A Jewish Quarter (and Jerusalem) landmark!

(On the lower roof of the Hurva Synagogue, Jewish Quarter, Jerusalem's Old City)

On Wednesday, January 12th, I achieved another goal on my list of places to see--the Hurva Synagogue in the Jewish Quarter of Jerusalem's Old City. The only reason it has taken me twelve months to visit a synagogue ten minutes' walk away is because tours have to be arranged by phone in advance. I can't tell you how many times I would arrive at a day off, think about visiting here, and then realize I hadn't planned ahead. This time, I did and called on Sunday; it was even more fun to go with eight other volunteers.

The Hurva Synagogue lower roof and dome (remember the railed catwalk you see!)

This area of Jerusalem has an ancient and fascinating history. Our tour began underneath the current building, where excavations have revealed ruins from the 1st and 2nd Temple periods, the Byzantine period, and the Ottoman period. During the time of the Second Temple (the Temple standing when Jesus lived on earth), this area was Jerusalem's Upper City. The Upper City was inhabited largely by the wealthy and the priests.

Accordingly, beneath the Hurva is a three-stepped mikveh (ritual bath)--the steps are just left of the wall
On the other side of the wall is a street from Byzantine Jerusalem
Following our introduction to this area of the city in the Hurva basement, our guide took us to the women's gallery to tell more of the story. As is tradition in Jewish synagogues, men and women can enter the women's gallery, but only men can access the main floor of the synagogue.

By the 13th century, the Ashkenazic Jews had established a courtyard in this area. (Ashkenazi is a term referring to Jews descended from the medieval Jewish communities located along the Rhine in Germany. Ashkenazi Jews literally means "German Jews.") In the winter of 1700, about 500 Ashkenazim arrived from Europe and initially built forty dwellings and a small synagogue here. Later, they undertook to build a larger synagogue, but the project resulted in the community asking for loans from local Arabs. The cost was more than they anticipated, and the people ended up in huge debt. In 1720, the debts were still outstanding, the Arabs grew tired of waiting to be repaid, and they burned the synagogue. Shortly after, the Ashkenazim were banned from the city, and the synagogue remained in ruins; thus, earning it the name "Hurva"--Hebrew for "ruin."

In 1817, leaders of a group of Lithuanian Jews traveled to Constantinople in hopes of having the old promissory notes canceled. The year 1819 brought success as well as a legal document delineating the entire site as it was initially acquired in 1700. Permission was not granted, however, for repair/reconstruction until 1836. Interestingly, the group ended up deciding only to build a small synagogue in the northwestern corner of the courtyard, and the site of the original synagogue (built 130 years earlier) still stood in ruins.

After the Crimean War, the British had a little more sway in issues in "Palestine," and they persuaded the Turks to permit the construction of a 'new' synagogue. The groundbreaking ceremony took place on the last day of Hanukkah, 1855, and the cornerstone was laid on April 22, 1856. Once again, unexpected expenses slowed down construction, and the new building was not dedicated until 1864. From 1864 until 1948, this synagogue was considered the glory of the Old City. Interestingly, the Hurva Synagogue hosted a memorial service for Queen Victoria in 1901, in gratitude for British protection of Jerusalem Jews.

On May 27, 1948, the Jordanian Arab Legion bombed the Hurva synagogue. Fighters broke through and flew an Arab flag from the dome, signaling the victory of the Jordanians and the fall of the Jewish Quarter. Hours later, a large explosion once again reduced the synagogue to rubble. After the Six-Day war of 1967 and a Jewish return to the Old City, plans began to be drawn for a rebuilt Hurva. Initially, no one plan could be agreed upon so one of the original four arches was reconstructed in memorial.

In 2000, the Israeli government granted permission to rebuild the Hurva synagogue in its original 19th century style. After much historical research, the work began in 2005, and the reconstructed Hurva Synagogue was officially opened on March 15, 2010 (the first day of Passover). As our tour guide reminded us, the reconstructed building is about 98% identical to the one dedicated in 1864.

