Seder dinner

This week we had a Passover Seder Dinner here at the JC. It really was fun and enlightening to participate in a tradition that I've heard about but didn't really know anything about until now. We all dressed up and were in the Oasis by 5:00pm. The tables were arranged like this: there was a large U-shaped table in the middle for Ophir and the 12 or 13 readers who took turns reading paragraphs from the Haggadah (I was a reader so this is where I sat), surrounded by smaller tables of 4 or 6. There were 2 flower arrangements on the head table, and colored candles in clay pots on each of the smaller tables. A Haggadah was placed at each seat as well so everyone could follow along, whether or not they actually read.

We began by singing the table of contents, which we did whenever we began a new phase of the meal- there are 12 of them. Each phase entails either a musical number, washing of the hands or reading a different part from the Haggadah. The night lasted from 5 until 9 for us. In terms of food, we started out with a piece of lettuce dipped in salt water and matza (unleavened bread-much like a cracker). Next we had soup and salad, followed by the main course of bbq chicken, veggies & potatoes. Dessert was fruit salad and an assortment of bars and cookies. Our professor and his 4-year-old son did not eat the same thing because it was not made in a Kosher kitchen; they had a special meal brought in. That's it for now on our experience, but here's some basic info on what Seder is:

The Passover Seder Meal is a Jewish ritual feast held on the first and the second nights of the Jewish holiday of Passover. This holiday usually comes in late March or April, but we had to have it early this year since our professor would be helping with his own family's Seder meal during the traditional time. Our Jewish Professor, Ophir Yarden, led the dinner.

The Seder dinner we had was as close to the real thing as you can get. In typical Jewish tradition, families and friends gather around the table on the nights of Passover to read one of the many versions of the Haggadah, the story of the Israelite exodus from Egypt. Seder customs include drinking of four cups of wine (grape juice), eating matza, and partaking of symbolic foods placed on the Passover Seder Plate. With a Haggadah serving as a guide, the Seder is performed in much the same way all over the world.

If not for the Exodus, as explained in the Haggadah, the Jewish people would still be slaves in Egypt. Therefore, the Seder is an occasion for praise and thanksgiving and for re-dedication to the idea of liberation. The Seder goes on until late at night, with the participants reading the Haggadah, studying the meaning of various passages, and singing special Passover songs. Ophir said it's not unusual for the dinner to last until midnight or 1 am- trying the whole time to keep it entertaining enough for the kids to stay awake.

Here's part of the group in front of the Oasis (cafeteria) before we entered the dinner

Josh & I were the last readers to go. Except Ophir skipped over Josh's reading which he had even memorized- whoops


Ophir washing his hands. There were 2 anointed hand washings involved in the dinner. The first time Ophir just did it for all of us, but the second time we got up and used the special bowls to wash our hands.


This is what the appetizer plate looked like. Earlier in the day one of the jobs in preparing for the dinner was helping in the kitchen. I wandered in for a bit when they were making the brown stuff in middle- it's a sweet crunchy apple salad and so delicious~


One of the first steps was dipping the herbs in salt water


One of the first musical numbers~


Grape juice- we drank 4 glasses of it throughout the night. It was delic

Josh & I loving the dessert plate. Only problem is I gave up sweets for Lent 3 days before so I didn't get to try any. I know, I know....celebrating Lent while at a Passover Seder Dinner~ I love learning about different religions


Like I said, part of the difficulty of the whole night is keeping the children awake. After we ate the main part of our dinner Ophir said he "lost " part of the original matza bread that was supposed to be saved for dessert. He sent everyone on a scavenger hunt to find it and Shelby was the lucky winner! This was just one example of something they do to keep it upbeat.


Jeff & Mike accepted the challenge of turning one of the Passover songs into a rap- I don't think I've laughed so hard the whole trip. If I can figure out how to post my video of it I will

Chelsie, Ophir & me after the dinner

City of David & Hezekiah's Tunnel

Today was one of my fav field trips thus far. I feel like I learned the most and did something I've never done before- but then again that's what this whole experience is about~. We started off on a platform right in the heart of Biblical Jerusalem- the City of David. Although the area was small, this city had a greater impact on mankind than any other city in the world.

We had an introductory lesson by Bro Skinner, our Ancient Near Eastern professor, then watched a 15 minute video on the land as it would have appeared 2500 years ago. Next we climbed down the stairs and hillside to jump into Hezekiah's Tunnel! I loved every second of it. The anticipation of what it was all about, the first dip into the freezing water, the tight squeeze, hitting my head on the top when the rocks got low and I was too busy paying attention to my footing, and most of all, when the people in front and behind me commanded everyone to turn their lights out for part of it- pitch black!

This is from the overlook right next to the place where King David built his palace and where a couple hundy years later Nephi lived.
Kara, me, Christine & Lindsey overlooking Jerusalem
Stefanie nervous about how high the water in the tunnel would be. The water got that high within the first 4 steps!
Love the braid pig tails~
The exact place where King David built his palace. These are the ruins of the building
Priceless~ fanny pack, rolled up jeans & Jesus sandals combo
The water was freezing! The first minute we were in the tunnel you could only hear girls screaming. Christine was in front of me & Ken and Mike were behind. I left my headlamp at home and it's a good thing my roomie was on the later taxi and could bring it to me.
Loving it
pure concentration
The water was really clear- It just rained here last week; the first time in a while, so the water was probably fresher than it has been. Thank goodness because we were in it for 30 minutes~
Right before we exited the tunnel- not sure we want to leave
Of course a water fight broke out afterwards. Bryan, far left, rolled his pants up about daisy-duke length and was so proud of himself for staying completely dry the whole tunnel. He made up for it here...
Kara & I on the pedistools

Ryan & the harp
Later that night Emily, Kara, Christine & I went out to West Jerusalem for some salad/ pizza on Ben Yehuda St. I've been wanting to dine in these green chairs ever since we got here- dream come true
Our daily stop at the nut stand. Every time I get almonds & these things called love nuts that are heaven-sent. I'll bring some home they're divine (supposedly they're called sycamore nuts too?)

