I woke up this morning startled to find myself in a small dorm-like room, a Swedish guy named Johan fast asleep in a bed across the room, and asking myself..."where the fuck am i?". The question is not literal, it is more a self reflection of my life. Only a couple days ago I was sitting at my house getting high, watching movies, and feeling sorry for myself. Now a couple time zones, flights, and train rides away I am in an entirely different world. I am excited yet reserved for this experience, I want to truly take it in and learn from these people I will be with. I have finally escaped the bubble of New Jersey and I must not take this opportunity for granted.
My journey began on Tuesday September 6th, the day of my flight. I woke up and of course I had not finished packing yet. I stayed up the night before watching Mad Men (awesome show), call it procrastination but I call it the story of my life. Anyways I got my packing done and decided I needed a haircut, so I went to town, hit up my boys Little Joe and John, walked next door to the bagel shop, got me some cajun chicken salad (bangin), said goodbye to my buddies John Scott and Sarah Flaherty, and was on my way.
When I got to the airport I said goodbye to mother (very nice lady) and went through security. I found my gate, the last one of course, and sat down. The flight was at 6pm. Waited a couple hours until we boarded. It was some India airline so it smelled like curry and fart (no offense Aroon). Some Jewish woman was making a big deal about sitting next to a guy because she is a kosher and an annoying Jew (im allowed to say that) and asked me if i could move... I did but was hoping that was not a sign of things to come. The flight was very comfortable, there was a wide selection of movies so that really made the flight fly (pun intended). It was a 7 hour flight so I got to Brussels, Belgium at 1 in the morning Eastern time but there is a 6 hour difference so it was 7 am there. I wandered the airport, bought a magnet and shot glass for souvenirs, thought of buying some chocolate but resisted the urge. The flight was at 11 so I waited there for 4 hours, and I somehow almost missed the flight because I was late to the security check. I was now flying on an Israeli airline and they were very strict. But I made the flight and sat with an Israeli girl and guy in the back. They were super nice and we talked for much of the flight, even having some wine that was served. At one point we were flying over Croatia and it was amazing, beautiful Islands surrounded by sparkling Mediterranean water. We touched down in Tel Aviv at 3 in the afternoon but there was another hour difference so it was really 4 pm. Getting through customs was tough because I hadn't gotten a Visa. I had to wait in a sketchy office and explain why I was visiting. It all worked out though, so I went and got my bag, said goodbye to my new friends and went to catch a train.
Now keep in mind, it is 4 pm where I am now, but 9 am back home, so I am now going on almost 30 hours with very little sleep. I found my train to Nahariya, the last stop lucky for me, and purchased my ticket for 45 shekkels (15 US dollars, 3 shekkels to the dollar, hellz yea). The train ride was 2 hours and I slept the whole way. I awoke alone on the train which was terrifying and I was at my destination. I left the train station and heard my name called by two dudes. One of them was Tsachy? and Johan (my rommate), we jumped into a car and drove through some magnificent mountains until we reached Boram kibbutz (check it out). We pulled up to the volunteer buildings and was led to a small dorm style room where me and Johan unpacked and settled in. At this point I am delirious from lack of sleep. I met some of the other volunteers, some from South Africa, Colombia, Korea, Italy, etc. Only one other American, this kid named Josh, very chill and cool guy. We talked for a while and then I fell asleep.... awoke this morning wondering where the fuck I was.
