Day 5 - End of the Conference

The last day of the conference consisted of implementation workshops where we worked with groups to solve hypothetical international human rights emergencies. The exercises were a lot of fun, and it was great to use some of the things we had learned throughout the conference.

And of course, it wouldn't be a conference without an amazing closing ceremony and festive dinner. The ceremony was held at Beit Shmuel , which, like a lot of the places we visited that week, had yet another amazing view of the city. It was a bittersweet ending to a remarkable week. We were all so sad that it was all over, but grateful for the experience and connections we made. 

Beit Shmuel

View from the top

After the closing ceremony, I met up with a friend from undergrad who is undergoing a Masters program in Jerusalem. She generously let me crash at her place, and showed me more of the Jerusalem nightlife. We went to Ben Yehuda Street, which is a popular pedestrian mall area with both locals and tourists.

Ben-Yedhuda Street

We ended up at Mike's Place, a well-known sports bar. It had a great atmosphere, wonderful service, and a friendly, lively crowd. While we were hanging out, we made a couple of new friends - two Modern Orthodox guys from New Jersey who were studying at a Yeshiva, which are religious schools that focus on the study of the Talmud and Torah. We had such a great time with them - they were hilarious, and I got to learn a bit about Modern Orthodoxy.
The best line from that night was when one of the guys lightheartedly shoved the other, causing his kippa to fall off his head and onto the ground. I was curious as to whether there was any moral significance to taking it off, like if there were religious penalties or something like that. So, when I asked them what happens when they take their kippas off, they said "Oh, we lose our magic powers."
So good.

Posing with our new boyfriends

Day 4 - Student Hospitality

On our fourth night, we all were hosted by different students from the Hebrew University. My hosts were so sweet and hospitable; they even cooked me a delicious dinner! Salad, fried eggs, an eggplant dish, toast, and of course - hummus. We had a wonderful time talking, joking, and getting to know each other. They were all so interesting and fun, and I'm glad we were paired up together. 

After dinner, we made our way to a club where the rest of the delegates were and danced the night away! It was an awesome night with amazing people.

The spread

My lovely hosts!

Dinner is served!

Jerusalem Day 3 - Geopolitical Tour

Our third day consisted of an especially exciting and full schedule. We started off with a geopolitical tour, where we visited various debated locations. We started off by going to a hill overlooking Jerusalem, where our guide, Col. (Res.) Miri Eisin, explained its history and current affairs. 

View of Jerusalem!

Zooming in on the Old City!

Once we finished hearing Miri give us the rundown on Jerusalem's history and current political climate, we made our way to the Separation Fence between Jerusalem and Bethlehem. The Fence was constructed as a reaction to the casualties in the Second Intifada and intended to prevent similar events from happening in the future.

Vehicle checkpoint

Thousands of West Bank residents pass through the inspection points on a daily basis

After touring the Separation Fence, we went to a neighborhood in South Jerusalem which overlooked the Fence and West Bank.

West Bank

Bethlehem

Following our informative and engaging geopolitical tour, our next stop was at the Supreme Court of Israel. Because Israel is a fairly new country with no constitution or bill of rights, and because there is no precedent for every case that comes before it, the Supreme Court will draw on international law to make decisions.
The Supreme Court is built in a contemporary design influenced by traditional Middle Eastern motifs, and is set up to create an attractive interaction of shadow and light. It was great to look around. We even met a few Supreme Court justices and listened to them speak about adjudication and other aspects of their jobs.

Walking up to the Supreme Court

The dome

The library

Inside a courtroom

Courtyard

Our final destination was the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs, where we had a question and answer session with Ambassador Arthur Lenk, who served as the Israeli ambassador to Azerbaijan and is currently the Director of the Department of International Law.

Couldn't get a shot of Ambassador Lenk that wasn't blurry, so this is me standing behind a podium.

We ended the evening with some exciting sessions of Israeli karaoke! It's like regular karaoke, except with a band. And everyone sings together, which makes awkward, tone-deaf solo performances a thing of the past. It was so nice to mingle with the other delegates and bask in their camaraderie, while listening to the music and joining in the singing. It was really the perfect end to our day.

Excited for karaoke!

The band

Jerusalem Day 2 - The Old City

After our first official day of the conference hearing about theory and practice from a number of fascinating and engaging speakers, we went to the Old City to see the Night Spectacular at the Tower of David Museum. The Tower of David is an ancient fortress, which also used to be the palace of King David.

Walls of the Old City

They have a nighttime light show here which, true to its name, is indeed spectacular. The walls serve as the stage, and the show traces Jerusalem's long history up until modern times in the most dazzling way. The story of Jerusalem was displayed before us through enormous, breathtaking audiovisual effects and dramatic music in a celebration of sight and sound. It is truly remarkable, and one of the most captivating shows I've ever seen.

