Galilee

November 26th until December 6th we spent in Galilee. I never realized what a beautiful place that could be!  We stayed at a beach front resort called Ein Gev. Across the lake you could see the beautiful city lights of Tiberias. We got to watch the sunset every night which was absolutely breathtaking (I have no shortage of pictures on that!). 

  My favorite field trip of the week was also our first one. We got up at the crack of dawn, ate breakfast at the wonderful buffet we had there, and then took a boat across the sea. The weather was slightly overcast and there was a fog on the lake. We sailed across thinking of the apostles fishing, of Jesus walking on the water, and of the countless other miracles that happened on the shores of Galilee. 

The crew that manned the boat was hilarious: they started the journey by raising the American flag in our honor and playing the national anthem! I can't wait to get home to the country that I love so much! They also serenaded us with every christian rock song they had available, and we received it was such enthusiam!

 We went to the Mount of Beatitudes and had lots of time for personal reflection. As I walked around the grounds of the church we were at (built by Mussolini!) I loved thinking about the incredible sermon given by the Savior in that place. We ate our sack lunches there, provided by Ein Gev, which had THE BEST pb&j sandwich I have ever had. That was definitely a morning I'd never forget.

We went to the traditional spot where Jesus appeared to the disciples after his resurrection, now the church of St. Peter's Primacy. We got to go inside the church and then wade in the sea; you can't really tell from the picture, but the Sea of Galilee is so beautiful!

After church on the Sabbath (Saturday in Israel), we got to go to the River Jordan at Yardenit. It was a much more scenic view of the Jordan River than our previous experience when we went to see it in Jordan. There were big catfish in the water and some my peers were trying to grab them; I did my best to steer clear!

They had the story of Jesus' baptism all over the place there, all written in different languages.

Galilee was an incredible trip! We still had class on the not-field-trip days, but we also got to go to the beach, nap in hammocks, have bonfires, and enjoy each other's company! I'll never forget the wonderful 10 days I spent in Galilee!

We came back to the center to enjoy a beautiful Thanksgiving meal prepared for us at the Jerusalem Center. It was a great way to finish off the week!

The Separation Wall

We've had a lot of awesome discussions on the Israel-Palestine conflict here. Our program includes lectures from many people involved in education, media, government, and even our own professors.

A couple of weeks ago I had a long conversation with a fellow student as we tried to solve the problem. Mainly it was him throwing out ideas and me telling him why it wouldn't work. His most innovative suggestion was buying the Israelis another country of their own, specifically in SE Texas along the Gulf of Mexico. Our semester of education has taught me that it would never work, but its an interesting thought.

We've had a ton of guest speakers come who have been involved in all parts of the Jerusalem community. Some have said the 2 state solution is the only thing that will work. Others have said that the 2 state solution would never work. I'm still formulating my own opinion. My New Testament professor gave a devotion in which he said peace will never come to the Holy Land until the Prince of Peace returns.

A few days ago we went with one of our politically involved guest speakers to see the separation wall. The thing about this impressive looking wall is that it runs right through a Palestinian neighborhood. If the goal was to separate Palestinians from Palestinians, then they did a good job.

The wall has caused tons of problems, because it has blocked the people on the outside from the hospitals (a minor heart attack is usually fatal because there are no hospitals near enough), from adequate public-service funding (the public schools are crowded and neglected; the example he gave us was of kids having to walk on the wall to wall desks to use the bathroom during class), and from jobs in Jerusalem (You worked in the city? not anymore). Our guest speaker expressed that the wall is more a political statement than anything. 

I'm no expert on the subject, but since being here I've leaned so much about the conflict. I don't feel so bad that I've found no solution because a lot of people smarter than me have thought about it and come up short over the last 100+ years.

Jordan!!

Last week we had a 4 day trip to Jordan! Another place where I never thought I'd go but I ended up just loving. 

We bused there the first day and visited place like Mt. Nebo, where we understand Moses was translated according to the Book of Mormon, and Machaerus where Herod's birthday party was before he ordered the execution of John the Baptist.

The view from Herod's palace at Machaeus

Our second day we went to Petra! By far my favorite day of the trip (and the most exhausting day). We got to run all over, hike up places, ride camels, explore ruins, and have a real great time. 

 We spent a good hour and half hiking up to this monastery. 800+ steps to the top! It was exhausting but seeing this monastery was so worth it!

2 of my beautiful roommates!

 3 dollar camel ride in a circle was so awesome! Memory of a lifetime!

Our third day we went to the Jabbok River where in Genesis 32, Jacob wrestled with an angel. We also went to Gilead (as in Balm of Gilead!) and Jerash which is the best preserved Roman city in the world. They had huge theaters there, cool temples, and many places to explore. 

