After another amazing breakfast, our group assembled in the lobby of the Dan Panorama for a tour of Jerusalem. Our group was made up of 3 men and 4 women.  The ladies were all a part of Elizabeth’s group from the US here to tour the Albaad manufacturing plants.  The company graciously treated us to a day in the City of David before meetings started on Monday.  We also had our tour guide Zvika and an ex Israeli Intelligence guy by the name of Avi who was hired by the US company as security.  Zvika had his hands full for the day! I’ve never been a big fan of tour groups as I find them too confining. The ladies were equally independent and it was a bit like trying to herd cats.

I must say we were very blessed as it has been raining a lot here in the country.  Our day was beautifully sunny with blue skies which made for some excellent photo opportunities.  Once we arrived we started at the Mt of Olives with looks west over the city.  The sun shown down on the golden dome of the Muslim mosque located near where the old Jewish temple once stood.  One is quickly assaulted by the religious “spirit” in the air.  Everywhere you turn the religious institutions of the world have built some memorial, church, mosque or synagogue.  Then there are the street vendors constantly trying to sell you some overpriced book or trinket only to half their price as you walk away.  I couldn’t help but wonder if Jesus would recognize this place.  I was then reminded he too had real problems with the commercialism of religion even in his day.  I decided to put it all out of my mind and just enjoy the historical significance of what I was seeing.

As we made our way inside the city I was captivated by the markets.  Stall after stall of vendors selling everything under the sun.  My favorite was a T-Shirt which had a “Guns & Moses” emblem based on the rock band Guns & Roses.  They even had a kosher Green Bay Packers T-Shirt! As we made our way through the stone streets one couldn’t help but notice the pilgrims from all over the world, many who were walking the Stations of the Cross while either singing or contemplating.  At lunch we stopped at a Jewish café and I had a falafel.  It had been 26 years since I last tasted one and it was delicious! Once the food kicked in and we had more energy, we made our way to the Church of the Holy Sepulcher where Jesus was supposedly crucified and buried.  It’s one of the more contentious sites in the city.  Today, the church is home to Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy and Roman Catholicism, Anglican and Protestant Christians.  In order to try and keep the peace even years ago in 1192, Saladin (who is credited with building the current city walls) gave the key to the entrance of the church to the care of a Muslin family!  

After a long day of walking we were all feeling it and decided to head back to Tel Aviv and go out later together for dinner.  Elizabeth fell asleep in the van but after a 15 minute power nap sprang back to life.  Our hosts picked us up at 7 PM and we drove up the coast a bit to Joffa and feasted out on a huge variety of Israeli dishes.  I had a wonderful lamb meal that was prepared magnificently and the meat just melted in my mouth.  Once we returned to our hotel room the long day hit us both but Elizabeth had to stay up into the early morning working on a presentation while I drifted off to Never Neverland.