Bombs and PROM!!! :)

Yesterday was an extremely memorable day. There have been some arising tensions/conflict with Israel this past week, and as a result, we spent some time in our bomb shelters yesterday (the first students to get that "opportunity"!!). Don't panic...we're completely safe, and there is no reason to worry. The Jerusalem Center is in the safest possible location, and our security is top notch! The news makes it sound much worse than it was (at least for us). But keep everyone in the surrounding areas in your prayers! I wish the Holy Land could just have peace again...

Luckily we didn't have to stay in the bomb shelters very long, because we had an important night to get ready for...Prom! This week has been "Spirit Week" and the grand finale was the first JC Prom. It was a blast! :) It definitely didn't hurt that I got to have my handsome fiance as my date, and didn't have to share him with anyone else (everyone else had three girls per one guy, just because of the ratio here). We had dinner and then went into the gym for a dance. It was so fun to see how creative everyone here is, and to have an excuse to actually get "cute" for once! I love how fun everyone here is! 

Enjoy some pictures from the night! Sorry the quality of the pics isn't the greatest. Oh, and I'll catch you up on the past few weeks (in future blog posts) eventually...I just don't want to get more behind. Especially since we leave for Galilee in two days! 

 Some of us hanging out in one of the bomb shelters! :)

Sitting on the floor in the bomb shelter. Dal took this pic, and it actually turned out kinda cool! 

 After scrambling to get ready (and telling our dates three different times to give us "a few more minutes") we opened the door to hear them serenade us with "Out of My League" :) 

 Dal and I eating dinner together :) I love Annie's face behind us! 

 Paul serenading one of his dates :)

 Rosie wearing a wedding dress we found in the shekel shack...love it! haha

Being with Dal, I'm getting more and more used to being up in the air...haha

 Triplets :) Gotta love all the duplicate dresses here at the JC! 

Thanks Sar, for letting me borrow yours!

 Dal and I with the Schaefers (our Branch President and his wife). 

Love them both!

 Best Prom Queen and King ever!!! Brother and Sister Bench! 

The Prom Royalty...so fun! :)

O Little Town of Bethlehem...

Last week we took a field trip to Bethlehem - this is something I had been looking forward to all semester. We started off at the Herodion (one of Herod's palace-fortress complexes) which was really neat, and then we went into Bethlehem. Unfortunately this was the part of the day that I was slightly disappointed by....especially the Church of the Nativity. This is an incredible church, and it is the oldest continuously-operating church in the world (it has been in used since the 4th century, when it was built). Pretty neat right? The traditional place of Christ's birth (one of them) is in this church. The problem was, we had to wait in line forever before we could get through, and when we did finally get to the point where the "manger" was, our tour guide was so frustrated and stressed that he was slightly rude and hurried us through. So we had about .3 seconds to try to take a picture before we were herded into the next room. It was so rushed and stressful that we couldn't really think about much of anything. BUT, later in the evening, we went out to "Mormon's Shepherd's Field". This is a field that we believe may have been the field the shepherd's were in when the angels came, bearing the good tidings of great joy of Christ's birth. We got there as the sun was going down, and we were able to have a class devotional, sing Christmas hymns, and then share our testimonies of the Savior with each other. It was really powerful, and that's when I had the spiritual experience I was hoping for. I thought a lot about Christ, but I also thought a lot about the others involved in the "Christmas Story"...the shepherds, Mary, Joseph, the wise men...there is so much we can learn from them. I'm so grateful for their part in the Savior's birth and for their examples of humility, faith, and obedience.
I know my Savior lives. I know He was born for us, He lived for us (so that we might have a perfect example to follow), and that He died for us (so that we might be able to repent and live again and return to our Heavenly Father). Heavenly Father's plan is perfect, and His son Jesus Christ lived a perfect life. I owe Him everything I am, and I'm so grateful for His role in my life. I have come to know Him better here in Jerusalem, but I will continue to develop a testimony of Him throughout my life. I will come closer to Him as I strive to more fully live the gospel and keep the commandments. I truly am happiest when I am doing the things that would make my Father and my Savior proud of me. I love this gospel, and I'm so grateful for the knowledge I have of these things. I am so blessed...

 The Herodian...pretty cool stuff.

 Can you imagine getting hit by one of these rocks? They were huge!

 Typical Dallin and Andrew...goofing around next to an animal carcass...haha

Star Wars anyone? :)

 The Tent Restaurant. The food was delicious! The conversations...interesting. :)

 Outside one of the churches.

 I really loved this mosaic of the shepherd and his lamb.

 A really neat piece of art inside one of the churches. 

 We barely were able to squeeze this picture...this star is in the spot 

that many believe Christ was born.

 Mormon Shepherd's Field...so neat.

 Dallin with his scriptures and Bethlehem. Love it. :)

Our wonderful class, with Bethlehem in the background. I love them all!

Pretty picture...

Dal and I in Shepherd's Field with Bethlehem behind us. :) 

What a great way to end the day.

Oh, another highlight of the day. Dal and I bought a baby blanket from Bethlehem. Neat huh? We were thinking we could use it for our newborn children as we bring them home from the hospital and then again for their baby blessings. I'm really excited about it :)

Synagogue and Service Project!

Last Friday some of us were able to go to a local Jewish synagogue with our Israel teach, Ophir and two of his adorable children. It was really neat to learn from him about what takes place there, and how the services work (since we as LDS members are not familiar with it). The entire thing was obviously in Hebrew, so I didn't understand a word of it, but most of the service was singing, and it was neat because I could feel the spirit. I could feel the devotion of the congregation as they sang and recited the prayers in their prayer books, and it was touching to me. It made me want to live my religion more fully. I also noticed a lot of similarities between a Jewish service and an LDS service which was neat, and helped me gain even greater respect for those of another faith...but I also noticed several differences (obviously) and those differences strengthened my testimony of, and appreciation for, my membership in the LDS and the knowledge I have of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Some of the people I went to synagogue with!

