The Once and Future (and imperfect, and plu-perfect, and imperative) King

Sorry about the lack of updating...have actually been pretty busy with everything....

Anyhow, here's an update on the life here...

First of all, I have officially moved to a new room. The final night I was there, we had a bit of a blow-up... It seems that come 11:30, when I was ready to sleep, they wanted to watch a movie in the room. I asked them to go somewhere else and was told, 'no---take a sleeping pill' (except they don't really speak any english, so it was more communicated through sign-language...but you get the idea). Well, this escalated, and eventually we reached the agreement that they would take my key to the Ulpan-Lounge and watch the movie there. Well, when they came back an hour later (very, very, very stoned...but not in a relaxed way. More in a "Look how funny man hand looks!" sort of way), they woke me up, and when I asked for the key, told me they lost it. I made them go search (I'm not sure if I believe them or not, btw), and they never found it.

Anyhow, I didn't get to sleep til 2:30, and the next day switched. I now have my OWN room, in another building that is SO quiet. It is wonderful.

My job, I love. I play with kids all day long. Today, for instance, I ran around with 15 6-year olds, playing "follow the monkey" and other games such as that... it was so much fun...

The other big news is that i have been adopted by a family here. It's one of my kids parents, and they are wonderful. She is British and he is a Sabra....and they are so welcoming and warm...it's fantastic, and a nice way to get away while not leaving...

That's about it in my life. I'm studying a ton right now, and my Hebrew is getting better all the time (better, better, beeeeeter), getting so much better all the time. Working with the kids is really good for it..

as is the fact that I need to take a Hebrew exam for HUC on tuesday, so I've picked out 300 or so basic fluency words that I don't know well (colors, shapes, foods, connecting words, verbs, etc...), and am flashcarding it up.

With that in mind, I'm gonna go study.

Hope everyone is well, and I'll post more pictures of the kibbutz soon-


Daniel

Toasting Challah on a Space Heater (or, What Will The French Think of Next???)

Another of Dov
Originally uploaded by ManualLabor.

I really do like Dov. A lot. But I am asking for a new room tomorrow. I have had enough. Tonight I was jamming with another guitar player in the room, Scott. Anyhow, Dov had mentioned that he was going to watch a movie in the room with about 10 people, and I told him no, that I was going to sleep.

After I was done playing guitar and said I was going to sleep (note: he never asked nor made any sort of motion that I should stop playing guitar), he said it was movie time. I told him that it was not movie time, it was sleep time (it was nicer than that...). He argued and argued and said that all I ever want to do is sleep (and compared to them, this is true). Well, I informed him that I would be looking for a new room.

ugh.

Anyhow, I've gotten some request to provide information on what the kibbutz does (i.e. what it produces). Here is the list that I know of so far:

1. Disposible allumnum pans
2. Alluminum cans
3. Foil
4. Expensive Parrots
5. Dairy
6. Chickens
7. Flowers

This is what I know so far... I'll share more as I discover more...

hope everyone is well... (there are 5 other new pictures, btw)

Daniel

Just want to bang on this drum all day...

So I had my first day of work today, and I have to say: awsome.

I was talking to a local woman, and she said a great truth: there is no place in the world like a kibbutz to raise children.

They have the most amazing programs here for them. After school they go to a Beit Yeldaim (children's house) where they hang out with "madrichim" (think camp) for 3 hours. There is a TV room (always on MTV, I think), an art room, a sports room (kicked some kid's butt in Ping-Pong---oh yeah!), a homework area, and a cooking area (we made a cake and cookies today). Anyhow, my job is to hang out with them during this time, and basically just have a fun time of it (i have to clean, etc... but basically it's a ton of fun.... More intense than cleaning the tables in the kitchen, but overall no question in my mind, a great job....)

I've got a few pictures that i've finally taken, and I'll put them up tomorow (tonight for all of you).

Hope everyone is well---and please send me emails with updates on how you're doing...it's nice to hear about home.

Love,


daniel

(and lest you worry, of course my roomates are STILL noisy)

college

college
Originally uploaded by ManualLabor.

I don't hold it against them. This really is their Freshman year. But I've been an RA twice before, which means I've lived on a Freshman floor three times already. And I feel like I AM their RA, too. Except, when I was an RA I would tell them to be quiet and would have authority. Now I tell them to be quiet and I'm just an ass.

