Windmill Hotel Jerusalem

... from a terrace above the space of the celebration which was in the male section. I had to cover my head with a paper representation of the cap required by men when in a synagogue. The experience of being there was bizarre and exhilarating all at once.

4. Buying shekels from a money changer in the Jewish Quarter.

5. The most amazing hummus. We had it with our lunch at the Grand Court, a hotel in the heart of Jerusalem.

6. A chance ...

... maakt zelf knuffeldieren! koel!), dus werd er ondanks een gebrek aan gas heerlijke kip-uit-de-oven met couscous geserveerd..

De volgende dag moest de Olijvenberg nog bekeken worden. Niet zo makkelijk, want dinsdag gingen alle Joden voor Shokut een rondje rond de stad paraderen. Alle soldaten-met-mitarilleur (Israelische versie van evenementensecurity) keken raar op waarom die Hollaender de verkeerde kant op moest.. De Arabieren boden ...

... c’vedot in Hebrew – and no one was there. So I went to Information and amazingly enough someone had found it and turned it in somewhere else in the terminal. I then waited over a half hour for someone to walk it over to me. But can’t complain because I was sure it was long gone. Aimee thought security would have blown it up for fear that it was a bomb.

Feeling pressure to use everyday to the max. But tonight’s ...

... 8211; in the first week – we had our afternoons free for visits to the surrounding area.

Our first trip was into Bethlehem which Daoud took us round. We saw the university, markets and the Church of the Nativity. The last of which was nice to see though I felt a little awkward in the section where Jesus was supposed to have been born. The small room, lit by flickering candles, was thick with emotion as crying visitors prayed and kissed the floor. It felt strange to wander ...

... in tangled brush and several meters of soil. Along our left side was a huge black sewer pipe. We left the gate and found ourselves in the Arab community of Silwan. For 5 shekels we took a sherut up the hill to the entrance of the City of David and than took a taxi back to the jaffa gate. It was now 1:30, we had a shared a shwarma from the Jewish quarter BBQ.
Then a true…better later than never…shabot rest before we ...

I leave Israel tomorrow after six unbelievable months of living here. Looking back, some of the things I did seem like they happened so long ago, and yet the time feels like it flew by. If someone were to ask me, what did you do in Israel, here is how I would respond:

-neurobiology laboratory at the Weizmann Institute of Science
-arrived off the plane with nothing but my job and my dorm room, without knowing anybody and ...

... patriarch and his entourage arrived in black cars, a fascinating sight, what with the robes they wore, and the golden staffs and crucifixes, and the banging on the pavement to announce that someone important was passing by.

A quick stop to buy some fresh bread and zaatar (hyssop) from a street vendor at Jaffa Gate, and it was time to do something I had asked for specifically: climb atop the walls of the city. These ramparts are open to the public, and it's a ...

... out how the system worked; so while I stood looking pretty attempting to help, Shimon tried to understand what he was reading and Borik, trying to find some one to ask wwhich bus tot ake. Withtin two minutes both spoke at the same time and said "we need the 408 bus." We made our way to that bay whre I got on the bus to enjoy teh hour long journey to Jerusalem. Nimrod told me to meet him at the main entrance on Jaffo Street, but I didnt realize that this was a HUGE ...

... passport, automatically charged to my credit card! Worked out great. I go back downstairs to the bookstore to see if they have a su do ku book, yes and it is a small thin one for only $15. Yikes. Len finds two books at the store upstairs for less. Soon the bus is filled and we leave. There is a family from NY on standby, the driver lets them on. They are in Israel as a celebration of their son Joshua's barmitsfa and going to Eilat for some warm weather ...

I was only in Jerusalem and Bethleham for a very short time, but it was very educational and political. Israeli police on board our bus had to disembark as they are not allowed in the Bethlehem, or Palestinian side.

I think I learned more than I wanted to.