It's strange to try to celebrate a big holiday in a country that doesn't celebrate it. But it was still a wonderful Thanksgiving. The only thing that could of made it better would be to have my family here to celebrate it with me. Our Palestinian and Israeli Chefs did their best to provide us with a traditional Thanksgiving dinner but nothing can beat mama's cooking. I found myself longing for my mom's pecan and pumpkin pie with real live whip cream. I envy one of my many many loyal blog followers, Amanda for being able to spend Thanksgiving with my family and most of all eat my mom's pumpkin pie!
We spent Thanksgiving getting ourselves caught up with all we missed in Jerusalem over the last 10 days. After dinnner we went and saw Harry Potter! I'm glad I finally got the Israeli movie experience. But I won't do it again. it's the same price as movies in the states only...
1. the screen is much smaller
2. the floor hasn't been mopped in a very long time so your feet stick to the concrete
3. people don't silence their cell phones
4. it's acceptable to talk in normal, day time voices throughout the movie
5. there is balcony seating
6. there are not lines for popcorns and treats, there are mobs of people rushing the counter
7. there are Hebrew subtitles.
Then Yesterday we tried to make our Holiday as traditional as possible with a Turkey bowl at a park in West Jerusalem. It was such a fun day. We played soccer, football and frisbee. Everyone here has become such close friends. It's the perfect group of people to enjoy a Turkey bowl with. Before the turkey bowl I enjoyed one of my favorite places in the city, the shuk (the outdoor market in West Jerusalem), where I shared the most delicious ice cream on earth; pistachio, halva ice cream, with Jake, Stephanie and Melia. It's the second time I've had that ice cream and I don't think it can get any better. It's everyone's favorite. Then last night we had a poetry slam. With creative poems about our green water bottles we carry everywhere, how we've spent all our money because we've convinced ourselves that Shekels are fake money and sunstorms.
There is always more to write but unfortunately I need to pack for my trip to Jordan tomorrow! Petra here I come.
Saturday, November 27, 2010
Beautiful Galilee!
The long awaited for, 10 day trip to Galilee has come and gone! And it was an incredible experience. I had no idea Israel had such diverse landscapes. We stayed at a kibbutz resort right on the shore of the Sea of Galilee. The first few days we had some classes and spent the rest of our time swimming and playing on the beach. Then the rest of the days we traveled all over Galilee to all kinds of fascinating places where Jesus taught and performed miracles. Here are some of the highlights of the trip!
1. Nazareth. All the cities in Jerusalem are very similar but the streets of Nazareth are a little quieter and it felt very peaceful.
2. Boat Ride. We took a boat ride across the Sea of Galilee and read from the Bible when Jesus calms the sea.
3. Capernaum! It was one of Jesus's very favorite places and we sat in the Byzantine synagogue that is built of the very synagogue Christ taught in. There are excavated ruins of houses from Christs time and we looked over them as we read the sotries of the bleeding woman who was healed and jairus's daughter who was raised. Capernaum is also where Peter's house is.
5. Mt. of Beatitudes. We talked about the Sermon on the mount here and it is a very peaceful place. Right below is the field where Christ multiplied the loaves and fishes.
6. Hiking through the Golan Heights. There was a small group of us that hiked the top of the first hills after the Sea of Galilee. It's ilegal to hike alone in Israel because of landmines! So we picked up Eric from the kibbutz who was our professional hiking guide. Eric was a tall, skinny man with a gray beard. I really enjoyed talking to him about life on the kibbutz. The views were incredible!
7. Gamla. Gamla is one the only city with a synagogue dating all the way back to Christ's time and it is almost certain that Jesus would of taught there. So it was really neat to sit in there and read about Christ's teaching in the identical spot he originally taught his teachings.
8. Swimming in Gan Ha-shelosha. This is a spring that has created a huge swimming hole full of gorgeous bright blue water.
9. Beth Shean. Beth Shean is a Roman city that was part of the Decapolis. It was the biggest city of Christ's time and he would of passed through it. There was a huge earthquake that destroyed the city so there are several ton pillars all collapsed, lying on the ground at the same angle. Nothing has changed since they fell in 749C.E.
10. Tel Dan. This was a beautiful national park that is on the Jordan River. It's just lush green forest. We got to see the origins of 2 of the streams that feed into the Jordan River. So the water was super fresh and pure springing from the ground. Tel Dan also has a lot of interesting ruins.
