Woody Allen Comes Home…
Finished up my time in Tel Aviv. The weather was still crap – colder than I had imagined it would get in Israel (and this was on the coast), and very rainy. Took a walk back over to the Carmel Market, a place I was becoming fond of. Ambled around the old Yemenite Quarter surrounding the market – this place is shabby, low-rise, and probably one of the city’s more charming areas. A little shop was selling bras and panties – two Filipinas stopped to look at the stuff and started giggling. I love it.
Headed over to Sheinkin Street, the city’s high street, at least for edgier shopping. Didn’t see anything particularly gripping – then again I can’t stand shopping.
Had my iPod with me, and caught up on some podcasts. Washington Week is probably the most informative one I subscribe to – this edition focused on the U.S. auto bailout . Sounds grim. I think in a year’s time, or even less, Chrysler will be part of Ford, or perhaps a foreign manufacturer, and G.M. will have shed one or two of its lines. And that might be the best-case scenario. I’m generally supportive of keeping the industry alive, because so many jobs are linked to it – at the same time I don’t want to keep these companies on life-support for another 3 decades. Something’s gotta give.
To be fair, the U.S. makers have been saddled with overhead like health insurance, and foreign companies are largely free of this – they have national healthcare. Still, something’s gotta give, and I think the end-game is in sight.
My drive to get back in shape has been working – went for another good run along the Tel Aviv beach promenade, one of the better running paths anywhere. I think another couple weeks and I’ll have made up for my non-exercise in Turkey and Jordan. This isn’t getting any easier as I get older…
Particularly when my nighttime activities haven’t changed much. I went that night to Moses, a fairly chi-chi place on Rothschild Avenue that’s famous for its gourmet sandwiches and hamburgers. I had their ‘Moses Burger’ – it was exceptional. And a couple Goldstar beers to wash it down – I had wondered why I felt spacey after just one or two of these, then noticed that they’re 4.9% alcohol. Hmmm…
Israel has never been famous for its food, but it’s apparently gotten much better. And I liked the blend of Middle Eastern and Euro/Western. Very easy to get a quick sandwich from a place on the street – and it’s real food, not processed junk. I’m eating my fair share, but don’t feel that bloated. Real food, not ‘quick-serve’ / chain garbage.
Was becoming friendly with Itzi, the owner of Hotel Eilat, despite my initial impressions. He has a great sense of humor and is a warm guy. I wasn’t thrilled with my tiny room…but the price was right and it was right near the beach. For some reason I hit it off well with guesthouse owners and staff – maybe I’m in a ‘sweet spot’ between old geezers that are always complaining, and clueless kiddies who never have any cash and trash their rooms.
Took a walk over to the old port of Jaffa. I had come upon Jaffa during the previous night’s run, but wasn’t aware that I had actually gotten that far. Tel Aviv has expanded to the point of swallowing Jaffa, and other supposedly distinct towns and cities. Jaffa’s an ancient place, and fairly attractive – but I found ‘old Jaffa’ to be a bit too much ‘ye olde Jaffa,’ a museum-like place with annoying vendors everywhere. The new town, down the hill, was a bit more real – there was a townwide flea market going on and people were in full shopping mode. To be honest, I find flea markets vaguely depressing…the vendors seem to be even more desperate than the average merchant (their overhead is lower, but their merchandise isn’t stuff you’d find in a real shop), and the stuff on offer is other people’s junk. Occasionally there’s a connection and the transaction happens, but I don’t find it an energizing experience. I wish I felt otherwise – there are a few great bargains, and some good stuff, to be had, I just dislike the entire aura.
Had lunch at Dr. Shakshuka, a place recommended by Dri. Shakshuka is a mixture of egg, tomato, and god knows what else, served in a pan. Better than it sounds. And very filling too. I think it’s a North African/Libyan recipe.
After a couple hours wandering around Jaffa, I had changed my mind and kind of enjoyed it. Perhaps the best aspect of Jaffa – the view over the Tel Aviv coast. Tons of surfers, and pretty damn good surf. I hadn’t thought of Israel as a place for this, but the locals are into it.
Walked around Tel Aviv proper for another couple hours. Ducked into Max Brenner Chocolates for a sugar fix – they had the ‘choctail’, a milk chocolate cream and caramel toffee frozen blend. As good as it sounds. I don’t have much of a sweet tooth, but this satisfied some primordial urge and I walked out grinning.
Went to the Old Port area that night, it was Friday and I wanted to get a better taste of the nightlife. Had a Goldstar beer en route – and wasn’t feeling that great when I finally reached Old Port. Might be something in the Goldstar beer, it’s a dark beer – I generally drink regular lagers. Went into a café to use the toilet, I was pretty desperate. Emerged a new man – and promptly ordered a beer (Maccabee, this time). Started talking to a cute woman next to me at the bar, Andrea, who’s an anthropologist. Told her a bit about my potential new gig in India – she was utterly fascinated by the social change aspect. This is right up her alley and I could see some benefits of doing some ‘anthropological deep market research’. We hung out for a few hours and chatted – might be something there.
