Ash Wednesday in Jerusalem

Wednesday was Ash Wednesday and I was definitely excited to be in Jerusalem on Ash Wednesday.  Jenn wasn't able to show us around because she had class that day, so Mike and I were on our own, which was completely fine. We're used to being our own tour guides in places we don't know.  Jenn had a great book which outlined the stations of the cross and told you exactly where each station was located, so we figured this was the perfect opportunity to walk the stations.  

While most of the stations are pretty small and are just marked by the Roman Numeral signifying which station it was, it was still an incredible experience to walk the stations of the cross on Ash Wednesday.  Jenn said that some people even rent a cross to carry through each station.

Station One: Where Jesus was condemned to death.  Present day, it's a school! It was kind of hard to find because we were expecting more of a marking, but once we found it, we saw the roman numeral and figured out the location.

Station Two: where Christ was bound, placed on the cross and given his crown of thorns.  Present day: it's a convent

Can you see the roman numerals? This is station three, where Jesus fell for the first time.  Now, it's next to a Polish church.

Station Four: where Christ met Mary.  Nowadays, it's an Armenian Orthodox oratory and a pizza restaurant! 

In the Armenian quarter, there were tons of signs and memorials for people killed in the Armenian genocide

Station Five: Where Simon of Cyrene carried the cross for Jesus

As we were walking the stations, we found this google shirt. I laughed, but I have a feeling a lot of people wouldn't....

Station Six: Where the veil of Veronica was created.  Now, it's just a wall.

Station Seven:  Where Christ fell for the second time. Now, it's the sight of a Franciscan chapel.

Station Eight: Where Jesus offered a bunch of women a sermon.  Now, it's next to a Greek Orthodox monastery

The ninth station: It's located at the top of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre and we actually saw it the day before with Jenn, but we went again.  It's where Jesus fell for the the third time.

Station Ten: at the entrance to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre where Jesus was stripped of his garments. We bought a rosary and I said a prayer, while Mike was a creeper and took a picture. 

It only took about an hour to walk through the stations, but by the time we were finished, it was lunch time.  We got shawarma at this little, hole-in-the-wall restaurant and it was delicious. Mike even got a second one! It had a small salad bar to put all sorts of fillings and stuff in your pita and we were both in heaven.  I think I'm still team falafel, but Mike is team shawarma and I don't think either of us would turn down a falafel or a shawarma....ever.

I guess you can find an Alabama fan store anywhere....

I can't....

Where's your yarmulke, little guy? 

After lunch, we wandered around the Old City for a while before making our way towards the Mount of Olives.  The Mount of Olives is where it is believed that Jesus will come back, as well has where he ascended into heaven.  As we were walking towards the mount, we kept getting offers from taxi drivers for rides, but we turned them down.  I guess most people take a bus/cab/car up to the top and then walk down.  Not us Hogans.  We like to make it a little more difficult.   The hike up to the top is not easy.  I was winded walking up and stopped along the way.  I used the excuse that I wanted to take pictures, but really, I was just tired.  Most of the churches were closed along the way because it was lunch time, but we've seen our fair share of churches, so we weren't really too bummed.   

We're really mature and were able to read this and keep a straight face. Not.  We're actually middle schoolers and giggled at the name "Dung Gate"

love those olive trees

the cemetery at Mount of Olives

Instead, we decided to go to the tomb of the prophets, which is the tomb for Haggai, Zecharia and Malachi.  You have to walk down these stairs into the a cave, which is pitch black.  We were greeted by this old Russian man who didn't speak any English, but handed us candles and gave us a complete tour in Russian. While Mike and I didn't understand a single word he said, it was a cool experience. We thanked him and continued our trek up the mountain. When we made it to the top of the mount, all of the shortness of breath and hiking was worth it. The views from the top of the mountain were beautiful.  There is a great view of the cemetery and the Old City.  It was breathtaking.

Turkey!!

We took a minute to take it all in before we were encouraged by drizzling rain to head back down.  The walk down is definitely an easier trek and I can see why people choose to drive up.  Luckily, the rain held off as we walked down.  We walked through the Old City again and made our way back towards Jenn's apartment.  It started really raining and by the time we get back to her apartment, we were pretty wet.   Luckily, we had done a lot of sight seeing, so we didn't feel too bad hanging out at her apartment where it was dry and warm.  

Around five o'clock, we headed out for dinner. There is a grillhouse that Jenn recommended and we were all about it.  I didn't even order any sort of meat (the Catholic guilt about eating shawarma on Ash Wednesday was still eating away at me), but there was enough pita, hummus, and dips to fill me up.  It was amazing.  My only regret was not taking a picture of all of the dips.  

