Indiana Jones says hi!

In observance of the Jewish holiday of Purim, the Hebrew University granted us a four-day weekend, which I spent--with several of my friends--in Eilat (pronounced "a lot"). Eilat is a resort-town at the very southern tip of Israel, on the coast of the Red Sea. It is a stone's throw from both Jordan to the east and the Sinai (Egypt) to the west. Given our proximity to Jordan, we also booked an expensive day-trip to Petra, the ancient city in Jordan (considered by many to be a Wonder of the World!) that has featured prominently in many movies (most notably, the Indiana Jones films and Arabian Nights).

One would think that after all of my traveling in the West Bank, I would be used to checkpoints; however, the border crossing between Israel and Jordan was the most intense I've experienced so far. In addition to paying upwards of 200 shekels for a day visa, I had to surrender my passport to our sketchy tour guide in order to get it stamped. Luckily, after a long wait, I got my passport back. Below is my first celebratory picture of Jordan (the sign is in need of some repair).



On our drive to Petra through the barren Jordanian desert, we stopped briefly to visit a Bedouin (Arab nomad) family and their small caravan of camels. The Bedouin boy knew English and was very friendly... he even posed with me and the camel in the picture below.



Petra began as a Nabataean (an ancient Arab group) city in the 6th century BCE, but its architecture was greatly influenced by Greek and Egyptian styles during the era of Seleucid Empire (following Alexander the Great). Petra was later conquered by the Romans, and it became a part of the Roman and later Byzantine Empires.

To access Petra, one must walk down a valley called the Bab ("entrance") el-Siq (first picture below) which is lined with huge tombs hewn out of the rock. The Siq itself (second and third pictures below) is a deep, narrow ravine, into which a few tombs and idols were sculpted. On both sides of the ravine, troughs brought drinking water and bathing water into the city.







The Siq opens up to one of the most well-known ancient sites in the world, the Treasury. The Treasury may have served as a Temple and burial chamber, but later became the object of legend--it is said that an Egyptian Pharaoh hid his fortune in the urn on the second level. Even today, the front face of the Treasury is dotted with bullet holes from looters attempting to unearth some of Pharaoh's riches.





Touchdown, Jesus!



Many other cool archaeological sites are to be found beyond the Treasury, including a first-century Greco-Roman theater (first picture below) and a number of other tombs dotting the hillside (second picture below). If only we had more time, we could have spent hours hiking around the cliffs, entering the tombs, and exploring the remains that are found above the city (including, I hear, a ancient sacrificial altar).





After our day-trip to Jordan, we spent a full day dodging sunburns in Eilat, on the beach of the beautiful Red Sea. The two pictures below should suffice to make you jealous...

Bombing in Jerusalem

As many of you no doubt have heard, yesterday (March 23) a bomb was planted next to a telephone pole near Jerusalem's central bus station. The explosion killed one woman and injured at least 30 others. To read up on the story, click here.

At the time of the bombing, I was in class and nowhere near the danger (still, it is unnerving to think that I visited that bus station at least four times last week). The staff at Hebrew University reacted immediately and took head counts of all students, then contacted via phone and/or e-mail those who were not initially accounted-for on campus.

Though the area of Israel near the Gaza Strip is almost constantly subjected to rocket fire (70 in the last week), Jerusalem has been relatively calm for the past several years. Let us hope that this is not the first in a series of attacks targeting Jerusalem.

This morning it came out that the 59-year-old woman who was killed in the attack was a student from the UK at Rothberg International School--and what is more--she was in my Hebrew ulpan class. Her name was Mary. Mary was exceedingly kind, and though I did not know her very well, I conversed with her enough times to learn that she has shared tea with J.K. Rowling.

May she rest in peace.

A visit from Nick and Kyla (part 2)

Nick, Kyla, and I also visited several sites outside of Jerusalem, in other parts of Israel.

Our first destination was Qumran, a settlement dating from the Second Temple Period. Qumran was the home of an aesthetic, apocalyptic Jewish sect known as the Essenes, authors of the Dead Sea Scrolls (which were discovered in the caves around the Qumran site). The Dead Sea Scrolls revolutionized biblical and Second Temple scholarship--they destroyed the notion that Judaism in this period was a unified (largely-Pharisaic) movement, and and also showed that there was no such thing as a biblical canon. Surprisingly, the Dead Sea Scrolls reveal that the Essenes had much in common with early-Christianity, which emerged later during this same period (some theorize that John the Baptist was a member of this sect). Both Christians and the Essenes performed baptisms, both were heavily apocalyptic and messianic in nature, and both rejected the legitimacy of the Jerusalem Temple.

