Undergraduate Fellows - What I did during the semester break
Lena Vaynberg '13 and Julia Blanter '13
We went on a Taglit trip through the Shorashim program with Brandeis, Harvard and MIT. The Shorashim program entailed that we had seven Israeli Soldiers living with us throughout the entire trip. The soldiers only made our experience more meaningful as we were able to see Israel through the eyes of true Israelites.
Helen Shapiro '11
I lifeguarded, got the post-finals plague, had a friend from abroad visit for a week, then another friend stay with me for a week, and stayed in New York to help out with my sister's wedding plans. I applied to a lot of jobs for next year as well
Julia Livit '13
Over my semester break, I reenergized my battery in Orlando, FL. There, I ate too much, slept enough, and finally visited Harry Potter world. Spending the rest of break with the family was the perfect way to finish off the year. 2011 is going to be an exciting year!
Annie Livit '13
I spent one amazing week in Orlando, Florida, where I celebrated my father's birthday and parents 22nd anniversary! Then I spent three amazing weeks at home with my friends and family!
Julia Rabkin '11
This winter break I went on vacation to Mexico with my family, to a resort Riu Palace Mexico, in Playa del Carmen. Other than that, it was just networking events and job interviews.
Karina Gaft '14
I spent the latter half of winter break in Russia visiting my family as well as enjoying the many things St. Petersburg has to offer in the winter such as the Alexndrivsky theater, the nutcracker at the St. Petersburg Conservatory, a dolphin show, and a stroll through the Winter Palace of the Hermitage. I also visited the country side for a snow filled adventure. Upon her return to the States, I stopped by Amsterdam for a couple of days and got a glimpse of what the liberal city has to offer from the Van Gogh Museum to the Ann Frank House, to the more entertaining nightlife.
Freddy Rozenshteyn '13 and Mike Gureivch '13
We went on Taglit EZRA for 10 days. Our trip started in Tel Aviv. The second and third day we stayed in a Kibbutz on the Sea of Galilei. We then went to the Golan Heights and saw the Syrian tanks from the war. We then stayed in a Bedouin tent in the middle of the desert and drank their amazing sweet tea. We climbed Masada to see the sunrise, floated on the Dead Sea, swam in Eilat, and saw the nightlife. Our trip ended with 3 days in Jerusalem where we went through the Jewish quarter, went to the western wall.and saw both the old and modern city. We also celebrated Sabbath in Jerusalem which was an interesting experience.
Dan Koch '13
I went skiing at Lake Placid. Besides that, I mostly just hung out with high school friends.
Victor Zhivich '13
Over break I went skiing in New Hampshire for a few days, played some ice hockey, and saw a couple of movies. I really enjoyed Black Swan, thought Natalie Portman was amazing in that role. I also worked at Cubist Pharmaceuticals for two weeks doing data entry. Overall I relaxed and shoveled snow when need be.
Eli Tukachinsky '11
At Roslindale's Hebrew Rehabilitation Center, I received Caring Touch certification in hand massage therapy for Russian arthritic and dimentia patients. Without it, I never would have met Esther, Sara and Fanya, who yearned for physical contact and who were ready to discuss very emotional topics of the Russian immigrant experience. It was truly a gift to be able to console a weeping resident--certain that her daughter had to be picked up from school-- with a gentle touch.
Danny Shpolyansky '14
During the non-Jewish holiday of Christmas, I was staying over at BGI Fellow Eleazar Jacob's '13 'home where his parents welcomed me as if I was one of their own. They fed me amazing Uzbek dishes and truly celebrated the Sabbath with no mention of Christmas. By the end of my time there, I knew that I couldn't eat anymore. It was nice meeting the family of my best friend at college.
Vlad Lukashevsky '11
I spent some time with my family and was involved in the recruiting process for the upcoming summer. I also cooked a lot and visited friends in St. Louis and NYC. Overall, it was a very productive break.
Neral Lerner '12
I was selected to be a member of the Grand Jury. For two weeks we worked on deciding to indite or dismiss a variety of cases for the Supreme Court of New York. Throughout the remainder of my break I continued the research I began at The Frick Collection this summer, and spent time with family and friends.
Lev Gorfinkel '13
I worked at the december vacation camp and then when the kids went back to school, I worked at the after school program.