11. Syria Outlook. One evening we went to the top of a hill right on the border of Syria. To get there we drove through Syria Occupied Israel where though it is in Israel's borders, all the residents consider themselves Syrians. I debated whether or not this means I count myself as being to Syria. Either way, I can say I've seen a Syrian Sunset because from the top of the mount we could see Syria proper.
12. Akko! Akko could very well be my favorite visit of the whole trip. Akko is a really neat Meditteranean coastal town with such classic architecture. We visited the Al-Jazzar Mosque which was beautiful. And we also toured a Crusader Castle. Then we ate ice cream as we watched the sunset over the Mediterranean and it was so beautiful.
13. Megiddo. Aka: Armegeddon. I've been anxious to visit Megiddo all semester because we have been talking about it so much in our classes! Megiddo dates all the way back to the Caananites. And in the 15th century B.C.E. it was captured by the Egyptian King Thutmose III whose tomb we saw in Egypt. But maybe the most interesting thing about Megiddo is that that is where a battle before the destruction the world will take place before Christ comes.
14. Mt. Tabor. All those prone to car sickness wouldn't have mad it up to Mt. Tabor. We drove on this windy road in shuttles. It was a 2 way road except for there was only enough room for one car, no lines, no guardrails and a really steep cliff. But... luckily we did make it to the top safely and the forest and chapel there is really pretty. That is the traditional site where Christ was transfigured.
15. Ceasarea. If I didn't know any better I would of thought I was in Greece or Italy or some other classical European city. It was built by Herod the Great and it is incredible. There is a roman theater, a hippodrome where ancient horse races were, an artificial harbor where a big lighthouse once stood and a beautiful beach!
16. Eating at Fish Restaurant. Needless to say, I ate fish! ... that still looked like it should be swimming! The head, fins and tail were still intact! The plate consisted of a full fish and a lime. I ate my first fish eye and brains. Afterward we went to Tiberius for ice cream and walked along the boardwalk. I wish we could of spent more time in Tiberius but I loved what I saw of it.
17. Bonfires. We had 3 bonfires on the beach and one night we even got to roast s'mores.
18. kayaking the Jordan River. I could of fooled myself into thinking I was kayaking the Amazon. The Jordan river is so gorgeous. Each side is covered in jungly forest!
19. Dr. Muhlestein's classes. Dr. Muhlestien is an incredible professor. We had 3, 3 hour classes with him and there wasn't a dull moment. He offers such great insight and all the classes are so spiritual. he has a perfect balance and of course it means even more to be studying events that happened where we were.
20. The banana chairs! On the beach there are these great chairs that are half hammock, half lawn chair. Complete with an umbrella! I really enjoyed taking naps and reading on them.
21. Ultimate Frisbee on the beach. What more is there to say? A perfect combination.
22. Herod's Temple sand model. a few months ago none of us could imagine ourselves spending our time in Galilee constructing a model of Herod's Temple in the sand. It was really great. The best sand castle/temple I have ever seen. Complete with a wall, stoa, and crushed seashells plastering the temple to imitate the white, glistening limestone.
I'm sure I'm forgetting several things. But that is a pretty good outline of my favorite things! There were so many days in Galilee where I would lay in my bed at the end of the night and just think to myself that I had just had a perfect day. I don't see how it could get any better.
1. Nazareth. All the cities in Jerusalem are very similar but the streets of Nazareth are a little quieter and it felt very peaceful.
2. Boat Ride. We took a boat ride across the Sea of Galilee and read from the Bible when Jesus calms the sea.
3. Capernaum! It was one of Jesus's very favorite places and we sat in the Byzantine synagogue that is built of the very synagogue Christ taught in. There are excavated ruins of houses from Christs time and we looked over them as we read the sotries of the bleeding woman who was healed and jairus's daughter who was raised. Capernaum is also where Peter's house is.
5. Mt. of Beatitudes. We talked about the Sermon on the mount here and it is a very peaceful place. Right below is the field where Christ multiplied the loaves and fishes.
6. Hiking through the Golan Heights. There was a small group of us that hiked the top of the first hills after the Sea of Galilee. It's ilegal to hike alone in Israel because of landmines! So we picked up Eric from the kibbutz who was our professional hiking guide. Eric was a tall, skinny man with a gray beard. I really enjoyed talking to him about life on the kibbutz. The views were incredible!
