What an amazing few days we have had.   We spent Shabbat in the holy city of Jerusalem.  Before bringing in Shabbat, we toured the old city and visited the Kotel (Western Wall).  It was a moving experience and we all had a chance to connect to our spirituality and our heritage.  

When you enter the triangular-shaped museum, which represents one star in the Star of David, you can see through the windows at the end of the museum.

We escape the museum to see Israel under the glittering sun
To remind us that we’ll always have this home now that the war is done

"Israelis soldiers are required to wear their uniforms whenever they enter Yad Vashem to show respect for the dead. I left Yad Vashem wondering how I can pay my respect to Israeli soldiers."

Before entering the city, we passed through King David's tomb and how the city was built layer upon layer. In what felt like a renactment of Aladdin, we twisted and turned through Jerusalems narrow alleys, finally entering the Old City. 

The possibilities of haggling are endless, and the amount of gifts, trinkets, fruits, vegetables, spices, meats, restaurants, food stands

A guide led us through the exhibits, and a lot of us watched the videos from survivors of the Holocaust. We each reacted to the experience in a different way, but we all thought it was incredibly powerful.
 

We took pictures in front of a spectacular view and took a moment to absorb the splendor of the Negev. Next, we drove to become immersed in the Bedouin culture.

We had a very meaningful day today at Yad Vashem, Israel's Holocaust museum. The community of our group was apparent as we supported each other through the museum.

Pictures are worth a thousand words!