Last Tuesday and Wednesday I was fortunate enough to be invited to tag along for the 8th grade camping trip. It started early Tuesday morning and like every Israeli event, there was loads of balagan (craziness). The teachers were busy with administrative details, leaving the students to organize themselves. Each class had a few student leaders, who were busy with attendance and bus packing. They had to make sure that all of the building material, food, and luggage would fit on the bottom of the bus. It was really impressive to watch the students lead the trip. In America, the teachers were always in charge and the students rarely had a say as to what was going on. We were just told where to go and what to do. It was refreshing to see that that wasn't the case.
When we finally got on the bus, I decided to take out my ulpan notebook and work on my Hebrew. Little did I know that by doing that, the whole two days would become a giant Hebrew lesson. The kids were so excited to teach me new words and check my work. The teacher had become the student. It was at the very moment where one student asked if she could help me with my homework, that I realized I would learn the majority of my Hebrew knowledge from my students. Ulpan is wonderful, but talking with the kids is when I really get to practice and put my new words to use. They laugh at my accent, but for the most part, are very excited to help me.
That wasn't the best part of the bus ride though. The last 15 minutes of the ride, I sat with one student and she asked me a plethora of questions about myself. When she got around to asking where I was from, she was flabbergasted by the fact that I said New York. She insisted that I quit the program and move back to New York. She said she loves having my in school, but New York is so much more exciting. She couldn't comprehend that I would leave New York to live in a small city in Israel. She was even more shocked to find out that myself and the rest of the fellows work at our respective schools for a very small stipend. She said we do great work and that it took a very special kind of person. It was definitely a conversation I wasn't expecting to have, but it did make me realize that I am very lucky to be able to take part in a program like this. Not everyone has the type of personality or the ability.
After our short bus ride, we got to the campsite and started unloading the bus. From there, we had a meeting with all of the students, teachers, and high school students who were helping the 8th graders build. I cannot remember how many times one of the high schoolers mistakenly thought I was in 8th grade. Perks of looking young. We started to build the different tents with wooden rods, bed sheets, metal rods that went into the ground, and lots of rope. I was very excited when I found out that I got to sleep in a cabin with a bed. Building the tents and the surrounding campsite took a surprisingly long time. However, the students were so excited to teach me the different building techniques. If you ever need some help tying tight knots, I'm now your girl. In reality though, their building skills were very impressive. Many Americans would not be able to accomplish what they did.
When we finally got on the bus, I decided to take out my ulpan notebook and work on my Hebrew. Little did I know that by doing that, the whole two days would become a giant Hebrew lesson. The kids were so excited to teach me new words and check my work. The teacher had become the student. It was at the very moment where one student asked if she could help me with my homework, that I realized I would learn the majority of my Hebrew knowledge from my students. Ulpan is wonderful, but talking with the kids is when I really get to practice and put my new words to use. They laugh at my accent, but for the most part, are very excited to help me.
That wasn't the best part of the bus ride though. The last 15 minutes of the ride, I sat with one student and she asked me a plethora of questions about myself. When she got around to asking where I was from, she was flabbergasted by the fact that I said New York. She insisted that I quit the program and move back to New York. She said she loves having my in school, but New York is so much more exciting. She couldn't comprehend that I would leave New York to live in a small city in Israel. She was even more shocked to find out that myself and the rest of the fellows work at our respective schools for a very small stipend. She said we do great work and that it took a very special kind of person. It was definitely a conversation I wasn't expecting to have, but it did make me realize that I am very lucky to be able to take part in a program like this. Not everyone has the type of personality or the ability.
After our short bus ride, we got to the campsite and started unloading the bus. From there, we had a meeting with all of the students, teachers, and high school students who were helping the 8th graders build. I cannot remember how many times one of the high schoolers mistakenly thought I was in 8th grade. Perks of looking young. We started to build the different tents with wooden rods, bed sheets, metal rods that went into the ground, and lots of rope. I was very excited when I found out that I got to sleep in a cabin with a bed. Building the tents and the surrounding campsite took a surprisingly long time. However, the students were so excited to teach me the different building techniques. If you ever need some help tying tight knots, I'm now your girl. In reality though, their building skills were very impressive. Many Americans would not be able to accomplish what they did.
It took about three hours to build all the tents, and then we rested for lunch. The rest wasn't very long though, because we had to build the campsite. They used long tree branches to build a form of a wall around the campsite, as well as a wooden shelf to put all of their luggage on. This took several more hours and building went on into the night.
It seemed like the building would never end, but alas it finally did. My hands were tired to say the least. We started making dinner, each class responsible for their own food. This trip taught the kids so many useful skills! Tent building, rope tying, fire making, and cooking. Again, I was very pleased to hear that the teachers had their own food and I didn't have to risk eating the food the kids made. After dinner, each class had time to regroup and prepare for the night show. Each class created a short skit and had to present to everyone. I wish I could tell you what it was about, but it was in Hebrew.
The next morning, we woke up and took a short walk to the Armored Corps Museum (a.k.a the tank museum). There were so many tanks! As the kids learned (again in Hebrew) I took the time to walk around and look at all of the different tanks.
The next morning, we woke up and took a short walk to the Armored Corps Museum (a.k.a the tank museum). There were so many tanks! As the kids learned (again in Hebrew) I took the time to walk around and look at all of the different tanks.
We even got to climb on the tanks!
All in all, it was an amazing two days! I am so happy that I got to go on this trip with them, and climb on a tank for the very first time!