Galilee

Hello! I am now back in Jerusalem to stay until I leave in 3 weeks. Which is very sad. Our two week stay in the Galilee area was wonderful. I do not know where to start. It already seems like forever ago.












First, there are so many Biblical events which took place near and around the Galilee, so I am afraid I will not be able to recount them all on my blog. I'm just going to attempt to share the most memorable ones. On our drive up to the Galilee, which is in the north eastern most part of Israel bordering Syria and Lebanon, we stopped by Caesarea on the coast. It is a very beautiful place. There are mostly Crusader ruins there, but we sat on the ruins from one of Herod's palaces and read about Peter and Paul and some of their ministry. Caesarea was a huge port in Christ's time which was built up by Herod for trade and also to win the affection of the Romans. I love the Mediterranean. I was sad to think that I would not see it again until I fly out from Tel Aviv on December 17th.

I was also able to spend a brief hour or two in Nazareth. It is a decent sized little city. I wish we had been able to spend more time there to wander and explore. I went to several churches there; there are two churches which claim the Annunciation. One of the churches had artwort depicting Mary holding the Christ-child from countries all over the world. The architecture of the church was...unusual. It was basically all cement...and seemed very cold to me compared to so many of the gaudy over-ornamented churches and shrines made on Holy sites. I would have to look in my journal to remember what exactly this church was for, if it was the site of where Joseph lived, or where they believed the annunciation actually happened. I believe it is the latter. We also visited St. Gabriel's church which was the Greek Orthodox version of the Annunciation and had a spring/well within it, which was a main source of water in the 1st century for Nazareth.

We stayed in the Ein Gev Kibbutz Holiday Resort for our entire trip. They did a fairly good job accomodating our large group, though I do not know if I would stay there again. Only 9 students in my class did not get a stomach sickness while we were there...which many believe was due to food poisoning or something related. But the change of food was refreshing from the Oasis at the center. I shared a bungalow on the beach with three other girls.

Some of my favorite spots include Tel Dan, Banyas Waterfalls, Capernaum, Nain, and the boat ride on the Galilee.
Tel Dan is possibly the most Northern you can get in Israel. While we were there we looked across the valley to a city in Syria. It is lush, green, and almost tropical there. Sometimes I felt like I was in Kauai again. There were streams, springs, and waterfalls everywhere. If I had a choice of which tribe to be in in ancient Israel, I would most definitely pick Dan, though they were always battling to keep their land. It is there that many of tributaries to the Jordan River begin. It was also incredible to see the ancient site where the temple area was in Dan, which is referenced in the Old Testament frequently. For example when Jereboam set up a golden calf there after Israel had split from Judah. When I think of Dan I think of the phrase "From Dan to BeerSheba" which is the expanse of the Kingdom of Isreal. The Banyas Waterfalls were just a short way from Dan and was just a small little hike to some beautiful water.

Capernaum is on the northern edge of the Galilee. It is simply ruins now, which is not at all surprising because it was one of three cities that Christ cursed, though it was as his second home. Peter was also a resident there, and archaeological projects have uncovered one they think is Peter's home. There is a synagogue there (The picture is the back of our Bibles) where Christ most definitely would have visited. I watched one of the most beautiful sunsets of my life just down the road from Capernaum.

We had a boat ride from Ein Gev across to the Northern shore of Galilee. We were able to read the parts of the New Testament which took place on the Sea of Galilee. Like when the tempest was raging and Christ calmed the seas, showing his power over the elements. And also how Peter, Andrew, and John were fishing, and Christ came and asked them to be fishers of men. Or when Peter walked on water then sank, and Christ pulled him up.

Mt. Tabor and Mt. Carmel were in the area too. Mt. Tabor is where Peter, James, and John were transfigured and received the keys from Elijah and Noah. (i think that's right?) Mt. Carmel is the site where Elijah showed up the priests of Baal in 1 Kings 18.

Friday (yesterday) we met with Danny Seidemann, who was an amazing speaker and informant. He knows everything about Jerusalem. Politically, I suppose. We visited part of the separation barrier this morning. I feel like his two or so hours of lecturing and answering our questions was almost more informing than my two "modern near east" classes. The barrier serves as a beneficial tool according to Seidemann,though the Israelis find ways to abuse tools such as these. The news of Israel freezing settlements in the West Bank was good news he said, though I just read online they were building 20+ news schools there.

