MARHABA (Hello in Arabic)

I have officially been here ten days!!! Each day is compacted with classes, orientations, explorations of the city and sacred sites, field trips, large feasts in the cafeteria, late night adventures with the roommates, sporting tournaments, and constant obtainment of knowledge. I have learned more in the last ten consecutive days than any other week and a half of my life.  I wake up at 5:30am every morning to study and crash in my bed at eleven completely exhausted from each day’s activities.  However, I thrive in this kind of environment. I love it here!
Our day isn't all about exploring, we have at least six hours a day of rigorous classes.  My various classes are taught by diverse professors. I am taking two Near Eastern classes, one is taught by a Palestinian and the other is a Jew.  Once I am able to decode their heavy accents, I gain a variety of insights on the world and the cultures. We are able to learn from the two extremes and have the opportunity to pick apart and decipher our own opinions from the presented information.  These professors have extremely high expectations.  Apparently, “we are the cream of the crop” and therefore must be held to a higher standard.  I am among some of the most stellar kids from around the world.  The professors here are some of the most intelligent men on the earth.  I am blessed to be able to partake of their knowledge.  (Can you tell I have been reading the scriptures J) Anyway, a light read consists of 45 pages….and that is one class. We have five classes. However, I enjoy every second of it. I make sure to go out into the city every opportunity I get.  I sit in class for a few hours and then walk right outside and directly apply many of the concepts and principles I learned to the world I see.  I rediscover my passion for knowledge and learning each day.  I am also learning Arabic. I thoroughly enjoy every second of it.  Imam, my professor, is positively one of the most hysterical individuals I have ever met.  He is a pudgy, bald man that wears extremely tight pants.  He walks up and down the aisles cracking jokes and scratching his protruding belly as he explains vocabulary.  He has a booming voice and love to imitate various noises and pronunciations.  He is confident and intelligent and has my kind of sense of humor.  (I know, I know I tend to laugh at most humorous things) however, it is not rare to have tears streaming down my face as I walk out of class due to the hysterical class period.  Chelsea and two of my roommates are in my class as well and that only provokes more laughter.  Come to think of it, my boisterous laugh radiates the halls of the Jerusalem Center frequently.   I love life! Due to my blonde hair and my loud laugh I tend to be a frequent target in Imam’s class.  I am constantly picked on to be an example to practice pronunciations and circumstances.  As a result, I have picked up Arabic and other random cultural facts quite quickly.  I wish I could convey all of the interesting facts about these cultures, religions, histories, and peoples that I have learned.  This selfish journey that I am on, is going to change my life forever!!!!!!!!!!!!!