So far, each day here is different. Whether spent on the beach in Tel Aviv visiting my sister, shopping for Judaica on Ben Yehuda Street or touring a museum, there are always new and exciting things to do. I finally began my internship with the Ethiopian National Project (ENP) last week. The office is an eight-minute walk from our hotel and I am working with another girl from Boston Onward as well. My work days so far have been consumed mainly with emails and meetings (both in-person and virtual). I am also working at ENP with six other summer interns from various Onward programs.

Most days we are all placed in a room together where we are able to bounce ideas off each other for how to build up the website, fundraise further and improve the company as a whole. It is so helpful to be able to provide ENP with this unique outsider perspective. At lunch time, on the days that I choose not to pack a sandwich or yogurt, the other interns and I typically walk a few blocks to Ben Yehuda Street, where we laugh and bond even more over delicious Israeli cuisine (sometimes even including ice cream for dessert!).

Israel
(Photo: Aviva Weinstein)

I am so excited about what my internship with ENP has in store. I think it will be an extremely valuable experience where I will learn how to better work with others in a professional setting and understand if this is the type of work I would like to pursue one day. Plus, on the days I get off work early, I will have the opportunity to explore the sites of Jerusalem, something I have never truly done independently. I have already been to the Israel Museum, Jerusalem’s Nature Museum, the shuk, the Tachana Rishona, Mamilla Mall and more in the afternoons once I am done work, and have spent the weekends in Tel Aviv and Haifa. Onward is truly providing me with a once-in-a-lifetime experience to feel like a true resident of Israel, working, living and exploring in the holiest city in the world. For now, I look forward to the rest of the summer and all the adventures ahead!

Aviva Weinstein, Brandeis University ’23, is an anthropology major interning this summer at the Ethiopian National Project through the Boston Onward Israel program. ENP works with Ethiopian Israelis across Jerusalem. 125 students from Massachusetts colleges have professional internships in their fields of interest in Tel Aviv, Jerusalem and Haifa this summer. Visit onwardboston.com for more info.

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