Dubrovnik, Croatia

This is Michael again.  Today, we are in Dubrovnik, Croatia, and is it ever gorgeous!  Croatia is one of the seven republics of the former Yugoslavia.  You may remember they had had the Yugoslav Civil War here between 1991 and 1995 when Croatia was attacked by the Serbians.  It is actually much more complicated than that, but I would rather concentrate on today.  The ship anchored just outside of the old harbor, and once on land in the old walled, medieval city you can see a Rector’s palace, two monasteries and one of the oldest pharmacies (1317) in Europe.   The town was founded in the 7^th century on a site called Ragusium by the Romans.  It was under the protection of the Byzantine Empire between 867 and 1205, under Venetian control until 1358, under Hungarian control until 1526 and under the Ottoman Empire until 1806.

I escorted a brief tour of the old city this morning.  We met at the old harbor and walked up to a modern cable car.  This device was originally constructed in 1969 and ran until 1991 when it was destroyed in the war.  It was rebuilt and opened in 2005.  It took us to the top of Srdj Hill for a spectacular view of both the old and new city, and a good portion of the Adriatic Sea as well.  We briefly visited a museum dedicated to the Yugoslav war and while there, I took a brief walk to an old fortress built by Napoleon.  Around the back of the fortress I came across a gun emplacement used during the Yugoslav war.  It is in great disrepair now, but it was very easy to imagine its original function.

We returned to the old city via the cable car, reentered through the Ploce Gate, and proceeded to tour the main avenue called the Stradum, and its many side streets.  I found the old pharmacy and even the old Jewish Synagogue which is still in use by Dubrovnik’s 45 Jews, all of whom are Sephardic.  Well, now it was time for some pizza (we are close to Italy after all) and beer while I tried to find Beverly and the gang.  We did eventually join up and proceeded on up to Dubrovnik’s largest nightclub (its hold 1,000 people) for a Croatian folkloric show, which we didn’t stay to see, but that’s another story. 

***

Michael gave you the facts.  I’ll give the color commentary.  We tendered to the old pier and were immediately struck by all the stone and brick.  I must say the ancients knew how to build things that would last.  I was not on an excursion, so Barry and Christine and I decided to do our own thing.  And it’s a good thing we did as I don’t think any of us could keep up with a group.  We are simply callings ourselves the Gimp Brigade or No Knees Whining.  It was another glorious day with plenty of sunshine and pleasant temperatures.  We headed up the street outside the city walls to the cable car in order to beat Michael’s group.  It was pathetic watching us climb up the steps to the cable car.  I don’t know how many steps there were, but we finally made it up the hill and the steps, tongue hanging out, drooling just like a hot dog. 

The Harbor

Climbing higher and higher, view of the harbor

We rode up and had a fantastic view of the old and new city and the Adriatic Sea.  All the roofs were red tile, creating uniformity to the town.  Barry wanted coffee and there was a lovely terraced café below.  We went looking for an elevator, found it, and pressed the button to go to the lowest level – but it didn’t work.  Where is OSHA when you need them?  We had more stairs to negotiate.  It was worth it as the view was dynamite.  As we were ready to leave, the hoard of people from Michael’s group descended upon us.   It is so weird to meet up with Michael all day long while he is on tour and I am not.  But at least we were able to get a picture of us together with the city in the background. 

View from the top of the cable car; you can clearly see the old walled in city

The old city

That's the old city below us

 

The old city wall

The old city; notice the red roofs

 

We rode down the cable car and this time, walked down a street that went where we wanted to go.  Yes, there were hairpin turns, but at least there were no stairs.  Until…….

We entered the old city through the Ploce gate and saw the elevation!  The main street was down, waaaay down.  Many stairs, lotsa stairs.  These were steep narrow stairways leading down to the main street.  

A typical steep staircase

What to do?  I knew from experience in other old cities like this that there had to be a gentler way down.  So I went in search of one and found a “street” that wasn’t as steep as some of the others.  It was comical to see the three of us inching our way down these uneven stairs with few handrails to hold on to.  Barry was our cheerleader, and I took point as I slowly and carefully crab walked down the stairs.  It wasn’t pretty, but it was effective.  We got down to the main street.

Main Street

Off the main street

 A very narrow side street

We then went searching for the synagogue and found it up a very narrow side street.  There was a door to the synagogue, but to actually reach the synagogue, one had to climb a whole bunch of stairs, like two floors worth.  This was the time to take a pain pill.  I don’t care how rare, grand, or spectacular it was, I was not going up any more stairs. 

