Happy Birthday Erin!

Happy birthday to one of my bestest friends, Erin Wankier! This girl has always been there for me since the awkward days of seventh grade, through high school, freshman year, and now Jerusalem! I love her and I’m so grateful for the crazy, spiritual, adventurous, fun times we’ve had. She is such a good example to me and I’m so glad that we get to be in Jerusalem together. Love you Winkler!!

Yom huledet sameach! (we know Hebrew...it's not a big deal.)

Orson Hyde Commemoration

Today we commemorated the Orson Hyde Dedicatory Prayer of Jerusalem. This afternoon I went with a group of people to the Orson Hyde Park and we read the prayer--it's so amazing! I can't believe that I hadn't really heard or studied about it before. It took Orson Hyde about 18 months tot get here and finally, on October 24, 1841, he climbed up the Mount of Olives and offered the prayer. He dedicated this land as the site of the commencement of the gathering of the Jews, and I learned that I am part of that prophecy! Brother Judd told us that someday in the future, Israel will be opened up to the gospel and it will be in part because of the good examples that we are constantly striving to be. People will remember the Mormons on Mount Scopus because of our honesty, kindness, and service, and the gospel will spread forth upon this land. I hope that I live to see that day!

Countdown to Finals

Since finals are this week, obviously I have been finding various ways to put off studying. This semester I 've been super good about not procrastinating (such as getting papers done and starting studying for midterms a week early) but for some reason I've been struggling this week...so obviously I went out of the Center yesterday and today thoroughly enjoyed the 8 hour field trip we had. 

Yesterday I walked through the Palestinian streets just outside of the center and met our awesome neighbors! Andrew loves talking to people (and he knows Arabic which is a plus).

Chocolate pop rocks! So good. Family: this'll be coming your way in two months!

Today we went to Neot Kedumim Biblical Reserve. It is 620-acres of the Bible landscape! We got to herd sheep, grind our own hissup, draw water from a cistern, make our own pitas and pottage, watch a Torah scribe do his amazing work, and see a 200-year-old Torah. It was super fun! But now I have to face reality and start studying for the 5 finals I have this week.

"Arabian Nights"

Aliseea, me, Jaelyn, Caitie, Katie, Allison, Liddy

Tonight was Arab night! We had so much fun learning about the Call to Prayer and the reading of the Quran, eating delicious food, and jamming to Arab music. I even learned an Arabian dance, which is a big step for me since I don't like dancing very much...it was such a fun night though!

Me and Abi

Me and Hailey 

The happy Arabian family :)

"Just Rannin' Around"

Those of you who have seen the ancient LDS "Mouth of Babes" video should appreciate the title of this blog post. This is our awesome running crew (minus a few who slept in)! We love to run through the streets of East Jerusalem! Thanks Kenzie for the pictures!

Our jumping picture kinda failed

Laurann, Madison, Will, Michael, me, Hailey

Palestinian Hospital

So here’s some news for ya’ll: I’ve decided to start working on my mission papers while I’m here in Jerusalem. It’s a little bit harder to do from here but I think it will be worth it. For me, I don’t think I should wait. I want to go now!

Yesterday Doctor Bench took us to a Palestinian hospital (me, Erin Wankier, and Allison Malmrose). It looked kinda sketchy on the outside but they did everything really well. They just did the TB test and drew some blood. Good news: I didn’t cry! I hate needles and blood and I’ve never had my blood drawn, but I survived. Allison and Erin held my hand since my mommy wasn’t there :) aren’t they sweet?

Lookout world: these future sister missionaries are unstoppable!

Snorkeling in the Red Sea

How many people can say that they’ve been snorkeling in the Red Sea? At least 80 BYU Jerusalem students can, that’s for sure. On Sunday (October 14^th) we drove 4 hours to the southern tip of Israel to the Gulf of Aqaba—the Red Sea! From Eilat we could see Jordan, Saudi Arabia, and Egypt. Crazy!

Our favorite sign :) Dangerous curves!

