I owe you a lengthy blog update this morning. Sadly, I have been incredibly busy, and am also ill, so I haven't had much time to update the blog. So here it is, two very busy days in one blog entry!
On Wednesday we toured the old city of Jerusalem, and my goodness, it was an experience. After waiting in line for nearly 45 minutes to clear a security checkpoint, we were able to go up to the Temple Mount and view the Al-Aqba mosque and the Dome of the Rock. Both sites, needless to say, are remarkable, even though we were not allowed to enter either of them. The mosque is gigantic and ornate, and the Dome of the Rock is even more stunning. From its intricate mosaics, to its beautiful Arabic script on the exterior, to its shining golden dome, the Dome of the Rock is one of the most incredible pieces of architecture in the city. There is also great historical and religious significance here. All three of the major monotheistic faiths believe that Abraham sacrificed Isaac on the rock which the Dome of the Rock protects. In addition, Jewish people see this rock as the first rock ever created, and Muslims believe that this is the "farthest place" where Mohammed ascended into heaven. There were also excellent views of the city from here, especially the Mount of Olives and the churches on the other side of the Kidron Valley.
Next stop was the church of Santa Ana, which has some significant link to Mary (I sincerely cannot remember). Here we also saw ruins of an old crusader church built over the Bethesba Pools. We got the chance to sing in this church as well, which was very cool. Next we would walk the Via Dolorosa, which is (by tradition) the street through which Jesus walked with the cross. There are multiple churches built on the significant sites of the walk, but the most famous and remarkable is the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, said to be built over the site where Jesus was crucified, his body washed, and where he was eventually buried and resurrected. Here they have a memorial over Golgotha, the place of the crucifixion. To get to the Church, you walk through an incredible Bazaar in the Islamic quarter of the city, with huge quantities of street vendors lining narrow walkways. That was a cultural experience, indeed!
Our next stop was the Western or "Wailing" Wall, the holiest site in Judaism. Very cool cultural experience there, especially seeing all the Ultra-Orthodox Jews with their little hats and curlies! Pictures would do the places we visited more justice, since most of you know what these sites are like.
That evening we had a concert at the BYU Jerusalem Center, a very cool venue. The Jerusalem Center is situated above the Old City on the Mount of Olives, so it has a remarkable view. But the coolest thing is that the concert hall has giant windows behind the performers with a panorama of the old city. This was so epically cool. Vicki Gunnerson took some photos for me of us performing.
The next day it was off to the desert. An unfortunate coincidence was that it happened to be the hottest day of the year so far. 41 degrees celsius (bout 106 F) in the Dead Sea area... not very pleasant.
We first visited Jericho, which has the dual honor of being the lowest (in elevation) city on Earth and also the oldest city on Earth. I wasn't that impressed with it, but our guide was raving about it. The first stop was the spring of Elijah, which has famously sweet and clean water (an FYI: don't drink from the spring of Elijah - you will regret it when you contract some sort of water-bourne stomach disease and find yourself miserable the next morning. But yes, the water is sweet-tasting). There, of course, is a biblical site here, too. The Mount of Temptations is where Jesus supposedly fasted for 40 days and 40 nights and then was tempted by the devil. Next stop, Qumran, where the Dead Sea scrolls were uncovered. We saw the very cave where bedouins came upon the Dead Sea scrolls, and also saw ruins of the bedouin community that was once there. Very cool! Our next stop was Masada, the mountaintop fortress from the Roman Era. This is located on a top of an isolated bluff just south of the Dead Sea. The views of the surrounding area were wonderful and the history even more so. The ruins of the fortress are still very much intact and it was exceptionally cool to immerse myself in such history.
Our final stop before our concert was the Dead Sea, a stop I had been looking forward to for some time. The Dead Sea, as you know, is some of the saltiest water in the world, and is also the lowest point on earth. There is Magnesium Chloride in the water, giving it a somewhat oily consistency. It's true, too - you just float on top of the water! What a cool experience. We tried to sink Dan by putting rocks on his belly to see how many it took, and it took seventeen before he sank! The only caveat I can advise you about it don't get it in your eye, or you will have to swim in and wash it out. That was a miserable experience. But still, the Dead Sea was probably one of my favorite things we did on this trip.
Our concert was in Ein Gedi, an oasis by the Dead Sea that flourishes because of its many springs. We performed for the first non-sold-out crowd of the trip. Afterwards, we took a tour of the botanical gardens at the kibbutz, which was exceedingly bizarre because it was pitch black and impossible to appreciate, and we were all so tired and hot that we just wanted to go back to the hotel and sleep.
Our hotel is in Jericho, and is another 5-star hotel. I'm not sure how we scored so many nice hotels on this trip... We are leaving for Jerusalem again in about an hour, and will stay there for one more night before heading out on Saturday evening at 11:55 PM. I hope I feel better soon and will be able to fully enjoy our last two days in Israel. Until then, salaam, or shalom, and it will be wonderful to see everyone when we return!
