Eurotrip: Day 19- 26 London, Bath, and Stonehenge

After an amazing trip in Italy, it was time to set out for London. I was realy excited to reunite with friends. In order to get there though I had to take a 15 and a half hour train ride from Rome to Paris and then switch train stations to catch the eurostar to London. Well all I can say was that was one interesting ride. I can laugh about it now, but at the time I was having a heart attack. I get on the train and a man offers to help me with my bag. Perfect, that was so nice of him. When he looks at my ticket to see which room I am in, he says "oh your with me". Secretly I am starting to freak out. This is an overnight train where I get a bed and go to sleep. When I made my reservation, the agent failed to mention he had booked me in a mixed male/female room and I was feeling very uncomfortable. Now I thought the situation could not get worse, but of course it did. Next walks in a 450 pound woman who is crying because she does not really fit down the halls and it was a clearly a very upsetting and humiliating walk to our room. She proceeds to take out the worst smelling fish I have ever smelt and it stunk up the room. Just after the walked in came another woman who felt compelled to say only one thing to me when she walked in "Me, Arab". I was not quite sure why that was relevant, but she felt that was the only thing I should know about her, since we had no language in common and therefore it was really difficult to communicate. To make a long story short, in the end the man ended up moving (thank god) and that made the situation a lot better. The large woman stopped crying and screaming into her phone at somebody and that made it easier to sleep. And as for the Arab woman, even without verbal communication we managed to be friends. We made eye contact about the smelly fish and then she sprayed perfume in the room. We also figured out that we both had to change from Paris Bercy train station to Gare du Nord and ended up splitting a cab ride. Now that it is all over I look back at this insane experience, but hard to deal with as it was happening.

Now for the good part London! London was amazing and I cannot thank my friends there enough for the hospitality they showed me. A friend of mine who is originally from London had his parents host me while I was in town. What made it awesome was that he was also visiting for the weekend. His family welcomed me like there own and made it so comfortable for me to be there. Also, I had previously met some of his friends from London who had come over to visit Toronto over the summer so it was great getting a chance to see all of them again. My first day in London I spent at the British Museum. Four hours later I had still not seen everything, but I had seen the things that I had gone to see and it was amazing. I stood and stared at the Rosetta Stone for quite some time marvelling at how instrumental this stone was in deciphering hieroglyphics and all we have learned because of that.

After that was Shabbat and a great get together on sat night with old and ne friends. Sunday my friends took me siteseeing in the city. It was great fun, not just because I got a hance to see the touristy sites with local "tourguides" but I got a chance to hang out with people that make smile. We had a fantastic day starting at Buckingham Palace which we got to just in time for the changing of the guard plus the flag was up so we know the Queen was in residence. After that we walked to Whitehall, then Westminster Abbey, Big Ben, and the London eye. At that point it started to rain so we went into a market where I picked up a few souveniers and then made our way to Maple Leaf (the Canadian bar). After that we went over to one of their friends places and watched the football game Birmingham vs, Arsenal. My first real introduction to the world of football by people who really follow it. I honestly had a great day :)

The next day I was heading out to Bath and was lucky enough to get a ride to Bristol which is a city very close to Bath and an easy train ride. The company was much better than taking the train :). Bath was one of those places that might seem off the beaten path for the usual trip to London, but I had been dying to see the Roman baths and they did not disappoint. They were every bit of amazing I had thought they would be. Water still flows into the baths and  it makes you want to just walk in. You could really get a picture of what the place would have looked like 2000 years ago. To really understand why this place has been so popular for thousands of years, I went and checked out the modern spa and spent time in the therapeutic waters. It was a perfect end to the day. The day after I went to stonehenge. I had wanted to do a whole day tour, but since it was winter and not many tourist go at that time, they were only offering the half day tour. It ended up being just perfect! I got to see stonehenge get guided around the area by someone who has spent his entire life in Bath and make new friends. I made friends with a girl around my age who was travelling around with her father. After the tour was over, we ended up going to one of the pubs in town and trying a pint of locally brewed beer. Even though I was travelling alone at this point, it didn't feel like it.

After Bath I went back to London for a day to see a friend from university who had moved out there and then I went to Brussels..... Stay tuned for more!