Visitors to Qumran can walk through the huge settlement, which contains a number of ritual baths, a community dining room, and a scribe's room (second picture below).





The view from Qumran was spectacular. The barren cliffs were dotted with the famous caves, all overlooking the beautiful Dead Sea. Below is a picture of me in front of Qumran Cave 4, where a majority of the Dead Sea Scrolls were discovered. A trail continues up into the cliffs (second and third pictures below), although I did not get the chance to explore very far. I definitely plan on returning to visit the other caves.







After Qumran, we headed to Ein Gedi, which is essentially a series of beaches and snack bars on the Dead Sea. The Dead Sea is both the lowest point on earth and earth's saltiest body of water--unfortunately, due to Israel's water demands, the sea is shrinking. The saltiness of the water is evident both from the salt crystals which cake all of the rocks on shore (first picture below), and from the extreme buoyancy of the swimmers (second picture below). Note that the mountains across the water in the first picture lie in the Kingdom of Jordan.





Our second destination was Bethlehem, a now-Palestinian city near Jerusalem, famous for its identification as the birthplace of both King David and Jesus. To be fair, there is some scholarly debate whether Jesus was actually born in Bethlehem (only two of the four gospels, Matthew and Luke, say so), or whether this was a later addition to the Gospels intended to strengthen Jesus' association with David (the proto-messiah).

Either way, Bethlehem was a fantastic city (if, of course, one makes it through the checkpoint). The stark contrast between the lively, energetic Arab markets and sacred sites rivals the Old City of Jerusalem. Bethlehem main attraction for Christian pilgrims is the Church of Nativity in Manger Square. To enter the church, visitors must squat through the so-called Door of Humility (first picture below). The interior (second picture below) is stunning; the floor of the church preserves pieces of 4th-century basilica's mosaic floor (third picture below). Under the altar of the church, visitors queue to see the birthplace of Jesus (fourth picture below), appropriately marked by a silver star.









The Church of the Nativity is actually a complex of churches and grottos. In an adjacent building, Spanish-speaking pilgrims were celebrating Christmas mass (apparently it is always Christmas in Bethlehem)! Underneath the church is the place where tradition locates the home and study of St. Jerome, an important Church Father and biblical exegete. Kyla is pictured in St. Jerome's study below (she is making a heart because her boyfriend back at ND is also named Jerome).



There were a few other sites to be seen in Bethlehem--such as the Milk Grotto, where Mary is said to have nursed Jesus on the Holy Family's flight to Egypt. In comparison to the epic Church of the Nativity, however, the other sites are pretty underwhelming.

Overall, Nick and Kyla's visit to Jerusalem was a great success. Coincidentally, their visit coincided with a Notre Dame pilgrimage, so we had the opportunity to catch up with some familiar faces at Tantur, a scholar's institute run by Notre Dame in Jerusalem.

A visit from Nick and Kyla (part 1)

Last week, my friends from Notre Dame (who are now studying abroad for a semester in London)--Nick and Kyla--visited me in Jerusalem to do some sightseeing. I re-visited some familiar favorites, but also took the opportunity to check a few new destinations off my list. First, here are a few "repeats"--(1) the three of us at the Jewish cemetery on the Mount of Olives, (2) Nick and I at the Church of the Last Supper, and (3) a picture of the Golden Gate, which I mentioned in an early post. The Golden Gate is believed to be the entrance by which the Jewish messiah will enter the city... perhaps for this reason, it is now filled in with cement.







On to the new stuff...

Pictured below is the grave of Oskar Schindler (as in "Schindler's List"), which is to be found in a Christian cemetery on Mount Zion near King David's Tomb. Recall that the Jewish custom is to place rocks on grave markers... suffice it to say that Oskar Schindler has a LOT of admiring visitors.