Typical bathroom line. We definitely spend more than our share of the time waiting in line!

 At the Jabbok River with a devotional by Professor Schade, my Old Testament teacher. He is easily the best professor I've ever had.

One of the temples at Jerash (there were a lot of those!)

Our last day in Jordan was spent traveling home, but we did get to stop in some cool places. We went to the Jordan River at the traditional spot where Jesus was baptized. The river Jordan is plagued with these terrible flies, so we spent most of the time swatting, but the devotional we had there about Christ and his perfect example was so moving. We sang Michael Jackson's "Will You Be There" with an emphasis on the first line of the song; doesn't hurt that the rest of the song is awesome too :)

 We had to smile for pictures quick before the flies moved in, but it was a great experience to see the River Jordan!

Post-Finals

Just finished finals week! Unfortunately, the post-final relaxation is not to be had. We've still got plenty of homework to fill up our spare time. However, I did reward myself by going to chick-flick night featuring, "My Best Friend's Wedding." Good show :)

Time to catch up on all the great adventures we still managed to have last week! When homework is overwhelming, its hard to justify going into the city, but I know I'll regret it come winter time if I stay in to work instead of enjoying the fabulous place I'm at. 

Our field trip last Monday provided me with an experience I loved, but hopefully will never have again- SHEEP HERDING! We visited the Biblical land reserve and got to see animals, plants, bake soup and bread, just like they might have back in the biblical days. 

As you can imagine, I was a natural at the shepparding business. They divided us into three group to take turns moving the sheep around. The first group had to maneuver them into a circle of rocks. The second group had to lead them in a big circle and then put them into another circle of rocks. I was in the final group. Our challenge was to separate the goats from the sheep and to put them into separate circles of rocks. I didn't even know the difference between sheep and goats. Thankfully we have some farm kids in the class and they took the reigns on this one. Amazingly, we successfully separated the sheep and goats (they were stubborn about staying in a group). It was super fun!

We get to see super cool stuff all the time. Yesterday we went to St. Peter in Gallicantu. This is traditionally the place where Peter denied Christ three times and heard the cock crow. There is also some really cool stone caves underneath the church where it is believe Christ was held before his trial in Jerusalem. 

Of course after seeing the church, we had to stop for a Gold?! Magnum bar. Seriously, that's what they're called. We had the best time talking about our Gold?! ice cream :)

Here are a few other misc pics so you can get a feel for how much I'm loving life these days!

View from my bedroom

The Jerusalem Center on Mt. Scopus

  Dome of the Rock view from the Roman Catholic Church of Maria Magdalene 

We went snorkeling here, Eliat, at the Red Sea

Walkin' All Over

Its official- Jerusalem feels like home now. It's so great to feel a connection to the city and feel so comfortable in it!

We only a have a few more weeks of our rigorous class schedule until finals, then about the last month we will only have New Testament and Ancient Near Eastern Studies classes. I think its perfect timing because by the time we have all those free afternoons in our schedule, the weather will have cooled down considerably. Its been better in the last couple of weeks, but I just know to plan that if I go into the city on any given day, I will return much sweatier than I would have hoped!

On Sunday (our Sabbath is on Saturday) we went on a field trip to Hezekiah's tunnel! It was built by Hezekiah to protect Jerusalem's water supply from invaders. Our group walked to the mouth of the tunnel at the top of the City of David, just below the Temple Mount, and walked through the tunnel all the way to the southern border of the City of David. This thing was awesome! The water came about to our knees, and higher in some spots. As expected, there's no electricity in the tunnel, so it was pitch black. Good thing I brought my headlamp! We walked for about 45 minutes deep underground. Most of the tunnel was only a couple feet wide and got super narrow and short as it twisted and turned. For a few minutes we all turned off our lights except for the leader. We held hands to lead each other and were so scared because that darkness was THICK. I can't imagine how scared I would have been to be in that tunnel alone!

By far, it was my favorite field trip. As shown above, we emerged from the tunnel smiling and in one piece thank goodness! 

On Monday, I went with a group to the Israel Museum. One of our assignments requires going there and then writing a paper on a few of the things we see, so being non-procrastinators, we decided to knock it out early on in the term! 

We were told it was only a 40 minute walk. Some took a cab, but I decided to go with the walking group to save a few shekels. Before we knew it, we were lost in West Jerusalem. The locals who gave us directions honestly had no idea where the museum was. 4 miles and 2 hours later, we made it there! 

The museum was actually super cool. As I saw all the cool stuff they had recovered in Israel, I was kind of bummed that they had taken the artifacts off the sites they found them in. It would be a lot cooler to see stone workings and old statues at Tel-Beersheva and other ancient cities than just a bunch rocks placed in outlines of houses.... oh well! I'm glad I got to see that stuff.