Eurotrip: Day 10-18 Barcelona, Venice, Florence, and Rome

I have been so busy lately that I have not had a chance to update on my adventures, and there is so much to tell! After France I took a 12 hour train ride to Barcelona. This was the first time I have ever taken an overnight train and it was a wonderful experience. I had an amazing time in Barcelona. It was the first time I have ever been in Spain and I loved it. I was only in town for a day and a half but I managed to see so much. I wandered down Las Ramblas, saw the local marked, took a walking tour of the Gaudi buildings, and saw Roman Barcelona (an underground museum of the archaeologial excavations of the Roman city). It was a lot to pack in but it was so worth it!

Barcelona Market

Gaudi

After Barcelona I hopped on a plane to Venice. Venice is an amazing and beautiful city. Carnivale officially started while I was there so it was amazing to see all the costumes and everyone walking in the streets with their masks on. Of course I had to buy a mask and add it to my collection. Last year when I was in new Orleans I bought a Mardi Gras mask. In Venice I had the chance to spend Shabbat at Gam Gam kosher restaurant which is run by the Chabad of Venice. It was such an amazing experience to put Jews from all around the world at one table and see how many people we have in common. As I sat down I looked at a couple and said "Aren't you the couple who helped me out at the airport"? Turns out it was! How amazing is that. Also, Murano is now one of my favorite places. Watching the glass blowers do their craft is a must see on any trip to Venice and the pieces they make are incredible and beautiful.

Rialto Bridge

After Venice I took the train to Florence for one day and a night. I fell in love with the city almost immediately. My first stop was the leather market. This is one of the best places I got to go during my travels. The scarves and the leather products are just amazing. I picked up a pair of torquoise leather gloves with rabbit fir inside for only 23 euros! This adds to the 2 pairs (pink and purple) of leather gloves I have purchased in Venice for 30 euros each. I picked up a few bright and colourful scarves which tends to be a conversation starter. I wandered through the streets and enjoyed the beauty as I tried (horribly) to find the Kosher market. In the end I hopped in a cab and five minutes later I was there. Florence is such a confusing city, but I loved having the time to just wander around. The next morning I had a few hours before my train to Rome so I hopped over to the Academia and had the chance to see Michelangelo's David. What a spectacular site to see. It is huge and amazing. Although my favorite sculpture is still Bernini.

After Florence I went to Rome for 2 days and one night. It was nice to wander the streets again after a few years since spemding 3 weeks living there on an exchange. I was surprised that even though I didn't know street names, I somehow managed to always know which direction I should be walking and make it to my destination. Since I only had a short amount of time I wanted to get in as much as I could. I showed  a friend around Piazza Navona and Campo de Fiori on our way to the Jewish Ghetto for dinner. Honestly I think that dinner was the best food I have eaten on my entire trip. The gnocchi literally melted in my mouth. Amazing :). The next day I went on a tour of the Vatican Museums which is incredible but exhausting. It took longer than anticipated and after that it was time to go pick up food and snacks for the 18 hour train I was embarking on. More on that in the next post.

swiss gaurd

Eurotrip: Day 5-9 Loire Valley and Paris

My eurotrip continues :) After a day trip to Versaille I went down to the Loire Valley for a few days to see see other chateaux. All |I can say is the area is spectacular. My friend and I decided to stay in the village of Amboise. It is a sleepy little French village and I loved it! In town there was Chateau D'Amboise and Cos Luce (which the place Leonardo Da Vinci lived in the last years of his life and is buried there). One of the other smaller villages (Chenonceaux) has Chateau Chenonceau which was grander than Amboise but less than Versaille. The scenery was gorgeous and it was nicle to be able to do things on a more relaxed pace.

 Main entrance to Chateau Chenonceau

Chateau Chenonceau



Leonardo Da Vinci grave



Chateau D'Amboise

After spending a few days down in the valley we returned to Paris. Originally we were supposed to go further south down to Provence but timing just didn't work out for us. Instead we decided we were better off coming back to Paris, a city we were very much enjoying. We had been doing a lot of siteseeing up until that point and upon our return we spent our time wandering through the interesting shops in the Maraise. I was told I must find this clothing store called COS which is a higher end version of H&M (also owned by them) and I loved it! I only ended up walking out with one sweater but I could have bought ouot the whole store. The clothes were gorgeous but not super expensive and good quality. Canada really needs to bring in this store.