Tel Aviv, while perhaps a bit too Miami Beach, is a cool city nonetheless – quite liveable and relatively hedonistic. I have a feeling Jerusalem will be the polar opposite.
Had a drink that night at a bar called ‘Jewish Princess,’ back in the city center. It’s a gay bar, so they say, but seemed to me to be full of yuppies. Pretty good vibe, plus they had an ancient tabletop Pacman video game – haven’t seen one of those in 20+ years. Sat down and played a game, and survived for 5 screens. So there.
Talked to a few folks in the bar. One thing I can really appreciate about Israel (and France, and the UK) is that the average person you meet is intelligent, thoughtful, and knows a bit about the world. I wouldn’t say that about many countries in Asia, and I wouldn’t say that about the U.S. Americans have their qualities – optimism, can-do spirit, etc. – but thoughtfulness and cross-cultural knowledge are sorely lacking.
Heard that the Yankees opened their wallet and signed pitchers Sabathia and Burnett, and third baseman Texeira. Ugh. Those are huge signings, and will probably transform the division race next season. Either that, or, like many New York additions, they’ll wilt under the NYC spotlight. But these three are fairly young and in their prime – it’s hard to see how they’ll fail utterly.
Went over to Lilienblum Street after midnight. There’s a fun bar called Mish Mish (Apricots, in Hebrew) where I sat and talked with some locals about Middle Eastern politics. I suppose I’m at a decided disadvantage here – it’s their lifeblood, after all. That said, I’ve spent time in other Middle Eastern countries, they often have not, so I have a decent grasp of the Egyptian mindset, for instance. I’d like to see true democracy in Egypt – many Israelis would not, for fear of the Muslim Brotherhood taking over. I don’t like the notion of keeping the lid on the pot, it can’t stay on forever…but many Israelis would prefer to attempt that and not risk Egypt becoming more radical. Tough knot to untie…
Was happy to be leaving Hotel Eilat – the guy in the next room over had some awful cough and it sounded like a death rattle. Depressing.
Saturday morning, Shabbat, in Tel Aviv. Very quiet everywhere, even in this largely secular town. Found a place with coffee and food. Then checked out of the hotel and got a sherut (minivan taxi) to the central bus station. Regular buses don’t run on Shabbat, but there are sherut, presumably run by secular Jews and Arabs. The system works pretty well, and you can get around.
Connected to a sherut to Jerusalem. As I sat in the minivan for the hourlong ride to Jerusalem, I thought about my lengthy travels…and how there was a certain symbolism in now coming to Jerusalem, and perhaps ending my travels (at least my travels to ‘new places’) in such a place. I’d be going on to Thailand, the Philippines, and Oz afterwards, en route to Boston…but these are largely R&R/seeing friends pit stops. The past 6-7 months have been (except for 2 weeks in India) entirely in novel places and I’ve been a constant tourist for this stretch of time. It’s been demanding, and tiring – nearly every day I’ve been focused on seeing the local sights and ensuring that my next stop or two was arranged. Certainly better than working…but at the same time I’m happy to be taking a break from my holiday (!) and visiting some places I already know.
We pulled into the city. ‘Purple Rain’ was playing on the radio…I was fanning myself with a Jet Airways (India) safety card…there seemed to be some consternation in the streets. I was staying near the Old City’s Damascus Gate, within the Old City itself – this is on the Arab East Jerusalem side of the city. I got out of the sherut and got a taxi to take me to the gate. The cabbie told me that Israel had just started dropping bombs on the Gaza Strip and that Israel was no good. He was obviously an Arab…and my timing was obvious not great. Welcome to Jerusalem. Worlds away from Tel Aviv.
I spent the next 5 days in the Holy City. I’d use two adjectives to describe this place: intense, and tense. I’m sure you’ll see what I mean after a few more paragraphs.
Checked into the Golden Gate Inn. The manager was an American expat who was quite helpful, but seemed a bit stressed. My room was small but clean and perfectly fine. Went out to see the Old City – my first time here, at the age of 41. Familiar refrain – why did it take me so long to get here??
The Old City is a warren of alleys and doorways, and it’s not always clear where you can really go. The Muslim Quarter, where I was staying, is particularly labyrinthine. In just a few minutes I had a solid sense the quarter’s identity – this is really a Muslim area, these people have been here for generations and things didn’t change all that much in 1967 or afterwards. There were a fair number of Israeli soldiers around, probably because of the Gaza bombings and fear of the locals’ reaction.
