A Day in the Life

Today was our last full free day in the city. And we made good use of it. 

On our way to the Old City we passed by the fire station that we pass every single day. But it must have been a slow day for the fire fighters because they invited us in and dressed us up in all their gear and took pictures with us. 

I got the special treatment- gas mask and all 

Aliseea, me, Chief

I love this city with all my heart

Half way through the day we had an appointment at the YMCA in West Jerusalem where we got to play the bells at the top of this giant bell tower for the whole city

Jaelyn and I after playing our version of Away in a Manger

Jerusalem at the center of the world!

Alissea and I finally got around to getting some of the famous freshly squeezed pomegranate juice

Random little art exhibit in West Jeru we've come across a few times. Finally decided it was time to take some pictures of it. They look like soft pillows but they're as hard as concrete. 

Then we ran in to some other kids from the group who had set the slack line up just outside the city walls. Lesson of the day: slack lines are a really good way to bring people together- Mormons, Jews, and Arabs.  

Tonight was also the second night of Hanukkah, so we got to see some of the celebrations around the city. Hanukkah commemorates the re-dedication of the Temple in Jerusalem following the Jewish victory over the Greeks in the 2nd century BC. It's celebrated for 8 days and nights because when they re-dedicated the Temple, the oil for their lamps, which should have only lasted for 1 day, lasted for 8. 

The Israeli soldiers celebrate Hanukkah by running around the entire city with candles and lighting menorahs 

One of the who soldiers explained this tradition to us and let us hold his candle and take a picture with him 

The giant menorah in West Jerusalem.
Happy Hanukkah from Israel!