7. Gamla. Gamla is one the only city with a synagogue dating all the way back to Christ's time and it is almost certain that Jesus would of taught there. So it was really neat to sit in there and read about Christ's teaching in the identical spot he originally taught his teachings.
8. Swimming in Gan Ha-shelosha. This is a spring that has created a huge swimming hole full of gorgeous bright blue water.
9. Beth Shean. Beth Shean is a Roman city that was part of the Decapolis. It was the biggest city of Christ's time and he would of passed through it. There was a huge earthquake that destroyed the city so there are several ton pillars all collapsed, lying on the ground at the same angle. Nothing has changed since they fell in 749C.E.
10. Tel Dan. This was a beautiful national park that is on the Jordan River. It's just lush green forest. We got to see the origins of 2 of the streams that feed into the Jordan River. So the water was super fresh and pure springing from the ground. Tel Dan also has a lot of interesting ruins.
11. Syria Outlook. One evening we went to the top of a hill right on the border of Syria. To get there we drove through Syria Occupied Israel where though it is in Israel's borders, all the residents consider themselves Syrians. I debated whether or not this means I count myself as being to Syria. Either way, I can say I've seen a Syrian Sunset because from the top of the mount we could see Syria proper.
12. Akko! Akko could very well be my favorite visit of the whole trip. Akko is a really neat Meditteranean coastal town with such classic architecture. We visited the Al-Jazzar Mosque which was beautiful. And we also toured a Crusader Castle. Then we ate ice cream as we watched the sunset over the Mediterranean and it was so beautiful.
13. Megiddo. Aka: Armegeddon. I've been anxious to visit Megiddo all semester because we have been talking about it so much in our classes! Megiddo dates all the way back to the Caananites. And in the 15th century B.C.E. it was captured by the Egyptian King Thutmose III whose tomb we saw in Egypt. But maybe the most interesting thing about Megiddo is that that is where a battle before the destruction the world will take place before Christ comes.
14. Mt. Tabor. All those prone to car sickness wouldn't have mad it up to Mt. Tabor. We drove on this windy road in shuttles. It was a 2 way road except for there was only enough room for one car, no lines, no guardrails and a really steep cliff. But... luckily we did make it to the top safely and the forest and chapel there is really pretty. That is the traditional site where Christ was transfigured.
15. Ceasarea. If I didn't know any better I would of thought I was in Greece or Italy or some other classical European city. It was built by Herod the Great and it is incredible. There is a roman theater, a hippodrome where ancient horse races were, an artificial harbor where a big lighthouse once stood and a beautiful beach!
16. Eating at Fish Restaurant. Needless to say, I ate fish! ... that still looked like it should be swimming! The head, fins and tail were still intact! The plate consisted of a full fish and a lime. I ate my first fish eye and brains. Afterward we went to Tiberius for ice cream and walked along the boardwalk. I wish we could of spent more time in Tiberius but I loved what I saw of it.
17. Bonfires. We had 3 bonfires on the beach and one night we even got to roast s'mores.
18. kayaking the Jordan River. I could of fooled myself into thinking I was kayaking the Amazon. The Jordan river is so gorgeous. Each side is covered in jungly forest!
19. Dr. Muhlestein's classes. Dr. Muhlestien is an incredible professor. We had 3, 3 hour classes with him and there wasn't a dull moment. He offers such great insight and all the classes are so spiritual. he has a perfect balance and of course it means even more to be studying events that happened where we were.
20. The banana chairs! On the beach there are these great chairs that are half hammock, half lawn chair. Complete with an umbrella! I really enjoyed taking naps and reading on them.
21. Ultimate Frisbee on the beach. What more is there to say? A perfect combination.
22. Herod's Temple sand model. a few months ago none of us could imagine ourselves spending our time in Galilee constructing a model of Herod's Temple in the sand. It was really great. The best sand castle/temple I have ever seen. Complete with a wall, stoa, and crushed seashells plastering the temple to imitate the white, glistening limestone.
I'm sure I'm forgetting several things. But that is a pretty good outline of my favorite things! There were so many days in Galilee where I would lay in my bed at the end of the night and just think to myself that I had just had a perfect day. I don't see how it could get any better.
Saturday, November 6, 2010
Christmas in October
As of Tuesday our Israeli and Palestinian classes are over! Those classes sent everyone's stress level through the roof. Now we just have New Testament and Ancient Near Eastern Studies till the end of the semester. I can't believe how fast these last few weeks have gone.
So... the highlights of the week... or since the last time I wrote.
