Life and Times of Little Eve: Sukkot In Jerusalem.

Sukkot falls a few days after Yom Kippur. This has to be one of the stranger holidays...we build temporary structures no matter where in the world (if that means you have to sit in the sukkah with your feet covered in snow then so be it!) we Jews find ourselves and live, literally, in the sukkah for a week. We are supposed to eat in it, sleep in it, learn in it...we are supposed to feel the temporary nature of the dwellings of the Israelites during their 40 years in the desert. It is also one of the three pilgrimage festivals to Jerusalem. I helped to build the Pardes sukkah this year, which was fun and was actually my first time building one. Also my first year sleeping in one - on erev chag, the first night of sukkot (a seven day holiday in Israel). The only day that is actually a holiday is the first and then there is a period called chol hamo'ed. I had both of the meals for chag at teachers' houses. for lunch i went to my rosh yeshiva's house where I stayed this summer - it was my first time being back since i moved out and it was nice to see them all. and the food was GOOD. We were asked to share a memory of a year past in a sukkah, or involving sukkot. I shared these two things:

First...
I don't remember much about my time in religious school when I was younger. But I do remember going to the sukkah each year with my class and taking class trips to someone's house in my class to eat in a sukkah.

Second...
Never in my life before last year had I eaten in a sukkah with my parents until last year. I was working at A.H.A and they happened to come that week. I am not sure but I think it may have been there first time eating in a sukkah. I didn't think about that fact until I was asked to remember a memory from past years. I don't think I recognized what a holy moment it was last fall, but it was. i heart you mom and pops.

So, I spent the chag at shira chadasha, eating at my teachers' houses and enjoying time in sukkot. word.

After the holiday I mentioned that there is a period called chol hamo'ed. people often travel during this time, many many people in Israel have break from work in some length during this week or so. At the beginning of the week I spent one evening out at my teacher's house in Efrat - in an area called gush etzion. It is a common thing to be invited all week for several meals to the sukkot of family and friends. The teachers know this and so many classes were invited out to the area because several of the teachers live out there. It was another one of those "look, don't judge experiences" because it in the settlements, like t'koa which i visited in the summer. It is an area that has gone back and forth between the Arabs and the Israelis but has been in Israeli hands since 1967. We took a hike on a road called 'the road of the patriarchs' where we saw an ancient mikvah (ritual bath) that is believed to have been used by pilgrims to Jerusalem during the pilgrimage holidays, and a roman mile marker as the road was later used by the romans. We saw a beautiful sunset over the Jerusalem hills and the Judean hills and then had dinner at my teacher's house. Most of my class was there and it was our first outing together as a class not involving school so it was a really nice treat. Take a look at the pics below - they are all from the trip to Efrat.

The next day I went up north for a few days trip with a group of friends...it was a freakin awesome time and I can't wait to tell you about it...tomorrow:) I am heading out to a rosh chodesh bonfire (a holiday every month that marks and celebrates the beginning of the month in the Jewish calendar). things to drink, people to see, guitars to play, fun to be had - I better get to it.

*virtual lovin is being send from this side of the world to all you in the america north. take it, enjoy it, send it back*

Judean Hills