salt

Well I’m exhausted. Today was a very fun, but very busy day. The day started with our bus showing up half an hour late to pick us up from the center. Our driver thought he had to make up for it by showing off his Nascar skills. He was crazy! But we made it safe to our destination: Masada. This was the third palace of King Herod that we’ve been to this semester and was by far the most impressive. It was at the top of a hill in the Judean wilderness overlooking the Dead Sea. The hill was so steep that we had to ride a cable car to get up to it. This week I have to write an essay for my final exam in my New Testament class that compares the life of the Herod’s to Jesus Christ. This site helped give some more insight into that prompt. As impressive as the structure was, it’s just a pile of rocks. This is nothing compared to the life Jesus Christ lived for mankind which reaches through all eternity.



After that we did something I’ve been looking forward to all semester. We swam in the Dead Sea! I’m not going to lie and say I can’t wait to do it again, but it was really fun to do once in my life. It is just so dang salty! My body didn’t hurt too bad, but it tasted like fertilizer and if any water splashed in your eyes you were done for. Floating in the water was such a weird sensation. You wouldn’t be able to sink if you tried. And of course I had to cover my body with the legendary Dead Sea mud. It smelled terrible. And when my hair dried it was sooo salty. It was a really cool experience though that everyone needs to try.







After that we went on a really pretty hike in Ein Gedi. Then we went to Qumran, which is where the caves are that the Dead Sea Scrolls were found in. You could tell why they went unnoticed for so long. It was just in the middle of the Judean wilderness. Brother Ludlow was our guide there which was really cool because he’s a renowned expert on the Dead Sea Scrolls. We really get a quality experience here. I still can’t believe all the things I’ve seen here. I just wish everyone could see and experience the things I have. It’s been life changing.