Roomates

My roomates,who have never had roomates before, don't understand how to be quiet. They just really don't. I'm sure that they mean well (at least Dov does...I can't remember the other one's name...). Anyhow, I yelled at them at 630 in the morning when they were noisly getting ready to go to work (I don't work til the afternoon). Well, Dov came up to me, and in 2/3 broken Hebrew 1/3 broken English informed me that he will try harder, and really, really doesn't want me to leave, because, "Ani Ohev Ohto", which roughly translates as "I like/love him," though I'm pretty sure he meant me; It was really sweet, and I'venow mostly forgiven him for waking me up.

The Russians are another story. I had to ask them two turn down their music and be quieter(it was quite stereotypical; they were drinking vodka) THREE TIMES last night, and then ONCE this morning at 6:00, which I don't understand, as that means they went to sleep after me and woke up before me, but hey, there's lots in this world I don't really understand...

Speaking of which, the amount of information I knew before coming to this kibbutz about what I will be doing... I don't really know anything more now....

It's been a hard day's night...

So my wonderful, kind, very sweet (I mean it) french roomates are 18 years-old and are essentially away at colelge for the first time.

It was easy to forget that they are a LOT younger, because a) I don't understand them and b) they pretend to be classier because they are European. But there are some universal truths in this world, and I am here to point them out:

1) 18 year olds away from their parents for the first time get really nervous
2) These same 18 year-olds stay up all night long and smoke a lot of cigarettes and keep me awake and steel TVs at 3 in the morning and smoke hash out of a hookah outside
3) I am not 18 years old anymore, and right now it feels like there is a BIG difference between 18 and 22...

Anyhow, it's not a big deal to switch rooms, so I'll give it some time, figuring that they ARE really nice, and it IS a good way to learn more Hebrew.

In terms of the rest of life, everything is really good. I had a minor freak-out moment last night, and luckly at the same time Zohar called to check in on me; was very sweet, and really did make me feel better (no big deal moment---just first night jitters).

Anyhow, we had our test this morning (spoken test) and I was put in the highest of the three Hebrew levels, which suprised me. I think that the teacher who interviewed me really liked me AND what she said was that I could either be at the bottom of the highest level (there are people here who grew up fluent in Hebrew, but their grammer is bad...so i really will be at the bottom), but her logic was that being at the bottom of gimel was a good incentive to get better, whereas being at the top of bet was only going to give me a big head.

Anyhow, so that was good news, and then immediatly following that we all sat down in another room to find out where we would work. Two by two we went in....ok, actually, one by one, but I figured I needed at least ONE lame biblical joke.

Well, people were coming out saying, "They told me I was going to be at the zoo yesterday, but today they said I'll be doing laundry", or perhaps, "cleaning" or "kitchen work". Well, she called me in:


"So normally we don't have people work with the children, beacuse they have enough permanent staff there. But since you were a teacher (I maybe told them about that...), and since you switched rooms to BE with people who don't speak English, we are impressed so we will put you there. However, we are sorry, because instead of the normal 6-8 hours a day of work, it will only be 4-6, is this ok?"

Man o Man. It's a good day so far.

Well, here's hoping...

I was in the biggest room with 2 very nice (though admitadly, very young) Americans, and so I went to the Ulpan Director and asked to be switched to live with 2 Frenchman (who speak no English) in a dark, small, smokey (they smoke in there...I'll have to talk to them about that eventually) room...

Because I knew that if I lived with Americans, I'd speak nothing but English, whereas now I will be forced to speak Hebrew... but this may be a little lonely...

Here Safe

Got here with very little trouble. It's funny, the Shirut (shuttle)that i took to Jerusalem was scary, but this bus provided no anxiety....

Anyhow, I've checked in and had lunch (the food looks pretty good), and am now waiting to move into my room. I had lunch with three Americans (just out of High School...they really seem young) who are taking a year off before college.

Anyhow, I'll write more later after I know something about what I'll be doing...

Oh---the director ofthe program seems like a reallygreat guy. Rueven--and after I told him I was a teacher, he's putting me with the kids in the daycare---which sounds like a much better job than the normal one that the Ulpaniks do: kitchen work.

Anyhow, hope everyone is doing well at home---please email me updates on you---it's nice to hear about that world.


Daniel

A Few New Pictures

Daniel and Lilu, 2
Originally uploaded by ManualLabor.

There are a few pictures up...just me and Anat's dog (a friend from camp)...

it was serious Dude-missing time.

