Student Journal: Sunday

[written by trip participant and Goucher student Abby L.]

Hello all, or should I say, boker tov! We are all so excited to be here. I'm not sure it has quite hit us yet, but it might tomorrow when we will wake up at four in the morning to climb Masada! We are currently on the bus going south after spending three wonderful days in Jerusalem. The old city was truly magnificent, and the Western Wall was an experience I'll never forget. It was so interesting to see the difference between the men and women’s sides. The men were dancing and singing in their minyan, while the women were much quieter and praying. And we also had Shabbat, shopped on Ben Yehuda Street, (I got to haggle for a purse and saved 20 shekels!) and spent a night out in Jerusalem. Those are only some of the highlights -- our days have been packed! Yesterday, we all got up relatively early, ate breakfast, and then went to Yad Vashem, the Holocaust Museum. We learned so much, and although it was an emotionally draining experience it was worth it. The museum is shaped like a triangle, and when you get to the end, it opens up to the city of Jerusalem. After that, we went to the Israeli market (Machane Yehuda). We had the opportunity to get falafel - I got a sandwich instead. I walked to different shops and then we all had to leave. The Israelis bought us all chocolate. They've been incredibly generous and sweet! Later we went to Mt. Herzl, the military cemetery. We learned a lot of history and we were amazed by the importance of it all. We saw the newer part, which was the saddest part. We then went back to the hotel, had dinner with Goucher president Sandy Ungar, then saw an Israeli filmmaker, who showed us a different side of Israel. I am so happy to be here and cannot believe that I been given the opportunity! It's time to nap, Bye!