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Published: February 19th 2009
We were back at full strength today for an exciting and active outdoors day. It looks like we stayed one day ahead of the weather with a strom front expected on Friday. We got lucky, because if there are heavy rains on Friday, there could be a chance of fast floods in the Dead Sea area we went to today.
We left Jerusalem in the morning and headed into the desert. This was a new environment for us and it was different from the rocky hills of Jerusalem and the costal plain of Tel Aviv and Haifa. We saw the West Bank city of Jericho and a Bedouin shanty town from the road as we drove. Even from the bus, we could see how much different they were from the modern, western-style Israeli places we have been visiting.
We got to Masada and faced the choice to walk up as a Jewish rite of passage, or take the cable car up. Originally, we were mostly planning to take the cable car up and walk down, but we got into the spirit and all the first-time visitors and most of the others elected to climb up. It was a thorough
workout to get to the top and we spread out as we started our ascent. Some rushed up, others took their time and stopped to take pictures of the spectacular view of the surrounding highlands and the Dead Sea (guess who was in that group) followed by some laggards who have been staying up too late.
We all made it and got a thrill at being at the top of such a unique site. As with so much else we have seen this week, it was a mixture of triumph and tragedy for the Jewish people. On one hand, we saw the grandeur and engineering marvels of King Herrod's palace, but on the other hand we heard about the horrific end to the Roman siege of the last Jewish outpost of that time period.
Our next stop was another tradition with a visit to Israel, a dip into the Dead Sea. It was not ideal weather for this, but we needed to try the experience. At first it seemed just like cold, salty water until we sat down and realized we stayed at the surface of the water. It was a strange but relaxing feeling. Some people took
the experience further and rubbed on the mud for it's healing power or took a dip in the sulfur pool. "Uncle Murray", who has turned into our class clown, took a belly flop into the water. It was an usual day at the beach and something everyone will remember.
After 8 days of non-stop action, we were all glad to take a break for an open night in Jerusalem. After a quick shower, we walked around a bit and got to take in some interesting shops and a nice, quiet dinner. We can't believe this trip is nearing the end.
- Caroline & Jeff
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Rabbi Debby
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Meet you in Jerusalem!
So excited to see you all late Friday night or at breakfast (if you are awake!) on Saturday morning. Peter and I arrive at the start of Shabbat, and probably will fall asleep as soon as we get to the apartment in Jerusalem.... LOVE that most of you climbed Masada! Shabbat Shalom, Rabbi Debby