Pilgrim

Welcome back to my blog! I hope you're day is going well. Today was my Christian pilgrimage day! But, as if I needed to remind you anymore, we start where we left off.

For dinner I ended up hanging out with this Swiss guy from my room. I got a Felafel while we talked about what it's like to live in Switzerland and about a recent citizenship law that didn't pass there. It was a very interesting night and I learned a lot from my new friend. When we returned to the hostel we talked with these two guys in our room who are both in the German army! They enlisted for a 12 year program, which includes three years of training, four years of University, and then the remainder of time is on the battlefield. I was fascinated by the German conscription program and the guys' attitude towards it. Switzerland also has a mandatory military term.

When we were all getting ready to sleep, I was brushing my teeth and observed that there was a rather large cockroach nest in our door frame! Using state of the art German army tactical maneuvers, we destroyed some of the offenders and then used German army-issued duct tape to seal up their exit. The receptionist said she would look into it today.

This morning I awoke a little late, having recovered my sleep from the night of jackhammering. I was off to see the main Christian sights, starting with Via Dolorosa, the route that Jesus took from conviction to burial and resurrection. The path has been organized into 14 stops that commemorate events on the journey that are located on the sites of their actual occurrences. The first was the Chapel of the Flagellation, which is where Jesus was whipped 39 times by Roman soldiers.
After that there were stops for the three times that He fell on his way to his execution, where He looked up to see Mary, and where the Roman soldiers instructed Simon to take up Jesus' cross, among others. It was quite a sobering experience, and it really was amazing for me. The final stop, of course, was in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, the Holiest Christian sight. In the area on which the cathedral is built, Jesus was disrobed, nailed on the cross, died, and was buried, but not for long. The church itself is pretty impressive, though not as much as some of the European ones I've seen, but the sheer importance and meaning in the place made it extraordinary. In the center, there is a monument that covers a place where they keep the rock on which Jesus laid. There was a line to get in it, but it was totally worth it. I was awestruck by it all, and I'm so glad I did it.

The Holy Sepulchre

Next, I took a long walk across all of the Old City and down into a valley where the Garden of Gethsemane is and was. The Church of All Nations stands next to the Garden, in which there are a couple olive trees dating back to Jesus' time. I sat in the church there for a while watching a service and then continued on my way.

I was headed for the top of the Mount of Olives. Though I was advised to take a bus, I thought I would just walk. It was definitely a challenge, but eventually I conquered the steep slope and found myself in a very Arab town. I was trying to find the Russian Church of the Ascension, located on the alleged location where Jesus ascended to heaven. After fruitlessly searching for a while I finally asked someone how to get to it, and then it turned out it was closed. The area around it, though, was opened for me by my helper's cousin. I was bummed that I couldn't climb the church's tower and get the great view, but oh well. It was nice walking around the convent area.

Continuing along the top of the Mount I came to the top of a huge Jewish cemetery where there was a lookout point. From it I could see all of Jerusalem and it's suburbs, as well as the road into Jordan. It was incredible, and it made me excited to go into the West Bank tomorrow and Thursday.

I walked around the Jewish cemetery for a while, finding more and more amazing views of the surrounding country.

The next stop was the Tomb of the Prophets, where the prophets Haggai, Zacharia, and Malachi are located. It was only slightly creepy as I lowered myself down into a semicircular tunnel system, but exploring the silent spaces with a provided flashlight was nice. It's amazing how old those tombs are!

As I walked down the Mount once again, I found a stop for one of those double-decker tour buses that my guidebook had suggested. So, having nothing urgent to do, I waited for the next one, since it would take me everywhere around all of urban Jerusalem with English commentary. At the stop I met a couple from, wouldn't you know it, Phoenix! It was fun to run into them and talk about our hometowns. Once the bus arrived we boarded it and I began my 2 hour adventure seeing every outlying sight that I would not have gone to. One of the first was this crazy YMCA outside the downtown area. It looks so much different than the one in Scottsdale, that's for sure.

I saw tons of other landmarks, but it would be boring to list them all off. Suffice to say that I am starting to be a little more confident in my knowledge of Jerusalem.

Like I said, tomorrow I will be heading into the West Bank to see Bethlehem! I can't wait, and my Swiss friend went today so I can get some advice from him. Hope all of you are doing well!