Happy Spring

So it's March 21st, the "official" first day of spring.  Except that it feels like summer here already.  Because it gets so hot in the actual summer, late winter/early spring is the start of the first growing season.  In my Organic Food Production class, we've each adopted our own vegetable to grow during the semester, and I chose popcorn.

Popcorn!  Sprouts showed up just in time for spring.

My popcorn has sprouted already after we planted 10 days ago - woohoo!  The pipes in the picture are part of the drip irrigation system.  Drip irrigation was actually developed in Israel, and is an essential part of agriculture in this region.  There are small holes spaced evenly along the line, and only the necessary amount of water is emitted.  The water used for the plants is pretty saline (groundwater from the area), so we made sure to grow hardy plants that are appropriate for this environment.  I'll let you know how my popcorn turns out!

Haircut, Soccer, Lent

It was just what I was looking for - a fellow student (Yedidya) emailed out an offer for haircuts. The email came right when I was thinking to ask if anyone could cut my hair - it was much too long for the increasingly hot weather here. Yedidya mentioned that he didn't have much experience with cutting girls' hair, but I didn't really care. It would be a learning experience for both of us. I'd had the same hairstyle for about a decade, so I was up for something new.

Hitchhiking

Today I successfully hitchhiked for the first time! Hitchhiking is much more common here - which makes it much easier to get a ride. Instead of sticking out your thumb, you point your index finger out. A nice guy named Mail (Male? Mayel?) picked up four of us students heading to Eilat. So we saved money by not taking the bus, and got to meet someone new :)

P.S. The Red Sea is super salty!

Life on a kibbutz

Now that I've been here for a couple weeks, I just thought I'd share more about where I am.  No, I'm not in Jerusalem or Tel Aviv - the closest city is Eilat, which is mainly a resort city on the Red Sea at the southernmost tip of Israel.  Even Eilat is 50 km away, which makes this kibbutz quite the bubble - but a pretty sweet bubble nonetheless.  I'll let the pictures do the talking:

"Quad" between dorm buildings - I'm in the closest unit on the right (yay mountains!).  If you hang out on the grass for a little while, a stray kitten will come and curl up in your lap.

Meals

Last night, a fellow student (an Israeli friend who knows that I'm a Christian) asked if I pray before I eat.  We had just started eating dinner, and nope, I hadn't prayed.  I'm not really in the habit of praying before meals, but what a great reminder this was.  Food is just one thing I have to be thankful for, among so many others.