Holocaust History Museum

apart of our last field study, the group took a couple hours to visit Yad Vashem- the Holocaust History Museum in Jerusalem. the museum presents the story from a Jewish perspective, highlighting individual testimonies, artifacts, photographs, film clips and music.



we were not allowed to take pictures in the museum, but I took pages of notes of my impressions. I am thankful for the LORD equipping me with emotions, but at times it is difficult in public places! I had a hard time in some exhibits keeping my tears down.

in a labor camp, Jewish workers were assigned to make shoe pads, drum heads, and the lining of purses. the materials they had to use- Torah scrolls of parchments! imagine being instructed to make items out of the Holy Bible. heartbreaking.

there were large displays of items that were stolen from synagogues in Europe. before burning down the building, SS officers would gather all of the booty to sell or melt down for gold.

within the camps, Jews traded bread rations for handmade brooches and metal gifts for loved ones. it was such a great sacrifice to celebrate a loved one's birthday by giving up one's only possession, let alone, only chance to further life.

a section of the museum was transformed into a street from the Warsaw Ghetto. on the floor was laid original cobblestone, with tram tracks down the middle of the street. above was an original lamppost guiding the travelers. as one walked down the street, above one could hear the noise of the area when the Jews were evacuated from their homes.

an exhibit was dedicated to the Righteous Among the Nations, the non-Jews who worked to save the persecuted Jews in Europe. a row of trees outside of the museum commemorates their efforts.



many faithful people risked much to extended a hand to the oppressed Jews. among the honored were Oscar Schindler, who is buried in Jerusalem, and Corrie Ten Boom, who my little sister is named after.



within the Righteous exhibit was this quote from a non-Jew: "I know that when I stand before God on Judgment Day, I shall not be asked the question posed to Cain- where were you when your brother's blood was crying out to God?"

the latter part of the museum documented how Jews coped with the end of the war and the living transition afterwards. an elderly couple's video testimony described how many people once free got married to other fellow camp mates. they said their wedding was the first of 21 in one day! they were the typical older couple as well: the woman told most of their story while the man just sat, looking at the camera. he would interject with comments like "I didn't know that" or "why didn't you tell me that?" so funny! and the woman just ignored him! she told her story of how she dealt with her first pregnancy after the war. at first she did not believe she was with child: "my body did not have any fat on it. how could I develop a body to have a baby?" she did not have money for an abortion, so she tried many different methods at home to abort her child. nothing worked; her son was born just the same. recalling the moment of his birth: "I looked at this beautiful baby, a healthy son that I created, and I could only think of was how I previously wanted to kill him."

on top of the hill of the museum, there stands a Children's Memorial building dedicated to the one and a half million Jewish children who perished in the Holocaust. in the middle of the room was a single lit candle surround by a wall foggy mirrors, giving the illusion of millions of candles floating in the air. as one walked through the room, the name, age, and location of each perished child was read aloud. so moving. the building was completely funded by a couple who lost a son in Auschwitz in 1944.



the most impressive room in the museum is the Hall of Names. the room is filled 27 columns wide, 20 shelves high with 16 binders resting on each shelf. the hall contains the archive of the names of the Jews who perished in the Holocaust. within the binders are pages of testimony containing names and biographical details of the victims. there was also available computer terminals for conducting searches of victims names and adding names that are still missing.

the exit of the museum opens out to an incredible view of Jerusalem. in remembering the Holocaust, there must also be a look into the future. this view is a reminder that the state of Israel, while thriving through oppression, is still in need of creating a democratic state, creating peace with all neighbors.



the LORD promised in Ezekiel 37.14: "I will put My spirit in you, and ye shall live, and I will place you in your own land; and ye shall know that I the LORD have spoken."

FOOD!!!

I love food and I have greatly enjoyed the food in Israel. there has been a great mix of styles, mostly Arabic. I have appreciated humus with each dinner! so good!
at our hotel, meals have been presented buffet style and I have sampled a variety of choices.[I was raised to eat a bite of everything on one's plate. Mom would be proud.] here is the restaurant of the Gloria Hotel.



the fish has been incredibly buttery and delicious. and of course the usual olive bowl with yummy green and black olives. even olives offered at breakfast!
dinner usually consists of several bowls of cold items, usually salads, fresh vegetables, and olives.



apart of the hot items, there is usually rice, pasta, a hot vegetable, and a couple different meal dishes.



dessert is tasty! accompanying the fresh fruit option, there is always dessert! I have sampled baklava, great baked goods, coffee ice cream, and so much more! best ending of a full meal!



and TONS of pita and humus! most lunches I have eaten humus and will greatly miss the fresh stuff when I get back to the states. I am wanting to learn how to make pita bread at home because fresh, doughy pita is wonderful!