Last night I said goodbye to my friend Keren as I left for my train to Barcelona (12 hours but at least I gota bed). I hate saying goodbyes or see you laters when I have no idea the next time I will see the person. Keren was an awesome travel partner and is a great friend. Hopefully one day I will get the change to visit her in her home country of Australia.

The train ride was uneventful which is just perfect for me. I reserved a bed instead of a seat and it was great. I had a 4 person room but there only ended up being 2 of us which was nice. Seriously though, this should be the new way to travel. You get to close the lights and lie down in bed and get a good nights sleep and wake up in your destination fully refreshed. They give you a bottle of water and a toiletries kit that includes a toothbrush, toothpaste, soap, and earplugs. You hardly notice the time pass. And now its time to enjoy Barcelona :)

Eurotrip: Day 1-4 Paris

Wow. I don't even know where to start. The past few days gave been amazing. On sunday I arrived in Paris after finishing 5 and a half months in Israel. As my sheirut (shared taxi) left Jerusalem on the way to the airport I couold not help but feel emotional. Even though I will be coming back to Jerusalem soon enough, I still felt the tears welling up as I saw the exit sign of the city.
On a more exciting note my eurotrip has officially started. Paris is a spectacular city, even in the winter. Day was a travel day. By the time I got to my hotel and checked in it was about 2:30 in the afternoon. That evening, after my friend arrived, we went out looking for a kosher restaurant in the area. Turns out there is actually quite a few within a 15 min walk of our hotel - great for me :)

Day 2 we walked to the Marais and got breakfast on Rue de Rosiers and got to see a little bit of the Jewish neighbourhood. After breakfast we walked over to the Louvre and had a fantastic day there. This is noy my first time at the Louvre but it was definately a more enjoyable experiene the second time around. Since it is winter there are a lot less people in the museum which made it easier to get closer to the things I wanted to see like the Mona Lisa, Venus de Milo, Mesha stele and Hammurabi`s law code. I was in museum heaven. After the museum we found a nice restaurant called Gaspard where I tried carpaccio for first time, too bad the plate had broken and my friend had a piece of plate in her food. Aside from that though we enjoyed the meal and the ambiance of the restaurant.

Day 3 we went to the Musee D`orsay which was amazing. I have never been before and I was just in awe of the collection of talent under one roof. Two paintings which stuck out in mind were Degas` La Class de Dance which I have framed in my room at home, Van Gogh`s Starry Night. After the museum we went to the Eiffel Tower. Unfortunately the very top was closed that day, but we went up as high as we could and got to see the spectacular views of the city. I was worried that since it was a cloudy day that we would`t be able to see anything, but it just added a bit more mystique to the city. Once we finished with the Eiffel Tower we went to see the Arc de Triumph. We got another great view of the city from the top and we go to see the memorial for the unnamed soldiers. That night we had reserved tickets for Moulin Rouge which words cannot describe how amazing it was. I do not know exactly what I was expecting, but I don`t think I was expecting the nudity. Aside from that though the show was like nothing I had ever seen before. The costumes were spectacular and the show was extremely entertaining. There is a reason this place has been famous for a long time.

Day 4 we spent at Versaille. I have waited a long time to finally make it there. I have never been in Paris long enough to make the trip out there, but I am so glad I finally got there. Versaille is linked with absolute power, decadence, and the French Revolution. It was amazing to be able to bring the revolution to life by understanding the context in which it took place. Also, the place is just spectacular. I loved the coloured brocade walls, the gilded mouldings and all the ceiling paintings. The gardens literally took my breath away and I cannot wait to come back when it is summer time and I can have a picnic outside in the gardens.

Closing Seminar: reflections

As I sit here trying to put  'pen to paper' so to speak I am suddenly at a loss for words. How do I describe what I am feeling? On one hand I feel like I have been in Israel forever and on the other hand I feel like the program started yestereday. When I look back and think of all the amazing experiences I have had, I can see where the time went. I have made amazing friends from all the around the world who will be in my life for a long time. We lived together, we laughed together, and occasionally we cried together. There is a certain bond between us having experienced something like this together. We have had an incredible opportunity here and I do not take it for granted. Not only did I make amazing friends, but I had the internship of my dreams.



