OK, it’s now Thursday afternoon. Dot has been to North Walsham while I had my eyes tested and bought a present for Philip (his birthday is next week). We then both went to Morrisons to get some food before it all ran out. Already no Paracetamol. I should mention that Norwich City beat Spurs on penalties last night to reach the quarter-finals of the FA Cup. So the age of miracles is not past.
Israel pilgrimage continued….
After the Vermehrungskirche we proceeded to the site of Peter’s redemption (where Jesus said to him: “Feed my sheep”). There is a statue to that effect – quite a nice one. And a lovely view out over Lake Galilee. After this there was lunch at a lakeside restaurant that I really don’t remember (though I do remember that two glasses of wine were 70 shekels = about £18), and a further journey to Capernaum, also on the lake and the site of Peter’s mother’s house and the synagogue that Jesus preached at. It was more or less Jesus’ home town at that time. A striking place.
This was followed by a trip on a boat on Lake Galilee, during which the crew unexpectedly played the British National Anthem and then the worship song Ten Thousand Reasons. The boat was called Noah. The engine was switched off for a few magical minutes halfway back to Tiberias. Beautiful setting.
Back at the hotel we had a Eucharist and met David and Bridget’s friends, John and Kathy Ladd. The weather had been pretty good, especially towards evening. And that was just the first day.
The Wednesday started with a visit to Mount Tabor, site of the Transfiguration. The weather was good, and the setting lovely. We had to get shuttle taxis to the top in order to negotiate a long series of hairpin bends on a narrow road. Halfway up we met a squad of soldiers walking down, and there was a big police presence at the top, plus several cats. Interestingly we saw hardly any dogs in Israel or Palestine. Good views and another Communion here. Because of the height it was a bit chilly, and Miles lent Dot his jacket. She also bought a yashmak.
After getting the shuttles back down (some walked, but it was a very long way), we got the bus to Nazareth and pulled in there (Band reference). We walked up to Mary’s house and the inevitable large church or three erected to commemorate it, surround it and make it as unlike Mary’s house as it was possible to be. Very nice statue of Joseph close by.
Afterwards we drove to Cana for a fast-food lunch and Coke. Quite tasty, actually. This was followed by a visit to the house where Jesus did his first miracle, turning water into wine. We had a service. Lots of adverts for such items as “First Miracle Wine”. The church allegedly contained a huge jar where the water turned into wine had once rested, but it was massive, immovable and obviously inauthentic; so I guess it was the exact one.
Thursday was pleasantly warm, but we made the mistake of getting relegated (by lateness) to the back seat of the bus; so two long journeys were really uncomfortable. The first, to Jericho, was interrupted at one of the spots were Jesus was supposed to have been baptised, where we renewed our baptismal vows and got sprinkled by Jordan water. Several other people there, observing that we had a genuine Bishop with us, seized on the opportunity to get sprinkled by him, which was partly amusing and partly touching.
We proceeded south to Jericho and the Mount of Temptation, which was supposed to be where Jesus was tempted by Satan. This involved a cable car ride (for us, not Him) and quite a few steps, narrow passageway and a cave. There are a lot of caves in Israel, though technically this was Palestine (I think). Had a drink in the cafe with Anne and James (this often happened), and on our return to below sea level Dot had a brief ride on a camel, because it was there.
Drove on past the sycamore tree allegedly climbed by Zaccheus to see Jesus pass (but clearly not old enough) and at some stage we had a really nice lunch at an open air cafe, followed by a shopping visit to a co-op, where Dot bought some Nard. We then proceeded to the Dead Sea, where I toyed with the idea of swimming but in fact paddled. It felt like any other sea, only muddier. Both Dot and I managed to avoid falling over. Bit of a resort, but beautiful if you managed to shut that out.
Afterwards we got on the bus and drove to Bethlehem via the Jericho road (rugged and beautiful) and the busier and least recognisable parts of Jerusalem. Feeling pretty ill in the back seat by the time we reached the Manger Square Hotel in Bethlehem. Big hotel, nicer room but the food was not so good. We were in Palestine now, having passed through the checkpoint where Jerusalem joins Bethlehem: no countryside, just houses. Oh, and a wall. after dinner we went for a short walk but couldn’t find Manger Square.
Friday was sunny and warm, and we got a better seat on the bus. But before that we walked up to the Church of the Nativity, having found Manger Square. Obviously it is supposed to mark the place where Jesus was born, and we queued up to see the “exact spot”, which is in a cave below ground. Ho, hum. I liked the Byzantine church, the oldest in the world, and the area round it. Afterwards we went to a shopping opportunity and Dot was persuaded (by me) to buy an expensive necklace. We got some other gifts too.
From there we walked to the Shepherds’ Fields and had another Communion. This was quite moving because it faced open countryside which you could almost imagine shepherd and sheep on. I believe it was near here – at the Tower of the Flock (Migdal Elder) – that Jesus was actually born, but our guide did not agree with this. What does he know? He’s only an Aramaic-speaking Jewish Christian.
After another fast-food lunch, after which we almost left someone behind (not really, but he thought we had when we were simply turning round), we drove to Bethlehem University, where we met some of the students – I asked a couple of questions, surprisingly. They were all very pleasant, but then we weren’t Israelis. We moved on from there too Dheisheh Refugee Camp, which unexpectedly turned out to be a building in the middle of Bethlehem. Here we heard from a very pleasant and fluent representative and met Anne Aves, who is from Norwich and runs a charity to help and educate people in the refugee camp.
Saturday was Leap Day – 29th February – and was grey and cold, with some rain. I avoided this by being ill. I had had violent diarrhoea the previous evening after visiting an ice cream shop with many others, and it continued when I woke up in the morning. So I stayed at the hotel while Dot went off to old Jerusalem. As it turned out, because of a programme change, this turned out to be the only day the group went to old Jerusalem; so I am one of the few pilgrims who have spent a week in the Holy Land without visiting old Jerusalem or even seeing it from outside.
It felt like a very long day. I got some medicine which stopped the diarrhoea, and I was able to go for a short walk, but most of the time I was just trying to sleep – after they had serviced my room, which they took ages to complete. They started by taking away the towels. Then after about an hour they bought some new ones. After about another hour they actually made up the room. Felt a bit better towards evening and went to a cash machine, where I was helped by a young Palestinian, who used his own account to change the Jordanian dinars I received into shekels. He then showed me his father’s shop! Very nice people – I got a lovely mint tea – and I bought a scarf for Dot and two mugs. The father complained about Israeli tour guides who only took people to their friends’ establishments, which I’m sure is true.
Dot get back very late, because this was the only day they ate out in the evening (at a Bedouin restaurant – presumably it’s never in the same place). She brought me a meal, but I couldn’t eat it, apart from a little flat bread.
To be continued again…