This town had more pizza places than Italy.  In fact, Italy is just a short ferry ride away so they do have a strong Italian influence here.  This little restaurant that I rested at at the foot of the synagogue had some good looking pizza.  It was a bit too early to eat, so off the Three Gimpcateers went in search of other sites to see.  We walked the main street, browsed the shops, found the old pharmacy and then made our way back to the pizza joint.  We had consumed most of the pizza when Michael, Morry and Hanita showed up.  Michael said our pizza was better than the one that they had.  I had a good feeling that this pizza joint was blessed (you know, being right at the foot of the synagogue). 

We moseyed over to the venue where the ship’s special entertainment was to be held.  More stairs, no elevator.  We entered having negotiated the first set of stairs only to find another two sets.  Well, we made it this far, so we continued up at a snail’s pace.  I have a special way of crab walking sideways up or down stairs when I don’t want to bend my knee.  The method is fairly effective, but looks retarded.  We get into this great big cavern, where chairs were set up for a folkloric dance.  Hor’s de oeuvres were nicely displayed.  We got some dessert and something to drink, sat down (ahhh) and waited for the show.  And waited, and waited, and waited.  For one hour we sat listening to native music, which frankly, got pretty boring after the first 50 or so tunes.  There was no announcement so we didn’t know when the show was going to start.  Finally, Michael and I left, with me gimping back down the stairs.  I was really tired and worn out, and the pain pill made me a bit sleepy. 

We tendered back to the ship, where I laid down on my bed and did not move for three hours.  I’m telling you, I am worn out!  And we didn’t even get time to walk on top of the wall around the city.  I really think this beautiful, well-kept and clean city was worth a second go. I guess I will have to save that for a return trip. 

Corfu, Greece

I am losing track of the days of the week.  I cannot remember the date.  And now, I can’t even remember what we did at what port.  Oh my, I think it might be time to go home.  If it’s Tuesday, where the hell am I?

I wasn’t going to, I really wasn’t, but I couldn’t help myself….  We had housekeeping deliver a scale to weigh our bags and I had previously decided I was going to wait until I got home to weight THIS big bag.  Oh my, with trepidation, I disrobed and quickly stepped on the scale.  I shut my eyes and was ready for a big surprise.  And my surprise was --- after four months of eating cookies, rich food, and god knows what else, I only gained 5 pounds!  I can breathe again, but my pants still feel tight.  Memo to self:  this summer, it is time to get back in shape.

I must say, the weather on this trip has been absolutely fantastic.  The water has been fantastic.  I cannot recall a trip where the weather and water have been this great.   I guess the sea gods have decided this was the year to be kind.

So what it is about Corfu, Greece that I can’t remember what we did?  We didn’t have an excursion.  I didn’t take notes.  And we went the long way.

The eastern shore of this northern most Ionian Island faces Albania and mainland Greece.  It is dotted with curved bays and secluded beaches, while the western coast is more dramatic with high cliffs and long stretches of sand.  This is a town where time has stood still, yet the modern world invades.  It is a contrast in the old, traditional ways and values with the intrusion of progress.  About 110,000 people live on this idyllic isle; many of them have never travelled beyond its shores.  Instead, the world has come to them in ever increasing numbers from cruise ships who release large numbers of passengers from all over the world. Our neighboring ship in the port disgorged over 3,800 people!  Despite this, Corfu retains a fresh open simplicity, and their friendliness is legendary. 

The town of Corfu is very old.  Over 500 years of Italian, French and British occupation have left their mark on the city. So like all old cities, the interior streets are little narrow warrens winding this way and that.  We took a shuttle from the ship to the esplanade, and were dumped there with no instructions on where to go.  A passenger, one of our bridge players, said he knew the way to the old city, so we followed.  Up and up we climbed along the sea.  Knees said a prayer, hoping that they would survive the flat but elevated climb up the hill (note to self:  get some serious cardio workouts this summer).  We finally made it to the town, and we found a very friendly bunch of storekeepers, who did not hassle you.  That was so refreshing. 

