Over the summer, six University of Evansville students and three alumni joined Professor Dr. Ebeling in an excavation in northern Israel. This was the Tel Hazor Lower City Excavations with Site Director Dr. Shlomit Bechar. This dig was a University of Haifa field excavation. For many of the UE students, this was their first excavation.

            Digging through the dirt, many artifacts were uncovered, including many that cannot be spoken of yet! Valuable skills were taught in the field, including learning new equipment and pottery reading.

            These valuable lessons continued for the students out of the field as well. The excavation group stayed in a Kibbutz, an Israeli community that was created early in the 20^th century based on an agriculture Jewish community.

            On the weekends, students traveled to various locations in Israel. Their first weekend in Israel, UE students traveled to Jerusalem. They traveled during Shabbat which is a time of rest. This means that in Jerusalem, Friday evening to Saturday evening it was very quiet and peaceful. Of course, the Old City of Jerusalem had a different feeling. Many tourists filled the streets, with souvenirs lining the roads. During this trip, I was personally able to visit the Western Wall and leave a small note of prayer as many others around me did.

            All in all, this experience was one that many of these students won’t forget. They will use what they have learned in the future to further their careers.