Almost Cut My Hair

Actually, I did cut my hair. Keren set it up at this VERY trendy place (no one tell Ralph...it would hurt him too much). Anyhow, this guy was very nice, very funny, and reminded me of Bruno from Da Ali G Show (mostly the accent). Anyhow, it turned out really well, and everyone agrees that a) it was a good haircut and b) I look more Israeli.

Daniel

A Little Bit of Jeh Cooper Heaven...

So FINALLY I made it to a Falafel place (everytime I wanted to go, whomever I was with complained, "ehh, I always eat that...let's get something else, like pizza!"

Well, it was AMAZING. As a note, Keren (and my, but she mentioned it first) first-thought in seeing this place was, "My god, Jeh needs to come here. It would be his heaven."

They give you a pita with some humus, and then it's off to the races, at a salad-bar like place with around 30 different options to put in there. Onions, sauerkraut, cillantro-salad, sauces, falafel, fries, sweet potatoe (quayle) fries, anything you could dream of.

Amazing.

Anyhow, the time here has been great. Today I was with Keren and we went all around Tel Aviv; in particular there's a big photo-journalism show here that we went to that was really amazing. There was a section from all over the world and then a section just in Israel, and a final section dealing with the Gaza-pullout. All of it was moving.

Tomorrow I'm off to the kibbutz. Keren called them up and they said I should get there tomorrow, or I'll have no choice in my room/bunk, and no time to get ready. So tomorrow it is. I'll take a train to Haifa and a bus to the kibbutz (it's a 30 minute bus ride... which I'm sure will feel like days).

Talk to everyone soon (and don't worry Aunt Nancy, Mom, Grandma, Karen, A, etc... I'll post on here as soon as I can to tell you that I made it through alive... which I guess is a pretty grim thought in case I don't have internet access at the Kibbutz for a while, eh???)


With much love,

Daniel

New Pictures!

There are new pics from the end of the Germany Trip and also from my trip up north in Israel...

And by my mother's request, there are more of me (Keren and Zohar can be thanked for this)

Jerusalem (and I understand anti-Arab racism now)

So I have yelled at Keren and Zohar for being SO racist against Arabs; then I had to take public transportation to Jerusalem and no longer hold it against them.

Elana (the friend from Mac/UofM) told me I should take this little shuttle instead of the bus... because the real advantage is you NEVER relax while you're on the bus...

Well, I got on, and there was an Arab woman in a head-dress sitting there, too. And what did I do? I looked around and picked the seat where I thought I would be most likley to survive after she blew-herself up. I realized the racism involved when I was making this choice, and at the same time will continue to do it....it's amazing how this policy of terror breeds nothing but more bile.

That aside, I got in safely to Jerusalem (after a long delay because of a minor car accident...it seems that 'rubber-necking' is even more well liked in Israel).

Elana met me at the stop, and we headed off to a Cafe to sit, have a drink, and have big discussions about impossible things. It was actually realy nice to see her, and pretty quickly we picked up in our friendship where we left off months ago--was really nice.

Afterwards we headed out to see some of her other HUC buddies, and eventually made out way back to her place and all sat around and sang camp songs and smoked hookah...was a fun night.

Oh---the other big news right now--- 11:30 am, Feb 1st is my interview date for HUC.

Hope all is well, please continue to keep me updated (and I'm uploading pictures as we speak)


Daniel

Israel: First Thoughts

I am the step-child that nobody wants.

Actually, that's not quite true...it's just become the joke amongst my handlers (I have been handed off between three different girls in Israel...one to the next to the next... all of whom are introducing me to the country).


So I got in Monday morning after a 5 hour flight from London (and a two hour flight TO London that was massivly delayed and resulted in my running like crazy to make it to the flight to Israel on time)...(the flight was first delayed for and hour and a half at the Berlin airport, then got a late slot to take off, then was told that they would have to circle twice before landing, then sat on the runway because there were no places to put them, then were put in the middle of nowhere so we took steps down, then waited for 20 minutes for a bus to came to drive us to the terminal...it was awsome. And Brits, yep, those people know how to truly ENJOY complaining...so we had a jolly old time (I mean it...me, an Aussie and the flight attendnat sat there complaining and really enjoying ourselves hour about an hour there...)

So I get in at 5:30 in the morning (Israel time), and Keren (a friend from Sabra this last summer), bless her, meets me at the Airport.

