43/60

Tourist Day #3

It is unfortunately my last day here in Israel. I was supposed to be flying to Bali, Indonesia tomorrow, but there is a volcano that is acting up and causing some airport closures, so my friends and I made the decision to pull the plug on the trip since most of us have to get back to the states at a certain time {can't afford to be stuck there}. So I will be flying back into to New Jersey, ironically where all of this craziness started from!

When I came to Israel, besides the work, all I wanted to do was see Mt Carmel. This mountain was the location of many stories that I studied this past semester in my bible study and it sparked my interest from the first time I heard about it. The more research I did, the more I discovered amazing miracles that happened all around this high piece of land. 

We walked around the mountain for most of the morning, reading 1 Kings 18 while sitting on a rock overlooking the Jezreel Valley. It was a beautiful sight as doves flew around and other birds chirped while we read. Something out of a dream really. 

Israel, thank you for the definite memories that will sit with my heart for the rest of my life. Whether it was fear or peace, laying awake at night or running through the streets during the day, God was by my side every step of the way, holding my head up, healing me and growing me stronger. 

How foolish I have felt up to this point to doubt a God so able and wise.

Psalm 23

A psalm of David.

1 The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing.
2     He makes me lie down in green pastures,
he leads me beside quiet waters,
3     he refreshes my soul.
He guides me along the right paths
    for his name’s sake.
4 Even though I walk
    through the darkest valley,[a]
I will fear no evil,
    for you are with me;
your rod and your staff,
    they comfort me.

⁵ You prepare a table before me
    in the presence of my enemies.
You anoint my head with oil;
    my cup overflows.
⁶ Surely your goodness and love will follow me
    all the days of my life,
and I will dwell in the house of the Lord
    forever.

40-42/60

These last three days have been filled with lots of hard work,

I was challenged with a different type of work with more one on one interaction, which ended up being such a great blessing because people aren't very stand-offish and mean to a lost-looking American girl in Israel {which was awesome!}

Day 42 brought me to my very last day working, which was very crazy as I had just been falling into, not a routine, but a certain okay-ness with my work and how it made me feel. I don't know if that made any sense, but in a strange way, I was sad it was over. 

I know the street names, and actually was able to give directions to a random man walking by! I'm practically a local! Tel Aviv is a great city, but I don't think I would ever put it at the top of my retirement list {if I ever get the choice}. I think I much prefer the quietness of rural areas with field and tress to shade and comfort.

I would 100% recommend taking trip there though in your life time! With the beaches and parks that are sprinkled throughout the city, it doesn't feel too claustrophobic.

I'm excited for tomorrow! Stay tuned!

39/60

Tourist Day #2

It was a 0230 wake up for me today! I headed out to the Masada Fort this morning to hike up and catch the sun rise over the Dead Sea. 

A pixely photo from the top!

Once the sun got up, it was over 100 degrees out and I made the rookie decision to wear all black... in the desert.

The next stop was the En Gedi National Park where there were beautiful waterfalls, animals and flowers. I could have spent a whole week in the park, but in order to fit everything in the day, I only had an hour!

The final stop of the day was the DEAD SEEEEE. I did the whole slather yourself up with dead sea mud and then try to get it off your face and burn your eyes things that they always talk about. It was a one time experience for sure. I only stayed in for about ten minutes because I was so afraid of getting sun burnt again {RIP Costa Rica}.

Today was a great day and I crashed when I made it back to my room.

Amazing history her in Israel, and I had little to no idea.

38/60

Tourist Day #1

For the next two days, I and my friend have off from work, so we will be doing some genuine touring around Israel. 

Today's travels brought us to Jerusalem with a very early morning bus trip. The Tel Aviv bus terminal used to be the largest in the world up until a couple of years ago, so I am very proud of being able to navigate through and make it to the right bus!

Once there our first stop was the Garden Tomb, the predicted spot of Jesus' burial and resurrection. It was such a peaceful experience being able to walk through the beautifully kept garden in prayer and thought.

Next we navigated our way to the Damascus entrance to the Old City. We walked through markets and yelling people all trying to get to their final destination or sell their various bags and sandals. We made our way to the Austrian Hospice building where we ironically ate a traditional German meal. It was homey hearing and eating German again!

The rest of the day was spent seeing the classics.

The West Wall

The Church of the Holy Sepulchre

Marketing

It was a crazy day being in the middle of all of the hustle and bustle. You can definitely feel the tension in some of the religious areas of the city, so that was a bit stressful for two young ladies that don't really know where or what they were doing! I was happy to get back to my room safe and sound by the end of the day.

What a historical place of present and past beauty and meaning.

37/60

Today we had a bit of a delayed start to the work day, so I was able to sleep {yayayayayayayayaya} 

I was able to casually eat my breakfast, listen to a sermon {Red Rocks Young Adults is my go to!} and write a little bit. I have always found writing to be one of my favorite outlets, allowing me to be frank, thoughtful, and creative all in one space. I haven't been very good about writing about all of this summer, past this blog, and I hope that that won't be a regret of mine years down the road... but we will see,

After a calm morning I worked until the late afternoon. For diner, one of my friends and I went out to diner for the first time here in Tel Aviv. It was our first outing that was 100% pointing and head nods because neither of us speak Hebrew! But it is amazing how that all works out, right! I ended up ordering a strange egg dish with balls of egg and cheese. It was strange.

Wouldn't recommend, my tummy hurts.

36/60

Work



     Work



           Work



               Work



                    Work



                         Work


And all is well. God is working and providing peace...slowly but surely in His perfect time.

35/60

Today was another full day of work in the city!

I also finally got my credit card in the mail, so now I am able to buy food and stop mooching off of others here in Tel Aviv.

The day was long and hot as usual, but it is cool being able to be exposed to different parts of the city. Some are home to modest apartments that are holding on for dear life to stay intact. Others are multimillion dollar apartments that have full time security teams in place. Different walks of life, both socioeconomic and religious are melted together in this busy young town.

I definitely feel as if I am seeing the normal side of Israel that is not discussed in American news. They have homes and communities just like us. They help their neighbors and kiss their kids goodbye before a day of school. They are a devout and loyal people group that live day to day rather relaxed and calm, putting a special importance on the family and personal time. I think I can learn a lot from them!

View from my room...

34/60

Today was another full day of work. It was a heat wave today which was super fun! It really wasn’t that bad because we’ve been very good about drinking water and taking initiative to jump from shade spot to shade spot. For lunch today I had a traditional Middle Eastern dish called shashuka. Nothing really exciting to report from the day. I am feeling a little bit better about being here but still not fully comfortable yet. I’m excited to go home and see my family again... a large part of me wonders why I didn’t just stay there the whole summer haha. I didn’t realize how much would be taken out of me doing all of this traveling and work!