Dancing on the Sea of Galilee

Dancing on the Sea of Galilee

14. August 2015

This morning it was 7:30, when some of us got up in order to go swimming in the lake (Galilee). Breakfast was at 9:00, after that we had free time so all the Germans went to the lake again and the Palestinians played cards near by the pool.

We helped preparing sandwiches for lunch, then we prepared ourselves to leave Tabgha. Everyone was looking forward to go to the boat where we all together had lots of fun like dancing and laughing. After that we visited three churches which were very interesting and we got to know more about the life of Jesus and Palestine. First we joined the Church of Multiplication which impressed us a lot since it was burnt by fundamental settlers two months ago.
Our next stop took us to the Mountain of Beatitudes, there we had lunch and talked to a Sister from Iraq, who asked us to pray for her and peace.

Our journey back to Talitha Kumi took us about two and a half hours. When we arrived there we had dinner and afterwards we sat together in a small meeting then we had free time.For the rest of the evening, some of us went to play basketball and the others told stories and some of them sang.

Today we sadly realised that there are just 3 days left and time goes by too quickly!

Sama & Sophia

Where Jesus walked…

Where Jesus walked…

13. August 2015

We started our day like everyday with a nice breakfast in the magnificent Talitha Kumi before we all got on the bus and started our journey to the Lake of Galilee located in Israeli territory. Our first stop was Nazareth where Jesus grew up. There we visited really interesting places – one even more holy than the other. An Orthodox and a Catholic church and the synagog where Jesus was praying when he was young.

The next stop we had was at the fabulous Jordan River where people from all over the world come together and get baptised. And then finally – after a short stop for shopping at a supermarket – we arrived in the evergreen and beautiful oasis Beit Naoh. It is a peaceful camping place among big palms where we rested in tents after we went swimming in the Sea of Galilee to enjoy and finally cool down the fire in our heart heated by the passion of our youth meeting.

Tim & Oliver

Dead Sea and history

Dead Sea and history

12. August 2015

We had to get up early today so we could catch up our trip today to the great city of Jericho. We took the road to Jericho where we had a nice view of the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem from really far away. Then the first location we visited were the ruins of Massada. The most spectacular thing was looking at the Judaean Desert and the fantastic Dead Sea with the stony landscape around the location. Also the historical meaning of Massada was interesting for us and we got to understand that it’s a strong victory symbol for the Israelis. But  actually for us Germans it was the most important thing at this moment to run from shadow to shadow because of the high temperatures which we are not used to. Afterwards we took the bus down to Kalia Beach where we had lunch at the beach restaurant although the food was not as good as it is served in the Talitha Kumi guest house. The next thing we did was grabbing our swimsuit and head to the Dead Sea where some of the German group were the first to experience a sea as salty as the Dead Sea, where most of them were amazed that the sea will make u float all the time. Plus it was a bit painful for people who had injuries in their body which burned a little bit but at the end it got healed.


After that we went to the city of Jericho which is one of the deepest and oldest inhabited cities of the world. There Laura the „brave girl“;P decided to ride a camel. Some of the Germans bought Palestinian Kufye to feel inhabitant in Palestine :D. Then the group headed to the „Zachaeus-tree“ which is a very old tree and it is a holy place for the Christians. In the end we were exausted so we took the bus back to Talitha Kumi. When we arrived, the dinner was already started so we went directly to the dining room to eat.


At least we had the surprise that the rest of the youth group from Jerusalem visted us with Pastor Ibrahim and we played really funny games and we spent the night playing. Afterwards we ended the night with a short prayer from Michaela and Pastor Ibrahim. So, after this exhausting but great day, we will have a necessary and good sleep.

Yousef & Laura

 

Hope in Ramallah

Hope in Ramallah

11. August 2015

After experiencing Bethlehem yesterday we started our day by crossing two checkpoints to get to Ramallah. We first visited the Lutheran Church of Hope and the School. Afterwards the German group went to the German Representative Office to discuss some issues with Mrs. Claudia Busch.
When we went back to the church, lunch was ready. Not being hungry anymore put us in the mood for playing some „ice-breaking games“. During the following freetime we got to meet and to know Palestinian youths from the Church of Hope in a better way. Then we headed to the city centre to go around Ramallah and have some fun. We ate some icecream whilst walking to the Memorial Tomb of Yassir Arafat where the bus was already waiting for us. We got to know a lot about the place before crossing another three checkpoints to get back to Talitha Kumi.
After this beautiful and exhausting day getting back to Talitha was a good chance to realx before having dinner and getting together in our internal group meetings to discuss the last few days.

