Returning to Reality
Winter has returned to St. Petersburg, and so have we. After three glorious weeks in Israel, we arrived at Pulkovo Airport at 3am last night. As we drove through the largely deserted streets, things felt familiar and comfortable, just with a thin white veil of snow. The temperatures plummeted since we left; now it's in the low teens (in Farenheit, or -11 Celsius). Despite the climate changes, we are happy to be back.
Our trip to Israel was both reinvigorating and relaxing. We spent the first week in meetings and our midyear seminar in Jerusalem, as Matt explained in the previous post. Then, we jumped around the country, visiting dear friends along the way in Kfar Saba, Herzilya, Yokneam and a small new settlement called Haruv (near Kiryat Gat). Since it was the first time we had been to Israel together, it was fun to show each other the places we had each lived and introduce each other to people from our past. We relished the abundance and variety of kosher food, the warm hospitality, the beautiful weather, some great shopping, the ability to practice our Hebrew, and discovering new places and re-discovering old places together. Our list of daytrips included Caesarea, Yad Vashem (where we saw the new museum -- a must see), Haifa, Tel Aviv, Zichron Yaakov, Mount Tabor (pictured above), and Beit Guvrin.
Being in Israel, though, is more than just sightseeing; it's a chance to glimpse into the psyche of the Jewish people. The remnants of this summer's war with Lebanon are mostly cleaned up, but the conflict has left psychological scars in the hearts of the people we talked to. Did we lose the war? What was the end-goal? Why did we initiate a war if we weren't prepared? These are the types of questions we heard over and over. During our trip, the scandal surrounding President Katsav spiraled out of control. For us, it was insightful and intriguing to watch "Eretz Nehaderet"--a political satire show on TV that is a mix between Saturday Night Live and the Daily Show--as it lampooned the situation, the American presidential campaigns, and more. Fortunately, one thing Israel has aced is the ability to laugh at itself (and others!).
The most powerful encounter we had with recent changes in the Israeli landscape was during our visit to Haruv, which is a new settlement in the northern Negev, about 20 minutes from Kiryat Gat. We visited Biko and Liat, a recently-married couple that Matt knows from BCI (pictured above). Basically, Haruv is one street lined with caravans (temporary trailer homes), housing 30 families awaiting the approval to build their homes on a nearby hill and thus, settle the land of Israel anew. These people represent a new generation of practical Zionists. In the distance, you can see the security fence that was built to protect Israel from unwanted intruders from the West Bank. The adjacent street looks fairly similar, but with larger temporary homes. This street is another such settlement which will be located near the new Haruv, but these people are not there voluntarily: they are the relocated families from Gush Katif. They are the result of the unilateral withdrawal from Gaza that occurred in the summer of 2005. A handful of them have signs in their front yard admonishing the Israeli government for pulling out of Gaza, but we were impressed to hear that, by and large, they have accepted their situation and are eager to move on with their lives.
Sadly, the realities of being in Israel hit us hard as a pigua (Hebrew for explosion) killed three in Eilat just a few days before we left.
Once we finish unpacking and doing laundry later today, we can refocus our attention to our work in St. Petersburg. The next few months bring some formidable challenges for us as we swing into high gear for planning a few critical initiatives. First, we are organizing the Pesach Project, an amazing coalescence of St. Petersburg's Jewish young adults, its partner cities in the US (Cleveland and Palm Beach), and their Partnership2000 cities in Israel (three northern towns and Beit She'an). Nearly 50 young adults from these communities descend on Petersburg for a week of Passover-related celebrations and volunteering. Second, we are working hard to launch a YESOD website well before the start of the spring tourist season here. Third, we are initiating a sports program at YESOD to lure unaffiliated Jewish teens into the building. And fourth, we are recruiting Petersburg's Jewish students to work in American Jewish summer camps this summer so, if you have any contacts at American Jewish summer camps, please send them Matt's way!
