Connected by the Rooftops and Divided by the People

Jerusalem. Being here only creates more questions rather than provide a deeper understanding. So here are the things I have done/seen.

My first full day I took the free walking tour with a great guide Dvir. He did a great job giving the history of the city and trying to be as neutral in his explanations as possible. We went to the Wailing Wall, saw the Dome of the Rock and the Church of the Holy Sepluchre, went to the various quarters, Jewish, Christian, Muslim, went inside and Ethiopian Christian Church, saw areas that the Crusaders had slaughtered the inhabitants in, and saw where the old markets had been.

"how much falafel can one person possibly eat?"

After the free tour I was going to an ATM where I met a Frenchman named Llego. We wandered to a few places including a new Ethiopian Church and Ben-Yehuda's house (he was the guy who reintroduced a dying Hebrew language to Israel). We made plans to meet up at 8:30, but when I went to his hostel he wasn't around. I knew he was traveling with two other women and figured they got hung up. Instead I went to a section of the New City where a band was playing and the Israelis were really enjoying the party before they had to subdue themselves for Shabbat the next day. Before heading home I grabbed a drink and as Llego was walking home he passed me. So we got to hang out anyway. We planned to walk around the Mount of Olives, Mary's Tomb and a few other spots the next day.

It was hot and we walked for about six hours but we saw everything on the list and Llego made for a good tour guide. He had researched some of these spots ahead of time and took it upon himself to do all the map reading/asking for directions. I was glad to be an unactive participant. It gave my brain a break.

After our self-guided tour we separated for a rest and met up for dinner. Then we wandered around an the empty Old City. It was so much nicer when all of the shops were closed up at night and pretty much all of the people were gone.

The following day was the Holy City tour, which took me to some of the same places I had been on with the city tour but we went inside and got a lot more information about them. In addition lunch was great, I may have uncovered the best hummus in Israel.

I had had enough of my hostel in the Old City and found a new one in East Jerusalem. The other travelers here are extremely interesting so the conversations been great. Yesterday I went to the Dead Sea and loved it. It is the best body of water in the world. The water was hot, and it felt like I was in outer space. It is almost impossible (and completely undesirable) to sink. I could float even when my legs were pointing straight down. My new French friend Richard was good company and besides floating we did the other major touristy thing at the Dead Sea. Slathered ourselves with Dead Sea mud. I felt like a statue. Not sure if it helped my skin, but it was an experience anyway.

Today I went to Masada, the fortress of the Jewish rebels who revolted against the Romans in 66 A.D.

So I haven't added a lot of detail to this entry, if you want the color you'll have to ask me specific questions. In my next installment I'll try to add more detail as well as answer the question "how much falafel can one person possibly eat?"