Week 22: Lots and Lots of Cats

Hey everyone!

It's been another unbelievable week this week. I landed in Israel soon after I wrote last week's post. I took a late train from the airport to Haifa, which is my main destination on this trip. At nearly 2 AM, I was reunited with Elana, my friend from Brandeis who has been studying at the Technion. 

This last week has fluctuated between lazing around and ridiculously busy. I've had days where I didn't leave the building I woke up in.

On Wednesday and Thursday, I was in Jordan. Elana, her roommate, and I all took a tour to Jerash, Amman, and Petra. We saw some beautiful sights and learned a lot about the history of the region. There were amphitheaters from the Greek and Roman Empires everywhere, a citadel in Amman, and a Nabataean cemetery in Petra.

After a very long and very delayed ride back to Israel, I came to visit family in both Haifa and Zichron. It's been amazing, save for two important facts:

1) My Israeli family loves cats and they've all got at least one.

2) I'm REALLY allergic to cats. Like more than I'm allergic to anything else. 

So it's been a bit of a struggle. I'm on allergy medication and I've got my inhaler handy for nighttime, but I'm also a sneezy, watery-eyed mess. And the cats are all really sweet, so I can't even resent them for it.

It's totally worth it to see my relatives. I'm having a great time despite the slight misery. And I'll see you next week when I'm no longer sleeping in the same residence as a cat.

Here is this week in pictures!

@elanajoyisrael has a really nice view #reunited #haifa #israel #technion #israelinisrael #emilygoesabroad

A post shared by Emily (@emilyhannahk) on Jul 17, 2017 at 9:31am PDT

@elanajoyisrael and I are spending a little time in jordan!!! #jordan #travel #israelinjordan #emilygoesabroad

A post shared by Emily (@emilyhannahk) on Jul 19, 2017 at 6:18am PDT

We had an amazing time in Petra this morning! #chillininthedesert #40celsius #israelinjordan #emilygoesabroad

A post shared by Emily (@emilyhannahk) on Jul 20, 2017 at 12:43pm PDT

Week 20: Thailand

Welcome back to my blog!

On Tuesday, I flew from Sydney to Bangkok. My plane was 20 minutes late, which doesn't sound like a lot except I had a 60 minute layover scheduled and had to go through Thai customs. I somehow managed to make my 2nd flight to Chiang Mai. 

Thailand is a beautiful country. It's hot and humid, the people are friendly, and the food is spectacular. It's been a great week and I've still got a few days before I have to leave. I'll put some pictures at the end of the post.

Being a tourist always makes me feel strange. Travel is one of my favorite things. I love to experience new places and see how other people live. The part that bothers me is that feeling that I'm barging into someone else's space. 

I try my hardest to tread lightly, but I see so many people who make jokes out of the culture they're visiting or treat holy sites like playgrounds. When I see people like that, I wonder if they know what they're doing. And that makes me worry that I'm doing it too.

This has been true for lots of trips I've taken, but it rings even truer here. The debate over cultural sharing is a hot issue on the internet, but I've never been satisfied by the conclusions any side comes up with.

Yesterday was the start of Vassa, which our tour guide calls "Buddhist Lent." We spent the night in a village in Lampang, where we got to participate in a ceremony at the temple. Everyone held bunches of flowers with a candle, and some monks led us in circles around a giant statue of the Buddha as they chanted. I don't know what they were saying, but the ceremony was still beautiful. 

Other than getting to sit in on (and partially join) a Buddhist ceremony, much of our trip has been very touristy. We've visited a lot of night markets, which all sell very similar clothes and trinkets for extremely low prices. I took a bike tour around Chiang Mai, learned how to make Thai food in a cooking class, took an incredibly short boat trip to Laos, and photographed a lot of temples. 

I'm trying my hardest to be a considerate visitor. It's easy to remember to be respectful at a holy site (especially because people are quick to reprimand any misbehavior there), but it's harder to remember that etiquette is different here than it is at home. So while I'm here, I'll learn as much as I can and try my best to be respectful. I don't know if that's the right answer to the question of ethical travel, but it's what I've got for now.

And here are the pictures!

