Features, APR 06

ISRAEL - Finding Self
Finding Self, Family, and Identity in the Middle East
by GILAD CHUDLER, staff writer

That day in Petach Tikvah represented everything I hold to be true and beautiful about Israel. It is a land where people from all different backgrounds can come together and celebrate each other’s faiths and cultures, and grow from it. It is a tragedy that the political conflicts receive the most attention.

Although war is an unfortunate reality in the Middle East, it is far from a constant war-zone. Israel remains a safe country to travel to, and still stands as one of the most incredible and unique countries to visit in the world. Regardless of what’s in store for its future, Israel will forever be remembered as country where East and West lived side by side for centuries, and a country that continues to inspire people of all backgrounds even today.


ICELAND - There's Always A Way
semester@sea.wldly
by ALEX BUDAK, staff columnist

Tevye, of “Fiddler on the Roof,” measured his life in sunrises and sunsets. It’s a good thing he didn’t live in Iceland, or his internal clock would have been way off. While in Iceland I saw both the most spectacular sunrise, and the most spectacular sunset of my life – all within a matter of 30 minutes.


Since Iceland is so far north -- right outside of the Arctic Circle – and we were visiting right at the summer solstice, the sun dipped below the horizon for just a fleeting second, only to reappear seconds later, now performing a midnight sunrise. Luckily for me, the 24 hours of sunlight gave me the time I needed to explore all that Iceland had to offer.


FRANCE - Villepin, Si Tu Savais
The CPE and Me
by ROXY VARZA, assistant editor

When the first big protest in Bordeaux took place on February 7th, I had no idea it would grow to be so big. The CPE gave employers the right to fire employees under the age of 26 without being obliged to communicate a motive.

Bordeaux was ranked consistently the third or fourth city in France with the most abundant turnout at protests, numbers generally between 20,000 and 40,000. Large protests took place in the center of town, without fail, every Tuesday at 11:30 am, coordinated with the rest of the nation through various different forms of organizational networking.


AMERICA - Free Kittens!
New Orleans, Louisiana
by RYAN JOE, staff columnist


First: Does anyone need a kitten? We found five kittens on our property that are about the size of guinea pigs. They are all simply adorable and they currently subsist off a liquid diet, fed through a bottle, just like old fogies in a nursing home.

If you would like a kitten and live reasonably close to me, then let me know as we cannot keep all five. Otherwise, we will have to put them in a little baggy weighted with rocks and toss them into the pool.