Day 1 “Only in Israel would the schedule include going to the mikve.”

For some reason I was convinced that classes started at 8:30 this morning, and as it being the first day I prepared myself enough time in order not to miss a moment of it. I allowed myself 20 minutes in the morning, 10 minutes to walk to the bus, a 45 minute bus ride, some time to get lost… etc. It was planned perfectly. Little did I know, the walk took about 4 minutes and the bus ride only 15. I had arrived by 7:45 just in time to find out that the class didn’t start until 9.
So let’s just say I had some time to chill…
It was the first day so we didn’t come near the kitchen, barely got to see it through the cracks of the door. We were introduced to the head chefs teaching culinary and pastry and sent off to buy the equipment, our “best friends” for the next 6 months.
After waiting over 6 hours for the correct sizes for each of our jackets, pants, and shoes, the correct knives, pots, and pans… We were off to the mikve. Sent by the head chef in a cab after googling the closest “holy water” to immerse our new equipment before the real teaching begins. As we sat in the taxi, without any clue to where our destination would take us, we found ourselves in the middle of Meah Shearim, Jerusalem’s Charedi neighborhood. I guess I can honestly say we weren’t dressed to par so when we got out in order to ask for better directions after the driver was completely lost… it was a bit… awkward.
Then the mikve. A deep pool of water located on the top of numerous steps in the middle of the city’s busy street… The lid for one of my pots. I held on so tight only to let go for a second just so the water would touch all sides. In a moment, the lid was gone. My classmates and I looked around not sure what to do. I made the first move, but my 5”3 body just didn’t have arms long enough for the job. I was soaked.
Thanks to a very tall classmate of mine, he was able to stick his arm in reaching, reaching, reminiscent to Moses in the basket… He got it!
We were all able to feel the pride as we walked down the steps back onto the busy street with our boxes of equipment in hand, we had conquered the mikve.
Finally after the long day we made it back to school, cleaned off our utensils from that a-bit dirty “holy water” and packed up. Ready for the next 6 months…

Monday nights live music in the shuk