Great day, as per usual here in the Holy Land~

Sisters of Sion

Today our journey through the city began at the Sisters of Sion located in the Muslim quarter of the Old City. The Ecce Homo Convent throughout the years has had many and varied purposes. Right from the early foundation it was always a place for pilgrims to stay while in Jerusalem.

It also was a school with many students coming from neighboring countries and was well known throughout the region for its academic excellence. With the closure of the school in 1948, the sisters then felt that an ulpan would be of great benefit to both Arabs and Israelis in that this provided each group time to meet the other and have the opportunity to learn their language. This continued for 10 years and then the program was taken over by Hebrew University.

Christine, Breanna & I praying
The mural at the end of the wall is of Christ carrying his own cross. The stones on the ground are the exact cobblestones that were here during Christ's time when the Romans ruled.
Me, Rachael and Christine
Jordan escorting Rachael & me on the cobblestones
Kara bara & me
Church of Condemnation.

" While Pilate was sitting on the judge's seat, his wife sent him this message: 'Don't have anything to do with that innocent man, for I have suffered a great deal today in a dream because of him.' But the chief priests and the elders persuaded the crowd to ask for Barabbas and to have Jesus executed.
'Which of the two do you want me to release to you?' asked the governor. 'Barabbas,' they answered. 'What shall I do, then, with Jesus who is called Christ?' Pilate asked. They all answered, 'Crucify him!' 'Why? What crime has he committed?' asked Pilate. But they shouted all the louder, 'Crucify him!'
When Pilate saw that he was getting nowhere, but that instead an uproar was starting, he took water and washed his hands in front of the crowd.
'I am innocent of this man's blood,' he said. 'It is your responsibility!' All the people answered, 'Let his blood be on us and on our children!'
Then he released Barabbas to them. But he had Jesus flogged, and handed him over to be crucified."

MATTHEW 27:19-26

This is believed to be the spot where the above passage took place. Where Jesus Christ was condemned to cruxifiction by Pilate and took up the cross.

Inside the Church of Flagellation, which is right next door to the Church of Condemnation. According to tradition the church enshrines the spot where Christ was flogged by Roman soldiers before his journey down the Via Dolorosa to Calvary. The original building was built in 1839 over the remains of a medieval crusader shrine.

NeW gAtE~

There are seven gates into the Old City, and we usually enter through Damascus. Lately we've been experimenting with new gates for new sights of the city and today we went through New Gate.

me, Cate & Lauren right inside New Gate
Casa Nova
A friend of Shaban (our fav shop owner) showing us an article about Hezekiah's pool. It's a dump now but used to be so beautiful. Sucks because we were so excited for the pool today; it was the main thing on our list. We show up and it's a dumping ground!
Exactly what it looks like- this was taken out the window
Hey mom, here's a sneak peek at a skirt I bought you today! It had your name all over it ~
Water pump & flowers by Christ Church. We're attending a Church service here this Sunday
Kids playin ball
This reminds me of Step Up for some reason

its fun to stay at the Y-M-C-A!

Every Sunday one of the service couples, the Squires, take 6 students over to the YMCA building to play the giant bells from the bell tower. I went yesterday and it ruled- the only thing that woulda made it better is if knew how to read music. No one told me playing the bells is like playing the piano! Who knew? So the girls I went with all played songs for the 60,000 people of west Jerusalem and I got to ring in the hour by hitting the same note repeatedly. The hour has never been rung in so perfectly.

Here's the porch of the YMCA building. It's a really beautiful building- you would never guess there's just a gym inside. One of the security guards here at the JC also works at the Y- group exercise classes here I come~

Inside the YMCA building

Celeste, Chelsea, Krista & me in front of the bells. The giant ones are being covered by our legs

Chels & me. She's from LA so hopefully I see her this summer while I'm interning

This is as close as I got to playing the bells. The girls behind me are on the practice bells and I'm at the real deal

Bro. Squires helping Celeste and Krista. He's so great- he and his wife are so musically talented, they lead the choir here at the center. They're also in charge of the weekly concerts put on at the center. The best talent from around the area comes for a performance for the local people, and we students get the extra standby tickets. Bro Squires himself is an amazing organist and trained under famous people.

He told us that the two music directors only let students play the practice bells. He said, " I let everyone play the real ones- who cares! " Lesson learned. Most buildings in Jerusalem have churches or synagogues in the basement; the YMCA building is no exception. Here we are at the small church in the basement of the YMCA

YMCA in front of the YMCA

Beautiful gardens across the street from the YMCA and next to the King David Hotel. We went inside the King David Hotel and saw all the famous signatures on the floor; my favorites were Ralph Lauren, Frank Gehry, Arnold Schwarzenegger, George W Bush, the Dalai Lama and Hilary Clinton. jk on the last one =)


Chelsea and I at the famous windmills. This marked the first Jewish city built outside of the Old City


Love the American, British, Israeli & French flags together
We found the best place for lunch on Ben Yehuda street- Sam's Bagels. We split this giant salad for 5 bucks each and it was so fresh. The JC always has salad as an option during meals but this really hit the spot

Next we wandered around the Jewish markets- these are the spice bags that line the street. Spices, produce and dried fruit and nuts are everywhere~