...we rented a car for the day and...

I have recently started working in the Movement Ecology lab at Hebrew University.  For a bit of a run-down, read this.

My first day was pretty laid back.  I sat in front of a computer for a few hours doing a lab safety tutorial in Hebrew.  After understanding about seventy percent of the tutorial and failing the follow-up test twice, I asked the lab manager for some translating help.  It was so Israeli when he asked me if I really wanted help translating or if we should just pass the test in a round-about way.  We bypassed the tutorial, skipped right to a new version of the test, and basically did the test together; I passed in a matter of minutes.

After the several hours spent "learning" about lab safety, it was time for lunch.  The whole lab eats together in the middle of the day, which is really unique.  The weather was nice, so we all collected our lunches and headed outside to sit in a circle in the grass.  We did a few introductions and chatted for about twenty minutes.  It is a nice break and good bonding time--definitely something I'll be looking forward to every day.  Following lunch, I met with a few people and started reading a research proposal.  It was also determined that I would be taking a tiyul (trip) the next day.

Monday, I took a bus to Tel Aviv to meet a fellow lab-mate.  We rented a car, picked up some frozen fish from the Zoological Gardens at Tel Aviv University, and began the drive up North.  As we were loading the car, I asked if there were going to be problems when we returned the car still smelling like fish.  It was so Israeli when my lab-mate looked at me, laughed, and said that I had just asked "such an American question."  I laughed along with him and we began our drive.



 We spent the day in the Golan looking at stork nests.  We are initiating a new project with storks that breed in Israel, so I got to see all of the breeding sites and nests.  The six nests were very near civilization.  A few were near refets (cow sheds), and at one refet, I got to play with the cows--I even got a lick on the hand.  A potential breeding nest was located in the middle of a moshav (a co-operative village or settlement).  We asked the family living nearby if they had seen storks yet this year or last year.  The woman we asked was very excited about helping with the research and told us she would call if and when the stork(s) returned to the nest.  Even her children were excited about the storks.  And of course, we got an invite to come in for coffee or tea.  Aside from the breeding sites, I also saw a number of storks on the migration path from Africa to Europe.  I never really was a bird watcher, but I think I'll need to do a bit of research and catch up to the other people in the lab.  Everyone just knows and identifies all of the birds we see here and there.

After our stork tour, we went to Gamla, where there is a vulture preserve, to collect some data.  Never in my life have I been so close to such a big bird!  To get to the site, we did a bit of off-roading in a golf cart driven by the forest preserve manager.  It was definitely a scary, but quite an experience.  That ended our day of adventures, and we headed back to Tel Aviv.  I was right about the fish stench and most of the three hour ride back, we drove with the windows open.  I haven't heard anything about problems with the rental car company, but hopefully next time we rent, someone different will be working.

The past two days, I have been back in the lab: lunching together, attending the weekly seminar, reading lots and lots, and just getting settled.  It is so refreshing to use my noggin a bit, and I am looking forward to what is to come!

...I sat and sat and sat, enjoying the sun...

Wednesday was my last day of work at the gan.  I had the stomach flu the day before and only made it in for a half-day, but I'm glad I went.  All the girls were in that day, and the boss had half a day off.  The morning was spent with finger painting, singing, and dancing.  Then came nap time.  I left about then for a nap of my own.  Most of the kiddies were asleep when I left, but the ones who weren't gave me big hugs.  One boy told me not to leave.  He started crying, and I started crying, and then we both were crying.  He wouldn't hug me because he knew that meant that I would leave.  Smart kid.  I promised him I would visit, and I promised the girls as well.  I hugged everyone, gave my keys to the boss, and headed out into the nice Jerusalem spring day.  I got home, took off my skirt, and cleared out the shelf in my closet that was reserved for "gan clothes."  Then I did a bit of grocery shopping and had a rest before my mini wine and cheese party to celebrate the end of a diaper wiping era!

I had yesterday and today off (funemployment, if you will), and I couldn't ask for nicer days.  I did a bit of shopping yesterday, met some friends for lunch, and had a nice cultural evening.  There was a cool music festival in the Old City.  The piece de resistance was the band hanging from the city walls.  There were stages throughout the Old City, each with a heater or two and a body guard (more pictures on Facebook).  There were bands, a few solo acts, a bit of opera, and some dancing.  We even saw someone with his computer skyping home to mom and dad about the event.  It was a fun night to be out and about.  The music was good, the weather was nice, and I felt so free!  And as with every time I am in the Old City, I just had to stop for a few moments to look around and remind myself that I live here, in Jerusalem; that I made aliyah and actually live in Israel.  Sometimes I take it for granted that I am a part of this country.

Today (as with every upcoming Friday!!)  I got to sleep in and relax.  Now that I am done with gan, I have Fridays off.  What a treat.  I spent the day at a cafe around the corner from my house eating, sipping a coffee, and people watching in the sun.  As you may have heard, everyone is laid back here, and instead of having pushy waiters that rush you through your meal to clear your table, you are often left alone for hours on end.  It was so Israeli  (and so relaxing and calm) when I sat and sat and sat, enjoying the sun and waiting for my check.  It gave me time to think about the upcoming week.  I start working in the lab on Sunday and I couldn't be more excited!!  Aside from the new job, I hope to stay inspired to go out more looking for culture.  I really enjoyed the music festival in the Old City.  I just need to keep taking advantage of all of the things Jerusalem has to offer.

