The Garden

So I wish I would've written yesterday but I was too tired after our crazy night out! Luckily I've got my journal next to me so I can keep you all updated :D The beginning of the day was super boring cause we had four hours of class - and only two classes. The information was really good, but it's really hard to sit that long, and it didn't help that I was really tired. It was nice though, after class I took a three hour long nap, and was almost late to the information meeting prior to going to the Western Wall (otherwise known as the Wailing Wall). My roommates were still sleeping too, so at the last minute we all rushed upstairs and listened to Professor Skinner give us some history so we'd know what we were going to see; some of the remaining portions of the original retaining wall that surrounded Herod's temple in Christ's day. It's a very holy site for many people, most especially those of the Jewish faith. Because it was Friday night, it meant the beginning of Shabbat and so many Jews were at the Western Wall at sunset to begin worshiping. The wall is surrounded by a plaza where people were greeting each other and talking together, and then there are different sides for men and women to worship, and so we all had to split up. (They're afriad if the men are with women they won't be able to concentrate very well, and so men engage in singing and dancing, and the women are only allowed to do the same when their sound level is less than the mens. It's kind of hard to explain and a strange concept but I guess I can see where they're coming from!) Each of the girls wrote a prayer on a piece of paper and went and put it in the Wall, and afterwards we met some Jewish girls from Los Angeles who explained to us a lot about what the Wall meant to them, and why they are here in Jerusalem. It was neat because while they weren't really practicing Jews, they're all here to learn more about their heritage and traditions, and we found a lot more in common with them than I expected. After that we joined a different group of girls who were singing and dancing traditional Hebrew songs; it was a lot of fun. This group had traveled to Jerusaelm for their Birthright (a similar journey as the other girls we'd met), and at first they couldn't figure out where we had all come from and why all of a sudden there were lots more girls than they started out with, but after a minute the leaders kind of laughed and formally invited us to continue singing. It was kind of an awkward but funny situation. The experience was really incredible in a lot of ways, it was fun to get involved in the Jewish faith, and it was also neat to see how devout the Jewish people are.
Today we had church again, which was amazing as usual. It's neat to have such a close group of friends and be able to share all kinds of experiences with them. Afterwards about half of us headed over to the Garden of Gethsemane (it was the first time there for me). We walked through Orson Hyde Park to get there, and I was amazed by the beauty of the trees and the view that we had of the Old City walls. Me and a few others were at the tail end of the group, and as we were taking pictures in front of the gate leading in to the Garden, one of the gardners let us in to a locked off portion that wasn't publicly accessible, and about five of us got to spend time in an area all by ourselves. I wrote in my journal and took a few pictures; it was an incredible experience I'm excited to have again soon! I just want you all to know how grateful I am for my Savior and hope that even if you're not here with me you can feel the power of the things I'm experiencing through what I write. Thanks for all your support and sorry if I write way too much sometimes!