Yad VaShem - The Holocaust Museum

 Itinerary Change - happening quite often

Hello all,
From Anna-Lee-
I did it! I did not think that I would be able or allowed to do this museum. It has age restriction where you can't go ten or under. We had originally planned that my mom and I would explore the grounds and look at the garden of the righteous gentiles. 
Our group leader though said that my mom should definitely go and that he would wait with me, my mom said that would be fine. I also said that was fine as I know their family personally (their family own Arise School of Dance). But somehow the word got out to someone who had recently been and he said that it would be fine for me to go. It is not that gruesome it is mostly telling about how it came to be and how it ended. 
Now I will give you my view of things, my views might be different than most peoples but that is because I am young. I got most of it but I also found things touching mostly about the people. the children who suffered great loss and struggles. 
How the museum is built is truly amazing Interested in architecture I found how much it can mean to people. You walk in and see a longish hallway - at the end there is a movie slide thing playing. It shows the Jews in Poland before the war, how happy they were and how painless life was for them. Then you walk a bit to a hall where they have two murals with piles of dead body`s all skinny, wounded, and some even with bullets stuck in them. That part shows the end of the war and all the Jews that had died because of being murdered. 
You then enter the first room having some sort of understanding of how a dramatic change occurred to the people in Europe. There in the first room you see Hitler being elected you see people cheering and shouting Heil Hitler, and long live Hitler. You then walk into the next room and see Hitler starting to hate the Jews and just the beginning of the murder. You see him taking them to ghetto type places to keep them away from all other people. 
In the next room you see the Nazis start to do their rounds taking more and more Jews you see them get more and more mistreated as the war goes on. The next room really hit me it was the room that they started to make death camps and concentration camps. Here is where you see people with nothing, they are wearing their striped pajama "uniforms" but it is caked with blood and mud. You see people with guns aimed right at them. Something I had forgotten is that the Jews would actually dig their graves and then be shot and put in right after they finished. They had TVs with people talking about their life at the camps. They were telling of the horrors how they would have to steal bread from others to be able to live. One man said that he lost his hat and if you don`t have a hat then the Nazis will kill you, so he stole someone else`s hat and witnessed that person dying instead of him.  I did not understand what this lady said except that she was shot in the head and did not die. Of course she pretended she was dead until the Nazis left but yes she did not die. 
The next room you see Auschwitz and all the other camps, you see the 500 pairs of shoes that were found in Auschwitz, and a real uniform that someone wore. the uniform was made out of leather like rough fabric and the coat that they would have been given had the star of David on it. 
The next couple of rooms show the good guys slowly defeating the Germans and the war being over you see the people that defeated the Germans going into the camps and finding all those dead bodies all the sickness and uncleanliness. 
At the end you walk out and see Old Jerusalem and New Jerusalem with all the children playing people just doing what they need to do going to work, buying supper, and cleaning their houses.

Right now we are back at our hotel. We have the rest of the day off and tomorrow we are headed out for a full day touring. We are going to the Mount of Olives, and we will also see a sound and light show. That sounds interesting!
I am glad I could write lots because I am not tired or not very tired yet. I hope to be able to tell you about the Mount of Olives tomorrow.
Anna-Lee
 
There are so many things that you would never do now that they did back then.  

From Linda
It is amazing to read the Anna-Lee's impressions because otherwise I would not know how impacting this museum had been for her.

She is right that the architecture added to the experience. The museum is like a long pathway through darkness, narrow, unending, and no way out. Once you start you cannot get out until the end.
We could only take photos outside so there are few pictures in this blog.
Yad VaShem - meaning hand and name. Taken from Isaiah 56:4-5
 
“I will give them in My house and in My walls a place [to memorialize] their deeds, and thus their name (“shem”) [will be continued].”

This museum, although a history lesson to the extreme, is personal. It treats each person who died in the Holocaust as an individual - rather than an event that caused the death of 6 million. It also has recordings of testimonies of Holocaust survivors - each with their story. Very powerful.

This is the path to the Children's memorial. The sculpture represents children who's lives have been cut off as they are broken off pillars.

The Children's memorial was a pitch dark room - you hang on to a bar as you walk around it, and listen to a person speak the name of a child, give the age and country they were from. Each child named died in the Holocaust.I said it was pitch black. Well, not quite. They had candles lit with mirrors all around to make it look like over one million candles. A million and a half children were killed.

There were some national points of light in the main museum as well. Very few, but that makes them seem that much brighter.  A Bulgarian Greek Orthodox priest who refused to hand over Jews to the Nazi's and saved many.
Fishermen from Denmark who hid Jews in their boats and helped them escape.
Finland handed 8 Jews over and then said no more.

