Thursday
My wake up call did not happen and it is nothing short of a miracle that I managed to get up in time for my 8am pickup for today’s adventure. I admit to second thoughts this morning. Nasser couldn’t make it, so his partner took us and as I was getting into a car with two strange men to head to Palestine and no one I know knew where I was going, I did wonder if this was the smartest move I was making. But the opportunity was too great to pass up. The other passenger was a young Irish guy named Allen. Our guide told us all about the areas were passing and the political history. Traffic was a nightmare due to the demonstrations but after we passed the Israeli checkpoint (more machine guns) traffic disappeared. Because of the current political situation in the West bank, tourism, which was the areas major industry, has been destroyed. Many of the shops are closed and there are half built hotels where the construction just stopped. Apparently a lot of the people living in Bethlehem (primarily Christians) had relatives in other countries and have just left until things get batter. It was almost eerie, the deserted nature of the town. There WERE people there (more than we saw in Be’er Sheva on Shabbas!) but so few compared to the bustling area we had left (the two towns are about 5 minutes apart - think Hollywood and Dania or Provo and Springfield,) and one is crammed full of people and the other deserted.
(photo: Olive trees on the side of the read ready to be transplanted)
We went to the church of the Nativity which is supposedly where Christ was born. Like many churches in Jerusalem it is divided among the Roman Catholics, the Greek Orthodox, the Coptic’s and the Armenians. Because these groups can’t agree on how to use the space (or have Mass) the buildings are divided up and there is no crossover. As a tourist you can visit all the areas but the Catholics for example cannot have mass in the main church because that is the Greek Orthodox area. They have Christmas mass in the Catholic area which is side church. In the church of the Holy Sepulcher (also divided) the groups of Christians were fighting amongst themselves so much about who should have the key, that the Caliph at the time gave it to a Muslim family and it has remained with them to this day! So everyone shares but no one is in control. The church of the Nativity is one of the only original churches to remain from the 300 AD era (and not be destroyer and rebuilt by the Crusaders) because when the Marmalukes came from Persia and took over, they saw the depiction of the three kings dressed like their own Kings (being from the East) so they did not destroy the church. It was very beautiful and moving, and you can tell immediatly which section you are in from the décor used in the church. We also got to see a bit of an Armenian orthodox service. It was very cool and different from the Catholic one. We also went to The Church of the Holy Milk. Our guide explained that the during the time of Christ, the basement areas of the buildings were used to store goods because it was cooler. When Herod ordered the killing of the children in an attempt to kill Jesus, Mary was said to have hidden here with members of her family (until they could flee to Egypt) So close to the Nativity is another building where she was hiding. While there, she is said to have been breast feeding and a drop of milk fell to the floor and turned the rock white. There is a Franciscan church there now, and it is said if infertile couples drink milk with the powder from the rock and prays to Mary, they will be able to conceive. The church has hundreds of letters from people all over the world with photos of their babies, who have been healed this way. The Franciscan priest said it works for Catholics, other Christians, Muslims, Jews – all that matters is your faith. And the letters are from people of all denominations as wells nationalities. I thought that was cool.
We also went to the place were the Shepherds heard the tidings of great joy. I think that was my favorite place in Palestine. There is a beautiful little church with lovely gardens and in the cave there is a smaller grotto and memorial. Apparently the shepherds would herd their sheep into the caves at night and light a fire out front to keep the sheep safe. The roof of the cave is still blackened from the shepherd’s fire. It was peaceful and beautiful and I could easily envision the shepherds seeing the heavenly hosts. The guide also took us to a friends shop (as they always do) for Turkish coffee and the opportunity to purchase goods. I was enjoying my coffee and determined not to buy anything else (I had bought a carved manger scene yesterday and that was all I was going to get) when I look up and see….a carving of Joseph Smith. I nearly fell off my chair. I asked the store owner who it was and he said Joseph Smith, for the Mormons. I told him I was Mormon and he got very excited and showed me his carving of Emma, Joseph and the angel Maroni and some other Mormon figures. Of course it makes sense since there is a BYU Jerusalem and all, but all you hear over and over are about Catholics, Greek Orthodox , Coptic’s and Armenians...After awhile you just don’t expect to see stuff from other denominations. So to look and see (and recognize) Joseph Smith ...while drinking coffee… was a trip! The owner said he thought we weren’t supposed to drink coffee and I told him I was going to hell. He laughed and insisted I have another cup (I think to show he hadn’t meant to chide me for breaking my churches law not to help me get there!). I ended up buying the bust of Joseph because I couldn’t resist, even though it was more than I would normally spend.
As we headed back, our guide said that since we were the first customers of his newly formed tour company (4 of them had just finished incorporating the company the day before) he would take us to the Mt. of Olives for a view of Jerusalem and the Garden of Gethsemane, no charge. So we went there and it was breathtaking. Afterwards, Allen the Irish guy and I were talking and I was telling him about Mom's research into our genealogy in Ireland. He asked about our family and I told him we were Crofts and Loftuses and he flipped. Turned out he was a Loftus from County Mayo (where we are from) and it is a very unusual name in Ireland...so we are probably related if you go back far enough!
By the time I made it back to the hotel, I had been gone on my 1 hour tour for 4 hours! Given that half day tours are usually 150.00 and this was 23.00, I felt I had made out like a bandit! At that point I had to check out and was pretty exhausted so I decided to abandon the rest of my Jerusalem plans until my next trip and head back. This time I took a Sherut taxi. Which is basically a taxi van. I’m glad I did for the adventure of it, but next time it is back to the regular bus for me. The van is crammed totally full so its less comfortable than the bus and a few shekels more! I made it home and this time we ordered Chinese and watched Angel.
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