Pictures
top to bottom:
1.Me at part of the separation wall in East Jerusalem.
2. Turkey with sparklers in it for our Israeli version of Thanksgiving.
3.Fish head at the fish restaurant in Galilee. This was not my fish. It was my friends. I ordered pizza. Don't judge me.
4. View from Mt. of Beatitudes where Jesus taught the 12 apostles and some of the 70.
5. Me at Banyas waterfalls near Tel Dan
6. My class picture at Tel Dan at the "Winnie the Pooh Tree". Really, that is what the park called it.
7. Me on a boat out on the Sea of Galilee.
8. Thailand depection of Mary and baby Jesus at the church in Nazareth.
9. Inside the church in Nazareth, the supposed spot of the Annunciation.
10. Entrance to Capernaum, Jesus 2nd home, home of Peter and location of the synagogue he taught at and the Centurion funded.
11. View at Caesarea of the Mediterranean.

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.

Kingdom of Jordan!

Hello! It's been a while since I've posted.
We arrived back from Jordan several days ago. I was able to spend nearly an entire day exploring Petra, which was stunning. Petra is about 4-5 hours away from Jerusalem, not counting the hours spent going through the border. We stopped in Madaba on the way to Petra. This city has the oldest map of Jerusalem in the form of a mosaic on the floor in a church there. It was pretty cool.

The Petra Palace Hotel we stayed at...was not a palace. And if you ever plan or dream about going to Petra...I would say go with the Marriott or Crown Plaza. It was the craziest place ever. To get to my room I had to take the lobby elevator to the third floor. Then I would walk through the third floor out to the pool/outside area and on the opposite side I would walk into another building and take an elevator..4x4 dimensions with only three sides (if it was even working) up another three floors. Where the hall proceeded to smell like a barn and our bathroom even worse. Thankfully we stayed only one night.

We began early and arrived at the beginning of the walking path around 8:15am. You have to walk a little ways (maybe more than 1/4 mile) before actually seeing parts of Petra. They had a water system that ran from the entrance up to the Treasury. At one point our guide made us form five lines and look down at the ground and walk a little ways. When we looked up, the Treasury was infront of us. It was almost breathtaking, because I was not anticipating seeing it already. The ability of acient peoples to make such detailed and perfect monuments never ceases to amaze me. They made this tomb out of stone, with its perfect dimensions and smoothness. The Treasury, like many of the remains at Petra is first and foremost a tomb, but it was said that the King/Pharaoh kept his money in the urn on the second story. You can tell that it is the spot, from random holes in the rock resembling shots.

From the Treasury, we walked through more of the mountains until it opened up to hundreds of tombs. There was also a Roman/Nabateeaen Theater, which was not used for plays, but religious ceremonies.
Bedouins are the natives of the area and some even live in the old tombs at Petra. They reinacted a Nabateeaen market and sell many of the touristy souvineers as you walk through Petra. (The typical stuff = jewelry, books, pictures, sodas, chips, and little carvings or statues.) Some very little children were selling rocks on the sides of the monuments.

I hiked up the mountain to the Monastary, which was worth the wonderful view of the country. (It was around 800+ medieval-like steps to the top...and also dodging donkeys coming up and down so they dont run you off the path) It was hazy that day, but supposedly on a clear day you can see into Israel. Petra is in Southern Jordan and is near the border which we visited when we stayed at that Kibbutz Yatvata on the way to Egypt. Sometimes Israelis would sneak into Jordan in that area to get a quick peak at the ruins in Petra. After lunch at the "Basin" restaurant in Petra I wandered around with my friend Kellie, who also goes to Provo and is from Oregon. We bought some earrings and a nice cold drink while exploring more tombs on our own, mainly the Tomb of the Kings, Urn? (i cannot remember the name).
There was this book that I wanted so badly, but it was so pricey at Petra. It is called "Married to a Boudin" and was written by a woman who married a Bedouin man and they lived in a cave near Petra I believe. She was not Bedouin, T think she was from New Zealand. Anyways, she sells copies at Petra. But this book is famous in the area. Maybe I will purchase it later online.

