Day 4 - Friday, May 11th
Shalom Parents and
Friends!
Friday morning started
with an early breakfast and what we thought would be a two hour bus ride to
Jerusalem. Everyone was so excite to get to the city after learning so much
about Kibutz life all day long yesterday! Unfortunately, in “bus time” that is twice
as long as we are usually told… So after a very, very, long bus ride we finally
got into the city of Jerusalem. Our first stop was at the Tower of David in the
heart of the city. We climbed to the top of the tower and heard the history of
old Jerusalem versus the new side. We were all amazed by the beautiful view of
the city from the top of the tower! We met up with our friends from MSU on the
other Hillel bus and said the shehechiyanu prayer to welcome us to Jerusalem
for the first time. It felt really good to finally be here in this holy city!
After that we visited the Kotel (Western Wall). Seeing other Jewish people
praying for themselves, their families, and others at the western wall and
taking part in it myself was a very emotional and eye opening experience for
me. I could really see how important this spot was for Jewish people all over
the world for over 2,000 years. We then checked into the Rimonim Hotel in
Jerusalem where we celebrated Shabbat with many other birthright groups. We stood
outside to hear the traditional siren that they set off to alarm the city of
Jerusalem that shabbat has begun. It was interesting because we found out that
many people stand outside and wait to hear the siren and then begin their Shabbat
traditions. To me this siren really shows the strong connection between all the
Jewish people in Jerusalem. That evening we lit candles together said prayers,
and enjoyed a wonderful dinner. During the Oneg, we learned how cute everyone
was as a child, celebrated the birthdays on the trip, and tried various Israeli
snacks. The first day in Jerusalem was so great, we can’t wait to relax for the
rest of Shabbat and learn so much more about the history of the city!
Lyz Sandler and the rest
of bus 990
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| A group shot at the Western Wall |
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| Enjoying the view at Migdal David |
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| Personal prayer at the Kotel (Western Wall) |
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| A different perspective of the Kotel |
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