"Life" in Jerusalem . . .

I thought I'd put together some pictures that would give you an idea of daily life for me here in Jerusalem. Although it is definitely different than life in the United States, it is not authentic Israeli life either. It is somewhat in between . . .

I live in one of the buildings on the Christ Church compound--the "Jones" building. Inside are nine rooms, all housing volunteers. Most rooms are shared, but there are a few with only one person (the supervisors and nightwatchmen, for obvious reasons).

Just inside the entrance . . . Inside the doors on the right are the washing machine and dryer. On the left (just outside the picture) are the sign up sheets as we have to reserve our laundry times.
This sight greets everyone at the top of the stairs--our kitchenette, complete with refrigerator, microwave, toaster, and water kettle. It is kept stocked with cereals, milk, tea, and coffee. It is also the storage area for cleaning supplies, and obviously the iron and ironing board lie here.
Turning left, there is a long hallway--three volunteer rooms are downstairs, six are upstairs. My room is at the very end of the row--room 21.
This is what one sees upon opening the door to my room--my half of the room. Please note--I did a bunch of tidying before taking this picture! :-)Walking a little further into the room and looking to the left . . . All the upstairs rooms have tall ceilings, but room 21 is definitely the biggest and the lightest. We have the most windows (other rooms only have one)--making it the sunniest, but also the hottest if the curtains are opened. At one time in April, there were three girls in this room, but since then only two. This is my roommate's bed (the mattress was pilfered from the top!). We split the dresser in the corner.
The beds are against the west wall, wardrobes are against the east wall (and one on the south wall).
In the far corner between wardrobes is the bathroom--it is tiny, but we really don't need extra space for bathrooms.
Looking back at my half of the room . . . bed, desk, windows, mirror . . .
Out of the Old City via Jaffa Gate, across the plaza and down the steps into the Mamilla pedestrian mall . . . Here is the Jerusalem version of Walgreens--Super Pharm. It is not particularly wise to buy toothbrushes, nail polish, etc here, but I have bought such items as hair things, tissues, shampoo, first aid cream, and a sling for my arm here for reasonable prices.
A closer look . . .
Inside the Old City of Jerusalem is the grocery store where I buy snack items, shampoo, food, etc. This is in the Christian Quarter of the Old City . . . the sign and entrance
The front room of the grocery store . . .
The stairs on the left of the previous picture lead to an upstairs room stocked with soaps, cleaning supplies, paper products, etc. Here is part of the shampoo display--some familiar brands, some not.
The display of laundry detergents . . . virtually all in Hebrew!
But here's a familiar sight--peanut butter! The generic brand found in King Soopers, no less! :-)
But, if one wants to buy some soup and can't read Hebrew, you are reduced to looking at the pictures. It's reminiscent of being a kindergartener!
The dairy cooler . . . I always have to look closely to make sure I'm getting yogurt and not something else. :-)
It may be Israel, but there are some familiar cereals available! I haven't bought any cereal yet because Christ Church keeps their pantry stocked with a wide variety of cereals, but it's nice to know I have access to such things as Rice Krispies. :-)
Here is an glimpse of general reality in Israel, though. Many of the stores/malls in Jerusalem's New City have metal detectors or even security guards at the doors. To be honest, shoppers generally don't give this a second thought, it's normal.
I hope you have enjoyed this glimpse into my life here . . . It may not be as comfortable a life as that in the States, but it definitely is modern. I have no complaints!!

Light in Jerusalem

Just a few words of explanation, then lots of pictures!!

A special exhibition called "Light in Jerusalem" took place from June 9-16th, 2010. This was the 2nd Jerusalem Festival of Light. Experienced and young artists used light to create numerous breathtaking displays. The festival ran from 8:00pm until midnight these seven evenings. I was able to go out and enjoy the lights a couple of these evenings. The first evening I went out by myself around 9:30 and walked around Jerusalem's Old City for a couple of hours. Then, the next night I got to go back out with a friend and revisit my favorite places. That evening we left a little after 11pm and didn't get back until after midnight!! Don't worry, there were crowds of people still out, and I was not in any danger. :-) These are some of my pictures from the two evenings' walks.


The sign and street lights advertising this year's "Light in Jerusalem." (Taken on Hebron Road)

Located immediately outside Jaffa Gate (along the western city wall), these light displays are supposed to "invoke a vision of future greenery." They were extremely tall!
Along the western city wall itself were some pastel lights, intended to convey an urban-rustic look.

Along the northern city wall, somebody had the brilliant idea to use colored light to play a video against the wall. The ingenious piece of this display is that the tree in the middle of the picture is an actual live olive tree that the artists incorporated into the design. Amazing!
This snow scene was my favorite part of the light presentation. They made it look like snow was actually sticking in, and piling up on, the tree.
This pool scene was my friend's favorite part. It was very clever how they made it look like waterfalls were coming down through the gaps in the stone city wall.

The next few pictures are all of Damascus Gate. Located in the northern wall of Jerusalem's Old City, this gate is the most decorative and impressive normally, and the light show at this location did not disappoint.




