20 May 2011

First Days at Kibbutz Lotan

Shalom to all,

I realize that I've been in Israel almost three weeks, and two and a half of those weeks here at Kibbutz Lotan, and have not put a posting on my blog for all that time, so now I should make up for that and tell you all what's been going on.

It's been an incredible time of discovery and I've seen and experienced so many new things in these few days since I've arrived, I hardly know where to start!

Firstly, Lotan is set in the middle of the Arava desert, far from any 'civilized' urban environment. The area is remote, very hot as can be expected from a desert, full of sand and dust. Sound good? Plus the kibbutz is surrounded by barbed wire and you can only get in via a gate which is guarded night and day. Sound better? I'm emphasizing this on purpose as a joke kind of, because while it is true that we are 'closed' in, you don't get the feeling of being closed in at all. It's just a normal requirement and all the kibbutzim in the area (and there are quite a few) have the same set-up.

One of the first things they tell you when you get here, on top of the normal tour of the kibbutz is, don't walk east. Cross the barbed wire, walk a couple of hundred meters and there you are in Jordan. There is peace with Jordan and it is not risky as such, but sensitive nevertheless, there have been incidents and the army patrols so.....keep to the west end of the kibbutz!

Kibbutz Lotan is a relatively young kibbutz, created in 1984 by members of the Reform Movement. They produce milk and cheese from cows and goats. All the produce is sold to the outside. It is still one of the more traditional kibbutzim where all the 'wealth' goes to the kibbutz, all the money people make on the outside goes straight into the kibbutz accounts. Because they don't have many members (55 adults plus about 60 kids) and some aspiring members, it is not a rich kibbutz, so they do rely a bit on tourism.

They are very well known in the region and further beyond as well for their knowledge of and dedication to sustainable living, and everything here, and I mean everything, is recycled. Natural products are used for their buildings (mud mostly, which provides for good insulation) and everything is composted, included the toilets, which for the most part are dry (not as bad as it sounds actually). They run Apprenticeship programs which go for 5 months or one year and take volunteers such as myself for one week up to whatever, to learn techniques relating to mud building, sustainable gardening and so forth.

Which is what I've been doing and while it was a little challenging at first, I now have got the hang of it and am contributing to the kibbutz by my hard work. And it is hard work. Up at 6AM when we do stretching and tai-chi movements together in a circle at the end of which we all hold hands and welcome the new day together (this is the holistic aspect of Lotan) and then we go off to our various duties until breakfast at 8:30 until 9:30 and then back to work until 2:30PM. So in actual fact, almost 8 hour days in the hot sun (does wonder for my tan and yes, I do wear sunscreen and a hat for those who would be tempted to question it;-). I have done a lot of mud working, and gardening, weeding, collecting seeds, preparing our ecological centre for visiting groups of kids.

I have also been joining in the various other activities on offer. On the occasion of Yom Hazikaron (Remembrance Day) and Yom Ha'atzmaut (Independence Day), there were special little ceremonies I attended. There is of course the weekly Friday evening dinner with a little singing, which is nice. This coming Sunday there is the feast of Lag Ba'omer (not sure what it is, google it...) but it has something to do with bonfires, so that is what we are doing in the evening in an area outside of the kibbutz. I am also taking a couple of hebrew lessons every week (not easy, but I am making progress!) and of course I hear hebrew here all the time, so that helps in picking up a few words or phrases. And I'm continuing diligently my Veterinary Assistant online course, so my brain is frying a bit with all this new wealth of information!

I've been fortunate to befriend the lifeguard of the pool here, who is a french woman who made aliyah a few years ago. She and I will be spending a night and day at the Dead Sea next week, so that will be a nice change as well. Rolling around in the mud (again!) as it were, and rinsing off in the salty waters of the dead sea...I'm looking forward to that!

I have to add that people here are incredibly kind and welcoming and that is something I am not entirely used to. Surely it has to do with the nature of the kibbutz. Yesterday, the woman in charge of the eco volunteers who left for the States the day after I arrived, asked me if everything was alright and what could they do to make my stay more pleasant...I mean WOW! I was so taken aback that she should even think of asking me....nobody on my other projects had even considered that I might be wanting or lacking anything.

