I'm here!

Hello, dear readers!

I've made it to Jerusalem and am trying out blogging. If you're reading this, thanks for patronizing my humble blog site. I'm not 100% sure what the content will be yet, so I'm gonna throw a bunch of ideas out and see what sticks.

First, some musings on life since we got here:

Our apartment is working out well. We've gotten and unpacked Big Sister's dishes. It was like Christmas! In order to make room for all the dairy stuff, we've put our landlords' meat dishes in Big Sister's boxes and now the kitchen is all dairy. (I'm so lucky that I managed to find a Nice Jewish Boy From New Jersey who'll both agree to pack away the meat dishes AND wear a Red Sox hat!)

We went to the shuk, after I've heard tales about how crowded and nuts it is and -- lo and behold -- it is crowded and nuts! We also went on Friday afternoon, which I hear is the nutsiest time of them all. Of course, nothing goes better with crowded and nuts than 90 degree weather and pushing! So we had a blast.
In all honesty, I kinda thought I'd adore all the crowds and thought LMN would abhor it and, instead, we both did pretty well, but we think that it'll mostly be my job to go there. We've got a few friends who have already offered to take me around during a less hectic time of the week. Once they show me the best spots and I go by myself, I think I'll really like it.

(We learned an important lesson at the shuk. Once you pay for something, TAKE IT. If you leave the olive oil on the counter, no one will chase after you and give it to you and you'll get home and find you have no oil. Alas. We have given tzedakah to the hardworking oil man...)

It is HOT here! Highs in the 90s all week. But don't worry - it's humid too!! I've found myself pining for the sweet chill of Autumn, but, alas, it is not in the cards. But I'm hydrating and wearing sunscreen!

Our apartment is nice, though not exceptional. The landlords are pleasant, which is a rarity in Jerusalem, and we didn't have to search for it nor furnish it, so we're lucky. It has high quality windows which both open and close, air conditioning and heating, good water pressure, sufficient storage space, a comfy couch, and is very very close to many good things we want to be close to. So that's great!
Not so great? Musty twin beds pushed together with twin extra long sheets that don't quite fit. We're going to work on improving this situation.

How am I feeling, you might ask? Pretty good! Right now I'm occupied with the task of learning a new city -- directions, customs, etc, instead of delving in to some deep Zionist mission. I think that's the right thing to do, because I know I love cities and I'm not yet sure how I'll come out on the philosophical/political/religious/spiritual issues yet. I'm not spending time reeling about how every apartment and restaurant has a sukkah, how even the cab drivers are Jewish, and in feeling like I'm in some kind of ancient homeland; I'm just figuring out how to live here. And, regardless of how I feel about the place, if I don't know how the streets connect and where to buy food, I'm no use to anyone!

Also, hydrating takes most of my time; I should also be overcome with deep thought?!

So, how's that for a first post? Let's see how this thing goes!

Yours,
EMN