It was an amazing day and we are (again) looking forward to the next few days!

Hind, Annette & Lisa

 

Religion and refugees

Religion and refugees

10. August 2015

This day we started early to visit Bethlehem. After we reached the public bus we went to Nativity Church where we touched the Star of Bethlehem.
Before we had some Falafel in the Internetional Center in Behtlehem we had some time to see the market and went shopping a little bit. Afterwards we saw the Milk Grotto and visited the Lutheran Church. After this very religious part we went to a refugee camp and met Mohammad who told us interesting and touching things about his life and living in this camp. When we asked him what is the way out of the conflict between the Israelians and the Palestinians he answered: „First we have to love each other from the heart. Then we need to trust each other and in the third step we sit together and talk about our problems and find a way to live together in peace.“
While we were walking through the camp we saw a lot of Street Art, very often showing pictures of Hamdala. We ended the day with a documentary film about the history of the conflicts between Palestine and Israel, which was very emotional.

Getting to know each other

Getting to know each other

9. August 2015

In the first morning in Palestine we visited the service in the Lutheran church in Beit Jala. It was a little bit different for us but we really enjoyed it. Afterwards we spontaniously decided to play a children’s game: „Empampe“, what turned out to be really funny! Back in Talitha we met the rest of the Palestinians. To get to know them better we played legendary „ice breaking games“. In the afternoon we got up to the roof of the schoolbuilding, where we had an amazing view. From there we could see Bethlehem and Jerusalem and also parts of the Wall and the Checkpoint next to Talitha Kumi. Before the day ended we showed the Palestinians some pictures from our homes and life and gave them our host presents. Afterwards Ashraf told us very touching experiences and we ended the day with the Lord´s prayer, everyone in his mothertongue. It was a great first day here and we are looking forward to the next days we will spend together…

The day has finally arrived

The day has finally arrived

8. August 2015

Although everybody had an early start catching the trains everything went smoothly. All of us arrived on time at the airport and even though the check-in took ages we caught our flight at the very last minute.
After a short stopover in Vienna we arrived in Tel Aviv in the afternoon. Luckily, all of our luggage arrived as well and the passport control wasn’t a problem, either!
We left the nicely air-conditioned Terminal and directly faced the heat. Fortunately, we already got quite used to it due to the current heat in Germany.
While driving to Talitha Kumi, the guesthouse where we are staying, we had a closer look at the dry landscape, such as palm trees, burnt fields, olive trees and the small and maybe abandoned villages.
Exhausted from the journey we listened to the interesting information given by our bus driver. Rapidly, we recognized the massive wall separating the villages. We even passed our first check-point with mixed feelings and eventually arrived at the guesthouse: a peaceful and welcoming place to stay. We then got our rooms, had an amazing dinner with various dishes, played basketball with our new friends to be and to end the day Lucas told the history and origin of Talitha Kumi.

Isn’t it amazing how you fly to a completely different world in just 4 hours? Let’s see what the following days here will be like…

Carmen & Annette

 
 

Palestine, we’ll be coming soon!

Palestine, we’ll be coming soon!

Youthmeeting 2015
8. August to 18. August 2015

Last things are prepared, first things are packed and we are looking forward to 11 intensive and wonderful days in Palestine.

In this Blog we would like to share our experiences with you and we hope you will enjoy and LIKE IT (also on facebook)!

Best wishes
your Team 2015

Natascha, Michaela, Anna-Lena, Valentin, Lucas & Volker

 
 

Time to say goodbye

Time to say goodbye

10. August 2014  

Time to say good bye…
Have a safe journey and see you next year!!!

Back in the hood

Back in the hood

9. August 2014  

After the stay in the families our members arrived safely back in Benediktbeuern. Just a few hours of spare time before we started to prepare a „colourful evening“ to celebrate the last evening in a adequat way. The evening was initiated by an awesome barbecue Marion and Ashraf made for us. Then the time had come for a magnificent spectacle the leaders created to summarize the last ten days to begin the colourful evening. All the following acts the members presented were wonderful. A lot of great dancing acts and Maria as Heidi made my day. In the end we all got a rosary from our guests from Palestine and we prayed the Lord’s prayer, everyone in his native tongue. I will never forget this amazing atmosphere.