After visiting Petra, we drove to Amman, the capital of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan. Amman is a beautiful, relatively clean city compared to Egypt, or even Jerusalem. Jordan was overall cleaner, which was very nice.
Down the road from our hotel in Amman, The Ambassador Hotel, was a little mall with a actual grocery store. Many of the students and faculty visited a movie store that sold pirated movies for 1 Jordanian Dinar. ($1.50) I may have bought a couple.
We ate dinner there one night at "Texas Chicken" but really the logo and everything was the same as Church's Chicken. I couldnt bring myself to eat at McDonalds, even here. From Amman we drove to Jerash which has very well preserved Roman ruins, nearly an entire city, which was the ancient city of Jerash. At the South Auditorium there, we had some girls sing opera and hymns. It had wonderful acoustics. There as a reinactment which we had to pay $10 to see, but it was hilarious. There were "Roman" soliders dressed in supposedly authenic garb as well as gladiators and chariot races. Pretty cheesey, but hilarious and fun to see. I think Chad would have loved it. There were little French kids who were yelling at the gladiators the whole time and giggling like mad.

In Amman we also visited their second largest mosque, King Abdullah mosque. It was there that us women had to put on a black robe with a hood and wear a scarf around our face so we did not show any of our body while in the mosque. It was so strange to see, because the boys were in their blue jeans, t-shirts and ball caps.
After that we went to the ruins in downtown Amman, where the ancient Roman city of Philadelphia was.

We were also able to visit the Church's "Educational Center" aka the branch meeting house for members in Amman. It was so neat to actually see the church in the Middle East and its leaders. The Branch President in Amman was Pres. Hoffmire, from Norman, OK. He works for the government. I think there are service couples in every Middle Eastern country. One of the service couples that came to district conference in Jeruslame this weekend was serving in Afghanistan, but his wife was not allowed to go there.

This was pretty much our trip to Jordan. It was very short. We only stayed a total of three nights. On our way back to the Israel border, we stopped at Bethany and I stepped in the Jordan River in the area where Jesus and John the Baptist were baptized. The state of the river is so sad. I wish that we had more time to spend there but I do not think we were at the actual site for more than 30 or so minutes. I did happen to save some of the purified water from the Jordan River in an old water bottle.

As we arrived to the border crossing near Jericho, we were detained for two hours, because the officers...police...Israeli soldiers..whatever you want to call them didn't understand that we had tourist visas and not student visas. Anyways, they refused to let us through, and wouldn't call our main director in Israel. So our teachers called our director of the Jerusalem Center, Mr. Hiyat, who called Israel's Minster of Internal Affairs..or something like that...who then had to call the border to let us back in. It was crazy. They are so protective...and I personally think many of the soldiers/workers in the borders are just on power trips. Looking back, I realize I shouldn't have been as frustrated as I was, but whatever.

The center celebrated Halloween a day early, since Saturday is our Sabbath. We had the most awesome Hallowen party and dance. I've never seen people be so creative with their costumes. With such limited resources, I think it was pretty fantastic. The little kids of our professor went around trick-or-treating at our student apartments. They're 11, 9, and 4 years old. I dressed up with my friend Lauren as ninjas.

District conference this weekend was amazing. We had several area general authorities speak and the distict presidency, which happens to consist of some of our teachers and the "Dr" in the center. We had the most amazing impromptu fireside last night, that was spontaneously organized by some of the students. It was a random program of piano pieces and singing solos, along with testimonies in between. The spirit was so strong, I do not know if I have felt it stronger in my life. I hope I never forget that night.

My Talk in the Jerusalem Branch

So I thought I'd just post my talk that I had to give in our branch last week. We watched the rest of conference after church today.

