ORIENTATION!!
The day started off bright and early with a campus tour, which was tremendously helpful after having wandered around for days having absolutely no idea where anything is. THERE ARE SO MANY STAIRS HERE!!! I suppose I should have been expecting this more since the university is on a mountain, lol.
The staff of the International program here is unbelievably helpful and warm. I was able to get everything settled for the semester in ONE OFFICE, and I even simply sat in the office of the program director and chatted because she invited me in! HAVE YOU EVER HEARD OF SUCH A THING?! haha, but seriously... the relaxed and inviting culture of Israelis is something that delights me as it is so close to my own nature and truly makes me feel loved.
In the afternoon we took a very long trip by bus down the mountain to a "shook" (an outdoor market) and explored all the vendors wares there. The produce here is simply amazing! Every sort of fruit and vegetable you could ever want, large, beautiful and in plenty, not to mention unbelievably inexpensive. This of course makes me very, very happy :)
Despite all of the new adventures, by the end of the day I was exhausted and irritated. Spending so much time on buses is very difficult for me as I get horrible motion sickness. Although it may seem somewhat trivial, I would really appreciate your prayers for me in this. It's simply impossible to avoid taking buses everywhere and the misery of being bus sick really does impact my life here on a daily basis.Also, spending several hours wandering around a foreign city with a bunch of American college students who are mostly just excited about buying large amounts of alcohol and constantly trying to impress through the social sport of "one-uping" each other's stories, is quite tiring...
All in all, however, my exhaustion was in some way a blessing, as I was able to sleep through the entire night for the first time. I was thus able to get my sleeping schedule somewhat on track again, and rest is a gift of God for which I am most grateful currently :)
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I can just imagine your giant smile and big beautiful eyes roaming that market. :) and then your hands clasping in front of you and you laughing. this makes me smile. praying for your motion sickness. Also, you probably already know this, but ginger is a natural remedy for motion sickness- be it in ginger ale, tea or chews etc. Personally, I use it for headaches when i get em, but it might be worth checking out. :)
ReplyDeleteAren't the markets great?! Have you bought lots of fruit yet? That was my favorite in Egypt, the fruit was always so delicious. Is there any other mode of transportation you can take? Alexandria had a wealth of taxis, which may be easier to deal with and you could always sit in the front. Or perhaps a tram system? Never the less, you're in my thoughts and prayers, and I can certainly sympathize with the motion sickness. Try sitting towards the front of the bus, that always helped me. Love you!
ReplyDeleteGod has done amazing things for you in your life. I think the motion sickness will be no problem for him!
ReplyDeleteThanks for all of the encouragement!!
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