Rest

Bedouin veggie vendors today

Yesterday's fast was a success. I didn't eat anything from 4am to 8pm but drank lots of water. I managed to rest a bit but I also came to work in the evening. And I didn't feel hungry at all. In fact Main restaurant's Linda boiled chinese soup for me but I gave it to one of my workers instead. I felt fine. But I slept early as the doc advised ... to strengthen my resistance to illness.

This morning I was up at 4am to prepare for a retreat I have to preach. At 4am I had time to do things slowly so I don't forget anything. By 7am I was out of the house .... I don't want to be among crowds in case I catch any illness from them. You can never be too cautious. Better safe than sorry. Our grocery store sent a message saying they have boxes of alcohol gel so I quickly went over to get 2 bottles.  You can never be too sure.

Blooming almond tree

The weather has gone all cold and drizzly again. A huge change from yesterday's sunny warmth. I noticed the bedouin veggie vendors were particularly happy. The cold and drizzle keep their veggies fresh. In summer the sun burns and dries them up so by 1pm they are ruined and cannot be sold.

Finally the almond trees at Damascus Gate are blooming. The beautiful pink blossoms crown the bare branches and the fragrance is very delicately sweet. I might go to the cemetery and pluck a few branches back for our Madonna altar.

I've been thinking about how advanced humanity has come in technology and science ... yet it cannot fight a microscopic half-living thing called a virus. God used such a tiny thing to make the entire world kneel before him. It's awesome ... it's humbling. But if we can't hear God behind it all .... then we've learned nothing.

of fruit and friday

So Lent has rolled in and it's the first lenten Friday. The Way of the Cross just started but the muezzin is also singing the call to prayer. It's always this clash every Friday. Still there's not much of a crowd at the Way of the Cross, mainly because of the virus fear. Locals here believe in any rumour and they're in a mindless state of panic ... unless of course if there's money to make. Yesterday we also got an instruction from the Diocese telling us communion is only by the hand and no Holy Water should be available at the door of churches.

Fruit galore

I was prepared for the Friday fast today. Got up at 2am to study and listen to 2 recorded lectures. Then it was time to work, opening the library, getting the mail and new books registered ... settling the new orders etc. But I didn't want to go to the library and work because I wanted to avoid the Friday crowd. It's really not safe in the Old City because tourists from all over the world are walking through the streets and they could be infected carriers. Doc had told me to stay home as much as possible and avoid crowds so that's what I did today. And I bought Dettol spray to wipe everything. I just need alcohol gel ... but that means having to go to the pharmacy through the crowds.

I'm feeling much better after the bout of cold but I'm not lowering my guard. I'm drinking lots of water and eating lots of fruit ... which is just right because there's lots of Spring fruit on sale in the markets. The colours are amazing. Today however I fasted. Had only a cup of lemon juice at 4am. I'll probably break the fast after sunset ... maybe at 7pm. Tomorrow there'll be the lenten vigil at the Holy Sepulchre at midnight. I might join in.

News just in. There had been scuffles at the Gaza-Israeli border in the south. Some people were injured. That's a sign that the weather has warmed up. For the past few weeks when it rained and was almost zero degrees, there were no violence at the border.

Of corona and chives

Buying garlic chives

... and things are getting serious .... now that Saudi Arabia has banned foreigners from entering the country for the haj. And Israel has advised all Israelis from traveling abroad. I've been thinking alot about this and futile it is because firstly no one knows how many arabs in Palestine are infected. There is no procedure or control over the virus in there. Secondly as long as the palestinians continue to enter and leave Israel for work or whatever, the virus will continue to spread.  So blocking foreigners is not a solution ... it will only slow down and limit contamination from abroad ... but the local contamination will only get worse.

My doc is going to love my lenten regime: total vegetarian diet. He's been telling me that for some time and I kept it for a while but when I have to rely only on leftover kitchen food ... many times I have no choice. Mind you I'm eating only white meat when I have to. No red meat for the past 8 months. But my blood pressure and sugar is very high and my liver or pancreas has been hurting twice this week. But my cold sore is gone and my coughing is over .... it's due to the cumulating phlegm. A good walk in the fresh air clears the throat and lungs and I'm ok. Still doc insists that I'm overworked and have insufficient sleep so my resistance is very low. All I need is rest, sleep and simple fresh veggies and fruit. And keep me far away from problematic people ...... please.

Garlic chive dumplings

Yesterday while at Jaffa, I took the opportunity to go to the wet market to buy garlic chives. Our chinese sisters love it and use it alot in their cooking. But it's never sold here in Jerusalem. In Jaffa they sell lots of it. I bought 5 bunches ... making sure I didn't buy shallots like I did the last time. Today the sisters made garlic chive dumplings. That's in keeping with my vegetarian diet. Good stuff!!

Anyway garlic, onions and their leaves are good to keep away the cold virus. And I'm avoiding crowds at all cost .... especially italians. This morning Israel has barred them from entering the country.   

Ash Wednesday

It's Ash Wednesday ... and we don't have coronavirus lockdowns ... so the Mass went ahead and we all received the ashes. I asked the sisters to lend me an old chalice so I can celebrate Mass with it without having to use the common chalice so I don't spread my cold and cold sore. That's what the doc advised.

Choppy sea at Jaffa

I decided after Mass to leave the Old City and go to Jaffa for a quiet day's recollection. Doc said my sickness is due to lowered resistance resulting from lack of sleep and overwork. Everyone in both y libraries tell me to go and rest. So well ... I did. I brought a book with me to read and no food ... being a fast day ... and was really looking forward to a reflective day. The beach promenade was very quiet with very few people. The sea was choppy and waves smashed into the rocks every few seconds.  It was really a lovely setup for meditation and quiet thinking. Then the messages kept beeping in .... from the workers in the library. No photocopy paper, one wants a holiday tomorrow .... It's all a conspiracy. It's a setup to send me away and then dump more problems from a distance.  

