Al Cazar Hotel Jerusalem

... puzzled. They are worth 900 dollar, he cries out. Are you bargaining aid? he goes. Suddenly, I am a bad man. Praised just a few minutes ago, and now despised because I am being rationale about the aid I give. He pushes the blanket in my hands. Here, take it for free. You don't know how to help people. I put the blanket back and nod my head. Sorry sir, this is getting too tense. I want my card back because you are insulting me. I walk on, saddened by the misunderstanding of the ...

... his capital . His son Solomon built the first temple on Mt Moriah (the Mount). It became the focal point of Judaism. The temple was destroyed by the Babylonians who banished the Jews to Babylon around 600BC. This event (and other invaders who forced Jews to live outside Israel) is referred to as the Diaspora and explains their passion for their land.

When the Persians conquered Babylon, they allowed Jews to return and they built a Second ...

... through 2 long “minharot” – tunnels – drilled under arab towns and along long stretches of highway protected by miles of stone and concrete walls. Fortunately from Efrat, at least the part of Efrat where the Benarroshes live no such barriers are visible. All looked as picturesque as it did when we last visited Efrat 9 1/2 years ago and got engaged in the Benarroshes back yard.

We fit in nicely into the controlled chaos of the Benarrosh ...

... plaatjes geschoten, en dan maar weer afgespoeld. Ook moesten we ons natuurlijk nog even met de voedende Dode Zee modder insmeren. Normaal is modder vies, maar dit spul kost fortuinen en lag hier gratis op de bodem. Erg smerig, leuke fotos..

Thierry wilde snel weg, maar wij bleven nog even rustig hangen om waar voor ons geld te krijgen. Maar rara wie kwamen we twee uur later in de bus tegen...? Meneer had nog even ...

... I was asked by one the keepers if I had any questions and my only question was to ask him a fair price for a taxi from here to the Mt. of Olives. His gracious answer was 35 shekels.

We left and pointed our friend back towards the Gloria Hotel. Then we hailed a cab to the Mt. of Olives. On the way there we came across hundreds of busses and thousands of Muslim pilgrims. Many strangely or not wearing white baseball caps ...

... rest of the evening.
After eating we caught that special family time in the Jewish quarter at dusk. Then walked back to Mamillia for ice cream. Tonight Mamillia was absolutely full of people enjoying themselves. A street acrobat, clowns, a jazz band! When we got back to the hotel we ventured up to the third floor roof at 9:15 and caught the light show on the cidital walls across the street and fire works coming from the 'new' city. Good night.

... und die wohl groesste Sorge des Durchschnitts-Palaestinens**s sind. Offiziell sind sie da, um alle v**kehrenden Fahrzeuge und P**sonen zu kontrolli**en und so Angriffe auf Israel zu unt**binden, ab** jed** kann sich selb** denken, welchem Zwecken sie sonst noch dienen. Waehrend Siedl** und and**e Israelis nicht einmal anhalten muessen, w**den an allen Checkpoints die Ausweise von Auslaend**n unt**sucht, waehrend die Behandlung d** Palaestinens** eine ganze Ecke krass** ist ...

... next couple of days whose life-long dreams were ruined by the Pope's visit. Next we headed over to the "Shrine of the Book". This building was built to display the Dead Sea scrolls and related items. It was really cool to see all this stuff, but I was also impressed with the building itself. Whoever designed it really put a lot of thought into it. As you went in to the building, it was kinda dark (like a cave). As you walk ...

... and attend a mass when the throngs aren't there. After that, it was time for a closing Eucharist and farewell. It was really a gift to be a part of this course with this group. I'm grateful for their hospitality and faithfulness. The whole experience has deepened my faith and also my love of Anglicanism. I saw too much religious judgementalism here, and I pray that Christians can celebrate and delight in our different ...

... 580bc - 70ad). That was 3 of the 8. The other ones were sold at an action in NY for $250,000. They were then brought back to Israel. Except for one which was found 12 years later destroyed because it was hidden in someone's house. The reason why the scrolls where so well preserved for 2000 years is because they were stored in the desert and in a dark cave. The one that was hidden for 12 years was nearly completely destroyed, blacken and hardly legible. All ...