in the middle east

The weather continues to be very nice here, so we've continued our practice of taking long walks about the city. One of the areas I've been curious to explore is the southern side of town. In modern history it is the location of the first Jewish settlement outside the city walls in the mid-1860's and has a number of historic buildings. We also ended up going down into the Valley of Hinnom: the infamous valley whose name entered into the Greek language as "Gehenna" and into English as "Hell". As you see the pictures I'll tell you why this place became a vivid image of the final judgment in Jewish, and thus Christian, belief. Anyhow, as we explored hell we found a number of old burial tombs and other interesting things. I guess Jessica and I will always be able to say "to hell and back" with new perspetive. Click Here for more.