Who Says?

I really did ride a camel in Egypt. And this is proof.

Today:

Bekah: "Are you crying or is that just sweat?"

It was just sweat.

For a while there, I thought it was getting cooler--like fall weather. But PSYCH! The weather was just playing a trick on us because it was in the 80s today and yesterday. It's not so bad until you have to hike up that mountain from the Kidron Valley to the Old City and your friends ask you if you're crying. This is rubble that fell from the top of the temple mount wall (AKA destroyed and thrown down by the Romans who destroyed the temple in 70 AD)

The Straight Seam.

Where Herod added-on to the south of the temple mount platform.

These Herodian ashlars were HUGE. Herod's "Herodian" Fortress. AKA his summer palace. (His winter one was in Jericho and we went there too)
Herod's HUGE tomb was built right on the side of this man made hill, and he walked past it every time he went up to the fortress.
Pretty grim, I'd say. But he was into himself.
This was the pinnacle on the top of the walls before the Romans destroyed it. They used to blow the shafar (ram's horn) to welcome in the sabbath and during festivals.The Herod Steps south of the temple mount (look them up in the pictures in the back of your bible. Hey oh!) were awesome! This is one of the only places in Jerusalem where we acutally know where Christ was. He had to have been there because this was the way out of the temple mount and we know he was there. This was probably my favorite place we've been to.

And Neil Armstrong's too.

The "Mormon" Shepherd's field right outside of Bethlehem. We had a really nice night here singing Christmas songs and having a testimony meeting. One of my favorites ever.

Since some of you who read my blog have never been to Israel, let me show you how fashionable it is. Especially for those who live in the Jerusalem Center:

Wearing backpacks on the front to prevent from theft

(This kind of theft shown in the next picture)I taught Tessa a lesson by stealing her camera.

She learned not to keep it in places where it could be easily pickpocketed.We wear matching pants. And Chacos.We wear socks and flip flops.

This is the most embarrassing one and I made fun of people like this until last week when I became one of them (let it be known that this only occurs IN the center)

It was a catch 22: I wanted to have the luxury of slipping shoes on and running to the next place, but it's always super duper cold everywhere in this building, so I want to wear socks.

So I decided to follow the example of Kristy and Kelsey by wearing socks AND sandals, and it's the best of both worlds.

Marvin Payne really knew what he was doing wearing socks and sandals to church all of those years.

Bringing back the '90s. Sweatshirts around the waist.

Obviously all of the fashion anyone has ever had in the Jerusalem Center has been thrown out the window.

Well, it was thrown out the window when we had our orientation meeting and they told us what we could and couldn't wear.

Also, I went to the Israel Museum today and we saw portions of the Dead Sea Scrolls. I was really thankful that I took Hebrew because I could READ THE DEAD SEA SCROLLS. I didn't know what any of the words meant....but I could read them.

Thank you Judy Goldman.