Closing Seminar group picture

 When I first started my internship I was not sure what to expect. Going in I had one simple criteria, to learn as much as I possibly could. At the end of it all I can say that it was a huge success. My supervisors made sure that I was able to get work in different aspects of the museum allowing me to learn something about everything. They helped foster relationships with people in the museum that would be able to teach me, and teach me they did. The experience that I have had is not something that you could buy. I came in a student willing to learn and now I feel I have come out of it with the knowledge and skills needed to succeed in the industry. I cannot possibly thank them enough.

As it all winds down, and we have had our closing seminar, I cannot help but feel sadness that everything is over. I really felt it as I was saying "see you later" to the Tel Aviv people on the program who I won't see before they leave.

Top (left to right): Rivka, me, Alex, Shelby, Yael
Bottom: Caryn, Joanne, Keren, and Ellie



 As much as I have had an amazing time, all good things must come to an end, and I am excited to embark on a new journey... A month in Europe!!!!! Stay tuned for the escapades of the Aussie and the Canadian do France, the Canadians take on Spain and Italy, the Torontian in London, and wherever else I end up!

The latest adventures part 2

I finally have a chance to sit down and document the rest of my adventures. It started with a day trip to Haifa with my program. I didn't have a great start to the day and from there I knew there would be issues. Issues turn into adventures. It is all in your outlook. Now you ask what went wrong? I get on the bus and just as we are about to leave I realize I forgot my ticket to Eilat. From Haifa I was travelling down to Eilat for four days with my father. So I run back to my apt to get it and while I am there I get my timesheet for my madricha which I had also forgotten in my apt. There I am thinking I am in the clear and have now gotten everything. Well guess what? An hour into the bus ride I realize I left my passport in my apartment and I am supposed to be flying back from Eilat. We were told in order to do so, I needed my passport. So after that start to the day I figured it wasn't going to get better. We arrive in Haifa and go straight to the Bahai Gardens which are actually spectacular! As we are walking around though we start to question why the clouds in the sky are such pretty colours. Hmmm I wonder why? We then find out that there is a fire in a Druze village, but nobody thinks much of it because this does happen sometimes when there has not been a lot of rain. As the day progresses though, we start to realize this is no small fire and this is not something that happens. Of course everyone now knows that fire went on for days and affected so many people. Aside from all the craziness that happened that day, it still was a wonderful trip and I was able to see so much of Haifa and realize what an awesome city it is.

After that it was time to catch a train from Haifa to Tel Aviv and a bus from Tel Aviv to Eilat. The next morning my father and I had scheduled snorkelling with the dolphins. I was so excited since it has been a dream of mine since I was a kid to swim with the dolphins. Turns out, it really was a dream come true. When we got there they gave us an explanation of what would happen. We were told that we were entering the dolphin's habitat and therefore should not expect them to act like show dolphins since they are not. We would be able to see the dolphins doing what they felt like. We were also told that even if the dolphins came up and touched us, we were not allowed to touch them back because they would not be expecting that. If they wanted to be touched they would go to the trainers. We got really luck and the dolphins were really playful that day and came right up to us. Not only do you have these fantabulous creature swimming around you, you also have the natural beautiful coral around you and all the fish that are in the area swimming around you. The rest of the trip was awesome. We saw the underwater observatory and took a 4 hour jeeping tour of Timna Valley and I got to see ancient Egyptian temples and hieroglyphics. It was incredible.

Now you might be wondering what ever happened to not having my passport and getting home. After attempting to express mail my passport to Eilat and being told that they could not guarantee its arrival for when I needed it, I decided to take my chance getting on the plane without it. I had my birth certificate and my license. I was hoping that would be enough. In the end, after 3 levels of interrogation I was allowed to board the plane!

This past week my program did 3 days in the Negev which was amazing. I love the desert! I decided to take it easy since its been a bit hectic lately and didn't hike. Still there were soo many things to do and see and I am kind of obsessed with Nubian Ibexes which get soooo close to you. They are amazing! Instead of one of the hikes those of us who opted out ended up at an awesome park inYeruham with kiddy ziplining and all.





