in the middle east

One of the cool things that has developed in the last few weeks is that we've found a church that we now call our home community. In the old city there is a prominent Lutheran church called Holy Redeemer. We've gone a few times and have met some really great people. One of the people we met was the director of the Lutheran World Federation here in Jerusalem, Mark Brown. The Lutheran church has a strong presence here in Israel/Palestine, and is very involved in initiationg humanitarian aid projects for Palestinians in the West Bank and East Jerusalem who don't have good access to health care. They run a large hospital on the Mt. of Olives, and across the street is a large olive orchard (800 trees) owned by the LWF as well. Every year they have volunteers come and pick the olives, which are then taken to a Palestinian-run olive press facility where the oil is extracted. The oil is then put into hand-blown glass bottles produced by Palestinians in Hebron. The olive oil is then sold all over the world to contribute to the poor fund of the hospital which allows Palestinian families from the West Bank to come and get health care. Last year, the olive oil raised $30,000 for the fund, no small amount. Jessica and I jumped on the chance to hang out with some new people from church and help an important cause. We had a blast learning how to pick olive trees and harvest the trees. Here are some pictures from our day of olive picking on the mt. of olives! Click Here.
If you're interested in ordering some of this olive oil and making a donation to the hospital here the website: http://www.lwfjerusalem.org/olive_oil.htm

We recently took a morning to explore the well-known Mt. of Olives that stands just East of the Old City of Jerusalem. It is separated by a deep valley called the Kidron, and stands much higher than Jerusalem itself. It has a rich history from biblical times: It is here that David ascended when he had to flee Jerusalem because of his son, Absalom's revolt (2Samuel 15), the prophet Zechariah saw visions of the Mt. of Olives in relation to Yahweh's plan to usher the world into the new creation (Zechariah 14:3-5), and it is here that Jesus spent much time before he brought the world one step closer to the new creation by his death and resurrection (Luke 21:37). The last night before his death was spent in the Garden of Gethsemane, at the foot of the Mt. (Mark 14:32-42). Today, it is a busy tourist center. A paved street cuts through the Garden of Gethsemane, and the hillsides are filled with holy sites and vendors making money off of tourists. A rather stark contrast from the somber events that took place here in biblical times. But, I suppose, we should expect no less. The Mt. is marked mostly by Christian churches and chapels, some of which display amazing architecture and art. To experience a bit of the Mt. of Olives, just Click Here.

School starts for me in just a week, so Jessica and I decided to take one last trip before the semester begins. We headed down to the Sinai Peninsula for 5 days of adventure, not really sure what it would be like. It takes 5hrs (on a coach bus) to get to the Southern coastal town of Eilat on the Gulf of Aqaba (for an interactive map click here). From there we crossed the border into Egypt, and bartered with aggressive taxi drivers to take us on the 2hr ride to Dahab, a coastal town about half-way down the Eastern coast of the Peninsula (click on the Eastern side of the peninsula on the map). We've known some people who went here and just loved it, and we were not disappointed. A quaint coastal town with an amazing coral-reef just off the shore. I've never been snorkeling before, and this was one of the most amazing experiences I've ever had in the water. The reef was teeming with thousands of creatures of diverse size and color. Sorry we don't have an underwater camera; but take our word for it. We also took an overnight trip to Mt. Sinai (click on the middle of the peninsula on the map), set in the middle of the peninsula about 50 miles away. We left our hotel at 11pm, arrived at the foot of the Mt. about 2:00 am. We made it to the top (7,500ft) around 4:45am and waited for the sunrise. It was quite an experience, and the Sinai wilderness is quite a thing to behold. I don't think I've ever seen so much non-life: just rock, sand, dirt, scarce shrubs and small trees. It was a severe contrast from the teeming coral reef on the shores of the peninsula. And the best part was that everything was so cheap! Our hotel was $6 a night, our meals were usually about $4-$8 total, and when we wanted to eat like kings, $15. At these prices we tried to do everything we could. The Egyptian people we met were wonderful, very friendly and hospitable. All in all, it was a great way to end our extended Summer before school starts. Our pictures don't really do justice to the incredible sights here in Sinai, but here you are anyway. Click Here.