The Old Fort, Palaio Frourio

You can't get away from stairs in these centuries old cities

We found a lot of flowers growing out of the rooftops

A typical narrow medieval street

Candles outside of the church

Residential houses

Another fort

Walking up the street along the seawall

There was nothing we want to buy so we just wandered around.  Always walking uphill.  We ran into some folks from the ship who told us about a little train that tours around the city.  We got to it just in time for some guy sitting in one of the train’s seats to yell out, we don’t want to wait for you, let’s go.  The driver saw the train was full enough so he took off with us just standing right there.  GRRRRRRRR…… some people are a$$holes.  The next train wasn’t for another hour, so we sat on a bench under a large shady tree in the square to watch life go by.  After waiting around for half an hour, Michael was ready to leave and I begrudgingly went along.  We retraced our steps back down the hill to wait for the shuttle bus back to the ship. 

Only to find out that we took the long way to town!  If we had just done a little more homework, we would have found that if we walked straight ahead from the bus, through a stone gate, we would have been in the old city and would not have had to walk up the hill.  Lesson learned – don’t follow someone else blindly, do your homework.  You will save much time and aggravation. 

Kusadai and Ephesus

I am mentally shifting gears from cruising to thinking about going home.  We have five more days to go and I can’t believe that it is almost over – I have spent four months on a ship, working hard, but being taken care of too.  Who is going to feed us?  I am going to sit down for a meal and I am going to have to get up and get it.  I will have to go to the grocery store.  I am going to have to wash the dishes and make the bed.  No more fresh towels twice a day.  On one hand, one can get very accustomed to this type of life; on the other, this is not reality (well maybe it is for the really rich and famous, neither of which I am).   So, it is time to enjoy what little time we have for the pampered life.

Today, I pampered myself and took the morning off as I had already been to Ephesus …

Michael on the other hand joined with Morry, Hanita, Barry and Christine on a private tour to Ephesus, and so, here is his little report. 

Well, at long last I got to Ephesus.  We had been in Kusadasi before, but I was tasked to escort an excursion elsewhere and missed the premier attraction – Ephesus.  I won’t go into much detail, as this has been reported upon previously.  Kusadasi, which means bird island, is on the Aegean region of Turkey and is known for its turquoise waters, broad sandy beaches, bright sun and marinas.

Ruins of a 14th century fortress protecting the harbor

The harbor

Ephesus was founded some 3,000 years ago at the mouth of the Cayster River, on the sea.  By the third century AD the harbor had silted up and the city went into decline.  Its ruins now lay some ten miles inland.  At its height, it was home to 200,000 people, and what a history it had.  Greek gods came in from the west.  Anthony and Cleopatra rode along the Arcadian Way.  The Virgin Mary died in a house just outside the city.  The tomb of St. John the Divine is here and St. Paul preached in the great theater, which holds 25,000 people. 

Ephesus is a site quite unlike any other.  It has been painstakingly restored to some of its original splendor.  The coliseum, where the Romans really did feed slaves to the lions, is in incredible shape and still holds almost 25,000 people.  They hold a number of events here every week.  The library, which in its day was the third largest library in the world, has been 65% restored.  Across from the library is a gigantic brothel, and believe it or not you can still see advertisements for it carved into the marble walkways approaching it. 

Archway

The "throne" room -- toilets

The library

The coliseum

The main street paved with marble

The high point of the tour for me was the “terrace houses.”  These are six homes of prosperous merchants that have been restored using mostly the original pieces. It is still by far the world’s largest jigsaw puzzle with tens of thousands of additional pieces just waiting for the archaeologists to figure out where they belong.  But what you see in these homes is amazing – the original tile floors, mosaics on the walls, the courtyards, fountains and so forth.

These people even had most of the creature comforts we take for granted today, and remember we are talking thousands of years ago.   We saw their toilets (yes, they had indoor plumbing), their hot and cold water system, their steam heating system, and so forth.  All of these treasures were displayed, in situ, under a cover built by the Austrians, and it itself was an engineering marvel.  Right next door is a hill which is believed to contain at least six more of these dwellings, but is still unexcavated.  In fact, it is estimated that there is some 200 years of work ahead for the archaeologists. 

After the excursion, we all met up with Beverly at the cruise terminal and walked over to the old city for lunch.  Barry had gotten a recommendation for an authentic Greek restaurant called Erzincan (located in the Centrum, Camikebir mah, 7 Eylul Sok #9 behind the Kaleici Mosque), and wow, it was great.  I had the donner kabob (which is really Sharma) and it was excellent.  Before I forget, earlier in the day, I bought a birthday present for Beverly – an authentic replica Channel watch with a white ceramic bezel and bracelet.  It is really quite beautiful.  I was going to give it to her at her birthday party on May 1, but I broke down and gave it to her at lunch.  See Deborah, you are not the only weak one!  After lunch we wandered a bit around the old city before returning to the ship. 