I walked around, and at one point went through a portal that seemed to lead to an alley or street. After a few steps it became clear this wasn’t a public area and it lead to a private home or homes. I went back out, and after a few steps a kid, perhaps 10 years old, came up and said something to me. I responded in English, then in French – he was speaking Arabic and I couldn’t understand him. He seemed a bit confrontational, but not overly so – just seemed to be a kid trying to be a man. I stood my ground – I wasn’t that concerned, and anyway in these situations you don’t want to show any fear, or anger. After a few seconds an old man said something to him and he moved on. I went over to the old man, who spoke English, and talked with him. He told me that it was no big deal, the passageway was private but that tourists were always walking into it, that the kid was giving me a bit of lip, that today was more tense than usual. He was cool and we both laughed about it. Hey, I remember being 10 years old and wanting to be a real man – and probably succeeding at being no more than a little brat.
Decided to walk the Stations of the Cross. This is the route Jesus supposedly walked, carrying the cross, all the way to his crucifixion. The walk ends up in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, where Jesus was supposedly buried. The sepulcher itself is an ornate edifice within the church, and I went inside (the queue was brutal) and saw the stone table where Jesus’s body was laid. The Stations walk is a good way to see the holy Christian sites and I learned a bit about Christian history as well.
Went to the Wailing Wall as the sun was setting. It was the end of Shabbat and the Western Wall Plaza was packed. Orthodox Jews, and some less devout Jews, were praying at the Wall, and in a chamber nearby there was a free communal meal for locals and visitors – I had a bit to eat and some juice that reminded me of the sugar crap they used to serve in summer camp.
The Wall was a real trip. I could feel the history of this place, it’s in the air. Right above was the Temple Mount, a sacred place I planned to visit later in the week. More on this shortly.
Left the Old City through the nearby Dung Gate and walked around the entire Old City, which took more than an hour. Probably not the best night to do this, given the political situation, but I didn’t feel like going back to the hotel just yet and I wanted to immerse myself in the geography and, to the extent possible, the mood of the place. I’m not particularly religious…but I’m fascinated by the history of this place, and by the religious/historical/political mysteries as well. Ceremonies and dogma turn me off, but, for example, I’d really love to know what might lie buried under the Temple Mount. Where on earth is the Ark of the Covenant? Was there ever truly such a thing?
Walking round the Old City reminded me a bit, to force yet more symmetry into my long travel tale, of walking round Ayers Rock in June 2006, early on in my journey. The Old City is larger, and obviously manmade – but both had an ancient feel.
Back to the hotel. Took a shower, then went over to the city center to check out the nightlife, it was Saturday night and Shabbat was coming to an end.
Jerusalem is much more lively than I had expected. There are quite a few restaurants and bars, and I wound up at a place called Dublin Pub. Became friendly with a waitress there and we chatted for a while. Some Hasidic Jews came in and led a Hanukkah ceremony – the bartender put on a kipa and a bunch of us joined in. First time I’ve celebrated Hanukkah in a bar, first time with a beer in hand. I later saw the same thing in another bar, apparently this group travels from bar to bar to make sure, or ‘help’ these places be observant.
Oh, for a second youth – I wish I had come here when I was 20. The city was full of young Americans, studying or sightseeing. I know lots of people don’t get here till they’re 60, but I still felt ‘late.’ Forgive me, Lord.
Tried to visit the Temple Mount the next morning, but it was closed, probably because of the Gaza mess. Instead, went on the ‘Western Wall Tunnel Tour,’ which I had booked in advance. Quite cool – they take you along a now-underground section of the Western Wall, which has been covered with arches and buildings since the city fell to the Muslims. You can see sections of the First and Second Temples, truly ancient stones. At one point there are people praying, hard-core – this is the section of the Wall closest to the ancient temples’ “Holy of Holies,” where the Ark sat. It’s bizarre – you’re underground and there are (mostly) women praying towards a section of wall lit with candles.
After coming up for air, I walked over to the Wall and attempted a few weak prayers, my head against the stone. After stepping back, a Hasidic fellow came over and ascertained that I was a foreign Jew. Within a minute he told me he had a large family and asked if I could spare some money. Torture. I smiled but told him that we all had to support our own families first – and that he surely knew what he was getting into by having lots of children. He nodded his head and walked away. Begging at the Western Wall – I’m not that religious, but that’s very bad form. And during my time in Jerusalem, I was targeted more often by Jewish beggars than by Arab beggars – myths explode here left and right.
I was in awe of the sheer number of things to see in Jerusalem. And they’re coming up with more all the time…just a few years ago they started excavating the ‘City of David,’ the original Jebusite settlement just below the current Old City. King David and his boys captured this settlement around 1000 B.C., with Solomon eventually building the First Temple on the hill above the city – that became the nexus for the Old City. They’ve done a very good job of trying to show visitors what things may have looked like – even to the extent of using 3-d holograms.
