Almost two months and it does feel like I’ve been here for a while, and yet there is still so much the I don’t know and don’t understand and so many things I could still do here. That is not to say that I’ve/we’ve not done a great deal and learned much. Daniel in particular asks all kinds of good questions about what is going on here, and the number of times I’ve had to say “I don’t know” is humbling. Last night we went out to diner in East Jerusalem at the Jerusalem Hotel. Walking back it was interesting as we passed through the Muslim streets the were shutting down, through the old City that was deserted and then into West Jerusalem that, at 10 PM, was more crowed than I’ve ever seen it. I’ve never been in a place were almost every block has its own culture and cultural norms. Today we walked the other half of the rampart walk.(Yesterday we did the first part)
The Lents setting off on the Ramparts
It really is amazing how much we are walking. I imagine an average day is over 4 or 5 miles. And it may be much more. Helena has particularly impressed her mother and me. That is not to say we never hear any complaining. On the ramparts you can walk around almost all of the city. You can’t walk from around the Dome of the Rock and you have to stop on the other side before the Western Wall, but that is still around 70% of the old city.
On the Wall
- We finally made it to the Haram esh-Sharif, which holds the Dome of the Rock. Having looked at it from almost every angle around Jerusalem it was nice to see it up close. The Dome was built-in 688-91, just after the Christian city of Jerusalem fell to the Muslims. The Dome is an amazing building covering the Rock where it is believed the Jebusites had a threshing floor, the Jews built their temple and was the altar of sacrifice, and Mohammad had his night travel. We were not able to get in the Dome or the El-Aqsa Mosque, built about 20 years after the Dome. We could only walk around the outside and in the court-yard. Of course as you may or may not know many devote Jews will not walk on the Haram esh-Sharif (Noble sanctuary or Temple Mount) because no one is really sure where the Holy of Holies was that place where the divine presence is said to never leave and they might walk over it.
- Dome of the Rock
El-Aqsa Mosque
You’ve had an amazing adventure. Thanks for sharing. Do we get updates on the rafting as well? BTW – Looks like all that walking has been good for you. How much weight have you lost?
Tom (aka Skeeter)
Hey Tom, and Lynn,
Yes it has been wonderful, and challenging. I’m not sure how much weight I’ve lost, more when the family and kids were not here and I was living like a college student. I’ll let you know when I get back to the scale. Hope all is well with you and the move is long behind you, and glad you picked Skeeter.
Peace,
Paul