Flores de Maio

Flores de Maio procession

Yesterday was a super busy day ... and my poor memory wasn't helping much. Got up at 3am to prepare the church for a group coming to make the Way of the Cross around 4.30am. Waited and waited and contacted the group ... only to be told it's on Sunday and not Saturday. By then it was too late to go back to bed ... having slept only 4 hours. I then had to rush off to the Holy Sepulchre for Mass then immediately after there was class and a meeting and then home. I had to prepare a sermon and an address in another city near Tel Aviv.

Partial lockdown of Damascus Gate

Problem was I couldn't find my passport in my room. Rushed up 1km to my office to find it and still failed. Rushed back home to search again ... and found it inside an envelope I placed a week ago. Anyway my left ankle was swollen from the 3 km rush up and down the hill ... but I could finally get to the other city on time for the Flores de Maio procession and Mass. That's a typical filipino feast of Mary in May ... women dress up as Mary in her different titles and one is crowned May Queen of the year. After the procession there was Mass which I presided and preached ... and then a programme of singing and crowning of the statue ... and a huge dinner after that. The filipino Consul General and the Cultural Attache were also there and delivered speeches before I did.

Last night in the Al Aqsa Mosque there were squirmishes between muslims and Israeli police ... and tear gas were fired. I could hear it from my room when I got back from the Mass at 11.30pm. It was already obvious something was up when I walked down Damascus Gate when I saw the plaza locked down by police except 2 staircases for entering and exiting.

I guess tensions will get worse in the next few days as Nakba Day is on Thursday and the Eurovision contest gets underway. I don't even want to think about it.