Shabbos #3 Part 2

So we asked, and got, some help on the bus. First, we chatted with some Israel guys who must have had American parents, because their accents were perfect, and they translated for us to this Israeli woman who said she'd tell us when we got to Beit Shemesh. Then, when we got to Beit Shemesh, she asked us where we wanted to go, and told the driver to take us to Rachov Reuven. People here tend to be really nice when you need help with instructions. Street names aren't used as much as in America, it's more of pointing and gesturing, but I've never had anyone refuse to give me instructions, despite my terrible Hebrew skills.
Anyway, we got off the bus and Betsy M. came to meet us, and brought us to her house, where we met the rest of the family briefly before heading upstairs. We were staying in Zvi M.'s (although he might spell that Tzvi in English...) room because he was going to be in the army for the weekend, and he had an impressive weapons collection, which we admired for a bit, because some of those knives were pretty cool. Also he had a gun. (A rifle, I think) propped up next to the bed. I think guns are awesome, so I loved it. I wondered if he was supposed to have that with him, though, if he was at the army for the weekend, though...
Anyway, night was pretty simple. We went to shul, and came back and had a great dinner. Hillel M. (the youngest son, who is about a year younger then me) was the only one home, so we chatted with him during the meal.
In the morning we headed for shul (a little late...but we caught leining and the Rabbi's speech, most of which was lost on me). After shul we headed back to the house and had a little kiddush, which was a nice difference from home, as shul gets out MUCH earlier then at home. Then we headed to Pam and Gary's house, where we had lunch. I don't really remember meeting people from when I was six, but they were really nice, and I'll probably see everyone again in a few days on Rosh Hashana. Hillel and Gracie talked with Eliana and me about stuff like the army and Bagrut in this country, stuff I'm really interested in, actually.
After lunch, everyone headed for naps, except me, I read a Stephen King book, Misery, which I like a lot. Apparently there's a movie I need to see.
We had Shalosh Shuddis (which is how it's pronounced, even if it isn't how it's normally spelled) and I had tuna fish for the second time since I've been here. I can't believe how much I'm missing it, actually. (And Mom, no, I'm not obsessing about food. I just miss tuna, OK?)
After Shabbos we caught the Shuttle (Sheirut is the Hebrew word, I beleive) back to the main bus station, and a taxi from there. We were among the first girls back, which was nice, as I got to unpack, straighten my room a little, and then take the time to start this blog.
After I put up the last post, I went to a little talk from one of the teacher here, Sally. She spoke about a son of hers that was born a little more then a year and a half ago, names Moshe Rephael. He was born months early, and she went through a very difficult time in her life that she spoke to us about. I don't want to sound corny, because it wasn't. It was very inspiring, actually. She spoke to us about how different prayers affected her and her family differently due to that difficult time period, to lead into our Selichot.
I'm willing to admit that I've never had Selichot properly explained to me, either their exact purpose and what all the words mean, so I've never found them particularly inspiring. (The school offered a shiur that I meant to go to, but I was still walking back from the Kotel during the shiur. Story for another time.) Between the talk beforehand and the excellent, passionate tunes that were sung during Selichot, I actually found them very inspiring, despite the fact that we ended around 1:30 in the morning. I can't wait until the next round tonight.
More stories later!

Shabbos #3

So this Shabbos was the first "out" Shabbos of the year. That means that you don't have to be in school for Shabbos, you can go anywhere you please. In fact, it's encouraged that you do figure out your own Shabbos plans, either at someones house you know, or go with a friend to someone they know. Now, the school will let you stay in the dorm if you want to, but you'll have to make your own Shabbos. Also, if you have no place to go, the school will try to set you up somewhere. I'm considering asking the school to set my up in neighborhoods I'm interested in visiting, but that's definitely a plan for later in the year, as my Mom gave me a whole list of friends and relatives in Israel, many whom I don't know, or remember.
So I stated my Shabbos plans pretty early in the week, all things considered. I was still having major phone problems (A story that deserves a post of it's own) so I couldn't make calls all the time, and I sometimes lost my messages. But I did try to organize everything before the last minute.
I started by calling Rachel M., only to discover that she wasn't going to be home for the weekend. She offered me her house, but I'd really prefer to avoid having to make my own Shabbos for now, as I don't even know where to buy everything I need yet, and I don't always have to time to look. Undeterred, I called Miriam Z. Now, here it gets a little more complicated. She said that she'd be happy to have me, but they were hosting something at their house, so they didn't know if meals would be alright. She suggested calling Betsy M., a friends of Mom's who I didn't remember at all, but who only lived a block over from Miriam Z. in Beit Shemesh. I was a little nervous, not only because I was going to stay at someones house who I didn't really know (which was a little nerve-wracking) but that it was getting a little complicated for my first week out of schoool. So when I called Betsy M., I asked her if I could perhaps just stay with her, to make life a little less hectic on my end. She seemed totally enthusiastic about the idea, which was really encouraging. So I started asking around for advice on how to get there, and as I was talking to friends, I found out that Eliana L. was having some problems finding a place to stay. So I called Betsy M. and asked if it was OK for Eliana L. to come with me. She said sure, totally fine.
For those of you who know me, this all happened before Friday morning, which is pretty good for my typical procrastinator-esque approach to life. I hung out with some friends Friday night, and helped Abby put zours into a cake for her roommate - entertaining, colorful and tasty. Which meant I headed to bed pretty late, so Firday morning I woke up on the late side. Daniella -my roommate - had already left the room while my suitemates were still kinda getting up. So I got up, and started picking out outfits, shoes, and toiletries for the trip. I called Betsy M. for directions on how to get to her, and wrote them down in my organizer. (which I'm using a lot, actually. On a side note, I love it. I bought it at some random little store, and it tells me the Jewish date as as well as the secular one, and it list the Parshat Ha'Shavuah and lighting times on every Saturday.) Eliana L. and I decided to meet in the lobby at around 2:30 to catch a cab to the central bus station and take this shuttle/taxi to Beit Shemesh.
We take the cab over the bus station and decide to wander up the street to look for some sort of Shabbos gift to bring. I was in favor of flowers, but we couldn't find any in the immediate vicinity, and we were a little antsy about leaving, so we bought almonds, pistachios and this parve cake for our gifts, then hopped on the shuttle leaving to Beit Shemesh.
(to be continued...Selichot start in 10 minutes.)