Last Days in Jerusalem

Unfortunately, on Sunday, my mom was not feeling well so I was on my own.  I was headed to the Temple Mount when I rani to the Truman State group. They invited me on their tour of the Western Wall tunnels, with one of the archaeologists that excavated them. All the students wanted me to join them, and I wanted to ask their professor if it was okay, but they said to just join, so I did. About an hour into the tour, their professor finally fully realizes I joined them and he just smiled. we had a good laugh about it afterwards. After the tour, we said our final goodbyes, as they left to continue their trip to Athens.

I headed to The City of David. Rather than wading through Hezekiah's Tunnel, I opted to walk through the Canaanite Tunnel instead. However, before going through the tunnel, I had an even more surprising encounter. I ran into a girl a grade below that I went to high school with. Crazy right? We did a little catching up and took a picture together to prove that it had happened. She was there for a dig at a tel between Jerusalem and Tel-Aviv. 

After I finished at the City of David, I went to the Jerusalem Archaeological Park and Davidson Center. The Park is along part of the Western Wall, right by the Temple Mount. The park is divided by the Old City wall as well. Visitors pass between those excavator gate to get to between the two sides. Because I was on my own, I explored the whole park, and ended up walking up to a tower and then along the Old City Wall where I took a picture of the park with the Mount of Olives in the background through an archer's window.

On Monday, mom was feeling better, thank goodness. We started off by taking a bus up to the Mount of Olives, where we visited the Church of the Ascension. I even decided to climb the tower, where I could see the Old City and Bethlehem, I think. Then we took the bus back down the mount and entered the Old City through Damascus Gate and went towards Jaffa Gate to the Citadel, or Tower of David, which had a museum with the history of Jerusalem.

Citadel

Then we went to try and go to the Wohl Archaeological which without no way of knowing, was closed because of a bar mitzvah. I respect religious celebrations, I do. But I was frustrated by this. So instead we went to the Lutheran Church of the Redeemer. We climbed the tower for an absolutely gorgeous  panoramic of the Old City and beyond and viewed the excavations below the church.

Dome of the Rock from the tower.

On Tuesday, we ran into more frustrations, we learned that the Israel Museum would not open until 4 pm. I was pretty upset. We decided to return to Yad Vashem, so I could spend some more time there. We went into the children's memorial, which was stunning, and I went back into the museum as well. 

By the time we had found Yad Vashem, we had lunch, and spent time there it was almost 4 pm so we decided to go to the Israel Museum for a couple hours. I could have spent a day (or more) at the Israel Museum. We went to the Shine of the Book to see some of the Dead Sea Scrolls. I heard the the Herod exhibit was good so we walked through that. Finally, we went through the archaeology wing so I could see the actual moon god stele from Bethsaida, and sadly that was all we had time for. I decided to get a giant book with the archaeology of museum in it so that made me really happy.

We said goodbye to Jerusalem and headed to Tel Aviv. Our hotel in Tel Aviv was too fancy for me. In the morning we got up so we could had to the airport. The line to get boarding passes was ridiculous! We were in line for over an hour! We should have had plenty of time to check out a few shops and walk around before boarding but instead we had to rush through security and hurry to board the plane. Tel Aviv to Newark was the longest flight I have been one, eleven and half hours. I had no problems with the long flight on the way to Israel, but on the way home I struggled. I got very warm at one point which is unusual for me and my legs hurt at one point, probably from having been used to all of my walking. When we got to Newark, we went through customs smoothly. Our flight to Des Moines was still on time too. Then it was delayed ten minutes, changing to 8:10 pm. Then it was delayed to 9:15 pm. The reason was that though our plane was there, our crew was not. Finally, we left. I slept most of the way and was happy to see my dad waiting for us at the airport when we landed.

I would have loved to stay longer, but it was time for me to come home. While it was sad for me to leave Israel, I am happy to be home. I am thankful for the amazing experience I had and the great people I met. I am grateful for the support I received during my trip from my friends and family, especially my dad. 

Shalom Israel!

