Yom Kippur 5768

The past 6 years or so, I have spent Yom Kippur in Boston, so it was an exciting change to spend it here in Copenhagen.

Friday night was quite hectic. I met with DN at the little Italian place around the corner from my apartment, where we inhaled a pizza and pasta dish in about 20 minutes. From there we rushed to the synagogue, since Kol Nidre was supposed to start at 18.30. However, it was 19.15 by the time it actually started, so we just sat there and moaned about our stomachs... Having been to the synagogue several times on Saturday mornings, I was used to a skeleton crowd, but last Friday, it was completely packed. Women even crowded themselves to double-up on the seats, so we were standing 2 levels deep in one row. Unfortunately I could not gain much wisdom from the Rabbi's sermon, since it was in Danish. But it was a nice service, and loooong... we got out of there at 22.30!

Saturday morning I made it back to morning services (fewer people this time), then hung out in the courtyard with DN and some other friends. We then walked over to the lakes and sat outside for about 1 hour (it was a beautiful day), then came home and rested for 2 hours, before heading out again. We decided to go to Chabad for Neilah; it is closer to my apartment (and we were starting to get weak), and we wanted to hear what Rabbi Yitzi had to say. It was a lovely small service, interactive, educational and enjoyable. Finally, we were able to eat at around 20.30. I made it! The fast was not too difficult this year, I think I'm getting better at it... From there we went to JN's parents' and had an amazing full dinner. It was a warm and inviting atmosphere and a great way to celebrate the break-fast.

I did not have much time to reflect during the day, but over the course of the past few weeks, I have realized what a fantastic year it has been. I am truly lucky to have experienced all of the wonderful things and am grateful for my family, friends, and Jonathan :-) I hope everyone is healthy and happy in the next year; I'm sure it will bring some exciting times!