Spreading the Gospel through Good Works and Actions
What have you done for someone this morning? Perhaps you haven’t found an opportunity within the last 2 or 3 hours? Maybe you performed some act of kindness yesterday? Or earlier in the week? Are we making a conscience effort to serve others around us daily, and not just when the weekly humanitarian activity rolls around or scheduled church callings?
This is so important, because in a place where we are not able to share the gospel with our words, we must depend upon our actions. That is what will bring people to Christ. This requires us to first make ourselves worthy, second follow the commandments, and lastly express love through charity or good works.
President Monson said in his talk which we will be listening to this afternoon “How many times has your heart been touched as you have witnessed the need of another? How often have you intended to be the one to help? And yet how often has day-to-day living interfered and you’ve left it for others to help, feeling that “oh, surely someone will take care of that need.”
It is imperative that we realize the importance of our actions, and how those actions affect those around us, especially non-members. In Jerusalem this is particularly crucial, since we cannot proselytize. When you walk around the Holy Land, your work, school, a grocery store are the people able to notice something different or special about you? Do you reflect the light of Christ?
This topic is personal to me. My patriarchal blessing tells me to “Recognize the importance of your behavior and conduct. You are an example. I remind you to be humble but I also remind you to stand tall…and represent those things you know to be true. Truth is eternal” “and you will learn and share through your behavior the understanding that you have [of the scriptures] and you will be a light to those with whom you associate and work”
While this is specifically a way for me, it can apply to many others. All members must recognize the importance of our behavior. We are examples. Always. There is never a time when we do not represent the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. We are representatives in every country, every home, in the day and night. In the presence of members or non-members.
Perhaps you have once thought in your life, that “I can do whatever I want. I am my own person. This decision or that decision will only affect me. The places I go to, the people I associate with do not affect any others.” This kind of thinking is false. And I know that it is the adversary trying to draw that light of Christ away from us, and away from those that would be impressed or influenced by our example.
In order to be most effective in our service, we need to put our own lives in order. Then, as we live the gospel, our lives will reflect the righteousness and virtue, and we will be a powerful influence for good in the lives of others. This is why it is not enough to be righteous for the sake of our own salvation. We must let our goodness radiate to others, that through our example and reputation they will lift their lives and have the desire to follow the Savior’s pattern of living.
Elder O. Leslie Stone said ,“We should do all we can to establish for ourselves a worthy reputation, for such is of priceless worth. It is often the key to influencing others for good, and can be the means of bringing the gospel into their lives. it’s not only what we are that’s important: what others think of us is also important. In order to be truly effective as missionaries, we need to be known for our good qualities, to have an unspotted reputation in all things. We have the privilege to represent him to others, to bear his message to his children throughout the world, to be missionaries. We have the responsibility to be worthy of his name, to represent him well in every way, to every person we meet—to so live that our lives are Christian sermons in operation.”
Be worthy at all times to represent Christ and His name. When we follow all of the commandments and direction of our prophet we will be worthy representatives and examples.
D&C 90:24
When we are searching the scriptures diligently, praying to our Lord and Savior, we will always be able to remember the covenants we have made with the Lord and with others, and we will not stray when the adversary tries to mislead us. When we keep the commandments, the Lord will bless us and our efforts. As revealed in another scripture.
D&C 35:24
The greatest way to expose people, especially in countries such as Israel, to the gospel of Christ is through good works or service. In section 18 of the D&C the Lord revealed how the newly established church was to search out and find the new twelve apostles.
D&C 18:38
As disciples, can others search for us by our desires and works? We all have been taught, some since primary age, and others later that Christ’s life on earth revolved around serving the people here and by his works, showing people to the gospel.
I love this statement President Monson made in his talk this conference, “I believe the Savior is telling us that unless we lose ourselves in service to others, there is little purpose to our own lives. Those who live only for themselves eventually shrivel up and figuratively lose their lives, while those who lose themselves in service to others grow and flourish—and in effect save their lives.”