On a bike tour of Chiang Mai! #thailand #temple #emilygoesabroad

A post shared by Emily (@emilyhannahk) on Jul 4, 2017 at 8:28pm PDT

Ending my first day with a cocktail and some live music! #nightmarket #thailand #emilygoesabroad

A post shared by Emily (@emilyhannahk) on Jul 5, 2017 at 7:39am PDT

At the market learning about Thai food! #cookingclass #thailand #emilygoesabroad

A post shared by Emily (@emilyhannahk) on Jul 5, 2017 at 7:37pm PDT

A view of Myanmar #thailand #myanmar #emilygoesabroad

A post shared by Emily (@emilyhannahk) on Jul 6, 2017 at 10:21pm PDT

A couple of us took a boat into Laos for a quick visit #thailand #laos #emilygoesabroad

A post shared by Emily (@emilyhannahk) on Jul 7, 2017 at 2:25am PDT

I'll see you next week from another country! Which one? Come back to find out.

Week 19: Beyond the Sea

Hey!

First, I want to thank everyone for the incredible support and love you showed me after last week's blog post. Your comments and messages made me smile this whole week.

Another thing that made me smile this week was the trip I took. On Wednesday, I flew up to Cairns. For those of you in not-Australia, Cairns is a city in the north of Queensland, right on the Great Barrier Reef. I think you know where this is going.

If not, here's a picture I took of a sea turtle:

I made a friend #seaturtle #greatbarrierreef #brandeisabroad #emilygoesabroad

A post shared by Emily (@emilyhannahk) on Jun 30, 2017 at 5:11am PDT

The Great Barrier Reef has been a dream of mine since I was a little kid. At the very earliest, it was when I was 8 and saw Finding Nemo for the first 10 or so times. I was enchanted by the idea of so much color and diversity in one spot. The distance made it even cooler, but it also made the idea of actually seeing it seem far-fetched.

That is, until I started planning my semester abroad in Australia. With most of the distance already covered, I was able to go up for just a few days. And it was so worth it.

I spent Thursday out on a boat, trying very hard not to get seasick. I got to snorkel at two different locations along the reef and saw some incredible coral, fish, and other sea creatures. Of course, I rented a waterproof camera so I could document the experience.

If this were a different kind of travel blog, I would encourage you to make the trek to the Great Barrier Reef. They didn't crown it a Wonder of the Natural World for nothing.

I would rather talk about how incredible it is that such a complex ecosystem exists on our planet. I saw dozens of species in the few hours I was underwater. There were fish, turtles, clams, coral, and birds. And those are only the ones that I saw. Coral requires very specific conditions to grow and it's wild to me that those conditions actually occur.

I don't want to get all preachy (or maybe I do), but we're steadily ruining those conditions. If water temperatures rise, the coral won't reproduce, which means that the whole ecosystem that relies on coral will disappear. All of those colorful fish, anemones, sharks, turtles, and birds will lose their food and Earth will lose its largest coral reef.

It would be presumptuous of me to offer any solutions, as I am a college student with no expertise in this area. What I can do is ask you to learn about the environment and how best to help protect it. Here is a link to the Australian Marine Conservation Society's website.  Feel free to check it out or to do your own research.

Thanks for bearing with me during my foray into eco-blogging (sort of?) As a reward, here are some more pictures I took while snorkeling!

Some more pictures from the #greatbarrierreef #snorkeling #emilygoesabroad

A post shared by Emily (@emilyhannahk) on Jun 30, 2017 at 5:44am PDT

I'll see you next week with a post from not-Australia!

Week 17: The Last Post of the Semester!

Hey guys!

I'm currently running on fumes right now while juggling two papers, but let's not talk about that. This is my last post before I finish this semester! Fortunately for you, the 10 or so people still reading my blog, I've got another 2 months before I actually get back to the US.
I should mention that today is Father's Day! I'm not going to give my dad a sappy post because I know he'd like that too much. But happy Father's Day to you, Dad.
When I last posted, I was halfway done with my classes. This week has mostly consisted of writing (okay, it's mostly consisted of trying to write and winding up on Netflix or something). But in between trips to the library, I've had some nice moments.
On Wednesday, my apartment finally got around to having a group dinner. We ordered pizza and had chocolate fondue in our living room. It's been rare for all of us to be in the same place, so it was nice to take a night off to just hang out with friends. 
After dinner, a few of us went to Darling Harbour to see Vivid again. We didn't have much time before they shut the lights off for the night, but we did get to sit in front of the Contemporary Art Museum and watch the projections for a little while. Here's a photo:

Back at #vividsydney with friends #ishouldbestudying #sydneyharbour #brandeisabroad #emilygoesabroad

A post shared by Emily (@emilyhannahk) on Jun 14, 2017 at 5:32am PDT

Everything else that's on my mind is school related and I don't want to write about school. So I'm going to leave it here. I'll see you next week for my first week of VACATION!!! (That word sounds so good right now.) Here's one more photo to tide you over.