Our tour guide asks the question what would we do? His answer I found was very good. How do we handle the little moral choices each day. If we can't handle the little moral decisions, we would probably have succumbed to the Nazi pressure too.

The trees you see in the background are oaks. Each one planted for a righteous Gentile. One who sacrificed to protect the Jewish people. Each has a name plaque. Interestingly, the two that were right here where we started were both people Anna-Lee and I had read biographies about before we came to Israel.

Old Jerusalem

Old Jerusalem = Stairs
I'm thinking we did about 400 stairs today. Maybe more.
The only flat part of today was the Temple Mount and there were even some stairs up there.

Think airport security. All bags searched and scanned, and walk through the detector. Israeli military police everywhere as well as Muslim.

 We got to the site very early. It opens at 7:30 a.m. and closes by 10:00 a.m. for non Muslims. NO audible praying on the Temple Mount unless you are a Muslim. No laughing, or singing, or disrespectful behaviour. It is also a Holy Site dress code meaning shoulders and knees must be covered

Other than the stairs to get there, the line to get in (that's why our guide wanted us up and running so early), it was completely non eventful.
We saw and learned about all the different areas such as the treasury where Jesus would have turned over the tables, outer courtyard, Gentile area, women's area, men's area, and lots of history.

Because the Temple was built on a large (super large) platform on the top of a mountain. A few football fields if I remember correctly), you can picture that the walls would be both above and below the platform. We got to see both. For those in my Sunday School class - remember we measured those huge stones and went out in the parking lot to show how big they were? We got to see those very stones!

240 ton rock

We walked the entire length of the Western Wall underneath

And of course on top where people go to pray. The holiest site for Jewish people right now as they cannot go where the temple once was (as it is now the Dome of the Rock and overseen by the Muslims.

Overlooking the Western Wall (men's section)

At the wall - women's section

The two of us outside the men's section. Very soon after this it began to rain. It is very strange weather right now.

There is a lot of heaviness in Israel. I had asked for prayer before we left because I was already feeling sorrow. Today there was some lightness as some little Jewish boys played in a park during school time. Laughter and joy.

Outside our guest house here in Old Jerusalem

As a group we walked through the Armenian, Jewish, Christian and very quickly with our tour guide in the lead setting the pace and direction, through the Muslim quarter.

Couldn't resist this one of a parrot at the entrance of one of the Muslim shops

From Anna-Lee
Hi,
Today was a very interesting yet intense day. We did lots of walking and lots of learning.
Today we went to the Temple Mount in old Jerusalem. It was interesting trying to get in with all the security. I felt as if I was back at the airport. When we were there, as we walked around, there were a lot of police and soldiers walking around.
We saw lots of old buildings and learned a lot about the first temple and the second temple built by Herod.
We also learned lots about the Muslims and we saw their shrine the Dome of the Rock. It is truly an amazing building and the colours they used are breathtaking. I always thought that the Dome was a mosque but it is really just a shrine though some Muslims do pray in there.
Next we left the Temple Mount and up a flight of stairs and another and another and another... to get to a delightful coffee place for a snack, I had a lava cake (brownie with chocolate sauce inside) and a hot chocolate, my mom had an apple pie tart (mini apple pie)!

Overlooking Old Jerusalem. We had lunch here too.

Then we walked back down the steps we came up to go to the western wall tunnels. They are mostly high cavernous stone cave like things though at some points you might not want to go if you are claustrophobic. Even I who am not felt like it would be very nice to have some fresh air. Some of the stones were huge and by huge I mean longer then your living room. Don`t forget though that they would have been moved only by animals and people they did not have machines back then.
I don`t really remember much after that, I was very tired and it had started to rain. I was wet, tired, and not feeling very good with all my coughing.
We went to a museum and saw some of the Saducees' houses or villas as they are called. We saw lots of dishes and cups and such. Also something our guide said was that they had mosaic floors because they are on Herod`s side. I had never really thought of it that way!

The remains of a Sadducee's home - very large

Example of the real mosaic flooring of a Sadducee's home

A model of one of the Sadducee's homes

I am going to say goodnight,
Anna-Lee

Shiloh, Archaeology, North Bethlehem, and the Herodian

From Anna-Lee
Hello everyone,
I am sorry that this is going to be short but I am very exhausted and tomorrow sounds like an amazing nightmare.of busyness.
I will tell you about our day and leave the mystery of tomorrow for the end!

