Newark to Ben Gurion Airport (Tel Aviv) via El Al Airlines:
Getting in and out of the airports went pretty smoothly. Lloyd and Seth, our professors and advisers, warned us that it’s likely the most intense airport security we’ll ever have to go through. They asked a bunch more questions than at any airport security I’ve ever been through before, and two of our students got detained between security and boarding. One of them was one of my roommates here (my roommates are Rachel and Alissa), and she said that they basically just checked their carry ons personally, swabbed their shoes, patted them down, and then let them sit and watch TV. They weren’t allowed to come back out and sit with us, but they were on the plane when we boarded.
On the plane, it was set up like my flight to England my senior year of high school, with three rows of three people each. I was in the very middle of the middle row, but I was sitting between Rachel and Alissa, so it was fine. These are the two girls I knew before the trip, so I’m glad I got paired up with them, and they’ve both also been to Israel before: this is Alissa’s third trip and Rachel’s sixth or seventh. Yes, they’re both Jewish.
The plane ride was really long. England/Scotland and Ireland were about six hour flights, and this was around ten and a half. I didn’t sleep nearly as well as I wanted to, even though I was reading and listening to calm music and even had a glass of wine. I couldn’t stay asleep for more than half an hour at a time. I did read the entirety of The Perks of Being a Wallflower, though, which was exciting.
Tel Aviv to Jerusalem via MayaTour bus:
Once we landed in Tel Aviv, we had to drive to Jerusalem. As it figures, it’s absolutely pouring out. The rain is so bad. Figures I’d go to a desert country and it would rain. Also, it rains so rarely, that the Israeli people aren’t very good at driving in the rain. There was an accident ahead of us, so the rip took a bit longer than expected. In Jerusalem, though, we were going to go right to the Israel Museum, but Rachel got motion sick on the bus. She threw up a few times, and we took her to the hotel so she could rest for the day. I think between motion sickness from the flight and the bus and being over tired, her body just couldn’t keep up. After we dropped her off, we went to the museum.
It was pretty neat. We learned about the history of Jerusalem, the stages of Jewish life, different style synagogues, and the Dead Sea Scrolls.
This photo is a model of Jerusalem in the era of the second temple (when Jesus was around). King Herod had it built.
This is a picture of the tabernacle from a synagogue in Italy that they uprooted and brought to this museum. I got yelled at after taking pictures in there, so I didn’t take any more.
This is the room where they house some parts of the Dead Sea Scrolls.
We then had an hour to go look around on our own, but just about everyone fell asleep on benches near the cafe in the museum. It was pretty rough. I felt guilty for not exploring more, but I was starting to feel sick and knew I needed the rest.
The Park Hotel in Jerusalem:
Ohhhh hotels… or should I call this a dorm? It’s definitely not like the kind of hotel I expected. We were also a little shocked because even though there are three of us in this room, there were only two twin beds. We’ve been having quite the fun time calling the reception desk. First for our extra bed, then for a third towel for me… and then for towels again because they never came. It’s been a blast.
Israeli Food:
Dinner at the hotel was good. I wish I had taken a picture of it. I didn’t realize hummus was so popular in Israel. They serve it with just about every meal (we even got it in our meals on the plane), and it is SO good. They serve it with fresh rolls which are super fluffy. I’m kind of in love. The rest of the food is good too. I feel like they eat so very much healthier than we do in America. There are so many vegetable and fruit options all the time, and not just a lettuce salad. For dinner, I had what I am pretty sure was really tender chicken, small baby potatoes, a cucumber and dill salad, mixed steamed vegetables, rice (which was the only thing I really didn’t like), and of course hummus and a roll.
Final Session: Gershom Gorenberg
Our speaker was Gershom Gorenberg, who is a well-known historian and journalist who writes about Israel and Israeli/Palestinian politics. He talked to us about the history of the Temple Mount, which is the site where God supposedly sent Abraham to sacrifice his only son Isaac. Abraham was going to do it, and God sent an angel to stop him right in time, and because of Abraham’s great faith in God and willingness to sacrifice his only son, he was named the father of the Abrahamic religions (Judaism, Christianity, and Islam), and God said his descendents would be as many as the stars in the sky and the sand on the shore (or something like that). Because this story is so important to all three religions, they each want to stake claim to the Temple Mount (also known as Mount Moriah). He went into more depth, but overall he was an engaging figure and helped make the information more easily accessible to us rather than reading dry texts about it. Toward the end it was rough, though, because the room got really warm and we’re all exhausted still.
We went to bed by 10:30ish, even though we had napped earlier before dinner. We’ve been exhausted the whole trip. It just takes a while to adjust, because of the 7 hour time difference.
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