a broad abroad

I am in Jerusalem! What an amazing city. There is an energy here that must come only from being in a place steeped in so much history and theology.  Regardless of your religion or what you think about theology, this is THE place.  At its most basic level, this place has shaped billions of lives; a place that has prompted wars and provided solace to those of multiple faiths.  And here I am.  It is hard to believe. But first... Yesterday we spent the morning hiking through a stream that fed into the Jordan River. It was a relaxing hike even though the temperature was approaching 105 degrees... We then stopped at a lookout near the Island of Peace, and could see the Jordanian border. It's that guard post near the midde of the pic. We also drove past Jericho in the West Bank. Whoa! After a few hours we made it  to Jerusalem.  At the top of Mount Scopus we could see all of the city. A powerful moment! Everything is made of limestone to preserve the feel of the c...

Hi everyone! We really hit the ground running and I've finally gotten a few minutes to myself to update you on my adventures. I am so excited to learn about another culture so full of history! Monday we traveled. We arrived around 10 pm and went to bed. Traveling really takes a lot out of you...  We have been in Kfar Tavor, a secluded little town.  Tuesday the fun began. We "hiked" at Mount Meron (which was really more of a nice nature walk). It is the second tallest mountain in Israel, if I remember correctly. We could see Lebanon from there. This is where some believe the Messiah will rise from before he goes to Tzfat.  We then visited Tzfat (the old city part), which is one of Israel's four holy cities, and went to a lovely old synagogue with a 500 year old scroll in it! Here we learned a little bit about Jewish mysticism, some "urban legends" in Tzfat, and Israel's history. There is an earthquake in Israel every 90 years, by the way. The next one sho...

I'm in Austria right now! I  wish we had a longer stopover, but it's only going to be a couple hours.  They do have lots of processed meats and frappes here, though, so I guess that's a real thing.  It's super green from what I can see out my window too. So I'm en route to Israel right now!  I am so excited to be going on another fun and educational trip. My favorite kind of trip to take is one that combines sightseeing with some history.  And what's the point of traveling if not to widen your worldview and challenge your perspective? I wish I had done a bit of background reading about this country so I could know what to expect in terms of sights we'll see and history we'll hear about. Hopefully I can do that in my free time. Our agenda is packed and I am SO excited to share my adventures.  I think that this will be more of a fun, relaxing trip in comparison to the sociology-based (and at times emotionally draining) trip to South Africa.  I expect to ...