Wow, our last day :( I can't believe we have been here for 10 of the most amazing days of our lives. This is a trip unlike any trip any of us has ever taken and one we will never forget. It was fun, educational, and it changed...everything.
Today we woke up and heard from a Holocaust survivor, from there we went on to Yad Vashem, the Holocaust Museum in Israel. We were toured around there by one of their tour guides and our first stop was the Children's Memorial. As we quietly walked in, grasped to one another it was pitch black and all around us were the reflections of one single candle flame and the names continuously being read of children that were killed in the Holocaust. It was very tough for us to handle. From there we went on to see the sculptures, every sculpture in Israel has meaning to it. Then to the forest of the righteous, trees that were planted for those that helped the Jews during the Holocaust. Yad Vashem was not all about death. We then went into the newest part of the museum where although we were toured through, we were given a headset and we took our time walking through. It was almost as though we were cattle being herded through and you got the sense of what it may have felt like to have to keep going even though you wanted to stop.
It was amazing how many people in our group had stories of Holocaust survivors in their own families and openly shared their stories. From stories of their families to stories of hatred that they have faced, we never felt so close as we did at Yad Vashem. Maybe it was because it was our last day or maybe it was the gloominess that lingers over Yad Vashem, but we were very happy to have one another to lean on. After a quiet and sad lunch, it was time to move on to part two of our sad day. Har Hertzl, the military cemetery. Har Hertzl is where everyone that defends Israel is buried. Soldiers are buried along the mountain and as you go up, the Prime Ministers and at the very top, is the body of Theodore Hertzl. Hertzl was the founder of the Zionist movement and it was just 44 short years after his death that the state of Israel was created. The most moving part of the tour on Har Hertzl was standing around Yoni Netenyahu's grave and doing a memorial service. Yoni was not only the brother of Bibi Netenyahu, a Prime Minister of Israel and from Philadelphia, but he was awarded the Medal of Distinguished Service for his conduct in the Yom Kippur War. He was killed in action during Operation Entebbe , by Uganden soldiers, where the Israeli military rescued hostages after an aircraft hijacking.
A lot of us couldn't understand the sadness on our last day but our staff put it very beautiful...although there was death, the Jewish people survived and we are here to tell the story. It is our job to go on and tell others about our journey and spread our Jewish knowledge and interests to ensure the survival of the Jewish people. We are all excited to tell our friends about the Birthright experience when we get home!
We had an amazing speaker to round out our afternoon. Avraham Infeld, the President of Hillel spoke to us and captured our attention. If he had been our speaker all week, I'm sure we all would have paid much more attention! (And not just cause he is funny, his South African Accent is fun too!)
To end our time in Israel before we went back to the hotel to pack and have our closing circle, we visited Mini-Israel. We got to visit all the sites that we already went to see on a very, very, very small scale. Quote of the day..."Why do they need a Mini Israel?! Isn't Israel already small enough?".
Our closing circle was full of laughter, tears, and memories that will last a lifetime. And now, we are all back in the states safe and sound counting the minutes and ways to get back to Israel. Not only do we all have a better sense of what Israel is all about, but we have a better sense of who we are both as individuals and as Jewish college students. Plus we have tons of new friends from across the city that we can't wait to see and tons of reunions lined up, including our first one next Sunday for breakfast! While we missed our family and friends, we truly found that Israel is a place that we can and will call home!
Pictures will be posted soon!
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