A large piece of pita bread we all shared

***

Beverly back here for my side of the story.  I took the morning to get ready for the day and be kind to my achy knees.  I got bored waiting for everyone to come back so I ventured out to what I thought was the old town.  There were the usual crooked streets, but there were some really high end shops selling carpets, leather goods, watches and lots of gold jewelry.   “Come, lady, take a look…”  I got tired of hearing that and went back to the port to wait for the gang.  Michael was unhappy that I had already “gone to town” when I said I was going to rest.  Oh well….

We all decided to go for lunch, and the restaurant was in the “real” old town.  We wove our way turning left then right then left then right again and finally found the restaurant.  We had an incredible meal, and all of us swore we would never eat again, we were so full.  After recounting the day’s adventures, I asked Michael if he was going to get a watch for me now that he is so experienced in negotiating for real authentic replicas.  There were so many watch stores here, blah blah blah.  He just looked at me, reached into his pocket and said, “Here.”  That’s it – here.  I sorta blinked and opened it up to find a watch and I was speechless.  He said, “that ought to shut you up.  Happy Birthday.  I was going to wait until your birthday party, but I couldn’t stand your whining.”  What a romantic (doing the eye roll).

The guys had enough for the day, and that left us girls to do a little shopping on the way back to the ship.

Happy shoppers

Bodrum, Turkey

When in Turkey are you in Europe or Asia?  The answer is yes, you are in both.  Turkey is the only country that sits on two continents; the Bosphorus Sea separates the continents.  Istanbul, the largest city with 20 million people, as well as 95% of the country, sits on the Asian side.  Turkey has a population of 72 million, and the majority of them are Muslim.  Turkey currently is a democracy with a secular government, but that could change.  Just saying.

Bodrum is an ancient city.  We viewed a 2,300 year old amphitheater that is still in use today.  We saw a castle that dated back to the crusades, some 600 years ago, that was built for protection from pirates.  I guess some things haven’t changed!  Many ancient sites have been destroyed by earthquakes.  At one time, this was a walled city and only a portion of the old wall remains at the Myndos Gate, where Alexander the Great entered the ancient city of Halicarnassus (one of the ancient Seven Wonders of the World) in 334BC.  At one time, the hills above this port city were covered with olive and pine trees, some purported to be over 2,000 years old; today, there are homes on these hills.  Yes, they are still in the olive oil making business, running in third place behind Spain and Italy; and today, it is illegal to cut down olive and pine trees. 

Amphitheater 

The last remaining piece of the original city wall

The Castle of St. Peter

Modern Bodrum, is a playground for Turkish and European snowbirds.  One could say that this is the Florida of Turkey.  This beach resort city on the Aegean Sea claims an amazing 320 days of sunshine.  It is clean and there is a lot of new building going on.  Off season, the population is 200,000 but swells in season to over 2 million.  Summer temperatures here can top out at around 110°. 

This is a confusing city as it looks Greek and Turkish all at the same time.  In fact, Greek islands are just around the corner.  You will see this reflected in the architecture of the buildings and homes: small windows and white paint are utilized to keep the sun out.  Homes are two stories tall with a terrace on the top.  Solar panels on rooftops heat water.  Homes precariously hang from the hillsides.

Michael and I were both escorts on the same tour today.  We hit the jackpot with brand new buses that had the new bus smell.  They each held 24 passengers and it had great leg room.  They even had a little step stool to use to get up on the first step of the bus.  It was like a little vacation for my knees!  On our tour, we saw cisterns, now abandoned, that were used to collect rainwater.  Today, a dam takes care of the water needs of this very thirsty city.  We also saw windmills, long abandoned, that were used to grind wheat to make grain.  So we saw the usual sites such as the Myndos Gate, the castle --  it was pleasant, the weather was wonderful.  Who could ask for a nicer day?