I went to the City of David and spent a couple hours there. There are various water shafts leading to and from the Gihon Spring, the water source and raison d’etre for there being a city here in the first place. Didn’t do the half-kilometer slog through Hezekiah’s Tunnel, which was used to protect the water (and people) from the Assyrian Army around 700 B.C. But I got a sense of the engineering and thinking behind the plan for this place and it’s impressive.
Is this the tunnel King David and his men used to invade the city? Maybe…
Went over and checked out Mt. Zion, a few sights are located there. First, King David’s Tomb – please attach a large ‘supposedly’ to that, since there’s very little chance that this is really it:
Next, tried to see the Virgin Mary’s place of death (they call it ‘eternal sleep’). Her burial spot is actually (supposedly) at the foot of the Mount of Olives, but she (supposedly) died here. The crypt was closed due to lack of electricity, so I took a raincheck.
Finally, finished up my Mt. Zion excursion with a visit to the room where the Last Supper was (supposedly) held. Pretty low-key place.
Walked over to Jaffa Gate and did the Ramparts Walk, along the Old City Walls from Jaffa Gate back to Zion Gate. Some terrific views of Mt. Zion from the walls…and I realized that Old City Jerusalem is still, in many ways, a bit wild and undeveloped. There are empty lots here and there…and down the hill, in the Kidron Valley, perhaps the oldest part of the city, it’s still wide open. You could pretty much point a shovel anywhere and find something within minutes…
Then wandered around the Jerusalem Archeological Park, which covers a stretch around the Western Wall and continues outside the Old City wall. It’s a sprawling place, and another example, like the City of David, of recently excavated finds being shared with the public. Good stuff.
A couple shots of stones from the top part of the Temple Mount wall, presumably the Western Wall, thrown to the ground by the Romans in 70 A.D. The stones sat there, then were buried, until they were uncovered after the Six Day War – amazing history right here:
Outside Dung Gate I saw a traffic cop sitting on a nice bike – upon closer inspection it turned out to be a BMW. I told the cop I was a bit surprised that an Israeli cop would have a German motorbike – he didn’t respond and looked a bit sheepish. I wasn’t meaning to be an asshole, and I think I’m reasonably open-minded, but I was pretty surprised. About as surprised as that time I was in the war museum in Moscow and spotted Siemens hand dryers in the rest room…
While walking around I overheard a guide telling her group that the neighborhood to the right of the Mount of Olives, Silwan I believe, has grown tremendously since 1967. It’s an Arab ‘hood, and she said that the Arabs there have moved in because of the benefits of having a stable, single political administration, instead of the pre-1967 mess. Perhaps she’s right, people very often put economics first…still, you’d have to think that the Arabs there would, at the end of the day, love for Jordan to take over the entire city and then they’d be under an Arab government. Despite Israel governing the entire area for 40+ years, there’s still a lot of tension and I didn’t get the sense that the local Arabs had any love for Israel – particularly not when Gaza was getting nailed. I imagine there are plenty of ‘moderate’ Arabs who see Israel’s logic and habor no love for Hamas, or the Palestinian Authority – but as I just wrote, I’ll bet 90% of them would love to shift to a decent Arab gov.
Noticed that my clothing’s getting a bit ratty. Recent launderings have probably accelerated the process – you can never tell which hotel will maul your fave stuff. Most of my stuff isn’t old at all, I turn things over pretty often. I guess when I get to Manila I’ll hit British India, Marks & Spencer, and Zara and restock.
One night I watched a group of Asians sitting in Zion Square, singing songs. Israelis and tourists were all around, watching them too. This city is a bit of a circus of humanity…and I think lots of tourists are frightened by the randomness of it all. Not me – I find it captivating and often humorous. As with Egypt, I’m amazed at how many tourists come here in large groups, and are never by themselves. They never meet a ‘normal’ local, Arab or Jew, and they go to the same places and have the same experiences.
I went to the Temple Mount a few days after the start of the Gaza bombings, and they had finally reopened it. I entered, after reading a sign warning visitors that some senior rabbi(s) deem it against Jewish law to go to the Temple Mount – you might step on the Holy of Holies and bring down the wrath of God or something along those lines. I decided to risk it and went on. The mount itself really just has two large Islamic buildings now – the Dome of the Rock and the Al-Aqsa Mosque. Only Muslims can enter. I sort of knew that would be the case, but how annoying. And the dudes at the doors aren’t particularly cool, either – the sites used to be open, 8 or so years ago (I saw a shuttered ticket booth up there), until Ariel Sharon did his infamous tour and set off the second intifada. Or something like that. The door-guards, when asked why non-Muslims can’t enter, just say ‘you know why.’ Cheeky.
