Day Four: A Day in the Life of #Bus513 in the Holy Land | Shorashim - Israel with Israelis

Day Four: A Day in the Life of #Bus513 in the Holy Land

Nikki Rodriguez

Today was a fun day! We spent our time in the city of Tzfat and visiting the Western wall in Jerusalem. We started the day out with leaving the kibbutz and making our way to Tzfat. We explored the city, ate lunch and visited a mystical art gallery. Being able to hear the artist talk about his passion for Judaism and how he incorporated that into his art made the canvas's more meaningful. Nothing is a coincidence and everything happens for a reason are all fundamental but simple aspects of life by which he has lived by. He connected with Judaism while he was young and studied the Kabbalah. He has also made a point by telling us how our names connect deeply into our souls and how it truly defines who we are. As a result of his presentation about his life and art, a lot of our group members purchased some of his work.

Soon after enjoying some lunch and exploring the city some more we all schlepped our way to the bus. What was supposed to be a shorter ride turned into a longer one filled with loud games of heads up and countless naps. What happened next may have changed some lives. We only had a short period of time to spend at the wall because of our delayed bus ride. I cannot speak for all the members on our trip because seeing the Western Wall is a different experience for everybody, but leaving a note and standing face-to-face with one of the holiest landmarks of Judaism was remarkable.

After checking into the hotel and eating dinner, we ended the night with a discussion about the Holocaust to prepare us for Vad Yashem tomorrow. I can tell our group is becoming more close with one another because we are not afraid to speak our minds even if not everyone agrees with it and vise versa.

We all can't wait to go to Yad Vashem and visit Tel Aviv tomorrow!