Tuesday's move to Beer Sheva

Beni took me to the central bus station in Jerusalem to catch the bus to Beer Sheva around lunch time.  We decided that one bus would be simpler than two trains with all my gear.  The trip is ~1.5 hours.  The intercity buses are big and have the luggage compartments underneath.

The sign says (#470 to Beer-Sheva.  Have a good trip."  I called Shlomo from the bus station and he asked me to take a cab.  The bus station is very busy and there's really no where to park (like in Jerusalem - Beni had to just drop me off and point me in the right direction).  The cab was only NIS25 (about $7), and Shlomo was waiting at the curb for me.

My apartment is tiny. And the photos that he had sent me were perfectly representative, but I had to see it to understand.  He took me to a little neighborhood grocer that evening, where I bought hummus, bread and juice.  He said the big supermarket is much cheaper, so just get essentials.  He pointed out a nearby felafel place and a pizza place.

I unpacked everything, including the kitchen box that arrived ahead of me.  The apartment has lots of cabinet work, so that was not a problem.  I need to get some bins for organizing small things. 

The kosher kitchen is all set up (easy when you start from scratch).  I don't have much, but I've got the basics of dairy and meat dishes and implements.  I brought blue and red tape with me to idiot-proof the kitchen.  Now I need to buy some more things like real forks and spoons (I brought a box of plastic picnicware), but first things first.

Radio silence has ended

I just got my internet service at the apartment set up (Sunday morning), so I'll be about updating the blog presently.

Arrival in Israel

Most everything went according to plan, except the smartphone.  Flights were fine, and I was delivered to my friends' apartment near Jerusalem, too.  Had to carry my 45 lb suitcases down 51 stairs, but grateful that I can.  Of course, they go up 51 stairs tomorrow when I transition to Beer Sheva.  Beni's espresso machine almost got the best of me, but I prevailed.

Since he had a medical appointment at Hadassah Hospital, I went along and saw.....the Chagall windows!!  Yeah!

Here's a photo off their balcony in Gival Ze'ev:

NSF proposal review

I'm on a National Science Foundation proposal review panel for graduate fellowships, and this year they've gone to an all-virtual panel.  I just did the technology check on my laptop from home (in Missouri).  Hopefully, all will go well for the panel meetings in two weeks.  At least the time will be good for me -- the panel meets in the morning, which means it will be in the evening (not the middle of the night) for me.  Ain't technology great?

Getting ready

Well, the weird thing is deferred disposal.  What I mean is, it's like getting ready for Passover - throwing out hametz.  So I've cleaned out the deep reaches of my refrigerator, and tossed worn-out clothing, recycled what I could and ate what will perish.  I'm looking at my house/belongings with different eyes for now.

Saying farewell

I received a warm sendoff from my congregation today.  It's good to have their prayers.

Packages on their way

I sent the rest of my junk to Israel today, and to my surprise, sent my books and leadership materials by the elusive USPS M-bag.  Elusive?  Well, it's on the USPS website and was recommended by the UMKC Study Abroad coordinator, but I had no luck finding anyone at several post offices who believed that such a process was possible.  But my postmaster in Creighton called the postmaster in Garden City who told her to send me over.  Voila!  BTW, M-bags are ~50% of international parcel post.  We'll see how long delivery takes.