Masada and the Dead Sea

Yesterday, my mom and I had our last tour, to Masada and the Dead Sea. The tour started off by stopping at Ahava Cosmetics Factory. Ahava, which means love in Hebrew, uses Dead Sea salts and minerals in their line of beauty products like mud masks, lotions, body wash, hand creams, etc. After that is was time for the good stuff.

Our first stop was Masada, the location of a desperate stand against the Romans during the Great Jewish Revolt. According to legend, the people of Masada committed suicide rather than die at the hands of the Romans. The men killed their women and children, ten chosen men killed the other men, and one chosen man killed the other nine before committing suicide. Masada is set on a mount separated from the mountains around, using height as protection. We used a cable car to reach the plateau. From the top, you can see the Dead Sea as well as several Roman military camps. We at a tour of a portion of the park before having to descend down to lunch.

Part of a tower at Masada

After lunch, which for me was falafel in a pita with the common tomato and cucumber salad and a little hummus, we went to Mineral Beach on the Dead Sea. The Dead Sea is ten times saltier than the ocean and there are over a dozen different minerals that can be found there, which are believed to make going into the Sea, a relaxing and health beneficial experience. Because of the density, floating is quite relaxing as well. One has to be especially careful not to swallow the water or get it in one's eyes. After floating briefly, I took a mud bath, which consisted of me putting some of the black mud all over my skin, leaving it on briefly before rinsing off.

While I did enjoy relaxing for a little bit, I would have preferred a little more time at Masada. That is the downfall of going with a tour group. The tours have relationships with specific shops where they stop for a decent amount of time, where I would prefer to spend more of my time on one of the sites. However, for us, it allowed us to go somewhere where we would otherwise have difficulties traveling there on our own.

Dead Sea

First Days in Jerusalem

On Thursday, mom and I had a tour of the Old and New City of Jerusalem to orient ourselves with the city. We started at the Mount of Olives to see the beautiful panoramic of the Old City.

The mountain side is covered graves. The Muslim graves are closest to the city wall and the Jewish ones are closer to the Mount of Olives and the Christian ones are I between the two. It is believed that when the Mount of Olives is where the Messiah will start to redeem the dead when he comes on Judgement Day.  The tomb of Absalom, son of David was visible among the graves. We entered the Old City through Zion's Gate, placing us in the Armenian Quarter. We walked through the Jewish Quarter past the recently rebuilt synagogue to the Wailing Wall. After passing through the Wailing Wall Plaza, we made our way to Via Dolorosa and the Christian Quarter. Along to Via Dolorosa, or Way of the Tears, we saw a couple of the fifteen Stations of the Cross. We went to the Holy Church of the Sepulcher, where a few more of the Stations can also be found, including what some believe is the tomb of Jesus. I was troubled by the fact that the Church is divided in five ways: Coptic, Greek Orthdox, Ethiopian, Armenian, and Catholic. 

After lunch, we headed to the New City, to Yad Vashem, the Holocaust Museum. On your way to the museum you walk by part of the complex's immense garden. When you first enter the museum, a slideshow of pictures runs while layers of recordings of people's plays, both of which are from before the Holocaust. The museum leads one through the Holocaust in chronological order. The story of the Holocaust is told through thousands of documents, pictures, and objects. These include diary entries, poems, music, jewelry, pocket watches, a cattle car, shoes, clothing, toys, propaganda items, and so much more. For many objects, writings, and pictures, there is a name and the museum provides the information about the individuals that they can, including what happened to them. The visitor can watch clips of Hitler speaking as well as survivors sharing their stories. At the end of the museum is the Hall of Names. The walls are lined with the books of the testimony forms filled out by the friends and families of victims. There is a hole dug out in the floor to honor those whose names will not be known because they, their families, and their friends, everyone who had known them was killed, leaving no one to testify for them. Exiting the complex one walks by the Garden of the Righteous Among the Nations, honoring thousands of non-Jews who risked their lives to rescue Jews. Looking at the Yad Vashem strictly as a museum, I can say it is one of the most impressive museums I have been to. It was informative, powerful, and moving.

