Should we make aliya?

amother

Mon, Dec 12 2011, 7:24 pm

We always wanted to live in Eretz Yisroel. But there are a few things that we are concerned about.

1. Community- we have no idea where to live, also not sure if we at al want to live in yerushalayim as it's bit busy for us there. we would like a frum area with schools, shuls etc. and obviously nice , down to earth people. So hareidi but still down to earth if you know what I mean. So not israeli but more american, british etc. hareidim.

2. financially- dh got a degree and I don't, our hebrew is so so, and also yerushalayim does not offer jobd in dhs field.

3. kids- will my kids get used to a different mentality etc. is it safe for them there? we also would like them to have some sort of secular education.

4.friends- I heard that its very hard to make friends there Sad

generally when I was there I found people more tough and pushy and screamy, not my personality at all.

5. Scared - scared of the actual move, change and also the danger. when I was there I was shaking every time I got on to the bus and davened to hashem to get home safely. maybe its just in my mind. please tell me your story and experience.

ALso we know so many people who went there and came back a few years later. I said to dh that we should not listen to them bec people who liked and stayed there are not here to tell their story.

Reasons we want to move: Mitzva to live in eretz yisroel, my fam is there, we know for sure we are not staying where we are as yidishkeit is really not go forward here and everyone is moving away for their kids etc. so no good schools etc. we could move to a different city but would not have any fam there whatsever, we hate living here but dont know where to go to. so Yisroel seems like the only reasonable option.

Please help me and give me some advise. As I am gping crazy. we really need to move but to where? Sad

amother

Mon, Dec 12 2011, 9:00 pm

Ramat Beit shemesh is full of people like you. There are many anglos who are warm and friendly (and not pushy). some of the schools there offer good quality secular education. Have you checked out the community profile on Nefesh Bnefesh website? it has a lot of info about the community but based on what you've said, it sounds like you could be very happy there.

amother

Mon, Dec 12 2011, 9:52 pm

I just looked into Ramat Bet Shemesh Aleph for a relative and it sounds like what you're looking for. It's physically very nice and clean, a lot of parks, and you can get anything you need right there. Not too far commute to Yerushalyim, buses every 10 minutes. How old are your kids? I don't want to be too negative, but there is a noticeably higher percentage of kids who go off the derech when they make aliyah in their early to late teenage years. Unfortunately Ramat Bet Shemesh has a lot of them (comparative to other places). Otherwise the community is more American, open-minded. Ramat Bet Shemesh Bet is definitely more closed and very chareidi (I'm chareidi so it's not an insult, just so you know what's out there), less English-speakers.

amother

Mon, Dec 12 2011, 9:52 pm

ima m

Tue, Dec 13 2011, 6:02 am

alyia is not going to be easy, b'h going in march, dh is in a good job currently, dont know what will happen financially when we get there, we have friends and family here and are happy. however we are going cos we both really want to live there, we know there will be struggles, the big one being jobs but if we stay in england there will be different challanges, there will always be struggles in life and we are choosing the struggles that israel offer rather than the ones in england

shabbatiscoming

Tue, Dec 13 2011, 6:03 am

ima m wrote:

What fields do you work in? Why are you so certain that finding jobs will be hard?

ima m

Tue, Dec 13 2011, 6:23 am

getting a job might not be that difficult but what will the salary be? his a lawyer but hasn't decided if he want to stay in law or go into business. I will b'h qualify as a physiotherapist next month. we are going to live in elazar in the gush so dont really wont to travel to tel aviv for jobs, I would ideally like to work in woman's health as a physio, part time, if anyone can help or give advice in these 2 areas please do

shabbatiscoming

Tue, Dec 13 2011, 6:26 am

ima m wrote:

In terms of working in tel aviv or jerusalem, first of all, I llive in neve daniel, right newa elazar Smile

Second, many people do commute to tel aviv, just wanted to mention that.
Thirdly, in terms of what you do, if you get your name out there, you may be able to do private physio, you never know.
And in terms of lawyers, I know a few lawyers that are making it just fine, not just making it, but doing ok for their families.

chanchy123

Tue, Dec 13 2011, 6:33 am

Psychotherapy is probably one of the most lucrative professions in Israel (very hard to get a degree in Israel). Once you're established you should be doing fine.
DH is a lawyer too, if he's good he should be doing fine as well. There are more jobs for lawyers in the TA area but I know plenty of lawyers in the Jerusalem area (DH is one) who seem to be busy as well.
Prepare for a bumpy start, but you do have good head start with your professions.

shabbatiscoming

Tue, Dec 13 2011, 6:35 am

chanchy123 wrote:

She said physio, not psychotherapy. Its different. Physio is more like OT, not therapy for the mind, just wanted to point that out.

chanchy123

Tue, Dec 13 2011, 6:49 am

shabbatiscoming wrote:

chanchy123 wrote:

She said physio, not psychotherapy. Its different. Physio is more like OT, not therapy for the mind, just wanted to point that out.

Ok, I get it - I had a moment of brief dyslexia.

Definitely try to get private clients. Once you are established you can market yourself as a private contractor to kupat cholim. Make sure your license is acceptable in Israel, you might have to do an internship and or take a test.
Kupat cholim always need physiotherapists but they don't pay very well necessarily. Also, do you have a specialty?

3 little 1s

Tue, Dec 13 2011, 6:54 am

ima m wrote:

Although we will miss you!

Tamiri

Tue, Dec 13 2011, 8:45 am

ima m wrote:

I will miss you too 3 little 1s
I dont have a specialty yet as not qualified yet but do want to specialize in woman's health and would like to be hospital based, although it is more important to me to work part time over my chosen specialty if it comes down to that

It's nice that you are "open" about what you will ultimately do. With this attitude and some Siata diShmaya, you should be okay. Maybe not rich, but okay.