A Few Days in Israel

Hi all,

I recently went to Israel for my cousin’s wedding and it was a whirlwind of a trip. Each day felt long but the trip went so fast!

 

I landed in Israel on a Tuesday afternoon. When I got to Yerushalayim, I dropped my luggage at my cousin’s apartment, changed, and went right back out to meet a friend. We timed ourselves to end up on the same bus, and took it to Ice Story. We spent several hours together, eating supper, catching up on the past year, and visiting my friend’s apartment (a view from the mirpeset to make you cry)! I went back to my cousin’s apartment and we talked for a bit, and then I showered and went to sleep!

 

The next day was my cousin’s wedding (not the one I was staying with). My aunt had scheduled me for hair and makeup with her family so I got up early and took the bus to their apartment. I spent most of the day hanging out with my aunt’s family and other relatives who were over. My aunt had also prepared a big lunch spread, which was so nice. Late afternoon, my cousin (who I was staying with) and I took the bus back to her apartment, changed into our wedding dresses, and my parents picked me up to drive to the wedding hall (my cousin went to another wedding first – busy Jewish lives)! The wedding was beautiful and so much fun — afterwards I said to my mother that I would totally get married in that hall if I had my wedding in Israel (you never know).

 

Thursday I really hit my stride. In the morning, my father drove me to the cemetery to my grandparents’ kevarim. Afterwards, my father dropped me off at Center One where I had a frozen yogurt for breakfast before walking over to Tachana Merkazit and taking the 448 bus to…Ashdod! I had not been to a beach in years and finally, finally, I went! Thursday is women’s day at the chof nifrad, and I enjoyed myself so much. After about two hours at the beach, I got ready to go back to Yerushalayim. When I returned, I took the light rail to the Old City and ate a very late lunch, then walked to the Kosel for mincha. It was actually super-busy there for a major swearing-in ceremony, so it wasn’t quite the atmosphere I had hoped for but it was still obviously special. Then I took the bus to my aunt’s friend’s apartment for sheva brachos. It was like a mini-reunion of a lot of the people I’d hung out with the day before, and it was fun! Finally, my parents and I visited my cousin (from the other side of the family). I had some feelings, not gonna lie (she’s 10 years younger than me and just had a baby). But all in all, it was a long but great day b”H.

 

On Friday morning, my parents picked me up on the way to return their rental car, then we walked through Mamilla and the Old City to the Kosel. I davened shacharis there. Afterwards I had a Belgian waffle with the fixings for lunch 🙂 which was a great decision (I did it once last trip, too). Then I went back to my cousin’s apartment and packed. We both left around the same time, and I went to another cousin for Shabbos. I had stayed there for part of my last trip, and it was so nice to see her kids again, plus in the interim she had twins! I had a really beautiful Shabbos with her and her family and we talked about how I could work out moving to Israel, at least for a few months. I’m not sure of a few things, but I still really want to.

 

On Motzoei Shabbos I packed again, and then my cousin and I got pizza. Too soon, I went down to the bus stop and took the bus to the train station and the train to Ben Gurion Airport! And the next leg of my trip was Prague.

 

To be continued!