Yes, 'n' how many years can a mountain exist

Before it's washed to the sea?

Yes, 'n' how many years can some people exist

Before they're allowed to be free?

Yes, 'n' how many times can a man turn his head

And pretend that he just doesn't see?

The answer, my friend, is blowin' in the wind

The answer is blowin' in the wind

-Bob Dylan, Blowin' in the Wind

Picture: Netsuke at the Tikotin Museum of Japanese Art

Research

I finally got good results!!!! After weeks of troubleshooting and weeding out flaws in my original experimental design, I was finally able to produce more ATP using a catalyst than the control in the experiment. I almost started crying, I was so ecstatic. I'm not generally that emotional, but I was definitely feeling down and discouraged at the lack of progress up until now. I've had so many research experiences before, in high school and in college, so I thought I should be "good" at research - able to operate independently while designing experiments and solving problems. Despite this previous experience, since I've never had such an unguided project before, I've never worked by myself so intensely. So I was confused and concerned why I was having so much trouble. Did it mean I wasn't cut out for research? I should know better, but that's always my immediate reaction when I struggle. Anyway, it worked out, and I won't be a fool to think that again. Even if the rest of the summer doesn't go well, I'm glad I had this opportunity, because I have a more realistic impression of how messy research is.

Another American student, Carmi, came the the lab last week. He just graduated from UConn, and is working here until October. It's really nice to have another American in the lab, not just because he's super friendly, but also because I can observe how he adjusts to Israeli culture. Which, I have to admit, is superior to my adjustment in many ways.

We were talking about how it's strange that all of the lab members call Prof. Schroeder by his first name, Avi, whereas in American you don't really do that unless you know your boss really well. "It's kind of strange, but I think I'll try it, cuz it's what the other lab members do," Carmi said. I'd just been saying Prof. Schroeder this whole time, but when Carmi said that, it occurred to me that my efforts to be polite might just come across as rude or distant. I also noticed, while watching Carmi interact with other lab members, that Israelis make a lot of small talk while they work. In contrast, in Japan and in my U.S. lab, people generally keep quiet to allow others to focus better on work. I've been doing the same, again to be polite and not bother anyone, but Carmi didn't hold back. He seems so much more comfortable with the lab after just a week than I am after six. I'm really happy he's here now though, otherwise I probably wouldn't have realized this.

It's kind of sad though, that I need another American to "show me how it's done." Like, I wish I noticed these things on my own. I guess sometimes you do need someone else to expose your subconscious habits, but my ultimate goal is to be so perceptive and critical that I can do these things on my own. I don't even know if that state of mind is attainable...we'll see.

Tikotin Museum of Japanese Art & Reuniting with an old friend

Last Wednesday, I visited the Tikotin Museum of Japanese Art with my childhood friend from New Jersey. She studies at Skidmore, but is in Haifa for some International Relations internships. I haven't spoken with her for a couple years, since we graduated from high school. I was nervous - maybe we'd both changed so much we wouldn't been able to enjoy each other as much (yes, I know it's only been two years but I feel like I've changed a lot). But that wasn't true. It was so nice to reconnect, and discover all the things about our friendship that I loved.

The Tikotin Museum is the only Japanese art museum in the entire Middle East; I was excited to see how Israelis depict Japanese art. The museum was small but robust; the collections are stunning and the descriptions are really thorough. I really enjoyed the wood prints, since they were almost cartoon-like, and reminded me of some of the beautiful scenes in anime movies that I saw last year in Japan. One of the descriptions recounted how many Japanese artists began to embrace realism after Japan opened its doors to trade and foreigners; we thought it was interesting how Asian artwork is so coveted in the West, while Western influence was so important in the East. The exhibits were also very minimalistic, which reminded me of Japanese landscapes and arrangements from last summer. I haven't been to an Israeli museum yet; maybe it'll be different.

After the museum, we walked around and went to HaZkenim Falafel, an extremely good falafel place in Wadi Nisnas. We talked about life and relationships and Israel; again it was nice to be with an American who understands how Israel may seem from my eyes. Since my friend studies International Relations, she took many classes about Israel's relationships with surrounding Middle Eastern countries, and told me about how these classes changed her perspective as a Jewish person. It was fascinating to hear, and I hope I can have many similar conversations during the rest of my stay.