View from the hill where the windmills are

This is a beach resort city today

Homes cling to hillsides

Abandoned windmills

We headed out into the countryside, which was beautiful.  We passed through very old villages on narrow, windy and sometimes dusty roads.  I wanted to stop and take pictures as everywhere I looked, there was a photo opportunity.  Our two caravan bus continued on to a small seaside fishing village called Gumusluk.  We had been transported back in time!  This was such a charming little village, with open air restaurants nestled right along the edge of the water.  Small fishing boats sat at anchor bobbing away just feet from your chair.  As part of the tour, we were treated to a soft drink and a Borek pastry, filo dough filled with cheese and vegetables and fried.  Yum.  Then we were off to explore the village and came across some unique souvenirs shops selling handmade items.  Soon, my money and me parted, and some lucky girls in my life are going to be the recipients of these riches.  Michael even found his strapping tape here!  All too soon, we had to leave for the ride back to the ship.  Boo hoo, this was a real treasure of a place.

Haifa, Israel

Sometimes you just have to say NO; No tours, no to routine, no to anything you don’t want to do.  So today we said NO.  It was just going to be an easy day to do whatever we felt like.  We didn’t have an incentive to do anything special because we had already been here before and there wasn’t anything to see that we hadn’t already seen.  And that was very OK with me as my knees were really killing me (and my finger still is a problem, but that’s for another day).  I’m sorry to whine about hurting, but when you hurt, it colors how you perceive things. 

We didn’t want to just sit on the ship, so Michael went to the Square to talk to the local representative about what to do.  In the meantime, I went for my second massage to try and loosen the tendons and muscles around my knees and hips.  Massage for some is relaxing and a pleasant experience; for me, it is pain!  How the hell did things get so bad so fast?  Was it the antibiotics that exacerbated the already wincing tendons?  Too many stairs, too many high steps to get into a bus?  Too many ruins I’d walked over?  Whatever, the reason, my knees HURT.  I am loathe to take pain pills and I have run out of muscle relaxants.  But you know me – I am afraid I might miss something, so I just keep going and going.  I will have plenty of time to rest when I get home.

So we decided to ride the local #23 bus around town and see the sights.  Cheap at only $1.50 per person to see much of what a ship tour would see and at a highly reduced rate!  It was a long hike through the port and out to the main street.  After exchanging dollars for shekels, we caught the bus right by the port.  Haifa is built on steep hills, lots and lots of hills.  This is Israel’s third largest city.  The bus wound its way up the hills by going horizontal and then vertical to get up to the top of Mt. Carmel.  We saw the famous Baha’i gardens, but chose not to get off, and from the picture, I think you can see why.  Michael wanted to go to “Mother’s Park” because he was told by the local representative that there was a dynamite view from there.  We got off the bus with no idea where we were going.  We found the park, but no view.  Now Michael likes to walk just to walk and he figures he will eventually run into whatever it was he was looking for.  The day was perfect, sunny and warm, but I was in no mood to walk about aimlessly.  I told him I didn’t mind walking around if I knew where we were going.  So after a few sarcastic comments back and forth, we went back to the bus stop. 

Haifa is built on hills

Stairs in the Baha'i Gardens

 

Baha'i Gardens and Temple

We sat on a bench and watched the Haifa world go by.  This was a very busy spot and I tried to blend in with the locals.  It is very hard to blend in when the person you are with is wearing a Hawaiian shirt and carrying a big-ass camera around his neck.  I found the locals not to be a friendly bunch, but seemed rather cautious.  Very few people talked to each other.  I can usually strike up a conversation with a person while sitting on a bus bench, but here I didn’t feel welcome to do so.  I can’t say as I blame these folks as there are those that wish to blow them up.  About a half hour went by and the #23 bus finally came and we hopped on and headed to the big mall. 

The first thing we did was get something to eat.  Thankfully, the sandwich place we chose had a menu in English.  Away from the touristy areas, we did not find a lot of English language signage, although most people we interacted with spoke good English.  We shared a roast beef sandwich and a diet coke and it only cost $12! (rolling my eyes) Wow!  The prices were very high.  We were looking for strapping tape to seal the cartons we are sending home (never found any) and a pair of shoes to replace the ones I wore out.  I found several shoes I liked, but the prices were double and triple what I would pay at home.  I eventually found a pair for $75.  The ladies in the shop were thrilled to have a cruise ship passenger from America buy one of their shoes.

We marched around (more like dragged our tired butts) the entire four floors of the mall (it wasn’t that big) and I was really ready to go back to the ship and rest.  Even Michael started to complain about his knees.  We caught the #23 bus again, and this time, I really focused on the neighborhoods and people we saw.  I did not see any individual houses, just apartment buildings of various sizes.  Many of the windows were covered with ornamental wrought iron bars and others had outside mounted automatic-type window shade coverings that roll down over the window to keep the sun out.  Just like in Jerusalem, buildings had solar water heater systems and satellite dishes.  There were many cafes, many of which had outdoor seating. 