1) We celebrated Christmas in Shepherd's field. It just so happened to be Halloween the day we celebrated Christmas which I thought was funny. That night was certainly one of the most memorable this semester. We watched the sunset, had a Christmas program and sang Christmas hymns and ate Christmas treats as we sat in a sheep pasture overlooking Bethlehem. Then we had a testimony meeting. It was so special to have everyone bare their testimonies of Christ as we looked onto the very city he was born into and possibly sat in a pasture Mary and Joseph traveled through. Even though the story of Christ's birth is a story I've heard time and time again I learned so much more learning it in this setting and it became even more meaningful to me. This Christmas, as well as all the other Christmas's to will not be the same.
2) On the same day we celebrated Christmas we visited King Herod's fortress. I was so impressed! King Herod wasn't afraid to spoil himself. We saw the ruins of a pool he had for his own luxurious purposes. It was bigger than any pool I have ever seen. It even had an island. Archeologists assume it was about 9 feet deep and the entire thing was tiled with little centimeter square, shades of blue, tiles! I cannot imagine what that must of looked like. There are still a couple of patches of the tiles. Then, around the pool there are big pillars. I guess Herod really like Roman architecture so a lot of the ruins are very Roman. Then we hiked to the top of this hill which was where the fortress was. And even though archeologists assumed that was where Herod was buried they recently discovered his tomb there as well. Ehud Netzer has been the primary archeologist and has been very respected in the archeologist community. Unfortunately he passed away a couple of days before we visited the site after falling through a wooden railing while showing some colleagues his work.
3) On Wednesday we visited the Kotel tunnel. Kotel is the official term of the Western Wall, which is the only thing remaining from Jewish temple, built by Herod, that was destroyed in 70 AD. It's a tunnel that follows the Western wall underground. In our history class we've been learning all about the details of the ancient wall around the temple mount so this was especially interesting. Building that wall was an incredible project! One of the stones weighs over 400 tons!
4) Yesterday we went on a tour of the separation wall. The wall that separated Israel Proper from the West Bank. We had an Israeli lawyer/scholar/really interesting man talk to us about some of the details of the conflict. It was so interesting. He was hilarious and taught us a lot about the conflict. He talked a lot of specifics of Jerusalem. He said contrary to how the media portrays it, Jerusalem exists in relative harmony despite the clashing cultures. I wish I could remember more of what he said. I have a friend who recorded him speaking and I'll have to get it from him!
5) On Thursday night we went out to eat at an Israeli restaurant. I quite enjoyed it. I didn't think it could get better than the bread at Macaroni Grill but I think the pita bread at this restaurant wins. I will miss that pita bread when I go home!
6) Yesterday we walked through a super orthodox Jewish neighborhood called Mea Shearim in West Jerusalem. It was fascinating. Nothing has ever felt so foreign as that street did. It was an entirely different world. For some reason it reminded me of the city in the Harry Potter movies. Since it was Shabbat (Sabbath), no one drives and we got there as everyone was walking to synagogue. The entire city is moving the same direction, to synogogue. The men are dressed in long black coats, either big, furry hats or top hats, white tights under capri-like pants and tzitzits, which are like aprons that they wear underneath their clothes that have long tassels that hang out from underneath. And all the men have shaved heads except for super long, curled strands of hair that hangs down in front of their ears.
So... the highlights of the week... or since the last time I wrote.
1) We celebrated Christmas in Shepherd's field. It just so happened to be Halloween the day we celebrated Christmas which I thought was funny. That night was certainly one of the most memorable this semester. We watched the sunset, had a Christmas program and sang Christmas hymns and ate Christmas treats as we sat in a sheep pasture overlooking Bethlehem. Then we had a testimony meeting. It was so special to have everyone bare their testimonies of Christ as we looked onto the very city he was born into and possibly sat in a pasture Mary and Joseph traveled through. Even though the story of Christ's birth is a story I've heard time and time again I learned so much more learning it in this setting and it became even more meaningful to me. This Christmas, as well as all the other Christmas's to will not be the same.