The Law Library is a great place to study if you can find a seat #finals #usyd #emilygoesabroad

A post shared by Emily (@emilyhannahk) on Jun 17, 2017 at 8:06pm PDT

Week 16: A Brief Reprieve – A Basic Update

Hey all!

So I'm in the thick of finals right now. Last night, after many mishaps ranging from a SEVERE lack of motivation to Microsoft Word deleting my outline, I submitted my third out of five final assignments. Now I'm completely finished with half of my classes!

I've got two more papers to write. Since they're due a week from Monday, I was able to take an easy day today. I slept in, which was glorious, went grocery shopping, and cooked myself dinner. The only school-related thing I did today was read a book– it was Fun Home, a graphic novel that I'd been meaning to read for over a year now (ever since I saw the Broadway musical).

My time in Sydney is winding down, but lately I've been too busy to do much of anything fun. Maybe in the coming week I'll be able to sneak away for a cool activity, but it might have to wait until after the 19th, when I'll (hopefully) be done with these last papers.

I do have some cool things to talk about though. I found out yesterday that I'll be working in a psych lab next semester! I'm really pumped about this opportunity to do some #adulting and gain some #relevantexperience while I'm at it (that's how you use #hashtags right???).

And on the total opposite end of the spectrum from school, I booked a trip up to the Great Barrier Reef for right before I leave Australia. This is a bucket-list item for me, which is strange because I don't have a bucket-list.

But for right now, I've got to get back to the grind for my last week of paper writing. I'll see you next week as I'm finishing them up (or, if I can be on top of things for once, when I've finished a day early *fingers crossed*)

Until then, I hope the rest of you have a week that is much more restful than mine!

Week 15: Please Enjoy These Photos While I Die of Finals

Hey friends!

So it's the night before my last week of classes. By midnight on Friday, I'll have (hopefully) taken a quiz, finished a 1,500 word take-home final, written a 2,000 word essay, and created a 1,650 word short story. Ideally, at least 2 of those things will have gone fairly well.

But I can't think about anything but finals for more than 2 minutes before my mind goes back to the mountain of work that I have to do. So I don't have anything to write about today. Or if I do, I can't focus on it long enough to mold it into a blog post.

Instead, I'm gonna post some photos that haven't made it onto the blog yet. Sorry to anyone who follows me on Instagram; you've seen these all before. If you're not following me on Instagram, you should do that.

One last photo before bed. From a street art alleyway #imsotired #butthisissocool #hosierlane #melbourne #orientation #emilygoesabroad

A post shared by Emily (@emilyhannahk) on Feb 21, 2017 at 2:54am PST

A view of the bridge #harbourbridge #sydneyharbour #sydney🇦🇺 #tourist #orientation #brandeisabroad #emilygoesabroad

A post shared by Emily (@emilyhannahk) on Feb 25, 2017 at 7:04pm PST

Second cliff was 15 meters! #adventure #outdooradventurephotos #abseiling #rappelling #weekendaway #bluemountains #arcadiaabroad #brandeisabroad #emilygoesabroad

A post shared by Emily (@emilyhannahk) on Mar 11, 2017 at 8:47pm PST

Card catalog at the state library #lowtech #library #solomission #locallandmark #brandeisabroad #emilygoesabroad

A post shared by Emily (@emilyhannahk) on Apr 1, 2017 at 10:45pm PDT

Some gift shopping before Mother's Day! #boomerangs #sydney #brandeisabroad #emilygoesabroad

A post shared by Emily (@emilyhannahk) on May 12, 2017 at 7:56pm PDT

The Three Sisters 2 months later #emilygoesabroad

A post shared by Emily (@emilyhannahk) on May 27, 2017 at 10:44pm PDT

Scroll to see the opera house lit up in pretty colors! #vividsydney #australia #brandeisabroad #emilygoesabroad

A post shared by Emily (@emilyhannahk) on Jun 2, 2017 at 6:37am PDT

I hope you enjoy these pictures. I'll see you next week when I'm warming up for my second (and last) round of finals.

Week 13: True Stories Told Live

Hey all!