...I took a few semi-spontaneous trips...

The past couple of weekends have been a bit out of the ordinary.  Two weeks ago, we celebrated the holiday Purim.  I had a few days off, the weather was nice, and I had just solidified my plans for the coming year.  What a great way to go into a holiday weekend which, on some level, revolves around costumes, drinking, and  parties.  We celebrated a bit more traditionally with a muscial Disney service and megillah reading before heading out to the shuk party.  We followed our night-time shenanigans with a pot-luck breakfast megillah reading.

The view from my tent!

After celebrating Purim in Jerusalem, I drove down to the desert for a festival at the Desert Ashram.  I practiced yoga and attended a few breathing/energy workshops which were new to me but very engaging.  I spent a lot of time in the desert, walking and sitting in the vast sands; relaxing.  I also went on a chai (tea) date with someone I met in a body energy workshop.  While it won't be progressing, the conversation on the date was very eye-opening.  Overall, the weekend was filled with a bit of relaxation, some physical activity, a touch of nature, and a lot of self-reflection.  I returned to Jerusalem refreshed and ready for the busy for week ahead.

This past weekend, I drove up north to Zichron Ya'akov with a few friends.  It felt like a real vacation.  We ate out, went to a winery, had ice cream, went on a hike, watched the sun setting into the sea from our balcony, and had a relaxing shabbat filled with food, friends, and fine wine.  I was nice to get out of Jerusalem, and have a mini  holiday.  Now I am back and ready for my last couple of days in the preschool!

...he got up and hugged me...

As many of you know, I have been thinking about grad school options since before I made aliyah.  I have bounced around from genetic counseling to a molecular genetics program.  From applying to and turning down a biotechnology and food engineering master's to visiting an institute in the desert.  And finally, from a program in green energy to my resting point: Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior.  The master's program is within the Biology Department of Hebrew University, Givat Ram.

Not only have I been accepted to begin my studies in the fall, but I have also been accepted to begin work in Ran Natan's Movement Ecology Lab.  Ran is the founder, per se, of Movement Ecology, and his research experiences and interests are quite broad.  He is currently serving as the Head of the Biology Department at Hebrew University, as well.

I had two meetings within the past week to meet the post doc and PhD student I will be working with and to meet the professor, Ran.  There was a calm, casual air to both meetings, and everyone seemed relaxed and happy to be in the lab.  At the beginning of my meeting with Ran, we shook hands and began a pretty typical interview.  As the meeting continued, the formalities broke down.  About twenty minutes into the meeting, he offered me a spot in his lab to begin immediately and continue through my graduate studies.  It was so Israeli when he got up and hugged me as soon as I accepted.  Then he took me on rounds of the lab to meet everyone (I have a lot of names to learn) before sending me off to complete some paperwork.


I will begin working in the lab in less than two weeks, and the time spent there before my studies will help to build my lab skills as well as set a foundation for my master's research.  I will be studying gene flow on the individual level in white storks.  While the species is one I never considered, the research questions I am looking to answer are very interesting to me!  Also, I am excited to close the diaper changing chapter of my life, at least temporarily!

...work was cancelled...

It was so Israeli when work was cancelled because of the snow.  As a Chicagoan, I do admit that there were some significant flurries.  As an Israeli, I can assess that it was a crazy happening.  Grocery stores were packed, buses were delayed and canceled, preschools, schools, stores, and other places of work were closed, people were having snowball fights; it was unreal.  I have a few pictures from my window.  Once I got home, though, the snow had stopped and had already started to melt.  It was a bit snowier about an hour earlier, and in other neighborhoods in Jerusalem, there was also more snow than we had... Now I am in bed enjoying my snow day!

**EDIT: The last two snowy pictures are courtesy of my roommate, and fellow blogger, George!

  

...I was waiting for the bus and...

Israel has been blessed with rain the past two days: non-stop, torrential, heavy, cold, almost snowy, at times icy, completely yucky rain.  The nonstop rain of the past two days (which might continue for at least two more) is something Jerusalem residents haven't seen for six or seven years (as extrapolated from conversations with parents at gan).

 Maybe because it's unusual weather or maybe because Israelis are their pushy, personable, forward selves, but people seemed to be in a pretty good mood.  I had most of today off, and I had a ton of errands to run, so I left my house bright and early for the gym and my marathon day to follow.  It was raining sideways when I left my house for the bus stop in my raincoat down to my knees and rain boots up to my knees.  It was so Israeli when I was waiting for the bus, and someone pulled over offering a lift to the center of town.  A few people got in, and the rest of us at the stop smiled to ourselves.  A minute later, someone came up with an umbrella and offered to stand near me and keep me dry.  Everyone was just in such a pleasant helpful mood that it made me smile! It was a good start to a busy but productive day.