Family Visit During Christmas Holidays

Nothing makes a holiday more exciting than knowing that members of your family are coming to visit. Christmas day came and went and the following evening, Garth and I were waiting anxiously the arrival of our oldest daughter and her family. For the past 11 months, we have missed our children and grandchildren greatly and have been counting down the days until they arrived.

I was so excited the day our family was arriving I couldn't concentrate on anything. I wanted to see their faces and know that they had arrived safely. It was a very long flight but they were all champs and full of smiles when we met them.

This past week we have walked our legs off! We have visited as many places as we could each day. These are just a few of the highlights of places we have visited and not necessarily in order. Garth has been the tour guide so he has lead our family outings.

The weather has been cold, windy, and sometimes rainy. Claire said to G'ma Kathy, "How come I get hot when the sun is shining but when it's not, I am cold?" G'ma replied, "That's why we bring lots of layers to put on or peel off."

We have walked most of the places we've visited in Jerusalem but next week we will be driving to the Dead Sea, Masada and the Galilee.

Orson Hyde Park.

Jewish graves. It is customary to place a rock upon the grave when visiting a friend or relative.

Garden of Gethsemane

Russian Church of Mary Magdalene.

This striking, 19th century, Russian Orthodox church is a place I have wanted to visit for many months. It has seven golden cupolas and looks like something out of a fairy tale. Because it is only open a few hours on Tuesday and Thursday, we have not been able to visit it until now. This is where Mary of Magdala saw Jesus being arrested in the garden on the Mount of Olives. Mary showed the Emperor of Tiberius an egg and she told him that there was life in that egg. He said, "There is no more life in that egg than the egg is red," when immediately the egg turned red.

The view from the Church.

It was a beautiful, sunny day and we walked to this site from the Jerusalem Center.

There are lots of steps everywhere we go.

G'pa Garth said, "Kids, don't run or you'll fall and knock out your teeth!" I guess he was right . . . someone's child didn't hear him.

Wailing Wall

Papers are stuffed in the cracks of the Wailing Wall. They are collected and saved and buried in a designated place and never destroyed.

I am always inspired when I see people praying, wherever they are are and whatever religion they might be.

We saw a Bar Mitzvah at the Western Wall.

The City of David.

Hezekiah's Tunnel was one place everyone was excited to go.

When the city of David was defending itself from the Assyrian army in the 8th century BCE, King Hezekiah decided to protect the water by diverting its flow deep into the city with a tunnel system. "Hezekiah also plugged the upper watercourse of the Gihon waters and brought it straight down to the west side of the City of David. And Hezekiah prospered in all his works." (Chronicles II, 32:30) This engineering feat was accomplished by digging a 1,750-foot tunnel into the mountain.

We walked down many stairs to the level of the tunnel and were prepared with head lamps and water shoes because we knew we would be walking in the dark in water.

You need a light to go into the tunnel.

We started out with water up to our ankles but before we knew it, it was past our knees and then up to our thighs. If you are claustrophobic, it would not be something you would want to experience.

The tunnel was completely dark so if you didn't have a light, 

you wouldn't be able to see where to step.

You can see how high the water came up on our legs. It took about 45 minutes to walk through the tunnel and was so humid my hair went frizzy.

The acoustics are wonderful in St. Anne's Church so we sang a few songs. The Catholic Priest said we sounded like angels.

Church of the Holy Sepulcher is located in the Christian Quarter of the Old City. It was constructed in 326 AD.

Visitors may bow and touch the rock where Jesus was placed on the cross.

On the way out of the church, Garth chatted with the man who is the Key Keeper of the church. A special key is used to unlock the doors of the church at 4 AM and it is locked back up at 7 PM.

He showed us the very unusual key that unlocks the door every morning.

We also went up on the roof of the Church of the Holy Sepulcher to see the Ethiopian monastery.

We visited the cave where Jesus was put in prison. Prisoners were dropped down through a hole so they couldn't crawl out and were bound and tethered to the wall of the cave.

Steps that have been dated to the time of Christ. Coins were found along these steps which verify the dates.

During the Last Supper, Jesus foretold the triple denial by Peter.  "Peter said, Lord, I am ready to go with you to prison and to death.  Jesus said, I tell you, Peter, the cock will not crow this day until you have denied three times that you know me."  Luke 22, 33-34.

It was cold and rainy the day we visited Jericho.

Bethany is where Lazareth's tomb is located.

Separation or "Barrier" Wall in Bethany.  These are just a few of the places we have visited the past few days and we are off now to another place.  Check back soon!