It's so hard to believe I'm now halfway through my internship. It's sad, there's so much to do and see and I constantly feel like I can't keep up with it all. I guess I'll have a lot to think about when I get back.

Before I met my friend, I took a bus from Technion to the Tikotin. When I got off the bus, this little girl with a ponytail and some papers in her hand got off as well. Since I was the only other person at the stop, she approached me and said something in Hebrew. I asked if she could speak English but she didn't, but she seemed to need my help with something. She kept pointing across the street, and I realized she wanted me to help her cross. It was a two lane road with no crosswalk and rather fast cars, so it made sense. I gestured to let her know that I understood, and when the lanes were clear, walked across with her behind me. After we got to the other side, she said todah and started down the street. She was so cute, and it felt good to help her even though I couldn't speak Hebrew. I was surprised that she was traveling alone (while common in Japan, you don't usually see little kids traveling alone using public transit in the U.S.), but I guess her parents told her to always cross the street with someone just to be safe.

Movies

I've been watching a lot of movies lately. I feel like they're good bonding experiences with other international students. I watched The Pink Panther (2006) with Marie and two Indian students on Thursday night. Marie and I always joke about how the hamburger scene perfectly captures our daily conversations, since Marie has a very heavy (but beautiful) French accent. She started laughing so hard at how bad Steve Martin's accent was.

Yesterday, I watched Dhoom 3, a Bollywood film, with Marie and SJ. I actually haven't seen it before, even though the Dhoom franchise is very popular not only in India but among Indian Americans in the U.S. It was surprisingly good, and there was this plot twist at the end that even I didn't see coming. I was surprised that Marie had seen other Bollywood films as well, and that she and SJ were open to watching them. In the U.S. I feel that people think Bollywood is weird, because of the language and movie style. It was nice to be able to share one of my hobbies with people who also appreciated it. We're planning to watch another Bollywood movie with our Ethiopian friend this Thursday; it's still so shocking how prolific Bollywood is around the world.

On Saturday evening I also watched 12 Angry Men with my German friend. This week was just a marathon of movies, but they were all different and the people were great so it's fine. From my friend's amused reaction, I found that the characters in 12 Angry Men are both incredibly 20th century American but also somehow relatable at the same time.

Rav Kav

I've been taking the buses a lot in Haifa. Everyone uses a bus card called a Rav Kav, where you can load money and get a student discount if you are a Technion student. The problem is, the bus station where you can get a Rav Kav is Hof HaCarmel, which is near the beach/ all the way down the mountain/ a 40 minute bus ride downtown. Plus, the Rav Kav store closes early, at 7pm, and you need both your passport and a special letter from Technion to get both the card and a student discount. I guess if you know all the rules it's not too confusing, but if you don't know the rules it's a disaster. Or at least it was for me.

The first time I went, I ended up having the wrong letter, and so they gave me the Rav Kav card but not the student discount. The next time, last Thursday, I had the letter but not my passport. I thought I didn't need the passport, since they scanned it last time and recorded my passport number, but that wasn't true. Also, it's always kind of rushed when I try to go there, because I don't want to leave so early from lab, but I also need to get to Hof HaCarmel before 7pm. Anyway, I got there and the woman kept berating me in Hebrew when I didn't have my passport, even though I told her I could only speak English. Why did she continue to use Hebrew when she knew I couldn't understand? All she said in English was "Sorry," but she didn't sound sorry at all; it seemed like I was just wasting her time. But there wasn't a queue or a crowd in the store, so I couldn't see why she was also getting annoyed. I tried to stay calm and ask what exactly they needed my passport for; maybe I could give them my passport number instead. But they didn't listen and I got very frustrated; now I still didn't have a Rav Kav and would have to continue to pay the full price to ride the bus.

When I was coming back, it was difficult to find a bus which would take me back to Technion because I didn't have WiFi, and when I asked the bus driver if he went to Ziv, he mumbled something which I couldn't hear and started talking to the next person. So I asked again, louder, but he ignored me, then I asked again, and the bus driver got annoyed was like, "Yeah yeah yeah yeah I do" then shoved the bus fare change into my hand. It was very unpleasant and I returned home extremely upset.