Today marks 3 months since I landed in Australia. That puts me just past the halfway point in my trip. I’ve seen some amazing places, met some great people, and gotten to settle into life in a new city. But one of my favorite experiences of this semester so far is a thing that I totally could have done at home, but never quite got around to. I went to a Moth StorySLAM. 

The Moth is an organization that hosts live storytelling events, including StorySLAM competitions. The stories are about 5 minutes long and they have to be both true and about the storyteller. Some of the stories from these events are broadcast on the radio and on The Moth Podcast, which I love. 

I’m a writer (clearly) and live storytelling is a medium that fascinates me. There’s something about being able to hear the the pride when they talk about watching their loved one overcome a hardship, the regret when they talk about something they’ve lost, or the seriousness with which they describe a harrowing moment. It adds this dimension to the story that is one of the hardest things to capture in text (sorry, guys).

Or maybe what draws me to The Moth is that these stories are told live, with no notes allowed. I’ve got horrible stage fright. I challenge it constantly with choir and a cappella performances, but my presentation two weeks ago was delivered in a wavering voice and with a heartbeat that could probably be heard back in Boston. These people, as nervous as they are, get up on a stage in front of hundreds of strangers and tell a story about their lives. And they’re competing! Just the thought of doing what they do makes my entire vocabulary leave my brain.

The Moth holds monthly StorySLAMS in cities across the US and a few in the UK and Australia. I’ve been within an hour’s drive of a Moth event pretty much every time they’ve happened since I first heard the podcast. But I never actually went to one until Tuesday. I heard stories, ranging from a crazy firsthand account of a lightning strike (complete with St. Elmo’s fire) to a moving story about a woman’s visit to the home her family had lived in before the Holocaust. I’m still awestruck by the bravery that it took for those people to get up there, but also by the skill it takes to weave a story for a live audience. 

Maybe one day I’ll try my hand at live storytelling, but for now I’m content to keep myself out of view. And besides, there’s no backspace key on stage.

Here’s a picture from Tuesday night:

A post shared by Emily (@emilyhannahk) on May 16, 2017 at 2:21am PDT

And here’s a picture of a really cool mural in my neighborhood. The Block is an Aboriginal community here in Redfern. The history is really incredible and I'd recommend looking it up.

I'm really lucky to be staying in Eora country this semester. #aboriginalart #redfern #emilygoesabroad

A post shared by Emily (@emilyhannahk) on May 17, 2017 at 10:43pm PDT

I hope your week is full of wonderful stories.

See you soon,

Emily

Week 12: Open Letter to My Mom

Hi Mom,

I just got off the phone with you and I know I told you I was going to bed, but it's Mother's Day and I need to write a blog post.

It's been 2 months and 26 days since we were last in the same place. I'm having an incredible trip and I'm so glad to be here, but I miss you. I missed you during Passover when you weren't at the Seders I went to. I missed you when I was in New Zealand and I had to plan my own vacation. I missed you last week when I saw an ad for a Mother's Day brunch discount. I'll miss you tomorrow, the next day, and the week after that.

I could go into how great of a mom you are, how you've supported me in all of the things that I do, how you encourage me to do my best and pursue what I love, or how you've helped me grow up into a slightly taller and hopefully somewhat mature adult. But it's late and I don't want to write a whole novel.

I'm having the best time in Sydney. Today alone was filled with a bonfire with friends and a Eurovision party. This is an unreal semester, but it's days like today when it hits me just how far from home I am. I couldn't even call you until late tonight because you wouldn't have been up yet.

I'm glad you're celebrating Mother's Day with the rest of the family and that it was lovely speaking to you on the phone. I'm so lucky to have the best mom in the world (I know everyone says that, but I'm objectively correct).

All My Love,

Em

Week 11: I Don't Know About You...

I got a lot of messages involving this one Taylor Swift song on Tuesday.

I don't know about you... but I'm turning 22! #damnimold #brandeisabroad #emilygoesabroad

A post shared by Emily (@emilyhannahk) on May 1, 2017 at 8:12pm PDT

It was my 22nd birthday. And like every other birthday I can remember, it involved a mini existential crisis about how the passage of time is inevitable and what it means to get older. You know, the normal stuff. This year, though, it was a little different because of graduation.

"But Emily," you might be saying, "you're a junior. You don't graduate until next year."

First of all, I don't know why you're talking at your computer screen. I can't hear you and you're reading these words a while after I wrote them.

