I LOOOOVE ISRAEL!!!

cindy324

Tue, Jun 02 2009, 10:53 pm

DH and I were in Israel for 10 days and what can I say...

we fell in love!

I loved it so much (it was my first time there) I declared on the 5th day that I wanna live there LOL

How lucky are you Israeli ladies that you get to daven by the Kotel any time you want, walk through the streets of the Old City anytime, walk the streets of Jerusalem anytime!

My DH was especially affected by the Kotel. We davened there both Friday nights that we were there, Dh couldn't get enough of the energy, the many different types of Yidden davening side by side.

While walking through the Old City, I noticed that there are people actually living in the Jewish Quarter! Any Imamothers here who live there? Is it crazy expensive , or do you own?

How realistic is it to imagine living there one day? We do not have our own business, we both work for other people. Are there jobs available for Americans who don't speak a word of Hebrew? Am I just fantasizing?

I especially miss Israel coming back to NY Sad

It stinks here, the weather, the city, everything about it seems disgusting now that I experienced theHOly Land.

hila

Wed, Jun 03 2009, 12:27 am

Talk to nefesh benefesh.

And as for living in teh Old City - it is not cheap, but it is not too practical either. The streets are really narrow, teh bus goes nowhere near most of teh homes, and it is noisy from tourist for most of teh time - early morning till late at night.

It is a big zchut to live there but think practical !

As for work - it depends what your jobs are. Start learning Hebrew now, and plan your ALiya. The door IS always open, but take a while just to plan.
(say summer 2010) and learn as much as possible .
I cant remember if you have kids - but start talking to them NOW about it.
Behatslacha and feel free to ask questions - maybe look at some of teh old threads about where to live .

ChossidMom

Wed, Jun 03 2009, 2:05 am

cindy324 wrote:

DH and I were in Israel for 10 days and what can I say...

we fell in love!

I loved it so much (it was my first time there) I declared on the 5th day that I wanna live there LOL

It stinks here, the weather, the city, everything about it seems disgusting now that I experienced theHOly Land.

Thanks for the heartwarming post. Your enthusiasm brought tears to my eyes (I'm a real sap). I hope you are zocheh to make it here one day, permanently.

shalhevet

Wed, Jun 03 2009, 2:15 am

Blair wrote:

We should start a new section for people making aliyah. A place where they could ask all there questions and we could help the and direct them to the right sources. It is a big thing to come and many things have to be done before.

This has been discussed before. Yael would like such threads in this section.

Cindy - it's possible, and we'd love to have you join us Very Happy

. The advice to start learning Hebrew is great, and NBN will help you decide if there are job opportunities in your fields here.

mominisrael2

Wed, Jun 03 2009, 6:23 am

Although I agree with the others that it's not very practical to actually live in the Old City, just knowing that you are close enough to get there in a bus ride or two instead of a 12-hour plane ride is amazing!! As for jobs that require no Hebrew -- it took me a number of months but I finally managed to find DH one of those, but they are not very abundant! (I own my own business and am lucky enough to still be making mostly dollars, but it also means my Hebrew is still abysmal, unfortunately!) What fields are you and DH in? I have a ton of job-related resources in my computer and would be happy to share...

BeershevaBubby

Wed, Jun 03 2009, 6:42 am

I have to tell you that for me, the 2 greatest things I have ever done since moving to Israel (my sons notwithstanding) have been visiting 'Mama Rachel' to daven and... Birkat haKohanim on Chol haMoed Pesach and Sukkot.

I gotta say that I have never felt more spiritually recharged than when I've walked from the central bus station in Jerusalem to the Kotel.. through the Armenian and Jewish Quarters... literally following the footsteps of millions of Jews for thousands of years... Even thinking about it now brings tears to my eyes.

baba

Wed, Jun 03 2009, 6:51 am

I actually lived in the jewish quarter for 1.5 years. Whike it was absolutely amazing, I'm also glad I dont live there permamnently. Besides what Hila wrote, you cant forget all the crazy times surrounding chagim where you cant even get in by car, bus and even by foot is a major shlep. But I must sasy, it felt great to be able to call the place home, though it dose get a bit claustrophobic at times.
I'm glad you had such a meaningful experience and really hope you can make plans to come back for good. It's really the best place to live!

Ruchel

Wed, Jun 03 2009, 8:11 am

First, see if you still think that way after several trips in different places and areas, meeting with the locals, etc.

Then, contact your local alia place, they may have Hebrew lessons. I think unless you can live without working you will need a good level of Hebrew.

People who leave quickly may come back quickly (unless there is nothing to go back to, I mean). Either by choice, or because they can't make a living. You should find the right place for you (mentality wise, lifestyle wise, security wise etc), MO/charedi in America and in Israel is very different and so are mentalities. You should find the right schools for your children. There is probably a place you can fit in, if only among other americans, but not everyone is cut for (an easy) Israeli life which can be very different from Western life.

Advice I got from my keren hayesod uncle.

shabbatiscoming

Wed, Jun 03 2009, 9:00 am

cindy324 wrote:

DH and I were in Israel for 10 days and what can I say...

we fell in love!

I loved it so much (it was my first time there) I declared on the 5th day that I wanna live there LOL

It stinks here, the weather, the city, everything about it seems disgusting now that I experienced theHOly Land.

you are not fantisizing, but it is not so easy to find...that being said, my husband did not speak a lot of hebrew and it was very basic (and not always coreect) when he was hired to be a network administrator for an accounting firm in tel aviv. to them, the fact that he knew how to do his job meant more than the fact that he did not really speak hebrew. now, over a year later and just being around israelis all day, his hebrew has improved sooooo much that I love listening him talk to people from work when he is at home.
also, my husband has told me that there are many accountants in that firsm where he works who know not one word of hebrew, so it just depends on your skills and where you apply and if they like you and what you can do.

but, you can also start taking ulpan classes in america so that when you IYH get her (please G-d you will - it is the best place in the whole world to live :>) you will be able to tak eulpan and not be at the ground level.

good luck with everything.

cindy324

Wed, Jun 03 2009, 6:56 pm

Thanks for all your responses!

Realistically speaking, unless we come into some serious wealth, it does not seem very likely that we'll have the luxury of moving to Israel.

DH works in a business that sells janitorial and building supplies, so for him to find similar work, he's have to know some serious Hebrew.

I'm in dental coding and billing, not sure if Israel even has dental insurance plans, never mind the language barrier!

Cat, I've seen some of the Jerusalem neighborhoods and of course I realize that those are more realistic places to live than the Old City (it would probably lose its charm pretty fast ) My BIL and SIL live in HAr Nof and they do sometimes walk to the Kotel on Yom Tov. It takes them about an hour and a half. The buses are great,we took them everywhere when we were there (even though I always said I wouldn't dare go on the buses, C"VS bombings and all, but I felt absolutely no fear or danger while there)

Quote:

Even thinking about it now brings tears to my eyes.

Yesha, the first Friday night we went to the Kotel, it took all my willpower not to burst into tears LOL

First all these yidden davening and singing , then about a 100 or more soldiers coming singing and dancing, I can still feel the lump in my throat! The most amazing thing was, that my DH is claustrophobic, he'd rather take the stairs to the 10th floor than step into a packed elevator. But at the jam packed Kotel, right in the middle of the crowd, he felt absolutely no claustrophobia! Dd not feel at all bothered by it.

Quote:

I hope you are zocheh to make it here one day, permanently.

CHossidMom, thanks, Amen to that!