The Old City, part 1

Titled part 1, as we plan another jaunt into the Old City next week at some point.

Friday night was just the kind of night’s sleep we so desperately needed after a combined 8 hours over two nights, mixed in with a day at Petra and a long, tiresome crossing into Israel. With the ability to wake up at our own choosing, we were prepped and ready for a day of discovery. Honestly we hadn’t planned to get going until possibly even the afternoon but after receiving a facebook message from our new French friend, Greg, saying he wanted to meet us at the Wailing Wall in an hour, we hurriedly got ready and made our way to the OC (nothing like Orange County). It was nice to have an idea of our plans for the day since we weren’t really sure what we wanted from our first full day. So Greg, your sneak attack facebook message actually did us a service.

Well we never did find Greg and later found out that somehow he thought the plan had changed times and places. Nevertheless we were now in the OC, having navigated our way through the impossibly busy Damascus gate and to the Wailing Wall. We thought this day a perfect chance to follow the path of Jesus’ final days, starting with the Mount of Olives, working our way to the Garden of Gessamane and the Church of All Nations, heading through the Lions Gate and along the Via Dolorosa (his walk with the cross) and end up at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre where supposedly he was crucified and buried. The whole journey for me was a combination of distraction, reverence and thankfulness. Kris had done all these things in the past before and was interested to see my reactions to it all and more than willing to be there with me.

We got started by making our way up to the Mount of Olives, a VERY hot and steep climb to the high lookout. Along the way we passed the graves of many, many people who most believed The Messiah would make his entrance to Earth through the un-opened Golden Gate and wanted to be buried outside of this gate. We also knew Schindler (from Schindler’s List) was buried here and would have loved to have found his grave. Two big issues: 1. Could not read any Hebrew 2. Felt there could be some disrespect issues wandering around a sacred graveyard. So alas, we passed on the hunt and got to the top, tired and thirsty but thoroughly enjoying the view and the importance of this place. We passed on yet another camel ride and got some great pictures.

After getting back down we got to the Garden of Gessamane and corresponding Church of All Nations. I really enjoyed this place a lot. Kris told me this was always a favorite of hers too, it bringing her to tears a second time. In her words, there was something about this moment, when Jesus was at possibly his most vulnerable, feeling very much scared and alone, and very aware of the incoming betrayal and abandonment of those closest to him that always affected her. I was very thankful for the somber atmosphere the C of AN provided for this remembrance and also fascinated to see olive trees that very possibly were the eye witnesses of Jesus’ passionate plea and prayer to God.

After that, we re-entered the OC through the Lion Gate which put us on the Via Dolorosa, the walk Jesus took with his cross. I think this is where some of the distraction of the modern situation in the city took over. Though I enjoyed seeing the various stations they marked along the path that annotated significant moments in Jesus’s journey to crucifixion, it was also hard to imagine it all with SO much hustle and bustle of the market place. One part of the path, in particular, was incredibly crowded with afternoon shoppers, tourists and stores. I tried my best to keep the right frame of mind but it was not always easy.

Having completed the walk to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, we made our way in, getting a chance to stand in line to feel what was apparently the very rock in which the cross was mounted, see where his body was laid and see where he was put in his tomb. In some ways the church seemed a little overdone in its gaudy appearance. In some ways I was floored by the reverence apparent to some of the visitors. In some ways I was skeptical that the church held both the sight of crucifixion (believe this more) and the tomb (believe this less). In some ways I wish I had a better, more appropriate surrounding to reflect on the moment. But in all ways, I was very much grateful to experience this. To know I stood in the very city that bore witness to the most important event to shape my life and beyond.

After finishing our journey, Kris got a chance to show me the store where she spent a week working on one of her earlier visits to Jerusalem. Unfortunately it was now something else and the lady Kris knew who owned the shop was nowhere to be found. After this we headed back towards the bus station and made a quick trip into the Garden Tomb, which also lays claim to the possibility they house the sight of the crucifixion and burial site. Honestly, who knows. But what was very neat about this place was getting a chance to see an actual ancient tomb, whether it was Jesus’ or not. It gave us the proper visual perspective to imagine the resurrection and what it could have been like to lay his body down. After the Garden Tomb, we easily got on a bus back to our host’s house and were ready for another low key evening after yet another full day of walking in the sweltering Middle Eastern heat. We ate super delicious falafel and pita bread before settling in to do very little, quite honestly. A perfect end to a great day.

Side note: Kris is inappropriately convinced she’s dying from three spider bites. She wants me to put that I will feel silly about this when she is dead. I don’t think silly would be the proper word for my reaction in that situation. Oh Tina Marie…

Pictures: The view of the Old City atop Mount of Olives, inside the Church of All Nations, the many flames of candles lit commemorating Jesus’s burial site, the inside of the Garden Tomb