Feast of St. Leo

Card made by the students

Temperatures continue to fall ... at night it gets down to 9 degrees now and evenings are 13 degrees. No sign of rain. You can tell tourists and locals very quickly in the street ... locals are wrapped up in jackets and hoodies and caps while tourists walk around in T-shirts and shorts ... shivering in the cold because they didn't expect it to be so cold in November.

It's the Feast of St. Leo the Great ... my feast day. I wasn't in for dinner last night because the exhibition had ended and we had to keep the manuscripts back in the library and clean up the hall, so I missed the customary feast day greetings at dinner. This morning they wanted me to preside at Mass but I was too tired. The community did pray for me during Mass though. Then immediately after Mass I had to help Mother Teresa's sisters with over 40 pots of plants that we gave to them ... de-potting the rose bushes and putting them into bags so the nuns can bring them to their convents in Gaza and Nablus to plant. Then it was a quick rush to the Dominican priory for a meeting. The  back again for lunch where the community celebrated the feast and the greetings were made.

The exhibition team at dinner

The students at our school made a card and posted it on the school notice board. I didn't know about it but students were wishing me happy feast day and I was wondering how they knew. Later they pointed the card to me. It was hilarious. The reference to papa pig is because I don't eat pork but 2 weeks back I ate one thinking it was chicken. Since then everyone at home makes fun of me about pork in all our food.

I brought the team that helped organise and run the exhibition to dinner last night after we finished storing up the exhibits. Most will leave tomorrow for Italy. We had a nice chins dinner at Mandarin. Haven't been there for a long time because I didn't have time or money. It's quite expensive there now. Last night's dinner was paid by the library.

Well I'm pretty exhausted now tonight and will sleep early. Tomorrow morning I have to go to the Holy Sepulchre for Mass at 6am, then class at 8am, then meeting at 9am to 11am. I hope I can get to rest in the afternoon. This week has been too eventful.