As you can tell from the title my travels to get my dorm room were not too bad. We spent about 28 hours of total travel time before I was able to drop my suitcases off in our roof top room and head down to dinner. We arrived around 6:30 p.m. Isaraeli time. We spent the evening unpacking and preparing for our busy week ahead. Our room is amazing! We have a roof top view of the city. The David Hotel is located just west of our campus. It is a beautiful skyline to look at everyday. The down side to this room are the stairs! Anytime I have to go to the bathroom, brush my teeth, shower, go eat, or go outside I have anywhere from 40 to 60 stairs (one way) to go up and down. I am learning to organize my trips better. I just keep reminding myself of the buns of steel I will surely possess after this trip is done.
Today’s walk through Old Jerusalem has left my feet throbbing, my legs achy, my head spinning, and my faith strengthened. We started our day heading north. Our first stop was along a 16th century wall that used to wall in the city of Jerusalem. In front of the wall we sat in a gateway dated to Herod the Great. We changed directions and went to the Dormition Abby, a church tucked into narrow roads that is named for “the sleeping” place of the Virgin Mary. We then came to the Zion Gate. It was very narrow and covered with bullet holes from Jordanian assault in the 1940’s. We wove our way through these narrow ways passing shops along the way till we entered the Jewish Quarter. Here we saw the Hurva Synagogue located in a spacious courtyard. Hurva means ruins. It was named this for the previous synagogue was destroyed by the Jordanians who conquered that area in 1948. This area was very contrasting to every other place we visited because it was so spacious and it was a rather new structure. After we worked our way through narrow walkways we were led to an out look point that faced the east. We could see the Western Wall, the Dome of the Rock, Mount of Olives, and the Church of the Ascension. This was just an amazing view! So much history in one little area. We left this view and went to an area called Jerusalem Cardo. Here we discussed the fall of Jerusalem in 70 A.D. The Romans came in incorporating a grid system to the architecture. We sat in the Cardo ruins which in 1st century times would be the equivalent to our main streets. This market area and roadway went through the heart of the city. It was very difficult to hear what the instructor was saying because of the traffic, but there was a huge mural on the wall that gave a great visual to what it would have looked like. Old pillars remain, along with an occasional stone in the roadway. From the Cardo we went to the roof tops. The roof tops were interesting to me because they apparently are also used as walk ways. We saw many people passing along this path as we sat. We discussed how our geographical environment can shape our perspectives and how the Jews, who would watch all the passing through of travelers through the Cardo, perspective must have been. I was shocked to see how many animals were also on the roof top just wandering around. Even if you own the apartment or home the roof tops are for public access. This has given a mind set to many in the middle east that all they take care of is within their 4 walls. This is evident by the litter and clutter we saw. This isn’t a modern problem. In fact, the valley of Hinnom was at one time much steeper than it is today. But centuries of waste being thrown over the walls of the city has built up the ground. We left the roof top and went to The Church of the Holy Sepulcher. This place has strong archeological evidence that this is Golgotha, where Jesus was crucified. When you walk through the doors the first thing that catches your eye is slab of rock that is the rock that Jesus was laid on after his death to prepare his body for burial. The church also has part of the rock of Golgotha exposed at an altar. You can kneel down and touch it. There is so much to see and reflect on in this church it was
overwhelming to try and take it all in. I was fascinated at the domed area that has the face of Christ looking over all of creation with the first bishops encircling Him. Mary is the first bishop in the circle. The colors of how Christ and Mary are dressed was very moving. They were both depicted in blue for humanity and red for divinity. Mary is dressed in blue and draped in red. Jesus is dressed in red and draped in blue. I decided I must come back to this site on a free day and spend some time meditating on these areas. I think knowing history behind them and the evidence to support them will make this time of meditation more meaningful. Our last stop was to exchange some of our money. We stopped at a local shop and I got my first view of Israeli currency. This was just from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m. We had a short lunch break and headed to the classroom in the afternoon till 5:30! So, I am overwhelmed with information and exhausted. I’m loving every minute of it!
So you can see our day is packed full. I looked at our schedule and it has 2 free days in the 24 days we are here! We are trying to pack 2,000 yrs of history in 3 weeks time. My next tour will include Hezekiah's tunnel! Last night as we walked around checking out the more modern sites, I realized that the Israeli's must have started the phrase..."When I walked to school it was uphill, both ways" I've never seen terrain quite like this! It seems like we are always walking up hill!
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