Our Israeli peers shared personal stories of loss in the IDF, opening our eyes to their reality and increasing our appreciation of their dedication and service to their country.

Suddenly a wonderful feeling came over my heart and a smile across my face when I remembered I was in Israel.

We really came together as a family for our last Shabbat together. It was really amazing how the group became so close and cohesive after only spending ten days together. Feeling like we were a Birthright family made the experience that much more special.

Talking to the Bedouin woman who is an activist for women's rights was our favorite part of today because she was working to positively change her community. 

It was entrancing and intoxicating, the most hope I had ever witnessed, and in that moment I felt totally connected to all Jews across the world and across time. 

Saturday was a very chill day, which was very much appreciated by most of the group after all of the busy and exciting days we have had so far! We got to sleep in and had an optional breakfast at 9:30am, which was the perfect way to start Shabbat. Our first group activity was at 11 am; Michal (our Israeli trip leader) started the activity by asking us to go around and share our least favorite chore to do. At first we were confused, but played along with her directions. Thank you for a fun morning Michal!

We talked about what it's like to actually live in this country that we've all grown to love and face the issues that they do. Many of these issues have to do with serving in the army, which is a part of most Israelis' lives in ways that we can't really imagine, even though we've gotten a pretty good idea of the experience through our new Israeli friends' perspectives.

At night, we said some prayers and sang as a group to end Shabbat, and then we went to visit Ben Yehuda street, which Shirly described as the "State Street of Jerusalem." This street is lined with many shops and restaurants, and is very lively at night. I had the best falafel of my life at Moshiko, where a lot of the group went to grab dinner. Some people had to wait over a half hour in line for food, but it was definitely worth it. :)

Seriously, these past ten days have flown by. It was an incredible, life changing experience for Bus 818 and we can't wait to see our friends back on campus in the Fall! It's not goodbye, it's see you later, Israel.