Satell Trip: Day 4
Day 4: Sunday, June 25, 2006
(Photos posted below)
So, because leadership involves taking responsibility and reporting to others oftentimes, we decided to get a few Fellows to write updates to you to let you know what is going on in Israel. Here is a brief report on what we did yesterday from Laura Oser:
After an early wake up, the group sleepily got on the bus and headed to Yad Vashem, the Holocaust Memorial in Jerusalem. Nothing could fully prepare us for the experience we were to have. Something that really struck me was that before we even entered the museum, we saw hundreds of Israeli soldiers. We were told that they have to visit this site as a part of their basic training. I found this very interesting, and yet at the same time, I feel that every Jew should visit Yad Vashem as a way to remember the past and gain a sense of identity.
We took a guided tour of the new museum which was built in such a way that not only did the images and testimonies instill strong feelings in the people but the building itself was built to make the people feel the coldness of the war. It worked. The building as well as the setup and pictures in the museum were very powerful and really shed a new light on the word Holocaust. Our tour guide then took us to the Children's Garden, which is a memorial to over one million children, ages birth-18, that perished in the Holocaust. The memorial is a mirrored room, with five candles in the center. While you walk the small circle, a voice is reading the names, ages and place of death of over 1,500 children. For me, that was the most powerful experience I've ever had. To see the candles reflected so many times really puts the mass number into perspective. A couple of us were moved to tears.
After the memorial, we had a brief reflection period, then had a break with lunch. Our next stop was Mount Hertzl where we visited the Har Hertzl National Cemetery and the brand new Hertzl Museum. The museum was very interesting and was interactive which kept us all awake. We then took a walk through the cemetery, the largest military cemetery in Israel, to see the tombs of important figures and remember their lives. We remember Yitzhak Rabin, Golda Meir, Yonatan Netanyahu and thousands of others who gave their lives to protect and create the state of Israel.
We then headed to the Elwyn Institute of Jerusalem. There, we met about 10 of the residents, although only a couple actually live in the building. We heard their stories and then got to do a service project with them. We went to a volunteer garden to help clean it up. We worked for half an hour, then spent some time singing songs with the residents. We even danced! It was such a joy to see the smiles on their faces and to know that we brightened up their day. I feel like we really made an impact on their lives, and hopefully we'll be able to visit again when we come back to Israel.
For our final event of the day, we went back to the Old City. We got falafel and schwarma for dinner, which is always amazing in Israel. We then did the Western Wall Tunnel Tour, where we got to go and see the rest of the original Western Wall. Our guide explained how the city was built, with the Muslim Quarter built up on layers of arches and raised to the same level as the temple platform. The arches were so impressive and it's always amazing that everything is still standing. It was hard to imagine that we're in the same place that our ancestors stood thousands of years ago.
We closed out the night with another brief visit to the Kotel, and then drove back to the hotel. Yesterday was Adam's 16th birthday so tonight we decided to throw him a party. We also threw the party for Sean who has to leave the group and return home tomorrow because of his hand injury. He will truly be missed over the next few days.
Laila Tov, and Shalom!
Laura Oser
Satell Fellows with Elwyn clients at gardening service project
Satell Fellows at Israel Elwyn
Satell Fellows at Har Hertzl
Satell Fellows in activity at Yad Vashem
More Satell Fellows in activity at Yad Vashem