The Lowest point on earth!

In just one week, so much can happen. Where to start? On Tuesday I went to Hezekiah's tunnel and Warren's Shaft. These are both right outside the old city, in the city of David. The shaft was quite an adventure but the best thing was Hezekiah's tunnel. This was by far the best thing I have done yet. It is a tunnel that was dug 2'700 years ago by king Hezekiah to get water to the city, when the Assyrians were going to attack the city. The trek is about 40 minutes long in a pitch black tunnel with water going up to your knees. Half way through the tunnel my sandal broke and I had to do the rest of it barefoot, which was quite difficult. After emerging victorious, me and the two guys I was with (I met them at my hostel) decided to head to the Western Wall. When we got there they had a huge gathering, well over 5'000 people. I am still not sure what it was all about, but I think it was for the new month. It truely left me awestruck. On the next day, I took a bus down to Masada and visited the desert fortress. I met a couple people on the bus and ended up being invited to stay in Mexico City, so that was interesting. Masada itself was remarkable. The most memorable part for me was the synagogue that the zealots had built during their stay in the fortress. It is still used for Bar Mitzvah's and other special ceremonies. After we did a tour of Masada, I hiked down the

snake path, much to the chagrin of the tour guide. It was a blast. After Masada we went to the Dead Sea and it was awesome. You hear so much about floating in it, but once you actually get in, then you know. You really can't sink. It is indescribable. I also did the mud treatment where you put all the mud on you, let it dry, and then wash it all off with sulfur water. The sulfur water tasted and smelled so bad it was almost not worth it. Afterward though, my skin felt great. Today I just relaxed and prepared for Shabbat. I went to the Machaneh Yehuda market and got some Chalah and cantalope and a few other things. Tomorrow I will try to find a good place for Erev Shabbat and a good place for Shabbat. I love you all and miss you very much.

Love,
Jesse

P.S. I am just going to post a couple pictures without text because they are fun to look at!