2) On the same day we celebrated Christmas we visited King Herod's fortress. I was so impressed! King Herod wasn't afraid to spoil himself. We saw the ruins of a pool he had for his own luxurious purposes. It was bigger than any pool I have ever seen. It even had an island. Archeologists assume it was about 9 feet deep and the entire thing was tiled with little centimeter square, shades of blue, tiles! I cannot imagine what that must of looked like. There are still a couple of patches of the tiles. Then, around the pool there are big pillars. I guess Herod really like Roman architecture so a lot of the ruins are very Roman. Then we hiked to the top of this hill which was where the fortress was. And even though archeologists assumed that was where Herod was buried they recently discovered his tomb there as well. Ehud Netzer has been the primary archeologist and has been very respected in the archeologist community. Unfortunately he passed away a couple of days before we visited the site after falling through a wooden railing while showing some colleagues his work.
3) On Wednesday we visited the Kotel tunnel. Kotel is the official term of the Western Wall, which is the only thing remaining from Jewish temple, built by Herod, that was destroyed in 70 AD. It's a tunnel that follows the Western wall underground. In our history class we've been learning all about the details of the ancient wall around the temple mount so this was especially interesting. Building that wall was an incredible project! One of the stones weighs over 400 tons!
4) Yesterday we went on a tour of the separation wall. The wall that separated Israel Proper from the West Bank. We had an Israeli lawyer/scholar/really interesting man talk to us about some of the details of the conflict. It was so interesting. He was hilarious and taught us a lot about the conflict. He talked a lot of specifics of Jerusalem. He said contrary to how the media portrays it, Jerusalem exists in relative harmony despite the clashing cultures. I wish I could remember more of what he said. I have a friend who recorded him speaking and I'll have to get it from him!
5) On Thursday night we went out to eat at an Israeli restaurant. I quite enjoyed it. I didn't think it could get better than the bread at Macaroni Grill but I think the pita bread at this restaurant wins. I will miss that pita bread when I go home!
6) Yesterday we walked through a super orthodox Jewish neighborhood called Mea Shearim in West Jerusalem. It was fascinating. Nothing has ever felt so foreign as that street did. It was an entirely different world. For some reason it reminded me of the city in the Harry Potter movies. Since it was Shabbat (Sabbath), no one drives and we got there as everyone was walking to synagogue. The entire city is moving the same direction, to synogogue. The men are dressed in long black coats, either big, furry hats or top hats, white tights under capri-like pants and tzitzits, which are like aprons that they wear underneath their clothes that have long tassels that hang out from underneath. And all the men have shaved heads except for super long, curled strands of hair that hangs down in front of their ears.
 |
| Here is the sign in front of the neighborhood. 7) After Mea Shearim we went to the Great Synagogue for their Friday service. It was all in Hebrew so it was difficult to follow, to say the least. But I really enjoy the Jewish synagogues. At the great synagogue that have a men's choir that sings and that was nice to listen to. |
8) Today was District conference in our ward and Elder Halstrom, from the presidency of the Quorum of the Seventy, came. It was such a special meeting! The branches and "groups" from Tel Aviv, Ber Sheva, Bethlehem and Galilee were all there along with the Jerusalem members.
9) We celebrated Halloween on November 2nd and had a big Halloween bash! I dressed up as the Mona Lisa (inspired by Julia's costume way back when). Each room got candy for the faculty kids to trick or treat and then we had a carnival then a dance party. It was a great time!
I think that is all for now! As my mother would say... ta ta for now.
Thursday, October 28, 2010
O Little Town of Bethlehem!
Turns out... the little town of Bethlehem isn't so little. It's quite large. And even though its just a stone's throw from Jerusalem it took a long time to get there because we had to go through the West Bank border. We got to spend the morning at Bethlehem University which I loved! We got to interact with the students a lot and that was really interesting. Bethlehem University is a Catholic University but 70% of the students are Muslims. And of course, since it is in the West Bank there are absolutely no Israeli's (Jews). When I'm talking to people my age it's really easy to forget how different your lives and culture really are. I proved this to myself when I asked a girl how she met her husband. I should of known that most of the Muslims have arranged marriages! So she looked at me kind of funny and said she met him 6 months ago when her family brought him to their house and they got married 2 months later. And she said something that reminded me of a scene in My Big Fat Greek Wedding. She said; "At first I liked him. But now, I love him." And she is also pregnant! They certainly didn't waste any time..
