Student of the Week – Joshua Thomas Birnbaum
My name is Joshua Thomas Birnbaum, and I’m from Belgium. When I was 13, I left Belgium and moved to London. I have always felt close to Israel, from going on camp in Israel to even coming to visit my family here. I have always felt close to Israel and always thought it would be nice […]
My semester in Israel – Caroline Press
The moment I was accepted to college, I decided to take a gap year. I was confident that this was something I wanted and needed to do. As I walked up the steps to John F. Kennedy Airport on January 9th, I found my stomach turning, my palms sweating and my heart beating. “Why am […]
Student of the Week – Caroline Emma Press
My name is Caroline Emma Press, and I’m from New York City. It has been a dream of mine to live in Israel since I was younger. I’ve spent a lot of time here throughout the years and always felt a deep connection to it. It has always felt like a second home. I had […]
5 Reasons to Take a Gap Year – Rachel Katz
Independence – Before I came to Israel, I didn’t realize how dependent I was on everyone else around me. While I can get around in a few places, I always needed someone else to lead me. I was scared to come here because I thought I’d be sort of dropped with no direction, but instead, […]
Money, Money, Money – Rachel Katz
Before I came on Aardvark, I never really had to think too much about my own money. While I have worked over the years, I am fortunate that my parents have usually always supplied money when I needed it and most days I either ate dinner with them or I had a college meal plan […]
Yom Hashoah
As someone who came to Israel from a very small town in Pennsylvania, I did not have much experience with true Holocaust remembrance, which I know is sad, but I did have a good education on it from my family along with Hebrew school. I knew coming to Israel that it would definitely be something […]
Cultural Differences in Shopping – Rachel Katz
One of the first adjustments I made to Israel was the differences in shopping. Specifically grocery shopping. I was so used to my entire life going to one specific grocery store and one other store, where we could just buy everything we needed in one place. For example, in America, we have Target, where anything […]
Almost Done – Rachel Katz
As I am writing this, currently it’s April 22, and we have just about a month left on Aardvark. It’s a crazy thought that soon enough I’ll be on a plane to go home, and I’ll be saying goodbye to all the friends that have become a family to me so quickly. Before I came […]
Student of the Week – Jaime Esquenazi
My name is Jaime Esquenazi and I’m from Miami, Florida. I chose to go on a gap year because the pandemic started before college and I decided that I should take a year to meet new people and have new experiences in Israel rather than go to school online. I chose Aardvark Israel so I […]
Student of the Week – Jesse Mills
My name is Jesse Morgan Mills. I chose to come on a gap year because I felt that I needed a change of pace. I heard about Aardvark Israel from Sophie Harris, a family friend, and thought the internship part of the program sounded perfect. I came into the program not knowing anyone except for […]