Hey look, I have a blog! This is to keep the folks back home updated while I'm off in Israel. I was already considering starting a blog, and Mom informed me that it was a requirement. Originally I was thinking about just starting up good old Xanga again, but Blogspot is just so much more sophisticated.
Here are the things YOU need to know about the Israel adventure:
I bought my ticket this morning! I'm leaving June 20th from OKC and coming back August 7th. This involves a 12 hour layover in Germany and arriving in Tel Aviv at 3:20 am. I'm pretty sure it involves other things too, but currently they escape me.
I'm going with my friend Sara Owen, who got the same scholarship as I did (we each won $5000! woohoo!). We're not travelling together, but we're doing the same program at the same university. We are both studying Hebrew at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem . I'm enrolled in an ulpan, which is your Hebrew word for the day. Ulpanim are intensive Hebrew courses for immigrants and tourists. I will take Hebrew classes for about 6 hours a day for about a month. Mine is called the Jerusalem Ulpan, and it includes fieldtrips! This is such a good thing.
After the ulpan finishes, in late July, Sara will head back to Oklahoma and I will stay for about a week and a half to do some exploring and hit all the tourist attractions.
Of course I am aware of the fact that this is not the safest summer trip ever, but Israel is relatively a very safe country for an American. Most Israelis like us. Israel's tourism website says that of the 3 million tourists that went to Israel in 2008, all 3 million went home again safe and sound. I plan to do a lot of research beforehand and be as wise and cautious as possible while I'm there. I don't plan on dying or starting any wars or any of that nonsense.
Basically: I am pretty excited. If you have any questions, concerns, advice, eloquent prose, smart remarks, extra money, etc., please let me know!
Also if you have extra time on your hands, watch this! It's such a weird little creature. It looks like a cross between a mouse and a baby chicken? I'm putting it on my Christmas list.
