Here I go!

Democracy and Its Discontents

Sun, 11 Dec 2011 10:58:04 -0500

Democracy and Its Discontents

Is Israel Its Own Worst Enemy? NYT Op-Ed by Nicholas Kristof

Sat, 03 Dec 2011 14:03:34 -0500

Is Israel Its Own Worst Enemy? NYT Op-Ed by Nicholas Kristof

Photo

Mon, 24 Oct 2011 12:50:00 -0400

Jerusalem, Old City

Mon, 24 Oct 2011 11:01:00 -0400

Jerusalem, Old City

Gilad Shalit to be freed???

Tue, 11 Oct 2011 18:32:59 -0400

Gilad Shalit to be freed???

Kikar Hamedina, Tel Aviv, Sep 3 - a high school student talks...

Tue, 06 Sep 2011 05:49:56 -0400

Kikar Hamedina, Tel Aviv, Sep 3 - a high school student talks about why she is protesting

Crowds at Kikar Hamedina in Tel Aviv chant “ha’am...

Sun, 04 Sep 2011 16:55:02 -0400

Crowds at Kikar Hamedina in Tel Aviv chant “ha’am doresh tzedek chevarti,” or “the people demand social justice.”

The People Demand Social Justice

Sun, 04 Sep 2011 16:33:00 -0400

Last night I attended what is expected to be the last of the recent Israeli protests for social justice. In case you’re not familiar with these events, they began as a response to high rent prices - symbolized in the staging of a tent city on Rothschild Boulevard in Tel Aviv - and since have expanded to encompass a range of complaints regarding welfare and the cost of living.

From the NYT:

The test facing the social protest movement goes to the core of an Israeli problem: whether the national agenda can ever be shaped by issues other than the country’s security threats and related dictates of the Israeli-Arab conflict.

…the wave of protest, which began over the lack of affordable housing, grew to encompass every aspect of an Israeli society battered by rising costs, with a struggling middle class and a growing gap between the rich and the poor. The protest managed to unite a normally fractious public, momentarily creating common cause among the left and the right, religious and secular Israelis, Ashkenazim of European origin and Sephardic Jews from Middle Eastern backgrounds, and the country’s Arabs and Jews.

The debate had turned to the need to reduce the country’s formidable defense budget, with economists and security experts explaining how it could be done.

“At last,” Stav Shaffir, one of the protest leaders, said in an interview shortly before the attack. Israelis had been made to feel that they should not complain about material things, she said, because “the perception is always that something can happen tomorrow and we will all be dead.”

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/01/world/middleeast/01israel.html

Although last night’s protest did not reach the one-million mark initially promised by its organizers (estimates hover at 400,000), the streets were certainly buzzing as Shabbat came to an end. In Kikar Hamedina, where the Tel Aviv protest was staged, the crowds danced as they chanted, among other slogans, “ha’am doresh tzedek chevrati” (the people demand social justice). I showed up early to take some pictures and unfortunately my camera died a few hours later, just as the crowds were getting thick; the pictures below are from earlier in the evening. (Audio and video to come.)

Children at today’s protest in Tel Aviv

Sat, 03 Sep 2011 19:03:00 -0400

Children at today’s protest in Tel Aviv

More blogs from the Israel Teaching Fellows!

Fri, 02 Sep 2011 09:18:31 -0400

Read about Ramle on the blogs of Teaching Fellows Max Miller and Suzanne Arian!

mr-miller:

Hey Readers! ברוכים הבאים

Anyone that has moved will tell you there is an adjustment period, and I can tell you from many different experiences that this is without a doubt true. Coming to Ramla wasn’t necessarily a culture shock, but has taken time to get a good understanding of my surroundings. I don’t think I’ve seen half of this city yet, but already I feel more at home.

Read More

A Morah's Diary: First day in Israel!