 To entertain ourselves for the long drive we brought our notes for the Ancient Near Eastern Studies midterm…but the studying didn’t last long. I was sitting in the very front of the bus and got to talk to our awesome bus driver, Atta. Turns out he is a big deal—he reads the Koran at the al-Aqsa Mosque! He’s like the head honcho of Koran readers and he trains all the other guys around Jerusalem. Here’s the proof:

He recited part of the Koran to us and it was incredibly. For anyone who hasn’t heard it, it’s an interesting mix of signing and talking…I can’t really describe it but you have to train for years and years to be able to do it right. Atta is so talented! He is also very friendly and kept calling us his children. He has driven buses for the BYUJC for a few decades and absolutely adores the students, and we love him just as much :)

Me, Erin, Sarah, Kate

So I’ve never been snorkeling before…and the ocean scares me a little bit… and I’m not the biggest fan of inhaling salt water…but I did it! I snorkeled in the Red Sea. It was so fun to swim with the little fishies, chase after the big ones, and play in the bubbles of the scuba divers! There were giant clams and weird looking eels. I was thinking that I was getting super good work out from treading water for an hour until I realized that I basically floated if I stopped moving…I had good intentions, I promise. 

Aliseea, Bradley, me, McKenzi

Annie, Katherine, Laurann, me, Abi, Ellen

Me and Abi at our awesome cow-themed restaurant

All in all: a good day to be a BYUJC student!

Dome of the Rock

Last week I went to the Dome of the Rock for the first time and let me just say...it's BEAUTIFUL. I am in love with the blue times and gold dome! It was such an adventure--you have to pass through security, climb a sketchy wooden bridge, walk past dozens of Israeli soldiers, but then you walk onto the mount and it's so peaceful! We were lucky that it wasn't super crowded when we went. 

The Dome of the Rock was built in 710 AD by the Muslims. This site is sacred for the Jews and the Muslims and thus is the root of much hostility in the area. Last week during a major Jewish holiday, a few radical Jews attempted to plant the cornerstone of the third temple on the mount on Friday when the Muslims have the mandatory prayer on the mount...that didn't turn out so well for them (we could see the tear gas and rubber bullets from the Jerusalem Center balcony). But we are safe, don't worry!

I'm so glad that I finally made it to the Dome of the Rock and I can't wait to go there again as soon as I can! It's so magnificent!

City of David Field Trip

Last Sunday we went to the City of David and I loved it! We started it off by watching a super cheesy 3D movie that talked about it's history. It's a super cool place!  I'm so glad that I now know the history behind it. King David took conquered it and made it the new capital of the kingdom of Judah around 1000 BC. My favorite thing was doing Hezekiah's Tunnel again! Linda Stratford, my Ancient Near Eastern Studies professor's daughter, was my buddy--isn't she adorable?

Quin Stevenson is a goofball. The water is up to your ankles for the most part but somehow he managed to get himself soaking wet.

We also saw the Pool of Shiloah where the Savior healed the blind man. It's amazing to feel the Spirit so strongly in these sacred places!

Called to Serve

I'm going on a mission.

As soon as President Monson announced the change of the minimum age for women who want to serve missions, these words immediately ran through my head.  I can't describe the joy that I felt when he said that--I burst into tears and had to leave the forum where General Conference was being broadcasted. On my way to the bathroom I received a tender mercy as I saw my returned missionary roommate, Rosie, running after me to give me a hug. She knew exactly what the announcement meant for me and my situation. Another tender mercy was seeing my friend Erin Wankier in the bathroom, obviously experiencing the exact same emotions!

Before conference I had been thinking about what I was going to do this summer and none of the options I was considering felt right. But now the Lord has given me this wonderful opportunity and I'm going to take it! I know that this is the next step in my life. It was amazing to be in Jerusalem when they made the announcement. I can't wait to serve the Lord. And is there a better place to prepare to share the message of our Savior than the holy city where He actually ministered? I think not.

I'm going to start working on my papers now so I can hopefully leave right after winter semester!!

I'm going on a mission!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!