Jerusalem Day 1 and 2... December 16-17, 2013
Aaron and I have wanted to go to Israel together since we got married. We were supposed to go over that first Christmas in 2000... that was his wedding gift to me. Unfortunately at that time a lot of fighting broke out in Israel and it wasn't safe for us to go. We went to Europe instead... which probably was a good thing because it made me much more open to moving to Budapest when the time came. Our first day in Israel was on Monday. We flew in from Paris in the early afternoon. We had intended to do a little sightseeing on the west coast that day, but by the time we got our rental car, and saw how tight we were with all of our luggage, we decided to drive straight to Jerusalem. It took us a while to find our hotel because we got off the highway too soon somehow. And we were surprised that it was getting dark at 4:30, so we called it an early night and just got pizza at Dominoes (that we ate in our car). Kids were in bed by 8:00 and Aaron's Uncle Gary and Aunt Alexis came to the hotel to chat with us. They are volunteering at BYU's Jerusalem Center for 18 months. They are over housing and Gary is the physician. With them being there, and Aaron's parents coming in the next day (Aaron's dad was speaking at a conference that weekend), we knew it was definitely time to make this trip.
So when we woke up on Tuesday we went over to the Jerusalem Center and met Gary and Alexis for breakfast. While we were in Paris it had snowed in Jerusalem, which apparently NEVER happens. They have no snow removal system or anything, so snow was piled on the sidewalks and everything was really wet. But it was getting warmer and the sun was starting to melt everything. The kids were super excited to see snow, because we don't get much more than a dusting of snow here in Shanghai. They loved being on the upper patio at the Center and playing with some of the remaining snow. While they played Aaron and I were awestruck with the view. We couldn't believe we were actually there... finally. The Jerusalem Center is on the Mount of Olives and looks out over the Eastern Wall of the Old City. The Dome of the Rock is just right there along the Eastern Wall on the Temple Mount. Alexis pointed out a number of places to us, and then we got in our car and started exploring.
We crossed the border into the West Bank and were looking for the turn to get to Bethanny, but somehow missed it. We kept going and saw a turn off for the "Good Samaritan Inn". We took a little time to walk around this area, and got an idea of what an inn looked like in Biblical times. This inn was right off the road between Jerusalem and Jericho, so it was cool for me to be able to picture the terrain of what this trek through the mountains would have been like. I will picture the parable of the Good Samaritan differently now. We also learned that inns in those days were not like hotels or even motels that we know. They were basically a place to pitch your tent and get some food and water. If you had some extra money the Inn Keeper usually had 1 guest room that you could pay for. This shed a new light on the experience of Joseph and Mary looking for a room in Bethlehem. So after we enjoyed our look around there, and went into the little museum and saw all of the gorgeous preserved mosaics, we continued on down the road to Jericho (and by "down", I mean WAY down in elevation!).
We saw a sign that said "Sea Level" and pulled over to take some pictures. There was a man with a camel suckering tourists like us to get pictures taken with it. It really didn't cost many shekels, so we did it. You can see the dry, desert mountains in the background. That is what it looks like the whole way to Jericho.
We got to Jericho, which we learned is the oldest city in the world, and an oasis in this desert climate. We saw a big Intercontinental Hotel as we entered the city, but didn't see much else. There were some beautiful mosques, and we followed some signs to "Herod's Palace". We were a little nervous in this area, and had to drive on dirt roads to get there, but we found where Herod's Palace must have been at one point, but is now just a hole in the ground. We drove past a Palestinian area that was protected with tall cement walls and barbed wire, and a guy with a gun looked at me funny with my camera, so we continued to drive by and headed back towards Jerusalem to try and find Bethanny again.
Bethanny was my favorite part of the day. We parked our car and walked up the street to Lazarus's Tomb. There was a small church next to the tomb, that we briefly walked into, and then made our way into the cave-like tomb. We were the only ones there, which was actually really cool. We read John 11 with the kids inside the tomb, and related to them the story of Jesus returning to Bethanny after his dear friend Lazarus had died. Then the miracle Jesus performed when he raised Lazarus from the dead. It was definitely and unforgettable experience.
We got a lot accomplished and it was only lunch time. We met Gary and Alexis back at our hotel and then followed them to lunch at an outdoor mall close to the Jaffa Gate. We ate an excellent lunch, and while we waited for the bill the kids went outside and played on the steps. While Katie, Ashley and Ryan ran up and down, Sophie stood at the top of the steps and BELTED out "Girl on Fire." She sang and sang and sang the only two lines of the song that she knows, for at least 10 minutes, over and over and over. It was hilarious. And she was not at all happy when Aaron had to pick her up and carry her away when it was time to go, as she wasn't going to budge off her "stage".
We walked with Gary and Alexis through the Jaffa Gate and around the little shopping alleyways. This is always one of my favorite parts of the cities we visit. I know it is so touristy, but I could spend all day going in an out of the shops. In one of the shops we visited was a man that Gary and Alexis knew. He takes care of the the BYU students and faculty. He gave Ryan and Sophie flutes (although I wish he would have asked me first) and the girls and me earrings. Then we bought Ryan's scarf and some widow's mites and a purse for Ashley. Other than our feet being soaking wet from all of the melted snow and water dripping on our heads from the awnings, it was a fabulous day.
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