A Time to Dance, A Time to Pray

This week has been insanely hot. Last summer there was a crazy heatwave in Seattle in July - it was so hot that all I could do was to sit in my living room, the only room that didn't get any direct sunlight, and read. The mere effort of turning the page was enough to make you sweat in that sweltering heat. This week has been almost that hot. In heat like this, school is the best reprieve. The classrooms are air conditioned, and anything air conditioned is welcome.

This little kvetch about the heat is really just a disclaimer. I'm a Pacific Northwesterner, and a fair-skinned Souther who feels most at home in mild climates. So if my blog post this week winds up leaving something to be desired, blame the heat. I sure do.

So, this past week was a little strange schedule-wise due to Tisha B'Av. We only really had 3 full days of class, and our first quiz. Exciting. I know. Our second trip in the Jerusalem Days series was nowhere near as long of an excursion as the first had been, and thankfully so as it was 33C that day! (about 99F). Ironically, on this hottest of Jerusalem days, our tiyyul took us to Gehenom. If it sounds familiar, that's because Gehenom is another name for Hell. I'll not go into the exact description of all of the text references here, but in short, Gehenom is a name for part of the valley that runs between the Old City and what is now the neighborhood of Yemin Moshe. In the time of the 1st Temple, Gehenom is where those who participated in the practice of child sacrifice did so. Now there's a great amphitheater for outdoor concerts at the Sultan's Pool in Gehenom, and also a rather neat artists' colony. Just goes to show that time changes things!

The pathway to Gehenom is lined with beautiful doorways. Who knew?

The Gates of HELL!
(i.e. The really pretty entrance way to Gehenom Valley from Yemin Moshe)

After Gehenom we schlepped up the switchback trail from the valley up to the outer walls of the Old City. I will say that these Jerusalem Days trips are serving to help me get a little bit more familiar with the Old City. I tend to not spend much time there, as I'm not entirely comfortable within its walls. Not for any fear of personal safety, but more because of the fact that I am a woman, and a liberal one at that. I always feel as though I'm trespassing on someone else's territory, and that my mere presence is compromising the lifestyle that is the norm within the walls. The Old City was not always such a stronghold of Orthodox Judaism. Apparently it is a change that has happened just within the last few years. There are only a handful of non-Orthodox families living within the Old City, and they are having a rough time of it, especially in the schools. It's another example of how the Orthodox, who are not in the majority in this country, have a monopoly on this country. That being said, I have my own peace to make with the Old City and the Ultra-Religious strangle hold that it is in. So, in short, these field trips within her walls are a good stepping point in defining my relationship with Jerusalem.

There is also some amazing Felafel to be had in the Old City - reason enough to work through my personal issues.

The bullet-pocked Zion Gate of the Old City (bullet marks from 1948 war)

After the hot day in the Old City, I had every intention of spending a night-in. I've been having a hard time saying "no" to social opportunities since I've been here - there is just so much to do! Well, you can probably guess that I did not wind up spending the night in, and I am so thankful that I didn't, because I would not have wanted to miss the cultural experience I had! My dear friend, Eli (a former student, fellow Scrippsie, and buddy from my brief time as a JCSC Fellow in Claremont, also the founder of Challah for Hunger) told me about this dance party called "Boogie" that happens every Thursday night at the ICCY (a Community Center not far from my house). I did a rapid transformation from "night-in" Callie to Dance-Party-Callie and headed out. The ICCY is a fantastic space, and incredibly versatile. I've now been to Erev Shabbat services there with Shirah Chadasha, Israeli Folk Dancing, and finally, Boogie, all within its walls.

The only way to describe Boogie is to imagine every Middle and High-School dance you've ever attended. Combine that experience with a few of the more hippy-college parties you've experienced. Throw in a good dose of world music-vibe, and finally, a good helping of Bar-Mitzvah party. All in all, a crazy experience! I met Eli there and she immediately pointed out three of my fellow HUC students dancing. So I went over to say hi, and who should be there with them, but Rabbi Na'ama Kellman, the director of our HUC Year in Israel program. Talk about the place to be! Everyone was dancing and having an all-out good time. Needless to say, it was another late night. And one that I would not have traded for the world! A bunch of Jews, just gettin' down and having fun. In Israel. Only a few minutes walk from that Old City I'd experienced earlier in the day.

The very next night, I wound up going back to the ICCY for Shirah Chadasha Shabbat services, also with Eli. We were sitting in the women's section over-flow seating, which happens to be up on stage - and both chuckled at the complete change of environment that the room, and we ourselves, had gone through in the past 12 hours. (Shirah Chadasha is an egalitarian "Conservative" congregation - but they do have a mechitza, a curtain that divides the men's section from the women's section. It's a joke of a mechitza though: it is nearly see-through, and when you stand up, or are seated up on the stage in the women's overflow section, you can see everyone on the other side. Also impressive was that the women's side was larger than the men's, and by the end of services was standing-room only. Another sight that gives me hope and strength in this city where I'm not quite sure of where I fit in as a Reform-Jewish-Woman).

And finally, I had a wonderful close to a long hot week with a fun and relaxing Shabbat dinner with friends. This Shabbat marked the end of my first month in Israel. As I looked around the room I saw only familiar faces. Certainly, some I knew better than others, but overall, it felt like community, and in some ways, family. Lots of good food, good wine, great company, and a raucous session of Shabbat Zmirot to finish off the night. A great Shabbat, and another intense and interesting week in this most intense and interesting of cities.