With a map in hand on Friday, mom and I made our way to the Old City on our own. We were able to find Shabban, Dr. Bouzard's friend's shop, where he graciously welcomed us. After making our purchases, we went back to the Church of the Holy Sepulcher to look around inside more. Within the Church itself there are so many rooms and nooks and levels. We grabbed some lunch before leaving the Old City to go to the Garden Tomb. By some Christians, it is believed this is where Jesus was buried. I liked visiting the Garden Tomb because it did not say "This is where Jesus was buried," but shared evidence that supports the belief that that is where he was buried. This includes the fact that because he was being crucified by the Romans he would have been crucified outside the city, the "skull rock," and cracks they believe resulted from the earthquake when he rose. W called it a day early so we could rest for our next tour.

"Make Hummus, Not Walls"

On Wednesday, my mom and I had a tour to Bethlehem and Jericho. On the way to Jericho, we drove through the Judean desert by the Good Samaritan Inn, the An Nabi Musa Mosque, and Beduin settlements. The guide pointed out the Dead Sea as well. We stopped at sea level before continuing to the city. In Jericho, we stopped at the sycamore fig tree that Zacharias supposedly climbed to see Jesus. We all saw the Mount of Temptations before going to the tel of Jericho. Before going to the lookout for the Mount, we had to pick up a Palestinian tour guide. Jericho boasts itself as the "the Oldest City on Earth" dating back to 8000 BCE.  At the tel, we saw parts of different walls, the layer dating to the Neolithic time period, and more. 

Then we made our way to Bethlehem. During the drive between Jericho and Bethlehem, our Israeli guide said something that stuck with me. The guide said "you make peace with your enemies because you are already at peace with your friends." We were dropped off at the barrier to Bethlehem. We walked past the wall and entered the city and got on a different bus, with a different (Palestinian) guide. On our way to the Church of the Nativity, on one of the walls inside the city, there was graffiti that read, "Make Hummus, Not Walls." The statement refers, not to old, but the new walls surrounding the city of Bethlehem, in the Palestinian Territories, from Israel. At one point, our tour guide was telling us about the rest of the day and he mentioned having to go back past the wall and I just shook my head and said, "It just seems silly" to which he agreed. It was interesting to see both sides of the situation.

In Bethlehem, we started by visiting the Church of the Nativity. The Christmas service of the Church of the Nativity is broadcast around the world. There we saw the spot where Jesus was supposedly born and the manger where he was laid. After lunch in a restaurant off of Manger Square, we visited the Milk Grotto. According to legend, Mary and Joseph stopped there to feed baby Jesus during their flight to Egypt, during which a drop of milk touched a red rock turning it white. On our way out of the city, we stopped to overlook Shepherd's Field. To exit Bethlehem, we basically had to go through airport security, minus taking off one's shoes.

Goodbye Galilee, Hello Jerusalem

I let my mom sleep in a little on Monday morning, knowing she was quite tired from her traveling. We started the day by going up into the Golan Heights a little and checking out Katsrin, with remains from a Beduin village and an ancient city. We were also able to learn about the Talmudic time as well. We paired it with the Golan Archaeological Museum. While small, the museum was quite interesting. We watched a video on Gamla, so my mom was able to learn about that. We made our way back to the Galilee to visit one of the two churches of the Tabgha, the German Benedictine Church of the Multiplication of the Loaves and Fishes. The modern church stands where there was once a Byzantine church and incorporates its mosaic floor, including the part near the alter of two fish on either side of a basket with five loaves. Then I showed mom the Greek Orthodox Church at Capernaum and Capernaum.

After breakfast on Tuesday, we went to see the Ancient Galilean boat and to the observation tour. After checking out of the hotel, we went to Bethsaida so I could show mom where I had been working. I also bid a final farewell to the site and my supervisor. We drove up to the Mount of the Beatitudes, but unfortunately timing wise did not work out because they had just closed for their break in the middle of the day. I bid the Sea of Galilee, and my view of Mount Arbel and Tiberias goodbye.

Mount Arbel

Tiberias

We made our way to Nazareth to visit the Basilica of the Annunciation. However, mom decided not to stop. Why? The traffic. There is no parking lot for the church from what we could tell. The streets do not have signs, and if they do they might not be in English. The traffic is a mess. Driving here makes driving in Chicago look like a piece of cake. At least in Chicago there are stop signs and organization, here not so much. So she settled for just driving by. Then we had the challenge of finding our hotel in Jerusalem. We had some challenges along the way due to traffic and one way roads but we eventually made it to the hotel.

