Samaria excursion

Full moon hiding
in the clouds

Today is quite a confusing day ... we're celebrating several feasts all on the same day. Officially on the liturgical calendar it's the feast of the Visitation. But in the Holy Sepulcher it's the feast of Corpus Christi. In the parishes, everyone is celebrating the last day of the month of Mary with processions and litanies. Well everyone will be celebrating 2 or 3 feasts today so the confusion is commonly shared.

The weather was very pleasant though ... cloudy and a cool breeze. Good for excursions outdoors. And that was what we did today.

Jacob's well

Today we spent an entire day in Samaria. We visited Jacob's well where Jesus met the Samaritan woman. Usually no photos are allowed to eb taken of the well. But today we were the only pilgrims in the church and the guardian allowed us to take one family photo. It was incredible. Then we visited ancient Shechem the canaanite city mentioned in the Bible. Then as it was still early, we went to Sebastiya, the capital of Samaria during Jesus' time. We saw the Temple to the Roman Emperor "Sebastion" and then the little byzantine chapel all in ruins but which housed the remains of the beheaded John the Baptist before it was removed by the crusaders.

After that we went to the MC convent in Nablus to have lunch. We brought our own sandwiches and needed only a quiet place in their garden to eat. But the sisters cooked rice and curry for us. They were very generous.

Ruins of the church of St. John
the Baptist

After lunch we went to Mt. Gerizim, the holy mountain of the samaritans who used to have a temple up there. There are only 500+ samaritans left in the world. Up on the peak there is the remains of the byzantine church of the Theotokos built by Emperio Zeno in the 5th century after he destroyed the Samaritan Temple when the samaritans revolted.

Returning to Jerusalem at 4pm it was just time to join in the parish Mass of Mary and the procession of the statue around the Christian Quarter. Then June begins.

Working vacation

The stalactite caves

Had been having a very busy few days accompanying family visiting the Land ... hence no time to update the blog. But here you go ... I've been keeping visits to the usual churches and sanctuaries to a minimum ... and conserve the little energy that I have. We've been to some other unusual sites though ... like the stalactite caves in Soreg. It's utterly amazing.

We also visited the cell of St. Miriam Bouardy the carmelite mystic in Bethlehem. And in Shepherds' Field we visited the miraculous well of Mary whom local christians and muslims continue to attest to the miracles worked there.

Mouloukieh

Well all's not that smooth ... it's not a holiday like I wanted. I was called back to work 3 times already. And there were the constant messages and emails asking for this and that. I just simply cannot get some peace away from work. It is relentless and unforgiving. And I have said that it is very unfair that I have to be called back to work during a 5 day "rest". But nothing in this world is just.

Msahan

Anyway each evening I ask an arab family to cook up a typical arab dish which is never served in restaurants because it takes too much time and energy. The family obliged and we had the great "M"s  - makloubeh, msahan, mouloukieh and tomorrow mansaf. It's a great culinary adventure and they are liking it.

And we also had some special treats ... like today the cloistered carmelites invited us for lunch in their monastery. And there was the Ramadan desserts and lights and crowds ....

OK I have to get back to work now at 8.15pm till midnight before visiting other places tomorrow morning. It's exhausting.

Trinity Sunday

Solemn sung Mass at the Holy
Sepulchre today

A rather theological abstract feast day today ... there is no equal in the orthodox and oriental churches. This is typical of the roman church which meditates on abstracts. There was solemn Mass at the Holy Sepulchre but though I was there, I did not want to concelebrate even when invited. It's too long and my IBS is precarious. Instead I celebrated Mass privately in the Crusader Chapel.

It was tiring day as I was up at midnight to prepare to go to the airport and pick up visitors. Due to lost luggage, we could only leave the airport at 4.30am. Then it was morning of visiting nearby churches and sites such as Zedekiah's cave and the Terra Sancta Museum. The weather was scorching ... 37 degrees and above. I was floating in and out of consciousness, sleep and exhaustion. But there was a plus side to this visit ... I got lots of home food that I hadn't eaten in a very long time.

It was a quiet Sunday though there were clashes outside in the border areas. The heat and the fasting has driven most muslims indoors and there was no violence in and around the Old City. There were however several jewish attacks on arab properties ... the cutting down of arab grape vines and olive trees. It will take a century for those trees to fruit again.  https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/.premium-farm-terror-palestinian-vineyard-annihilated-with-chainsaws-1.6115888

Let's hope things will not worsen and the end of Ramadan will cool the situation.

Saturday rest

Restricted passageway for pilgrims
to the Al Aqsa mosque yesterday

Yesterday was total collapse day. All the fatigue of the past few months finally caught up and I couldn't go on anymore. After some mandatory work in the morning (Mass on Calvary at 6am with a filipino group), I came straight home and slept from 10am till late afternoon. Woke up a couple of times but had not the slightest idea what time or day it was. I only knew I had something to do. After struggling between sleep and wake, I realised I had to go pick up donations from the Mian chinese restaurant for the poor. So at 7.30pm I finally got out of bed and struggled to walk up 1km the hill to reach the restaurant. Found out it was 4 boxes of tinned food, fresh milk, oil, rice, sugar and other provisions. I couldn't possibly carry them all alone so I left it till today, when 2 chinese sisters came to help me. They have a trolley so that helped a lot.