The city of Jerusalem has been, among many other things, a city of pilgrimage for many thousands of years. The ancient Israelites would gather here for festive celebrations at the first temple. The returnees from the Babylonian exile reestablished the Jewish festival calendar, which attracted Jews from the diaspora to make their journey to the celebration near the second temple. After the events surrounding the origins of Christianity, especially after it became the religion of the Roman empire in the mid-300's, Jerusalem became a city of Christian pilgrimage, especially during the Easter season. When the city was captured by Arabic forces in the mid-600's and the Dome of the Rock built there, it became the third holiest site for Islam, second only to Mecca and Medina. Thus, it became a city of pilgrimage for Muslims as well. So then, Jerusalem was and is to this day a city to which adherents of three major world religions make their journeys during the festival year. The months of September and October are among the most festive in the city. The Islamic period of Ramadan spans one month, and Judaism has three of its most important holidays at this time: the new year (Rosh-hashanah), the day of Atonement (Yom Kippur) and the Feast of Booths (Sukkoth). Jessica and I really enjoyed our role as observers as we explored about the city to see and hear how people celebrated and practiced their yearly rites. We've accumulated a series of photos and videos to share some of our experience. Among the videos you'll find the following: On Yom Kippur men in a synagogue singing songs of repentance; on Yom Kipper crowds around the Western wall singing songs of celebration at the forgiveness of sins; on Friday prayers at the Dome of the Rock you can hear the Imam leading prayer and singing. Some of the videos are not high-quality visual scenes, but we captured them more for the sounds. So then, enjoy the sights and sounds of Jerusalem during the holidays! Click Here.

The last 4 days of our time in Greece were spent in two places. We spent a day and a half in modern and ancient Corinth. We arrived in the modern city center and wandered about looking for a place to stay. We found one quite close to the water and then caught a taxi to the ancient city. Disaster overtook us there. A very intimidating thunderstorm was rushing towards us as we arrived at the ruins, and we only got to shoot a few pictures before Jessica and I dropped our camera in a passoff: it quit working as the rainstorm started. So, sorry: not to many pictures of ancient Corinth.
We got back to our room and fiddled with the camera and it randomly started working again, so our spirits brightened and we set off the next day for our final destination on the far SE corner of Greece: the small town of Monemvasia. The town actually sits inside of a castle wall that nestles it into the side of a large rock that juts out into the sea and is connected to the mainland by a small bridge. The town was built up in the Byzantine period (roughly 300-600 AD) and remained a fortified city for centuries. It was a magical place: walking the cobblestone streets was like being transported back in time to a small, medieval town. Set between a rock face and the coast of the Aegean Sea, the constant crash of waves against the castle walls created a unique atmosphere. We ate a special dinner on Sept 22 for Jessica's B-day, overlooking the sea and castle walls. We spent 3 days here, relaxing and decompressing after 12 solid days of walking, catching busses and trains all over the country. It was a wonderful way to experience the rural coast of Greece and to conclude our time there. For a bit more of Corinth and Monemvasia, just Click Here.

After Athens, we headed 3hrs North to visit the ruins of the famous city of ancient Delphi. Founded in the mid-700's BC, it rose to fame in the 6th cent. BC. because the great temple of Apollos and because of the Oracle of Delphi. The Oracle was a line of priestesses who would perform rites of divination and speak on Apollo's behalf to whoever inquired. Of course, you had to pay alot of money for this kind of thing, and thus the city is filled with dozens of ancient treasuries from the rich and famous who came to inquire of the Oracle. One famous story of the tricky nature of the Oracle is of King Croesus of Lydia who wanted to find out whether he could defeat Cyrus the king of Persia in battle (this is mid-500's BC). The Oracle said that a great kingdom would fall if he entered the battle: it turns out that king Croesus died in that battle and his kingdom fell apart! He definitely didn't get his money's worth! The city is tucked into a high hillside in the central Greek mountains, and offered breathtaking views.
After Delphi, we caught a series of busses 5hrs further North into the mountains of central Greece. Our destination: the monasteries of Meteora. We had seen some pictures of them, and heard of their wonders, but nothing prepared us for the amazing sights and experiences that awaited. There survives in central Greece a region of ancient sandstone towers, many over a thousand feet tall. In the medieval period, Greek Orthodox monks would retreat here atop these tower for isolation, prayer, and monastic life. Through the centuries these communities grew and became the monasteries of Meteora. I can't really describe them, you just have to see the pictures and marvel for yourself. This was definitely one of the main highlights of the trip. Click Here to enter Delphi and Meteora.