Day 9 - Monday, December 24th
Waking up at the ass crack of dawn, 5:30 in the morning in
the Bedouin Tents was not our ideal way to start our day. However, the bright sunrise that peaked over
the desert hills proved to show all of us that we would have a pleasant
day..until we smelled the camel shit.
Upon smelling this, we gathered the courage to ride camels in a
circle. We even had the opportunity to
name the camels. After departing the
silent desert, we embarked on a treacherous 2 hour bus ride filled with frigid
conditions that no towel or sweatshirt could provide a sufficient amount of
warmth. Upon arrival at the Mesada, we
gazed upon the steps that would lead us to the monumental feat for our trip. As we gathered our gear, preparing ourselves
for a gruesome, sweaty hike, we found that said hike turned out to be a 15
minute stroll up the mountain. Despite
the short walk, achieving our goal to the top of the Mesada remained
monumental. Before commencing our
archaeological tour of the ruins of the Mesada, we were given the opportunity
to renew our Jewish names. The purpose
of renewing our name was so all of us could unite in the act of Judaism. In order to do so, we stood in unity,
shouting from the tips of Mesada into the hills of Israel. As each name was echoed back, a new sense of
spiritual awakening engulfed our group.
From there, we explored the remainder of the Mesada, where Lilly stood
with courage in front of our group, having her Bat Mitzvah on top of the
beautiful mountain. Mazel tov! After this awesome little ceremony, we began
our journey down the mountain. This
proved to be much harder than the upwards journey because of the winding Snake
Path. After a brief lunch, what was
meant to be a long ride to the Dead Sea, seemed short due to our anxiety to float
in the Sea. The experience exceeded our
expectations. Not only did we lather
from head to toe in mucus like mud, but we also managed to form bonds with
other members of Taglit. The Dead Sea
proved to be very lively. We were
hesitant to submerge right away, but as everyone began bobbing along, we
quickly floated our way to serenity amidst the Dead Sea. After the sudden shock of burning sensation,
it very quickly became fun in games as people began loosening up and dancing
through the Sea. It was interesting to
feel the way the Sea was able to carry us without effort as if we were a
feather. After a brief, but cleansing
shower, we journeyed to our final destination: Ma’ale Hachamisha Hotel. The evening was pleasant, as everyone settled
in and feasted like champions! We look
forward to experiencing the final moments of our journey before we are taken
hostage on Delta flight #### to the United States of America.
Miss you and love you
Love,
Allie, Lizzy and Marci
No comments:
Post a Comment