What else can I say? This part of the country is so remote and one can't say that being here in Lotan is really being in Israel. It is a very protected environment and while events are happening in other parts of the country, such as what happened in the Golan the other day, here life goes on as usual. When I asked one of the long term kibbutz members about that, he said, it's not that they are not interested, they are, but here in Israel, they take it one day at a time, and if they don't happen to turn on the news, they just don't know what's going on. And that applies to everywhere in Israel, not just here in the South. What we perceive as a huge occurrence for them is part of their daily life. They know it's happening but they go on with their life because there is nothing exceptional about a bomb going off in a bus in Jerusalem, for example. Not long ago, I met this Israeli woman, when I was in South Africa, and I asked her how people felt about that bomb that went off in the bus and she replied “which one?” And it's not that she didn't know, it's that it happens and they take it in their stride. Another man was telling me about Gaza and about when he was in the army. He was dressed in full combat uniform, like the Ninja turtle. He would cross the border into Gaza and would be like all the soldiers you see on TV and in the movies, and then he would cross back and go home or to the base and he would lead a normal Israeli life again. Just part of a day at work...Fascinating.....

Well, I'll leave you now with a few photos and hopefully my next posting will be sooner that this one has been.

Lehitraot, yom tov! (See ya and have a good day!)

 Very early morning walk in the desert...introducing Blanca....
 Scenery around the Kibbutz Lotan
 "Give your garbage a second chance" our Eco Kef or Eco Centre
 The children's playground at the Eco Kef
 More examples of mud created playground....soon my creation will be on here too!
 We do have a fantastic swimming pool ;-)
 Florence, my friend the lifeguard, on our early morning hike
Me and one of our LED lamps in the Bustan neighbourhood where we live in our mud made domes...

03 May 2011

First days in Israel

Well, hello everyone! I'm back, so to speak, as I am away again, but back on this blog...
I left Strasbourg again on May 1st to take the plane from Basel airport. When you board a plane going to Israel, you are immediately in the ambiance! Picture the scene: half the plane was Orthodox Jews all dressed in black as befits their tradition, with the appropriate number of children and strollers and suitcases to suit that number. We all settled into our seats with more or less discipline, the men putting up and taking down repeatedly bags, cases and other belongings including wigs (!), I am not kidding, and the plane took off. As soon as the seatbelt sign was turned off, all the men got up and put on their prayer accoutrements and started praying, pacing up and down the aisle, it was Mea Shearim in-flight!

I land, all goes well at passport control, very fast actually, I retrieve my suitcase (not lost this time!) and off I go to get my shared taxi to Jerusalem. The drivers are arguing vociferously in typical Israeli style. Our driver drops me off as planned right near the Abraham Youth Hostel where I am to spend a couple of nights before heading off for the desert and my project. I meet a nice young girl by the name of Rosie who is also going off on a project a few miles away from mine, and we hang out together for the time we are at the hostel. I'm sharing a room with four other girls but I'm soon to learn that in hostels people come and go, and lo and behold, the second evening, I walk into my room and there is a guy in one of the beds! Nobody told me it was a mixed room! So, last night, I had to share my room with two other girls and two other guys...definitely a new experience for me!

This morning we got up to catch our bus toward our projects. We needed to catch the 444 direction Eilat and were looking forward to about a four hour bus ride. We get to the Central Bus Station with our reservation which we had been given by the GoEco representative and proceed to the ticket counter to retrieve our tickets. Picture this again: there is this girl, talking on the phone, chewing gum, no “hello, may I help you?” or any nicety of that sort....she shakes her head over to the left and says “the machines!”.....ahhh, welcome to Israel and its people....full of charm and goodwill;-)

After four hours, I am dropped off in the middle of.....NOWHERE! It's desert all around with the Jordanian border about 500 meters away. Fortunately, one of the members of the kibbutz came to pick me up in her car and drove me the short distance to the kibbutz. I was shown to my own private geodesic dome lodging and taken on a very short tour around the kibbutz. It is very small with only 55 members and a few other people too who aren't full fledged members. Luckily for me, they have given up on the passive cooling system as it really gets much too hot here in the summertime and doesn't cool down at night, so they gave in and put ceiling and floor fans in our rooms. I was shown the showers and the “dry toilets”, not a favorite of mine, but I have to admit, there was no foul smell. Everything here is recycled, composted and communal....An interesting way of life indeed. For me? Hmm, not so sure.. But the strange thing is this: I'm in a totally remote part of Israel, in the middle of the desert, with goats chatting outside my window, not a town in site and full internet connection! Now, ain't that amazing?! What a world we live in!

Tomorrow I start my work at 6AM. I am expected to work until about 2:30PM with a break for breakfast and in the afternoon, I can chill out by the pool, finally work on that tan I'm longing for and prepare assiduously my veterinary course for which I was awarded an A- for the Module 1...apparently, the old brain is still functioning a bit... So I will leave you now with a few photos and will be in touch soon with more news..

Cheers to all ;-)

 My room with the goats in the background
 No description necessary
 Yard in front of my room
 Another view of the yard and other rooms

 Showers and toilets
 Now, who can that be?!
This is what my geodesic dome room is made of