July 22: Dead Sea Sunrise (Hanna Unger)

July 22, 2013

Blog Author: Hanna Unger

Have you ever woken up at 4 in the morning while on vacation? Guess what, we have. You may think it is the most horrendous idea ever made on the surface of this earth, but you think wrong. As surprising as it sounds, waking up at 4 in the morning may be tiring, but it is worth the beautiful view of the sunrise once you climb the breath taking (literally) stairs.

As soon as the sun shined upon the Dead Sea, our sleepy eyes glowed back widely. It gave us a view of light in a different manner; obstacles end with amazing results. Afterwards, we walked through the mesmerizing village of Masada, and learned about King Herod and the rebellions that occurred while he was in power. King Herod (played by Alex, in full costume) gave us a surprise visit and killed his wife (Ilana) and kids (Ted and Jonah) right in front of our eyes. In addition, we also met a soldier named Theodorus Rockfellus The Fifth, who is an elite commander from a legion. It was an incredible experience.

After a nice breakfast at 8:30, we headed to the Dead Sea, where we drank smoothies and floated on the sea. It was extremely fun (and hot), and we enjoyed every second... until Pauline said goodbye to our group.

Pauline was our tour guide during the cross Israel trip, and as a cliche as it sounds, we couldn't have asked for a better guide. She was three women in one, which was a good addition to our two male madrihim. Her stories and questions did not only teach us new things we never knew, but they changed our view points on numerous topics. She herself is a true Diller. We will miss her greatly, and hope to see her again one day. Pauline, we send lots of love from the group!

Now, here comes the best part of the day. With our heavy suitcases and enthusiastic smiles, we got off on a parking lot of the municipal library, and had our favourite group of Dillers jump at us with excitment in Eilat! Parents, don't worry, they fed us! The families are all sweet and opened their arms to us in such warmth; we feel right at home! After making funny anthems in honour of community week, we were ready to start an active, awesome, educational, and bonding week in our beautiful partner city of Eilat-Eilot!