Our journey in Jerusalem wrapped up today as we left our hotel and headed to Yad Vashem, the Holocaust memorial and museum. There we were lead by Mordechai, who shared personal stories from his family’s experiences as he led our group around the extremely emotional displays. Everything from the entrance and structure of the building to the “light at the end of the tunnel” were representative of the horror that is the holocaust. Although much of the collection captured the fear, humiliation and despair of those victimized from the holocaust, there were also glimmers of hope that kept the Jews going during a time where hope was near impossible to maintain. Obviously we all have different backgrounds and different connections to the Holocaust, but the one thing we all have in common is our Judaism. As difficult as it may have been, I think we all appreciated the opportunity to experience Yad Vashem and were fortunate to have our fantastic tour guide, Mordechai.
To continue with the theme of memorial today we visited Har Herzl, Israel’s National Memorial. Also known as Mount Herzl, Israel’s fallen soldiers and leaders are buried here among the beautiful trees and flowers.
Maxi shared more stories of his time in the military and about attending funerals of friends. Our Israeli friends were kind enough to show us where their friends are buried, and we joined them in a Yiskor ceremony. It was another emotional experience for us all, but it’s something else we’re able to share together.
We’re on our way to the Negev now, and looking forward to a little bit of sleep before we ascend Masada in the wee hours of the morning!