Field of tulips

Well I had to come home earlier than planned. That's Lent at it's best ... forced to do something I had not planned or expected. The long one hour ride was stuffy in the 10 seater minibus. The old man next to me was coughing and sniffling. I got off near the King David's hotel and walked across the park just to get my last breath of fresh air. It was a wonderful sight ... fields of wild clover and tulips in bloom. That was one positive thing for an otherwise ruined retreat.

While in Jaffa, fighter jets were flying overhead towards the south ... probably to bomb Gaza. The unexpected flare up in fighting between Gaza and Israel lasted the past 2 days and we now know its because of a video showing Israeli soldiers using a bulldozer to move a dead gazan's body. Well it's all over and today Israel is reopening the borders and even extending the fishing zone for gazans.

Meantime some rabbis have been publicly calling for an end to anti-asian and racist aggression. It is bad .... really ... here. And the rabbis remind the jews that they too were once strangers in a foreign land, blamed for the ills of their host country and made as scapegoats. They should empathise and not victimise asians.  https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/loving-the-stranger-in-a-time-of-covid-19/?fbclid=IwAR0m1bGgDf_UuPo27g3DsTtkN2tbDYX1yZI96LhViVoSneKSEvLwT5XaaZU

Mardi Gras

Rain at the 3rd Station

I was reminded this morning by my library workers that today is Mardi Gras or Martedi di Grasso in italian. That's the day before Ash Wednesday and Lent. The europeans have their usual carnival ... which comes from the latin "carne" meaning meat. They eat and eat and eat before fasting tomorrow. Definitely not my type of spirituality.

We had a lot of rain today ... as forecast. I didn't want to work tonight as I really felt I needed to rest ... I'm still recovering from my bout of cold. But a film producer was coming to see our library and maybe include it in their documentary. So I walked in the rain to get there ... my feet were all soaked from the flooded streets because my best rain shoes have lost its soles. It's probably 7 or 8 years now and had served me well all through these winters. Anyway I stopped past Jack the Baker and got some chocolate volcanos for our librarians .... being Mardi Gras. They'd like that.

Freezing cold last night

Then it was a full hour of introducing the producer to our ancient books. Then a few more meetings at the Economato and then I walked back home in the heavy rain. Stopped by Al Amin bakery to get some eclairs for the other group of librarians at the University. They really enjoyed it. Well .... tomorrow it's Lent so they'll have to work harder.   

Sahlab and salmon sandwich

This morning jet fighters were roaring overhead. Israel had been bombing Gaza as retaliation for the missiles fired by Gaza. And the corona outbreak in Italy is the talk of the town ... what a disaster. The country was not at all ready for it ... but then again no one expected them to be ... especially the italians I live with. And this evening the great laugh was the Iranian deputy health minister catching the coronavirus. Meantime the local panic and rising anti-asian feelings have also seen a rise of loud voices against racism and bigotry.

Last night I finished work late ... having to follow up the work of the team digitalising our manuscripts. They work late into the night and most of the time I must be around to check on the manuscripts and work done. It's part of the project by the British Library. At 10pm when I left, I was quite hungry. A friend called to ask if I wanted to eat something ... what a coincidence. He had just finished work as well so we met up and went to a nearby restaurant for a cheap salmon sandwich and a cup of hot sahlab. It was a nice snack and it was good we met to chat. Then I went back home in the freezing cold drizzle ... a 2km walk. 

Drastic measures

And the quiet at the southern border was broken yesterday with barrages of missiles fired from Gaza into Israel and Israel's retaliation. Borders in the south are closed ... all roads, train lines and the like are closed. But anyway borders all over Israel are closed to many countries because of the coronavirus. Hundreds of arriving koreans were turned back at the Israeli airport or quarantined in a desert hospital. Israeli residents living near the hospital have rioted against the arrival of the koreans. They burnt tires and threw stones ... just like the arabs in Jericho did 4 days ago. There is a very aggressive anti-asian sentiment in the country and it's advisable that we asians keep a low profile and stay home as much as possible.   https://www.timesofisrael.com/residents-protest-reported-plan-to-quarantine-south-koreans-in-their-settlement/?fbclid=IwAR1iilKmquhTJ5MWcG2G7J2cYMlwOe1LTOsgPDs-MW1Ex91sYVt6LKI2HC8

Chinese herbal tea

Now Australia and Italy are blacklisted at all Israeli borders ... obligatory quarantine will be imposed. In fact news has been leaking that the Health Ministry is mulling on closing the entire border and isolating the country for further contamination from outside countries. Of course every country must act in the interest of its citizens ... no matter how drastic the measures may seem.

The chinese sisters have brought lots of chinese herbal tea ... different types ... to reduce the heatiness that caused my cold sore. Pretty effective. This morning half of it is gone. Hopefully by Wednesday all will be gone. I daren't go out with this core as people immediately shout "corona" and avoid me. These are tough times. Asians are keeping a low profile to avoid being harassed by arabs and jews.

Bad news Saturday

Rain clouds this morning

Another stabbing attack near my house .... the 2nd in 24 hours. The terrorist was shot dead and a passerby was wounded by a ricocheting bullet. That took place at Lions Gate about 120 meters from my house. Things certainly are going downhill from now on.

