Day 1: The Arrival!

Israeli Point of View:
After several weeks of preparation, including talking to our Americans through the Internet, the North American Seminar kicked off! When we got to Ben Gurion airport, we met as half a group on a quest to unite with our other half. After the excitement, we went through several long hours of flying and eventually landed in Newark. We met Leah and Noga, who greeted warmly and heightened our excitement for the trip, and we were off to the Whippany JCC. On the way out of the airport, the sight of yellow taxis and yellow school busses (which doesn’t exist in Israel) really helped us digest the fact that we were in America. It took us about 30 minutes to get to the JCC. We sat in pairs and we were furiously thinking about the families, and we talked a lot about our expectations. When we got there, the walk from the bus to meet the Diller seemed extremely long: we were there, but we still had a small journey to go (the JCC building is also very big). When we got to the entrance of their room, everyone tried to get in, curious to see the Americans in real life. From the corner of my eye, I finally saw my partner. At first, I was a little shy and overwhelmed by trying to meet all 20 Americans. However, I really opened up during dinner. Now that we’ve met the group and settled down with the families, we feel like the mission is accomplished and that the group is now whole.
- Chen Wolfson
American Point of view:
We have been waiting for this day to come since our first meeting in September. The suspense has been slowly building up the last few days, and it all culminated in the last few minutes before the Israelis arrived. Throughout the school day, I could barely sit still and I watched the clock tick by slowly until the day finally ended. When I got home, I rushed to clean my room in preparation for Chen’s arrival and then hurried out to Whippany. As a group, we were freaking out prior to the Israelis’ arrival. We frantically made “Welcome” posters and shared our intense feelings about the NAS. Some of us were extremely nervous (to the point of being stressed out), while others were too excited to hold it in, including me. When we found out that the Israelis were inside the building, the butterflies in my stomach exploded. We all panicked and attempted to stop ourselves from jumping off the walls. The seconds before the Israelis walked in were the long seconds of my life. Every possible thought seemed to rush through my head: will they be friendly? Do they really look like their facebook profile picture? Will I get along with my partner? Finally, the Israelis started to walk in and a huge rush went through my whole body: This is it! As they poured into the room, we greeted them with passionate applause. The first seconds were overwhelmingly filled with hugs, greetings, and an amalgam of emotions. As soon as I saw Chen walk through the door, I ran to him and greeted him. He said it was great to finally meet me in person after all this time. After that it was all a blur of Israelis bonding with Americans, which finally settled down when we got home. One of the most emotional parts of the NAS has passed, but there is much more to come!
- Nitay Caspi