We Are Finally In Jerusalem!!-6/12/06

Can you believe we are finally in Jerusalem?!
Yesterday morning we got a very early start to our day. We checked out of our hotel in Tel Aviv and headed down South to the Negev.

We started our day out with an archeological dig in Beit Guvrin followed by crawling through caves. It was a great way to start the day! We were digging up artifacts from the time of Judah Maccabee, it was quite amazing to see the site where the story of Chanukah happened.

Following our morning activity we had to say good-bye to our Israeli soldiers that had been joining us for the week...after long hugs and exchanging emails, we were on our way to do our Tzedek (volunteer) project. We worked with Ethiopian orphans making arts and crafts and playing sports, it was a very special and moving afternoon.

From there we were off to our Bedouin tents where we slept last night. Once we dropped off our bags, we mounted up on our camels and went on a ride through the desert. We were then welcomed to the Bedouin Village with tea and coffee. We had the most amazing meal in the tents and spent the evening gathered around a huge bonfire.

After a night of pretty much no sleep, we woke up way before sunrise to hike Masada and watch the sunrise from the top. What a breathtaking view! Some of us took the opportunity to say the morning prayers, while some of us gathered close to our bus friends and others of us just took a minute to meditate by ourselves. It's amazing how powerful the sunrise on top of Masada is.
Following our tour on top of Masada, what better reward then going to Ein Gedi resort for a dip in the Dead Sea. We slathered ourselves in the silky mud, and then ran into the salt crusted crystal blue sea where you can't help but float. We can't wait to show you the amazing pictures we got here! After a quick shower, we boarded the bus for a nice long bus ride to....

JERUSALEM!!! We are finally here!!! It's unbelievable and we finally feel like we are in Israel. It looks totally different then the rest of the country and truly does look like the Old City. We were welcomed into Jerusalem on the Haas Promenade with the Shehecheyanu (the first of something,and for us, the first for us arriving in Jerusalem). The lookout was breathtaking and even more amazing and special is that taking place right next to us on the Haas Promenade was a wedding of 2 people that met on a Birthright trip! It was very sweet and special to see.

After having dinner on our own, we finally checked into our hotel in JERUSALEM! Tomorrow we finally get to go see the Old City and tour the City of David, see the Western Wall, and take part in the mega event with over 5,000 other Jewish students that are also on a birthright trip from around the world. We are all exhausted and getting an early nights sleep. It's hard to believe there are only 2 days left of our trip!