Hannah's 9th Bithday! Yom Hohledit

Last night we had a surprise 'crazy hair' birthday party for one of the staff's daughters, Hannah Brough. And it was so much fun. We decorated the girls house before we left for class. After class we had 10 minutes before Jeanie brought Hannah to the house to do our hair in a crazy style. I had big poof! I LOVE big hair! And I'm being serious. If it was acceptable in society to wear my hair like that I did last night then I would!

Simchat Torah

Last night we went to Tiberias for Simchat Torah. It is a celebrating time where the Torah scrolls come out of the synagogue and are danced with. Only the men can dance with the scrolls, but the woman started their own dancing on the outer circle. It was a lot of fun!


The night before we slept in the succah. It was the last night to do it before it is to be dismantled. I was bit by bugs and had to sleep with a comforter on but I was super hot. Even though I was sweaty and you could hear a big techno music concert down in Samach I slept through the night!

Go to baptists4israel.com and click on the 2008-9 photos to see pictures from all of the interns cameras!

My hair smells like smoke!

Two nights ago we camped out on the beach of the Kinneret. It was so nice. We had s'mores (but they don't taste like they do in America). We went swimming in the sea (it was a little freaky, but that's just because I get scared in dark water). I wanted my hair dry before going to bed so I got close to the fire and dried it. It worked great but now my hair, even after 2 separate hair washings (I always rinse and repeat in each washing), smells like smoke! Not even good wood smoke, just smoke. I think my shampoo isn't making the smell any better because it is mint, so it amplifies the bad smell somehow.

Camping out was so much fun. I slept so good and usually I don't when I camp out. It was the sound of waves that put me to sleep.




Then we got up, packed up, and went to Gamla. Gamla is an ancient city that the Romans took over. They call it the "Masada of the North" because when the Romans breeched the wall all of the people committed suicide because they didn't want to become prisoners and tortured by them. So the jumped off the top of the mountain the city was on. Crazy story and crazy to be there.


We then went to Qazin, an ancient city that have been turned into a living history tourist site. It was so interesting because I got to see how people lived and what their homes looked like. The size of the cities way back when was determined by home much water was available. This city had a small stream coming through it so about 75 families could survive from it. (In this picture we are learning from this guy how to make olive oil the ancient way. The picture after it is the synagogue of the city: Which a common misconception for synagogues are that they didn't exist before the Temple was destroyed. The truth is that they existed but their role changed when destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem. Before then they were like community centers where a bunch of the city/village happenings took place).

Sukkot

On Sukkot you build a sukkah. This is to remind of us of the time the Israelites were coming to the promised land and had to set up temporary shelters along the way.

studying for geography midterm...

These are just some of the things I'm learning about Israel in Geography class. Cool huh?


The two most dangerous snakes in Israel are: Vipers and Cobras (there are more than these two that are poisonous) also...you will die in 12/24 hours without treatment if you are bitten by a Palestine Viper. And in researching viper snake bites I found that Behring Vorderer/Mittlerer Orient Polyvalent Antivenom= the antidote is specific and is only available directly from the San Diego Zoo Reptile Department. A patient needs 15 vials of it. (Pic: Palestine Viper)


What is geopolitics? How geography effects politics...or a force that both initiates and limits the nature and extent of political history.
What are the natural geographical borders of Israel? To the West...Mediterranean Sea/Sinai Peninsula, to the East...Syrian Desert, to the South...Golf of Eilat, to the North...the Fertile Cresent.

Israel is 290 miles long and 85 miles wide

What are the 4 countries that currently border Israel? Lebanon, Jordan, Syria, Egypt

3 largest ports? Haifa, Ashdod, and Eliat (I've been to Ashdod, but not the other two yet)

What is Israel's main water source? The Kinneret (or also known as the Sea of Galilee)



What is a halophyte? A salt-loving plant that grows near the Dead Sea



Number of species of Birds= 371, but there were not many living here in the past because all the trees were cut down and their were landsliding-swamp-type landscape that were malarial. But when trees we planted and grew back so did the birds. And actually 371 is a lot for the tiny size of Israel.

A Khamsin is a weather term that dry, hot, and dirty winds come from the desert area. When it rains after a Khamsin it literally looks like it's raining mud because of all the dirt particles in the air.

Funny YouTube Video

This video I found on YouTube that is funny. It's for a touring company that focuses on bringing Jewish college students to Israel and teaching them (while showing them) about the history of their people and the land.

SideNote: Please realize that this report "teh history of Israel" is very inaccurate! he he

IF #2

Israeli's never fill up their sinks with soapy water to wash the dishes. The have these special scrubby pads that they put dish soap on it and the let the water run while they wash the dishes.

"Do you want some hand sanitizer or... do you want to feel all nice n' naturey?" -Meredith

Southern Coastal Plain Trip = A-mazing!

First Day: We went to Ashqelon and saw some ruins of a pagan city. It is mentioned several times in the Bible (2 Samuel 1:20 is one). In the archaeological digs they found tons of dog skeletons, because they believed they had healing powers. They also found baby skeletons in the sewer system. Archaeologists don't know why the babies were there. They said it could be a type of birth control because their was a lot of prostitutes in the city. Another interesting fact about this city is that Richard the Lionheart built a castle in Ashqelon. (Which it's interesting to note that Richard the Lionheart's body, brain and heart are all buried separately in France. He played a big role in the 3rd Crusade, where he planned to kill all Jewish people. He did terrible things to them before they were murdered).












Meditteranean Sea: It was a dangerous day to swim. Their was a black flag for "no swimming" up but in Israel signs don't really mean anything. So after a while you would hear the lifeguards yelling for people to come closer to the shore. It was super salty and I didn't stay in very long because it burned my cuts.
Ezuz: Camel rides! It was great and after 2 hours I was stiff and had to go to the bathroom. This place was amazing. It was out in the Negev (desert) and it was a Bedouin hotel. Hammocks, sitting on mats at dinner, eating with hands (we were given one spoon though), cement-type buildings, hut-style roofs, no beds just mats, desert floors with reed rugs covering them in the rooms,no windows just wood shutters. The sinks in the bathhouse had windows behind it them that looked out into the desert. B-A-U-tiful.

...There will be more to come from my trip because the pictures/videos are taking forever to download and I need to get going on some homework and get to bed early. I will be getting up and to the factory by 6:30 in the AM. Lahetraot!