And the saga continues…

I spent another four days in the Holy Land before flying to Spain. My time in Jerusalem and Tsur Hadassah couldn't have been more fulfilling. It was everything I had hoped for and more. 

Tsur Hadassah

Wednesday was a wonderful day. It was relaxing, which was great because I was still a bit jet lagged and I was able to nap in the morning, write my previous blogpost, organize photos, and take care of a bunch of other things for which I needed a couple of hours. In the afternoon, we took H and Y’s children to a nearby park. 

Afterwards, we came home for dinner, which was deep fried chicken with mashed potatoes and vinegared cucumbers. One should not be surprised that I failed to take pictures of the food. I get so excited about the prospect of eating it that I generally don’t remember the pictures until around 10 minutes after it’s gone.

 

In the evening, we watched Kung Fu Panda 3, which I am considerably less impressed with than the first two Kung Fu Panda films. Cartoons of a cheesy and comedic (some might even say immature) style require a certain level of finesse. KFP3 was fun, just not as polished in its silliness as the other two, in my opinion.

Well, now my day is complete. I have waxed eloquent about a cartoon. I have contributed in a significant way to the world.

 

Jerusalem

Thursday

Thursday was bittersweet. The bitter bit was saying goodbye to H and Y’s family. They have become dear friends, and I always wish I lived closer to Israel every time I visit.

The sweet part was seeing the K family. When I lived in Jerusalem for my MA degree, they became my family. They gave me a sense of home when I was really missing and needing it. I spent nearly every Shabbat (Sabbath) evening and Jewish holiday in their home, and large part of my experience in Israel was shaped by their Shabbat table.

F and I went to dinner and to one of the free summer concerts hosted by the municipality. The artist was Karolina. She specializes in a mix of ethnic music, which I thoroughly enjoyed. She is able to manipulate her voice in some ways that were new to me, and I’d like to play around with her style of singing. I didn’t get any pictures or recordings of the concert, so I will include a link to one of her official YouTube videos. And before you ask: no, I don't understand the music video either. 

Friday

Friday morning I dropped by the Jerusalem Shuk (market), as well as the old city. The shuk is a great place, filled with all sorts of goodies, from food to clothes. 

Fresh Challah bread is a reason in itself to visit Jerusalem

And don't forget the sweet rolls!

Fresh Fish! 

No end of nuts and dried fruit

Fresh fruits and vegetables

Baklava and other related sweets

More dried goods, as well as candy, and other sweets, such as halba. 

Friday morning is a busy time, because there are a lot of people out to buy supplies in preparation for Shabbat. The shuk is an exciting place, and I would recommend anyone who hasn’t been to this sort of market to visit when they go to Jerusalem.

I entered the Old City of Jerusalem through the Damascus Gate. Damascus gate is an entrance to the Arab Quarter in the Old City, and there is a very different feel there in comparison to the shuk. 

Overall, it was much quieter than I had expected, even considering the fact that it was Friday, which is the holy day of the week in Islam.

There's probably a genie in one of these

Friday evening was the long-anticipated Shabbat dinner with the K family and friends. There was a large turnout to the meal (13 people, I think). I didn’t take any pictures, because in Jewish observance, electronics are not used on the Sabbath. So you will simply have to imagine the fantastic food: challah bread, hummus, pesto sauce, green salad with candied walnuts and figs, potato kugel, spinach kugel, lamb roast, three different types of roasted chicken, roasted carrots and potatoes. . . that’s the majority of the food, but I know for certain that I missed a few dishes. Shabbat dinner is basically like a Thanksgiving meal, except that it's every week instead of once a year. 

After dinner, I had the opportunity to sing for the Shabbat table. It’s something of a tradition—on my first Shabbat there, the family found out that I love to sing, and asked me to sing something. Soon it was expected—I would look for new songs to share, or learn favorites of those around the table. I sang the folk tunes “Homeward Bound” and “Danny Boy” (one of N’s favorites), and then sang a duet of “Swing Low, Sweet Chariot” with S. Afterwards, the other Shabbat guests were interested in some of my opera arias, so I sang some snippets of different arias that I have prepared.

Singing was really special for me. N passed away a few months ago, and this was my gift to him. He was a wonderful man who touched many lives, including mine, and he is greatly missed.

Saturday

I can sum up Saturday in one word: perfection. I had a beautiful morning church service in the Jerusalem Center on the Mount of Olives. I saw friends there—some who I expected, and some who were a complete surprise. It was so good to feel the spirit of that beautiful building and to reconnect with friends, many of whom I hadn’t seen in several years.

The entrance to the Jerusalem Center

Inside the front gates

The main auditorium. The first meeting of church services (sacrament meeting) is held here. The Temple Mount with the Dome of the Rock is visible through the middle window. 

The organ in the auditorium. The Jerusalem Center gives daily tours with organ concerts, as well as free concerts featuring local artists each Sunday evening. 

The foyer area

Exit to the "balcony"

 The balcony area

 View from the balcony

Close up on the Old City/Dome of the Rock from the balcony

After church finished, I caught a taxi down to the home of one of my Israeli friends. There we had another large, delicious Sabbath meal, with some of the friends from Friday evening, but also a few who were unable to make it on Friday. I felt very fortunate to be able to reconnect with so many of my wonderful friends in Jerusalem. Once again—sorry, no photos, since it was still Shabbat in a Jewish home.

Crossing the city once wasn’t enough for me. After dinner ended, I headed back up to French Hill to visit with more friends (some from church, who I hadn’t gotten to chat with as much as I had hoped). Then I returned home to the K’s house for a voice lesson with S. She was preparing for a competition and a master class, and I was very honored that she asked me for a lesson. She is developing into a beautiful artist.

My stay in the Holy Land was exactly what I had hoped for, and more. I was able to see nearly all my friends there, and had some miraculous “coincidences” that made everything work perfectly. I’m thinking that I need to return again next year. It's been two years since I last visited, but looking forward, I think that two years is just too long to wait!