The Galilee

This week in the Galilee has been one of the most amazing weeks of my life.  This place is beautiful beyond description and overwhelmingly significant to me in so many ways...
Here are just a few pictures :)

 Caesarea

 Aquaducts at Caesarea

 The Church of the Annunciation in Nazareth

The view from the top of Mount Arbel

The Sea of Galilee, from the boat we took across

On the Mount of Beatitudes

The Church of the Beatitudes

 Fish from the Sea of Galilee!  (Called St. Peter's fish)
Before... 

...and after :)  Scrumptious!

Capernaum :)

Just another stunning sunset from my window here at the kibbutz :) 

Gamla! The name comes from the Aramaic name for 'camel' because it's shaped like a camel's hump.
And this ancient city has the coolest history--check it out :)

The Jordan River, at the traditional site of Jesus' baptism

 Swimming hole! 

 At a rebuilt Talmudic period Jewish village- I loved the oil lamp and lamp niche in the wall.  Gives a probably more realistic image of the "candle" and "candlestick" in Matt. 5:15

I accompanied during sacrament meeting in the Galilee Branch today! What an opportunity :) 

 And here's the view out the back window of that meetinghouse, right on the coast in Tiberias :)

Morning in West Jeru

This morning started out not-so-fab with a New Testament midterm.  But once it was over, we had a girls' day out and took taxis to Jewish West Jerusalem for a double birthday celebration-- Raelynn and Megan! :)

A few of us walked through Mea She'arim, one of the oldest neighborhoods in Jerusalem and one where, today, very strict interpretations of Jewish traditions govern-- quite the experience to be there.  I took a picture of the sign as we walked into the neighborhood.  The women dress very modestly, with long sleeves, high necklines, long skirts, tights, head scarves, etc., and most of the men wear long black coats and black hats, or at least kippot with their payos (the side curls.)  SO interesting... and, truthfully, not particularly welcoming, but I'm still glad I had the opportunity to see.  It's amazing how Jerusalem children can grow up in completely different worlds while living only a few blocks away!

Then, on to the shuk- the Shuk Mahane Yehuda, to be specific!  Such a loud, bustling (and claustrophobic)... especially on a Friday as people are preparing for Shabbat!

 Ice cream!  Had to try a Shukilda Jerusalem cone-- ice cream, pistachios, hazelnuts, halva, date honey... delish! 

 One of the many fruit stands on the street (stuck between the smell of the fish heads at a seafood stand and the amazing aromas of fresh breads and pastries on the other side...)

 Halva! SO yummy- it's a kind of sweet, dense confection made with sesame tahini. Especially good (for the taste buds, not the love handles) as a spread on toasted pita at dinner :)

We just loved the surly little models...

The Golden Arches are EVERYWHERE

Taxi ride home!

Walking my feet off...

This week has been so great, seeing and doing so many things!  I think we're all starting to realize just how limited our time really is here, and we're just trying to make the most of every opportunity (which is why we've all probably averaged well over 20 hours of walking the past few days :P) So much left to do, and so little time!
 

The view from the top of the Tower of David is amazing! I love how, on the sign there, the "Mormon University" is (along with the Dome of the Rock, Church of the Redeemer, Al-Aqsa Mosque, etc.) one of the main sites pointed out :) And rightly so-- it really is beautiful up there! And.. the sun is really bright ;)

Also at the David Citadel-  a statue of David and Goliath('s head.)  Precious.

Covering our heads in the Russian Orthodox church, one of the many, many churches we visited in the Old City yesterday :)

I just had to take a picture of this sweet nun- she looks like she's straight out of The Sound of Music :)

Touching the Rock of Calvary/ Golgotha at the Altar of Crucifixion in the Greek Orthodox section of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre (whew, I think I got all those names right!)

Tin man statue in the mall in West Jerusalem! Loved him :)

The sunset as we were walking in tonight :)

Walking through the Kidron Valley coming home- tombs of Zechariah and Bene Hezir (a bunch of Jewish graves behind them on the Mount of Olives)

SO many more pictures to come when I get around to it! :)

Tel Aviv

I just spent the day at the beach, swimming in the Mediterranean Sea! 

Gorgeous weather, awesome people, delicious gelatto, beautiful water, a little bit of a sunburn, and lots of old people who perhaps ought to reconsider their choices of swim attire... such a fun day! :)

Herodian Fortress + Shepherd's Field

This was another adventure that took us into the West Bank-- the Herodian Fortress, which King Herod had built atop a partially-artificially-made hill for his protection (his tomb was also made in this hill.)  even with just the remains left, it's a pretty incredible structure! 

 

With Amanda and Lisa on top at the fortress itself

 

Herod actually lived at the bottom of the hill in some fancy house with a pool 70x40 m and 3 m deep... it's gigantic. Anyway, I just loved watching this boy ride his donkey along the edge

 After the fortress, we went to Shepherd's Field, a spot in one of the field just outside of Bethlehem and a location as likely as any other for the events recorded in the Bible about the shepherds being told of the Savior's birth.  It was honestly one of my favorite experiences here so far-- to sit in these field, have our own Christmas celebration (on Halloween!) as we sang, spoke, and bore testimonies... it was a really memorable night for me.

I took a few minutes by myself to just sit and ponder and write... I heard a really strange noise, and suddenly behind me came running a whole herd of sheep and their shepherd on a donkey!  I mean, it's a shepherd's field, so I shouldn't have been surprised, but it was still just a really neat moment :)  Pictures can never do justice to reality, but that's ok- the sheep's glowing eyes are kind of cool :)