Reflections from Day 9

The last day with our Israeli brothers and sisters started with breakfast with our specific host families. We said our goodbyes to our host mothers and fathers who were most generous. The parents washed our clothes, fed us great meals including traditional dishes like Shashooka, and drove us to our activities. We then all met at the local country club for an afternoon of great activities, but before we could lay in the pool and play soccer, we  talked about what the Atlanta Yokenam Partnership means. With our host brothers and sisters, we picked a quote that meant something to us that had to do with Israel and the great time we had. Then we had an amazing soccer game, Israel vs America. In the soccer game each team were equally matched and when ever Israel scored america scored in response. Right at the end when it was tied 2 and 2 we scored the winning goal and the American team won 3 to 2. After the soccer game everyone jumped into the pool and had a great time. Nearing the end of the pool party we grouped together and prepared to say our goodbyes. While we said our goodbyes we had someone from each group say a few deeps words. they were all very meaningful which made  it harder to say goodbye to everyone. 

After we went on our way we drove to Jerusalem and cleaned up to go shopping. We were able to have a few hours to get tons of souvenirs for ourselves and family members. When our time was up, we walked to east and west parts of Jerusalem and  learned how their used to be a border (and barbed wire) that separated the two sides. To close up the night we went to a light show that showed a timeline that formed Israel. After the light show we walked back to our Hostel. 

Lyndsey, Joseph and Brandon