Are we whittling away our time on things in our life that do not matter in the overall plan? It is easy to become caught up in storm which is the busyness of our day to day lives and forget. I do it all the time. I sometimes do not establish service and good works as the real priority it is. Too often in the past and presently have I put my school work, jobs, personal problems or wants before this.
Just this week I did. I found myself trying to justify my desire in wanting to leave early from our humanitarian kit project in order to get to the beach an hour earlier. But that one extra hour doesn’t matter. What does matter is that one hour which will provide the simple supplies of toothpaste, towels, combs, and soap to poor families with children all over Israel.
D&C 12:7-8
And no one can assist in this work except he shall be ahumble and full of blove, having faith, hope, and charity, being temperate in all things, whatsoever shall be centrusted to his care.
We cannot assist in the work of spreading the gospel if we do not humble ourselves and make good works and charity a priority. How can we serve the Savior or others if we do not set aside time to do so?
I am so thankful I have parents who realize the importance of good works. So much can be benefitted from service. It seems since I was in primary, my father has always served in different capacities within young men’s and also Boy Scouts. Being the only girl in my family, I always seemed to find myself tagging along with my dad at the many service projects the boys were involved in and Eagle Scout projects as well. I remember picking up trash on the side of streets adopted by our ward alongside my family and seeing whose bag was the fullest. The winner got a slurpee. Or waking up early on Saturday mornings bundled up in our thickest jackets to help the scouts scrub graffiti of monuments and signs or plant flowers at the parks I played at, or restore run-down cemeteries and prisons in our area. These are some of my most favorite memories as a kid.
You cannot underestimate the power of service. Children, adults, members and non-members notice. The influence of our actions might not be revealed to us, but it is there. When we do this, we embody the light of Christ. The Light of Christ is the divine energy, power, or influence that proceeds from God through Christ and gives life and light to all things. It can influence people for good and even prepare them to receive the Holy Ghost. Through good works, all members, primary age and adults can expose the light of Christ to family, friends, or strangers.
D&C 115:5
There are so many wonderful and talented people in our branch. We all have a purpose here in Israel. I know each individual can be a light to this country. In Elder Brent Nielson’s talk “A Call to the Rising Generation” He talks of the answered prayers to open borders made by past saints in countries that are now able to receive the gospel, such as parts of Russia where his son is serving.
He states, “You of the rising generation are the fulfillment of prophesy that in our day ‘the truth of God will go forth boldly, nobly, and independent, till it has penetrated dry continent, visited every clime, swept every country. Sounded in every ear, till the purposes of God shall be accomplished, and the Great Jehovah shall say the work is done.”
The Church Newsroom website reports The Church and BYU have established rapport with many in the Chinese academic and policy-making communities through educational exchanges, the entertainment of the Young Ambassadors and BYU’s ballroom and folk dance troupes, as well as BYU’s earned reputation for its sophisticated language training programs.
The LDS Church has also published a translation of the Book of Mormon and other publications in Simplified Chinese, the script used in Mainland China. Chinese officials attend the annual International Law and Religion Symposium in Utah each year, planting a seed for the Chinese government to understand the importance of liberalizing its religious laws to allow proselytizing missionaries.
Positive relations such as these between the church and countries currently closed to the sharing of the gospel benefit greatly from good impressions and charity.
The church has donated $900 million to humanitarian aid and materials all over the world. Welfare Services is the essence of the gospel in action. It is a blessing for the church to be able to help those in need. Are you aware of the humanitarian aid provided by the church at present?
Currently, the church is extending humanitarian help to the Islands of Samoa and Tonga, who were the victims of a tsunami last week. The church’s newsroom reported that a cargo plane was flying to the Pacific Islands on Tuesday containing 60 tons of food, kits, and clothing and is being helped by the Islamic Relief Worldwide to distribute the supplies.
Floods devastated the Philippines two weeks ago, resulting in many deaths and the fatality of nearly 30 members. There the church has sent food, water, hygiene items, and clothing as well. Missionaries and members there have helped to the best of their ability.
We can be a part of this. As members of the church we can contribute our time, materials, or donations which will benefit the children of God everywhere.
-We can do the kits, help and beautify the local hospitals, donate clothing to the poor, among many more things.
-Opportunity I have had to help with the humanitarian kits sent to Bedouins in Bethany, etc. and also hygiene kits in Utah.
“Who Have I helped today?” I challenge each of you, to be able to answer that question daily, and I know that if you will, the spirit will bless many in the process.


