arrival, etc.

Here goes the first post from the Holy Land. I have been here since Wednesday around 5:30 p.m. when we landed in Tel Aviv. I guess I will try my best to highlight the last few days.

When we arrived I was surprised by how beautiful the city and the Jersualem Center are. Pictures truly do not do it justice. The staff was great from they very beginning, except that they took us to meetings and on tours immediately after arriving in the center to help us "overcome our jet lag." The Director Eran Hayet and security officer Tawfic Alawi as well as the professors and service couples are all very welcoming and helpful. The rooms and amenities are really outstanding. I will have to post some pictures of the "Mormon University" as the locals call it.

Our first day here we went on a five mile walking tour of Jerusalem. We explored East Jerusalem (where the center is located), the Old City, and West Jerusalem. The vendors must have known we were coming because they were all in front of their shops handing out business cards. Everyone was calling "Hello BYU" and "Hi Mormons." We even got an offer from a man named Omar that he would pick us up at any time in his BMW-- Big Mormon Wagon. Last night about 30 of us made our first unaccompanied visit to West Jerusalem for the evening. I paid nine sheckles for a coke, which turned out to be really gross.

Class started today, and I am sure I am in for a very tough semester. I think i have found the word 'rigorous' in just about every syllabus. This evening we went as a group of 80 plus faculty to the Western Wall to see the start of Jewish Shabbat. We were able to visit today because we had faculty with us. We are not allowed in East Jerusalem or the Old City on Fridays until after 3:00 and we must always leave before dark, but today was an exception. This was truly one of the most eye-opening and moving things I have ever seen. Shabbat starts at 6:15 (sundown) and goes well into the evening hours during which time Jews from various sects sing dance and pray at the Western Wall.

I'm sure I'm forgetting a lot. . .
Oh, one thing worth mentioning is that the ice cream bars here are fantastic, at least that's what I hear. :-) They are called Magnum and Nok Outs. I will have to try one soon.