trip to the north
Yad Vashem
The afternoon in Yad Vashem was very nice. I hope to have seen everything of the area belonging to the Holocaust museum.
We started together in the childrens memorial because it was supposed to close very soon. Through mirrors it seemed as when there are thousands and thousands of candles placed, like the sky filled with stars. All the times names and ages aof killed children were read out.
More or less I nearly expected it what was coming then... In the memorial my phone rang. Didn´t know how to turn it silent and when I would have turned it off, I had no pin from Carmit to turn it back on again. So I ran out!
The only thing that made the emberassement up again was that it was Yahal who called, what I was already waiting for.
After that call some girls at the information desk could help me to figure out how it works. With nokia, I don´t need the menue in english but it was a sony.
I split up from the group and had the possibility to buy a book again as usual but this time not about the shoah and also some presents for the people from the ulpan, what I was told... The rest of the day I had a nice walk up and down the hill to find everything by myself even without a card. Needed to leave earlier to change some money for the next day.
Haifa
Thomas and me fell around 6 out of bed on friday and hoped to get the bus to Ra'anana at half past 7, but as usual we didn't make it on time to the tachanah merkasit. So we took the bus at 8. Hope to loose this habbit of coming late all the time when I go back home.
Dov picked us up from the bus station and on the way we found Radi waiting on the street for us and all together drove to Haifa.
An hour or something later we were at the university to get Cosima and had to hurry to see something from the city before most of it closed for shabbath.
I had to throw a towel over my shoulders because I forgot my scarve when we went to the gardens of Bahrain, a religious group, I haven't heard of before. They didn't want to let me into the shrine and decided the towel is not apropriate, but the gardens were awesome. Would have never expected the view up the Karmel.
Seen the german colony and Dov wanted to convince us again that it is typical german architecture. Cosima and me just looked at each other "Haven't seen this in germany at all" and smiled.
We became hungry and wanted to go to the beach anyway where we sat down at the promenade to eat something. I had okra and still cann't say what kind of vegetable it was. So we went into the sea with filled belly what my parents would have never allowed me ;-P. Swimming was impossible because of the bis waves, which sometimes threw the people back close to the beach, and the underwater steam.
In the afternoon as everywhere alomost everything had closed already for the weekend but Yahal gave us the tip of an arabian market in Dahlia el Karmil close to Haifa with a huge druse community. They have all the same last name, because they are all related. We figured that out when Radi was asking at the gas station for a guy he hasn't seen for years. Anyway we did a little shopping which is really cheap there and even met Yahal for some coffee. He is living somewhere around there.
He surprised me in a shop and I was scared to death, because I thought it was the owner and wanted to ask for the price. Even Cosima said she wouldn't have noticed it was him after he had his hair cut. I was happy to see him...
Later we brought Cosima back and drove to Tel Aviv where Thomas and me stayed at Carmits place. All of us have been really tired so we decided not to got into a club but pub instead. Our way back we made on the promenade and fell asleep in front of the TV. After breakfast in the cafe around the corner Dov picked us up again we we drove back to Jerusalem. Hard but great day.
Noticed that I started thinking to much again!!!
Yad Vashem
Yesterday we did not go to the Israel museum because next week there is would not be as much program as this week so we went by foot to the old city, all in all 5 people. It is amazing how much power Dirk has in pulling up his whealed chair all those hills. The touris information just told us to stay on this street to the Cotl, because there were no stairs. After the westernwall we decided to try how far we can take Dirk into the hole city and we ended up almost getting completly through the arabian quarter more or less along the Via Dolorosa to the jewish quarter. Was not so bad to carry him up some stairs at the end.
Ok, this day did not start great but became better with the time.
Got up with I'm not sure how many more mosquito bites and three of them very bad. One underneath my foot, where you walk on, one on the butt and I even got one on the breast. Never know where to start scratching first.
The volunteer in Yad Vashem cann't show us around today so I'll probably just give an introduction and everyone goes on their own. At least I don't want to visit the museum this time but all what is related to it in the area around:
- hall of names
- avenue of the rightous amonf the nations
- valley of the communities...
http://www.yadvashem.org/
Ester the witness and shoa survivor we met, called me and we made a date for next monday. So I'll go to her place to talk a little more about the kondertransport. It was Lisa who infected me somehow and I'm trying to help her from here a little even though she didn't make it to come to the Ulpan.
Perhaps I can get some more informations also about some of the other survivors...
jump up, jump up and get down...
Yesterday has been really amazing.
Told thoe others to have the breakfast prepared at a quarter to 8 in the morning. The last days the half an hour before their lessons starts had not been enough or they were a little slow. Anyhow.
9 am we were supposed to have a meeting in the office but as usual here it took place later, around half an hour. We planed when who is taking which days of and I got the dates I wanted. So on friday I'll go with Thomas, Dov and Radi from Jerusalem to Haifa. Amir and Carmit are leaving from Tel Aviv. There we will meet Cosima who is having an Ulpan and hopefully some of the others as well. This is why I wrote a mail with the informations to all former participants of the "summercamp" because I only have approxematly 4 more weeks left until I go back home. Almost every weekend something is planed but anyway I would like to see as many of them as I can.
Later on Katharina wanted to talk to me alone. I became a little afraid it would be something serious or something I did wrong... At the end she told me Gerlinde is going to stay in Washington D.C. were she had an internship since the end of june (until end of august). She was offered a fulltime job there.
And I was asked if I would like to take over her part time job at ASF in Berlin. I was amased that they even thought about offering it to me. When we kept talking Katharina and me decided that because I just started with some new studies they will keep me in mind if they need help but my studies would come first and the job was over 18 hours during the week. At the weekend I still have my bus toursand getting all underneath one hat would be hard and ending without free time.
In the afternoon Ester Golan a surviver of the Shoah and former child of the Kindertransport came to talk to us about her experiences and childhood. I cought it all on camera. She is really an awesome old little women and afterwards she gave me her card. Probably I will visit her before I leave back home to talk with her a little more about the Kindertransport project which Lisa is doing with other former survivors and wanted to do herself before she had to skip the Ulpan for an appointment in the hospital for surgery.
The evening I went into my room early to finish some writings I didn't do at the end but read the book I took with me. Tomorrow for sure I'll get at least one in Yad Vashem whe I am going there with the group.
Around half past 10 Rachel called me whome I haven't heard of for almost 2 years now. She had been one of the Israeli teamers when we had the youth exchange with the Goonies in Berlin in 2005. Was really a hughe surprise for me. She invited me to visit her (close to Hadera) when I am passing by anyhow for Nadav's birthday party at the end of this month. She also remembered me that Orly and Assaf are still living in Jerusalem. O. had been the other Israeli teamer in former times and her son a praticipant. So she geve me her numbers where I'll call later today.
I know I didn't write for a longer time but I have so much to do and it is much more exciting to explore more about the city and the country then writing!