The two-story Torah Ark as viewed from the women's gallery; facing the ark is the Bimah.
Looking up at the interior of the dome, the uppermost gallery.

Coming back to the present, after hearing the Hurva story in the women's gallery, we climbed up some stairs, out onto the lower roof, and then up this spiral staircase to the gallery inside the Hurva's dome.
It was an amazing experience standing stories above the floor of the Hurva! For safety reasons, we were allowed to have cameras only if they were around our neck or wrist (nothing else in our hands), and nothing could be held over the railing. At this point, we were about 52 feet above the ground.
At the back of the synagogue is the women's gallery
The front (east wall) of the Hurva--the gray stone is what was left of the 1864 wall. It survived the explosion of 1948 and was incorporated into the new building.
Outside the dome, looking down at Hurva Square--the center of the Jewish Quarter.

Remember one of the first pictures, when I suggested you remember the railed catwalk? After spending some time inside the dome, our guide took us out to walk around the dome on the outside. The platform is about 52 feet above the ground; the top of the dome is 79 feet high; this makes the Hurva one of the tallest landmarks in the Old City, and the view in all four directions is spectacular. As an added bonus, our tour began at 4:00, so we came out of the gallery at the perfect time to witness a glorious sunset. Let me take you on the 360-degree walk with me!

Looking south over the Jewish Quarter and in the direction of Bethlehem
Looking southeast (the direction of the City of David and the Dead Sea)
Looking east--the golden Dome of the Rock is just visible on the left side of the picture. At the center of the horizon stands the Russian Church of the Ascension on the Mount of Olives. Behind the Mount of Olives (which runs the full length of the picture) is Bethany, the Judean wilderness, and eventually the Jordan River.
Looking northeast over the Temple Mount and the Muslim Quarter. The hill to the left is Mount Scopus.
Looking northwest over the Christian Quarter. The tall steeple in the middle is the Lutheran Church of the Redeemer. Immediately left of that are the two gray domes roofing the Church of the Holy Sepulcher.
Looking southwest over the Armenian Quarter. And, a nearby mosque . . .
Another picture looking south--the colors had changed in the time it took to walk around the dome.

Two-thirds of the Christ Church group at the Hurva--Joe, Christine, Nick, Nathan, me, and Elsa (Lucille, Rebecca, and Sarah were still up taking pictures on the catwalk)
On the catwalk with Sarah (beautiful Jerusalem in the background)

This was truly a special experience--both learning about the rich history of the Hurva Synagogue and the spectacular views, inside and outside. If you're interested in a more detailed history, check out: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hurva_Synagogue. That article is especially interesting because of the pictures from the 1930s--they are so similar to the pictures I took nine days ago!

Tel Aviv! (part two)

Well, so much for getting part two up last week . . . Wednesday was a full day (more on that in a later post), Thursday was a busy day, and I caught a cold on Friday. I worked my shifts Friday, Saturday, and Sunday but had absolutely no energy at the end of those days to think through a blog post. Today is a day off, so now I'm back to finish the Tel Aviv story! :-)

Tuesday morning, I walked to the Ha-Hagana train station in Tel Aviv. It would have been a nice walk (about 45 minutes) except that I walked in the rain the whole way. By the time I got to the station, I was soaking wet, but one can hardly complain. There has been precious little rain in Israel this winter, so despite getting wet, it was so nice to finally see some moisture falling from the sky!!!!

Even though the train was a bit more out of the way than hopping on a bus, the experience was well worth it. It was much easier as I didn't have to worry about what stop to get off at, and it was a quieter ride as well. Now, I can say I rode a train in Israel. :-)

Tel Aviv's central train station
After changing trains at the central train station, I disembarked at the Tel Aviv University stop. It was a cloudy, rainy day--this is looking back at the city skyline.
My goal for Tuesday was the Diaspora Museum, located on the Tel Aviv University campus. We had been here for about ten minutes in 2008--just enough for a glimpse that has left me longing to go back ever since. This was the main headliner of my entire trip to Tel Aviv, and it was the only thing on Tuesday's itinerary. Good thing because despite leaving Beit Immanuel at 9:00 that morning, I did not step into the museum until 11:30. But, being able to spend three hours there made all the travel well worth it.

