a week ago after two weeks in the States. I attempted to write an entry about my time at home but if I don't do it right after something happens, I have a hard time getting it on this thing.

So some of the highlights were:

The Academy of Ballet show and ADC trip to Disney were I spent a joyous day running around Disney Land with mom, Kenzie, Blake, Margaret, Janet, Allisone, and Brian.

Seeing all my UT friends. When we get together,

it's as if we were never apart.

It DID NOT snow while I was in UT. Praise the Lord.

Seeing dancer friends at LINES.

Teaching a class for the Training Program.

Staying with Alex, Amelia, Alicia, Dan, and Laura in SF.

Realizing SF smells like a dirty bum and Israel smells like a cloud.

Spending time with family in Socal.

I am so happy to be back here and just as sad to leave my friends and family again. Everyone should move around with me. The end.

So, my first week back I jumped right back into classes and we went on a group trip to Jerusalem. It was nice to have already done the tourist educational side and to hear it again. I got so many details I didn't before. We also visited some of the Christian sites this time and spent a day learning about them. I love knowing that I/people are learning about something other then what I believe. I am here absorbed and loving the Jewish culture and I think it is great for Masa to learn about the Christian and Muslim side of Jerusalem. After all, it falls in to the 'Israel' category;)

I missed 4 Hebrew classes while I was gone and I was so lost on Tuesday. Ya...study, study, study!!! I spent a good chunk of time today in the studio catching up on the REP I missed. I am very excited for the next five months. The group is great, the choreography is amazing, and we are expanding our education in the Masa part of things to broaden our knowledge. 

I am committed to keep writing on this blog. I keep reminding myself of that. I think it is a good challenge for me. I really don't think anyone reads it apart from my mom and Stacy;) but it is good for my brain.

 

I Fly In Peace

I picked an interesting time in the middle east to travel.
To be fair, no one knew Lebanon AND Egypt's governments would be falling when I decided to come home;)


This was my first time flying out of Israel, so I don't know if all of this is normal procedure or not. I have been told it's harder to
 leave Israel then it is to come.
There was a passport/question session before leaving the train station.
Full luggage scan and questioning before I checked in. 
It seems to the security guard that it is odd I was in Israel for 5 months and am leaving now. I think "um, not really" I got asked everything- "Why were you here?" "Do you have friends here? Family?" "Why no family?" "Why am I leaving?" "What's in my bag?" "Who have I talked to?"
I am MORE then happy to answer all these questions and more, but I had to laugh when I was selected to have my bag completely unpack, then escorted to the check-in counter. After that, told I had to wait around for an hour why they kept my bags.
I was sent to a little "holding hall" with coffee and told to come back in one hour and get my bag and ticket.
It was a comfort to see a McDonald's...kosher McDonald's, and have it feel like America. I personally don't think its a good thing,
 but it does feel like home.
I had a chance to practice my poor, POOR Hebrew with a woman as she asked me to fix her computer. Let's say if my Hebrew is poor in normal life you can bet I don't know the "fix it terms" for a computer. 
She reminded me of my nana. So sweet.
When I went to get my stand-by ticket I realized all the other stand-by customers had their suitcases and I wasn't allowed to be out of site with mine. After I handed over my suitcase, they escorted me to security and sent me to "line 2". This so happen to be in a closed room where no one else was going. They bomb swatched me and everything I brought, 
then sent me to the gate. 
When it was time to get on the plane, they called someone and talked for three minutes before I was again, escorted, on to the plane. 
DO I LOOK LIKE A THREAT TO THE JEWISH STATE?
I don't think so. 
It will be fun getting back INTO Israel.


Let me say that I call miracles into my life everyday, 
and this trip home was no exception.
When I got to NY there was a storm coming and my mom wasn't sure I would get out of NY if I didn't leave soon.
I got through Border Control, Customs, baggage claim, cabbed it to another terminal, checked in with Jetblue, made it through JFK security- which took longer then in MIDDLE EAST, and walked on the plane as they were closing door all with-in TWO HOURS!
 People, this is amazing.
I got to Las Vegas and made it on the next flight that looked like I wouldn't. I usually wait till my name is called for a standby ticket, but this time I asked for my ticket and they just handed it to me. 
I ran on the plane and was ready to glue my butt to the seat in case they asked me to leave. 
Another quick plane transfer in Long Beach and I was in Salt Lake City.
My mom was waiting for me at baggage claim all gussied up. We grabbed my bags and she reminded me that we were going to the show of my old ballet studio. I looked at my sweat pants and did the math in my head, after 32 hours of traveling, where else should a dancer go 
except to the ballet? 


It's amazing I made all my flights and got home. 
That's what clear intention does for ya folks. 
I'll be using some of that clear intention on my flights back to the 
Holy Land.