Day 8: Israeli Adventures
Shalom!
Today was the eagerly awaited climb to Masada. After sleeping in the Bedouin tent last night, we awoke at 4:45am and then departed for the mountains. The day got off to an unsettling start as we were lucky enough to be present for a rainy morning in the desert. As Michal pointed out, this was indeed special given the infrequency of such weather in this area.
The climb up the mountain was short and we made it in time to see the sunrise. It was beautiful. The group enjoyed taking pictures on the peak amidst the ancient ruins and the beautiful landscape. Following the sunrise, we got a detailed tour of the ruins, which were fascinating. Some of the most interesting facts were the sheer extent of the fortress in size; it included a palace. In addition, Masada is an example of a great Roman contribution to the world, the innovation of technology such as aqueducts and the use of cisterns to transport and store water.
At the end of the tour, we saw one of the about six of the most ancienct synagogues in the world. These ruins, at the moment that we were going to tour them, were interestingly being utilized for the purposes of a modern day bar mitzvah! This led us right into our bar and bat mitzvahs. Around ten students selected to celebrate or be recognized on the top of Mt. Masada. This was really quite special. Each person gave a short speech, which I found to be equally moving from each person. In general, most of the kids were bar or bat mitzvahed traditionally, though they felt that at the time it had no meaning.
After a long 40 minute descent, we enjoyed cheese sandwiches at the bottom of Masada. The next big activity was the DEAD SEA!! This was amazing. Most of us had never been and it was quite special. From there we went to the open air market in Jerusalem. I, personally, have never been to the Middle East, so this was quite an experience. It was a true taste of Middle Eastern culture. Luckily, I went around with one of our guides, Kylie, who found us the best schwarma, scarves, rugala from "Marzipan," and dried fruit. Needless to say, we were all stuffed following lunch.
This evening our activity involved a discussion of various statements. Some included: "A Jew should marry another Jew," "The IDF has a role to defend all Jews around the world," etc. These brought out heated debates but were a good exercise in accepting eachother's differences and not letting them sway our feelings towards the people we have already made such close connections with.
Lastly, together wtih the Brown group, we sat through an interesting lecture on the importance of being involved on campus and advocating for birthright. We recevieved a very generous gift, a 32 page copy of the New York Times documenting the declaration of Israel as its own state.
Then, though this was not part of the plan, tonight we were given an extra NIGHT OUT, this time in Jerusalem, from our staff! Tomorrow will be a regular wake-up time day, and then off to the soldiers' memorial.
Hannah C