The word "diaspora" comes from a Greek word that means "scattering" or "dispersion." It is commonly used to describe the movement or migration of a people group. In this context, diaspora refers to Jewish life, culture, and communities outside the land of Israel.

Fittingly, the museum begins with the fall of Jerusalem and the destruction of the Temple by the Romans in 70 A.D. The stones are reminiscent of the Herodian stones in the Temple Mount, and on the far wall is a replica of the Arch of Titus (the original stands in Rome) depicting Temple treasures being carried away. Although the Jewish people had been exiled before, this event began a 2,000-year scattering across the world.
The museum was every bit as fascinating as I remembered. The first floor centered on themes that have defined Jewish culture among many other cultures--family, holy days (including Shabbat, Passover, and Yom Kippur), and weddings. Half of the second floor is dedicated to the importance of faith for the Jewish people and contains miniature replicas of eighteen synagogues. They vary in location from Toledo to Morocco to Vilna to Warsaw, and in date from the Byzantine time (3rd century AD) to the 20th century. It is an amazing display, and the attention to details is simply breathtaking.

In the center of the museum, a memorial column is suspended from the ceiling of the third floor and stretches down to the first floor. It depicts Jewish martyrdom throughout the centuries and urges visitors to remember.

The dim lighting made pictures difficult, so this is the best I could do photographing the memorial column.
Although still dark overall, this photo turned out "interestingly"

The other half of the second floor is a chronology of Jewish contribution to culture--language, music, arts, science, etc. The third floor takes a closer look at thirteen large Jewish communities in the diaspora, highlighting such places as Rome, Alexandria, Spain, and Poland. All of this leads to the final exhibition in the museum--"Return." Although certainly a large percentage of the Jewish people still live outside of Israel, the Jewish Diaspora officially ended with the establishment of the Jewish State of Israel in May, 1948. The climax of the museum is a return of the people to their homeland.

The final display is this backlit menorah--the symbol of the modern State of Israel.
My visit to the Diaspora museum was everything I had hoped for, and I am so glad I had the opportunity to return and spend as much time as I desired there. I took a bus back through central Tel Aviv to Jaffa and then walked back to Beit Immanuel, stopping to pick up a falafel for dinner.

Late afternoon sky from Beit Immanuel, Tuesday January 4th
Night skyline of Tel Aviv from my window
It poured rain all night Tuesday and into Wednesday morning. I was initially unsure if I would be able to do any more sight seeing in Tel Aviv on Wednesday, but it partially cleared during breakfast, and I decided to risk getting wet and visit the places still on my itinerary.

I set off from Beit Immanuel a little before 9 and walked some of Tel Aviv's main streets on my way to Yitzhak Rabin square. It was a pleasant hour's walk through the city.

This square is located in the middle of Tel Aviv and was originally called Kings of Israel Square. It was renamed in 1995 in memory of Yitzhak Rabin--then prime minister of Israel, he was assassinated near the steps of City Hall in November of that year.
The square itself--it is the largest open public city square in Tel Aviv and was designed in 1964.
This memorial to the Holocaust stands near the southern end of the square
On the north end is Tel Aviv's City Hall
Yitzhak Rabin was the fifth prime minister of Israel, the first native-born prime minister, and the only prime minister of Israel to be assassinated. He was serving his second term as prime minister when he attended a peace rally at the then Kings of Israel square on November 4, 1995. This memorial stands at the site of his assassination.
This graffiti wall stands nearby--the wall has been glassed over as the graffiti honors Yitzhak Rabin.

I walked north and west from Rabin Square through some quiet neighborhood streets before turning onto Ben-Gurion Avenue.
My destination--the Ben-Gurion house.
Built in 1930-31, this was the home of David and Paula Ben-Gurion until they moved to S'de Boker in the Negev (1970). David Ben-Gurion was the first prime minister of Israel and hugely instrumental in founding the modern state. He deeded this home to the State of Israel in his will, and it receives approximately 40,000 visitors per year. The house has been left largely as it was during their residency, and it houses personal mementos as well as Ben-Gurion's personal library of 20,000 books!

