First day of real work at Tishbi Winery

Ok so a little run down of my first day working at the Tishbi winery. The kitchen workers are Arab and one guy from South America that continuously flirt with me but they do not speak any English so I am forced to speak Hebrew although a smile with them goes a long way :)

The other waiters are all 20-22 year old Israeli boys, very cute, who already did part of their army service or ended their army service and are saving up money to travel to South America. One of the boys, Yaron, I staffed his Dor L Dor trip Summer 2005 - very small world!

The woman I am shadowing to learn how to give english tours is amazing, she is sooo sweet and is taking me under her wing and teaching me everything. She also gave me a ride home from work and invited me for Shabbat dinner.

So, during lunch we toured around an American couple and sat with them afterwards to do some wine sampling. After about 5 samples I felt myself get a little tipsy so I stopped and ate some bread and drank some water- I have to be a bit responsible!

The funniest thing that happened to me is there is a big vat of Petite-Syrah wine in the front of the store. Anyone can come and fill up empty wine bottles with 17 NIS wine - an alcohols dream. Anyways, I thought I knew how to work the system but I turned it in the opposite direction and wine went spritzing everywhere! My clothes, hair, the walls, counter! It was a big crazy but very funny and supposedly every new person does it and it is like an initiation.

Ok love for you all.,.,off to walk the strip before it gets dark
Esther

Hey all,

My apartment in Zichron Yakov is located right beside a beautiful park with a innovative playground and along side the "Midrachov" which is a street that is closed off for pedestrians and has a variety of cafe's, restaurants, shops, and boutiques. The actual apartment is a converted basement of a retired British couple who are extremely nice. There are five houses in this complex and they all share a pool, which I can access through the British couple's home also the beach is 15 minutes away.

Yesterday I had my first taste of what it is going to be like to work at Tishbi. I was standing next to the cash register talking to the manager, Valerie (a Scottish woman who made aliyah 25 years ago and worked at Yarden for 15 years) and the son of Jonathan Tishbi, who studied wine making in New Zealand, came up to shown us a brand new bottle of wine he was testing in the laboratory. We both had a taste and commented on its texture and flavor. It was pretty amazing.

I have a lot of studying to do between my Hebrew and wine knowledge but in a short time I should feel comfortable enough to speak Hebrew and shmooze with the best of the wino's.

Here are a couple of pictures of the apartment and my walk around the outskirts of Zichron Yakov.

Come and Visit!

Esther

Chag (Passover) in Israel

Shalom all,

It seems that the Jewish and Christian holiday’s fell on the same time this year between Christmas/Hanukah and Easter/ Passover so recently it was very busy time in Israel. You can see from the pictures the Church of the Holy Seplecre during Easter and a picture overlooking the Old City of Jerusalem during the Birkat Hachamah (the time every 28 years when the sun is in the estimated position from when creation began) the uniqueness of Jerusalem for different religions.

During the Birkat Hachamah, I could hear the echo of Jews praying from different areas around Jerusalem but what was amazing was hearing the Jews who were at the Kotel praying and singing all together because the reverberations off the walls of the Old City magnified the volume. It was one of those moments in life that I will remember forever and know that it was a special sunrise.

For Passover I went to my adopted Jerusalem family for a 6 hour seder where we read each and every page, front to back. Thank g-d there is only one night of seder in Israel. What I loved most about Passover in Israel is that you do not feel like you are suffering at all from dry matza rolls or horrible tasting food. Most of the restaurants were open and they served yummy potato bread and the menu was basically the same as during the year.

From my last email I told everyone I got a job in Zichron Yakov working at the Tishbi winery. I moved up here yesterday, got a one-bedroom apt that is very quaint, in the center of town and has a communal pool. I will send pictures and tell you all about my work experience next week. Today I went to the winery, picked up the menu and tour guide information so when you come to the Tishbi winery I will be able to give you a 30 minute tour and do some wine tasting

I can not end this email without recognizing that tonight until tomorrow night is Yom HaShoah. It will be my first time to hear the siren that will sound tomorrow morning at 10am in remembrance of the 6 million Jews that were murdered in the Holocaust.

I hope all is well with everyone.

All my love,

Esther

Moving On Up...in Israel

Hello friends and family,

It has been a whirl-win of a month. It was very nice to see friends and family in Boston and visit my old-home but once returning to Israel, I knew I arrived to my new home, where I feel I belong as a Jew. Visiting Boston made me realize that there is no place I would rather be than living in Israel. I also realized I've picked up a few Israeli "bad habits" and do not understand the meaning of an organized line anymore, personal space or how loud my voice raises when I speak Hebrew.

I can not write this email without addressing the celebration of Purim in Israel and the passing away of the elderly man I took care of, Dave Medved. Dave passed away on Purim morning, which I found out is actually a huge mitzvah and we had a few shots of whisky in his honor. Although I was sad and miss him occasionally he lived a full life and died peacefully.

One of the best aspects of living in Israel is the celebration of Jewish holidays and Purim was an exceptional holiday to experience. All the kids were dressed up, humantashins were in abundance and the partying was plenty. I would not say it was better than Halloween because growing up near Salem, MA and having Halloween as my birthday makes that holiday a fabulous occasion as well.

For the past couple of weeks I've traveled around Israel with Cassie (see picture). We relaxed in Elat, partied a bit in Tel Aviv, went shopping and sightseeing in Jerusalem and relaxed in a beautiful bed & breakfast in the Galil (Cassie's aunt owns it if anyone wants the information). Now back to real life...

Although...real life consist of...working on the Tishbi Winery in Zichron Yakov. Today I got a job working on the Tishbi winery as a tour guide and waitress. My goal for working on the winery and living in Zichron Yakov is to improve my Hebrew by being immersed in Israeli society and to learn the process of wine making. I plan on renting an apartment with Israeli young adults or living with an Israeli family.

I hope all is well with everyone and I look forward to people visiting me on the winery :)

Chag Samach (Happy Passover)

Esther