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And 3:45 the next morning came right on schedule. Somehow we were all able to make it up and onto the buses, but it was still about a ten-minute drive to Masada, racing the sunrise the whole time. The climb is less of a rock climb and more of a walk up a lot of steps, but it is still a high mountain and it takes about 20 minutes to reach the fortress. After two thousand years, there isn't much left and many of the ruins have been reconstructed. We spent a little while discussing the history and taking pictures of the spectacular view before the sun came up. We toured the ruins a bit, like the bathhouse, sauna, mikvah, and synagogue, and even had a role-playing session, talking about what we'd have done in the Jews' position, 2,000 years ago.

The last thing we did on the mountain, before coming down, with undoubtedly the most powerful. All surrounding the fortress and mountain are square piles of stone where the Romans were camped out. Natan took us over to the southern end, where the Roman camp was actually higher than Masada. Once we were all assembled, Natan asked us to shout, word by word and in unison, the phrase, "שנית מצדה לא תיפול" (shenit Masada lo ti'pol), which means, "Masada shall not fall again." There was a second or so delay after each word, and then all our voices came echoing back to us off all the mountains, clear as day. Natan imagined it as shouting a message of defiance to the besieging Roman army. As a final message, we shouted, "עם ישראל חי" (am Yisrael chai), or, "the people of Israel live." Words can't really do the moment justice, but it was a very powerful and spiritual experience. Unfortunately, after that it was a half-hour hike down the "snake path" on the other side of the mountain, in the late morning heat. A few of us got lost because we weren't given the right location for the bus. A bit of rock-climbing and near-heat stroke later, we all managed to find our way.

Our next destination was the Dead Sea and the resort of Ein Bokek. We had a total of about an hour to change, have a brief swim, shower (if possible), and change again for lunch at the hotel. You have to cake yourself with this mud they give you, supposedly to keep the water from burning you. I didn't put it on absolutely everywhere, but neither did I feel it burning anywhere. The water is so heavy, it's almost impossible to walk through, but once you sit down and pick up your hands and feel, you really do float.

We had to leave soon after that, before I had a chance to buy any of the skin care products they sell at their spa. It was about an hour's drive to Jerusalem, where we'd be spending the last five days. Once we entered the city, we walked to the top of Mt. Scopus, on the campus of Hebrew University. I took several great pictures from the hilltop. There were some local performers and the head of the Birthright program itself there, with a special welcome to the city, complete with wine and Israeli dancing. It only lasted about an hour, because we had to check into the hotel, shower, and get ready for Shabbat services. They offered several different choices, like the Orthodox minyan usually taking place at the hotel. I opted for the Carlebach kabbalat, a sort of Orthodox-style which was closest to what I'm familiar with. The dinner afterwards was also like what I'm used to as far as Shabbat dinners, and the organizers even let me lead the המוציא (hamotzi), the blessing over bread. Most of us spent the rest of the night unwinding in the hotel bar, which, being staffed by Arabs, would still be open on Shabbat.