Fortunately, we've returned from Israel with a ton of new energy and passion after being away from the city for nearly five weeks straight. We are very much looking forward to part 2 of our Russian adventure!
Our trip to Israel was both reinvigorating and relaxing. We spent the first week in meetings and our midyear seminar in Jerusalem, as Matt explained in the previous post. Then, we jumped around the country, visiting dear friends along the way in Kfar Saba, Herzilya, Yokneam and a small new settlement called Haruv (near Kiryat Gat). Since it was the first time we had been to Israel together, it was fun to show each other the places we had each lived and introduce each other to people from our past. We relished the abundance and variety of kosher food, the warm hospitality, the beautiful weather, some great shopping, the ability to practice our Hebrew, and discovering new places and re-discovering old places together. Our list of daytrips included Caesarea, Yad Vashem (where we saw the new museum -- a must see), Haifa, Tel Aviv, Zichron Yaakov, Mount Tabor (pictured above), and Beit Guvrin.
Being in Israel, though, is more than just sightseeing; it's a chance to glimpse into the psyche of the Jewish people. The remnants of this summer's war with Lebanon are mostly cleaned up, but the conflict has left psychological scars in the hearts of the people we talked to. Did we lose the war? What was the end-goal? Why did we initiate a war if we weren't prepared? These are the types of questions we heard over and over. During our trip, the scandal surrounding President Katsav spiraled out of control. For us, it was insightful and intriguing to watch "Eretz Nehaderet"--a political satire show on TV that is a mix between Saturday Night Live and the Daily Show--as it lampooned the situation, the American presidential campaigns, and more. Fortunately, one thing Israel has aced is the ability to laugh at itself (and others!).
The most powerful encounter we had with recent changes in the Israeli landscape was during our visit to Haruv, which is a new settlement in the northern Negev, about 20 minutes from Kiryat Gat. We visited Biko and Liat, a recently-married couple that Matt knows from BCI (pictured above). Basically, Haruv is one street lined with caravans (temporary trailer homes), housing 30 families awaiting the approval to build their homes on a nearby hill and thus, settle the land of Israel anew. These people represent a new generation of practical Zionists. In the distance, you can see the security fence that was built to protect Israel from unwanted intruders from the West Bank. The adjacent street looks fairly similar, but with larger temporary homes. This street is another such settlement which will be located near the new Haruv, but these people are not there voluntarily: they are the relocated families from Gush Katif. They are the result of the unilateral withdrawal from Gaza that occurred in the summer of 2005. A handful of them have signs in their front yard admonishing the Israeli government for pulling out of Gaza, but we were impressed to hear that, by and large, they have accepted their situation and are eager to move on with their lives.
Sadly, the realities of being in Israel hit us hard as a pigua (Hebrew for explosion) killed three in Eilat just a few days before we left.
Once we finish unpacking and doing laundry later today, we can refocus our attention to our work in St. Petersburg. The next few months bring some formidable challenges for us as we swing into high gear for planning a few critical initiatives. First, we are organizing the Pesach Project, an amazing coalescence of St. Petersburg's Jewish young adults, its partner cities in the US (Cleveland and Palm Beach), and their Partnership2000 cities in Israel (three northern towns and Beit She'an). Nearly 50 young adults from these communities descend on Petersburg for a week of Passover-related celebrations and volunteering. Second, we are working hard to launch a YESOD website well before the start of the spring tourist season here. Third, we are initiating a sports program at YESOD to lure unaffiliated Jewish teens into the building. And fourth, we are recruiting Petersburg's Jewish students to work in American Jewish summer camps this summer so, if you have any contacts at American Jewish summer camps, please send them Matt's way!
Fortunately, we've returned from Israel with a ton of new energy and passion after being away from the city for nearly five weeks straight. We are very much looking forward to part 2 of our Russian adventure!
posted by Alyson Fieldman at 10:08 AM
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