"Israel Strikes Lebanese Ports"

As the situation continues to escalate here, I'm beginning to wonder if classes are going to be cancelled. My friends and fellow students, especially those from overseas, are feeling very tense. Our phones are constantly ringing, with parents on the other end begging us to come home. On the one hand, I really want to make it through the next two weeks of classes and complete the program. On the other, I wonder if it might be a better idea to cut my losses and go home. As the news gets worse and worse, I'm beginning to feel that way but we are all having such a great time here, personally and intellectually, that it would be a shame to cut our time short.

To get our minds off of this mess, my friend Matt and I went to the American Colony Hotel garden for drinks and $12 cheeseburgers (sorry, babe). The American Colony is a gorgeous hotel in the middle of Jerusalem, next to the Old City, and a favorite hang-out for international journalists. There were quite a few ABC people there who have just arrived for the action. The atmosphere sort of reminded me of the movie "Salvador". In the movie, there is a scene that shows an outside restaurant full of journalists having drinks and chatting about their jobs and the local conflict. It was nice, and having some grilled and greasy American food after eating kosher for so long really hit the spot. When the call for prayers blasted through the minaretts next door to us, we were reminded that we were in Jerusalem.

Weekends in Israel are Friday and Saturday. Tomorrow, Sunday, we'll be back in class and, there's a rumor, we'll be briefed on security issues, the situation with Lebanon (is this official war yet?), and other concerns.

More later...