Jerusalem

By Sara Haynes

Shalom friends and family!

Today, Bus 899 packed up our bags and began the journey from the Upper Galilee to the holy city of Jerusalem. A quick special thank you to the Kibbutz Gadot family for making us feel at home and welcome.

Before the bus ride, we strapped on our water shoes and took a stop at Majrase, to hike along the beautiful stream that is a tributary of the Sea of Galilee. This was one of the more calming hikes, water level varying from ankle deep to hip. We got to enjoy the greenery around us and some of us even found small treasure at the bottom of the stream (if you count a pair of old iPhone headphones treasure). My favorite part of this activity was the game that our dearest Israeli soldiers taught us at the beginning of the water hike. You shout "Water 52" in Hebrew (52 representing the unit they are in) and begin a major water fight. Needless to say our Israeli soldiers know how to make every hike fun.

We then boarded the bus to head to Jerusalem. Our first stop in Jerusalem was the very first Hebrew University. There our tour guide Maayan gave us an overview of the history of Hebrew University, Jerusalem, and it's ancient walls. Next, it was off to the old city of Jerusalem and its famous Jewish quarter, followed by the Western Wall. Inside the quarter we witnessed first hand the history of Jerusalem and what the markets and neighborhoods looked liked. We saw all of the different generations spanning through out the city and got to explore some of the markets. The most important experience from the Jewish quarter was the spiritual western wall. Each member from bus 899 got to write their own prayer to place inside the Western Wall. The men and women separated and witnessed people from all over the world greet the Western Wall.

Lastly, we boarded the bus back to the hotel to eat dinner and prepare for Yad Vashem, Israel's holocaust museum. To prepare, each individual received a candle and a short biography to share of children, men, and women who died during the Holocaust. It was an emotional commemoration that brought us all close together.

We are half way through our trip and my favorite part has been getting to know my fellow Chicagoans and most of all the Israelis. I am blown away by their humble personalities and willingness to share all they know about their culture.

Thanks for reading!!