Easter Sunday

Happy Easter! I have been looking forward to this day all semester! We were invited to attend the sunrise Easter service at the Garden Tomb. Security gave us permission to walk over at 5:30 am. It was so exciting to see the crowds of people gather into the garden.

As the sun rose we sang songs with a live band, listened to scriptures and words on Christ. It was amazing to be surrounded by so many Christians in the very spot and time that Christ was resurrected and appeared to Mary.

After getting some sleep, I heeded to the YMCA bell tower to play the caralon bells! Jessica and I played frerejaque for all of Jerusalem to hear! It was so loud and amazing!

Plus there was an incredible view! See the Dome of the Rock in the right? The Jerusalem Center is just under the middle tower on the horizon.

Field trips and Exploring

This week was busy and full of lots of field trips and adventures throughout the city. We leave for Galilee on Monday, so we wanted to get as much out of the city as we could. On Tuesday we went to the Israel Museum. I saw ancient artifacts that were actually really cool!

Above is Hadrian and below is cuneiform writing! Cuneiform is the first writing system which means this thing is super old. I love how old things are here!

On Wednesday we visited the Jewish Quarter of the old city. This was a museum built over the remains of a house dating to the time of the destruction of the temple.

The Jewish Quarter is my favorite. It is so beautiful and I love the people there.

Then we got up close to the temple mount! Here you can see where the stones were pushed off the top and smashed through the street below when the temple was destroyed.

This is the triple gate. In Christ's time this was the access point onto the mount.

Here I am sitting on steps that once led to the entrance. Of all the places in Israel, this is one spot that we can for sure say Christ walked. He would have taken this path to get into the courtyard of the temple.

This doesn't look like much, but it's the upper room! They believe this is the room where the last supper took place.

On Friday we met with the editor of the Jerusalem newspaper. He took us on a tour around Jerusalem to look at the separation wall. He explained the politics behind the wall. It is so fascinating to me. I have such a better understanding of the middle east now that I've lived here for 3 months.

Happy 17th Birthday Kelly! . .  

Nothing says happy birthday like the separation wall.

Jerusalem Biblical Zoo

Today we explored the Jerusalem Biblical Zoo! It was a gorgeous day and a great zoo! We felt like kids again but I'm obsessed with zoos, so it wasn't much of a change for me. P.S. the amazing Erica broke her leg at Eilat! She was on the dock and a wave hit her and she slipped and it broke. Crazy, right? We were so excited they let her out of the center to come to the zoo with us. 

 

This animal is kind of beautiful. . . And here we are reenacting the different emotions of a monkey. I think we had more fun than the kids there. Actually there was nobody at the zoo today. I guess people don't love the zoo as much as us Americans.

Another thing about the zoo here--most of the animals were not behind bars!! We went through so many aviaries and cages where you could literally sit next to the animals! This bird is unreal!

This is just gorgeous. The animals' habitats were stunning. Especially with the Israel hills behind them. 

Ok, anticlimactic story: I was taking a picture of this hippo when. . .  
(it's not even that cool of a picture. Not worth the trouble)

 I sat my arm on the railing and got stung by a bee! First bee sting ever! All because I was dumb and didn't pay attention. I basically stung myself. It hurt but luckily Spencer saved the day and got out the massive stinger with his ID. Oh well, at least I can say I got stung by a bee from Israel.

So then my arm started to swell and was sore and I was bummed until I ran into these little guys. Ya, this is for real. Prairie Dogs! In the zoo! In Colorado we call these rodents and they are everywhere. Apparently in Israel they are rare. But I guess the Africans are probably laughing at me for getting stung by a bee just to take a picture of a hippo.

And of course, my favorite. I couldn't leave him out.

It was actually a really impressive zoo. Not as many animals as Denver, but ten times more beautiful. Israel just can't be beat.

Palm Sunday

Today is Palm Sunday! It was incredible to experience it in the Holy Land! We started the day by going to a service at the St. George Episcopal church. This is the church my family in Florida belongs to! I was so excited! I was explaining everything to my friends because I remember how it all works from my visits in Florida. It was a beautiful service and was definitely my favorite of all the church services we've visited. Everyone was so friendly and welcoming. It was also fun to have a special service to bless the palm leaves.

The church and its gardens were gorgeous! Spring in the Holy Land is amazing.

We went to Lina's for lunch to eat the best hummus in the world. I will forever remember the hummus of the Mediterranean.

Here we are exploring! We found an entrance to the rooftops and walked along the roofs of the old city.

Then the Palm Sunday walk began! Hundreds of people came to make the walk from Bethphage over the Mt of Olives and through the city gates into the Pools of Bethesda at St. Anne's church.

We sang hymns and other people joined in with us! It was a wonderful experience.

The walk took 2 hours and was completely worth it.

It was an amazing Palm Sunday. I definitely appreciate the holiday so much more now that I have experienced it in the very place it happened.

Snorkeling in Eilat

  

Today we drove 4 hours down to Eilat!! It was a desert and then suddenly we got to the Red Sea and it was paradise!!  We spent 4 hours on the beach snorkeling just off the shore!

There were so many fish! I even saw an octopus!!

Snorkeling masks aren't very flattering, but look how clear the water is! It was turquoise!

We watched scuba divers below us looking at the incredible reef. 

Just swimming with the fish in the Red Sea!

Then we  realized there was a lot of potential with my water camera, so we got distracted from the fish and had an America's Next Top Model photo shoot.

 

The masks get me every time.

After snorkeling we walked along the coast to enjoy frozen yogurt and the shops.

It was a Hebrew version of Florida!

It was another amazing day! I'm living the dream. If I still haven't convinced my sisters to come here--don't worry, I still have a month left!