We started our day today at the Shimon Peres Center for Peace.  With an amazing view of the sea, we listened to a representative who explained the mission of the center and the different projects they take part in.  We learned about the various ways the center works to achieve peace between Arabs and Jews in the area.  After the meeting, we headed to Rabin Square, the site where Yitzhak Rabin, an Israeli Prime Minister, was assassinated while attending a rally for the Israel-Palestine peace agreement.  Once we had taken in this historic sight, we headed over for a surprise visit to our counselor Leila’s parents’ apartment.  The apartment had a beautiful roof where we got to enjoy snacks and drinks while overlooking all of Tel Aviv.   Once we felt refreshed, we all headed to Caesaria, an ancient city and now famous theater built in the time of the Roman Empire.  We got to walk through the theater and played charades on the stage.  This stage is still used today by the most popular Israeli artists!   IMG_6644 Our final activity of the day before dinner was a visit to Jisr az-Zarqa.  It is a poor Arab beach town in the middle of Israel.  We got to meet with teens who lived there and spoke about their lifestyle and views on Israel. We were impressed by their English and their positive attitude towards Jewish Israelis.  We finished our visit to the town with a delicious spread of pita bread made for us by locals.  Finally, after dinner, some of us met up with family and friends in Israel, while everyone else headed to the beach to relax after a long day.  IMG_6647

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