My Israeli Adventures (PART 3)

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Hello, lovelies!

First of all, I'm pleased to say that I've FINALLY found a solution to this whole url switcheroo problem. So now if you go to any of the links under my old one, you'll be able to click to this one really easily. On a side note, if you were subscribed by email before, you'll have to resign up for email notifications here, either from the sidebar or up top, because for some reason Blogger thinks of this new url as a separate entity and won't carry on those subscriptions via this url.

Now that those logistics are out of the way, onward to my final completely Israel-dedicated post.

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The Food:

Pictured here is some falafel, which we had a couple times for lunch during the trip. It's basically a pita stuffed with different veggies and a meatball-looking thing that was made of chickpeas and some other goodness. Generally we had basic sandwiches for lunch since we weren't exactly in the middle of a place where we could just order pizza or something, and snacks out in the field were whatever you packed along (i.e. protein bars, trail mix, etc).

My final cappuccino in Jerusalem on our last day of the trip

All of our hotels had buffets at them, and I was surprised by how incredibly fresh all of the produce items and fish and the like were. There was always a variety of things to try, but very consistently there was always breads, fish, salads, hummus and of course an abundance of desserts. Breakfast was equally delicious, and cappuccinos became part of my regular meal in the morning, along with things like yogurt and fresh fruit to get me going for the day.

*On a side note, I joked that in Israel I discovered the Beige Diet: if it's beige you eat it. This includes (but is not limited to): potatoes, bread, pasta, and anything else that falls in this category.

Nighttime Shenanigans:

Most evenings after we got back from our hikes around 6 or 6:30, sometimes earlier, the routine was the same for me: eat, shower, journal, hang out with friends. Most of us were starving by the time we got back, so very few of us felt like showering before dinner (and besides, we were all equally smelly, so being self-conscious wasn't even in the equation).

Along with taking notes during the day from lessons, I'd also write a little journal entry almost every single night just so that in the future I can read those back and remember what I was thinking and who I was with. My favorite thing to do was to save a little flower or a leaf from different areas we went to, and press those into my journal so I could bring a piece of Israel home with me.

After that I'd usually back my hiking backpack with snacks and things for the next day, and make sure that everything was ready to go when our early wakeup call came. Once all my preparations were set, then I'd usually head over to one of the other girls' rooms and we'd all have what we liked to call a "Cuddle Puddle." Cuddle puddles were essentially just us all laying on a bed or chilling on the floor, braiding each other's hair and talking about whatever came to mind, be that annoying things the guys had done that day or how our legs felt like dolphins after shaving.

Sometimes I'd take a dip in the pool if we came back early enough from a hike that I could swim before dinner, but generally I only swam if we were by a sea, like the Dead Sea or the Sea of Galilee. (More Dead Sea info coming up!)

Injuries/Weird Misc. Body Stuff:

I, being the graceful human that I am, managed to completely skin not one, but two knees/legs. Going up Mt. Timan I scuffed up my right shin, and going down I fell on my left one and was dripping blood, which wasn't quite how I pictured my mountain exploring to go. To make matters even better, I scraped the back of my right calf the next day, and re-injured my left knee and made it bleed again. Oops! I also managed to get a nasty heat rash on my forearms and on my face, but with a hearty dose of aloe vera every night, it did get a little bit better towards the end of the trip, which I was grateful for. My blisters weren't too bad after the first couple days, but there was definitely a day when I had to borrow some bandaids, and the only ones available were Star Wars themed ones. (Yes, Darth Vader was on my toe.)

All of these scrapes and wounds on my legs made going into the Dead Sea absolutely murderous. Stepping into it wasn't too bad at first, but the longer I stayed in that salty salty water, the more random tiny cuts I became aware of, on my feet and other places I didn't realize I had hurt myself somehow. (Also, ladies, just be warned that if you go in the Dead Sea, you probably will experience a whole other world of pain down there, if you know what I mean. Ohhhh man, was that something I was not expecting.) Although it was definitely very hurt-y, the Dead Sea was so cool to just float around in and not have to tread water to stay afloat. I just so happen to be the worst at treading water, which is why I thought it was one of the most fun things I'd ever experienced.

The People:

We had a group of mostly high school students going on the trip, but there was also some other people from California, Australia, and somewhere from the southern part of the US, which was cool. I loved getting to know the different personalities and gifts people had, and it was also strange to get to know people who had been in my classes but who I never had gotten the chance to know on a personal level. A ton of my friends were on the trip too, and even people who I barely knew became close friends by the end of the trip, which I loved.

Everyone in our group was relatively in shape, and we only had a few times where the heat got to someone or something physical made it so that they couldn't hike that day. We also had a pregnant lady on our trip, and I can honestly say that she was the real MVP, and I had so so much respect for her and her husband getting up and down those mountains and cliffs without complaining or needing much assistance at all.

Where We Stayed:

We bounced around to a fair amount of different hotels, but they were all really nice ones that I could definitely have stayed at longer than a few days. I think my favorite part of them was definitely the showers, because there's nothing that feels better after a long day than hot showers. Two of our hotels were right near a sea, and it was nice to have the chance to go swimming somewhere cool rather than the usual swimming pool.

Anxiety (Eep!):

As much as I'd like to say my anxiety stayed at bay during the trip, that would be a lie. It gets really bad when I feel extremely overwhelmed, and that happened in busy airports and also our first evening in Jerusalem.

Crowds are one of the biggest triggers for my panic attacks, and running through the airport trying to figure out where we were going and if we had everyone was terrible for my anxiety. I was fine once we were on the plane, though, which I'm super grateful for, because there's nothing worse than trying to control your breathing and stop your head from swimming while you're traveling.

Jerusalem itself was a stark change from the mountains we'd been hiking before, and I think entering the city at such a busy time and having to make sure I didn't get lost in the crowd while also making sure other people weren't left behind was just a lot to handle at the time. I wanted so badly that first night to appreciate the markets and the architecture (since I'm a bit of an architecture nut), but I was so panicky that I could hardly focus on what was going on. It got better in the following days, partially I think because there was less people since we started early in the morning, and I think partially because I told a close friend of mine and also my boyfriend that I was struggling pretty badly, and it was reassuring to have them both close by.

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Well, there you have it!

Those were just a few of the little snippets of Israel that didn't really fall under a specific day, but I still thought were interesting overall. I wish I could take all of Israel home with me, but I did manage to take a few bits and pieces in the form of rocks and a pottery shard, but also something I like a little more than those:

This is a necklace that I ordered in Jerusalem, and it was custom made for me with a Hebrew word of my choosing. I choose the words Ein Gedi, which literally translates to "spring of the deer," but it was also the place where we learned about what it means to be living water, and I loved that concept so much that I wanted it on this necklace. Other people chose to get rings, but since I already have one that I wear every day, I went with this, and I haven't taken it off since.

If you ever, EVER, get the chance to visit Israel, even if it's not under Ray Vander Laan's guidance, take it. You will come back so changed from the atmosphere there, and it's definitely something I will always remember.

That is all.

Cheers,