Hope yall have a wonderful Sabbath!

Sheep and Pitas

Well we are officially allowed to go into the Old City again now that the holidays are over. Yay! It's been...maybe since before Egypt that I was in the Old City, so you can imagine the feelings of joy from the rest of the students.

Sunday I went to Tel Aviv, probably for the last time on the trip. It was the last week the beaches were open. Unfortunately the waves were non-existant which was disappointing, but it still managed to be a very fun day. I didn't go shopping like last time. I just stayed on the beach till sunset. A large group of us swam out to some rocks and looked around there. Then we attempted to play a game of red rover in the ocean...which doesn't work. It was very funny to try though. There was also a mud-fight and I am still trying to scrub the sand out of my hair. That night, we found a pizza eatery for dinner and I bought a giant slice for 12 shekels. Those of us who ate pizza were pretty satsified that we didnt end up spending 30 shekels for our dinner. (Thats around $10)

Yesterday was field trip day. We visited a Bible Landscape Preserve, Neot...something or another. I have the name on my calendar...but it's downstairs. It was probably one of our top five field trips. I got to herd sheep!!! And goats. I found the trick was to just simply run alongside them so they run as well! My stick was pretty useless. It took nearly 20 of us students to round up 10 or so sheep and goats. :)
We also made our own zaatar, which is hyssop in Hebrew. Hyssop is mentioned several times in teh Bible, in Psalms I believe, and also it was the plant used to wipe blood above the doors of the children of Israel during the Passover. It's a very tasty plant. Many people here put it on bread or pitas.

We also made our own pitas and fried wheat(?). This was awesome! Some of our group went and gathered firewood, built a fire, then some of us made the dough (flour, salt, water, and olive oil) then flattened a little ball as much as possible and stuck in on the fire for 20 or so seconds onto a giant concave-like cast iron bowl. It was very delicious. We dipped our homemade pitas in an olive oil mixture with zaatar. Our park guide also made us fried wheat. He poured it into a skillet over the fire and added some oil and a couple spices. It was like eating the kernals from popcorn. But tasty.

We also met a Torah Scribe that worked at the preserve. Torah scribes must be kosher in all things. They write holy texts by hand, made with kosher ink and parchment. There at the preserve they have a Torah scroll that is nearly 200 years old that was saved from an Ashkenazi synagogue.

Hope everyone is enjoying the cool weather in the states! It's still pretty toasty here.

Hezikiah's Tunnel

This week has gone by rather fast...except we have not done much. Because it is the Jewish holiday of Sukkat here, the city has been off-limits and many of our classes are not taught. We have only had Old Testament classes a couple hours each day and one language class. Sukkat or Tabernacles is the holiday that celebrates the children of Israel's journey out of Egypt through the wilderness. It is fun to see all the little "tabernacles" built outside homes and restaurants for the Jews to eat in.

Our field trip this week was to Hezikiah's Tunnel which is located in the City of David, or South of the Temple Mount. This was amazing. This tunnel was built by King Hezikiah to direct water from the spring and bring it within reach when perhaps the city was under siege. The tunnel is fairly long...I think we walked through it for 20 or so mintues with water above our ankles and at some points reaching my mid-thigh! (although I am short...so that isn't too deep). This tunnel was dug by people thousands of years ago and it was so neat! Many of us students want to return when water levels have risen so the tunnel will be deeper. Outside of the tunnel is the Pool of Shiloh, I believe. (Or maybe not...i should have written this on Monday when I remembered the names of everything...but..I didnt)

I visited the Israel Museum yesterday. It was a very good learning experience. The museum houses some of the Dead Sea Scrolls under this strange white-looking fountain. There is also a huge replica of Jerusalem during the 2nd temple time period. It was wonderful to see what the temple mount might have looked like and the way things were situated then, because it is so hard to imagine now when other things have been built up on these places. The museum also had the oldest mask in the world (all of the students were sarcastically making a big deal about this) but it is actually 9,000 years old. Pretty neat. So now I've seen the oldest building in the world and the oldest mask.

The students put on a formal talent show last night. I was blown away by the talent we have here. All of the other students are of such a high caliber. There were piano performances and duets. Singing solos, songs written by the students and performed. After events like this, I always walk away wishing I had some sort of musical talent...and then I remember that it's probably better I didnt. The problem with liking to write is that it is not performable (a word?) and anyone can write. And I don't really write poetry..or short stories, etc. I can barely keep up this blog (though I am proud I have managed to write in it almost every week).