After we had lunch at a place called the "Tent Restaurant". It was really good but the food was a depressing attempt at hamburgers and french fries (with no ketchup). I'll definitely be ready for In and Out when I get home. After lunch we went to the Church of the Nativity which is the supposed place where Jesus was born. Unfortunately we were in Bethlehem on the very busiest day because someone important was in town and all kinds of tourists were there. So we waited way longer than we anticipated. 3 hours long! And the Church is ran by the Greek Orthodox and they are intense. You're not allowed to laugh inside. Needless to say... we got yelled at. And I'm still trying to decide if the wait was worth what we saw... I wouldn't have felt like my visit to Bethlehem was complete without seeing where Jesus was born so of course it was worth it but it was just a cramped room of tourists with a golden star inside a grotto marking the place.
Walking through Bethlehem was really special. It has a very unique feel. The building are pretty, the roads are very authentic and you just feel like your walking through history.
Sunday was one of my besties birthday. So we celebrated by neglecting all responsibility and spending the entire day in the city. We ate, shopped, ate, walked, ate, relaxed at a park, ate. One of my favorite places in the city is the Shuk! Which is just a big food market! This time I got candied nuts. Delicious. And we all split some famous gelato and I couldn't leave without getting some gummies too. Also, In Israel dessert waffles are really famous. So we went to this little waffle shop called Babbette's and shared waffles. A cute mom and her son also ate with us. They were delicious! So delicious that after the mom and her son were done they left like 3/4 of a waffle and as the girl went to throw it away we freaked out and we finished their waffle too. We weren't embarrassed but looking back I think we should of been... The cutest girl worked there and her name is the first name I like enough to name one of my kids after... Adi.
The rest of the week has been really stressful as we've been getting ready for finals and finishing papers. But it's over now! I just finished my Old Testament final (cross you fingers!) and turned in my 12 page paper on Tuesday! A few weeks ago I saw a flier for a Susan G.Kommen Breast Cancer Run and Me and a couple girls and one of my professors' wife ran in it! I'm so glad we got to go! It didn't look like it was going to work out because we have to go everywhere in groups of 3 and Jenna and I couldn't find anyone else because everyone is so studious and wanted to stay and study. We reviewed in the car and when we had a question our professor's wife called her husband to set us straight. I wish professors were always that reachable! Anyways- the run was huge! Pink balloons, banners and flags lining the streets, roads closed the whole shebang! And the best part of it.. I have a Jerusalem, Race For the Cure shirt written in Hebrew! All for 30 shekels.
After we had lunch at a place called the "Tent Restaurant". It was really good but the food was a depressing attempt at hamburgers and french fries (with no ketchup). I'll definitely be ready for In and Out when I get home. After lunch we went to the Church of the Nativity which is the supposed place where Jesus was born. Unfortunately we were in Bethlehem on the very busiest day because someone important was in town and all kinds of tourists were there. So we waited way longer than we anticipated. 3 hours long! And the Church is ran by the Greek Orthodox and they are intense. You're not allowed to laugh inside. Needless to say... we got yelled at. And I'm still trying to decide if the wait was worth what we saw... I wouldn't have felt like my visit to Bethlehem was complete without seeing where Jesus was born so of course it was worth it but it was just a cramped room of tourists with a golden star inside a grotto marking the place.
Walking through Bethlehem was really special. It has a very unique feel. The building are pretty, the roads are very authentic and you just feel like your walking through history.
Sunday was one of my besties birthday. So we celebrated by neglecting all responsibility and spending the entire day in the city. We ate, shopped, ate, walked, ate, relaxed at a park, ate. One of my favorite places in the city is the Shuk! Which is just a big food market! This time I got candied nuts. Delicious. And we all split some famous gelato and I couldn't leave without getting some gummies too. Also, In Israel dessert waffles are really famous. So we went to this little waffle shop called Babbette's and shared waffles. A cute mom and her son also ate with us. They were delicious! So delicious that after the mom and her son were done they left like 3/4 of a waffle and as the girl went to throw it away we freaked out and we finished their waffle too. We weren't embarrassed but looking back I think we should of been... The cutest girl worked there and her name is the first name I like enough to name one of my kids after... Adi.
The rest of the week has been really stressful as we've been getting ready for finals and finishing papers. But it's over now! I just finished my Old Testament final (cross you fingers!) and turned in my 12 page paper on Tuesday! A few weeks ago I saw a flier for a Susan G.Kommen Breast Cancer Run and Me and a couple girls and one of my professors' wife ran in it! I'm so glad we got to go! It didn't look like it was going to work out because we have to go everywhere in groups of 3 and Jenna and I couldn't find anyone else because everyone is so studious and wanted to stay and study. We reviewed in the car and when we had a question our professor's wife called her husband to set us straight. I wish professors were always that reachable! Anyways- the run was huge! Pink balloons, banners and flags lining the streets, roads closed the whole shebang! And the best part of it.. I have a Jerusalem, Race For the Cure shirt written in Hebrew! All for 30 shekels.
