I accidently abandoned my blog temporarily.

Oops! And suddenly I'm just a few days away from this amazing year coming to an end. I can't believe it! I've been so busy with my classes that my blog took a back seat. Sorry guys!
So here's what I've been up to:
I. My classes
        A. Ulpan
                1. I still suck at Hebrew, so there's not much to share. My teacher Mirav is super nice though, even though I'm kind of behind
        B. Power of Persuasion
                1. with my cool teacher Zeev! This class is an Israel advocacy class. I'm actually really glad I'm taking this class, ice never been confronted about Israel or being Jewish or anything, but now I can hold my own in a debate, especially ignorant ones. So that's pretty neat.
       C. Beresheet
                1. We discuss the stories in the book of Genesis in a way I never really thought to. My teacher Rob Kahn can always bring up something I never thought of, which requires me to use my critical thinking skills to kind of figure out what's going on.
       D. The Comparative Religions of Jerusalem
                1. My teacher is Benjy, who was also one of e chaperones on my Poland trip. Our class has been studying the three main religions and how they manifest in Jerusalem. We go on trips all over the city to religious landmarks to learn about that religion. Most recently we traveled to the actual Temple Mount. We weren't allowed inside the Dome of the Rock, but it is beautiful. You can't really see how intricate the designs and how bright the colors are. It's also really interesting to see the other places I've been in the city from the point everyone looks at. When you look at Jerusalem, you're eyes go to this big gold thing, suddenly I was looking at the city from that gold thing. Awesome, right?
       E.Anthropology
                1. I love this class. I really do. On the one hand, my teacher Avi Rose is fantastic, he makes the class so fun, but on the other hand we learn the most amazing things. The way our class works is that we might spend the morning with a PowerPoint about a certain Jewish culture, and then travel around Jerusalem to a landmark of that culture. We enjoy the food and the art and the music. On that note: I seriously recommend the Moroccan museum in Jerusalem, it is absolutely beautiful. I can't wait to post photos.
                2. Something I really really enjoyed as well in this class was a family tree project. We had to trace our roots back to our great grandparents. I later learned that we only had to write down their names, but I took it a few steps further. I traced my family tree back to when each descendent arrived in America. I've always been curious to know "what I am" you know? I used to say Russian, Romanian, Ukrainian, and Polish, and I had no knowledge of any Holocaust experiences within my family. Then I discovered that I am actually part German, which I got a little excited about. I never would've expected to very very very very distantly be German of all things, I like that. Now you may be wondering how distantly am I German? It can't be more than two generations, right? Another freaking awesome discovery I made was that my last name has been in America since 1843, literally 100 years before WWII and the Holocaust. Which is amazing, because many Jews who immigrated to America at that time, converted to Christianity when the anti-Semitic tension began to rise. But here i am, Julia Rose, a nice Jewish girl, with two Jewish parents, four Jewish grandparents, eight Jewish great-grandparents, sixteen Jewish great-great- grandparents (and so on and so fourth). Also the majority of those people were all born in America.
II. Other various excursion
       A. I'm particularly thinking of my trip to Eilat with all of my roommates and a bunch of other people. It was a celebration for the wonderful Isabelle M's birthday and I had so much fun. I've never been to Eilat before, it is so beautiful!! The Red Sea is absolutely lovely, and even just walking around there it's so fun! I wish we had more than a weekend, but I'm most definitely returning as soon as I come back to Israel.
       B. Yom Haatsmaoot! Israeli Independence Day! I fantastic party that goes all night in the streets. It's basically better than the Fourth of July because you can really feel the joy and pride everyone has in this country. I think in America we take for granted our existence, and how if America goes to war, we don't worry if the US will exist afterwards. There is a little bit of celebration in each day here, but it just fills the country with music and excitement on that day.
       C. I went to an Infected Mushroom concert! Which is an Israeli trance band. It was outside and I had fun, and now I really like them. I also went to a MASA closing ceremony the other night, and the Voca People were there! Go look them up on youtube! They're an Israeli based A Capella group, but way better than anyone ever on the Sing Off.
III. What's next for Julia Rosie
       A. While I'm still in Israel I will continue my classes here in Jerusalem. I'm trying to make the most of the remainder of my time here. I love everyone here, but I do miss my friends and family at home. (shout out to Vanessa, Plummer (congrats on your new twitter (my idea)), Caroline W, Matt, Brian, Hayley, Mike, Estie, and Emma!)
       B. I'm working on getting my photos up soon. Sorry haha
       C. I can't believe I'm saying this, but I have orientation for the fantastic and amazing Tulane University in New Orleans, Louisiana on June 19-20th. Crazy crazy crazy! I couldn't be more excited! (Shout out to my friends on that Tulane freshman Facebook page, wooooo)
       D. Mark it in your calenders: June 28 I'm headed to Thailand! So you can expect a number of blog posts and plenty of photos! I've been dying to go! If you were previously unaware, I'm CITing for a second summer with Travel for Teens, the best travel program ever. Honestly. There would be no way on Earth I could've ever spent 9 months abroad if it weren't for TFT, those are the people who sparked my interest and passion in travel and photography. So also, if any TFT staff are reading, thank you! I literally only have this blog because of the experiences I've had with TFT. Actually I could have this blog, it would just be really uninteresting and lame and I wouldn't have any cool stories or photos to share. I'm so stoked for my 5th summer!!!
       E. What will happen to my blog? Great question friend. I'm not quite sure. I might write a post about my fears and schedule, then an update over Winter Break? Another at the end of the year? I'm starting to look into what I might want to do next summer, but nothing is set in stone. Of course I want to travel, but no promises. I would gladly accept any recommendations.
       I'm also hoping to maybe visit Year Course friends around the country, but I haven't told my parents, and since they're finding out now it's probably a no. But do not fret, I will find a way. I've also been thinking about doing s trip within America and blog about that. I seen the Eiffel Tower and the Colosseum, but I've never been to Mount Rushmore or the Grand Canyon. So we'll see.
I seriously can't believe how close I am to going home. I never could've imagined half of the things I've seen and done in the past year. I'm one lucky girl, thanks Mom and Dad.
Anyway, everyone stay excellent! 
As Always,
Julia Rosiee