Unexpected Joys

I made a promise to myself just before I left on this trip; that I would try the unexpected. On the first part of the trip the unexpected were water related…swimming in the Sea of Galilee and the Dead Sea…unexpected joys and great fun! In the culinary department, I ate the Peter Fish when while we were at the Sea of Galilee. It’s the whole fish…head, tail, fins and all! Truly the picture is worth a thousand words. In case you are wondering, the story of the Peter fish can be found at Matthew 17: 24-27.

But my favorite culinary delight has been discovering the pomegranate. I have almost embarrassed myself rushing to the salad bar so that I can be the first in line to put on my plate the salad that has pomegranate seed in it. When you bite into the seed, they burst in your mouth with juice that tastes amazingly like Kool-Aid. Only I’m told that they are filled with anti-oxidants. Bonus! Beverage of choice today at lunch…pomegranate juice!

We started the day at the Israeli museum to view the Dead Sea scrolls. Also, now at the museum is a huge replica of ancient Israel during the time of the first Temple. It was fascinating to see what the temple area would have looked like at the time of Jesus.

From there we traveled back into the old city to the remains of the Pool of Bethesda. It is the place where those who were ill – blind, lame or paralyzed laid beside, hoping to be made well.

At my last visit to Israel 2 ½ years ago, I had trouble visualizing what the pool would have originally looked like. Today, at the museum, the replica of Jerusalem and the Temple that had been made, allowed me to see what this pool and its porticoes might have looked like. Another unexpected joy.

Next, we walked the Via Dolarosa (the Way of Sorrows) the path of Jesus from his trial to his crucifixion, death and resurrection. There are 14 stations to visit on this journey. The last four stations are within the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.

After leaving the place of Jesus’ death and resurrection, we headed for Bethlehem, the place of his birth. While clearly our order was upside, the Church of the Nativity was one of the most amazing unexpected joys of the journey. As with the church of the Holy Sepulcre, crowds of people were present to visit and experience this most holy of sites in the Christian tradition. To enter the grotto of the nativity, you must walk down very steep steps, packed with people. Once there, the room is very small, many push (not us, of course!) to try to see this place where Christ was born. We gathered at the back of the room, to read the scripture from Luke’s gospel. When we were finished, we began singing, Silent Night. Now, while our singing has only rated about a B- on this trip, this time we were joined by others, who sang this song in their native tongue. Christmas in September, truly the most unexpected of joys.

May I be the first to wish you... Merry Christmas!
Suzy

P.S. Hapyy Birthday, Kirk - it's October 1st in Jerusalem!!!