It drizzled the whole day ... and I guess the whole night as well. I've decided to stay home as yesterday's anti-chinese incident - the 5th time in 2 weeks - convinced me not to go out anymore while this coronavirus panic spreads. And for sure the panic will go overboard now that 9 korean pilgrims have returned home to be confirmed as infected. It's unlikely they aught it here. More likely they were already infected back in Korea when they came to make the pilgrimage. The virus just incubated till they returned to Korea a week later. Now the anti-asian sentiments will even be more aggressive. Stay home ... stay safe. I was told yesterday an asian group was chased away from standing in front of arab shops while they made the Way of the Cross.

An a terrible injustice took place ... again. Jewish settlers occupied land belonging to the Diocese in northern Samaria and complaints to the police have fallen on deaf ears. It is all part of Trump's plan to take our property and give them to Israel ... land that Trump doesn't own.   http://www.lpj.org/posts/latin-patriarchate-condemns-israeli-settlers-violations-its-property-tayasir.html?fbclid=IwAR08P3UtQlDlEsrELeqdrvSWGoGGExUXsJJfUw5N7qPk5wd5pl5GY5K-MdI

Palm Plaza ... cold and wet

And we hear that suicide bombers have targeted downtown Damascus which used to be very safe. It's terrible that no one hears of this news and even less people condemning it.  

Ending all the bad news today ... I had several attacks of asthma today. Though I didn't go to work, I cleaned my room and probably the dust affected me. It was really bad and I was so worried I thought of going to hospital. Well the wheezing and gasping has stopped ... I'll just rest tonight and see if it comes back tomorrow.

A friend's kindness

Muslim crowds entering Old City

The relative peace was broken this afternoon by a stabbing attempt at the southern suburb of Jerusalem. That's about 4 kms away.  A woman attacker was overcome by passersby before she could do any harm. Suddenly we are brought back to reality ... that peace is so fragile and underlying the calm atmosphere, there is an undercurrent of hatred waiting to explode.   https://www.timesofisrael.com/woman-tries-to-stab-passers-by-in-suspected-jerusalem-terror-incident/

It's Friday ... and the usual crowds of muslims have come from all over the country to pray at the Al Aqsa Mosque. Police presence was not particularly heavy. That was a surprise ... they did not expect an attack in the Old City.

I'm recovering from my cold ... and I've a huge cold sore which I'm treating with the latest medicine. Doesn't seem to be working because it's a lot bigger today. I hate going out looking like that because people would all the more say "corona" and make disapproving gestures. Unfortunately I had to go out and buy some necessities. I kept my head low so no one would see the sore ... which was ok even though the streets in the New City were quite busy with the weekend crowd. But once in the shop I had to raise my head to look for the things I needed to buy and immediately a man said to the shop owner "Corona ... be careful". The owner is my friend Eran, and he ignored the remark but shook my hand and brought me around to see some new stuff he had. That was a very nice gesture. It made me feel less self-conscious. And that everything is fine. No need for exaggeration and baseless panic.

West Jerusalem this morning 

But yes, today Israel received it's first corona-infected victim ... a passenger from the Diamond Princess cruise. All the israeli passengers have been transported immediately to the desert city of Beer Sheva where a hospital has been isolated for quarantine purposes. Now let's see how things develope.  

Meantime riots broke out in Jericho when runners of palestinians returning from China will be quarantined in a busy part of that city. Tires were burned and stones thrown and roads blocked. The mayor assured everyone there was no one coming back from China and no one has the virus ... but the population runs on hearsay and rumours. It's dangerous for asians now to enter palestinian territories as this excitable crowd is unpredictable.

Thursday

Provident food for lunch

I didn't sleep well ... after yesterday's hard work I just couldn't sleep. From midnight to 3am I slept and then I was up. My mind was reeling with so much work to be done. Then work began at 7am till noon when I have an hour's break. My head is splitting with pain and was faint. I think I was hungry. Luckily the chinese sisters came and quickly cooked some northern chinese "bin" with eggs and carrots/Mu Er.

There's been some good news locally. Israel has allowed 7000 gazans to enter Israel to work, the highest number of permits ever granted. By raising the employment, Gaza's will be able to feed their families and there will be less hostilities with Israel. The the Palestinian - Israeli trade war is ended thus ending the dilemma of countless farmers on both sides of the border. And there has been no sign of violence north and south ... so this week looks good.

But the scary news is that 2 Iranians have died of the corona virus and they have never been out of the country. How did the virus enter the country? Israel is beefing up emergency measures because the infected israelis on the cruise ship will arrive back today.

I have another class in 15 mins and then 3 hours of conference, adoration and confessions till 7pm. I'm looking forward to an early sleep tonight. Fingers crossed.

Exhibition

Visiting the digitalisers at work

A very busy day preparing for the 1 hour exhibition for the Hebrew University conference. Found out some of the world's top medievalists are in the group. Daunting. The whole morning was spent arranging the exhibits of 12th and 13th century manuscripts .... some are really impressive.

At 3.30pm the group came and they were very impressed by the exhibition. And they also wanted to see the work of our British Library team digitalizing our manuscripts. They also got a tour of the modern section of our library. All in all it was very successful and everyone was happy.

One of our illuminated manuscripts

Now it's exactly 12 hours since I started preparation for this exhibition. Am exhausted. My good friend Sharfi asked to have dinner with me so I guess I'll go .... just to relax from 3 days of very hard work. He's jewish and vegetarian so usually I let him choose the place to eat. We'll see where we'll go. It's raining so I hope it's not going to be far. I don't have a raincoat on.  

And yes it's raining. Weather forecaster say it's the last rain before a hot dry summer sets in. News reports say thousands of syrians are running away from the war in the bitter cold winter. Some children have already died from the cold. It's horrific.

And Iran has recorded it's first 2 cases of coronavirus. It's time we realized viruses don't respect borders. Here in Israel we're just preparing ourselves for the 1st case. Hopefully the hot dry summer will come quickly and the virus dies out before it reaches our country.

Rain is back

Rain again

The rains have returned ... I was caught in a shower while on my way home from work today. I took shelter in Jack's Lebanese restaurant. I know his family well... especially his old father who escaped the war in Lebanon in the 70s and came to Israel as a refugee. Singlehandedly and with lots of health difficulties he bought up his sons and daughters. Today his youngest son Jack is a chef and owns a small restaurant specialising in lebanese food. I try to support them whenever I can. This evening I was famished as I had not eaten the whole day since yesterday. So taking advantage of the rain, I went there and asked for spaghetti with chicken shnitzel. It was good to eat hot food.

Today was exhausting as only one volunteer and myself had to prepare a major exhibition of our medieval manuscripts. The Hebrew University is holding a 3 day conference on medieval life in Jerusalem and has asked our library to host an exhibition on our precious manuscripts. It was hard work ... from physically moving exhibition stands and boxes to preparing the brochure. I had to translate some descriptions form latin into english. Now I am mentally exhausted ... I'll sleep early. Tomorrow I'll have to host the exhibition alone.

1.3K viewers at midnight???

Israel has banned all Hong Kongers, Macanese, Thai and Singaporeans from entering the country. Last week it demanded only a 2 week quarantine. This is serious. And just now we receive news that the Health Ministry is warning against fake news that cause alarm in the country.  

And talking about alarm, here's a photo shot of the spike of viewers of my blog last week ... 1.3K views. That's reason for alarm!!! All occurring at midnight!!!!

Winter's back

Painters in the street

Though I'm much better today, I still have to be careful. There were a couple of sniffles but no sneezing during the day. But it's not getting worse. That's good news for me. Been washing my hands all day, alcohol sanitising and keeping away from crowds.

It rained quite heavily for a short while yesterday afternoon and it drizzled a couple of times during the night. The temp. dropped and the morning was cold. It drizzled a few times again in the afternoon. So yes ... winter came back again. It's confusing everyone. No wonder people are catching colds. You never know what to wear. Too much ... too little.

There was a nice sight along El Wad street this morning while I was on my way to work. A couple of artists were painting the street. That's usually a summer thing ... but the artists were wearing thick coats. El Wad (meaning "valley") is the ancient Tyropean Valley that leads north-south across the Old City into the Pool of Siloam. It's so historical ... but most people just walk along it are oblivious to it's significance.

There's been no news about the border tensions. I guess the coronavirus is occupying too much of the headlines. 3 israelis onboard the cruise ship has contracted the virus and while they've been evacuated from the ship and on their way to Israel, we've been told they'll be quarantined in a hospital in Beer Sheva. Let's hope they'll recover soon.

And by the way, the number of viewers of the blog has returned to normal ... 12 to 20. That's a huge difference for the 1,360 last week.

Virus worries

Street blackout

And today my runny nose and sneezing is all over. I slept for 8 hours and took my cold medication ... drank lots of water ... and it worked. But even today while coming home from work (yes ... I work even on Sundays), 2 kids were walking past and remarked loudly "Chinese ... corona". At my age and years of living here ... I just ignore it. It's not worth the energy. There was a taiwanese student in Tel Aviv who experienced the same thing in the city and was all worked up and wrote a long post on the Tel Aviv Facebook page lamenting and winching about being a foreigner who's a victim of racism. Well ... get over it. Learn to live with it. We're guests in this land. We have no rights. If we do get anything, it's a privilege. If you value your student visa ... then just keep quiet and move on.

Armenian Catholic
Church

Yes everything is a privilege here .... even street lights. Every night I come home through the Muslim Quarter and the streets are all dark. Don't take for granted that streetlights are a right in every quarter of the City ... some have more rights than others.

I had a busy day first with Mass at the Armenian Catholic church, then a class, then a meeting and finally work in cataloguing some new books. Then a walk back home to clean my room and prepare the laundry for washing tomorrow. Monday is always laundry day for us.

Anyway the coronavirus epidemic is causing waves here ... first with a massive drop of tourists. Some source say it almost 50% cancellations. Also the industry is warning that house-building material will soon go up in prices .... and eventually all other goods. That's the result of too much dependence on Chinese cheap products.   https://www.jpost.com/Israel-News/Coronavirus-outbreak-threatens-Israeli-tourism-617716?fbclid=IwAR2zGyWHsk1S1JdEDn4AdX-8uCbp-WQAfE15UqWnxcaSPe2BppWLejREELE

Well the epidemic is serious enough to warrant a call from the rabbis to all jews to go to the Wailing Wall today to pray for its end.   https://israelb.org/2020/02/coronavirus-prayers-at-kotel-today/?fbclid=IwAR2JrVifQplPESnC78wZQspWu__QLAJ01kH77y1m3nRc1bRtxqi-sbPNZfY

No other headlines ... except for a simple statement in one newspaper "Winter is back". Yes the 16 degree weather has dropped back to 8 degrees. What is happening to the climate?

Quiet

My sore throat is over. Drank lots of water and used lots of gargle. But now I have a cold ... it was quite warm last night and I slept without the blanket. Regretted it by 3am when I got up shivering and sneezing. And Mass in the freezing chapel at 6am was no help. So now I've got a runny nose and sneeze attacks. My nose is tickly all the time. I've taken cold tablets so I hope by this evening it'll be over.

