SH-24-264's blog

יום שלם בתל אביב ביום השלישי שלנו כקבוצה ביחד כבר התחלנו להרגיש כאילו אנחנו מכירים כבר הרבה זמן, את היום עברנו עם הקבוצה הקטנה של התחרות. בהתחלה היה עלינו לברר מי הוא יצחק רבין, בתור בחור מעיר קטנה שלא חי את החיים התל אביבים היה מאד מיוחד להסתובב עם שלושה אמריקניים,הם חוו את האופי התל אביבי: היפים, פריקים, הפגנה של אנרכיסטים, היי-טקיסטים את כל הגוונים של האוכלוסיה. ברגע שהם הבינו מי הוא יצחק רבין וכמה חשוב הוא היה הם נכנסו לסוג של שוק והלם שמשהו כזה קרה. במיוחד בארץ ישראל. אחרי הפעילות של רבין היה לנו מרוץ למליון בתל אביב. זה אחת החוויות הטובות שאני אזכור מהעיר הזאת.

Todays challenge was biking. When I hear the term 'biking' I think something less intense of what happened today. My past experiences riding bikes had always been a leisurely and well paved experience. When I was originally told that we would be riding bikes for todays challenge I was excited that I already had experience in the topic. However- many people were entirely unprepared, including myself. At first quite a few of us were really discouraged.

So today we are officially leaving our first home away from home, kibbutz afikim, and are heading to tel aviv as I am writing this. So while I am excited to be going in to the city because I forgot a million and one different little things that would make my life a life a lot easier on a daily basis (aka a converter for the electrical outlets here), I am definitely a little bit sad to be leaving there because it was absolutely beautiful and unexpectedly nice and modern.

I don't think you know just how good it feels to be sitting on this bus right now. We're all hot, sweaty and hungry... and we love it. Here on the Israel Challenge, we the living just took part in an epic battle of team versus team versus Tel Aviv. After learning the tragic history of the naming of Rabin square (if you don't know it, Google it and have your tissues at the ready) the group was a little down, so what we got next was truly what we needed; a sealed mysterious envelope and a walkie talkie... followed by a few hours of running around a beautiful city.

I’m writing so I won’t forget. I’m afraid to forget. Because I just had the most jaw dropping, soul enlightening, and life enriching experience of my life. We’re not a religious family. I mean, we used to do Kidush with our family every Friday, but since my grandmother died we don’t do that any more. We don’t do Synagogues, and we love pork. As for me? I’m a Jew, an Israeli and a soldier in the IDF. Am I a Zionist? That’s another matter. I love America. I love everything about it – the places, the people, even the air itself.

Since commencing our Shorashim challenge, an abundance of meaningful "a-ha" moments have struck me. One of the most memorable experiences thus far has been the visit to Jerusalem, particularly praying at the wailing wall. Immediately upon facing the wall, I witnessed an outpour of emotion expressed by a number of women praying. This moved and inspired me in a such a way that I too, was unable to contain the flood of emotions that had unexpectedly come over me.

My name is Ethan, and I am an internet addict. It's been over 6 days since I used the internet, and I'm worried that the withdrawal symptoms are becoming evident. I'm finding myself increasingly interested in the outside world, I occasionally learn relevant facts about my surroundings, and I'm actively talking to people instead of just replying to the emailed innanities of friends and or focusing on problems at work. The change is scary and I'm worried that others will start to notice the tell-tale signs of engagement and ask if I want to use their smart phones for a quick login.