I also got to see the Dead Sea Scrolls! I've heard a lot about those. The architecture of the place they keep them in was really awesome too. The fountain behind me is actually the roof of the chamber that holds the scroll exhibit!

Not one of my better outfit days, but I sure had a great time!

And I definitely took a cab back to the center :)

Crazy Awesome Day 9/27

Yesterday was a big day!

1. I took my Old Testament midterm and I think I did a pretty reasonable job on it. Questions ranged from- Who was Ruth's first husband? (A: Mahlon) to- What was the relationship between the focus of the outer courtyard and that of the inner court yard in the tabernacle (A: too long to type) to our essay question concerning the Abrahamic Covenant and its affect through time to our day.

2. I purchased my very own wood carving at Omar's! I spent almost 3 weeks thinking about buying it and I couldn't be happier! This picture doesn't nearly do it justice, but I absolutely love it and can not wait to have it in my own home someday. Its pretty obvious how much Omar loves Mormons with that Utah State flag in the back! Half of the store is made up of Joseph Smith, Emma, Book of Mormon characters, and BYU cougar carvings!

3. My friends and I cruised around the old city. We soaked in the atmosphere and I got my first schwarma! Looks good, yeah? Now I can check that off my list of things to do in Israel.

4. After a long afternoon of homework, we got to participate in a mock- Seder meal in the Oasis at the JC. Its not too often that Passover falls on the day after Yom Kippur! Our Near Eastern Studies professor headed the meal and showed us exactly how the Seder is performed in his own household. Our assigned seating put me at the esteemed Table 1, so I felt pretty special :) The most important thing about this meal is order! We sang songs together which told the story of the Passover and read lots of blessings over the food. I got to sing in a small group the song, "Y'vareh et Bet Yisra-El which is essentially a hallelujah song for after the meal. This dinner was an awesome experience and I feel like I have a better understanding of Jewish culture now. 

It was a crazy awesome day!
P.S. Today is World Wide Rabies Day! We celebrate every occasion here at the JC!

Turkey Trip!

I spent last week in Turkey. I had never had any desire to go there previously, but now that I've gone I can't believe what I might of missed! Turkey is a beautiful country and it has a ton of awesome history. It seems like every significant empire in history has had a hold there at some point or another; everyone from the Hittites to the rule of Constantine to the Ottomans. 

The week was just a blur. Everyday started before 6am and we usually weren't finished with dinner until 10. Exhausting, but I loved every minute of it. 

Our first day we walked all over Istanbul to the Blue Mosque, the Hagia Sophia, the Topkapi Palace, the Grand Bazaar, and so much more. Unfortunately, my camera died with the first picture of the day, so I just had to document everything with my mind (and I'll get pictures from friends!). My favorite stop of the day must have been the Topkapi Palace. This place was the epitome of luxury. It was built by the Ottoman sultans right on the Bosporus Strait. The palace had awesome exhibits of the sultan's jewels, including an 87 carat diamond (I'll expect nothing less from my future hubby). Another exhibit had the "authentic" staff of Moses, a hair from Muhammad's beard, a cooking pot belonging to Abraham, and so many other religious artifacts, I don't know if I believe it all....  But it was cool!

One of my favorite sights was Pergamum. The acropolis we saw was one of the seven churches of the apocalypse. Maybe it was a bad back in the day, but now a days its a sweet spot!

Our second day we visited Gallipoli, where the Ottomans won a serious battle against the Anzacs in WWI. Something of 550,000 men died on the beach there. We saw the memorial and visited the little cemetery they had nearby. We were already acquainted with this tragic story because we watched the movie a week before: Gallipoli, starring a young and handsome Mel Gibson. It was a tragic story with a rough ending.

Gallipoli was a touching site and a great way to commemorate the brave men on both sides of that war.

We visited so many places that I can't even keep them straight! One of the others days we visited Sardis, and the Temple of Artemis there had some of the most impressive columns I've ever seen. 

--and we sure have seen a lot of those! 

All in all, Turkey was so incredible. Our group cruised down the coast along the Mediterranean and saw many places that the apostles John and Paul visited on their missions through Asia Minor. I gained a way greater understanding of the trials they faced there as I saw the grandeur of cities they were up against. Their example of dedication and courage inspires me. What a great experience!

Tel Aviv

I've got to tell you about my trip to Tel Aviv last Sunday (we have church on Saturdays in sync with the Jewish Shabbat). We left the Jerusalem Center at 9 am in vans and headed to the Mediterranean which was about an hour drive. The beach was so absolutely gorgeous that it was all I could do to keep from running to the sand!

We spent a few hours playing in the ocean which was unbelievably warm. The Pacific has nothing on the Mediterranean! It was fun to see all the locals surfing the waves, which weren't as strong or consistent as the ones in California, but still worth riding. A few guys from our group rented boards and tried it out. Sure looked like they were having a blast!

