Kibbutz Livin'

Hey everyone!

SO sorry I've been a slacker about the posting! I got to Kibbutz Revivim yesterday and had my first Hebrew class today. I'm hoping to start posting regularly again.

I met another girl who was coming to the same Kibbutz at the bus station in Be'er Sheva (we'd met on facebook and arranged to meet there). It was such a relief to not have to make the bus trip all alone. The bus, as it turns out, actually stops inside of the Kibbutz, so we managed to get off at the right stop pretty easily. The Kibbutz is in the middle of the desert, surrounded by stones and sand, but as soon as you walk through the gates, you might as well be in New England. It's almost like a college campus with classrooms, a dining hall, and small dorm-y apartments. We even have a meal plan. It's really like being at college again.

When we got here, it felt like life here had always existed and we just merged into the crowd and tried to follow along. This was partially because, due to disorganization on someone's part, the program started a few weeks ago. Well, I think it did. We're not really sure. The organization in America told everyone Dec. 16, but we don't think they told that to the Kibbutz. There's another program here that we're mixed with. But it's okay because they've just finished learning the aleph bet (Hebrew alphabet) which I already know. We had class today and the teacher was amazing. In a few hours, I went from knowing fewer than 10 words of Hebrew to translating entire sentences!

A year ago, the level of confusion and disorganization would have driven me totally insane. But since I've been traveling, I've learned that the less planning you do, the less likely you are to have your plans totally messed up. For instance, I still haven't bought a ticket to fly out of Israel. Those who planned ahead bought a ticket for when we were told the program ends... which is about a month after it ACTUALLY ends. That's how it always seems to work with travel. Plan ahead and your plans will get messed up and it will be stressful. Take life as it comes and you'll end up having a better time. Everything always seems to work out some how, with lots more adventures along the unplanned path.

The Kibbutz itself is different from what I expected. Like I said, it doesn't really feel like we're in the desert. Plus, it's REALLY cold, especially at night. Far colder than Tel Aviv was. Also, we're very seperated from the rest of the Kibbutzniks. The Ulpan is in its own seperate corner of the Kibbutz. I realize now how incredibly smart it was to choose an Ulpan rather than be a volunteer. I think it would be really difficult to meet people and make friends if I came here all alone. I don't intend to use the Ulpan group as an excuse not to interact with the real Kibbutzniks, it's just a nice safety net.

The other thing that was unexpected is that the Kibbutz isn't fully communal anymore. Everyone has to pay for food in the cafeteria. The Kibbutzniks get paid for their work, but many of them choose to eat some meals in their homes, buying food from the store on the Kibbutz. We get 15.5 shekels a day to spend on food. Everything in the cafeteria is massively cheap, so that's a fair budget. Meat eaters have been having some trouble, but I tend to spend 3.5 shekels on each meal. Money we don't spend we can get back at the end of each month in cash. Sweet! There's my spending money!

Normally, we have class Sunday, Tuesday, and Thursday from 8am until 1.30 pm. On Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, we are supposed to work from 6am-3.30pm inluding breaks for lunch, etc. Saturdays are free. We also have some days off for Channukah next week. I'll let you know more when I know more! I'm just going with the flow right now.