Large and bright lights panned across the night sky from the Mount of Olives. The dome of the Al-Aqsa mosque and the southwestern corner of the Temple Mount are easily visible.
Visible in between the rows of lights is a very famous Jewish graveyard established on the Mount of Olives.

The Dormition Abbey tower, located on Mount Zion, just outside the southern wall of the Old City. These bells actually swung back and forth, accompanied by the sound of ringing bells.
This picture was "painted" with light against the western city wall. The trees lend some sense of size and scale.

This is looking at the city walls from inside the Armenian Quater. These are actually light sculptures made of plastic and illuminated from within. They are formed to look like people climbing up and over the wall.

This tree in the Jewish Quarter is made from LED lights and illuminated by solar energy.

This is apparently made from transparent plates with light shone onto them. The artist intended it to symbolize pureness and spirituality, as well as creating an environment of peace and relaxation.
This fascinating view was found along Saint James Street. This is a completely artificial window--just light projected against a normally blank limestone wall. What makes it particularly eye-catching is that the people inside the "window" are actually moving, appearing as though they really are enjoying a family dinner.

The exhibit inside Zedekiah's Cave was hands-down my absolute favorite. I had never been in here before and was completely amazed at the vastness of this "cave." It is also known as Solomon's Quarries and apparently covers an area of 5 acres. This cave slopes gently downwards and runsthe equivalent of five city blocks under the Muslim Quarter of Jerusalem's Old City. Archaeologists believe it was carved out over a period of thousands of yars and it is a remnant of the largest quarry in Jerusalem. This cavern runs about 650 feet underground, it is c. 330 feet wide at its widest point, and its average depth is 30 feet below street level.

It is possible that Solomon quarried stone here for the First Temple, but that is not known for sure. Historians do konw that Herod the Great had stone quarried from here for the Temple and Temple Mount construction he oversaw. The cave is called "Zedekiah's Cave" due to the tradition that King. Zedekiah hid here when he was trying to escape the Babylonian siege of Jerusalem.

This underground stone quarry was lit to make a person feel as though they were underwater. The lights were beautiful, and there was a constant sound of flowing water. It really was a place for one's imagination to take flight and a magical experience.







I hope these communicate some sense of the awe and enjoyment I experienced walking around my "home town" those two evenings . . .

More fun in the sun . . .

Hello from sunny, warm Jerusalem! Today, the temperature said 97 (Fahrenheit) in Jerusalem. But thankfully, the humidity was back down to c.15%. Last week, the temps were in the 80s every day, but the humidity was 60-70%. For a girl accustomed to the dry Colorado air, this was not so pleasant!

On June 9th, one of my friends kindly agreed to accompany me to the Mount of Olives. I've only been once since my arrival in January, and I've been wanting to go again for the past two months. But, it's not a place I can go by myself, so I'm dependent on other people's schedule and energy. :-) Shane walked over with me on a beautiful, breezy Wednesday morning. We climbed almost to the top before spending some devotional time at Dominus Flevit. It was all I had hoped for, and I am so grateful for Shane's willingness to go with me.

On our way back down the Mount of Olives, we stopped for a bit at Gethsemane. This relief caught my attention . . .
The altar (shaped like a cup) and traditional "rock of the agony" inside the church at Gethsemane.

Looking down the valley floor of the Kidron Valley (looking south). It actually is quite a deep valley with steep sides. On the right, the southeast corner of the Temple Mount (traditionally known as the pinnacle of the Temple) is visible behind the trees. Interestingly, the Kidron Valley was deeper still in Biblical times before the fall and destruction of Jerusalem in 70 A.D. (ruins of the city were thrown down into the valley).
Looking up at the Golden Gate (in the east retaining wall of the Temple Mount) from the floor of the Kidron Valley. The sky is such a brilliant blue!
A beautiful purple flower in the Kidron Valley . . .


We continue to do Shabbot dinners most Friday evenings here at Christ Church. A couple weeks ago, it was only volunteers for dinner; we pushed the tables together so it would feel more like a family meal. :-) These Friday dinners are certainly one of the highlights each week for me.


The evening of Saturday, June 12th brought an adventure and great reward my way. :-) The friends that I have come to Israel with in 2004, 2006, and 2008 were in town for a couple nights, and I walked up to their hotel to say hi. It was about a 40 minute walk deep into Jerusalem's New City, and I had never been to this hotel! It actually was quite easy to find. I had to laugh at myself, though--it's been a long time since I was last in a five-star hotel. I questioned if I was still on the same planet?! It was great to sit down with the Prices and catch up a little. I plan to see them again in 2012 to keep this every-second-year streak going. :-)

Well, it is after 11pm, time to wrap this up. For those of you Americans who are not aware of the other type of "football" that exists, the World Cup has started and I am discovering how much fun it is to watch these soccer games. "American" football is still my favorite by far (go Colts!!) and I have a lot to learn about soccer matches, but I am so enjoying these games. Tonight was Brazil verses Ivory Coast, and one of my co-watchers predicted the final score exactly. You rock, Beno!

P.S. Please forgive any grammatical errors in this post as I was writing it during the soccer game . . . :-)