Episode 03: "The Accent" (+)

So the reason I left for school so early is because I have to take about two months of "Ulpan", the class responsible for teaching me Hebrew. Class started on Thursday of last week. I'm in Aleph 2, basically the lowest level of Hebrew you can start with, and about 13 people are in my class. We're taught by two wonderfully kind, helpful teachers, Nomi and Tami.

This is kind of an unfair picture of Nomi.
She's usually smiling and not affected by a camera
flash going off in her face.



This is Tami. She's always smiling, too.

Class has actually been going all right. Nomi and Tami are more than capable teachers. They're ridiculously patient (I've thrown my fair share of stupid questions at them), funny and encouraging. I feel pretty safe learning from them. So far I've had one quiz, which I did well on, so they must be doing something right. But I just had a big test today; let's see if my warm feelings for them last once I get that one back. (Something I think I'll always remember: I struggled to say to Tami in Hebrew, "I fly to Bermuda." She said she wanted to go there too, and I told her that sometime she and I could take a trip there together. Without missing a beat, she said, "Behave yourself." The class cracked up.)

The alphabet hasn't been too difficult learn, even though I have to periodically review it to keep myself afloat. Reading from right to left hasn't been too bad, either. We're always learning new vocabulary and playing games with what words we know. The classmates I'm learning with are awesome. Everyone brings their own smarts and/or personality to the table, and I've had a great time getting to know them in class.

Right to left, Hebrew style: Areej from Jerusalem, Valker from Germany, Ju Il from Korea, Brett from Louisiana, and my man Gaby from Cali.

Right to left again: I forget where Suzanne's from, but she's a cool chick. Lyndsey in the green, she helped me out a lot when class first started. And Hannah from Poland's a sweet girl; she helped me with my laundry when (surprise) I couldn't read the directions in Hebrew.

Right to left: Dei Wan (I'm botching the spelling) and Becca, Ms. Sass. She's helped me in class, too, and she's hilarious to talk to. Cool girl.

Steph and Nancy are missing from these photos. Steph is super nice to me, always a great gal to chill with. And Nancy's friendly too; she's from around here and checked out the rules for me getting into the Dome of the Rock...a fine gesture from a sweet lady. I think she's leaving us soon, though, which is a bummer.

Anyway, we've learned to read, conjugate, ask questions. It's been a challenging ride. I've been able to keep up thanks in part to just reviewing after class, and thanks also to this guy:

Gaby, the Stanford Man.

He and I have studied together almost every night for a week now, and so far it's been paying off. We remind each other of what we should know while getting homework done. It's been great having him as a study partner.

All in all, I'm adjusting okay to Hebrew. I'm no genius learning it, but I think I have a solid grasp on what I've been taught so far. It's weird being in a country where you have the accent, you know? All I have the bravery to say is "hello" and "thank you" to people in public, I can't read the names of the groceries I buy, and I'm only just able to form 3-word sentences. But a couple people I've talked to recently brought something interesting up: Just last week I didn't know a thing about Hebrew. Now I'm taking tests in Hebrew and recognizing it more around me. Pretty cool. We'll see how the next few weeks go. I know myself and, if I'm really going to gain some ground with this language, I'm going to have to work harder than I'll want to. Wish me luck.

So much more to tell you guys about. I'll try to keep the entries coming.

Shalom,
Eric