Best Coffee in Israel!

for my barista friends:
I found the best "Starbucks"-like coffee in Israel!
I have been putting off buying myself a treat on this trip. there has been TONS of ice cream and soft drinks and candy and baked goods for purchase. most of the items are exactly what we have at home, so I planned on waiting.
but... then I was introduced to Aroma.



it is basically fast food coffee, like Starbucks, but oh so much better! they have fluffy sandwiches, huge salads, and fresh baked goods. some of our group when for lunch today.



my favorite item is an iced Aroma coffee.



it is the house blend, an Arabic coffee, with cream and sugar. the drink is deliciously rich and flavorful, begging me to drink the whole glass at once! I have caved in and treated myself to this delicacy three times already this week! accompanying each drink, Aroma also treats one to a sample of their chocolate. with my list of favorites during this trip, Aroma coffee is now among the top sights of Israel!

Temple Mount Platform

we had a day free day to explore on our own. *code for a morning to sleep in past 7am!* I took the morning to walk around the Temple Mount platform. as a group we have toured the Western Wall of the Temple Mount and the surrounding area earlier in our trip. the Temple Mount Platform helped bring together the history of the religious center as the home of the Holy of Holies.



the Dome of the Rock mosque is the center of the Temple Mount.



it is believed that the mosque was built in a fashion to remove the "annoyance" constituted by the numerous fine buildings in other religions. instead they have built just one fine building!



while I was not able to go inside of the mosque, the exterior of the Dome is so intricate in itself. to create the Dome's splendor, 100,000 gold dinar coins were melted down and cast on the whole exterior, “which at the time had a strong glitter that no eye could look straight at it.”



I found it very appropriate that there was a sundial on an archway. at least in Judaism the time of day is very important. prayer is required three times a day each at a specific time. I have come to respect the reverence of the religion where ritual and tradition is very important in everyday life.



[hi Gail Enns! your son is alive and well.]

I spent a part of my afternoon exploring outside of the Old City wall. I traveled along Jaffa St. to shop around the shuq. traditionally shuqs are held outside of a city in the location where a caravan loaded with goods would stop and merchants would display their goods for sale. in Jerusalem there is a concentrated section with more permanent shops displaying mostly food and house ware items. it was truly a cultural experience. shop owners were yelling out produce prices, trying to beat out the neighboring store.



I passed produce stands with delicious fruits and vegetables, meat markers displaying fresh fish. there were a lot of people out shopping as well! all generations getting food together for the Shabbot meal. I bought fresh pita out of the oven and it was SO good! warm and doughy and so soft! it definitely beat the usual pita I eat with dinner!



I bought a cute cute dress for a wedding I am attending in June. haha!

Jerusalem University College

welcome to my school!



Jerusalem University College was founded in 1958 and sits on Mt. Zion just outside of the Old City wall. following the British school system, it is titled as a University College because they offer MA degrees but no do have the complete facilities for such schooling.
the school facilities are beautiful! a man wanted to build an English school for boys, but was not able to buy property. instead he built a cemetery on the grounds and used the "extra" land to build a school! wild story! he in turn is buried on the grounds.
at the back of the school still stands the cemetery!



walking around made me think of my Mom who enjoys looking at grave sights. in Fresno, we enjoy visiting the cemeteries around Memorial Day, reading the names and wondering about their lives.



all prominent Protestants were buried in this cemetery. in the 19th century the Protestants were the leading individuals in helping Jerusalem to come out of the dark ages. Jerusalem was the back watershed, no one was interested in being here, and there were some quite important scholars who came over to help develop Jerusalem: the first doctors, hospitals, archaeologists, architects. so a lot of famous people from the 19th century were buried at the cemetery. the cemetery property is now owned by the Lutherans and Anglicans.







one of the people buried at the school is the American author of the hymn "It Is Well (With My Soul)," Horatio G. Spafford. he is the second name from the top on the below marking. he and his family were going to take a holiday in France. He however had to finish out a real estate deal in Chicago, so he sent this wife and two daughters ahead of him on a ship. the ship had a collusion, sank, and the two daughter were killed. his wife was survived and sent a wire to her husband that said, "saved alone." he got on a ship to France and once he arrived, he wrote the hymn.



later in life, the wealthy family settles in Jerusalem for an extended amount of time. they started a compound north of the City to live in community called the American Colony. a group of people from the Spafford's church decided to join the efforts and did a lot of good social work in the City starting an orphanage and taking detailed photographs of the City. a group of the workers are buried together in a communal plot and who are listed on a communal plaque.



on for some more life giving pictures... the school is beautiful! as I mentioned, the school was originally built as a English school for Arab boys and JUC has been there for the last 50 years.



here is the other side of the entrance. all of us students were given a key to visit the school even after hours.



from the entrance, one walks out to a large open courtyard where we eat our lunch and talk with new friends.







apart of this room, where one staff member lives, houses a tomb! the style of tomb is one with a lower ledge and at one time, the staff member used that bench as a bed!




the great thing about the garden at JUC is the hidden laundry room. yay clean clothes!





only 9 more days to enjoy this wonderful campus!