(I'm not in the picture, because I'm the one taking it). 

This past Sunday, during our free day, some of us went and painted the inside of a homeless shelter for teenagers in the city. It was really fun! It was neat to hear from the manager and the social worker there about what their goals and intentions are with the shelter. They provide a temporary "home" environment for teenagers who are homeless, or abused, or just need somewhere safe to go. Hearing them talk about the youth there, and what the purpose of the shelter is, reinforced my desire to be a social worker. It got me really excited to do MY part to help make the world a little bit better. There are so many people in need in the world, but even one or two people can make a difference...I truly believe that. It was neat to be doing something worthwhile, but it was also just a nice change to be doing something DIFFERENT, from our normal every day routines here at the center. We do Humanitarian Projects here pretty regularly, but this was the first time we had done something like this. It was really great! We got some music going, sometimes painted each other more than the walls, but at the same time worked really efficiently and did a really good job - the management was so appreciative! It was really neat, when the manager came upstairs to see our finished product, he kept saying how amazing it was and then was trying to explain that he had goosebumps (but he didn't know the English word - so I helped him). It was touching to see that something so simple and easy for us to do, made such a difference for this place. Even if it just gives the rooms a cleaner, warmer feel...that's meaningful for these teenagers.

Me working hard :) I'm basically pro.

Had to get a picture with Will and his battle wound from Petra :)

Erin - one of my favorite girls in the world :) 

"Painting never looked so good...Man Kassie is adorable"

*Picture Commentary by Me, Dallin*

Jordan...Days 3 and 4!

The Citadel of Amman, the Temple of Hercules, the Jabbok River, Jerash, Royal Automobile Museum, and Rainbow Street were day 3. :) I wish I could go into detail about all the places (maybe I will later) but for now...wikipedia them or something. I gotta get these pics posted! :)

The guys racing in the arena :)

Me by the Jabbok River. This is where Jacob had his dream of the ladder. 

Really neat to study the stories in the actual locations.

Love this pic. Next to an awesome column, with the city behind me.

Jerash - probably the coolest city I've been to :)

 Neat pic - Dallin's a good photographer :)

I'm not a bad photographer myself ;)

 Dal walking down an ancient Roman street.

These guys played Amazing Grace for us in an ancient theater. 

Way neat! We also sang the BYU fight song there :)

At the Royal Automobile Museum...this was my favorite car! 

The coloring looks different in the pic, but I promise it was turquoise. 

 These are alright too, I suppose :)

That evening we were able to walk around the city of Amman after dinner. We went down "Rainbow Street" and found a crepe place that was DELICIOUS. And the guys working there were super nice. The crepes were so good that I had to go back the next evening as well for another one :/

Day 4 included some Roman theaters and the Jordan River.

Hear, Hear! 

Some of my amazing friends here :)

Model pic with Emily and Sarah! haha love these two! :)

Dal and I kneeling at the Jordan River...such a neat experience to 

be able to visit this site, and feel of the special spirit there. 

 Me with my feet in the River Jordan, where Christ was baptized.

 A random pic Dal took from the bus that I really like.

Day 2...PETRA!!!

Okay guys. For those of you who don't know anything about Petra...you need to realize how big of a deal it is that I was able to go here. This place is INCREDIBLE. It's a city built by the Nabataeans who moved into the area during the 5th century BC. But it isn't just any city. It's carved out of the stone! It seriously blows my mind how genius these people were. And we think WE are advanced? These people (who had zero technology) were able to create a literal world wonder. It was incredible to see. Here are some pictures, since words just can't do it justice (then again...neither can pictures!)

Gorgeous views...

Em and I :)

Dal and I with the monastery behind us. Soo incredible!

Even simple things like stairs...

when they are carved into the rock become amazing.

Camels!!! :) I loved seeing them everywhere.

Hollie and I :)

My horse back ride at the end of the day. It was great, because I was wiped out...

Being in the hot sun and walking miles up mountains is exhausting!

The treasury. Look like Indiana Jones? :) 

Dal and I riding camels together. Nbd. Okay...it was a REALLY big deal. 

I'd been looking forward to this day for years! 

One more thing to cross off my bucket list!

So many neat things carved into the rock...everywhere you look. 

It was so fun to go around exploring all of it.

A really pretty view as we were hiking to the monastery. 

A group of us inside the monastery. 

Also the same spot where Will split open his eye.

 You'll see the results in a following post!

I love this candid shot of Kate and Em. They are gorgeous :) 

I love Petra! So happy to be there. 

There were children like this all over, on the sides of the road, 

trying to sell souvenirs. It made me sad to watch them being swarmed by flies, 

barefoot, hoping for someone to purchase from them. Along these lines though 

(of people selling stuff) it was funny because EVERY merchant we would pass 

(and there were a lot of them!) would say "One dinar (their currency)! 

One dinar! Special price for you! Happy Hour!" 

So it was a joke that it was happy hour, EVERY hour. ;) 

I wanted to get closer to the camels but was a little nervous 

because of stories of camels biting. So I kept a safe distance :)

This picture is kinda a joke. I took TONS of pictures of Dal 

(he humored me) because I thought he looked so great with his hat, in Petra. 

Much better than Harrison Ford. Then I edited them and made this...

he thinks I'm ridiculous, but I love it!

Oh, and we also stopped on our bus ride after Petra to see a Crusader Castle. From a distance...but still!