Shiloh was very interesting, it is an active archaeology sight. I saw lots of pottery from all the way back to the days of Samuel the prophet. We watched a movie where Hannah prays for a son. I found that quite powerful. Then she has Samuel and comes back to the temple to let him be raised by Eli the high priest! Then you see Samuel grow up, but that was the most powerful part for me.

Our guide who was very funny, showed us where the Temple that Eli and Samuel would have been. He showed us a picture of what it would have looked like.

Olive press that was excavated

We went shopping at a town north of Bethlehem - that was quite the task. I got some amazing stuff that was all made here in Israel.
I will mostly leave the Herodian to my mom as I am starting to feel pressed for sleep.

Tomorrow we are needing to get up at quarter to 6 in the morning to get to breakfast at 6:30 and make a mad dash to the temple mount. If we don`t get there way before opening then we are in danger of not getting through there high tech security.
I will be amazed if I am almost faint when we get back to the guesthouse tomorrow.
Anna-Lee

From Linda
One thing I had wanted to see while in Israel but didn't really think I would, was an active archaeological site. Today, we got to see two of them!
Anna-Lee already explained Shiloh, but we also got to see the Herodian - Herod's Palace just outside Jerusalem. He had 6 palaces to escape to just in case.

Herod took part of a mountain away and added it to another to build his palace higher.

In the reception area of the Herodian palace.

It was quite the hike to the top.  Very steep. My legs are stiff! And then to get down, we climbed down into the water tunnel.  Lots of stairs.

Walking together in the water tunnels. No water.

Outside the Herodian

Alright. We spent a lot of today in the West Bank. Actually our hotel last night was in the West Bank. Today we went into Occupied Territory. But really, we are safe. No matter the news you hear back in Canada, there are very specific targets in very specific location, and our guide is very careful not to take us in areas that he is not sure are safe. I am glad we did not miss today.

By the way, I've been meaning to mention how Israel is feeling about the Canadian election.
In case you think Canada is not important to Israel or that Stephen Harper did not have much influence...
The day the results came in three Israeli people we came in contact with all said things such as "We are sorry to hear of your election results."
Today they are still talking of it. Our guide at Shiloh said they were actually afraid because Stephen Harper is no longer in power.

The infamous wall - has actually decreased terrorist attacks significantly.

Flying the Palestinian flag.

And finally...

Lunch in an Arab town. Very friendly, very nice. And we had shwarmas.

We did not go to "Bethlehem."  The touristy Bethlehem. Instead we went to a section in north Bethlehem. A likely little known site of a first century home in this area. You know - "knock knock, there is no room at the Inn."
Here is what the homes looked like and how they were used. Revelation.

Walk into the home and find a small cave. This is where they would bring the animals inside in the colder weather. It helped not only the animals but the warmth of them warmed up the home for the people too. Up some stairs to the main living area where they cooked and slept and stored all their implements. Above that was a small loft. They used this area for company. Every home had one, and it was open to travelers - or not - no room in the "inn" if it was in use already. Instead, perhaps Mary and Joseph were offered the cave part of the home where the animals stayed with a fresh manger of hay. Makes really good sense to me.

Entrance to the animal cave part of the home

Listening to our guide explain the Bethlehem house

A Visit, a Church and Ariel

The first day of rain since April!
Celebration in Israel as the rains have come.
But it is cold!
Going from 33 degrees, sun, dry and desert to 20 degrees, very windy and raining was quite a shock.

Today we had an amazing unexpected blessing. Our tour driver who is an Arab, Israeli, Christian, invited our group to his home for tea. Apparently he has not done this before, but he has been wanting to have our tour guide to his home for many years. What we saw today was Middle Eastern hospitality.
In the middle of the city of Canna (spelling) The place where the wedding feast was held in Scripture...Boulos has 5 hectares of land with fruit tress of all kinds. That would be like saying he had 5 hectares of land right on Younge Street in Toronto!

Anna-Lee said she wanted to meet people. Well, she met lots of Israeli's today! So sweet.

Picking sweet lemons in Boulos' backyard.

One of Boulos' fig trees. He had us sample quite a variety..

 

This is one of Boulos' sons. He showed Granny a book written by his Great Grandfather who had come over from Macedonia. 1073 pages of his experience. It was this "fahter of my grandfather" who purchased this land that is now Boulos'.

Nazareth
Can anything good come from Nazareth is the question asked in Scripture. Well, yes. Jesus grew up there! 
We briefly went to the only Christian presence in Nazareth now. A Catholic church called Church of the Annunciation.
As it was a Sunday, service was going on with pipe organ, choir, and of course in Hebrew.
Anna-Lee found this part interesting.

Quite a beautiful sound.