We also made it to the Tower of David, also called King David's Citadel, near the Jaffa Gate entrance to the Old City. The complex is a military post turned archaeological excavation; here, a hodgepodge of remains have been unearthed from all different periods--from the Hasmoneans to the modern day. Despite the name, the site actually has nothing to do with King David, whose city was much smaller than the current Old City (some attribute the misnomer to the Crusaders). A photo of the whole complex is below.



Among the many significant archaeological remains preserved in the Citadel are: (1) the 2nd century BCE city wall, dating from the Hasmonean period (the time of the Maccabees), and (2) an incredible scale model of Jerusalem during the Ottoman period (note that the Dome of the Rock is not yet covered in gold). Both are pictured below.





Near the Western Wall plaza, but outside of the city walls (in what is properly the Palestinian village of Sillwan), lies the City of David. The City of David is another archaeological excavation, associated with the Canaanite/Jebusite and early-Israelite (i.e. King David) periods. In short, this is biblical Jerusalem. Before Nick and Kyla visited, I went on a tour of the City of David, put on by an archaeologist who was not associated with the site excavations. In contrast to the archaeology, he talked at length about the political complexities of having an excavation and tourist attraction run by Jews in a Palestinian neighborhood. To complicate the matter, many Jews settle in the neighborhoods around the City of David, in order to be King David's neighbors. Though the tour definitely illuminated the hidden dark side of the City of David, I do not necessarily agree with all of the guide's criticisms. For example, the archaeologist was angry that the excavations focused only on the Israelite layer, and not on the later (e.g. Greek, Roman, Muslim etc.) remains. But isn't the fact that here was the home of biblical Israel the reason why people visit the City of David in the first place? Perhaps the most intense part of this political tour was watching a Palestinian riot across the valley in Sillwan (we were downwind, and inhaled quite a bit of the tear gas). To clarify, this political-archaeological tour was a few weeks ago. When Nick and Kyla visited later, the three of us returned to the City of David for a proper tour. Several pictures are below:

(1) Several ancient (royal?) tombs are visible in the bedrock across the valley, under the houses of Sillwan.



(2) Pictured below is the foundation of a massive building on the hilltop, believed by many to be the palace of King David. Several metal seals were found in the area, leading archaeologists to believe that this was a governmental building. According to the tour guide, several of the names found on the seals correspond to those recorded in the Bible, in the story of the prophet Jeremiah's imprisonment (Jeremiah was accused of treason for foretelling--ultimately correctly--the downfall of Jerusalem to Assyria). On the early (political) tour, however, the guide claimed that not single potsherd or seal discovered at the site sports the name "David."



(3) This "stepped stone structure" is thought to be the supporting wall of King David's palace. In the lower-left corner, the remains of a large house can be seen. The archaeologists believe that this house belonged to a government official (potsherds give the name "Ahiel"), who lived near the palace. At the bottom-right, the remains of an ancient toilet is visible, indicating that the owner of this house was very rich.



(4) The original wall of the Jebusite stronghold.



(5) The houses at the foot of the hill likely belonged to the middle-class commoners. The village of Sillwan literally shares a wall with the City of David.



The rest of the tour took place underground, where two separate water systems were discovered. Originally, Jerusalem was watered by the Gihon Spring which flowed into the Kidron Valley. The original Jebusite inhabitants of Jerusalem, fearing attack, dug a massive tunnel connecting the city to a pool in the valley, so that--in the case of attack--the Jebusites had safe access to water. The 18th century BCE tunnel is pictured below.



The tunnel ends at the famous Warren's Shaft (pictured below), named after the archaeologist who discovered it. The narrow tunnel was the last leg on the journey to fetch water when Jerusalem as under siege. Originally, archaeologists believed that this was the shaft mentioned in the Book of Samuel--the route by which David and his troops broke their way into a subsequently conquered Canaanite Jerusalem. This theory has fallen out of favor.



In the 8th century BCE, as Assyrian dominance threatened the now-Israelite city of Jerusalem, King Hezekiah initiated a number of building projects. In addition to expanding the city to accommodate the many refugees fleeing from the north (the remains of the expanded city wall can be seen in the Jewish Quarter of the Old City), Hezekiah also revamped Jerusalem's water system by diverting the Gihon Spring inside the walls. Visitors to the City of David have the option of navigating through the narrow Hezekiah's Tunnel. Because water still flows (about ankle depth, but sometimes deeper) through Hezekiah's Tunnel, nobody on my tour group (including Nick and Kyla!) wanted to make the journey... so I did it myself! It took about 20 minutes to wade through the somewhat-scary tunnel, which was pitch dark (luckily I brought my headlamp) and incredibly narrow (see picture below). I attempted to photograph myself in the second picture.





