Planes, trains, and automobiles...and boats...and camels...and horses...wow I'm tired of traveling!

Hey everyone! Well I'm back! I hope you all missed me at least a little bit - cause I sure missed all of you and your comments and support! It's funny because even though the Jerusalem Center isn't "home", it sure felt like home last night when we drove up to the front gates and I could finally sleep in my "own" bed. It made me realize again how much I love being here. But anyway...on to the week long summary!
The first day we set out, on our way to Egypt, we stopped at a few important places both in terms of the scriptures and the history of Israel. Beersheba, Ben Gurion's tomb (one of the first Prime Ministers of Israel), ancient ruins at Av Dat (there's a group picture from here), and then the Wilderness of Zin, which was probably my favorite stop of the day. The Israelites roamed here for nearly 40 years, and I couldn't imagine spending more than 40 minutes there! I can understand how they'd be frustrated and confused about things, and even though we constantly shame them for complaining so much it's a lot like what we do in and out everyday - the Israelites were just people like me! I'm pretty sure I would have complained too if put in a similar situation, so it made me want to work on that a little, cause I sure have less to complain about than they do. Well anyway, that night we stayed at an interesting Jewish civilizaiton called a Kibbutz. The people there live in an exclusive society where everyone works for and is paid by the leadership of the society. It's kind of like a trade system, they are all provided with everything that is necessary for living (food, lodging, etc.) by the community, and contribute to these things through their jobs, and then they are given an allowance to get anything beyond that. It's kind of a neat idea, and the people who live there are super happy so that's good. They provided us with an awesome dinner and some nice accommodations, and in true JC spirit we held a dance party outside our rooms - it seems we have those everywhere we go now.

The next day we did the "traveling thing". We finished driving the buses to Egypt and got to see a glimpse of the pyramids before the sunset and we went to bed. Our hotel was really nice there, and it almost made me feel guilty to see the poor all around, and the nice food and lodging we had. It made me realize just how lucky I am to be born in to the family I was, and to have the gospel in my life, many of these people will never know what that's like. Anyway, we had ANOTHER dance party that night, this time in the front lobby of the hotel, which was hilarious because all the front desk workers and even some of the tourists waiting in the lobby started taking pictures and recording us! They made it sound like they threw the party for us, but I'm not altogether convinced they didn't do it just for their own entertainment! I can't really blame them though, a bunch of US kids who think they can dance but really...well anyway. The next day we hit up all the Egypt "classics" - the pyramids, the sphinx, and a papyrus factory it was a really full day! The pyramids were incredible, and going inside was really neat even though it was super hot. We got some fun photos too which was awesome. We had a few more stops later that day - the old capital of Egypt, Memphis, and then Saqqara. These towns were out in the country more which was neat because we got to see a different side of Egyptian life.

Luxor took up the next couple of days, where we got to see lots of different temples as well as the Valley of the Kings where there were the tombs of many of the New Kingdom pharaohs - including King Tutankhamen (I'm sure you've all heard about him). I didn't realize before how many similarities there are between the Egyptian religion and our own - their heiroglyphic carvings are very reminicent of things that we have in our church as well. I got lots of neat pictures of that but I won't post any just cause of space...so if you're interested let me know! It's some pretty cool stuff. Having the professors go along with our tour guides was definitely a plus, we learned so many cool things I wish I could share all of them with you all! The hotel was really fun, we got to realax a little and go swimming some too; we also took a sailboat ride, a carriage ride, and also a camel ride, so those things were really neat. In light of all of that, however, I would say the other main event in Luxor was the bazaar - and it was CRAZY. I went two different nights, and it was really fun to see what kind of cool (mostly useless) stuff you could get for as little money as possible. It's kind of intimidating at first because all the shopkeepers are cat calling and trying to get you to buy things from them, but once you get over that it's really fun. One night me and my group of friends started out and coincidently met up with one of the boys who worked at our hotel making bread. He showed us around and we ended up getting a more local tour than we bargained for! We jumped in a street van with him, the kind that leaves the door open while they're driving and you just jump in and out, just so that we could make it to the other end of the bazaar. It probably wasn't the best idea but it sure makes for a great memory! Let's just say that we left our hotel that night to take a night train back to Cairo from Luxor, and our little journey almost made us late catching the bus back to the trainstation! The train was certainly interesting by the way...it was probably the most disgusting method of transportation I've ever experienced. I'm sure glad I don't have to undergo that too often. And I'm not so sure you could call what they served us for dinner food - yuck. The next day we visited a few synagogues, which were really neat because 1 - we got to learn a lot more about the Islamic religion and 2 - I got some awesome pictures, sorry but I just have to brag a little bit! That's where the awesome pic of the beautiful Andrea is at!
We did a few other fun things along the way, including fun times on the bus (playing Truth or Dare, tyring to have bus dance parties, sleeping, cramping in to teeny tiny places and getting to know your neighbor way better than you ever thought you would, and yes...for all the Nelsons reading this, even playing some MORMON BRIDGE!!! I was honestly surprised when I found others knew how to play, and those who didn't loved learning!), but I've probably given way too much detail already, so I'll end with the highlight of the trip, in my eyes anyway. After leaving Cairo we set off through the desert toward Mt. Sinai. We reached Morgenland...not altogether sure if that's the name of the city or the hotel or...both, but that's ok! And after eating dinner we were allowed to crash, which was good news because our wakeup call came at 2:00 am. We set out for the trailhead, which was really not too far from where we were staying, and started up the path. I'm not gonna lie, I really struggled in the beginning, I knew I was out of shape but I guess I just didn't realize how far out of shape! I felt bad because a lot of the kids got really sick on this trip, and they had to deal with that as well as the difficulty of the climb! I really admire them a lot. Luckily for me, I had Elyse to help me keep my mind off how tired I was, by reminicing about B*Witched and other childhood fads we had in common, and then lots of other friends to chat with and help out too, and about halfway up I started to feel a lot better about things, and was able to enjoy the hike more. It was neat to pass different groups of people along the way, and chat with them for a little while, and then continue on. One of the guys in our group gave a great anaolgy about the hike and life, and how it's not so much the end of the journey that matters, but more the intended destination and who we become along the way, I really liked that. It was cool too because he walked up to us, gave his anaolgy, and then continued on. Not a lot was said but it was all really powerful. It hit me, too, about half way up all the incredible events that transpired on that mountain. Moses himself walked the way we did (minus the nice beaten trail), and was able to communicate with God from the top. Reaching the summit and looking out over the valley, especially being able to see the sunrise I had no wonder as to why God would choose mountains, particularly this mountain, as a temple - it was easily the most beautiful thing I've seen.
Well there's a summary of the Egypt trip! Like I said I'd love to tell you all more about it but time just doesn't allow it and...well I'll be surprised if you can make it through all of this! I hope you're all doing well, I love and miss everyone! Thanks for sharing in these experiences with me, it just makes them even better.