A little after lunch time we decided to go explore the city. We walked past the big shoreline hotels and found a cool farmer's market there. They had everything from fresh produce to cleaning supplies to clothes and plenty of souvenirs! 

Naturally there were sunburns-galore the next few days, but it was so worth it! We had the best day there. 

The days are long and super busy, but we are having such a great time!

The Pools of Bethesda!

This week has been jam-packed with school, field trips, and exploring the city. Yesterday, we paid 5 shekels to visit the Pools of Bethesda. It was by far one of the coolest places I've been so far. We ran around the ruins and went underground to the giant Roman cistern that is preserved there. But my favorite part of the pools of Bethesda was singing in St. Anne's Church which is built on that property.

The church is built with absolutely fantastic acoustics. You whisper a sentence and the sound carries all through the chapel, blurring the words together. Our group sang hymns for a good amount of time in there, just so we could hear the sound of our own voices. It was GORGEOUS and I will for sure be back there.

As we were leaving, a priest there stopped us and asked about where we learned to sing. We talked for a while talking about the States (he was from the UK) and why we were all here in Israel. He thanked us for sharing our talents and we got a picture with him in front of the church before we left.

That day we also went to the legendary Omar's in East Jerusalem. The number of wood carvings and the variety he had there was really impressive. His explanations as to how to tell if a wood carving is quality or not may come in handy in the future. He is such a good salesman and it was hard to walk out of there without making a purchase! 

Misc:

Our group is leaving for Turkey on Sunday, and after our many hours of orientation today I am so pumped for it! 

We had a tour of the space underneath the Jerusalem Center for which we got to wear hard hats! Mostly it was lengthy explanations of the maintenance that takes place down there, but we got to sign our names with all the students who had stayed in the center! Don't mind that I spelled my own name wrong...

These are the leather sandals I bought last week. It took about the whole week and a few blisters to break them in, but now they are about the most comfortable shoes I own! Depending on how well these hold up, I may buy another pair before I leave for home. I LOVE THEM!

Day Out

Hebrew class was cancelled today because our professor, Judy Goldman, was sick. Sad for her, good for us. I took a bit of a risk by going out into the city during that time and consequently missed a few hours that should have been spent studying; I have no regrets!

Jerusalem is the best place to just wander around in. The streets wind all over and the streets beyond the Damascus gate where we usually enter looks pretty much like a crowded mall. You have your food court, shoe stores, clothing stores, souvenir shops, fabric stores, kitchen ware, pharmacy, electronics, and the list goes on.

You get your fill of shopping pretty quick in the old city because each shop sells pretty much the same things at the same prices as their neighbors.

My group decided to step off the beaten path and check out an Armenian Catholic church, "Our Lady of the Spasm," next door to the Austrian Hospice. The church was full of contemporary art made to look old in some places, and celebrating its modernity in others. The prayer room downstairs had the most gorgeous, subtle, golden cross I've ever seen. I wasn't able to get a picture, nut maybe I'll be back.

Our next stop was the church of the Holy Sepluchre. I absolutely love this cathedral. Within its walls are the claimed sights of Golgotha, the rock which Jesus the Christ was anointed on, and his tomb. We waited in line to see the tomb. The architecture of the building around the tomb was such that you had to bow to enter and bow to exit. Of course no one really knows the location of where Christ was laid before the resurrection, but the Church of the Holy Sepluchre sure did a great job of making it seem like the real thing.

The top of the dome in the Church of the Holy Sepluchre

One of the views from the top of the Austrian Hospice

The Western Wall

Today was my first trip to the Western Wall (wailing wall). I was absolutely astounded by what I saw there. I've seen pictures before of crying, wrinkled women slipping their prayers into the cracks of the stone. And yes, I did see this picture in reality, but it was more than that. 

The plaza was filled with military men in their green uniforms and huge guns slung around their necks. We proceeded past the men and funneled into the women's section of the wall. There was a hush and a warmness there that can only be described as the spirit of God. The women that were gathered around the wall poured their hearts into the stone, hoping that it would find its way to their Father in Heaven. I have no doubt that it does reach him.

A bit of a history lesson: The temple mount where the Dome of the Rock now stands was once the location of the Temple of Solomon and then the Temple of Herod. The location of the Holy of Holies within those temples is unknown, so the Jews of Jerusalem do not go on the temple mount for fear of violating a sacred space. Instead, they worship at the Wall which is the closest they can get to that Temple space without jeopardizing the holiness of the temple once standing. 

I put my own prayer in the stone asking blessings to my family and thanking God for his generosity. I didn't write my name on it, but I think He knew it was me.