Second Week of Excavations and Unexpected Adventures

The second week of excavations flew by. In the square I worked on, we worked on bringing the level down to the Iron Age wall. I was in charge of the data log and the maps for the week. On Wednesday, we took an official picture of the square marking the Iron Age Wall. It was a race against the sun to brush the entire square for the picture so the sunlight would not affect it. Yet, we still had to hold up the photography tarp to block the sun from creeping in for one spot. We also stopped a little early to go rafting down the Jordan River. Rafting down the Jordan is not even close to white water rafting; there was only one drop about one meter high. While there was not a rush, it was a fun experience. For most of the pottery readings of the week, I recorded the finds on the data logs. On Thursday, I found a beautiful piece of blue and yellow Phoenician glass, probably part of a bottle. Finally, the physical anthropologist said that he wanted Phil's bones but would not be coming to the site, so one of the archaeologist began to start to carefully and respectfully remove Phil. On Friday, I had to say goodbye to the dig. While many others were ready to be done, I was not. I would have been more than willing to continue for the next session.

Friday night before I went to bed, I was informed that my mom's flight to Chicago was delayed and would likely miss her flight to Toronto, thus missing her flight to Tel Aviv. On Saturday morning, I confirmed that was the case. She was sent to Newark but would be a day late, having to stay the night. Since I no longer needed to go to the airport, I went with the group from Truman State again on their planned day trip. 

We started by returning to Nazareth to go to the museum that is part of the Basilica of the Annunciation area. We headed west to Megiddo, also known as Armageddon. Megiddo is an impressive tel, or hill, of twenty-five layers, meaning the city was destroyed and rebuilt twenty-five times! one of the most impressive aspects was the water shaft to the spring so the people could get water without living the walls of the city, which we used as an exit. We continued west to Caeserea, the remains of a former thriving port city on the Mediterranean. We saw the amphitheater, bathhouse, the chariot race track, and more.

Caeserea remains on the Mediterranean.

After we finished at Caeserea, we took a dip in the Mediterranean Sea near a Roman aqueduct. We ended our day by visiting Bet Shearim, a collection of burial tombs and caves.

While there were a few goodbyes the weekend before, a couple during the week, and were a few on Saturday, on Sunday morning, I had to say goodbye to Truman group.  I am so thankful for them welcoming me to join them during those two week. They were a great group to get to know, and I look forward to hearing about the rest of their trip. 

My Sunday adventure began in the afternoon. Carl took me, Jerome, and Lily to Tiberias to take the bus to the airport. However, when three o'clock, the meeting time, arrived and there was no one at the office yet, Lily and I decided to take the public buses, so I could get to the airport. First, we took a bus to the central bus station in Tiberias. There we changed buses, and boarded the one headed to Tel Aviv. We eventually reached the seven level central bus station there, where Lily and I said our goodbyes. She was headed to a hotel and I was headed to the airport. I was able to find a bus headed towards the airport area. Once I made it to the area, I changed buses again to get on the one that would take me into the terminal. I finally was able to meet up with my mom at the airport and we picked up the rental car and navigated back up to Ginosar.

Golan Heights and the Galilee

Over the weekend, I had the opportunity to travel with the group from Truman State Univeristy to the Golan Heights and around the Galilee. I was able to see eleven different sites in two days! It was a long weekend, but definitely worth it.

On Saturday, we started out the morning by trying to go to Katsrin, but unfortunately, it was closed, so we made our way to Gamla. The Aramaic word for camel, Gamla gets its name for being set on a rocky ridge shaped like a camel's back. The town attempted to defy the Romans during the Great Jewish Revolt (66-70 CE) and was sieged for seven months. I hiked down the rocky ancient road to the town to see the ruins of dwellings, a synagogue, baths, and a tower. Along the way there was a spectacular view of the valley.

View from Gamla.

Ruins of Gamla.

