Israel - Day's minus one, one, and 1 1/2
Jun 15, 2016 07:43:43 #
I forgot one pic I wanted to post
Jun 15, 2016 17:36:07 #
Jun 17, 2016 10:11:04 #
Got to Jerusalem yesterday afternoon. Today we had a full day, but not quite as full as we had hoped. A couple activities are going to be re-scheduled because of horrendous traffic jams and crowds. Today is not only the beginning of Sabbath (Fri sundown - Sat sundown), it's also the second Friday of Ramadan. There are about 400,000 Jews and Muslims in the city (old and new) and the police and army are in force with Uzis at the ready and several streets closed. I'm downloading pics, but I'm not sure if I'll be able to post them until later tonight. It's 17:00 here so it's about 11:00 in STL. Our tour guide was born in the old city and he showed us his family house. It began in 1525 by his great (x several) grandfather, has been built up over the years and is still occupied by members of his family. Tonight we will be returning to the Western Wall to witness the multitudes praying, singing and dancing, which should be a special experience. Actually, here are a couple pics now.
The church of the Beattitudes (designed as an octagon - one for each i.e., "Blessed are those...")
(Download)
The Wailing Wall - the men's section is twice as big as the women's area (to the right behind a barrier). There is a case in the Israeli supreme court to have a mixed area.
(Download)
Jun 17, 2016 12:44:53 #
oops...I recently realized that Israel is 8 hrs ahead of St. Louis, not 6. Just got back from the evening Western Well excursion...not nearly as many people as we were expecting, but there were more than this morning and there was singing and dancing. Tonight, though, there was a different sect represented. They wore big fuzzy Russian-style hats.
Jun 17, 2016 20:45:42 #
Jun 18, 2016 11:15:56 #
Today's pics (probably could add more, but I wanted a good variety).
If you want to reply, then register here. Registration is free and your account is created instantly, so you can post right away.