We get back to her place (which is a really nice apartments in Hertzallia...just outside Tel Aviv), and I proceed to sleep for 6 hours (because of the flight, not jet-lag...Israel's only an hour off of Germany). Then the two of us set off for a driving tour of the area (think Miami?), which ended in us going to a fun little cafe and sitting for lunch.

The next day, I hoped on a train to Tel Aviv (20 minutes or so), and was met by Zohar, an old friend from Ramot Amoona (she was the Israeli scout YEARS ago), who randomly found me on the internet through an article I wrote for the Mac Weekly on Israel.

After a chill night at her parents (BEAUTIFUL) place in Tel Aviv, we headed up north to Acco, a city where the old ruins of about every civilization that's controlled the area in the last 1000 years or so, is preserved. It was very cool, and very interesting... it also gave me much more of a taste for what Israel FEELS like...

We spent the night in some Country-Hostel type thing, and then were off to Rosh Hanikra in the north (it's on the border between Lebanon and Israel...upper left corner). Anyhow, it is these amazing caves that have naturally been formed by the mediteranian just eating away, more and more, at this chalk-rock for millenia.

After that, it was back to Tel Aviv for a shuttle to Jerusalem to stay for the day with Elana (a friend from Macalester/the U of M)


Daniel

Germany: Last Thoughts

Sorry it's been so long.... it's been much harder to find a computer, and i've had much less free time to boot...

On Friday Michael and two good friends of his (David and Erika---both ex-pats from S. Dakota--none of the 3 being Jewish...) went to services at an 'egalitarian' service.

It was held in the old "New Shul" in the heart of east-Berlin. The building is just amazingly beautiful, with this vaguely middle-eastern architecture (there are some pictures of it early on in my collection).

The service itself was different than anything i've ever experienced... It was led by a woman rabbi (who, I'll be honest, really provided a good argument in favor of the orthodox... they say that women and men should be separate because if a woman is leading, there could be inappropriate thoughts... and this woman was BEAUTIFUL). Anyhow, that aside, the service was egalitarian in its prayers (i.e. the imahot were included in the amida). However, with that exception, it was very similar to a traditional service. It was al in Hebrew, it was continuous, and with the exception of page numbers, there was no German at all. However, it was sung the entire time (no guitar or anything like that...just traditional melodies), and there must have been people in this small room (there were only 30-40 people, and the room was FULL) who were choral singers...because it was beautiful. Everything was harmonies, everything was just amazing...

The experience itself was....Enlivening. It was just amazing to see a modern, progressive Judaism in the heart of Germany! There are 110,000 Jews living in Germany today, and it was an amazing thing to see.


Overall, I really had a...positive... time in Germany. The time with Michael was wonderful, and it was great to see that the connection that we had still existed. Germany itself (though admittedly I saw "Jewish Germany") was much less depressing and much more enlivening than I ever would have guessed... to the point where I would recommend any Jew go there... so the Jewish Museum, see the Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe.... See the Jewish community there today.

Speaking of which, Elana asked me yesterday (the person i'm staying with right now in Jerusalem...but more on that later) what it felt like Germany's relationship with the holocaust is... if i had to sum it up, it is one of ownership, but not guilt. The newer generations own that their culture, their parents and grandparents and great-grandparents did this, and they do understand (for the most part...and from what a limited spectrum of people I saw) and believe in the importance of ownership and remembrance, and yet they don't feel guilt about it (though there is a spectrum that have a strong guilt complex, and there is a spectrum that has responded to that with a very much, "enough is enough on this whole holocaust thing").


Ok--those are my thoughts for now.

I'll update everyone on Israel soon.

Daniel

Vise Men Sin

My one thought of the day...

I was on the S-Bahn (the overground, fast intra-Berlin rail), when an older homeless gentleman got on with a guitar....


"vise men sin. Ohnley vools roosh in. Boot Eye kahnt hulp valling in loove vit ooh"

It was amazing.

Thoughts upon visiting Buchenwald

I'm not completly sure why this is so, but I'll try to make a stab at it before I explain my reaction.

When my Dad was here 30 years ago, or so, he went to the camps and immediatly had to get out of the country. It was an amazingly intense and negative experience for him, one which destroyed Germany for him.

