Flowers

Preparing for confessions

Summer weather is slowly creeping in. Daytime is sunny and temp rises to 26 degrees. But evenings and early mornings are still cool, around 11 degrees, and require a jacket if going outdoors. The muslim call to prayer is getting earlier each morning ... about 4am now. At the height of summer, it's as early as 2.30am.

Yesterday I had to go to Jaffa to hear confessions. There were 2 others, all Indians, who helped out. About 200 people came for confession and it took us over three hours to hear it all. That's a big difference from last year when only less than 50 confessed.

Backyard flowers

It was also a good occasion to catch up with the parish priest, an old friend from 30 years back. He and his wife stay in the parish house - it's a Greek Melkite parish and they have married priests - though his home is still in Jerusalem. The backyard of the parish house was full of wild flowers and I plucked many for our chapel back home. The Municipality had told them to cut it all down by next week for some reason or other (mosquito breeding?) so the parish priest and his wife told me to cut as many as I want before they mow it down. 

Holy Week is a week away. Security is being stepped up in the City as believers celebrating their feasts will cross paths in certain gates and streets, a crowd control has to be place if any traffic jam is to be avoided. As with every year, there'll be a police block on both sides of our main entrance as crowds tend to gather around here. No going out, no coming in.

Marathon

Italian hyssop

It's the 1st Friday after daylight saving started. That means Marathon Day. The City is closed down. No public or private transport from 6am to 2pm. Offices inside the City are closed as people cannot get to work. Food and beverage places will open as they'll have big business with hungry and thirsty runners and spectators.

The Marathon is divided into 3 sections: family marathon where kids are included in the casual jog/stroll of 3km I think; then the half marathon and the full marathon. So far winners of the full marathon have been ethiopic runners. They're legendary.

And the weather is very nice ... a cool 11 degrees right now. Runners had already started at 6.30am. Security helicopters have been flying overhead since 5.30am. New Gate is closed except to pedestrians because it opens directly into the Marathon circuit.

Red nasturtiums

This cool weather is making all the plants flower profusely ... including my little garden. It's a splash of colours on our little terrace. Red nasturtiums, white alyssums, yellow freesias, golden daisies, purple anemones and yellow ranunculus. Wild snapdragons are also growing among them. I don't pull them out because they're endangered in our country. They grow mainly in the walls of the Old City and are considered weeds that destroy masonry. Because of this weed eradication, the snapdragon indigenous to our country has become endangered. The snapdragon provides lots of nectar for bees and butterflies, and so plays an important role in our city ecosystem. Otherwise our insects in the City would all die off.

Good Friday collection appeal

 

Heat

 Though the weather has warmed up considerably - up to 16 degrees in the morning - the sky remains cloudy and grey. It feels like it might rain, but it won't. Summer will be very hot.

Shop burnt

As I walked to work this morning, I saw a crowd gathered around one of the shops in Musrara. There was a police cordon around the shop. As I turned the corner I saw what had happened ... it was burnt all through 2 storeys. It's the Al Ayed shawarma and roast chicken restaurant. Perhaps the coal barbeque was not totally extinguished and a fire started from there. But this shop has a history of fights and clashes ... even gun fire. So I won't be surprised if it's a gangland fight. 

The City has calmed down alot as Eid al Fitr enters its last day today for us. Shops are beginning to open up again. That's important because for 2 days now I couldn't buy bread or vegetables or fruit. Here the muslims take 3 days holiday for the Eid. This evening after work, I'll go to Musrara open market and buy some. I'll also gather some news about the burning of the Al Ayed restaurant.

Lent will end soon and Holy Week will promise to be very interesting when Orthodox, Latins and Jews celebrate their feasts on the same day.

Feast after fast

Eid al Fitr today

After 7pm last night when we thought the new moon was not visible because of cloudy skies, the cannon fired 7 times announcing the end of Ramadan. There were shouts of joy and women ululating, people clapping and crowds chanting. We managed to pass 30 days without incident ... other than the several days of missiles fired from Yemen. Thank God for the relative calm despite the large crowds and occasional upset over police stringent stop-and-check.  

Police presence was visibly stepped up; but so has many muslim pilgrims from Britain, Sweden, Indonesia and even Singapore. Temporary stalls and hawkers were allowed to trade without a permit. And they made good business, which is a plus since we've been facing bad financial times the past 4 years.

The weather has also been good. From the sudden chill that dropped temps down to 6 degrees with heavy drizzle for some 10 hours throughout the night and morning, it became warm again in the evening at 26 degrees. This morning as waves of people entered the Old City to pray in the mosque, the cloudy skies did not dampen the festive spirit. It was warm ... 10 degrees. Some people were already in T-shirts.

Meantime we Christians continue our fast for another 2 weeks. This year the Orthodox and Latin calendars coincide so we celebrate Easter and Holy Week together. And the Jewish Passover also coincides with our Easter Sunday. 

Good Friday collection appeal

 

Disaster

Iftar dinner

After a one month wait for my cardiology appointment, I finally went to my insurance clinic yesterday at noon. I had all my results of the test done one month ago. When I reached the clinic reception I was told the doc was not working till April 17 and I'm rescheduled for that date. I was furious and shouted I'd be dead by then. The clinic should have updated me by message.

I decided to walk to our Catholic hospital to ask when the same doc is working there as I'll see in the hospital which may be quicker. The hospital told me he no longer works there and has passed his office to his son, who is also a surgeon. So I had nothing in the end. Absolutely furious. What a disastrous day!

Then the missile sirens blared. Everyone ran for cover. After 3 minutes 2 loud explosions were heard. Black smoke billowed in the sky north of where I was sheltering. This is the 2nd day of bombing. 

Yesterday was Laylat al Khader ... the night of destiny. The streets were packed with people. That's the night the muslims believe God will determine your destiny for the next 365 days. They spend the night at the mosque praying. Well they should. Many young people instead are out in the streets celebrating. Pop up stalls are everywhere making quick money.

An hour before the fast is broken (Iftar), lots of muslims are in the streets offering water, dates and even packed food to anyone. I got offered several times. It's rather nice. Saffron rice with a chicken thigh, water, dates, yoghurt. It's very filling. People cook or buy these food packs and give them away as part of doing charity in Ramadan.