Police dog at work

But I did get to rest. It felt so good finally being able to sleep ... I didn't want to get up. If only I can have several days like this.

Yesterday was a relatively quiet Friday ... there was a stabbing attempt in our area but the police managed to capture the guy and things got back to normal. The crowds were unbelievably large. The police closed off all roads around the Old City and East Jerusalem. Pedestrians only ... and only one way down Damascus Gate. Metal barriers blocked off all roads and worshippers were herded into the permitted passageway.

Selling tornado potatoes

The night before I was at a neighbour's store selling tornado potatoes. It was a group of cousins in their 20s who wanted to earn some extra money. They managed to convince to sell the potato crisps to foreigners. I wasn't very successful though but it was a very fun 2 hours ... and we laughed a lot.

Today was back to work as usual: early morning Mass then giving a conference at 9am, then a meeting with the chinese sisters, and then preparing a student for his defence of his thesis. Tonight I must go to the airport at 2.30am and tomorrow it will be a full day's work .... no sleep anymore. Paradise lost.

Feast Day

Another hot hectic day. Looks like this summer will be extra hot. Authorities are saying it'll be the driest summer in 100 years. Drought measures are in force. Now it's totally dreadful ... but if I could just get a couple of days off in Jaffa ....

Damascus Gate barricaded off

Damascus Gate has been barricaded off, leaving a passage straight from the Gate to the 2 staircases of the cavea. All the areas for sitting are blocked off to prevent groups of arab youths gathering and causing trouble. I heard that yesterday there were scuffles and stun grenades were almost (if not) fired. Tensions have been high ... but it occurs mainly in the evenings when it's cooler and people come out to the streets. Closed indoors all day because of the 28 degree heat plus fasting makes them fidgety and energy is pent up. Today being Thursday, more arabs than usual are visiting the Al Aqsa mosque and chances for a false-up is not a possibility but a probability. I just had to go out to meet a group on the Mt. of Olives and already the surrounding roads have been blocked off. They will continue to be closed till tomorrow evening ... the latest municipal police orders.

Homemade qattayef

Today is also 2 feast days rolled in one. The Salesians are celebrating their patron Mary, Help of Christians. Franciscans celebrate the dedication of the Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi which houses his body. Whatever. We get to enjoy a feast for lunch ... we had homemade qattayef with cheese and walnuts. Fabulous. except I didn't eat any for fear of allergy.

I ate my first solid food today ... some mushy pasta soaked in soup. I was hungry so I ate a lot. Unfortunately  it was cold and I got a tummy ache after that. Anyway I survived. We'll see how tomorrow fare ... if I can eat more solids.

Heatwave

Caper flowers in the heatwave

Another incredibly hot day with lots of desert sand blowing into the City. Every corner has a stack of soft yellow sand gathering in the wind. Pentecost is over so these wind should stop blowing in the sands ... but the weather has changed so much we just don't know what to expect anymore. Most plants and flowers have wilted or scorched under the relentless sun. But the caper bushes that grow out of walls are very strong despite their fragile look. Their powder puff flowers still bloom profusely in the mornings but in the afternoon they die off. It's a one day flower. Our roses on the other hand have all their buds and tips scorched to crisp. This morning we had to put up a tent to protect the plants on the terrace.

Arab pastries for Ramadan

The 2nd stitch from my surgery came off today. It feels a little more comfortable and I'm able to eat rice sake in soup. Nothing solid except qattayef pancakes which are soft. This evening I bought my first bottle of almond juice ... ice cold. Some of my jewish security friends don;t know what it is so I shared some with them. They sort of liked it. The important thing is it's kosher. Once my wound is better I hope to buy Ramadan pastries to eat. They're always very well made but they cost a lot. But it's only once a year ... so I might buy a piece of each and eat them for the fun of it.

No sign of violence today. It was simply too hot. Let's see what tomorrow brings.

New feast day

It's so hot even the
pigeons are finding
shade on our
window sills

The weather has continued to be heatwave hot ... above 33 degrees today. The nights are around 26 degrees. It's good for the muslims because they spend most of the nights awake feasting and celebrating. Many have moved their mattresses outdoors to sleep (if they do) in the open ... enjoying the breeze (if there is one) and saving on electricity on fans and aircons. One thing good about the heat though ... nobody goes out to fight or throw stones or stab. It's simply too hot for any thing.

Therefore military presence is still high, there is no violence or clash in and around the Old City. Every evening at about 6pm, soldiers gather at Palm Plaza for their briefing before going to their stations throughout the Old City.

A walk home through Damascus Gate at sunset during Ramadan is always an adventure. Alongside the usual shops, there are many temporary hawkers on carts selling interesting food and wares. The iconic almond and carob juices are on sale ... frozen cold. I love them as it's a bog boost to the energy levels ... and it's very cool and refreshing in this heat. Then of course there are the sweet pastries ... everyone's favourite qatteyef (pancakes with walnuts or cheese), semolina biscuits, baked cheese pastries like kniffeh.

Carob and almond juice on sale

Once again the newspapers are warning us of an impending earthquake ... the long delayed one. The conclusion is Israel and Palestine are woefully unprepared for it. I have my earthquake pack prepared next to my bed ... water, medicines, a whistle, torch and documents. Hope I'll never have to use them.

Today was the first celebration of the feast of Mary Mother of the Church. We received the liturgical texts yesterday afternoon and had to change prayer books to accommodate this new feast.