Day 10: Mount Herzl and the Old City

January 19th- Day 10

Today was our last day in Israel. We started the morning by traveling to Mount Herzl, the National Israeli Cemetery. We saw both Herzl and Rabin's graves, along with other political dignitaries and soldiers. It was surprising to see how young most of the soldiers were when they died. Most of them were around my age. 

Herzl's Grave

After the cemetery, we got on the bus and were instructed to close the blinds and shut our eyes. Then, we departed the bus (eyes still closed) and holding hands to the promenade. On the count of three, we opened our eyes to the most beautiful view of Jerusalem. We took lots of pictures and then moved on to actually go to the old city. 

View from the Promenade 

 We put our best foot forward (our right foot to be exact as it is tradition to step into the old city for the first time with your right foot) and stepped back in time. 

Stepping into the Old City

We received a quick history lesson from Moran about who ruled this part of Israel and when, while eating some delicious bread and spices. After seeing a few more historical sites, we were set free for lunch. I chose to get what seemed kind of like a calzone with cheese and tomato sauce inside. It was delicious! We also did a bit of shopping around the old city before it was time to meet up again.

When we met up, it was finally time to go to the Kotel, or the Western Wall. We saw many elements still left today and even did a few Bar/Bat Mitzvahs (along with a quick hora). After all the suspense and anticipation, we finally visited the Wall. I was overwhelmed and cried for all the people who had been there and for all the people who would never get the chance to go. I stuck Allie's, Mom's, and my notes in and said a few prayers. It was really quite a magical, emotional experience. When we were all finished sobbing, we had to leave the Old City. 

We sat right outside of Zion Gate and did a small wrap up activity. During this activity, I realized how wonderful the people are that I have been traveling with for the past 10 days, and how close I have become with some of them. 

We grabbed a quick dinner and then it was time for our ride back to Tel Aviv to go to the airport. As I get ready to land back in the United States, I feel like a different person then I was 10 days ago. I am so grateful for the experiences that I have had and cannot wait until I am able to return to Israel!