Remember the Scripture where Jesus incites the elders and they want to push him off a cliff?

It is very high. Sorry for the reflection and rain drops. We had just exited a tunnel and then boom, there ti was.

History is everywhere in Israel and such a small part of it has been excavated.

Along the road we see ancient tombs. Nearby there would  have been a town.

We saw quite a bit of Arab sections of towns today. Some had signs up giving statements like God is one - he has no partner," or like "Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Jesus - they are all the same." When we were walking to our restaurant, some that were selling out on the sidewalk would shout to us "Allah, Allah, Allah."

Tonight, at this very Jewish hotel in Ariel, we got a private tour of a life size replica 1:1 scale, of the temple. 

The Holy of Holies

  Well, that's about it for tonight. Tomorrow we load up again and head to our bus. But that should be for the last time before we head home. 

We have a lovely bus to ride around in.

The North - Dan, Syria and Lebanon

War.
Today was emotional. Tears ran down my face as we watched a 20 minute movie with real footage and interviews from the Yom Kippur war of 1973.
And then looked over the valley into Syria, saw the UN presence, the military on watch,..

Many soldiers came in where we ate lunch. I thought this one was particularly poignant.You can take photos of the military if they are off duty.

The Syrian border. The white buildings are the UN.

 

These signs are everywhere - land mines, stay out. Israel cleared where the road would be, but it's too expensive to clear it all, and who would walk here anyway...

I haven't talked much about the food here in Israel. Today we went to a Druze village, sat down to a meal and were served. Food just kept coming. I even tried falafel, hummus, and pita with goat cheese.
Still not my favorite, but I ate half a falafel, and  two bites of pita with hummus. Goat cheese I can handle. They also served grilled meat. 

Living waters in a very dry land

No rain since April here in Israel. So far we have been basically breathing in dirt.
And yet here, the waters flow. 
David, our tour guide, compared three different types of water here in Israel. 
Living water, bitter water (filled with salt and causing death) and finally the "disappointing water." Water that runs in the spring during the rains but by the time the rains stop the stream has dried up.

I have learned so much today there is no way to write a simple blog about it.
One thing that is quite clear though is how Jesus used his locations to emphasize His teachings. 
For example, He taught about living water near the above stream.

Over and over, it was pointed out to us how important it is to know the geographical locations to get fuller understanding of His messages.

 Tel Dan
The tribe of Dan in the north. Interestingly, they did evil from the beginning. They were suppose to settle somewhere else, and yet wanted easier land. They got it, but no good came forth.
This is outside the gate which still remains, on King Ahab's seat. The big bowl looking thing is where one of the four poles would go for a canopy over the king.

The gate made of mud brick which remains today because it was buried. This site has very little excavation done yet.

This is a model of what the site wold have looked like. Abraham would have walked through this gate on his way from Ur of the Chaldeans. Talk about walking on ancient ground.

I always like to add some nature into the day. We saw fig trees with fruit, olive trees and a surprise to me - there are lots of eucalyptus trees! They are not native, but they are everywhere and very tall.

A few people here have been purchasing eucalyptus lozenges for our coughs, colds, sore throats.

On the way back to our kibbutz, we passed a spot where all three countries meet - Israel, Syria, and Lebanon.
We also went down a very high mountain. A very high steep mountain. Think Tour de France in a mountain stage with switch backs near the edge.

This does not come close to showing the depth perception.

And speaking of mountains, we saw Mount Hermon today. The tallest in Israel. The top was in the clouds though.
And guess what? They have a ski resort here in the north of Israel!

From Anna-Lee
I learned a lot today. 
The most powerful thing today was a movie we watched. It was about the Yom Kippur war. It all came to life as you saw the bombs and tanks fighting the Syrians who invaded Israel in the north right where we were near the Valley of Tears. 
There were so many more Syrian tanks than Israeli, but Israel won! It took three days for more Israeli help to come so they fought night and day with no food or water.
It was done by the head tank team for Israel. In the movie three of the soldiers who were in it tell about how horrific it really was. 
Then we went to the border of Israel and Syria, we stood on a lookout looking at Israels enemies right in the eye! (Mom's edit: no we did not see any enemy to look them really in the eyes)

I love looking at animals and today we saw lots, I saw more lizards today. One came right up and ran right by me. It was to fast to be able to get a photo. 

I am super tired and have been coughing all day. The coughing makes me tired, and it is hard to fall asleep when you need to cough to be able to breath!
Anna-Lee.. 
 Our clocks go back one hour tonight - a week before Canada.

View this morning from our front door. We are in small cottages on a kibbutz.