After we hiked back up, we headed north to Nimrod Fortress, built by Muslims in the thirteenth century to protect the road from Tyre to Damascus. The tower, situated on Mount Hermon, has a wonderful view of the surrounding valleys.

Remains of Nimrod Fortress.

Our next stop was Baniass, a nature reserve, to have lunch and visit the Temple of Pan built by Agrippa II, Herod's grandson. Our final stop of the day was Tel-Dan to see the Dan River which flows to the Jordan River and the ancient city of the Israelites during the First Temple period (12th century BCE). While we were driving during our trip, we saw the borders of Syria and Lebanon, as well as remains from the Six Day War in 1967. Empty buildings stand, tanks are left in fields, and one can see signs for shelters and signs between every fence post warning of mines left by the Syrians, even after all these years have passed.

We spent Sunday in the Galilee starting with a visit to Korazim, a town from the time of Jesus and the Talmud. There were dwellings, baths, and a synagogue.  Korazim was denounced by Jesus for its lack of faith, along with Capernaum and Bethsaida. On the way to Capernaum, we stopped at the Mount of  the Beatitudes where it is believe Jesus delivered his famous Sermon on the Mount. We also stopped at Peter's Primacy. At Capernaum, we saw the modern church suspended over the remains of the ancient city, as well as the "White Synagogue" which is believed to be built on the "Synagogue of Jesus," likely built in the 1st century CE despite its name. We had lunch in the gardens outside the Monastery of the Twelve Apostles.

After lunch, we headed west towards Nazareth. We visit Zippori, known as "the Ornament of the Galilee." In ancient times, Zippori was a prosperous city and the site today is known for its impressive mosaics. Then we went into Nazareth to visit the Basilica of the Annunciation to see the Grotto. Beautiful mosaics from Catholic communities around the world are on the walls of the courtyard surrounding the church and can be found inside as well. We ended our day at the Cana Catholic Wedding Church where we saw people renewing their wedding vows. Cana is known as Jesus' first miracle, where he turned water into wine at the wedding.

 

First Week of Excavations

Tuesday was first day of actually digging. At first, I had mixed feelings. There was almost no instruction on what to do. For me, that is challenging and frustrating because I prefer having direction and learning how to do something before getting thrown in to something.  I was afraid I would miss something, break something, or some how mess up. However, I was able to get over it.

I wake up at 4:45 am so I am ready to go for when the bus leaves at 5:30. We arrive to the site a little before 6. When we get to the site, people volunteer for breakfast duty and pottery washing. We go to the tool shed and collect the tools for the site, trowels, brushes, backhoes, small shovels, etc. When we get to the dig area, we set up the tarp for shade. We work until 9 when we break for breakfast near the tool shed. We go back to work at 9:45. At 11:00, we have a popsicle break. We start cleaning up around 12:15 pm so we can take the bus back to the kibbutz at 12:30. When we get back, we have lunch. At 4:30, we have pottery reading.  We go to dinner at 7 and lecture is 8 pm.

The area I am working in is known as A-west. Where I am working, there is a Hellenistic/Roman wall. We were trying to find out if the wall continues but we are still unsure. Today, we possibly noticed an Iron Age wall. However, Phil, a Beduin human skeleton that disturbed the area, is making excavating the square more difficult. The potential Iron Age wall goes under the end of his tomb.  However, we can joke about Phil. We make jokes about him being the laziest worker.  There is another square in A-west that is working with several different walls and looking for a pavement, which we believe we begun to find it. This square has the challenge of being near a former Syrian trench. Most of the finds are pottery shards and bones, however in our area we have found a glass bead, a piece of glass, part of a glass bracelet, an amber bead, and several shells. We also run into different items relating to the Syrians and the Six Day War.

In the afternoon, we are free to whatever we would like to in the afternoon. I have swam in the Sea of Galilee a few times or have just relaxed. At pottery readings, we go through the previous day's pottery finds. Most are just body shards, however there are rims, bases, legs, and handles. The rims can be used to determine the type and the date. Decorations can be used to date as well. Slowly, I am catching on but there is a lot to learn.

