The Western Wall and Bethlehem
Well darn it, my body clock hasn’t adjusted to the ten hour time difference, so here I am wide awake at 4 a.m. It must be time to add to the blog!
Visiting the Western Wall aka the wailing wall was one of the highlights of our first day in Jerusalem. It was inspiring and touching to see people of so many faiths praying shoulder to shoulder in accordance with their beliefs.
Teresa cleansed her hands in preparation for her prayers at the wall. You are supposed to face the wall and back away after you pray, but it was so crowded that I couldn’t back up without stepping on someone.
On to more holy sites, we checked out the Grotto of Gethsemane, the site of the betrayal of Jesus.
We were somewhat taken aback by the dense crowds of pilgrims and tourists that made getting around a challenge. Friday also brings many Jews into Jerusalem for the weekly observance of Shabbat which starts at sundown.
We also went to Bethlehem and the church of the Nativity on Friday. There was a dense crush of people waiting in a 90-minute queue to visit the cave where Jesus was born. Yes, the stable was in a cave, not the open air thatched roof shed you see in most nativity scenes. Pat was able to get this nice picture in spite of the pushing and jostling.
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