Israel is heavy-handed in many ways, no doubt about it. But it’s generally not stupid – the Israelis have been quite liberal with the various religions and buildings, and right after the Six Day War they gave control of the Temple Mount’s Muslim sites right back to the Muslims, to the ‘waqf.’ I think it’d be hard to fault Israel in this regard…perhaps they’re just doing it to maintain stability with the Arabs, and to bring in tourist dollars…and if they are, good for them, those are two very good reasons for playing nice. When Jordan controlled the Old City, Jews couldn’t get near it.
So I was pissed off that I couldn’t get into the Dome of the Rock, where, supposedly, sits an ancient rock called the Foundation Rock. This rock is where, hmmm, Adam was created by God…Abraham was about to sacrifice Isaac…the two temples were centered…Mohammed rose to heaven…and the Divine Presence remains forever. There’s a cave under the rock where Mohammed prayed, and I imagine other things (supposedly) happened there as well.
The Temple Mount itself is a fairly large manmade plateau (used to be an irregular hill, but was filled in by King Herod), with the two Muslim edifices and some Muslim schools built into the retaining walls. It’s an expansive and peaceful place, with lots of empty space and trees, and it’s hard to imagine all the violence caused by those wanting their hands on it.
I walked around for a while…eventually hired a guide to show me around…he was fairly useless and couldn’t get me inside the two sites. So I did what comes naturally to me – I bribed a guard who looked like a reasonable guy, and he went inside with my camera and took some decent pics. Didn’t cost me much, and hey, there was no entry fee for the Temple Mount itself, so I considered it even. Still, the photos are only somewhat useful, I wasn’t actually there so can’t compare them with my memory. So I looked online and found this video created by a Jewish tourist who somehow snuck in there, it’s very helpful and covers not only the Dome of the Rock (with Foundation Rock and cave underneath) and the Al-Aqsa Mosque, but also Solomon’s Stables, which also seems to be off-limits to us heathens…
http://switch3.castup.net/cunet/gm.asp?ClipMediaID=85443&ak=null&nb=1
Now I have a much better sense of what the Foundation Rock looks like, for what it’s worth.
A few shots of the Temple Mount:
Before I conducted my bribery operation, I had walked by a Muslim woman sitting on a step. As I walked by she put out her hand to beg for money – I was pissed off about not gaining entry to the sites and shot her a nasty look. I think I was falling into the age-old trap, and really should be better about not lumping things together. It’s not the poor woman’s fault that the religious-political issues of the day are so messy…
Temple Mount visited, I took a cab to the Israel Museum to check that out. The main hall was closed for renovations, but the ‘Shrine of the Book’ was open. This hall has various Dead Sea scrolls, including the famed Great Scroll of Isaiah, which is 3-4 meters long and very clear – I could read some of the Hebrew on it. On one of the walls there was a list of sponsors – noticed the Marc Rich Foundation was a prominent donor. Remember him? Bill Clinton pardoned him a day or so before leaving office – caused quite a stir.
Outside was a huge panorama display of Second Temple Jerusalem:
There was also a children’s museum on premise, I walked by and noticed there was an exhibit called ‘Blue and White Pages,’ a reference to the colors of the Israeli flag. Went in, not expecting much of interest – and was instantly proved wrong. They had the original Israeli Declaration of Independence…a page with song lyrics (Song of Peace) that was in Yitzhak Rabin’s pocket when he was assassinated, and is soaked with his blood…various official correspondence relating to the 1967 War…the diary of Ilan Ramon, the Israeli astronaut on the space shuttle Columbia, they found a few pages scattered around in Texas…and quite a few other fascinating paraphernalia. Certainly not an exhibit just for the kiddies – it was a terrific synopsis of Israel’s brief history and I could have spent hours in that one large room.
But was in a bit of a hurry, unfortunately. That was really the only gripe I had about Jerusalem, there’s so much to see, and my predilection is to see a lot wherever I go, that I was always pressed for time. I took no naps and in general got little sleep during my 5 days there…and will go back for another couple days so I can try to see a bit more of the West Bank. More on that in a bit.
Was now heading to Yad Vashem, the Holocaust Museum. Took a cab there, it was starting to rain and it was a bit far off. The cabbie’s meter was (supposedly) busted and he quoted me a high price, which I managed to bargain down a bit – I was therefore not a fan of his from the get-go. But it was raining and I had little leverage, so said OK. En route he asked me why I wanted to go to a museum about a 60-year-old holocaust when I could go, with him, to Gaza and see the latest thing. Hmmm – hadn’t been sure of his ethnicity but now I knew. Impertinent fucker – I wanted to reach over and snap his neck, but held my tongue and counted to ten. Then I told him I’d be glad to go to Gaza for as long as he liked, if he’d come with me inside Yad Vashem for a couple hours. I didn’t say that I, like nearly all Jews, lost relatives in the Holocaust – I didn’t lose my cool, although very angry. He gave me a weak smile and declined. The only thing I said after that is that everything’s connected and if he wanted to truly understand what’s going on today, you have to understand what happened 60 years ago.