The entrance

Upon our arrival, we walked through the garden and saw an assortment of projector images displayed on the walls, ranging from farming and garden scenes to people playing chess. After we made our way to our seats, the show started, executing an enthralling performance. I was hypnotized for 45 minutes as Jerusalem's history unfolded before my very eyes.

The stage for the light show

When the Night Spectacular ended, we walked around the Old City and made our way through the Arab, Christian, and Jewish quarters.

We ended at the Western Wall, also known as the Wailing Wall. It is situated at the western end of the Temple Mount and is the most sacred site for the Jewish faith aside from the Temple Mount itself, and has been a site of Jewish pilgrimage and prayer for centuries. The area surrounding the Wall is split into two sections - one for men and one for women.

Torahs

There's a great quote which describes praying at the Wall as if one "has prayed before the throne of glory because the gate of heaven is situated there and it is open to hear prayer". Visiting it was the most intense part of the whole trip; chills ran up and down my spine during my entire time there. When I entered the women's section, I could feel the energy radiating from everyone praying, and could almost see it whizzing around in the air. All around me women were muttering prayers, their heads bowed and eyes closed. Many were crying, wailing, as they read from their Torahs and touched the Wall itself. I have never seen anyone express their faith in such a heartfelt, impassioned manner. It was beautiful and emotional to be around so many people displaying such a strong spiritual connection.

This was definitely one of my favorite days of the trip. Not only was it an incredible cultural experience, everything - from the relations formed with other delegates, the speakers we heard from, and of course our night tour - went along swimmingly and without a hitch.

Jerusalem, Day 1 - Arrival

My first day was pretty low key. Good thing too, because I was both tired from the flight yet pumped with adrenaline because I was ridiculously excited to be in Israel, and don't think I could have processed anything academic. It also happened to be Eid al-Fitr, so I really wanted to check out the Dome of the Rock and do the religious thing for a bit. I registered at the hotel and met some of the conference organizers, and then went off to explore Jerusalem with a few other delegates who had already arrived. It was already almost mid-day, and we were all hungry, so we took the tram to the famous Mahane Yehuda Market (commonly referred to as the Shuk) to grab a bite to eat. 

First picture with a local!! An IDF solider who was kind enough to humor this crazed American tourist

The Shuk! Sundays are pretty low key. The market is busiest on Fridays

Dates, nuts, and an assortment of dried fruit

Delicious chocolate pastries! They were only 2 shekels each, the equivalent of 50 cents (US)

Yummy olives! The vendor even let us sample them. Delicious!

After we had lunch and explored the Shuk, we went to the Old City to find the Dome of the Rock. I actually had to leave my group behind, as only Muslims are allowed to go outside of scheduled tourist hours. I kept on asking different shop owners for directions, and all of them told me that it was closed to tourists. But after explaining to them that I am in fact, Muslim, they sent me on their way after inviting me to speak with them in Arabic. 

The laneways of the Old City, in the Arab quarters

 After navigating my way through the labyrinth laneways in the Old City, I finally ended up in the right place. However, I ran into some fellows who told me that my outfit (baggy harem pants, sports jacket, and scarf to cover my hair) was not suitable enough for me to enter. So, I had to purchase an abaya off of them. The younger one, Mohamed, accompanied me to the entrance gate, where I had to show the guards my passport. They flipped through it, and then asked me if I could speak Arabic. "A little bit," I replied. After conversing with them in broken Arabic (I really need to practice more), they asked me to recite from the Qur'an. I recited Al-Fatiha and Al-Ikhlas before they were satisfied and permitted me to enter.

Me and Mohamed, my very excited tour guide. I think he was really looking forward to showing me around

 The Dome of the Rock is the third holiest site for Muslims, after Mecca and Medina. It commemorates the Prophet Muhammad's miraculous night journey into heaven, accompanied by the angel Gabriel.

Prayer rugs

The interior

Inside, Mohamed took me to a cave located underneath the Foundation Stone. This is called the Well of Souls. Some believe that this is where spirits of the dead wait for Judgement Day.

Reading Qur'an with Mohamed

The famous Al-Aqsa Mosque! Would have liked to go in, but women are not allowed

After leaving the Dome of the Rock, I rejoined my group and went back to our hotel and met other conference participants. In the evening, we bused over to the Jerusalem City Municipality, where we had a welcome toast.

Sunset over Jerusalem

Blurry, but you can see the Dome of the Rock from the Jerusalem City Municipality!

And that concludes a fabulous first day in Jerusalem!