lisa, sarah, and i wanted to go to the old city again to explore. i don't think lisa has been there before so score. along the way we were further accompanied by suley, a hebrew university student, and joseph, another bezalel exchange from wash u in st. louis. the first stop was the holy sepulchre. and OH MY GOD! i'm going to be an art history nerd here and i apologize in advance. it was really cool walking into the holy sepulchre, not only because it is an ancient church but because i've actually studied it in my medieval architecture class in krautheimer's essay on iconography. so cool. as mentioned earlier, the last five stations of the cross are in the holy sepulchre. they are located on the second floor and it was really crowded. station eleven is the site of golgotha, where jesus was cruxified. there were so many people, most who i think were pilgrims, kowtowing in front of the altar, lighting candles, and murmuring prayers. it was really a sight to behold. the altar itself was amazing. everything was bathed in gold or silver and of course it wouldn't be complete without a medici altar next to it. we explored further, visiting christ's prison, chapel of the discovery of the cross, and of course the anastasis, jesus's burial tomb. it was this massive wooden structure in the ambulatory. the entrance was tiny and in the first room was this slab of rock... i'm racking my brain right now, trying to remember what it was... oh! it was part of the boulder that closed off the cave he was buried in. the actual tomb itself is very overwhelming. it was tiny and cramped. everything was lit by candles and gold shimmered everywhere. there was an intensity being that close to what is believed as his tomb. furthermore, there were so many well-preserved mosaics on the ceilings and walls... and frescoes that are still present today. being in the holy sepulchre just overwhelmed with the feeling of antiquity. i just couldn't believe that i was walking around in the same space, on the same ground as many people have for thousands of years. it's just... wow. yes, it's wow.
after the holy sepulchre, (since no one wanted to walk via dolorosa) we went in search of the western wall and got lost in the muslim quarter. in the meantime, friends bought spices, pots, and almost bought a hookah and some tobacco. and it was sketchy. we were led in the right direction finally and we were all hungry so each of us went in search of food. sarah got some bagel at a store in the jewish quarter. lisa got bonker's bagel. bagels seem to be a luxury here for some reason. i don't get it. joseph and i got shwarma. i never had it before and it's really good. it's marinated turkey that's cut up in pieces and put in a pita or a lafah, a pita-like tortilla. it comes with the same condiments as a falafel. it was yummy.
the western wall was interesting. it was really busy and i heard chants of prayer coming from the wall. the old city is so overwhelming. at least to me it is. from there we went separate ways. joseph and i went in search of the שוק because we're going to cook dinner together. at the i שוק found wonderful goodies! three cinnamon sticks for 3 sh = .75$. awesomeee. i also got some rice and walnuts and that was 5 sh. ahhh! i also found this middle eastern food/candy/whatever called halva. it's made from sesame seeds and something and comes in many different varieties. it has the consistency of marzipan. i love ittt. i got some in coffee flavor and pistachio flavor. !!! i scored 10 pitas for 5 sh and they were still warm and fluffy and amazing. love it! i love the marketplace!
for dinner, lisa made fried rice with red cabbage, corn, yellow bell pepper and celery. it was yummy. i made a salad of spinach, apples, walnuts and tomatoes.... and for dessert: rice pudding!
i'm starting to adjust better, i think. or i'm being more adventurous and giving things a chance before writing them off. tuesday we might go horseback riding or maybe to mount of olives. we have an orientation this wednesday. i can't wait to meet the rest of the group. i'm excited for classes! i might challenge myself and take a history/theory class that is solely taught in hebrew. but others photo classes are looking good.
my feet are exhausted as am i. today was a good day.
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c4RY-eJgHHs
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