We reached the museum – he said ‘have a nice time’ as I got out. Again, I wanted to break his neck, but kept my cool – I think it was mostly a case of his English being bad and him not really meaning to provoke me. I gave him zero tip, but over here that’s pretty normal and I got no merit or demerit points from that action…
Things like this happen all the time here. People who dislike intensity and confrontation – don’t come.
Yad Vashem itself was as harrowing as they come. They tell the story of the Holocaust from every angle, and have loads of video testimony from survivors. Not a dry eye in the place. I won’t say much more, only that I’d like to see something similar created for the Armenians and the Rwandans. Yad Vashem devotes a fair amount of space to other groups murdered by the Nazis – namely Gysies, homosexuals, and the handicapped. I think that’s important – it might be that people only have mental space to cover one genocide, but I believe that acknowledging and publicizing other genocides serves to reinforce the general need to prevent any more from ever happening. I don’t think that Jews should want to ‘own’ this entire space, despite the Holocaust being by far the single largest genocide in history.
Walked over to the Theodore Herzl Museum afterwards, I had a booking to do the tour there. The museum has a multimedia history of Herzl’s life and his Zionist vision – pretty remarkable guy and it’s just incredible that his vision came true decades later.
On the grounds of Mt. Herzl there’s the man’s tomb. A group of young soldiers was visiting it when I walked over. Fairly simple structure. Nearby is a cemetery with the notables in Israeli history, including Golda Meir, Yitzhak Rabin, and others. At Rabin’s tomb there was a group of Spaniards being guided around – I recalled being at the Alhambra in Granada with friend Ken and reading, hung over and stunned, about Rabin’s assassination.
Walked all the way back to the Old City, took nearly 3 hours, included a beer stop. Got a much better sense of the city’s layout – one of the world’s most hilly cities, methinks. And some very distinct neighborhoods – it may be one of the world’s oldest cities, but it’s still coming together as people move in.
Shots of the Old City:
Got back to the Damascus Gate. Lots of teenagers hanging around – sensed some tension in the air. Went back to the hotel, the TV was on in the lobby and scenes from the Gaza bombings were being shown. Talked for a while with the manager, with whom I was becoming friendly – she’s an American who moved to Jerusalem some time ago. One of the owners (or perhaps it was the night manager), an Arab fellow, was inveighing against Israel for the bombings. Seemed very bitter – so it goes. Later I heard that there was some stone-throwing near the Damascus Gate, and a few bottles were broken, but nothing that really got out of hand. Gotta keep an eye out round here…
Next day, took an all-day tour covering a few places which are hard to reach on your own. Started at Qumran, where the Dead Sea Scrolls were found. You can see the caves and the digs, where they’ve uncovered structures from the sectarians who lived there:
There’s also a small museum with some fragments of the scrolls, but the more impressive stuff is at the Israel Museum.
At a pit stop I noticed a vendor selling Dr. Brown’s Black Cherry Soda – an obvious attempt to appeal to New York Jews. Dr. Brown’s is awesome stuff, but I’ve never seen it outside the States…
Spent part of the day with Corinne, a Jamaican-Canadian who now lives in L.A. On our next stop, Masada, we took the cable-car up and then did a circuit of the top of the mountain. Larger than I expected – certainly a place where thousands could live and hold out for a while. Huge store-rooms where they kept the food and drink. The coolest part – I hate to say it – was the side of the fortress where the Romans built a massive ramp road and then pulled up the siege tower, which eventually helped them breach the wall and take the mountain. By then, of course, all but a few people had committed suicide. Good to finally see this place – historic and dramatic.
Next stop was the Dead Sea. Much like the Jordanian side – had to pay to get access to a decent beach area, which was still a bit shabby. Did my dip in the sea, with a Goldstar beer in hand – washed all the salt water off and moved on.
Final stop – Jericho, perhaps the oldest continuously inhabited city on earth. The ancient settlement’s now no more than a mound of dirt called Tel es-Sultan – quite disappointing, although given a shovel I think things would get fairly interesting.
There’s a petrol station right next to the mound – a teenager there asked me my name. I told him, and added the suffix ‘Jordan.’ He seemed to like that – friendly guy.
We stopped and looked up at the Temptation Monastery, where Jesus is said to have spent 40 days fasting and matching wits with the devil. Or something like that.
The other major stop in town was Hisham’s Palace, built 1200 years ago by one of the first caliphs. Interesting, but I’ve seen my share of ruins – Roman and Islamic – and prefer to see the really old stuff from before J.C.