On site, I have learned a lot! Tuesday, I learned how to take elevations manually which requires two people. One person as the special measuring stick, and the other looks through the sight for the measurement. Wednesday, I learned how to take elevations with the laser, which only requires one person. The laser stands at a specific point and the special measuring stick has a piece that when the laser gets close to the right height it beeps and when it is at the right height it is a continuous tone. I also learned how to keep the daily log which I applied the next day. The daily log has records the date, the area, the loci, the level (elevation), the strata, the squares, and the baskets. There is also a place for describing what is being done in the locus and a place for finds. On Thursday, Dr. Carl Savage, the actual site supervisor, had me be the site supervisor. I had to keep the daily log, prepare the tags for the find buckets, and mark the bone bags. I also recorded the special finds, because they are marked as a separate basket. Today, I was the site supervisor again. I learned how to make the maps of the squares.

Others excavating come from Holland, Australia, Poland, Canada, and of course the United States. Some of the students are undergraduates, some are in seminary, and others are on a gap year. Some are here for the more archaeological aspect while others are here for the more biblical aspect. With people coming from diverse backgrounds, we have wonderful conversations.

Safe at the Sea

I have safely made to the Sea of Galilee! My journey here was not too bad. My layovers in Chicago and Toronto were not very long so I did not have to do much waiting. Oddly enough, I had to go through customs in Canada for my connecting flight. The flight from Toronto to Tel Aviv was the longest flight I have been on. I slept most of the way. Air Canada made my day because I was able to watch the Princess and the Frog in French! I arrived in Tel Aviv a little before noon local time (8 hours ahead of Central). Unfortunately, the bus was not due to leave until 6 pm so I had to do a lot of waiting.  I finally met up with some of the other people and we began to get to know each other. From the airport it was a two and a half hour bus ride to the place where we are staying. The view along the way was beautiful though! Until I met up with the others, It was quite lonely. I said little more than thank you or telling the flight attendant what I wanted to drink. No one to talk to, no one to watch your stuff for you. There is a small group of people from Truman State, a couple from the University of San Diego, and the rest of us are all here as individuals. A few returners, but mostly first timers.

Today was just orientation at the site. We went over what our schedule will be and learned about the site and what we would be doing. It was quite interesting, a lot of information all at once though. One of the few rules is to drink lots of water. I am bad at doing that at home but I am doing better here so far.  I caused a little panic among the adults in the group when I got a small nose bleed, but honestly I was fine.  In the afternoon, there was no pottery reading, so we were free until dinner. A group of us went swimming in the Sea of Galilee and just relaxed. Despite it only being 9 pm, I about to go get ready for bed. Our mornings start with the bus leaving at 5:30 am to head to the site. It will be interesting to see how that goes for me.

Flights and Planning

It is official! My dad helped me book tickets earlier! We also got tickets for my mom who will be meeting me over there after my dig gets done.  I am so excited to share this adventure with my mom!

I a successfully made a list of places that I would like to see while we are there.  I took this list and put it in a spread sheet. The information included the area the place was located, hours of operation, fee, what page in my guidebook it was on, special notes, and website if available.  With this, my next goal is to decided what I am doing when.  Although I know I need to be flexible too.

Just over month!

Summary of my Service Trip

During Winter Break (the first week of March), I led a service trip to James River State Park in Virginia.  This was quite the experience for me.  First off, starting in January, we had weekly meetings as a group to prepare.  Myself and my co-leader planned ice-breakers and shared information on where we were going and what it would be like and what we would be doing.  Our trip was an environment on so we also had small assignments for them each week, like keeping track of the amount of water they use, the amount of trash waste they produce, and being vegetarian for a day.  During the trip, I had to keep track of expenses, keep track of everyone, and just try to make things run smoothly.  It was a lot of work. Despite having a co-leader, I often felt alone because she was so busy.

The trip was a success and gave me and opportunity to really think about all those details.  We helped set up an archery range by setting up the targets and clearing the paths.  Yes, we got to test it too!  We also got to work with a rescue dog in training by having one of us hide and having her go find the person.  While the weather was not as warm as we were hoping, and we did have a snow day, we had a good time doing of service.

Here is one of our group pictures.

So much reading!