Saturday, October 23, 2010
It's killing me to not be able to post pictures! Words only do so much... But here are a couple pictures of the center that were on the internet of the center. |
| These are the huge windows of the Jerusalem Center Auditorium that I sit directly in front of for sacrament meeting every Saturday. You can see Dome of the Rock, the Holy sepulcre, everything! |
 |
| This is a picture of Mt. Scopus. Home of the Jerusalem center! Its the largest building right on the hill! And the the right is Gethsemane. |
Sometimes when I think about living here for nearly 2 months now I feel like it has flown by! But once I think about all we've seen and all I've learned and all the people I've gotten to feel so comfortable around it feels like it's been years! But I'm starting to realize that no amount of time here will ever be enough. I suppose I should start trying to accept that now so that I won't be too terribly depressed when I will have to leave in a couple months!
This week has been another week full of classes but fortunately it will end this next week. Our Palestinian class and our Israeli class will end this week and we'll also be wrapping up the Old Testament. Then we'll only have our Ancient Near Eastern Class and we'll start New Testament. So our schedule will be a lot more open. We're all looking forward to finishing finals and turning in our last few papers.
On Friday we had a really fun guy who was an Israeli, come teach us Israeli folk dancing. It was so much fun! I guess he has some kind of big studio here where he teaches dance and he's quite well known. It was especially fun to learn because most of the dances were dances I've seen people do around the city. It's a big part of the Jewish culture!
Today was sabbath and I spent the afternoon in Gethsemane with a handful of friends. I had been there before but today we got to go to a special olive garden that is a little more secluded. It's usually locked but the people who have been here before us have gotten to be pretty good friends with the guy in charge so he lets us in then locks the gate behind us so no one else comes in. Its really beautiful. And certainly an excellent opportunity to think about all Christ suffered for us.
This week we got to pick, press and process olives! It's quite a process! There are lots of olive trees around the center and they also have an ancient olive oil processing garden. This probably doesn't sound to exciting, because it certainly didn't to me when I saw it on the schedule. But it ended up being a really neat experience. We did everything by hand and took turns, 4 people at a time, pushing the huge log, connected to the 2000 pound stone to crush the olives. Then we stuffed this baskets full of the olive mash and stacked them under a press then squoze out the juice! Then watched it as the oil separated. In ancient times olive oil was a huge part of life. It was the only source of light and was one heavily used in medicines and cooking. So it was neat to participate in something that was so important to all the people we read about in the bible and think about what it meant to them. Also, there is a lot of symbolism between the atonement and olive processing that general authorities have mentioned. Gethsemane actually means oil press. And there is a lot of interesting symbolism that makes everything so meaningful.
This week has been another week full of classes but fortunately it will end this next week. Our Palestinian class and our Israeli class will end this week and we'll also be wrapping up the Old Testament. Then we'll only have our Ancient Near Eastern Class and we'll start New Testament. So our schedule will be a lot more open. We're all looking forward to finishing finals and turning in our last few papers.
On Friday we had a really fun guy who was an Israeli, come teach us Israeli folk dancing. It was so much fun! I guess he has some kind of big studio here where he teaches dance and he's quite well known. It was especially fun to learn because most of the dances were dances I've seen people do around the city. It's a big part of the Jewish culture!
Today was sabbath and I spent the afternoon in Gethsemane with a handful of friends. I had been there before but today we got to go to a special olive garden that is a little more secluded. It's usually locked but the people who have been here before us have gotten to be pretty good friends with the guy in charge so he lets us in then locks the gate behind us so no one else comes in. Its really beautiful. And certainly an excellent opportunity to think about all Christ suffered for us.
This week we got to pick, press and process olives! It's quite a process! There are lots of olive trees around the center and they also have an ancient olive oil processing garden. This probably doesn't sound to exciting, because it certainly didn't to me when I saw it on the schedule. But it ended up being a really neat experience. We did everything by hand and took turns, 4 people at a time, pushing the huge log, connected to the 2000 pound stone to crush the olives. Then we stuffed this baskets full of the olive mash and stacked them under a press then squoze out the juice! Then watched it as the oil separated. In ancient times olive oil was a huge part of life. It was the only source of light and was one heavily used in medicines and cooking. So it was neat to participate in something that was so important to all the people we read about in the bible and think about what it meant to them. Also, there is a lot of symbolism between the atonement and olive processing that general authorities have mentioned. Gethsemane actually means oil press. And there is a lot of interesting symbolism that makes everything so meaningful.
