bohemian

It's time for a lesson in Israeli culture/society! I know you are excited! If not, you've probably stopped reading. Or are just really bored. I bet it's the later. That's okay.

So after high school, most Israeli teenagers serve in the army. It's a cultural thing. Also, unfortuantely, it's pretty necessary. Girls serve for around 2 years and guys serve for around 3 years. Women are rearely in combat positions. Female friends who have served in the army have done things like teach photography, teach how to drive jeeps. Anyways, after service, some Israelis immediately enter university or the work force. Others take time off to travel.

Popular places to travel are India, Australia...places like that. And I'm not joking, this is a common trend. Taking time to find themselves, etc. The kind of thing they didn't have time to do while they were in the army.

Now, I have friends that took gap years. They all did programs in Israel. But all of these programs were rooted in education in some way. They didn't just go and backpack/wander.

I know that my parents would be seriously pissed if I said that I wanted to take some time off and wander around another country. (I do know some people who took jobs while doing this, when they spent significant amounts of time in a specific area. However, it's not too easy to do. Ant then, you're not exactly saving money. You're working as a waitress/equivalent, for rent money.) Granted, I'm going to an expensive school, so I understand that my parents want me to do something productive. However, even if I wasn't, I can't see them getting behind me taking time off to travel. And I agree.

Sometimes I wonder if I'm missing out on anything.