Day 2 in Israel: Hezekiah’s Tunnel and the Kotel
Wednesday, May 6, 2009 2:36 pmPHOTOS FROM TODAY
A funny video.
There was far too much for a tweet, so now it’s time for my first blog post about my senior Israel Trip. Today we started with a hike on Mt. Eitan. Sataf is an area that was terraced by the Judaens thousands of years ago. They built elaborate irrigation systems in the dry land by tapping into the water that flowed in springs deep within the rocky mountains. We hiked through this pretty area and entered a cave where a spring was flowing.
Our next adventure was more caving: Hezekiah’s Tunnel. We lived the Bible. This is a tunnel described in the biblical sources that matches reality perfectly. We went through most of this 300 meter tunnel in such complete darkness we couldn’t see the hands in front of our faces. It was just simply awesome to do.
We finished the day by visiting the Kotel, the Western Wall. No words are needed here except it was a powerful experience. The wall is important for different reasons to everyone. For me, it is the history of the place and the significance of my connection to it that draws me.
It just *feels good* to be in Israel. Yes, this is partially because I’ve just visited death camps and mass graves from the Holocaust in Poland, but also because of the stunning history of the land here and my connection to it. There is so much history here, interspersed with a modern nation. It’s awesome.
Check out the pictures and shalom!
