ISRAEL - Jerusalem

And so to my final post on Israel..the wonderful city of Jerusalem. I was bowled over by jerusalem, I loved the noise, the bustle, the souk (of course!!), the calls to prayers, the unexpected emotional response to the Holy Sepulchre, the walk along the ramats, the glorious view of east Jerusalem, Mount of Olives in the sun, The Wailing wall (and all that wailing) ... well how long have you got??

We arrived at Jerusalem, full of talk of Jerusalem syndrome. About 45 people a year suffer from this, where they are so bowled over by Jerusalem that they begin to believe that they are prophets, and can perform miracles. A short stay in the local psychiatric ward usually cures this, and sufferers are very embarrassed afterwards. . .

Hmmmm, Jerusalem syndrome anyone??






We then diverted through the Souk, which I have already blogged! At the bottom of the Souk we all had to go through security, and quickly realised why.. we were at the Wailing Wall. We had written letters to post in the wall. I had not been prpared to be separated, men on one side, women on the other.. and the women were sqished into a tiny area.. There really was a lot of wailing, with women beating their heads against the wall, falling prostrate on the floor and fainting. I said my prayer, posted my letter and retreated... it was a surreal experience,, and sadly left me pretty unmoved.



At which point we headed up the Via Dolorosa, following Christ's last journey. . . At one point Tom stumbled and I helped him.. I think that made me a saint.. but possibly Jerusalem syndrome was striking...


It really got a bit tacky in places . . . .




and then we arrived at the Holy sepulchre. Revered as the most important Christian site in the world, this is believed by most Christians and historians to be the spot called Golgotha, were Jesus was crucified by the Romans, and died on the cross. As someone who rarely goes to church, but had a good chapel upbringing in Wales, I was not prepared for the emotional response that this place had upon me. It was a powerful feeling, and I doubt I will ever forget this simple place. . .



At this point everyone else went to lunch, except poor Kester who was forced to accompany me on a tour of the ramparts... think he may have wanted his lunch judging by the body language... sorry Kester!

Initially the views were a little disappointing . . .

but you can't be disappointed with Jerusalem for very long at all..... This is the view of the Mount of Olives. A huge graveyard, for all devout Jews, who believe the next Messiah will raise them from the dead at this very place... Robert Maxwell is buried here... so full of good people then!!



and the utterly amazing views of East Jerusalem . . In the second photo you can see the wall that the Israelis are building to keep out the Palestinians... hmmmm, anyone for Berlin??



and there you sre.. my holiday in Israel... all 126 pictures that I have saved.. I may post a top ten at some point.. but I hope you have enjoyed our whistle stop tour of an extraordinary country. I loved spending time with by babay brother, and while I wish he was living happily in London, we understand why he loves his new country, and we are pretty fond of his new family too.. Thank you with all my heart Kester, Yael, Romi and Mia for opening your house to us and showing us your beautiful country..

Anya, Tom and Jamie x x x x