A relatively small house to begin with, the upstairs is virtually entirely a library--four rooms of books!

The sun had been skipping in and out of the clouds all morning. The one major place I had yet to visit in Tel Aviv was . . . can you guess . . . the beach! Others would have probably gone there first; for me, it was low on my list of priorities. I wanted to see the historical places and museums first!! :-) When I left the Ben-Gurion house, clouds were rolling back in, but I decided to gamble and walk the c. 2 miles back to Beit Immanuel along the seashore.

Having grown up in a landlocked state, I never get tired of the sight and sound of ocean waves. In some ways, the cloudy weather worked to my benefit. There weren't many people on the beach, so I was able to enjoy the sights and sounds of the water solo.

For the most part, my walk was largely under the clouds--it was cool and quite breezy.
"Hotel Row" along the Tel Aviv beach
When it started to shower the first time, I decided to stop and have lunch. My first choice didn't work, so it was McDonalds with a view! :-)
The lunch stop was about halfway down the beach, so after eating, I continued walking. Right about then, the clouds opened up, the rain fell, and I got drenched! (This is looking south; the land on the horizon is the ancient city of Jaffa)
But then, the sun came back out for a bit. This picture really doesn't do the sight justice--the sun reflecting off the sea was blinding.
Can you believe this picture was taken the same day as the other ones?
The previous picture was looking west, out to sea. This was the next picture I took, looking south. It was quite a weather day, and I absolutely loved my walk along the beach. The views were breathtaking!!

So, now you've shared my trip to Tel Aviv--hope you've enjoyed the sights as I did! It was such an enjoyable trip, and I'm glad the rain didn't keep me from seeing everything on my list.

Tel Aviv!! (Part one)

Last week, I requested (and received) three days off in a row so I could go to Tel Aviv. There were some places I have wanted to see since before I arrived in Israel last January, and this was my opportunity to go. I spent two nights at Beit Immanuel (the CMJ guest house in Jaffa) and three days walking all over the twin cities.

My adventure began with a very early alarm Monday morning--5:15am!!! Yuck . . . but I wanted to make the most of my days, so I caught the 7:00 bus out of the Central Bus Station, arrived in Tel Aviv a little after 8, walked to Beit Immanuel to drop off my bag, and then headed out for day number one at 9:00am.

Tel Aviv has a fascinating history. As Jewish immigration to the land increased around the beginning of the 20th century, there was a desire to build a Hebrew urban center north of Jaffa. Twelve acres of dune land were purchased in 1908, and in April 1909, 66 Jewish families gathered on a sand dune for a "sea shell lottery." The family names were written on white shells and the land plot numbers on dark shells. Houses were built on this sand dune, and the road became known as Rothschild Boulevard. The name "Tel Aviv" was adopted on May 21, 1910, and it is quite a poignant name. Aviv is the Hebrew word for "spring" symbolizing what is new, and "tel" usually refers to an archaeological mound of many layers of ancient civilizations. The land of Israel really is a mix of old and new. Tel Aviv was designed to be a modern city with street lights, wide streets, and running water in each house.

Rothschild Boulevard looking west
Founders Square on Rothschild Boulevard

My first stop was Independence Hall, 16 Rothschild Boulevard (about a half hour's walk). The weather was beautiful--blue, sunny skies and warm enough I didn't need a jacket.

Independence Hall building--it once was the home of Tel Aviv's mayor, Meir Dizengoff. He later gave it to the city to become an art museum, and then it became the most important location in Israel the afternoon of May 14, 1948.
Independence Hall itself

With the British Mandate set to end on May 15, 1948, the Jewish leaders voted to declare an independent Jewish State before Shabbat began the evening of May 14th. The draft of the Declaration of Independence was only approved one hour before the ceremony was slated to begin. Three hundred fifty invited guests began arriving at 3:30 and at 4:00, this hall was packed. At the time, this building was the Tel Aviv Art Museum, but it was chosen for its security--a room built underground with thick walls and small windows. Remember, this took place in the middle of a war. The chairs, carpets, flags, and microphones were all borrowed last minute. Leaders had hoped to hold this ceremony in Jerusalem, but that was impossible as Jerusalem was heavily besieged at the time.