Monday, October 18, 2010
Erev Tov!
Shalom! Nights like tonight are when I enjoy blogging the most, it is the most productive way to put off homework. The last couple if days have been a lot of fun. Last Friday our professor for our Jewish class (who is a local, orthodox Jew) took a small group of us to an orthodox synagogue where we participated in their normal, daily service and we also welcomed the Shabbat (the Sabbath) because the next day in the Jewish culture always starts at sunset. Of course the whole thing was in Hebrew but we had little pamphlets that had some of the songs written out so we tried to sing a long a little. There was a nice lady sitting next to my friend and I and she saw us struggling so she'd keep pointing out where we were but unfortunately it didn't help much because most of the songs were in Hebrew script. I'm sure she thought we were idiots. But I must of been doing something right because one lady turned around, put her hand on my knee and said; "Welcome back!", like I belonged there, I guess she thought I was someone else!
Yesterday we went to Elat for our free day! Elat is a city 4 hours away on the coast of the Red Sea and you can see Jordanian flag on the other side. It's a big resort city and their famous for a big coral reef with great snorkeling. So we spent the day on the beach and went snorkeling which was a lot of fun! The Red Sea certainly isn't red. It's the bluest water I think I have ever seen! It's beautiful! I love the time I've been able to spend at the beach here! It makes my summer feel endless! And unlike my fall semester in Provo last year, I'm managing to keep from turning pasty white!
Today we went through the Holocaust museum. That was a really neat experience but so terribly disturbing. The pictures, documentaries and displays were so graphic and depressing. Everyone was kind of in a daze after spending over 4 hours there. It's just impossible to comprehend everything that happened during the Holocaust and it really does make you lose a lot of confidence in the human race. It's really sickening. The museum did such a good job at displaying everything. And Ophir (our Jewish professor) led us through it and he had a lot of interesting things to say about the Israeli perspective on the Holocaust. That was interesting because that is a side I've never been exposed to. Here in Jerusalem, almost everyone has a close relative that was a victim in the Holocaust. I learned so much.
I mustn't forget; I had a scary snake encounter on Saturday. We were on our way to the garden tomb and this kid on the street had a snake he was holding. And so I did my best to walk around him but before I knew it he stuck the snake in front of my face and it leaped toward me and almost grazed my face! It completely freaked me out! I didn't think that was a very pleasant way to introduce me to his pet snake. Needless to say, I walked home on the opposite side of the street.
As always, there are dozens of other things I could spend time reporting on but I suppose I have put off homework long enough...
Yesterday we went to Elat for our free day! Elat is a city 4 hours away on the coast of the Red Sea and you can see Jordanian flag on the other side. It's a big resort city and their famous for a big coral reef with great snorkeling. So we spent the day on the beach and went snorkeling which was a lot of fun! The Red Sea certainly isn't red. It's the bluest water I think I have ever seen! It's beautiful! I love the time I've been able to spend at the beach here! It makes my summer feel endless! And unlike my fall semester in Provo last year, I'm managing to keep from turning pasty white!
Today we went through the Holocaust museum. That was a really neat experience but so terribly disturbing. The pictures, documentaries and displays were so graphic and depressing. Everyone was kind of in a daze after spending over 4 hours there. It's just impossible to comprehend everything that happened during the Holocaust and it really does make you lose a lot of confidence in the human race. It's really sickening. The museum did such a good job at displaying everything. And Ophir (our Jewish professor) led us through it and he had a lot of interesting things to say about the Israeli perspective on the Holocaust. That was interesting because that is a side I've never been exposed to. Here in Jerusalem, almost everyone has a close relative that was a victim in the Holocaust. I learned so much.
I mustn't forget; I had a scary snake encounter on Saturday. We were on our way to the garden tomb and this kid on the street had a snake he was holding. And so I did my best to walk around him but before I knew it he stuck the snake in front of my face and it leaped toward me and almost grazed my face! It completely freaked me out! I didn't think that was a very pleasant way to introduce me to his pet snake. Needless to say, I walked home on the opposite side of the street.
As always, there are dozens of other things I could spend time reporting on but I suppose I have put off homework long enough...
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)