As we descended the hills, the neighborhoods changed.  Buildings were much older and more crowded and a bit dingier, and the little store fronts were smaller.  And still lower down the hill, I think we were in a predominately Muslim area.  It would have been fun to poke around the shops here and stroll around, but it was time to return to the ship.  We were both tired.  We made it back to the ship in time for some rest before the next scheduled activity.

Morry, who is the ship’s rabbi, was born and raised in Haifa, and as a welcome to his hometown, he and Hanita invited 15 people to dinner at a local Arab run Mediterranean restaurant.  Arranging taxis for all these people turned out to be a bit of a problem.  There was a misunderstanding about where to pick us up, but the drivers just shrugged it off.  It seems as though this attitude is somewhat typical of Israelis, but Morry’s sister said it was getting better. 

I don’t know what kind of appetite people normally have who eat at a Mediterranean restaurant, but the “appetizers” never stopped coming.  There were at least 15 plates such as hummus, tdaziki sauce, tomatoes, babaganoush, taboolie, eggplant, olives and other stuff I could not identify, all with pita bread.  We all sat at four tables, and each table had the entire round of appetizers served at their table.  OMG, there was soooo much food.  Who had room for a dinner entrée?  Some folks ordered dinner, such as Michael, who ordered lamb chops.  I was told that presenting so much food is the norm in a Mediterranean restaurant; if you had finished everything, then they would worry that you didn’t get enough to eat.  So like other cultures, Jewish and Italian come to mind, you eat until you are ready to burst. 

And then they brought desert!  It was a baked sweet cheese pie with coconut and cinnamon.  It was the size of a large pizza and we were served humongous portions.  Most of us just tasted it as we were ready to roll out of there needing a wheelbarrow to hold up our stomachs.  Thank you Morry and Hanita for a wonderful dining experience.

Jerusalem

It was a dark and stormy night ….. somewhere.  But not here in this part of the world.  We have had calm seas, in fact, so calm that we have to look out the window to see if we are actually moving.  I cannot ever remember taking a cruise and having flat seas for such a long time.  I can count on one hand the number of bumpy days we have had in the almost four months we have been at sea.  It is unbelievable!  In addition, we have had incredible weather, with only a few rain days.  I do not think this will ever happen again.

We entered the Suez Canal on Monday, April 22 at about 6am.  The transit was totally uneventful.  The Suez Canal is nothing more than a big ditch, about 45 feet deep and only one vessel at a time can pass through in each direction.  On the east side is the Sinai Desert and on the west is the Arabian Desert.  There were some villages on the west, and sand on the east. It was a big yawner.  In fact, it was a normal sea day and we played bridge.  There was not much to see.

After entering the Mediterranean Sea, we headed to Ashdod, Israel’s largest seaport.  Ashdod dates back to the Canaanite culture of the 17^th century BC, making the city one of the oldest in the world.  Today, it is a modern city with a bustling port.   That’s about it for Ashdod.  Our reason for being here was to go to Jerusalem.  Our last visit to Jerusalem was 20 years ago, and boy have things changed. 

I am not sure how to proceed with my narrative because I can throw out all kinds of facts and information about Israel and Jerusalem, but most of it will have little meaning without actually FEELING the sacred places.  Once again, I leave Israel with a lump in my throat.  This is a magical place for those that seek a connection to ones historical roots. 

So for the folks that have never been here, I am going to write a bit about Israel in general.  This is a country that is 2/3 desert, but you would never know it to see it today.  Over 260 million trees have been planted since 1930 and a great deal of the area we saw was forested, and a vast majority of the land is agricultural including olive oil, fruit, and a developing wine industry.  The Judea Mountains separates the coastal plains from the rest of the country.  The Dead Sea is almost 1,400 feet below sea level, the lowest point on earth.  Being a desert, lack of water is a big issue.  The main source of water is the Sea of Galilee; when there is no water they purify wastewater for agriculture, and also now have a desalination plant.  The country is clean and green, and I saw flowers everywhere.

New immigrants to Israel go to a government run center where they learn Hebrew and then get help in securing a job and housing.  Languages spoken here are Hebrew (the national language), followed by Arabic, English, and Russian.  There are 8 million Israelis, and 80% are Jewish; the rest are mostly Arab Muslims and Christians.  Army service is compulsory; men serve three years, while women serve two years.  The culture of the country is constantly developing due to the blending of immigrants. 