At the hair saloon

Yesterday was Valentine's Day but we don't celebrate it because it's also the feast of Ss. Cyril and Methodius who are patrons of Europe. It's not popular among the jews and muslims either. Only christians celebrate it but with the economic difficulties, hardly anyone nowadays even pay attention to it. I saw only one shop in Jaffa Street in the New City with balloons and buntings .... and it was a jewish hair saloon.

We've just got news that the war in Idlib in Syria is getting quite bad and residents in nearby Aleppo can hear the bombs and missiles exploding. The friars there are calling for help to stop further killings of innocent lives. Most syrians living in the area are christians. Unfortunately the world is silent. What would St. Valentine have done in such a situation?

Anyway there was relative peace yesterday. And so far no news of clashes today either. This might be one of the quietest weekends we've had. It won't make a difference to my work as I still have lots of it this weekend ... but it certainly makes the atmosphere around work alot less tense.

Warm weekend

The last count on viewers of my blog yesterday is 32. Compare that with the 1360 views the day before and something smells fishy.

Palm Plaza at 11 degrees

The weather has certainly warmed up alot. Last night was 11 degrees and the highest today was 18 degrees. The muezzin start their sunrise call top prayer at 4.55am which means daylight is getting longer .... and so summer is on its way. I do miss summer though I never get to enjoy it. And anyway the weekend is upon us ... and though I do look forward to it, I also won't be able to enjoy some free time as weekends are full of activities and masses and classes as well.

This afternoon we'll celebrate the graduation of Fr. Pedro. He defended his doctorate on Monday and will soon return to his mission in Taiwan. Our little chinese community of priests and religious would like to congratulate him and wish him the best for his future. Now our community will become even smaller as no new chinese-speaking priest or religious is coming to study.

The coronavirus is taking its toll on Israeli tourism. A newspaper report says it all.   https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-virus-concerns-hit-israeli-tourism-1001318287?fbclid=IwAR0fXCQCbgFXK4zqqFqxrb5VUioduB8ln4Xrh4wJqTiXRMi3SajTRRHD8go

I've been extra careful in washing my hands as I have to go and return from work walking through the City. You can never be too careful. Yesterday I started having a sore throat which scared me ... but I realized it was because I ate alot of chicken curry that our indian sisters had cooked and that burnt my throat. It was spicy and I had also microwaved it very hot .... totally burned my throat after that.

Meantime the Gaza's have agreed to halt sending incendiary balloons into Israel. Thank goodness. That should ease the tension in the south at least. At least this weekend will see some peace and calm there instead of the usual clashes and injuries.

Weekend starts

1,360 views in total yesterday .... whoever the perpetrators are, they're not afraid to be blatant. Today 23 views. See the exaggerated discrepancy? It's not normal.

An uproar this morning in the coastal city of Rishon le Zion when 2 sisters got kicked out of kindergarten because they just came back from a China holiday and their parents did not put them in mandatory 2 week quarantine. Parents and teachers were horrified and kicked the girls out. Big uproar.    https://www.janglo.net/index.php?option=com_adsmanager&page=display&catid=99&tid=480327&Itemid=0&utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=facebook&fbclid=IwAR2BRoEKjVy19sE1y1oCLadqTAL09zRZ-tUhaXTtOHRv_ln6CUGd3HUicss

Indonesian tourists at Mandarin rest.

Yes the coronavirus is scaring everyone here ... and no more chinese groups are around. El Al had stopped all flights into Hong Kong till next month. But there're lots of indonesian groups still around. They're not part of the ban as it seems they have no infection cases there yet. There're also many american filipino and vietnamese groups. So the Chinese tourist bubble just burst. Gone in 3 weeks. That's how unreliable the tourist market here is. It can be extremely profitable and politically crucial ... but just one mishap and everything crashes.

Work continued today .... a very full day and after classes and meetings and conferences, I've now got a sore throat and headache. I've decided to skip vespers though I'm hebdom this week. Just can't do it ... so I got someone else to substitute me while I go to sleep. There comes a time when enough is enough.

Sun is back

Desert and a glimpse of the Dead Sea

OK ... so now today I have 1,354 views. You believe that? And it always peaks at midnight exactly. Someone is really messing around with my blog and this is getting serious. It's bad enough that my phone number has been hijacked and I'm not getting any calls, and I was locked out of my FB and WhatsApp several times ... now my blog is also targeted daily.

Otherwise ... the weather was fine today. It rose up to 14 degrees and at noon it was hot enough just to wear a pullover. I went out to enjoy the sun ... since my friend just bought a new car and wanted to try it out. We went up the Mt. of Olives and had a lovely view of the City of Jerusalem on the West and the marvellous clear view of the Jericho desert and the Dead Sea on the East. It was a good break to get out of the City and work. And the air was very fresh and clean after the past days' rain.

City of Jerusalem from afar

Other than that one hour outside the City, it was hard work the whole day. Bureaucratic paper work, lots of correspondence with publishing houses, book acquisitions, organising the boxes of books that had arrived for various libraries etc. It can get quite mind-boggling. I was running from one dept. to another so many times I actually forgot why I came to one dept, and who I was suppose to see and what I was suppose to do. I think I should retire.

Well tonight I'll get a good rest and tomorrow it's another full day of classes and meetings. And so far ... no coughing or sneezing or any signs of a cold. Fingers crossed. I'm washing my hands a lot with alcohol gel these days. and avoiding crowds. I use the alleys instead of the main streets where tourists are crowded. Better safe than sorry.

Still cold

Abundance of fruit

The drizzle has stopped but it's still cold ... about 3 degrees average. Forecast points to a gradual warming of the weather and by this weekend it should be up to 16 degrees. I guess it's about time summer came. The heavy rains up north have filled the almost empty Sea of Galilee to almost full capacity. Everyone is exhilarated ... it's been over a decade since we've seen this level of water there. However climatologists warn that this is only temporary and the following years will see longer hotter days which will deplete the Sea of Galilee of water as had the last drought.

And despite the cold, fruit have been flourishing. I find in the streets lots of grapes which is actually off season now. This is the time for persimmons and they are delicious after the rainy spell .... full of juice. One strange thing is I've not seen flowering almond trees yet ... they should have blossomed a few weeks back.

Police presence in and around the Old City is still high. They stop and check many youths ... including jewish ones. There's so much provocation from both sides, we just have too be careful. Everyday, a group of 10 orthodox jewish youths come to our church and spit at us. That's besides the 5 jewish girls who do the same everyday twice a day. But the police do nothing about it. I guess it takes someone to be injured to dead before the police takes us gentiles seriously.

Meantime the northern arab city of Jish where St. Paul's parents came from, has been attacked for the 3rd time by jewish extremists. 170 cars and mosques have been vandalized so far.   https://www.timesofisrael.com/170-cars-mosque-vandalized-in-northern-arab-town-in-apparent-hate-crime/?fbclid=IwAR2Jt5nm88DWL5n_6KaYeR7tyUszo0OvfP4faQieYOdqVQUPHyHTpJignS0

And the anti-asian racism is not abating. Only this morning on my way to work, a group of youths were yelling obscenities at me and coronavirus.

Chap Go Meh

Freezing cold and empty streets

The whole of northern Israel was in snow ... and all the high places in the south as well. Everywhere except Jerusalem. Just a few specks which melted before they landed. What a disappointment. It's the coldest day this winter. It went down to zero degrees at 4am this morning. Lots of drizzle ... but no impressive snowfall like 4 years back. The temp will rise from tomorrow and hit 16 degrees by next weekend. End of winter.

It's Chap Go Meh or Yuan Xiao festival ... the 15th and last day of the Lunar New Year. It's a big celebration in many parts of east Asia ... but here in Jerusalem .... nothing. Except for the lovely full moon that dominates the sky. Ah Ling had given me some frozen tang yuan ... I think I'll boil them in lotus soup. Some chinese groups had brought lots of powdered lotus roots for me. It comes to good use now.

Missiles have been fired back and forth between Gaza and Israel. It doesn't seem to be lessening despite the cold weather. A Gazan military compound has been wiped out today. And as if that war wasn't enough ... the newspapers have acknowledged another war in Israel ... the racism against asians on the onset of the coronavirus.    https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/.premium-coronavirus-claims-new-victim-in-israel-tolerance-of-chinese-students-1.8509016?fbclid=IwAR3jQ7VlJ0JYE8YZHJuebxdsAVd3HpAgxZFXKOgSzDf73agG5LyZY9NwIIw

Snow?

... and there you go ... yesterday's 460+ views was suddenly switched to 55!!! Someone is playing around with my blog. Help!!!

Full moon on a cold night

The storm has stopped a midday today ... trickled to a drizzle but the cold is stinging. It's 3 degrees now and will drop further tonight to zero. Forecast is for snowflakes to fall but no accumulation on the ground. Just as well .... no need to shovel the terrace. The full moon can be seen clearly in the wintry night sky. It's beautiful and many people have stopped to photograph it at Damascus Gate.

Today was a very busy day ... presided Mass at 7am then armenian Mass at 9am then Bible Class at 11am and a meeting at 1pm. Came home at 3pm to eat my first meal of the day. Had a terrible diarrhoea ... probably I didn't warm the food up enough. Well work isn't finished yet ... I still have to preside at Vespers and then serve dinner and wash the dishes ... that's about 40 persons in all living in our house.

Traffic jam at Damascus Gate

The trade war between Israel and Palestine is turning for the worse as both signs are adding onto the list of banned foods. The consumer will suffer as prices of food will rise. As it is, Israel is now one point above Singapore, making it more expensive in living cost than Singapore. I guess there'll be no more special breads for me on Sundays.  

Israel's Health ministry has extended travel restrictions to most asian countries in order to avoid an outbreak of the corona virus. It's the only logical thing to do ... but it also means it should restrict entry from those countries as well. The viral outbreak is unbelievably rapid and every country is trying to catch up with its mutations. Reports are out that Israel has been conducting military drills with a friendly country affected by dozens of coronavirus victims. It has decided to continue with the exercises.      https://www.jpost.com/Israel-News/IDF-holding-joint-drills-with-soldiers-from-country-hit-by-coronavirus-617015

Storm

,,, and yesterday 469 views on my blog. Weird things are happening. And my WhatsApp yesterday was continuously "unavailable" .... not sure if the rest of you had this problem or whether it's only me.

Rainy morning

As forecast, the weather dropped and the bright skies turned dark and gloomy. It rained most of the night and the morning saw very strong winds and occasional forceful showers. I had Mass at the Sepulchre but going out at 6am in the storm was something I hadn't experience in 30 years. Streams of water gushed down the steps and streets of the Old City. Awnings were flapping in the wind. The only noise to be heard were the heavy patter of rain on the zinc roofs and the howling of the wind. Tonight it'll be even colder and tomorrow there may be snow. If don't mind if it lasts for a day. So long as it doesn't accumulate on the library terrace so I have to shovel it.

Mass in the Empty Tomb was very cold. A visiting Salesian priest joined in with 2 of my deacon salesian students ... so I let him preside. After Mass it was a short class with the group on the Bible. The group usually brings a meal for me as I never accept a stipend from them for the Mass. Today was spaghetti and fried fish and dessert was filipino puto ... a type of sweeten wheat bun. I appreciate the food they make despite their heavy working hours. They have to get up at 2 or 3am to cook before setting out of Tel Aviv for Jerusalem at 5am.

With the storm blowing, I've decided to stay home. I have another class at 3.45pm and then this evening begins my turn to be hebdom. It'll be a busy week ... presiding at Masses and communal prayers, blessing each meal, washing all the dishes for every meal, preparing the dining room for the next meal.

By the way Israel yesterday began testing travellers from East Asia including Hong Kong, Macau and Singapore at all its borders. The virus is really getting serious and is mutating too quickly for any cure to be definitive. I'm doing my best to stay home ... which is not the safest place to be actually because thousands of tourists come by our chapels. Some chinese tourists are coughing and sneezing and refuse to wear a mask, while mingling inside our chapels. We try to stop them from entering our courtyard but they wriggle through the crowds. A perfect way to spread the virus. No civic consciousness whatsoever.

Tense Friday

Sunset yesterday

So there you go ... even yesterday I got 872 views on my blog when I have less than 70 friends. And today it's 434. It's hacked and tapped. What's going on???

I remembered to take my medicine today. And so I'm not breathless or dizzy. Amazing how 3 small pills can hold up my health for 24 hrs. But that also means if I don't take them everyday, my health will decline. The fragility of life ....

Yesterday after the 2 terrorist attacks, there was another outside the City. Israel raised the number of soldiers to 1000. I expect there'll be raids inside Palestine especially in Bethlehem. The expected clashes after Friday noon pryers were nipped in the bud when police stopped busloads of muslims from the northern regions and turned them back ... hence the Mosque was not as crowded as it could have been. There was relative calm inside the Old City ... well until this evening's prayer.    https://www.ynetnews.com/article/Hyv5KiKfU?fbclid=IwAR2qjhkwcsmSGhES4asqSht4V2zQpeDbwQMmgEyUoXAsvjjMGg0Tw0hWacE
and
https://www.jpost.com/Arab-Israeli-Conflict/Temple-Mount-Israel-police-send-home-worshipers-ahead-of-Friday-prayer-616828

Yesterday morning there was also an earthquake in the north. It was 3.8 on the Richter scale. Not massive but enough for people to feel the jolt. Scary.

Here's an interesting insight into the tourism industry with regards to the chinese market.  https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/.premium-chinese-tour-groups-vanish-from-israel-amid-virus-scare-1.8500727?fbclid=IwAR2-iRArxsjFsivgOTM4_8U3hhA6dlbbY7iIzvQ5tvzWqhfbCToOGsF7MiI

bad morning

Deserted streets in the City

So I'm 100% sure my blog is being hacked because yesterday I get 9 viewers and today 464 viewers ... and I don't have so many friends. My phone number, as I have said earlier, was hijacked by someone who used a call-forwarding app to intercept all my calls. With my phone number he has also accessed all my social media including blogspot, FB, WhatsApp etc. Sounds unbelievable but it's true. Yesterday I tried twice to call out from my phone but someone else answered. And then I received a couple of calls not meant for me. It's all messed up. So be warned that all my social media are being tapped and hacked.   https://www.haaretz.com/us-news/twitter-says-iran-israel-malaysia-may-have-accessed-users-phone-numbers-1.8493438?fbclid=IwAR3UPsi0EQZmwsaldWa0qshOOJS7JLntHtUK5sBRVAHr5GSjYJzA5D8iqEE

What a morning of violence. It started out at 2am with a car-ramming attack that injured 15 soldiers near the old train station. Then a palestinian soldier was shot dead by an Israeli soldier inside Palestine. Now there's a stabbing attack in the Old City at Lions Gate. The violence has not been so intense as today. It spells a bad summer for us.

Hot soup for dinner

I've figured out why I was so breathless and dizzy yesterday. I forgot to take my medicine. 5th time in 2 weeks. Yesterday I was in an urgent hurry to get to hospital to visit our cook .... and so I guess I forgot to take my medicine. I was quite worried as the breathlessness and fatigue are signs of the coronavirus. Well I don't have it. I was at the doc's yesterday evening to check up and there's definitely no sign of it .... no fever. But we couldn't figure out why my breathlessness until this morning when I saw my medicine for Wednesday still in my pill box. One day I will die from missing out on my medicine.

Yesterday I went to Mian restaurant to collect some used clothes fro the poor. Billy and Linda the owners asked me to wait for a while as they bought a cake to celebrate the birthday of their junior cook. He's a very hardworking guy and has learnt to cook chinese dishes.

And on my way home last night, again there were racist comments thrown at me. It's not funny .... and it'll get worse.

Sad day

Custos blesses Beit Mamilla

It was a sad but in a way happy morning. I received a phone call at 7am from our cook ... he's in hospital for treatment for terminal cancer. I had tried to visit him several times in his house in the Old City but he was in hospital ... and then I didn't have time to travel there. But this morning he called and said he wanted to see me. I just dressed and left immediately ... had to borrow some money for the transport there.

I didn't know where the oncology depart. was at Hadassah Hospital so I had to ask around for help. Went around in circles till I found it. He was awake and eating some breakfast ... something he had not done for the past 3 days when he slipped between consciousness and unconsciousness. We spoke for 2 hours ... recalling old times when he worked in our kitchen for 8 years. Every year he would cook up a special dish for my birthday and every Christmas his wife who is a pastry chef would bake me a fruitcake. And of course the annual cheesecake for my feast day. It was sad ... the cancer had been very aggressive. But still it was good to have met him again and to reassure him that all will be well with his children ... the youngest is less than a year old. We pray and wish him the best.

I left feeling confused with mixed feelings ... seeing how fragile life is ... that I bumped into a very large russian nurse who growled "Use your eyes when you walk".

