Jerusalem
Is there any other place in the world that you wouldn’t mind walking close to a dozen miles in the scorching sun all day? Is there any place in the world you wouldn’t mind waking up at 6:30 AM and going non- stop until 11:30 at night? Is there any other place you would want to spend hours touring buildings that are five thousand years old and filled with old, smelly men in suits? The answer is no. You would only want to do all of that in the most beautiful and holy city in the world: Jerusalem, where the students and staff of bus 1071 were fortunate enough to spend time in today.
The day started much like any other: An early wake up, and a typical Israeli breakfast (don't expect common breakfast foods like apples, hash browns and sausage, but do expect foods filled with chocolate spread, vanilla pudding, and rice). We then listened to two interesting lectures about political science in Israel (from an award winning professor at Hebrew University) and about how Israel's public perception can be changed quickly due to media biases (from an organization called "CAMERA" which provided some of the funds for us to have our free trip). Finally, we took a short bus ride to the old city of Jerusalem, where we were quickly greeted by the burning sun, a walking tour of the old city, and extremely informative stories and information, told by our amazing tour guide, Muki, about everything from where exactly the stones that support the buildings came from to exactly how many shwarma shops there are in the old city.
The day was filled with a variety of sights, smells (some good, some VERY bad), and explorations. For the people whose first time it was in Jerusalem, the emotions were overwhelming. There's just something about walking around within the walls of the old city that just feels so different, something that you can only dream of and that most people will, unfortunately, never get to experience in their lifetime. Just to think about our Jewish biblical ancestors once roaming about on the very roads that we were roaming about on is a surreal feeling. Many tears were shed as we all prayed for our friends and family at the western wall, and the men got to try on tfillin and talis while getting the authentic orthodox praying experience. After more walking (and sweating) we finally took a break and got to relax, eat, drink, and shop at an outdoor mall. This was a welcome change of pace from the cheap, but fun, knick-knack souvenir shops in the old city, that all sell the same tourist oriented items (even though most people were successful in finding plenty of gifts for friends and family).
This amazing day came to an end when we were lucky enough to watch two short films from the Jerusalem College of Video and Media. With one about the moral dilemmas that Israeli soldiers face on an everyday basis, and one about the difficult lives lead by daughters of rabbis, there was much conversation to be had together afterwards. Jerusalem is an amazing city, and not one that any of us lucky students will ever forget.
-Max Lippitt
Is there any other place in the world that you wouldn’t mind walking close to a dozen miles in the scorching sun all day? Is there any place in the world you wouldn’t mind waking up at 6:30 AM and going non- stop until 11:30 at night? Is there any other place you would want to spend hours touring buildings that are five thousand years old and filled with old, smelly men in suits? The answer is no. You would only want to do all of that in the most beautiful and holy city in the world: Jerusalem, where the students and staff of bus 1071 were fortunate enough to spend time in today.
The day started much like any other: An early wake up, and a typical Israeli breakfast (don't expect common breakfast foods like apples, hash browns and sausage, but do expect foods filled with chocolate spread, vanilla pudding, and rice). We then listened to two interesting lectures about political science in Israel (from an award winning professor at Hebrew University) and about how Israel's public perception can be changed quickly due to media biases (from an organization called "CAMERA" which provided some of the funds for us to have our free trip). Finally, we took a short bus ride to the old city of Jerusalem, where we were quickly greeted by the burning sun, a walking tour of the old city, and extremely informative stories and information, told by our amazing tour guide, Muki, about everything from where exactly the stones that support the buildings came from to exactly how many shwarma shops there are in the old city.
The day was filled with a variety of sights, smells (some good, some VERY bad), and explorations. For the people whose first time it was in Jerusalem, the emotions were overwhelming. There's just something about walking around within the walls of the old city that just feels so different, something that you can only dream of and that most people will, unfortunately, never get to experience in their lifetime. Just to think about our Jewish biblical ancestors once roaming about on the very roads that we were roaming about on is a surreal feeling. Many tears were shed as we all prayed for our friends and family at the western wall, and the men got to try on tfillin and talis while getting the authentic orthodox praying experience. After more walking (and sweating) we finally took a break and got to relax, eat, drink, and shop at an outdoor mall. This was a welcome change of pace from the cheap, but fun, knick-knack souvenir shops in the old city, that all sell the same tourist oriented items (even though most people were successful in finding plenty of gifts for friends and family).
This amazing day came to an end when we were lucky enough to watch two short films from the Jerusalem College of Video and Media. With one about the moral dilemmas that Israeli soldiers face on an everyday basis, and one about the difficult lives lead by daughters of rabbis, there was much conversation to be had together afterwards. Jerusalem is an amazing city, and not one that any of us lucky students will ever forget.
-Max Lippitt
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