Sedar Dinner, Gethsemane and En Gedi

Within the last week, I have been extremely busy. More so than usual. Is that possible? I'm not sure. I am almost finished with horrid finals. We take our Palestinian final in 30 minutes. And since I am updating my blog...I think it is indicative of what I think about this Palestinian class/test. So I'm taking the no-stress route.

I visited Gethsemane several days ago for the first time. Many students have already visited several times, but this seemed to be the perfect time to go. It is only a 5-10 minute walk from the center through the Kidron valley. Because Mormons frequent the Garden of Gethsemane so often, we were able to get access to a private part which is not accessible to the busloads of tourists in their yellow hats. This was wonderful, because I was able to sit under the trees and spread out my scriptures and hymn book and read. It was much more peaceful than the small plot of a garden which is kept up. I am grateful that the denomination over the garden did not build a church ontop of it. This is the case so often in Jerusalem. I think it takes so much away from the original place and event.

We also had a Sedar dinner within the last week. It was such a different experience. Very different from the Ramadan dinner we had. This was very organized and specific. We had to wash our hands over a basin. Then we read from the Hagganah. I was one of 10 narrators for the night, so I sat right by our professor, Ophir, in the middle of the head table. We ate matzah, bitter herbs = horseradish. The horseraddish was absolutely disgusting and I had to force my mouth to swallow. We also dipped celery leaves in salt water and ate those, which symbolize the tears of the children of Israel. By the time we go through the story of the Exodus and rabbinic commentary, we ate our dinner around 7:30. Our cooks served so many courses. Fish. Soup. Salad. Stuffed chicken with broccoli. Fruit bowls. Chocolate desserts. We didnt leave until after 9pm and it started at 5pm. The festivity and longevity could be compared to Thanksgiving dinner. Though I am glad that at Thanksgiving, we only eat delicious food.

Yesterday I took advantage of the opportunity of going to En Gedi instead of sitting in the center and stuyding hopelessly for this Palestinian test. En Gedi park and beach are right on the Dead Sea. Which is quite fragrant. In a distasteful way. There were 16 students that went and we all split up into smaller groups and hiked to waterfalls, springs, and pools located in different wadis all day. There were several hundred Jewish school girls clogging the pathways...and screaming and yelling while splashing in the waterfalls in their full uniforms of black skirts, stockings, closed-toe shoes and blouses. Because of this, I opted to hike to the very top of Wadi David, where it was more secluded. It was a very nice day. We left and walked down the highway to En Gedi Beach which is on the Dead Sea. There were a surprising amount of people there. And there isn't sand one can lay out on on the beach. Just rocks. The sensation was crazy. You couldnt stand up in the water. I was either on my back or stomach, floating. It looked like there was a layer of oil ontop of the water. It also burned. Like unquenchable fire. On cuts and other areas. There was a mudpit and we all covered our faces and bodies with it. Onced it dried we washed it off in the sea. It actually works. Our skin was very smooth afterwards. It was so odd. The rocks and fences along the beach were covered in layers and chunks of salt. Showering in regular water afterwards was glorious. Though we had to pay 2NIS to use the bathroom/showers. I will not miss that in the states. Paying for bathroom usage.