another trip to the old city

sorry for the absence since thursday.  it was raining all weekend and i was inside.  sunday i did stuff but not very significant besides meeting an awesome girl named lisa who's doing photography like me!  oh i discovered an amazing falafel place near campus on הגבעה צרפתית  (french hill).  i just came to the realization that i'm going to walking along two freaking hills: mount scopus and the french hill.  my legs are already complaining.  anyways...

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.

שוק, oh how i love you

שוק is the israeli marketplace.  but it's just not any market.  oh no.  it's like foodie heaven but it's still more than that.  they don't just have food, but other things that you can get for really cheap, considerably so.  this was my destination for the day.  i ended up in the city center again today near ben yehuda and king george v.  this is promenade is what is referred to as a tourist trap.  there are jewelry shops, book stores, many clothing stores, cafes, falafel places, etc etc.  what i found most exciting was finding a mcdonald's and a burger king.  lots of food that americans eat are not considered kosher such as a cheeseburger, a meat pizza, and chinese food is definitely not kosher.  i didn't see the menu but before i leave israel, i must try the mcdonald's here.  

i found the chain bookstore, סטימצקי, to buy a lonely planet guide.  foreign books are terribly expensive!  200 sh for a travel guide?  oh dear.  i don't care much for the store but the location.   is located on ben yehuda which is where many orthodox people look to reform the passing people.  there is also a circle of young guys dancing around to music and sometimes, they even drum and play guitar, i believe.  it was pretty cool to view something like that.  

finding the שוק was not hard but an experience.  it was also my first time using hebrew outside my personal bubble of teachers and friends.  i think i did pretty well!  you know you're heading toward the right place when you see a bunch of people carrying colorful plastic bags of various things.  i just followed the trail and the noise.  the שוק is sight to behold.  if not the sight, the smell will certainly get you.  there are various fruit and vegetable stands filled with lots of varieties and cheaper than מיסטר זול.  there are also meat kiosks, which i stayed away from.  cheese stands, nuts stands, fish stands, everything stands.  my favorite though has to be the bread/pastry stands.  oh the goods!  i got myself a sweet challah filled with chocolate, some cinnamon rolls, and various fruit and caramel rugelachs.  i didn't know what things were so i just sniffed and picked what i liked the best.  the challah wasn't what i expected it to be.  my suitemates say it is a challah but to me it's more like a danish bread.  but whatever.  i also scored some bananas!  yayyy.  

i should definitely go back there again and look around more closely.  maybe even get גבנא, a farmer's cheese thing that's supposed to be really good.  now that i have a lonely planet guide, i want to explore more.  school doesn't start for another week or so.  i have time!  מצדא and  ימ המלח, here i come!