Second, I'm not graduating this year, but if I hadn't taken a gap year before college, I would be. Which means that all of the friends who were in my grade through high school, most of my friends who are closest to me in age, they're graduating. And planning life as a "real adult" (whatever that means).

I'm not doing that yet. I've still got more school left to do before I need to worry about starting grad school or whatever it is I'll do first. But I'm also hearing about my friends' experiences with saying goodbye to the life they've built at university and trying to find a place for themselves in the larger world.

And I'm really glad I took a year off because that sounds terrifying. My 23rd year (which, for those of you about to correct me at home, has started now because you're not born on your "1st birthday") will be different from most of my friends' because I'll still be an undergraduate student. I've taken life at a slightly different pace.

This isn't one of those essays telling you to make sure that your aunt's best friend's kid takes a gap year or whatever. But there's something liberating about deciding not to go straight into tackling the next task without taking some time to plan out what you're going to do when you start it.

To all my friends (and any enemies or strangers) who are graduating this month, congratulations on all you've achieved! You're going to go on to great things whenever you're ready to get started.

To all of the High School Class of 2013 who isn't finished with college yet, we'll get there when we get there. And that's awesome.

Week 10: The Procrastination Station

Hey all,

So it's really late (like almost 2 AM late), but today was Sunday, so that means a blog post for you. I'm going to try to keep it short.

My week was spent writing essays, then procrastinating, then writing more. Honestly, it makes for a pretty boring synopsis. But it was also a really stressful week for me.

I'm a hardcore procrastinator. Anyone who's been at school with me knows that there are very few assignments that I ever start more than a day or two before the due date. I usually play it off as confidence or boredom. At the end of the day, I get the work done.

But I don't do it because I'm bored or even because I think the work is easy. I procrastinate because without the pressure of the deadline hanging over me, I can't do anything. I'll sit at my laptop with the internet turned off, trying to get a head start on my work. For like an hour. Without typing more than a few words. Even things I enjoy writing, like this blog, get pushed to the absolute last minute (or sometimes a little late, like tonight).

Yesterday is a great example. I had a short story due this morning. I had an idea for a setting, the characters, the conflict. It was pretty much fully formed in my head when I went to sleep on Friday night. When I went to the library to write it, I didn't get a single word typed. Not one. I ended up watching the entire season of Dear White People which had just been released on Netflix. It's a great show, but it really should have waited until after I'd finished my story.

I wrote it today and I'm fairly proud of it (until it gets workshopped on Thursday, at which point I'll hate it for a little while), but that doesn't do much to soothe my frustration at my inability to sit down and work when I want to.

So far, I haven't been able to find a system that allows me to motivate myself to get work done in advance. I've got a bit of a lull in my workload right now (which means that nothing big is due in the next 3 days), but if I could, I'd be getting ahead on some assignments that are due in a few weeks, but close together.

This didn't actually end up being short, but it was cathartic and that's what public forums are for, right? Sorry it's not about Australia or whatever.

See you next week,

Emily

(P.S. If you also have a hard time not procrastinating and something has worked for you, feel free to send it my way! I may have already tried it, but I'm running out of ideas.)

Week 9: Flying Solo

Okay, so I promised you last week that I'd talk about New Zealand. Now it's time.

Last Friday, I woke up early and took some trains to the airport. I boarded an airplane (depicted below) and sat down for a few hours. When I stood up again, I was in New Zealand.

Midsem break! #nzbound #airport #travel #brandeisabroad #emilygoesabroad

A post shared by Emily (@emilyhannahk) on Apr 14, 2017 at 5:44pm PDT

That's the level of detail you want, right?

Just kidding. I'm not going to give you a play-by-play. What I will do is follow a time-honored blog tradition. Unsolicited advice! I traveled alone, so here are a few tips on how to do a vacation all by yourself.

1) Find the free walking tour. Go on your first day.
Lots of cities have "free" walking tours, which are the best introductions I've ever gotten to the more touristy areas of any city. I have done these in a few cities and they're always super interesting and the guides are always really cool. They'll point out good places to eat and attractions you should go back to. If you go on your first day, you'll have some sense of direction for the rest of your trip and a to-do list for later!