Comfortable rooms at Best Mamilla

Yesterday afternoon I went to the blessing of our new hostel ... a boutique style bed only facilities in an old wing of the Mamilla convent belonging to the St. Vincent de Paul sisters. They call it Beit Mamilla ... and I found out that Mamilla (which is also the name of the neighborhood) is a shortened form of Maximilla ... at least that's what the Crusaders thought .... apparently there was a byzantine church and then a crusader church built over it in the area of the convent devoted to St. Maximilla. Anyway the new facility is small, with enough rooms for 20 people. It has 2 kitchens ... every handy. And the location of course is superb ... right in the middle between the Old City and the New. You have to try staying there ... it's worth it.  

On racism and reason

Strawberry season

And while the anti-chinese and anti-asian racism grows, there's been calls by some newspaper editors and commentators for reason and compassion. Not sure if these calls will be heeded as social media continue to show locals reacting negatively when approaching asians. The greatest scourge is not the virus but the irrational hatred that is generated from ignorance. That one will linger for generations while the virus itself will be eradicated. We should fear the virus and not the victims ... that's the common call throughout social media.

The needless death of a cerebral palsy teenager because his father was quarantined is a wake up call on how compassion and reason has been lost. It is such a tragedy.  I continue to stay at home or at work ... not going to buy anything except from a couple of closeby shops who know me well. A couple of nights back when I was coming home from work, there were some local youths calling out "Corona" and "Get out" at me at New Gate. It's not a safe feeling. Well this afternoon there is the inauguration of our new hostel in Mamilla and I must attend. It'll be an exception. My friend had invited me out to lunch earlier today but I finally decided not to risk any ugly scenes in the restaurant by declining. The poor chap was all dressed and came from quite a distance .... I guess I'll make it up to him one day.
https://www.ynetnews.com/article/BkQsenUzI?fbclid=IwAR1EIomAJd5ux2dA1n3EsDjA1iLPsZ6D4DAyn_-zQuRMcMn848q-bTQOhX4#autoplay

Meantime Spring seems to be ending and Summer has started. In fact the jewish "Arbor Day" feast or Tu b'Shvat starts this Sunday evening Feb 9th and will end the following sunset. It's known as the birthday of the trees ... and it's not simply a fun feast day to celebrate the coming of warm weather. Rather it was meant by the ancient Israelites to count which trees are taxable based on the age of the trees. Though such taxation is no longer in practice because there is no more Temple, the feast day is still observed.

Rising racism

A field of clover ... blanket of green

Another new week has begun ... another month. Exams are over and the new semester begins. Summer is what I'm looking for. Though winter is wonderful for Christmas ... and Spring is full of beautiful flowers and greenery, it doesn't give as much opportunity for public events as in Summer ... such as open-air concerts and bazaars and lovely sunsets. Not that I actually have the chance to join in any of these ... as the last few summers have shown. I'll probably be neck-high with work and this Summer will pass me by like the past 7 summers. Still it's fun planning for it.

Some time back I mentioned my lost of memory. It hasn't stopped. I still mix up days, lose documents, not knowing why I go to a certain place. And worse ... I forget to take my medicine. OK .... now I forget why I wrote this. OK ... next topic.

There are still protests and clashes along the borders of Palestine and Israel over Trump's plan. But little has happened here in Jerusalem except for some chanting and scuffles.  Street talk informs me that once when the weather warms up, more violence is expected.

Asian veggies at the asian grocery

And because of the coronavirus, we're now facing rising racism. People in the streets make remarks about chinese, they cross the roads ... but so far they have not chased us out of shops and restaurants. My friend who owns a lebanese restaurant was telling me how a chinese couple came for a meal on a very rainy day last week. His first reaction was to say the restaurant i closed ... but his elderly father said "Have pity .... it's raining and they are hungry". Fear versus compassion. Believe me fear usually wins ... so I'm avoiding any unhappy incidents and am staying home as much as possible. Well one thing on my side is everyone in the Old City and also the New City know me and trust me. A FB post from a northern Israeli city by a chinese person lamented that nasty remarks were made at her over the coronavirus. Yes it's started in other cities ... and I'm sure it'll reach Jerusalem. I'm staying home ... and going only to shops and restaurants who know me.

02/02/2020

Cold wet night

So now there's bird flu as well. Things are getting from bad to worse. Israel's cabinet met this morning to discuss steps to take if the virus enters the country. But in a realistic step, the PM declared  that it's impossible to totally keep out the virus so emergency steps must be prepared. Wise.

Though the temp has risen by 4 degrees during the day, it's still cold and the sunshine lasts only a few hours before the cold dark clouds come back to blanket the sky. I had planned to do some gardening ... and maybe graft some roses on the old rootstock which is a climbing rose. I got the cutters and water and earth and fertilizer all ready ... but then I was called to do some other work.  Nevertheless the Spring flowers have bloomed. Lots of anemones in bloom ... and my first narcissus is also bloomed. Wonderful. The cold and lots of rain this winter has given the bulbs a huge boost.

My first narcissus this Spring

One thing though, this morning's Mass at the Armenian Church. 4 kids came and their presence and singing made the Mass so enjoyable. I was very happy that they came. Hopefully we can start a kids catechism class soon. Me and my seminarian helpers are doing so much to get the armenian catholic community to revive. I have a deacon, readers, acolytes and choir. These seminarians are amazing. Their sense of mission is so strong. I really appreciate them.

And today's is the unique once in a lifetime 02/02/2020. I purposely got up at 02.02 last night to post on my FB on this coincidence of time. But it also reminded me how fast time flies ... January is over and we're already in February. Carpe Diem!!!