You're off to Great Places! You're off and away!

By Alisha Deluty
KOC Editor
JTS / Columbia University

As a continuation to last month’s journeys to Spain, New Orleans, Japan, and Nicaragua, we would like to continue traveling this month. However, this month we are going to take you on a trip to Israel as we revisit Sam Kessler Gilbride’s travels in the Jezreel Valley, Ari Fellman’s daily life in the Israeli army, and Eric Goldberg’s work in Akko helping to rebuild the north after the second Lebanon War.

In addition to these different aspects of Israeli life, we cannot forget about the vast desert area in the South. Not only is this region of Israel the center of continuous sustainable development for the rest of the country, but it will also be my home for the next five months. As I prepare to spend next semester at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, I am anxious and excited as I embark on this journey that will no doubt be very different from my life in New York City at Columbia and the Jewish Theological Seminary. I am looking forward to not only exploring the Be’er Sheva area and its surroundings, but also to speaking Hebrew with my Israeli suitemates as well as Arabic with the local Bedouin people.

These descriptions of everyday life in Israel also converge with thousands of years of history. As Tisha B’Av (the 9^th of Av, anniversary of the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem) approaches in a few days, many people will flock to Jerusalem, and especially to the Kotel, to remember and mourn the destruction of the Temples. Although Israel has already become a modern country, we must still hold onto the history which is at the core of the land and of the Jewish people.

On a different note, I would like to thank Alyssa Appelman for all of her hard work with the Ezine over the past three years. I would also like to welcome Abe Fried-Tanzer to the Ezine, and I look forward to working with him. Please do not hesitate to contact either Abe or me with any questions or suggestions for the Ezine, or if you would like to write for a particular month. I hope that everyone is enjoying their summer, whether working, taking classes, traveling, or just relaxing at home. Have a great rest of the summer!

[Posted 8/1/08]