Preservations around Jerusalem

it is so wild to walk around the City and remember that one is walking on thousands of years of history. in America, we get excited when something is over one hundred years old! within Fresno, my house is considered old because it was built in the 1920s. however in Israel, a more common historical era is the Byzantine period from 330 AD!

walking around the Old City of Jerusalem, tucked in to the Jewish Quarter, our group stumbled upon "The Broad Wall" or "Avigad's Wall" along the Transversal Valley.



as the City Wall moved over the centuries, this section of the wall has been preserved as a reminder of all of the city changes. looking down from the top, we could identify where the street level used to be and how tall the wall used to stand.





the section of the wall that remains is well intact. it is called "The Broad Wall" for the obvious measurement of the wall, which was to strengthen the weaker northern side of Jerusalem. What is seen is the foundation of the wall, possibly the foundation that was underground for a city wall of Jerusalem during the time of Hezekiah. it is believed that the wall was built by King Hezekiah to fortify the city of Jerusalem against an attack from the Assyrians in 722BC.

I'm Home!

well, Jerusalem that is, my second "home" these past weeks. it feels so great to be home, unpacking, and relaxing in my hotel room. even though we'll be leaving again in three days, it does feel nice to settle. I believe we have only 10 more days left of our trip. the time has flown by so fast and yet my brain could really use a rest! ha! however, I have grown so much as a Bible reader and am looking forward to the incredible insights I fill discover in the future because of this trip.
I have just returned from a three day travel of the Sephelah and Negev. pictures are to come of many hiking trips, visits to fort sights and waterfalls and a swim in the Dead Sea!
thanks for the thoughts and prayers as our group travels. I have felt incredibly safe traveling with around the country. of course there is a feeling of the unfortunate tensions of the land, but in no way have I been afraid for my safety. praise God!
I promise to dive deeper into explanations of my travels in the coming days, but for right now, I need to rest my body! good night!

one week down, two to go!
tomorrow we head out for three days of travel in the land. I will not be able to post probably until Thursday. we will be traveling to the south, visiting Negev. moving north-east, we will visit the Dead Sea; maybe even take a dip! we will also be nomads in a sense; moving around to two youth hostels! we are always going to be taking some great hikes. hopefully I have have more pictures than sunburns at the end of the week! thank God for sunscreen!
I am learning a lot in the land. we had our first exam today. so many of my previous thoughts of the Holy Land are being turned upside down! I am realizing that my Bible education has not been as intense as it should have been. and as a result, my brain is hurting with information overload! however, I am having a great time and will definitely come back with wonderful stories and pictures of this challenging, yet rewarding time.
thank you for the prayers. I have felt very safe during our day trips. my body has let me know when I need some down time and I am grateful for that instinct! and know that all of you are in my prayers as well. I miss home and am looking forward to sharing my trip with you!

Hezekiah's Tunnel

on our OT Jerusalem walk, we took a tour of the South-East part of the Old City. the Kidron Valley lies on this side of the city, outside of the city walls. the valley is much like the Hinnom Valley, rich in step houses.

located in between the Kidron Valley and the Central Valley (yes, they have one too!) , is the City of David.



within the City of David is the elaborate ancient water system of Hezekiah's Tunnel. after walking around some of the excavations around the center, our group walked through the pitch-black, underground tunnel used to bring water into the city in times of siege. this secret system collected water from the Gihom Spring and channeled it through to the Siloam Pool.



the walk was a third of a mile long, and at times the tunnel was not very high. even I had to duck!




also at time water came up to my mid-thigh!



I thought I would put up a picture that would show off my leggies! ha!



I am thankful to Tyler Enns for guiding me, as I did not have much of a flashlight.



he ended up taking pictures every ten feet to track where the tunnel was leading us! the walk was very exhilarating! I was smiling the whole time!



this is a mural of what the Siloam Pool would look like. the water would be collected there at the end of the tunnel.



this is what it looks like today...



our group watering our feet!