Invitation for the ceremony

Before Ben-Gurion could read the document (which was plainly typed on three pages of paper at that point), those gathered spontaneously began singing Hatikvah (the song that would later become Israel's national anthem). David Ben-Gurion then read the declaration (in Hebrew), and 25 people signed the bottom of a blank scroll (there hadn't been time to actually write it on the official paper yet). Twelve more signed later; these were those unable to come due to the war. The entire ceremony lasted all of thirty-two minutes. Three hours later, Egypt bombed Tel Aviv. Eight hours later, the British army left. Eight hours and one minute later, Arab nations invaded the country from all sides.

Israel's Declaration of Independence

This of course escalated the already in progress War of Independence which lasted one year, three months, and ten days. The history of the modern state of Israel is fascinating and polarizing--way too much to even summarize here.

I really enjoyed my time at Independence Hall, but all good things must come to an end. My next visit was to the Hagana museum, just up the road. That museum was quite well done and fascinating. It did a fantastic job of tracing the history of Jewish defenders from the first Aliyah (end of 19th century) through the years it had to go underground as Jewish defense of any kind was prohibited (1930s and 40s) until it became the Israel Defense Forces (IDF). I learned a lot from the exhibits here.

The Hagana was the first of three military museums I visited that day, making it a "military museum Monday." I also visited the IDF History museum and the ETZEL museum. The Hagana museum remained my favorite, although the ETZEL museum was quite well done and informative as well. The IDF history museum was not my cup of tea--it consisted largely of equipment (tanks, pistols, antiaircraft weapons, etc).

After the Hagana museum, I stopped at Shalom Tower where one could supposedly go up to the top floor for a spectacular view. Unfortunately, the top eight floors were closed. I rode the elevator as far up as I could and did enjoy the one-way view of the coastline.
(Looking west)
(Looking southwest, the land jutting out is old Jaffa)

After the tower, I set out in the direction of the IDF History Museum. This one was quite difficult to find, and I had to stop and ask for directions at four different places! In the meanwhile, I stumbled across the Carmel Market--a large open air shopping mall. I shelved the museum plans for a moment and walked the opposite way through this taste of culture. Here are a few of the things I saw for sale (unfortunately, I can't include the sounds and smells . . .)

The beginning of the Carmel market
LARGE selection of candies!
A store full of earrings--my dream store! :-) Although you will all be surprised that despite examining the racks quite thoroughly, I left the store without a single pair . . .
Fruits and vegetables . . .
Lots of cheese . . .
Nice fresh fish (remember, Tel Aviv is a coastal city, so fish are a local commodity) . . .Toys . . .
More mounds of candy . . .
. . . and spices.

After the Carmel Market walk, I made my way back to its beginning point and eventually found the IDF History museum and the ETZEL museum. By that point, I had been walking all over Tel Aviv for seven hours and was ready to go "home" for the night. I walked back to Beit Immanuel and officially checked in. After dropping my stuff in my room, I went up to the roof for some great scenery. The sun was setting and it was quiet and peaceful above the bustle of the city streets.

Looking north at the Tel Aviv skyline
Looking west at the Mediterranean
Looking south at the Jaffa skyline
Looking southwest--the colors were breathtaking!

And so went my first day sight seeing in Tel Aviv--full but so enjoyable. Frankly, the whole trip was quite eye-opening to me. I was completely out of my normal comfort zone--here I was planning my own 3-day itinerary in an unfamiliar city, actually going to this unfamiliar city by myself, and then following the itinerary using only a map. I have no idea when I became so independent and adventurous, but I really enjoyed exploring and finding my way and seeing these places I really wanted to!

Tel Aviv part two to come later this week . . .