Our last day in Israel was jam-packed as per usual. Our first stop was the Pools of Bethesda, where Jesus healed a crippled man. There was a pretty Catholic Church there too called St. Anne's - famous for its acoustics. Our group tested them out by singing Amazing Grace.
After that we walked part of the Via Delorosa, which tradition says is where Jesus walked with his cross on the way to crucifixion.
We started the route in the Arab Quarter, and finished at the Church of the Holy Sepluchure in the old city. We wound our way through a bazaar with lots of Arab shops and vendors and other pilgrims saying prayers or singing at various Stations of the Cross on the way.
In the Catholic tradition, the Church of the Holy Sepelchure is the site of Golgotha (where Jesus was crucified), and also where he was buried.
It's been the site of a church for over a thousand years, and is really a fascinating place with lots of side chapels and nooks and crannys. They've done archeological excavations and have uncovered artifacts and relics from the 2nd century. There are 7 different denominations and sects that share custody of the church now, and apparently this causes no end of trouble and arguments.
Mickey said the church is in desperate need of various repairs but nothing ever gets done because they can't agree on who's responsible for what. In fact, they couldn't even agree on who should be trusted to lock the place up at night, so a Muslim family is in charge of that.
As we were leaving, all of a sudden who should walk by but Morgan Freeman! We all stopped and gaped at him while it looked like he was getting a tour from some lady.
We found out later that he was in Israel filming a National Geographic special, and the lady he was with was Jodi Magness, a famous archeologist. So that was our celebrity sighting!
We then walked to the south end of the Temple Mount and viewed some of the ruins there.
It's a popular spot for bar mitzvah's, and there were a few going on while we were there. Some people in our group joined in with the families dancing.
We then had two hours by Joppa Gate for lunch and shopping. Mom and I wandered through the bazaar for a little bit, but I just don't care for that kind of hi-pressure shopping experience.
I like to browse in peace without getting harassed! And honestly, there just wasn't much there that appealed to me. Mom already got her sandals in Tiberious, which was her main shopping goal, so I can't say we were very good shoppers! We found a nice spot for lunch and just relaxed for awhile and people-watched.
I developed a yucky headache during the day, so I was relieved when Mickey said we'd stop at the hotel first before going to our last place of the day, and I just decided to stay put. It meant that i missed out on seeing the Garden Tomb, where Protestants think Jesus was buried, but I was just feeling too crappy. Mother went and said it was really special - they sang together and had a communion service. I took two Advil and a long nap and woke up feeling much better.
We went down for one last quick dinner, then worked on packing.
We were in bed early, since our wake up call was set for 3:45 a.m...yikes!
Our travel day home was pretty uneventful, but exhausting. I wish we didn't have to end international trips with sleep deprivation and stress - it's just an icky note to end on! But we survived and I was home and in bed by 2 a.m.
I'm still working on digesting the trip and what my thoughts are exactly with the whole experience, and maybe I'll share those on here once I have a little more clarity. In the meantime, I'm excited to catch up on sleep and to get back to quilting! So back to regular programming...but first a few final pics!
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