We are ugly but we have the music
The weather here in Jerusalem is changing and so am I! I find myself likely to wear my peacoat before heading out into the city at night as the winds up here on Har Hatzofim (Mount Scopus) are really nippy.
This week I went camping up near Mount Carmel near Haifa. We left on Sunday afternoon and took a Sherut (shared cab) up to a free campsite in Hof HaCarmel (Carmel forest). We staked out water, gathered some wood and set up a fire just before it got dark. That night we cooked hot dogs over an open flame, ate cake in a bag (which I really think is overrated), sang songs and drank liquor. Jeremy brought a guitar and I played a lot of songs that we all grew up listening to - those songs that everyone knows the chorus to but none of the verses.
Everyone bought thin foam pads to sleep on with sleeping bags, but I was feeling inspired by Tequila Ted and bought a hammock and some rope. So while everyone was getting dirty and uncomfortable, I was swinging lightly and staring at the stars. Up where we were, it was sooo quiet. It was the quietest experience I’ve had in Israel - even more peaceful than Erev Yom Kippur when nothing dared to stir (despite living in East Jerusalem). Because we went to bed so early, I woke up with the sun each morning. The last day we were there, I managed to catch the sunrise and the sunset. Up on the top of the mountain was a big observation tower, the tallest structure around. We had an unbelievable view of Haifa, the mediterranean, the surrounding hills and valleys. The sun slowly peaked out from over a mountain, it’s light shred into rays and illuminated the hike below us.
The night before, we had walked to the same tower and a large group of Arab and Jewish teenagers were hanging around a campfire, probably drinking and listening to music. Lindsey asked me who they were listening to, and it was Leonard Cohen’s Chelsea Hotel #2:
It was a really touching moment.
Tomorrow, I start really getting into the swing of classes and my internship. I have class at 8:30, again at 10:30 and again at 4:30. However, at 2:15, I hope to make a meeting at the house of Arieh Eldad, a professor and member of the Israeli Knesset. Mr. Eldad is a staunchly right-wing politician who is spearheading the Facing Jihad conference that Ruder-Finn is representing in December.
I can’t believe that I’ve been here for almost 3 months, the time has really flown. But, as the air gets chilly and the wind whips my skin, I know that things are just heating up.