Back to Jerusalem. The other tourists in the minivan were from a bunch of different European countries, including one funny Dutch family who’d lived in Kenya and some other random spots. The teenaged Dutch girl had her iPod Nano out and was playing something at top volume – turned out to be ‘In This City’ by Iglu & Hartly, my current favorite song, recommended to me by brother-in-law Dave (with whom I just had a Skype videcon). Didn’t know this song was so popular – maybe it’s time to ask Dave for his next set of recs…
Got a call from Ken in Spain, he was making sure I wasn’t partying in Gaza. We wished each other happy new year.
Back at the hotel, a group of 16 Koreans were checking in. Torture. Koreans are a lot of work, and my new friend the manager seemed stressed. One of the Korean chicks locked herself in the bathroom and couldn’t get out – I looked for a screwdriver but a workman showed up before I found one, and got her out. The other issue with having a guesthouse full of Koreans – zero camaraderie with other guests. The next morning, at breakfast, I felt like a leper…but had to laugh when the Koreans pulled out their own food, including bag/cup noodles, kimchi, and various other specialties. The manager told me that this happens often – a group of Cypriots showed up with tons of their own food, and some South Africans actually came with cooked meat. Give me a break – open your mind, and your stomach.
Had dinner that night at nearby Amigo Emil, bizarrely named but quite good. Had musakhan, basically chicken and vegetables rolled in bedoiun bread. Quite tasty. And had a starter of hummos, which I could eat almost every day. Tried a Palestinian beer called Taybeh, which means ‘delicious’ in Arabic – it was pretty good. And strong – the local beers all seem to be 4.9%. Gotta watch myself…
I imagine this point has already come through, but it’s very difficult at times to tell who’s Jewish and who’s Arabic. I think this is an important point – we are brothers and even when brothers fight, it shouldn’t last forever.
Went back to Dublin Pub in the city center for a couple beers. Let the cute bartender talk me into ordering a couple Guiness – they had a drawing for a TV and you’re entered if you down 2 of these. I don’t like Guinness, but hadn’t had one in memory and decided to give it another chance. After the first one I was already bloated…after the second slightly nauseous. My stomach is built for regular lager beer, and a few other potions – not heavy flat breadlike swill. Sorry, Guinness, you’ve seen my back. Now I’d better win that damn TV…
Have run all the way round the Old City walls twice – it’s about 4 km and the backside is brutally hilly. Tremendous workout – I got back the other night and the hotel manager teased me, saying that if I got in even better shape the Israeli Defense Forces might forcibly recruit me. Right…
Spent my last full day in Jerusalem (this round) seeing a bunch of sights on my list. First, the Mount of Olives. At the base is the Garden of Gethsemane, where Jesus was supposedly (am I getting predictable here?) arrested. There’s also a Grotto nearby – went into that and saw the entire Korean horde from my hotel, sitting for a mass being led by a Korean priest speaking in mediocre English. Very random and funny – you couldn’t make this stuff up.
The Garden, with its collection of 2,000+ year old olive trees – some of the oldest trees on the planet:
There’s a church/monastery next door where the Virgin Mary is (supposedly) buried.
Walked up the hill, stopped at various churches along the way. At the top I got a bit confused – was looking for the ‘Church of the Ascension’ from where Jesus (supposedly) ascended to heaven. But there was a (closed) Russian Ascension Church, and then a ‘Chapel of the Ascension’ which was actually a mosque with a small domed building next door – this had a (supposed) massive Jesus footprint and I think this is the supposed ascension spot. I had thought there was a climbable tower on site, but now I think it’s actually in the Russian Ascension Church. Are you following this? Plus, it was raining hard and pretty cold out – not a great day for sight-seeing. But I had scheduled this day to see these places and I was sticking to my plan.
On the city side of the Mount of Olives the slope is full of Jewish graves – apparently this is where Judgement Day events will take place and it’s best to reserve a front-row spot. It’s written that on Judgement Day all humanity will stand on the Mount of Olives, with God over on the Temple Mount. Two bridges will appear and span the Kidron Valley/Valley of Jehoshaphat below – one paper, one iron. God will choose who goes on what bridge – eventually the iron bridge will collapse, carrying away those on it. Uh-huh. Good yarn, anyways…
Not much room left in this cemetery, it’s pretty full. Book your place now!
Tried to visit a tomb where 3 prophets (supposedly) are buried, but it was closed. Oh well.