2) Hostels are actually a pretty great option.
I've heard a lot of friends say that they find hostels to be weird. And I get that. Staying in a room with strangers is definitely different. And the hostel didn't provide a towel. It was super cheap, though, and in a central location. The atmosphere was social, so even though I was traveling alone, there were people for me to hang out with. And people who had been there longer than I had gave me some ideas for things to do, like climb a volcano to watch the sunset.

3) Try something new.
On Wednesday, I walked about 16 km (that's roughly 10 miles) across Auckland. I've done long hikes before, but never by myself. This one started at the harbor near my hostel and went out into the suburbs, which I hadn't visited yet. I walked through some parks, climbed a few volcanoes, ran out of water for a little while (make sure you don't do that. It was bad), and took lots of pictures. I almost gave up about six separate times, but I made it all the way to the end in about 6 hours. Between the views and the sense of accomplishment, I think that this was my favorite activity of the whole trip.

I hope you like my little foray into the ancient art of listicles (or whatever they're called). In case you couldn't tell, this is really just a way for me to tell you about what I did while making it sound like I have something profound to say. (I don't.) Anyway, here are some pictures I took.

It's a little rainy, but I can't skip the harbor pic! #auckland #newzealand🇳🇿 #travels #midsembreak #brandeisabroad #emilygoesabroad

A post shared by Emily (@emilyhannahk) on Apr 15, 2017 at 7:05pm PDT

Enjoying an informative morning walk with @aklfreewalking #auckland #newzealand🇳🇿 #travels #midsembreak #brandeisabroad #emilygoesabroad

A post shared by Emily (@emilyhannahk) on Apr 16, 2017 at 4:20pm PDT

Watching the sunset over #auckland from a volcano #newzealand🇳🇿 #travels #midsembreak #brandeisabroad #emilygoesabroad

A post shared by Emily (@emilyhannahk) on Apr 16, 2017 at 10:49pm PDT

Another beautiful Auckland sunset. This time from a different angle #newzealand🇳🇿 #travels #midsembreak #brandeisabroad #emilygoesabroad

A post shared by Emily (@emilyhannahk) on Apr 17, 2017 at 10:29pm PDT

I did a 16 km walk today! Here are a few pictures. #mylegshurt #coasttocoasttrail #aucklandcoasttocoast #outdooradventurephotos # hiking #newzealand🇳🇿 #midsembreak #brandeisabroad #emilygoesabroad

A post shared by Emily (@emilyhannahk) on Apr 19, 2017 at 4:09am PDT

School starts up again tomorrow, so I should get some sleep. I'll see you next week for another installment of me telling you about all the stuff that I'm doing while living in a cool place!

Week 8: Why is This Year Different…

Hello!

In case you don’t remember from last week’s post, it’s Passover! If you don’t know what Passover is, it’s an 8-day long Jewish holiday that celebrates the Israelites’ escape from slavery in Egypt. I’d recommend Googling it if you want to know more (or ask a Jewish person).

I’m in New Zealand right now on vacation, but I’m not going to write about that at all until next week. I want to write about being away from home for the holiday.

My mom sent me an article about a girl studying in London who got invited to a Seder (a traditional Passover meal held on the first 2 nights). She posted about it in a rather lovely series of tweets. Honestly, I don’t think I can do a better job than she did of talking about my experience of celebrating a holiday without my family, but I’m going to try anyway.

First of all, I’d never attended a Seder without my family before. I took a gap year before starting college and they came to visit me for Passover. My school at home aligns spring break with the holiday, so I get to be home. But this year, I’m too far away for my parents to visit and I had school, so I couldn’t go anywhere.

I wound up at two very different Seders. The first night, I went to a local synagogue. There were probably about 80 people there, including a good number of students from abroad. Seders are super formulaic, so on the surface it was the same. The same words as every year sung to many of the same tunes. The order of events (The Hebrew word seder literally translates to “order”) was the same.

But the people around me were mostly strangers and our only link was our Judaism. But Judaism is a strong connection, so I felt right at home in this new community, as if these strangers were long-lost friends.

On the second night, I went to a friend-of-a-friend’s family. I’d only met her once before, but again the Jewish connection made me feel comfortable. Her family and their friends laughed and joked around the table and I was fully included. Again, it felt so familiar to me that I almost forgot that I was 10,000 miles from home.

I went back to that synagogue for Friday night dinner (which is part of the Shabbat celebration), where I had some delicious food and great company. In classic Jewish fashion, I met someone who knows my mom. But I also found a community where I can find the comfort of familiarity, even in a place so far away.