Israel: Elizabeth Ely
Elizabeth Ely studied in Tel Aviv, Israel in the fall of 2023 when the Israel-Gaza war started and returned home to the United States to finish her semester online.
Program: Tel Aviv University, Semester
Elizabeth’s Major: Communication Arts
What is your most memorable experience from your program?
My most memorable experience was going to Tzfat with a group of the students on my program. The AirBnB looked out to an amazing view, we ate outside and went to a concert. The experience in Tzfat was just gorgeous and the people were amazing. I have the most beautiful pictures being in Tzfat and I will never forget it.
What is the moment you are most proud of?
I think the moment I am most proud of was when many people from my program got together and packed and made food and goods for the displaced families and soldiers for the war and after prayed together for our friends and family. It was a really touching moment and really showed how important community is.
What did you learn about yourself or the world because of your experience?
I learned a lot about myself and the world. I experienced the Israeli community worked together to help each other despite their views and differences. You had the Arab, Muslim, Christian, Druze, Bedouin, and Jewish community coming together to help each other out and be one and it just restored a lot of faith in humanity for me and I got to be a part of it, it really made me feel apart of the community.
How did your identities impact your experience? What advice would you give to students with similar identities who are considering a similar experience?
My identity as a Jew made the experience more meaningful as I got to keep Kosher and Shabbat easier. I also was able to celebrate holidays like Yom Kippur there which was super meaningful to me and seeing the country shut down. If you are of any religion or race I would recommend going. Every none Jew and Jew was welcomed with opened arms on the trip and in the community. One of my good friends now on the program wasn’t Jewish and even though she wasn’t Jewish everyone welcomed her with open arms and we taught her about traditions and I taught her prayers etc. It was an overall amazing experience for everyone and myself on the program that bonded us closer.
What challenges or barriers did you face as you prepared to go abroad and/or during your time abroad? How did you work through them?
One challenge was the war, every single person on that program was so sad about going home but while we were there when the whole war started, the student life team and all the people on the program stayed together and tried to make it a better experience. It turned out to be a great experience either way and I was so sad to leave.
How were your program academics similar or different from taking classes at UW-Madison?
The classes were very similar, I had my classes online but I really liked them and they were full of a diverse group of students from all over Israel which made it more insightful and meaningful.
What is a custom, food or tradition from your host country that you are taking forward?
My favorite thing to eat with my friends were Milky’s, now if you haven’t been to Israel you wouldn’t know what I was talking about but my friends and I would always get all the different kinds of Milky’s and debate with people in line and with each other on the right way to eat a milky. Another food is pomegranate. I had a pomegranate everyday from the store and since I got back home I have eaten them as well.