Yerushalyim Shel Zahav, Jerusalem of Gold. Today’s itinerary for pre-camp – The City of David, the Water Tunnels, The Western Wall, and the Old City (including the Cardo) – is one of my favorites. It was a long day that concluded the Bar/Bat Mitzvah Ceremony and a celebratory dinner at Hebrew University. Incidentally, I'm still not a fan of the Bar/Bat Mitzvah Ceremony but that's a "me" thing I guess; it was quite uplifting and we were all very proud of Jara for choosing to become a Bat Mitzvah at the ceremony.
In Jerusalem’s Old City, everywhere you look is a piece of history and everything you see is a picture of beauty. As we walked all throughout the city (both aboveground and under it) my eyes kept darting everywhere, soaking in new little visuals of life past and present.
It was also our chance to ascend to the Western Wall. When we came to Israel four years ago, I ended up not going to the wall because I didn’t have the proper clothing. This time, I wasn’t going to make that mistake and I came ready to go. The wall – it’s sheer size, the feel of the rocks on your fingers, the rush of activity that takes place all around – always moves me to tears and this time was no different.
While we were at the wall, we took an obligatory team picture. Here you can check out all our smiling faces: Jim, Jara, Andy, Bobby, me, Eric, and Meryl. I think Uri was taking off his t’fillin at the time and almost missed the bus!
As for the morning’s practice, things thankfully went better today. I knew that one day wasn’t a good test and while it was still a challenge (190 on the short oil, 184 on the long oil), I felt much better when I left. Ramat Gan is known for being a very challenging house and I can live with scores like that, especially knowing that overall, I was throwing quality shots and making (some of) my spares … that’s where I need to make some improvement, but all in due time.
Tomorrow is our day at the Dead Sea, Masada, and the Bedouin hospitality. It’s another long day full of lots of fun and excitement. Off to bed ….
In Jerusalem’s Old City, everywhere you look is a piece of history and everything you see is a picture of beauty. As we walked all throughout the city (both aboveground and under it) my eyes kept darting everywhere, soaking in new little visuals of life past and present.It was also our chance to ascend to the Western Wall. When we came to Israel four years ago, I ended up not going to the wall because I didn’t have the proper clothing. This time, I wasn’t going to make that mistake and I came ready to go. The wall – it’s sheer size, the feel of the rocks on your fingers, the rush of activity that takes place all around – always moves me to tears and this time was no different.
While we were at the wall, we took an obligatory team picture. Here you can check out all our smiling faces: Jim, Jara, Andy, Bobby, me, Eric, and Meryl. I think Uri was taking off his t’fillin at the time and almost missed the bus!As for the morning’s practice, things thankfully went better today. I knew that one day wasn’t a good test and while it was still a challenge (190 on the short oil, 184 on the long oil), I felt much better when I left. Ramat Gan is known for being a very challenging house and I can live with scores like that, especially knowing that overall, I was throwing quality shots and making (some of) my spares … that’s where I need to make some improvement, but all in due time.
Tomorrow is our day at the Dead Sea, Masada, and the Bedouin hospitality. It’s another long day full of lots of fun and excitement. Off to bed ….
Masada tomorrow, sounds like it will be midday and hot....dad and I don't have the time to do that on our visit to Israel and I will miss that.
ReplyDeleteWell you surely are busy enough.