Spent a good amount of time down in the valley between the Old City and the Mount of Olives. I really wanted to explore this area, it’s a bit wild and not many tourists visit it, you wouldn’t go there on Day 1, its more of a Day 4-5 place and not many people are in town that long. Good. I thought it was terrific and felt like a little kid playing in it…
The Kidron Valley has some ancient tombs – one’s (supposedly) for Absalom, King David’s treacherous son who tried to overthrow him. The tomb/pillar drips with history, even if Absalom isn’t the one interred there. Another tomb is for Jehoshaphat, an ancient King of Judah. Atmospheric…and I was the only person I could see in the entire valley. I had the sense that this place was the secret heart of the city…
Back up to the Old City. Checked out the Tower of David Museum, which covers in extensive detail the history of Jerusalem. It’s an old Crusader tower built over some First Temple and Second Temple/Hasmonean walls – a sprawling place that was well worth the visit. I think I’ve finally got a good sense of the history of the city, and of the Jewish people. Only took me 41 years…
Walked by a place called Moses Art Café. The owner came up to me – I asked him what the ‘Moses Sandwich’ was and he told me – sounded like the usual felafel plus hummos/salad pita. I asked how much – he said 45 shekels, about US$12. I laughed and walked away. He appealed to me to come back, but I just won’t deal with thieves like that. Twelve bucks for a sandwich that should go for a buck – there really must be some dumb-ass tourists hanging around the Jaffa Gate…
Went back to Mt. Zion to see the Virgin Mary crypt. Open this time – intriguing place, there was a stone or wooden Mary statue in the center of the room:
Went over to another church nearby, called Peter in Gallicantu, where Jesus was supposedly denied by his apostles, and also later held before his trial. Terrific views of the Mount of Olives from there.
Then tried to find the grave of Oskar Schindler – but the cemetery was closed. Oh well:
I’d visited his former factory in Krakow, only to find that it’s now the local office of The Economist magazine. On the trail of history…I love these interconnections and threads in time.
Final stop on a very busy day of sight-seeing – the Garden Tomb, where some think Jesus was buried. Scant evidence for this, but there are some believers. Very nice garden spot a bit outside the Old City, in East Jerusalem.
There’s a cliffside that very vaguely could resemble a skull – the New Testament says that Jesus’s body was taken to Golgotha, the ‘place of the skull.’ Didn’t really see the skull image until I looked at a photo posted right nearby, then at the cliff once more – there really is a decent skull image there…
The supposed tomb’s in a cave – couldn’t make out much in there. Then again, all caves are a downer – there’s never anything interesting remaining.
Back to the hotel. It was now New Year’s Eve and I wanted to make a few calls and send some emails. Had a video call with my sister’s family – saw my nephew and baby niece, whom I’ll finally meet in a few weeks. That was fun. Tried to get through to my Dad but no go. Sent off a few emails and then headed out to dinner with my cousin Sara, who just moved here from Montreal. Hadn’t seen her in years – she was a right little brat back in the day, but now she’s a normal adult and I found that pretty funny. Went to an Italian place, had a very nice bottle of local cab sauvignon and caught up with her. Will probably hang out some more when I get back to Jerusalem near the end of my time in Israel.
She had some event to go to, I moved on to Dublin Pub to celebrate the New Year. New Year’s Eve is relatively low-key here – you don’t need to book a seat anywhere, at least not that I could see, you can float from place to place and see what you like. I just sat on a stool and chatted with my neighbors, and did the countdown as usual. Was happy to finally celebrate a new year in Israel, even if it’s the regular new year and not Rosh Hashanah – at least this was ‘next year in Jerusalem,’ in a sense.
Hit the sack around 2 a.m. Was moving on to Haifa the next day, didn’t want to have a brutal hangover. Still, woke up a bit gnarly, the gang of Koreans were checking out early (7 a.m. or so) and they made their share of noise. I couldn’t get up till around 9, and felt rough – the strong beers had done their damage. Had breakfast, packed my stuff, said bye to the manager, and was checking out when an absolutely stunning Asian woman walked up to the desk and inquired about a single room. The manager went to check on that – we started chatting, she asked me where I’m from and I told her Boston. Turns out she’s Korean but lives in Cambridge. I put down my pack and had a cup of tea, and told her what I thought she should see in the city – she’d just come in from Amman, only had 2 days, and apparently hadn’t done much research or prep work. Wound up talking with her for nearly an hour, then realized I had to catch my bus. Exchanged emails with her, and maybe we’ll see each other when I’m back in Boston in a few weeks. That’s the great thing about life – these pleasant surprises come out of nowhere. If I’d left 5 minutes earlier it wouldn’t have happened.
To Haifa, the largest city in the north of the country. Sat next to a young soldier with a rather imposing M-16 rifle. Got to the city in a couple hours, got to my hotel, the very welcoming Port Inn. Checked in and walked around the city a bit, listening to my latest music download, ‘Flower Power’ by KickBong – check it out. Will end this post here and update you on Haifa and other spots in next week’s entry. Till then, Happy New Year and stay cool. BTW, the total page count of this slog is now (at least as counted in Microsoft Word) at 1,006 pages – got it over the line in this entry – yowza. Over and out.
Tags: 1, Travel
mbsloney
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