The first Bank holiday weekend for the year we decided to reprise a great holiday from last year - a bit of a Middle Eastern adventure for 10 days or so with Angus and Jamie. Last year Jordan & Egypt - this year Israel, although it was a close call with the Border Agency whether my passport would turn up and we would actually get to go. Never fear, after an emergency courier from Liverpool the evening before we were on our way to magical Jerusalem.
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| The view of Temple Mount and the Old City from the Mount of Olives |
Our first night we arrived to stay in our pilgrim's guesthouse in the Old City late, after the shops had closed for the night. It was incredibly evocative with the golden stone everywhere as we walked through Damascus Gate and wound our way through the cobbled streets. The next morning we woke to hear hymns floating up to our window being sung by people walking the Stations of the Cross on their way to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre - built on the site believed to be that of the crucifixion of Christ.
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| Damascus Gate by day |
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| The Church of the Holy Sepulchre (above and below) |
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| The Eighth Station of the Cross on Via Dolorosa |
The Garden of Gethsemane
While the sights in the Christian Quarter were amazing, the Jewish and Muslim Quarters of the Old City were also incredible, particularly the Wailing Wall (below) and the Orthodox neighbourhood.
Leaving Jerusalem we travelled into the West Bank and saw a different side of Israel. Having seen (and felt sympathy for) the Jewish men and women pressed against the Wailing Wall as being the closest place to Muslim-controlled Temple Mount that they were permitted to pray, it was confounding to see the wall surrounding the West Bank (graffiti below on the Palestinian side) and in particular to travel to Hebron.
In Hebron we saw armed Israeli soldiers patrolling a boarded up thoroughfare in the midst of 'Area A' - supposedly the Palestinian controlled area - so that Zionist Jewish settlers, ostensibly prevented from settling in the area, could travel to and from the synagogue along the road. Palestinian children had been prevented from travelling to school along the road and Palestinian shops were boarded up and abandoned. This is most definitely a land of fierce contradictions (although many Israeli Jews denounce the Zionists so there is a myriad of different views).
| Israeli army checkpoint amidst boarded up shops in Area A in Hebron |
While in the West Bank we spent a night in Bethlehem and visited the Church of the Nativity which contains a small grotto said to mark the birthplace of Christ. It is incredible to think that every Christmas service all around the world is focussed on an event happening in this small place.
We had had such a good time in the Dead Sea on the Jordanian side that we had to revisit it while in Israel. Armed with Moses the musical camel we took a road trip down to the Dead Sea and spent some time floating, soaking and hamming it up below sea level.
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| Moses leading us into the desert |
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| Shoreline - 422m below sea level |
Also in the Dead Sea area is Massada - the remains of a fortified settlement on top of a mountain where in approx 80AD a Jewish community committed suicide en masse rather than be taken by the Romans who had put them to siege. It is a decent walk up but a reflective time on the top.
Leaving behind the dry and dusty Dead Sea we travelled north to the chilled out Sea of Galilee with its kibbutzes and organic food. We ate well, relaxed and tried (but failed) to walk on water.
Last stop Tel Aviv, via Nazareth, Haifa (home of the Bahai Gardens) and Acco, former Crusader stronghold. We were packing it in! but for a small country Israel has so much to see.
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| Basilica of the Annunciation of Mary, Nazareth |
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| Ba'hai Gardens, Haifa |
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| Crusader tunnel, Acco |
Tel Aviv was a great last stop - incredibly clear blue water and golden sand right across the road, and a cool chilled out vibe (with amazing food) that meant a really relaxing wind down to the end of the trip. And a great place to spend a birthday!
Israel - you've been great and I hope to be back someday!
M
