Awkward and Awesome in Jerusalem

Awkward

• One guy and five girls incited polygamist comments frequently, "Morrrrmons? Morrrmons? Oooooh I see, one family. One famalee." Uh, no. Not those kind of Mormons.
• The 50+ shopkeeper that cornered Lauren and repeatedly asked her to dinner. You can't barter your way into a date, buddy.
• Imagining Mary prego, walking through the Judaen Wilderness. There is nothing there. It's you and a donkey and 100+ weather and Joseph. That's all. Woof.
• My Modern Near East-Palestine teacher's slights at America during lecture. You do realize we are all American, right?
• The man who sat next to me in an Israeli Jazz concert, took off his shoes, and then produced absurd rubbing noises for the remainder of the concert especially during the quiet parts. Sir, this is a classy concert, not a take-off-your-shoes-add-your-own-sound-effects concert.
• The amount of sweat I produce per day. It's in the gallons, folks.
• Turkey orientation: "...you'll be paying for your own toilet paper. Generally, for one very small square of toilet paper."
• I'm diseased. Lots of phlegm everywhere.

Awesome

• Finding Emily's and Jeanelle's notes to me in Aladin's money changing business. Love you gurls!
• I'm crushing on all my classes. How great it is that I get to spend this whole semester studying history and people of the Middle East, which I LOVE? The past few weeks have very nearly convinced me to pull a Condelizzarice Rice and switch my major from Neuroscience to Middle Eastern Studies and minor in Arabic. Then the CIA would hire me as a Middle Eastern expert until I got a gig as Minister of Foreign Affairs. Ilovemymajor Ilovemymajor Ilovemymajor.
• Falafel. Nom nom nom.
• The security staff here at the Jerusalem Center. On class outings they follow us around and stop traffic and help us down steep hills and lead really hard conditioning classes twice a week. My thighs are burning.
• Roomies! I'm loving how my life always turns out better than expected. Perfect, in fact.
• TURKEY. I'm spending the next week in TURKEY.

Judaen Wilderness. Less wilderness, more desolation.

Oh hey roomies! First day of school!

Again, taken from my balcony :)