Female Soldiers

In 1948, Israel became an independent state.  She was attacked the same day she gained independence by a coalition of Arab nations.  As a result of its victory, Israel expanded the territory given to the state by the United Nations, and in the 1967 War, the old city of Jerusalem was recaptured.  Jerusalem is the capital of Israel.

So now back to our story.  We toured and drove and drove and drove.  I put my notebook away and just took in all that the guide had to say about the incredible history of this place.  We got 5,000 years of history in one day!  Whew, that is a lot to take in! 

Starting from Ashdod, we drove into the Judea Mountains climbing up a narrow pass to Jerusalem.  We saw iron shields that were used to protect the supply convoy vehicles during the 1967 War.  There is much evidence of war in this country. 

Iron shields to cover convoy vehicles

There is so much that I cannot begin to write about it.  So many wars have taken place over the millennia, and the three major religions of Judaism, Christianity and Islam claim Jerusalem as their holy of holiest place.  I was always cognizant of the turmoil this tiny country has and continues to suffer.  Her neighbors have vowed to destroy this incredible country.  A green and productive country rose out of the Sinai Desert, and yet Israel’s neighbors still threaten to annihilate her.  After touring the neighboring Arab countries, you would think that they could learn a thing or two from Israel.  What a shame.  I will put politics aside for now……

Jerusalem in located 3,000 feet above sea level in the hilly mountains of Judea.  It has a population of 800,000.  My impression of this city is stone/trees/flowers/hills/history.  All buildings and houses in Jerusalem are covered with stone, giving the city a uniform look.  There are solar panels and hot water tanks on rooftops, taking advantage of the sunny days.  The city is extremely clean.  There is a high speed train between Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, cutting the travel time between the cities to just 20 minutes.  Since our last visit here, I was amazed to see how much the city had grown.  One needs at least a few weeks to take in all the sites this city has to offer, but today we only had a few hours and drove by many of these sites but did not stop. 

There is so much history here and it is impossible to write about it here in this blog.  I am in awe of how ancient this city is.  There have been wars, so many wars; the city was conquered so many times and much of the original sites had been destroyed and then the new folks built over the top of what they destroyed.  The archeological digs continue and new objects are uncovered all the time.    

The traffic around the old city is BAD, real BAD.  My tour took us to the garden of Gethsemane, the garden of olive trees in which Jesus spent the last moments before his arrest. 

Church of Gethsemane

Garden of Gethsemane where Jesus was arrested

We then drove up to Mount of Olives, which is the burial grounds for Jews who believe that when the messiah returns, they will be resurrected. 

Mt of Olives cemetery

Rabbis on Mt of Olives

We then had lunch at a kabutz, where I meet up with Michael.  We dined together and then took our picture at an overlook of the West Bank. 

West Bank is in the background

Then we drove back to the old city by the Knesset, Supreme Court, and a few museums; and what seemed like forever stuck in traffic, we finally went through the Dung Gate and made a trip to the Western or Wailing Wall.  Boring narrative, huh?  Michael’s tour took a three hour walking tour though the old city, where he went to the Church of the Holy Sepulcher.  I will tell the rest of the story with the pictures.  But……..

Front of Church of the Holy Sepulcher

Dome of the Church of the Holy Sepulcher

Normally, I like to spice up my blog, but today was not the day.  I had prepared a note to place in one of the cracks in the Wailing Wall, and as I did, I was so overcome with emotion that I could not stop the tears from falling.  I cannot describe what happened.  I FEEL a strong connection here.  Why?  I cannot say.  Our guide, who was a robot spitting out history, showed her first emotion when she saw me return to our meeting place.  With a knowing smile, she hugged me and understood, all without words.  She said it is not an uncommon experience.  As I write this, tears are in my eyes, and yet I have no words to describe why or what I am feeling.  This is Jerusalem for me.  It is not the stone, it is not the physical world; it is the emotional tug that I cannot explain.  I am the most unreligious Jew I know, I am not sure about the existence of God; I am a cultural Jew.  Yet, this strange mystical feeling overcomes me, and I cannot understand it.  Perhaps it is just something to know that I FEEL it. 

The Wailing Wall

Room underground from the Wailing Wall

Here are additional photos of the Old City: