City of Peace

Jerusalem. We found this city of David much smaller and much larger than we expected - very manageable and normal and yet so full and unexpected. How does one collect history in a moment of time?

For various reasons, photos and musings came slowly for me in such a broken-mosaic city. Below you will find a cloudy collection of pictures and memories of our first three days in Jerusalem. We journeyed to find retreat. We are much refreshed.

Monday:
-walking from the bus station to the hostel in furious wind!
-long naps.
-a bagel shop in the late afternoon where the food was more expensive in English than in Hebrew although everyone around spoke flawless English.

Tuesday:
-cold, wind, and rain like late Autumn we've missed. Exhilarating walks down Jaffa street.
-delicious brunch in a local coffee shop as the rain dripped down outside (to sit in a coffee shop as it rained was my one wish of the retreat in Jerusalem).
-time to read, talk, nap, watch movies.
- walk after dark as the weather turned, through neighborhoods where trousers on women were prohibited, past a Arab market closing, walking at the base of Jerusalem's Old City wall, through the New Gate and deserted street.
-Armenian Tavern, a delightful cave-ish restaurant filled with dusty hanging lamps, rugs, antiques, jewelry, metal-work and paintings.
-wandering until we found the Western Wall and Dome of the Rock. Sober reflection as we stood and watched the faithful pray before the wall (in various forms of vigor) and back up from the holy place.

Wednesday:
-local pastries, walk through the large open air market, olives and tangerines.
-breakfast in a park.
-wandering through the city looking for St. George's College (we had a JT guidebook to deliver to the Canon). Instead of the Canon, we ended up chatting with Alfred, the cheery janitor dusting the chairs in the church, as the organist practiced Christmas carols.
-stopping by Palestinian Pottery, a wonderful painted ceramics studio (so happy my husband is artsy, too:)
-stopping by the old Ethiopian Orthodox church - full of incense, silence, haphazard rugs, and icons.
-wondering about holiness....


Armenian restaurant



Ethiopian Orthodox



Palestinian Pottery



St. George's


B