Thoughts On [insert religious topic(s) here]

Well, after long goodbyes, 34 of the pilgrims left for Florida. It was bittersweet, but now it’s time for the JAM Journey (Jac’line and Mat). Once everyone had left, Jac’line and I decided to just relax in our rooms until we had to check-out at 11. So, I watched some Simpsons and finished packing my stuff.

We met Jacky and Nancy down in the lobby and then got a taxi to Jaffa Gate. Unfortunately, the taxi couldn’t drop us off right at the hostel, so we had to carry all our stuff another quarter mile to the hostel. Not a good way to start the day off. Jac’line and I got checked into our hostel and went up to see our room. Ironically, we somehow double booked so we had two rooms, an upper one and a lower one with a patio. We chose the lower one, and offered the upper one to Nancy and Jacky. It was another mini-Anona pilgrimage for four more days.

Our room is…interesting. Here are some pictures of it in all its glory. (And yes, that is the shower)

Entrance to Jaffa Gate Hostel at night

My bed at Jaffa Gate Hostel

Bathroom at Jaffa Gate Hostel

Patio at Jaffa Gate Hostel

We both figured that we wouldn’t be spending much time in it anyways with all there was to see in Jerusalem, so we’ll make the best of it.

We have two very nice people living next to us, Howard and Helen. Howard is from Portugal, in town for a family wedding and Helen is from England, in Jerusalem just to enjoy the sacredness of the place. We might be going around the outside of the city tomorrow or Sunday with Howard, but we’ll see.

After lunch at a deli across the street, I headed out to find Geo’s and upload about four days worth of blog posts. (Sorry for the delay guys, but wifi is hard to come by for free) On the way to Geo’s I managed to get lost in the Muslim quarter of the Old City. It was not a pleasant experience. Street vendors were coming at me from all sides and the alleyways were packed with people trying to get through. I just swung my backpack in front of me and pushed my way through. I found a place to get on a rooftop and regain my bearings. Thankfully, the Church of the Holy Sepulcher-which is right by Geo’s-has a large dome roof so I was able to find my way to the shop.

At the shop, I got my first cappuccino in 12 days as well as free wifi. I sat there for a couple of hours sipping coffee, checking e-mail and uploading blogs and pictures-which I hope you have enjoyed thus far.

Around 6 Jac’line and I decided to go down to the Western Wall to pray and relax. When we got there the plaza was practically empty and we both went up to the wall. It was my first time at the wall and it was powerful. If you ever get a chance to go to Jerusalem, regardless of your religious practices or ideologies, the Western Wall is a place where you can sense a divine presence. For me, it was an experience that I won’t forget and I plan on going back to the wall every night I’m in Jerusalem.

A quick aside, I will be back in Jerusalem on the 25^th and 26^th. If anyone reading this blog has a prayer they want me to put in at the wall, e-mail me and I’ll be sure to put it there. Also, at http://www.aish.com/wallcam you can see a live feed of the wall and I’ll post when Jac’line and I will be done there on the 25^th and 26^th so you all can see us.

Jac’line and I decided to sit out in the plaza and watch the activity in the Western Wall area for a while, giving ourselves a chance to relax after a busy day. We both sat there and reflected n the significance of this spot and the larger Temple Mount, a place sacred to three different religions. Jac’line summed it up well saying, “This [the Temple Mount] is where God came to make sense with man.”

Sitting above all the action, the plaza began to fill up rapidly with large groups of young Jewish men and women coming in, singing and going up to the wall. Jac’line pointed out that it was the start of Shabbat-from sundown Friday to sundown Saturday-and the youth were all getting together to pray at the wall before Shabbat started. The place was packed! The men’s side of the Western Wall was standing room only with large circles of guys dancing and singing songs.

On the spur of the moment, Jac’line called my mom to let her know what we were up to and so that I could share the experience with her. As she was saying “hi!” to Mom, a firework went off in the Muslim Quarter signaling the end of fasting for Ramadan. We both started laughing at what Mom must have thought and the irony of the situation. Mom and I talked for a few minutes which was really nice since it had been two weeks since we’d talked. (On that note, I miss all you guys back home and in Lakeland. Expect postcards very soon)

As we left, we went out the northern exit, into… The Muslim Quarter. Yikes! With Ramadan happening this month, the Israeli guards in the city were on high alert for any wild activity. As we came around a corner, a young man came running up next to us and next thing I know, a laser light from a semi-automatic is pointed at him by an Israeli soldier. I told Jac’line to book it and we hauled it out of there, trying to get south to the Jewish Quarter as quick as we could.

While we were walking back to the hostel, we decided to grab some dinner at an Armenian tavern that Jac’line wanted me to experience, so we went in and there were Nancy and Jacky. We had a great dinner, shared stories and then headed back to the hostel for bed.

Just the beginning of another great adventure…

Shabbat Shalom,

Mat