Global musings - dispatches from Carey

July 2018

Greetings from Jerusalem! 

I hope you are all well, scattered across your various coordinates. Some of you are expecting this message, but most I figured would simply like to hear about my venturing. 

So here we go. 

Week one and it's already been an utter panoply of culture, of politics, of intellectualism, of horror, of comic relief. I touched down in Tel Aviv with ease and was escorted to Jerusalem by a lovely and gregarious driver. He was rather enthusiastic about pointing out landmarks along the way much to my appreciation. Tucked away on a hill lies Hebrew U's Mt. Scopus campus, spotted with winding roads and lookout points. The breeze twirled as I watched the city roll out underneath me like an intricate wave of homes and streets and I was submerged in tranquility. A pinch of bliss before delving into the whirlwind. 

My classmates from Munk and I are having quite the time. They are an inspiring and kind webbing of comfort. (@Will&Marium, Mum would be proud of our transboundary Munk family). Beyond those who I already knew, I have had the pleasure of meeting people of all ages hailing from Singapore, Japan, Australia, the UK, the US, Spain, Slovenia, Myanmar, and more. My professors are incredible. Both have a history in activism, international and domestic policy, and evidently academia. (@Grandma, their names are Nir Boms and Gershon Baskin for your investigatory delight). 

Thus far, we have travelled to the Golan Heights near the Lebanese and Syrian borders. We have spoken with journalists, government officials, NGO leaders, doctors, and ethnic community leaders. One of my most cherished moments of travelling is meeting people, whether it be tailors in Mongola Juu, Tanzania or Ann witch doctors in Myanmar. It is no different here. To listen to the stories of others, learn their perspectives and their histories, that is a truly precious thing. 

We know the Middle East is complex. Our minds have been deluged with media updates of war, conflict, human rights violations, terrorism, and corruption. Among this email's recipients, there are witnesses to both intifadas, Iran-Contra, the Yom Kippur War, the toppling of Suddam Hussein, 9/11, the invasions of Afghanistan, Iraq, and Libya, the Syria crisis, Yemen's famine. I have no answers. if anything, I know less than I ever did before. The only certainty is that tomorrow there will be more questions, not less. 

Our human affinity for causality lures us into neat simplicity, chronicles packaged into pristine books with beginnings and ends. Oh, how we wish the world worked that way. Please read the news with a critical mind. Please remember whatever source you are reading is talking about a narrative no one understands. About people no one bothers to listen to. 

On a lighter note, cats are to Jerusalem what squirrels are to the East Coast (sorry, Madre!). The downtown market in Jerusalem is incredible- simmering with za'atar, coffee, apricots, figs, halva, vegetables, fruits, and of course, hummus (I have found my consummate culinary community). The vendors are quite vivacious and simply want you to try everything. Also, Hebrew word of the week: "Sababa" means "great" or "cool." 

I love you all!

Cheers,

Carey