A couple possible reasons for our differences:
1. My generation has had pretty comprehensive holocaust eduction; we have grown up with high quality, systematic multi-media education in it, so nothing that i saw was a suprise in that way. It was more intense, more real, but not a suprise. There was nothing i hadn't seen before.
2. I have known two Germans very fondly. Between Lise-Anne's (the ex-girlfriend, for those not in the know) father Johaness and my friend whom I'm staying with, Michael, I have become close with two Germans, both of whom are very open about the Holocaust and have always encouraged me to talk with them about my feelings as they specifically related to them... This helped, I think, get out a lot of the anxst about everyday Germans... are at least meant that I had dealt with a lot of it to some degree.
3. When Dad was here, anyone over the afte of 55-60 would have been involved in the Shoah. For me, they would have to be 85-90. It's funny, though, I still see old people and get uncomfortable. It's a combination feeling of wanting to not let their shaddow touch me and wanting to spit in their face... or at least that's the best way I can think to describe it. But not having actuall 'nazis' around everywhere, i think this makes it easier, too.
4. The museum at Buchenwald is pretty amazing. For obvious reasons, they have an enourmous collection of source materials, and use it very, very well. There is NO applogetic-history there... But one think I was struck by is the fact that a TON of the information is not translated into English. This didn't make sense, as I would imagine that the museum would attract a lot of 'tourists'. And then I realized that it's not for me. The Museum (and to a certain degree, the camps) is not for me. It's for Germans. It's so school children can come (and they do, by the busload everyday) and see this, and never be able to whitewash history; so that they too can attest, "We did this". Which in a way is why i went. it was so another generation of Jews can stand up and say, "This Happened."


So enough, to my reactions---(and as a side note, I had gone back and forth the whole time, and decided in the end (and I appologize if this word doesn't quite convey the right meaning) that I would wear a kippa, as this was a holy place...)

My overwhelming, visceral, intense feeling was that I was a real big middle-finger, a big "Fuck You" to everyone involved in the Holocaust. To Hitler, to the Nazis, to the everyday Germans who stood back and washed their hands of it. I was a big "Fuck You" to all of them. I came there to see THEM in a museum, not the other way around. WE made it; WE are alive, and thriving and surviving. WE have our own state, our own dream. It was YOU who were relegated to history books--to only History books. I'm still here.

Not sure if that makes sense...but that's really how it felt....

Which is not to say there wasn't sadness and depression. There was--particularly the cremetorium--- In an odd way, just when I was feeling the most....intense.... is when I was the most reassured by other Jews.

The whole time I was there, i didn't see anyone I thought was Jewish (which is not to say that there wern't people there...just none that I saw and thought "ah chah!").

So I was standing in the crematorium, and felt the overwhelming need to pick up a rock, and place it on the ridge... I went to go get a rock, and when I came back, that's when I noticed there was a row already there. There was a row of rocks. Probably most of the non-Jews who came never even noticed them, but I did. Rocks, proof that I wasn't alone there--proof that there were other Jews, who if they weren't with me at the moment, were still with me... i can't describe how comforting this was. The Jewish memorial was the same way... rocks upon rocks...just so comforting.

I said a Kaddish in the Crematorium, vistited the rest of the site, and left; feeling a little more depressed and somehow, a yet somehow a little more..comforted. You don't need to go to a Museum to discover our culture.


Daniel

Stuck in Weimar with the Berlin Blues Again...

So there's an oblisk (their word) on a street corner in Weimer that marks the road you take to get to Buchenwald. I was standing in front of it, on a grey, cold German day, around 3:45, because I had taken the wrong bus originally, and had to wait for the next one to pick me up. And it was raining.

But let us back up a few hours.

I woke up at Michael's this morning, only to discover that the water had been turned off (it's like the commies still run east berlin....). Anyhow, it was off to the train station, where I took a 12 oclock train to Weiver, so that i could see Buchenwald.

After pestering the very kind girl sitting next to me at every stop (is this Weimar? is this Weimar?) I everntually made it into the city. it's really this charming place at first... looks like every tourist image of the German countryside. Finally I got on the bus, (the wrong one), and eventually made it to Buchenwald... where i discovered that they had already closed for the day. So I decided I'd stay overnight (goodbye another $100!)... It seems worth it, though. Would have been wrong to visit germany and not go.

As crazy as the day sounds, it actually isnät upsetting... sort of nice to get to see another city outside of Berlin.

My thoughts on going tomorrow are pretty....self-aware. There's such a sense of it being a 'profound moment' that it's hard to step out of that awareness....


Hope everyone is well (far and away the most frustraiting moment of the day is writing this....these damned German keyboards have all the punctuation in random places, and then have the z and the y switched......argh)

Through the streets of Berlin

Michael, a friend of his and myself had a little bit of hot-spiced-wine and sang "O-Canada" through the streets of Berlin tonight. I can appreciate how this will be very, very funny tomorrow morning.

