Down to Jericho

Jericho is only a thirty minute bus-ride from Jerusalem, but it looks and feels like an entirely different country. We dropped over 2000 ft which took us below sea-level and into a barren desert land that felt about 20 degrees hotter and 20% more humid than Jerusalem. One thing I don't understand is how the place can be so humid, but look like it hasn't received a drop of rain in years. Anyhow, the highlight of Jericho actually wasn't the heat and the humidity. The history there is incredible!

Our first stop was Tell Es Sultan--a huge mound that contains the remains of the biblical city of Jericho. Interestingly enough the excavators happened to find evidence of a fallen wall all the way around the city. They say the wall dates back farther than the "walls came tumbling down" story, but I still think that's a pretty cool coincidence. In the middle of is a neolithic tower that is thought to be the oldest structure in the world! Seeing this gave me a whole new respect for the durability of rocks. I guess I haven't thought about it much before, but 7000 years is a long time to stay in tact. Standing on top of the excavation site was really interesting. If you looked to the east you see a valley filled with green palm trees. When you look to the west all you see are brown dusty mountains without a wick of green.

On the Jericho trip we also stopped at Herod's Winter Palace. The foundations of it including some pillars, walls, and even a bath are still in tact. In the U.S. anything over a 200 years is pretty much off limits. The fact that we could walk all over the 2000 year old site hints at just how much history this country is filled with.

Up to Jerusalem

The BYU Jerusalem Center is located in East Jerusalem on top of Mount Scopus--a rather huge hill just east of the temple mount. To go to the city we have to hike down this rather huge hill, fend off the cars that don't seem to know what speed-limits are, avoid the broken bits of glass and trash scattered across the sidewalk, then we hike up another big hill until we get to the city wall. Altogether it's about a 20 minute walk to Damascus Gate. The city is usually pretty hot, humid, and every alleyway seems to smell different (not always a good-different). Our classes are usually in the morning so most afternoons we wander around the Old City for a few hours. So far this week the highlights of my adventures have been the Dome of the Rock, a walk on top of the city wall, Falafel, and bargaining.

First off, Dome of the Rock is really cool. It's on top of the Temple Mount--although Mount Scopus is the more politically correct name I've learned. (Some of the Muslims believe that the temple never actually existed). Mount Scopus is also location where Abraham was supposed to sacrifice Isaac. For me, the Dome of the Rock has been of the most peaceful places that I've been to so far in Jerusalem.

The Old City has felt like one big maze the last few weeks so walking the wall not only provided some awesome views, but really helped me orient myself. My group happened to be walking the wall the same time as a few Israelis. One of them was a supervisor for schools throughout Israel. It was really interesting to catch a glimpse of his political stance based on what he said about the schools in Jerusalem and other areas.

Falafel is everywhere. And it's good, but I think I liked the kind we made at home even better. Actually the Pita Bread is probably my favorite part of a falafel sandwhich. Pita here is perfect!

Bargaining: I'm bad at it. Without even trying! I was walking in and out of shops with two other girls from the center and asked how much a necklace was (they never post prices here). I was expecting it to be a lot, but not $125! I laughed and told the shopkeeper that I couldn't afford it. He asked me what price I would pay for it. I didn't think telling him a price meant that I wanted to buy it so after he kept pestering me I told him about $25. Then he started dropping the price about $25 at a time. I kept telling him I didn't want it, but he still continued to offer lowerprices. He got to $35 and said "It's yours" and started to put it in a bag and hand it to me. I was heading out the door at this point and told him that I really meant what I was saying. He finally dropped the price to $25, saying it was a special day since his wife had had a baby the day before. By this point I felt so pressured I didn't know what to do. The girls I was with told me to just leave. At that point the shopkeeper got mad at them and told them to go away and finally he raised his voice at me telling me to get out of his store and went on about how offensive this was to him. Goodness gracious!!! I felt fal-awful (that was for you Dad!) and I still cringe when I think about it. Moral of the story: don't even ask how much something costs if you have no intention of buying it.