I have been meaning to post for a while now but things have been pretty crazy for me the last few weeks.  I am leading a service trip to James River State Park on Saturday so I have been hard a work with planning the trip and pre-trip meetings with the group.  My two history courses are reading heavy, along with my readings for my arranged study.

So far, for my arranged study I have read Our Shared Witness: A Voice for Justice and Reconciliation by Munib Younan. I am currently working on Near Eastern Archaeology: A Reader, which will be coming with on my service trip because I am super behind. For Tuesday, I am finishing Witness in Palestine: A Jewish American Woman in the Occupied Territories.  I watched a film on the dig in Bethsaida with Dr. Bouzard.  I watched Schindler's List on my own to discuss.

It has been interesting learning different perspectives of the situation.  I feel like reading the different perspectives really gives you the full story of what is truly going on.

As it gets closer, I get more nervous and more excited.

Official Announcement

While I have told some of my friends, now that I finally told my last advisor (I have three) I can make the official announcement.

I am going to Israel in June!

Shortly before Christmas I filled out an application to participate in the Bethsaida Excavation in Israel. Right after New Year's I found out I was accepted!  I was supposed to go for May Term, but the class got cancelled because there were not enough people signed up.  However, I put that the classes that were cancelled were required for my major.  I worked with advisor (who was supposed to teach the class) to see what I could do.  He connected me with the application and here we are. So this semester, I am working with him on the preparation course as an arranged study.  While I am there I will have a couple of courses.  With it being just me, it is nice because I can put more focus on the archaeology aspect.  This prep course will be a lot more work than a regular half credit course. However, it balances out when I am there getting one and a half credits but it will not feel like it.  Like doing my individualized major, doing arranged studies for the courses is more work for me, but it could not be more worth it!

Direction

A couple of weeks ago, one of my closest friends shared that she was starting a personal blog. With her sharing that, I remembered that I had blog. Not that I forgot, I just had not used it since traveling to Tanzania in May. (Hence the last week's post when I realized I had not finished my posts of that trip).  So I am going to revive my blog, with a broader direction.

Directions. Life is full of them. The direction I am going to talk about in this post is career direction.  Before going to France for May for my minor, I was a biochemistry preference major.  However, when I was coming home I was not so sure that was what I wanted to do any more. While at the Gallo-Roman Museum in Lyon, my professor could see how interested I was in the artifacts and asked what my major was and I told him.  He responses with "You know they need people to do the scientific research behind this stuff?" I did know that, the thought just had not ever occurred to me, so my response was "oh...yea."  That one question was all I needed to start a new journey.

While my advisor was on sabbatical in the fall when classes resumed, I began to plan and research.  I decided to attempt to create my own major...in archaeology studies.  When he was back in January, I met with him.  He was supportive of my decision and we began the official process.  In March, I turned in a packet to the Dean of Faculty's office with a concept map and list of classes I would take as my individual major, a rationale with sources, a sheet showing how I would fulfill the essential education requirements, and my advisor's signature, along with two other signatures of professors that I asked to be additional advisor.  The decision would be made by the Education Polices Committee.

During finals week, one of the professors going to Tanzania, who sits on the committee, told me that the committee had approved my individualized major.  When school started this year, I was officially an individualized major in archaeology studies.  While it has been and will continue to be a lot of work, it will be worth it because I feel I am headed in the right direction for what I want to do.

Mungu awe nanyi daima

My sincerest apologies for how late this final post on Tanzania is.  I intended to write about the last week all together. However when I returned to the United States, there was a lot going on in my life.  I actually thought I had posted about the last week already.  I did not realize I had not, until yesterday when one of closest friends messaged me about starting blog, that I remembered I had a blog, a blog I am sad to say has been quite neglected. That is going to change (a separate post will explain).  But here it is, six months ago reflection on my final week in Tanzania for May Term 2012:

Mungu awe nanyi. God Be With You 'Til We Meet Again.  This hymn is one of my favorites. Whether it is in English or Swahili, I associate it with my trips to Tanzania. For me, it is a blessing to people, memories, and a country that I love.

