Day Five: History and Emotion

After a fun night out in Tel Aviv, we began day five. The sleepiness did not deter us, since we finally got to see sunshine for the first time in the trip which made everyone just a little bit happier. Our first stop was Independencee Hall, where the State of Israel was declared in 1948. After a great movie about the background (with an awesome soundtrack) the tour guide sat us down in Independence Hall and gave us a riveting speech about the moments leading up to the Declaration of Independence. She was a great speaker, and both the Israelis and the Americans alike were emotionally provoked by her words.
After a short bus ride with our wonderful bus-driver Yossy, we arrived at Rabin Square, the assassination site of Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin. Michal gave a wonderful talk that helped us better understand the situation, and the situation of the man responsible for Rabin's death. Given that most people on the trip were small children when the assassination occured, the leaders thought it would be interesting to hear the perspectives of people who remembered hearing about the assassination, just like how all the Americans remembered hearing about 9/11. Next, lunch. Shawarma and falafel!

A 40-minute drive later, we were overlooking Jerusalem and were mezmirized by the beauty of the city. After having finally getting inside the Old City, we got off the bus and began our long tour of the Old City of Jerusalem. It was amazing to see the various historical sites that we'd rad about in so many different classes and various religious texts. Very biblical. The pinnacle of the visit was of course our visit to the Kotel, the Western Wall, mostparticularly interesting about this was the differences in experiences of people who approached the wall. The reactions of the people varied immensely but it was a meaningful time for everybody. For me, it was really interesting to see how many people had prayed to this one place for so many years and the power of their belief was incredibly moving.

After dinner at the hotel, our evening concluded with a discussion preparing us for our visit to Yad Vashem the following day. It was amazing to see a single prompt result in such a long discussion among the whole group. The feelings of people towards the Holocaust were both universal and extremely personal. Overall, the entire day was one steeped in history, and filled with emotion.

Mayya V