A Wery Jewish Day (get it, "wery" because I'm in Germany???)

So instead of Buchenwald (I bought ther ticket, but I'm a little scared that I accidently validated it, so I won't be able to use it tomorrow...we'll see. I figure I'll play "dumb American", which I guess in this case is pretty accurate...), I decided I would take out the map Michael bought me and go (or at least try to go) to every "jewish star" on the thing.

First, I hit up the Berlin Jewish Museum. (see the pic)

It's a museum dedicated to Judaism is Germany starting in its first traces, around 300 C.E. It follows Jewish history here (never really a very comfortable thing) through the Holocaust and into today (though I would have liked to have seen more on today's Jewish-German community....there are 100,000 Jews here, and it is the fastest growing Jewish community in the world). The museum itself is very nice, though in the end it is a museum like any-other. What is amazing is the architecture (i don't think that is how most people spell that word...)

I'm not someone who notices things like this normally, but the design was astonishing. The whole thing is based around "broken jewish stars", and it shows. In the insides there are sharp turns and corners that lead no-where at all.

But the two most remarkable features are the "garden of exile" and the "holocaust tower"

The Garden of Exile (see the pic) has all of these stones in lines (it is meant to evoke the memorial to the jews of europe that is in the center of berlin...i'm going there tomorrow, i think) Anyhow, everything is in straight lines...with itself...but slightly off of everything else (including the ground). it gives the most intense feeling of vertigo and unease...which is what it was designed to do.

But far and away the most powerful 'place' i have ever been was the Holocaust Tower. I cant' describe it very well, but essentially it is a triangular tower with concreate walls that goes up 100-200 ft. it is small and almost silent inside. It is freezing (i'm pretty sure it is actually cooled-down on purpose). being inside of it is more intense than anything else....it is the most moving holcaust memorial that I have ever felt, and yet there are no words/signs/etc...

I saw two Israeli girls there, and half-followed them around for a while (probably creaped them out...). Just had this overwhelming desire to be near other Jews... Which makes me worry about Buchenwald tomorrow (or thursday).

After the Jewish Museam, I hit up a few other stars, including a Random Jewish Cafe that I found (guarded at all times by police, as are ALL jewish locations in Germany) and the "new" shule (beautiful on the outside...a pretty lame museum on the inside)

Lastly, I ended up in downtown berlin, tracking down another star, and ended up at the headquarters of the German Jewish Association (or whatever it's called). They didn't let me in, but the guy there told me some other places to go. On my way back I found a little Judaics store with "Happy Hanukah" on the outside (I took a picture, but it didn't turn out).

The only other real event of the day was that while i was taking the U-bahn back (the underground), I turned on my ipod and put on U2's Achtung Baby (recorded in Berlin...figured it would provide an interesting soundtrack). The first song comes on, and I go to get on my train--I pick it up (the U2) line at Zoo-Station (also the name of the first track). Was just an odd moment...could literally see where they got the track idea from.

Anyhow, all is well now...waiting for Michael to get back from school so we can go get dinner....


Daniel

Trying to get to Buchenwald

So I woke up this morning, and after talking with Dad online for a few minutes, decided I would try to get to Buchenwald (for those of you not in the know, a concentration camp near Weimar). anyhow, Figuring out the train schedule was impossible, and by the time I got there (to the station) I had missed the train that would have made sense to take. Try again tomorrow.

Anyhow, for those who haven't figured it out, on the right of this screen is a link to www.flickr.com. it should take you right to my pictures (only 3 up so far).

Daniel

Berlin

Got into Berlin early this morning (9:30am, local time). Feels surreal to be here... I feel like I should feel *more* Jewish/odd than I do.... The one moment of that was when i took the U-bahn (the underground) by myself to meet Michael for dinner near hi school. Anyhow, I got a little lost, and it was weird: whereas I would normally be inclined to speak to an older-person, asking for advice, my mind kept turning to "hmm...how old where they? where were they?" I suppose that you would have to be 80+ in order to have been of age during the Nazi era... but it's still odd.

Anyhow, mostly it was really nice. Was good to see Michael and to see where he lives. Lunch at a Thai place (and I ran into some Tibetan monks in the road) and Dinner at a North-African place.

That's it for now---here's a couple pictures--


Daniel