Thu, 01 Sep 2011 17:06:52 -0400

A Morah's Diary: First day in Israel! :

My roommate Lauren also has a tumblr blog. Follow her for more stories of our adventures in Ramle!

laurenglen:

I made it safe and sound to Israel! My flight went smoothly and I was able to make friends with the guys sitting next to me. We bonded over playing Cut The Rope on my iPad :)

Once off the plane it was super easy and stress free to find my ride to Ramla. My driver and I arrived to my apartment…

10 months in Ramle, Israel

Thu, 01 Sep 2011 16:59:12 -0400

Hello from Israel! It’s hard to believe I’ve been here only four days already - it feels like I’ve always been here! The trip to Israel was pretty smooth - saying goodbye to my family was harder than I had expected, and there were a couple touch-and-go moments due to the hurricane (most notably, a crazy couple almost prevented our first plane from taking off by spreading a rumor that all of our connecting flights had been cancelled, and insisting that we be let off the plane); but ultimately it all went without a hitch.

I’m here in Ramle for 10 months to participate in a pilot program called the Israel Teaching Fellows. Sponsored by MASA and the Israeli Ministry of Education, the program is designed to bring non-Israeli English-speaking young adults into under-resourced neighborhoods, where we will assist with English instruction at the local schools and volunteer in the communities. Ramle (sometimes called Ramla) is located about ten miles southeast of Tel Aviv, very near the city of Rehovot. When I tell Israelis I will be living in Ramle for the next year, theygive me a look of reproach and disbelief. “Ramla?! But why Ramla?? Why not Tel Aviv?” Although this 1300-year-old city was once considered by some to be the “capital of the Middle East,” today it is seen as a place of squalor and disrepair. Nevertheless, the people here are friendly and welcoming, and we are told by the other volunteers in Ramle that our efforts in the community will carry real weight.

Though I can’t quite explain why, I don’t feel like I’ve had to adjust to life here in Israel. Ramle is hardly anything like Boston; but it’s not Ramle that feels right, it’s me. Perhaps it’s because I’ve been dreaming about a trip like this for so many years; perhaps it’s because I’m truly learning how to let go of my anxieties and “go with the flow;” but the transition to my life here has so far felt easy and natural. No, I can’t communicate with people yet (very few people in Ramle speak English, and while I can say “good morning” and “where is the…” in Hebrew, I can’t understand a word of the response!), and unfortunately my body is doing a very poor job of adjusting it’s sleep schedule to Israel Daylight Time (GMT +3, or EDT +7) - yet I haven’t been bothered or worried. Of course, it’s only Day 3, and I know there are bound to be difficult days. But when they come, I hope I’ll keep in mind what the Israelis say: sababa (it’s cool).

Today we took a trip to the Ein Gedi and the Dead Sea - pictures to come. In the meantime, if you’re really eager, you can check out a detailed calendar of our program on the Oranim website to see what we’ll be doing this year, or to keep tabs on my activities and whereabouts :) For now, laila tov (goodnight)!

Contact info

Tue, 30 Aug 2011 00:23:00 -0400

I know I still owe everyone an update on my arrival here in Israel (I’m here!), but in the meantime, here is my contact info for the next 10 months:

Mailing address (it’s a PO box):
P.O.B. 684
Ramla, 72100
Israel

Cell phone:
From States dial 011-972-52-602-9014
From Israel dial 052-602-9014

Skype: julia.kingsdale

Updates to come!

First shopping trip with my new roommates!!! From left to right:...

Mon, 29 Aug 2011 13:55:00 -0400

First shopping trip with my new roommates!!!

From left to right: Lauren, Rachel, Suzanne, and our city coordinator, Nir!

Taking off!!!

Sat, 27 Aug 2011 21:05:05 -0400

Wasn’t sure I was going to make it today, but here I am on a plane in the philly airport, about to take off for tel aviv!!!! Peace out, USA

Taking off on Saturday!

Thu, 25 Aug 2011 11:19:00 -0400

Guess it’s time to start packing….