Tomorrow morning I am waking up at 5:30am (10:30pm central time) to walk to the Western Wall and watch the Jews beat their willows against the ground. It is a part of the Sukkat tradition. I hope to get some awesome pictures. This is the only time we have been allowed into the city in the past 2 weeks...and we have to be back before 8am and people start moving about to their work and schools. I cannot wait until this holiday is over so that perhaps there can be more peace or serenity in the city. Being restricted to the Jerusalem Center is becoming unnerving..and there is only so much to do in West Jerusalem. I hate taxis. I think I've spent too much money this week just taking taxis everywhere. (because we are not allowed to walk anywhere right now.) This adds up quick. I'll write again shortly. We get to herd sheep on Monday! We also get to see the rest of conference this Saturday during church.

Jericho..the oldest building in the world. Monestaries. Palaces.

This week has been...claustrophobic?
We've been back from Egypt for nearly one week, and so the insanity has ensued. Really. In my classes, there are 2 midterms this week and a 7 pg paper I just finished on U.N. agreements made regarding the Middle East since the 1920s. Kill me? The free time we had this week was restricted to the center, because of increased violence in the Old City and on the Temple Mt. I could hear the tension from my room as sirens echoed through the city and helicopters constantly flew above. There hasn’t been much commotion though in the past day or so. I took my Jew midterm earlier today and proceeded to barely pass it, much to my dismay. This class is very confusing to me sometimes. The Jewish culture is so completely complex and complicated. Not to mention I have a hard time finding interest in rabbinic writing, literature, etc from the 2nd to 6th centuries. Note to everyone...the Torah is not the law. (Even though our teacher has said that very sentence) The Torah is teaching.

My Old Testament midterm is tomorrow, and I hope that I do significantly better on this test. I love my Old Testament class with Bro. Emmett. We just finished reading Deuteronomy.

Yesterday we went to Jericho and visited the tell there, which would have been the Old Testament city of Jericho, where they marched around seven times and the wall fell? It was much smaller than I anticipated. We walked the length of it in just a few minutes.
The oldest building/structure in the world is there at the tell in Jericho. It is a tower…though it is probably 10-15 feet below the ground we stood on.

Jericho is unique, one because it is perhaps the oldest city in the world. There is a spring there, Elijah’s Spring, out of which flows thousands of gallons of water per minute ( I think. Or maybe hour). Because Jericho is an oasis, the agriculture there flourishes. I bought some delicious oranges (which have green peel here in Israel) a mango, and some plums. Along with sycamore nuts which are very tasty.

There was a little store next door to the fruit stand with typical souvenir things from Israel and while some students and I were in there when a younger man came up to us. (Note…this is not an infrequent occurrence. Shopkeepers usually follow us students around while we are looking...which can be nerve wracking…but one gets used to it)
Usually the men approach the blonde girls in our group…or any blondes because the women here have darker hair, so I was surprised when he singled me out and started asking where I was from. I told him America, and he asked if I was Arab. I told him no. And he asked me again if I did not speak Arabic. I told him very little. He was very surprised I suppose, because I truly think he thought I was native. I loved this of course. I love somewhat blending in here. The blonde girls always get hassled more and picked out among the crowd. Maybe by the time I leave, I will be tan enough to come close to look Arab.

Our group also visited a monastery in Jericho which was in the side of a desert cliff, called Mount of Temptations Monastery. (or Ksdjfljskdf…a word I cannot pronounce/remember in another language) We hiked up to it and us girls covered our hair for modesty. It used to be that women were not even allowed in the monastery. It was small and simple, but very interesting. They converted caves into living spaces, rooms, and even the chapel. This was supposedly the place where Christ came for 40 days, fasting and communing with God. It was “here” that Satan tempted Christ.

Herod’s Winter Palace was also in Jericho. Even though only bricks remain, it is easy to imagine how large and lavish his “pleasure palace” was. He even had 2 pools and a spa room! Really! The sites I am able to see and the knowledge I keep accumulating makes the scriptures and history so much more meaningful and personal. It’s wonderful to read the Old Testament when it references Jericho and know what it looks like…and the direction you travel from Jerusalem to get there.