"Welcome Home"

    Incomprehensible words surround you. Nothing is familiar. You're tired. You're hungry. You're confused. You lug your bag as you continue forward, stepping one foot in front of the other, walking farther and farther away from the plane. You just do not even know what to do. Extemporaneously, as you groan and look up, you see a woman, a flight attendant. She smiles and shares, "Welcome Home."

    The airport meetings, conversations, and travels, all flew by smoothly. Upon arrival, we engaged in a mini orientation and then headed off to sleep. My roommates are Emily Allen (the girl who is Elli’s and Hilit’s friend from ILTC’s friend from camp), Sami Sherwyn (the girl who I coincidentally became the closest with during the travels), Danielle Appleman (the very first girl I met at the airport), and Nadine something. Go stalk them! It is interesting that I already had connections with three out of four of them since the roommates are based on our interviews. The Dean of Students assigns them based on who she thinks has compatible personalities. She must be pretty talented because I like all of them so far! We do not begin our general studies classes (our classes from home) until Monday but we began the Core Curriculum (the Jewish Studies classes) today. My teacher’s name is Reuven and he seems very involved and passionate. There are a few other groups of teenagers living on campus, as well. First, there is a year-round boarding school for Israelis so they are not very friendly because they do not enjoy foreigners always coming in and out. Two girls from Davis, Gal and Shahar, who moved to Israel, attend the school so I see them at every meal! Also, there is a group from Australia who arrived this morning. The Madrichim, Michal and Hadar, keep mentioning that Weber is coming in a few weeks and I’m always like, “Hey, I know them!” My friends and I (yes, I have friends) hit the town tonight and explored, we have a lot of freedom but there are also some strict rules. Basically, I feel at home. I am at home.

with love :)