I don't even know where to start

I don't know where to start, so I'll start at this moment (a few dozen minutes before Shabbat starts). Jerusalem is different on a Friday. There's a sense of urgency on the streets, shops closing up, and a general sense of excitement as Shabbat is set to come in. There's no last-minute feeling like the minutes before Shabbat and you feel it in the air. 

I can hardly believe I've been in Israel since Monday. Since then, I've learnt to overcome the fear of staring at a text in Hebrew and actually analyze and learn from it (while looking up every single word). I've also learnt that in one sentence, you can discover 2 hours worth (and more) of wisdom. And I learnt to write Hebrew script! (Basically cursive but Hebrew)

In just a week, with many to go, I already feel changed. 

This is definitely not your typical vacation. Up early and in classrooms all day. A three hour break followed by another class. But it works. And it's still a vacation. It's a vacation from material things, an opportunity to connect with my faith and everything that it is. It's a spiritual and all-encompassing experience, I can barely find the words to describe what it feels like.

A thought on Shabbat from what I learned in Chumash class: It says that G-d completed the world in 7 days and that he also rested. How can G-d both rest from creation and complete something on the same day? Rashi says that G-d, being beyond time and space, could complete his work until the very very last second, a hairsbreadth before Shabbat. There are other explanations but this one is particularly meaningful because it teaches us how precious time is and that we should take advantage of every single second that we have.

Glossary

Shabbat: From sundown on Friday to sunset + 1 hour on Saturday, it's the Jewish day of rest. I don't touch my phone or turn on the computer. And there's lots of other fun laws like no writing, no turning on or off lights and no cooking.

Chumash: The 5 Books of Moses, so basically the Old Testament.

Rashi: A famous commentator on the Torah.

Hashem: Another word for G-d.

Why do I never include the "o" when spelling out G-d?: Although it is not the Hebrew name of G-d, the name still is holy and therefore don't spell it out in full (we do the same in Hebrew)

And a few pictures