Nubian Ibex



riding the rooster

Love!

I am kind of glad things have calmed down a little. Everyone needs a break from adventure for a little bit :)

The latest adventures

So many adventures have happened since the last post. I think I wil start with my shabbat in Neve Daniel, which is a settlement in the West Bank. My program gave the option of participating in shabbat in the land. They gave two options- the Old City of Jerusalem or Neve Daniel. A few of us decided to spend shabbat in the latter since we wanted to see what life is like for those living in a settlement. It was a lovely shabbat. We all got set up with really nice families and we had a great oneg on friday night. The adventure though was trying to get back to Jerusalem after shabbat. We were all waiting at the bus stop for the first bus to arrive. We were aware that the first bus would be full and not all of us might get on, but the bus did not even stop! One of my roomates had a flight that night to go visit her family in new york, and needed to get back to our apt in order to get her stuff before she got picked up. We knew the next bus would not come for another half hour so find someone who is driving to Jerusalem and not too far away from our apt so she hitches a ride with them. The rest of us kept stopping cars to see if we could hitch a ride but none of them were going remotely where we needed them to go. The next bus finally arrives but when it stops he tells us he is full and cannot take any of us. We argue with him that the next bus would not come for another hour and we were not going to wait. So the bus driver calls his boss to see if he can go over capacity to take us. In the end we made it on the bus, but needless to say it was an intersting experience to fight our way back home.

The next advenure was my trip to the ancient city of Zippori and Nazareth. I had the opportunity to go on this trip with the volunteers at work. I had never been to either city and it truly was an amazing day. We started the day leaving Jerusalem and driving to Zippori in the Lower Galillee. We explored the ancient synogogue there and more stunning mosaics than I can count. The famous one though is called the Mona Lisa of the Galillee because like the Mona Lisa, her eyes follow you. I was completely fascinated by the history of the city and the beauty of the finds. One of the most amazing things is that the ancient cardo is still intact.

After touring around the site for a while we headed into Nazareth for lunch and a tour of the Church of Annunciation. I was surprised that the hotel in Nazareth was kosher. The church was really interesting to see.It is built over the ancient house which they believe is where Mary was told she was going to have a child. one thing that was really cool was that communites from different countries around the world sent in mosaics representing their country and christianity to be displayed around the courtyard. Inside the actual church they had bigger and better ones that were all the different countries interpretations of the madonna and child. The most striking was the Korean one since it depicted a Korean madonna and a Korean child. 

The next day my father came in and he wanted to start touring the following day. I set up a four hour walking tour of the Old City which was amazing. We toured the Kotel tunnels, the southern wall excavations, the Wohl archaeological museum, and the archaeology park. Half of those things I had never seen before so it was really exciting for me.

 

On sunday my dad and I went to tour the City of David. Right now the site is controversial because the archaeologist claims she has found David`s Palace. Aside from the controversy the site is incredible. One of the main attractions is Hezekiah`s tunnel. This is a tunnel that kept the water source of the city hidden in case of a siege. In this tunnel archaeologists had found an inscription that conveys the excitement of the workers when they met. There had been a team of workers cutting through the mountain on one side and another team on the other, and it is a miracle they managed to meet. As part of the tour we got to walk through the tunnel. In many spots the ceiling is extremely low, almost needed to crouch to get through, and very narrow. Sometimes the water got as deep as my upper thighs. It was quite an experience being able to walk through this water tunnel that was never meant for people.

As if all the other adventures were not enough, I think tonight was one of the highlights of my trip. Late in the afternoon I get an e-mail invitation to a gallery opening at work. What was really cool for me was that I helped with the online component of the exhibition. I originally had other plans for the night, and felt terrible for cancelling, but this really was worth it. After work I raced home to shower and change. It was my first gallery opening and I really had a great time. There was a reception to mingle in the beginning and then an introduction by the director of the museum. He announced that this gallery was the first of the temporary galleries to open since the renovation of the museum. It was a wonderful moment to be apart of. The grandson of the artist spoke as well as the associate curator.  Just another one of the perks of having such an awesome internship.

If all this happened in the last week and a half, I wonder how many more adventures I will have.