Day 12: July 19th, 2010 (Jerusalem)

Woke up at 7:00 AM showered and went downstairs for breakfast. Then went to the bus at 8:15 AM. Our first stop was the Western Wall and Robinson’s Arch where we set up for a Bat Mitzvah. One of the group’s daughter’s (Hannah Kalash). It was very interesting, we had a scheduled time near the Southwest corner of the Wall where we picked up a table, Torah, Seders and set up right in front of the Wall. The rocks from the destroyed second temple lay right in front of us.

Bat Mitzvah at the Western Wall

The ceremony was very nice and lasted about an hour. Three of recently Bar Mitzvah’d kids that were on the trip also participated as a symbolic gesture. After the service we returned the borrowed items and had a small Kiddush with drinks and cookies near the Dung Gate entrance. When we finished eating we took a tour of the southern portion of the Temple Mount and saw a video explaining what the Temple Mount used to look like. We then went over to the “true” Western Wall where Zach and I took pictures on the men’s side.

Zack in deep meditation at the Western Wall

There was a lot of police presence because they were getting ready for Tish B’Av which started at sundown. Tish B’Av is a holiday that commemorates the destruction of the first and second Temple. This is a heavily celebrated holiday especially in Jerusalem since the Temples’ destruction occurred at the Western Wall. When we finished at the Wall we headed over to the Jewish Quarter. Within the Old City there are multiple sections; Jewish, Armenian, Christian and Moslem. In the Jewish Quarter we grabbed some lunch. Zach and Al had pizza and Hannah and I had Falafels. Throughout the Quarter there were many Israeli soldiers most of them carrying M-16 automatic rifles.

Soldiers walking down the street in the Jewish Quarter

It was a very strange scene to see that many young kids with guns hanging out at the stores and restaurants. We finished lunch and went over to the Hurva (“ruin”) Synagogue. This was an old Synagogue that was recently renovated. The inside was nice but the best part of the tour was the view from the roof. We were able to get a 360 degree view of the surrounding area.

View from the top of Hurva Synagogue

After the tour we spent some time walking around the Cardo area of the Jewish Quarter. The stores were much nicer in this section than the Moslem Shook we had been in the previous day. Even though most of the stores sold very similar things, I.e. menorahs, Kippah’s, Kiddush cups, etc… we did buy a few presents. We shopped for one and half hours and then met the rest of the group. Instead of walking back through the Moslem section to get to the bus we walked the long way around the eastern and southern walls of the city. It was a nice walk even though it was a little hot out. By the time we reached the bus we were not that far from the hotel. Alan Silverman and I decided to walk around the outdoor Mamila mall since he wanted to get some new sunglasses. We had been to the mall before but this was the first time the stores were actually open. We went into a number of stores but could not find cheap sunglasses. There were some other cool stores including an interesting art gallery that sold 3-D cartoon art. On the way back we stopped at the supermarket and picked up some snacks (hummus, pita, fanta) and beers. Al and the kids were hanging out in the lobby having drinks, bread and a cheese platter. I went to the room, put the beers on ice and had a snack. An hour latter I joined Al at the restaurant downstairs in the hotel since many of the stores/restaurants were closed for Tish B’Av. For dinner, Al had the yam raviolis and I had the fusilli. When we finished dinner I went upstairs to get the kids because we needed to head out for Tish B’Av services. The Rabbi’s sister lives in Jerusalem and we met her and her congregation on an area on top of a mountain overlooking the city.

Kids sitting on a blanket for Tish B'Av services

There must have been about 150 people that congregated together and a Rabbi led the service. During the service we could see fireworks near the Western Wall. We found out that the Arabs actually shoot the fireworks because they want to celebrate the destruction of the Temple while the Jews are in “mourning”. We spent about one and half hours there and then the bus took us back to the hotel. Since it was our last night there we decided to meet up in the lobby for drinks and snacks around 10:00 PM. The kids played cards while the adults drank. We hung out until 12:15 AM and then headed back up to the room. We went to bed around 12:45 AM.