It's been a little too long since I last posted and I apologize for it. In trying to give you a picture of daily life in Israel, the last post was going to the market. This is how we got from A to B. For such a small country, Israel has a lot of roadways and the cities can be large, often too large for a simple walk...or so you would think (if you're anyone but me, but that's a for a later post).

When I first moved to Israel, I lived on the outskirts of Jerusalem where an absorption center sits. An absorption center is where new immigrants, families and interns live in a dorm-like building for very little money while they go through the process of acclimating to the country. The only way to get to anything remotely like civilization, you had to ride the bus. People who live outside the country mostly know the busses in Israel because of the suicide bombers who blew themselves up while riding the busses. A lot of students who study abroad are often told not to ride the busses as a precautionary measure. My friends and I agreed that riding the bus is a necessity and you are just as likely to reach your end crossing the street, flying on a plane and driving a car.

Once you live there, the bus system becomes another part of life and while you may have an occasional flurry of worry, everything always seems to run smoothly....except when there is traffic.

Each bus has a route to different parts of Jerusalem. Many of them overlap, cross and intersect while others go out so far that only one or two other busses are in that area. Sometimes to reach your destination, you need to take two busses. I came to look on riding the bus as going on a mini-rollercoaster. If you don't have a seat, which can often happen, you hold to the bar or stand in the center of the bus. When you stand, a lot of swaying, unintentional turning and bumping into other passengers, seats and bars is involved. You grow accustomed to the rigmarole of the bus and start to people watch (a favorite pastime of mine).

So, when you travel to Israel take the adventure of riding on a bus in Jerusalem. Enjoy the bumps and joggles, watch the city go by and feel like anyone else out for the day taking care of business.

#StudyAbroadBecause

AGreene is the Living in Israel Editor for Wandering Educators.

This is part of a series on international education, as part of our commitment to #GenerationStudyAbroad and our commitment to the White House Summit on Study Abroad and Global Citizenship. You'll find many more inspiring stories here on Wandering Educators!