After dinner, Jenn and I went to Ash Wednesday Mass while Mike and Jenn's fiance Zach went to a bar. Going to mass was fascinating.  It was on the first floor of a hotel and Pope Francis stayed at this hotel in 2014.  I've been to Ash Wednesday Mass ever since I can remember and the actual mass wasn't any different.  In fact, it was pretty uneventful. There wasn't any singing, the homily wasn't anything especially moving, and the mass was over in 45 minutes.  The most interesting part of the mass was when the time came to get the ashes. Unlike every other Ash Wednesday where I got ashes on my forehead, this time they put them on the top of my hair.  When I asked Jenn about this later, she said she thought that it had something to do with safety and violence in Israel. The other fascinating thing about going to mass in Jerusalem was the congregation.  In the United States, the congregation in a church is sometimes diverse, with lots of white, Asian and Hispanic people.  In Turkey, we've found that it's mainly European expats with a  few Turks. I kind of expected kind of the same thing in Jerusalem (why I'm not sure), but I was SO wrong.  There were people from all over the world.  There was even a group of people from Sri Lanka.  So interesting!  It was such a cool experience to attend Ash Wednesday Mass in Jerusalem.

We ended the night pretty early since our flight was at 7:10am the next morning.  Due to security, you have to get to the airport three hours early when leaving Israel.  Add in the hour shuttle ride from Jerusalem to Tel Aviv and we figured we'd be waking up around 2:30am. I've stayed up later than that! Crazy!!

Overall, we had a blast in Israel! We had great hosts who were amazing tour guides.  They had differing views on the situation in Israel, which was so interesting to listen to their viewpoints and made me more intrigued at the situation.  It was also an incredible experience to be in places where Jesus and the Holy Family lived.  It was a wonderful week and we're so thankful for the experience.

Step Count: 25,035

A Day in the Old City of Jerusalem and Bethlehem

Tuesday was our first full day in Jerusalem. Jenn didn't have class, so she was able to be our tour guide, which was awesome because she was so knowledgeable about Jerusalem and the issues surrounding Israel and Palestine. We slept in and got a late start, which was kind of nice. She lives five minutes from Damascus Gate, which is one of the entrances to the Old City.

First, we saw the Western Wall, which is the holiest sight where Jews are allowed to pray. We didn't go in, mainly because Mike would have to be separated from Jenn and I, but we were able to see it and take pictures of it.

We continued on throughout the Old City and it was incredibly beautiful. It truly felt like an old city. We wandered around for a bit before making our way to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. The church has an interesting history because so many different Christian denominations have a stake in the church, therefore a lot of conflict has happened over restoration. The different groups cannot agree on how much money should be spent on different parts of the restoration, so things do not happen. There is even a ladder that has not been taken down because of this conflict!

In the church, you can find the location of the last three stations of the cross. We didn't do them in order (just wait until the next post….how's that for suspense?), but we saw them all. Our first station was the tenth, where Jesus was stripped of his clothes. A lot of people bring things to place on the stone and say prayers.

The tenth station.  People lie all sorts of things on the stone to be blessed.  I caught a rare moment where no one was there.

  Then, we saw the location of the Crucifixion (XI) and where Jesus died on the cross (XII).

The Eleventh Station of the Cross where Jesus was nailed to the cross

Our last station that day was the tomb of Christ. We were lucky because the line was extremely short. Jenn said she had never seen it that short before and she's lived there almost three years! In the first room, you can see a piece of stone that is believed to have been part of the rock that sealed off Jesus' tomb. The second room is the actual tomb.

The fourteenth station- The Aedicule.  The tomb of Christ and the final station

We headed to the roof of the church, where the ninth station is located. There was an archway with a cross on the top, and this marks the place where Jesus fell for the third time.

I definitely had different (and unrealistic) expectations of what would be at each station.  I think I expected THE cross where Jesus died.  Come on, Sarah, be realistic!  While it was different from what I expected, it was still amazing.  I think the most incredible part of the experience is just knowing that you are in the same place that such significant events took place.  Even if you aren't a religious person, these events and beliefs had such a large impact on history that almost everyone can appreciate it.

Anyways, we headed to lunch next and had shawarma before heading back to Jenn's apartment to grab her car and head to Bethlehem. Our first stop was the Church of the Nativity, which is one of the oldest churches in the world. We went into the cave where Jesus is believe to have been born. Mike thought it was underwhelming.

Spotted in Bethlehem: a Valentine's Day Hookah set

There isn't a Starbucks in Israel,d but there is a Star and Bucks

The famous cave!

The church in Bethlehem

I thought it was pretty cool. Afterwards, we went to a shop where Jenn knows the owner and he allowed us to go on his rooftop. A lot of Bethlehem is off limits to Mike and Jenn being American military, but the rooftop allowed for a great view of the city and Jenn was able to point out important locations, such as Rachel's Tomb.

We headed back to Jerusalem for a few hours of relaxation before hitting the local market for dinner and drinks. I thought our first day in Jerusalem was extremely interesting. I loved walking through the Old City and seeing all of the hustle and bustle, as well as seeing some signs of conflict and tension. I never got over the shock of being in such significant religious places and I hope that I can remember that feeling forever.

Step Count: 13,878

For anyone who is interested, this website provides a great tour of the stations of the cross in Jerusalem.  It has great explanations of how to find each station because it can be kind of tricky.

http://landlopers.com/2011/04/03/walking-via-dolorosa-stations-cross-jerusalem-guide