During my time in Haifa I've learned once again that I don't like living in a city. One of the benefits of being a chayal boded ["lone soldier" - those without any family in Israel] is the army will either pay your rent (up to a point, of course) or they will find you a place on a kibbutz. I called up the guy in charge of finding soldiers kibbutzim [the plural of kibbutz] a few months ago and was told to call him again about three days before I'd want to move in.
I called him again a couple days ago, saying that I start November 4 and all I need is for it to a Kibbutz Dati in the North of Israel. I'll just pause here to give an idea - technically the North is just number 1, but I'm also fine with kibbutzim in A (Golan Heights), 2 (Haifa region), and possibly in B (West Bank), although I'd be much more selective there.
And since these should be included at some point, here is a map of Israel. Please don't complain about the maps including or leaving out sections, I'm just looking for one that is easier to see and understand rather than for political arguments.
To get an idea of the size, look at Haifa (jutting out a bit into the Mediterranean) and Har Hermon [Mount Hermon] (very northeast corner of Israel). On a very clear day, you can see Mount Hermon from here
And the region as a whole (I imagine most of you already know this, but the country west of Israel is Egypt):
Back to where I was. I gave him my request and he told me that there should be a place at Kibbutz Lavi, about a 40 minute drive due east from Haifa and 6km west of Tiberias (on the Sea of Galilee). I checked the kibbutz out a bit online, and it sounded pretty good. He said he just had to check with them, and that I should call back the next day.
I talked to him again this afternoon and he kindly informed me that Kibbutz Lavi is full, but he might be able to find me a place on another kibbutz before I have to start my service. Hopefully in a couple weeks there'll be something.
That's very comforting. If I'm lucky, I may have a week to move in, get to know the place, inform all the important places my new address (Ministry of the Interior, Ministry of Absorption, City Hall, banks, phone company... not to mention the army, all of which must be done in person), and then get back to the Haifa Central Bus Station by 7:30 that big morning.
Fortunately I had a backup. David just moved into his new apartment and he had asked me back in August to move in with him. The only reason I turned the offer down was because he's in Tel Aviv, and as much as he denied it, the area sounded like too much of a city for me.
No luck again. David already found someone. Probably is better this way, though; If Haifa is too much of a city for me, I can't imagine living in Tel Aviv. And I wouldn't want to live there just until I could find somewhere else - aside from the efforts of moving myself halfway across the country twice, David would have to start looking for another roommate again.
In any case, my lease here is good until either the beginning or end of December (depending on if my landlady finds someone soon). And the army gives time off for moving, although I imagine they'd frown upon asking for extra time off before I've even started.
But at the worst, I'm sure I can get by. If I have to, I'll just find a temporary place in Haifa. The army will pay about $300 of rent per month. My current apartment is on what's often considered the best road in the country ("Yefe Nof," meaning "Beautiful view") and costs $350 per month.
Now that I think about it, you could get a pretty good place for that money - a friend of mine just moved out of his apartment in Haifa. It had three bedrooms, large living room, kitchen, foyer, and was only around $250 a month (just not in a great part of the city). But as I was saying, I'm just not a city person.
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