The last picture is at the Quarrier's Meeting Point in the middle of Hezekiah's Tunnel. It was at this point that two teams, digging from opposite directions, met and completed the small canal. A paleo-Hebrew inscription was discovered at the meeting point, commemorating the completion of Hezekiah's building project. The original inscription is in a British museum, but a replica is pictured below.

Updates from Ramallah (and Yad Vashem!)

Sorry it has been a while--so long, in fact, that I just recently discovered forgotten pictures on my camera from the Beatles cover band concert I attended a month ago. It was strange to hear the familiar Beatles songs in Israeli accents (with Hebrew commentaries in between). The highlights of the concert included being in awkwardly close quarters with a tall, long-haired guy who looked like Jesus (dancing exuberantly), and getting personally serenaded by the lead singer during "Twist and Shout" when he jumped off the stage into the crowd.

This Friday, Shiri, Andrea, Emily and I finally made it to Yad Vashem ("Memorial and Name," a phrase taken from Third Isaiah), the Holocaust memorial in western Jerusalem. The complex is located on Mount Herzl (named after Theodore Herzl, the father of Zionism) and next to Jerusalem Forest. The architecture of the museum alone was spectacular, especially the Avenue of the Righteous (commemorating those who saved Jews in the Holocaust, like Oskar Schindler). As a Bible nerd, I wholeheartedly approved of the Ezekiel passage at the entrance to the main hall (first picture below).





This is the entrance to the Children's Memorial. Inside was a tall, totally dark room that was illuminated by small lights on the walls and ceilings, amplified by huge mirrors. A voice on the PA system read the names and nationalities of Holocaust victims who were children.



I do not remember what this room was called, but it housed the eternal memorial flame. On the floor were engraved the names of all the different concentration camps that operated during WWII.



The inside the museum was spectacular; no photography was allowed. I liked it much better than the Holocaust Memorial in Washington D.C. This museum placed a much larger focus on the pre-history to the Holocaust and the factors that allowed it to happened. The last room in the museum was the Hall of Names--the walls were lined with shelves, on which were hundreds of binders containing biographies of Jews who perished in the Holocaust. As you walk out of the museum, visitors end up on a sort of balcony overlooking the spectacular (and, at night, illuminated) city of Jerusalem.

After Yad Vashem, we journeyed downtown where we sampled some authentic Ethiopian food. The meal consisted of Ethiopian bread--a huge, gray, spongy pancake--and some toppings (most of which were pretty spicy).

On Saturday, we journeyed to Ramallah, the Arab city on the other side of the separation barrier (in the West Bank across from Jerusalem). The city was extremely energetic, and the people were all incredibly nice (if only the Palestinians and Israelis could be nice to each other!). One taxi driver hopped out of his cab to snap a picture with me, demanding to know if I liked Obama (I didn't comment).



We met another friendly Ramallah native named Jaber, who spoke English pretty well. Upon finding out that my friends are from California, Jaber said he had friends there too--in St. Louis. He took us on a guided tour of Ramallah, which included a tour of the hospital (where he demanded I take a picture of the MRI machine, below). Why he opted to take us here, we do not know (was he messing with us? Or just excited to be able to show somebody around?). Either way, we ditched Jaber and wandered through an energetic market (second picture below), stopping to sample some desserts (third picture below). I am not sure what the name of the dessert is (or what it is made of)... but I think I will stick with baklavah and rugelach.







Here are two more pictures from Ramallah--the busy main street, and a little piece of home (sort of)!





Getting back to Israel (through the checkpoint) was no easy task. After taking the bus from the city center, we were dropped off near the wall, and forced to walk 10 minutes to the pedestrian crossing. We waited in the narrow lanes for another 15 minutes, before having our bags searched and having to present our visas to the IDF soldiers. The process was at least a half-hour long... and this was not even during rush hour. Imagine doing that to get to work every day?