Friday crowds

Total road closure today

It's been a very tense Friday here in the Old City. Because Israel has allowed palestinians free access to the Al Aqsa Mosque every Friday of Ramadan, the Old City has been flooded with tens of thousands of people. This is a big shift of tactics from previous years when only men over 50 years were allowed to enter the Old City and Mosque. This open access has actually quelled a lot of violence and to date there has been no attacks ... unlike previous years when restrictions were imposed. Good move. But other security measures had to be taken ... like total road closures to transport. Everyone had to walk into the Old City ... and only on limited lanes. Security checks have been strict but crowds nonetheless entered the City and Mosque.

Thousands coming up our street

I almost could not get out of my house twice today ... once in the morning and once in the evening. Literally thousands of muslims were walking past our door and I was going against the currant. I had to turn off at the closest alley and take the long and steep way to get out. Coming home was even a bigger trauma. Jammed pack and hardly able to breathe ... it was a terrifying experience. Never again. I turned the left alley going uphill and escaped from the crowd that was not moving anywhere. I almost fainted from the crush.

Anyway today we visited the Last Supper Room, Dormition Abbey and Peter Gallicantu church. Then we went to the Jewish Quarter to see the Wailing Wall and the Cardo. It was a nice excursion because it was very cloudy and windy. But the steep hilly climbs are extremely exhausting and I am totally dead tired. I have blisters in my feet. And tomorrow it's another early morning Mass before another excursion.