The day after our return to the seminary was our last.  We donated a bunch of school supplies to the school and worked on building the chicken coup.  We had a class kickball and followed by a couple pineapples.  (I could really go for some fresh pineapple right now.)  For supper we went to the Dragonaires again.  We split thirteen garlic cheese and one chicken pizza between the fourteen of us.  The next morning we had to say goodbye to the friends we had made at the seminary.  On our way Dar es Salaam, we went to a village to sing durung the church service.  At this church there was a talented girls choir that sang several songs. It was amazing to see how captivated the congregation was when Pastor Herb was speaking. At the auction after the service we bought a couple of chickens to be donated to a family.  We were served lunch before getting back on the bus to make our way to Dar.

In the morning, we went to a national museum just a few blocks from the hostel.  I loved the museum.  There was an exhibit about the ethnographics in Tanzania and a variety of objects from different tribes. I also like the exhibit on human evolution that had a focus on the findings from Olduvai Gorge, a place I went during my first trip to Tanzania.  There was one the history of Tanzania as well.

After visiting the museum, it was time to be ready to get on the ferry. It was a gorgeous day so we sat on the upper level.  Despite putting on sunscreen, I got a little burnt.  After settling into the hotel, we walked to some markets at the old fort near the Sultan's Palace.  In the evening, we watched the sunset and bought seafood for supper from the vendors.

The next morning, we visited the Anglican church built where the slave market used to take place.  We even had the opportunity to go down into the slave holding chambers, which was an eye opening experience.  It was cramped and dark. The ceiling was so low I could barely stand up straight.  In the sanctuary, there was a series of paintings showing Jesus bearing the cross.  One of the amazing things about the church was being able to see the steeple of the church, next to the tower of a mosque.  After the church, we took a tour of a spice farm.  We saw nutmeg, lemongrass, cardamon, ginger, vanilla, cinnamon, red pepper, hot peppers, cocoa, and coffee.  After the tour, we had the opportunity to try different teas and fruits.  In the afternoon, we visited Sultan's Palace.

Our last full day, we went to the other side the island to relax at the beach.  We went snorkeling.  There was a low tide, so we had to go out pretty far.  Despite not getting to wear my glasses.  I did not have too many problems getting to see the coral and fish.  Unfortunately, when I was first getting into the water I got stung by something. (It took a hile to heal; I can still see where I was stung.)  I also had difficulties walking back to the beach when we where coming back in because my flip-flops kept getting stuck in the sand, and the side of my foot slid into a sea urchin.  The sting actually hurt more than the sea urchin pins.  The pins were such a pain to get out though.  In the afternoon, we just relaxed on the beach.  That night, we had a bonfire and roasted chocolate marshmallows.  Some of the hotel works played some music using a drum and a coke bottle and clapping.  Even though we put sunscreen on, most of us got a little burnt.  The next morning we went out snorkeling again before heading back to Stone Town to the ferry.  The sea was not as smooth on the way back so I took some Dramamine and slept most of the ride.  At supper, we presented Kadeghe with the money fot his and his sister's schooling as a thank you for everything he had done.  We were all sad to say goodbye because he had become such a good friend.  On the way to the airport, Kadeghe said "Goodbyes are crazy."  When we got to the airport we had the difficulties of saying our final goodbyes.  Goodbye to Pastor Herb, to Kadeghe, to Tanzania, and it was the beginning of the goodbye to the trip.

At the airport, we had a good laugh when, after going through security, one girl found a forgotten, giant  bottle of sunscreen in her purse.  She pulled it out wondering how it went unnoticed. An employee walking by saw her and took it from her saying that it was not allowed.  I slept on the way to Amsterdam.  In Amsterdam, when we were going through security to get on our next plane, most of us had a partial pat-down.  Of course, I was the one who got a full pat-down.  When we arrived in Minneapolis, our professor who had left early to go to his son's graduation was waiting to pick us up.  After spending so much time with everyone, it was odd to have to say goodbye.

In a way, it was kind of nice to go so long without posting this because I was able to read my previous posts and my journal, bring back wonderful memories.  I also keep pictures and souvenirs out.  I am so blessed to have had the opportunity to return to Tanzania.
Mungu awe nanyi daima