Shabbat Finally!

We were excited to be able to catch up on sleep today….Today was Shabbat, a day of rest- FINALLY! We all woke up by eleven and met up in the activity room of the Kibbutz for some political education about Israel. Our Israeli members of the groups explained the way they felt about Israel’s military involvement in world affairs. We learned about the complexities of the Israeli connections both in Israel and with the world. Then we had a few hours of free time. Some of us hiked in the desert overlooking the Dead Sea, others took in some fun in the sun by the pool, and some of us took naps.

We also spent part of the time learning more about Judaism and the meanings of several prayers and customs. We ended the Shabbat with the Havdallah ceremony which literally means the separation between the end of Shabbat and the beginning of the week. We made use of five of our senses as prepared ourselves for the beginning of a new week

After a relaxing Shabbat, we got back on the bus and headed into Jerusalem for dinner. We went to the German quarter of the city and ate at different restaurants. I had some of the most amazing hummus in my life! Then we drove back to the Kibbutz, packed our bags for the busy day tomorrow.