4A THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
NEWS
THURSDAY JANUARY 26. 2006
TRAVEL
Contributed photo
A group of students participated in Taglit-birthright Israel over winter break. The trip was fully funded by anonymous donors. The program has sent a total of 20,000 KU students over the course of its existence. The national Taglit-birthright program has sent a total of 100,000 students.
"I always viewed camels as being intimidating because they have the capability of spitting, but once I was on it I had no worries, and all I could think about was 'wow, how often do I get to ride a camel?'" she said.
Students take trip to Israel over break
KU Hillel Director Jay Lewis said the KU group traveled with students from Kent State University and eight soldiers the students' ages or just a bit older from the Israeli military.
Hermanson also enjoyed some of her less spiritual experiences, like riding a camel.
Hermanson said the soldiers seemed so much older and "more aware of the outside world." She said seeing the soldiers was interesting because Israeli youth must join the army right out of high school. A man has to join for three years and a woman for two. Unlike Taglit-birthright, the soldiers don't view touring Israel as a trip that everyone has a right to take. They believe they deserve to tour the country because they've been successful in the military.
Group sees sights with free program
BY ANNE WELTMER
aweltmer@kansan.com
KANSAN STAFF WRITER
"Words cannot describe Masada. We were forced to get out of bed before the sun rose. At first I was not looking forward to it, but once I made it and saw the sun rise it was by far the most beautiful thing ever.
Standing among the noisy crowds in front of the famously indestructible Kotel, or Western Wall, Elena Hermanson said she felt like it was silent. The Overland Park freshman was able to "have her moment" as she stood in front of the only wall that remained standing when Jerusalem was destroyed years ago.
"I just stood there in awe watching,' she said. "I felt closer to myself."
Hermanson also had a memorable experience on top of Mount Masada.
Hermanson took part in Taglit-birthright Israel, which sends Jewish students to Israel. From Jan. 7 to 18, 19 Jewish students from the University of Kansas and a Hillel staff member, Farrah Green, went to Israel. Any Jewish youth age 18 to 26 who has not been on a peer trip to Israel is eligible to receive the trip. The trip includes airfare, transportation, lodging and two meals a day. The program is funded totally by anonymous donors, Green said.
"We were forced to get out of bed before the sun rose. At first I was not looking forward to it, but once I made it and saw the sun rise it was by far the most beautiful thing ever."
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"It it was really special to have it in Jerusalem in the Holy Land." Hallman said.
Hallman also enjoyed the non-religious aspects of the trip, like swimming in the Dead Sea. She said it wasn't really like swimming at all.
For Alexis Hallman, Olathe senior, her visit to Israel was a coming of age. Most Jews have their bar mitzvah or bat mitzvah when they turn 13. This is a celebration where each young adult formally commits to Judaism and its commandments and only occurs after studying the Torah and memorizing special prayers. Though Hallman had her bat mitzvah at 22, she was amongst friends in Jerusalem.
Elena Hermanson Overland Park freshman
"It was more like trying really hard to get your legs underneath you, getting tired, and ending up just floating around on your back,"
It was Green's fourth trip to Israel, and rather than having the first-time-in-Israel excitement herself, she was most excited to see it in the students that she took.
Her favorite part of the trip was hearing the Muslim cult prayers in the mosques right next to Jewish temples.
She said it was nice to see two of the major religions of the world practicing their religions in the same vicinity peacefully despite all of the conflict around the world.
Hermanson also did not feel threatened by the conflict around her. She said she "felt completely safe. There were soldiers everywhere."
"It was weird to see it all together," she said. "I think it's a beautiful thing."
"It felt completely normal to me. I felt safe walking anywhere because there were lots of people out doing the same thing I was," she said. "The guards that traveled with us did not add tension, so I didn't really think about the conflicts that are taking place. I just viewed them as normal people that carried guns."
In total, Hillel has sent a total of 20,000 KU students to Israel through Taglit-birthright. The national program has sent 100,000 students total.
For some Jewish students, traveling to Israel is an investigation into the rich history of the Jewish people. For others, it's a deeply spiritual experience.
- Edited by Meghan Miller
Out-of-towners wanting to drink and smoke find it easier to stay in their own cities instead of driving to Lawrence to go out, Carroll said.
Replay
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"This doesn't just affect my bar, but all bars," he said. "We've been diminished to a college town."
Carroll said places like the Cadillac Ranch and the Hawk were able to adjust to the ban with
their patio space. But a nightclub like Last Call, was not.
"Businesses get the best sales when they have patios," Carroll said. "The patio becomes a big concern to patrons."
While the inside of the Lounge gets its renovations, the outside work, prompted by the smoking bar, will benefit patrons as well.
Last Call and Coyote's owner Dennis Steffes said he noticed a drastic drop in business at Last Call when the ordinance went into effect. Coyote's has a patio, but he said business had gone down there as well.
"It will be a nicer environment now," Carroll said. "People who want to sit outside won't have to worry about the sun or rain bother them."
Those who want to smoke won't have to worry about that either.
— Edited by Timon Veach
Research
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on to earn his doctorate in physics from the University of Wisconsin in 2001.
From there, the assistant professor did three years of postdoctorate research in Boston. During that time, Marfatia said the "neutrino revolution" occurred.
"The experiments are very difficult to carry out, and for the last 30 years we've been confused," Marfatia said. "Now we understand them much better than we did earlier but not nearly enough."
A major requirement of CAREER award winners is that they are untenured teachers conducting experiments while continuing to instruct classes. This spring will mark Marfatia's third semester of teaching.
"People often think phys-ics is hard. It's not — it's easy."
Ralston said. "Physics is fun. People might find physics hard when they learn the wrong things in the wrong way and can't unlearn them. Still we push the edges of physics, where it is not so hard as mysterious. As someone recently said, it's a strange, strange, strange, strange universe."
On a perfect day, Marfatia said he would spend less time teaching and running in and out of meetings and more time on his work, but he is accepting and excited about the students taking his only class of the semester, "Modern Physics."
"Even though it's at a very junior level, I'm going to enjoy it totally," Marfatia said of the class. "They're going to be exposed to relativity and quantum mechanics for the first time in their lives. It's my chance to tell them about some of the most beautiful theories mankind ever created."
Talking to the Bombay native, it is clear that his priority lies with his research, but Marfatia has the goal of becoming a full professor penciled into his future. He does not plan on that taking the typical six years to associate professor followed by six years to full professor.
"I don't want to spend 12 years, and I hope it's not that far away, but that's not unreasonable," Marfatia said.
According to him, this is his dream job, but the award-winning teacher refuses to believe this has been his lifelong ambition.
"I think some physicists like to say, 'yeah I've wanted to be a physicist since I was six.' Not me," he said.
What did Danny Marfatia want to be when he was six?
"Wealthy.
Edited by Timon Veach