We woke up to a Bedouin breakfast and to a beautiful sunrise in the desert. Afterwards we boarded to buses to go scale Mount Masada and see the ancient ruins that awaited us. After a long trek to the peak of the mountain we were fortunate enough to see the rabbi on top of Masada who hand writes Torahs that are given to the military. After wandering the top of the mountain we climbed down the snake route seeing a beautiful landscape as well as the Dead Sea we would soon swim in.
After climbing down the snake route we boarded the buses and drove to the Ein Geti Oasis. Before entering the trail we had a packed lunch. We were informed of the animals that lived in the area and were fortunate to see them such as Ibex and Hyrax. We then went to a little waterfall to cool off and relax. After some splashing around we decided to make our way to the Dead Sea.
Arriving at the Dead Sea we all applied a mud to our skin that provided minerals and served as a natural moisturizer. We then proceeded to enter the Dead Sea and experience the unique feeling of floating effortlessly in the water. At first the water seemed very cold but eventually felt warm after floating around even though it is the Israeli winter! From our spot in the water we could see huge blocks of pure salt that was in the water that enabled us to float. We were happily surprised to see the IDF fighter jets such as the F-16 and F-15's fly overhead as we ended our day in the desert.
As we concluded the day we took a long bus ride to Tiberius where we will spend the remainder of the trip. Arriving at the hotel we ate a delightful dinner and all took much-needed showers. Before we went to bed, our Israeli soldiers showed us how to celebrate a birthday in Israel, and taught us many entertaining games.
Grant Ribler and Sam Marcus
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