My muscles are aching in a wonderful way, and it feels good. The past three days were packed with activities, with barely a moment between it all. I'm writing this on Saturday, or Shabbat, while the memories are still fresh because I know that there probably won't be any other time today or tomorrow. So it's time to rack my brain and re-cap!

At 4:30 am on Wednesday, we woke up and departed for the mountain known as Masada, in the Judea desert. King Herod built a fabulous mountain palace there about 2,000 years ago, and it was the site of the Jewish Zealots' last stand against the Roman Legionnaires. The ruins remain, and one can only imagine the lifestyle of the rich and famous up there. The valley, whose name unfortunately escapes me right now, is so deep that once you climb up the mountain, you're actually just at sea level. It's all part of the enormous Great Rift Valley that runs from Sudan to Turkey. Not that that fact made hiking Masada any easier. We hiked up the “snake path” (read: black diamond route) of the mountain, in the pounding sun and 90 degree heat, at around 7 am. The mile-and-a-half climb kicked my ass, and since I'm still recovering from being sick, my lungs felt like they were going to explode as I pushed myself to keep going. I had to chug three water bottles to combat the desert air, and once I post pictures of the breathtaking views, you'll understand why I'm so proud for making it all the way up there. And I will never complain again about living on the 5th floor with no elevator!

After Masada, we hopped back in the bus and continued on to the Ein Gedi spa for lunch and floating in the Dead Sea! I can't describe how awesome the Dead Sea is, but it really does keep you buoyant no matter what. The water is thick with minerals, and the sea floor is covered with a crystalline layer of salt. Floating on my back and stomach felt like weightlessness, and if I tried to put my feet down to stand, the water popped me back up to otter position. The Dead Sea is also the lowest point on earth, so now I have a new joke to make when I'm feeling blue. I didn't get a chance to put any of the free mud on me, but the water made my skin feel soft and strange, and some cuts I had burned like hell from the salt killing any germs. I could spend every day of my life coming back here!

Then, we trekked through the desert to a Bedouin camp. Bedouins are desert nomads, and the first Muslims; for centuries, they've packed up their lives and circled around the desert seeking food and water for their animals. The experience wasn't all that authentic since we were staying with a group hospitable enough to host all of us beneath their tents, but with running water in the bathrooms. By the time we arrived, I was wiped, and wound up passing out immediately after dinner despite the drumming circle going on outside my tent. It was pleasant sleeping outside with everyone, and in the morning, we got to ride camels! Camels are huge, nasty creatures with bad attitudes, but one still allowed myself and another Hunter girl on his back. Unfortunately for my friend Sharon, her camel threw her off his back, but she turned out okay. Yeah, camels are total jerks.

Next, our group picked up the several IDF soldiers who are accompanying us for the remainder of the trip. They're male and female, and in their early 20s like us, but far more mature and respectful of others than most of the students in our group. That sounds mean, but I have a few things to say about the other students as time goes on. Regardless, I really like the soldiers for being so friendly and wonderful with us. One of them bought me some Kinder chocolate yesterday. Hooray soldiers!

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