A Final Dispatch From Israel & We're Coming Home
Trip Start
Aug 31, 2008
1
13
14
Trip End
Sep 18, 2008
Jerusalem,
Israel
Tuesday, September 16, 2008
It's all becoming a bit of a blur now, we have seen and done so much here and my apologies if I repeat from an earlier blog or sound a little raptuurous, such is the spirit of this place. We have both found the Old City so intriguing, fascinating and inspiring that we spend most of our time there every day.
On Monday we spent much of the day wandering the ruins and the museum in the Tower of David fortress. A huge fortress where for more than 3000 years some form of fortification has stood and where you can now see major ruins from the Hasmonean period up to the 18th century. There are even 2 permanent Chihuly (Seattle artist) Glass installations incorporated into the site. Tonight (Tuesday) we returned to the Tower for the most incredible sound and light show projected onto the interior walls of the fortress. Impossible to describe but very inspiring all outdoors on a hot, humid Jerusalem night lit by a full moon. Goose bump material.
Today we took in another archealogical site and one of the highlights of the trip, a tour of the Western (Wailing) Wall tunnels. The site of a major, ongoing and underground archealogical dig being performed the entire length of the Temple Mount. Descending many metres below (current) ground level, you follow almost the entire length of the western wall and begin to appreciate at different stops along the way the layers upon layers of civilization that are piled one on the other here. 1000 BCE aqueducts, second temple streets and Herodian construction, the piles of rubble created by the Roman 10th legion when they destroyed the second temple, and on and on....All these rocks and ruins probably make us sound crazy, but when you're here you get it!
As I wrap up this last post maybe a few quick overall observations and impressions from the trip overall...
We will miss the heat, as oppressive as it can but be we love it. It forces everyone to live, to socialize, to dine and to drink...outside. Dine late (9:00 p.m. +), and most bars will stay open until the last partier leaves, literally. We can count on one hand the number of meals we have eaten indoors and have only done that to enjoy some air conditioning.
Cats, lots and lots of feral cats, here and in Tel Aviv...Some cute, some mean and some quite the worse for living wild. Every restaurant, even the King David patio, has cats that wander quite freely amongst the tables. The crusader cemetey we cut through on our way to the Old City is full of them...
The food has all been great. From the schawarma, to the kebab, to the chicken schnitzel, to the Israeli tomato and cucumber salad that accompanies everything, including breakfast, a bad meal has not been had. The service, well lets say it needs some polishing in spots. We find the smaller, tiny places have good service but the bigger, more upscale places struggle to keep up, keep organized and keep orders straight...No big deal, but a little unnerving at times.
Cell phones, everyone, kids, parents, bubby's all have at least one phone and many people carry 2. Half the people in eyesight at any one time are on the phone...day and night.
Guns...We are still a little shocked when we suddenly relaize we're following someone with an M16 rifle or an Uzi machine gun strapped over there shoulder as they walk about the city in their civilian clothes. Off duty military personnel are required to carry their weapons at all times. Saw a 19 or 20 year old girl, about 5'2", casual summer clothes with a machine gun half as big as her at the ATM the other day...that said, overt public security is far less evident than we imagined it would be...but..
We will not forget our bag incident in Tel Aviv, nor how quickly a restaurant supervisor approached us here, when a large purse was left sitting, unattended on the table next to us, and asked if we noticed who it belonged to (the owner was nearby and a little embarassed when it was brought to her attention)...Bringing the daily threat of mass violence home was the store we were in the other day with a small card posted by the front door...The card had 3 large bolts attached to it and simply said..."These are some of the thousnds of bolts recovered in a suicide bombing at this location, the bomb completely detsroyed the front the the store where you are standing"...chilling...
The people here are wonderful, love life, know how to enjoy themselves and have the highest regard and love of family. There is a great undercurrent of nationalism, stoicism and passion that attributes directly to the constant threat of war and destruction that is willed on them by some of their 'neighbours', and it shows in how non-chalantly but with great willfullness they go about their daily lives...admirable to see, we have no idea how safe and secure our lives are.
They are also very agressive (and would be considered down right rude in our part of the world). They think nothing of jumping a line in a store or bank (it happened to us more than once), they will interrupt a clerk looking after you without a second thought (and the clerk will abandon you to serve them), and so forth. They say New Yorkers are tough city dwellers, well they're pussycats compared to these folks. Once you pick up what's happening you go with the flow, do a little elbowing, and stick up for yourself and things even out and you actually begin to enjoy it. Look out you folks in the lineups at Thrifty's, we're coming home!
Well, it's late here, time for bed and then one more full day in Jerusalem. We're going to attempt to get up onto to the Temple Mount tomorrow morning to see the Dome of the Rock. Then it's a last visit and walk through the old city before we head home. We will leave the Harmony Hotel Thurs. at 4:30a.m., before first light and arrive home in Victoria at 11:30 p.m...We sure hope it's 28degrees there, like it is here tonight at 11:30.
We hope you've enjoyed the blogs, we've enjoyed the trip...Hope you are all well and we are looking forward to seeing family and friends once again...Please try to keep the welcome home crowd at the airport to no more than 50 or 60 (ha)....Shalom, one final time, from Jerusalem!
Comments
What a trip...
This is one part of the world that is certainly worth visiting. I loved your blog and it is fun to realized that somebody else is 'un amateur de vieilles pierres'
Merci beaucoup à vous deux pour une bien beau voyage
Final Dispatch
I can't believe this is your final entry. Not that I'm unhappy you're coming home, but who's going to tell me the stories of all the old rocks now? Please tell me you will have more old rock stories when you come home. Ohhh! and there better be more old rock pictures! :) Please tell me there's more of those mud pictures than the perfectly posed one you showed us! (Stephen, Mirage pool photo comes to mind!)
Those pictures of the Wall with all the prayers in them was quite moving. It made me wish I had sent you with a prayer of mine. But who wants to see all those other prayers burst into flames.
Hope you have or have had a wonderful final day. It does seem to have gone by faster than I thought, so it must have really flown by for you.
Looking forward to seeing you both back home. You may not feel like coming home yet, but you know you can plan for another trip once you're back. Trip planning, fake or real, you know you're very good at.
Stephen, thanks so much for doing this blog. It not only let us get a feel of what you were experiencing but every time the email updates came in, I knew you guys were OK. Very helpful for such a worrier like myself. Oy!
I'm looking forward to seeing you both home soon. Hugs & Kisses from Barb.
PS Stephen, any U2 Kippas?