I'M BACK!!!!

Okay, so I know I'm missing a few posts, but I promise I will add them later. I didn't post about Oman and Bahrain but yes they are coming!!

More importantly...

I'M BACK IN DOHA!!!!!

I seriously missed this place more than y'all can imagine. I only told Gaby because I'm staying with her (AND SHE'S AWESOME) and Hind because I couldn't keep it in anymore lol.  It was sooo great seeing all the reactions at the airport and in OASIS because everyone was just dumbfounded.  A couple people threw their bags, some yelled "No way!" and some did double takes because they were like "Whaaattt???"  It made me feel so loved :) All the money and all the hours spent on the plane were completely worth it because I got to see people whose lives touched me in ways they don't even know.  And if any of them are reading this, know that I love y'all so much and am SO thrilled that I get to spend my week here.

The living situation is precarious b/c apparently it's not allowed, but I have backup plans in case something goes foul.

But...that's all for now. It's 11 here and I had a basketball game tonight. It was GREAT getting to play with my old team - even if we did get injured and totally screwed lol. But battle wounds make good stories, and so far this is the best one I'm going to get to tell :)

Eid Day 6: Last Day!

I totally forgot to write about Yad Vashem yesterday.  That's the Israeli Holocaust museum.  It has much of the same stuff as the DC one, but it's built like a prism and overlooks the beautiful Jerusalem countryside.  It also has a few more extra exhibitions like a children's memorial, but I didn't get a chance to go to that one.  I walked through a little faster than I would have liked, but I've seen much of it before.

Yad Vashem

Anywho, today I'm in Tel Aviv, and it is absolutely beautiful! My hostel is on the beach, and though I froze taking a dip in the Mediterranean, it was nice to lay out and read Pride and Prejudice.  I took a long stroll along the beach before dinner - gee don't I sound romantic? The weather was perfect, and I felt like a typical tourist in my linen pants, sweater, mojito, and carefree attitude. Alas, no tall, dark, handsome man wanted to walk in the moonlight, but I had my Mr. Darcy...guess I can't complain too much ;)
 

I swam in the Mediterranean here. Obviously this is posted after I got back, but you see that barrier of rock in the background? A mortar sent by Hamas landed just on the other side of it. Just a bit too close for comfort.

Beautiful beachfront view :)

Eid Day 6: Back to Where it All Began

Israel is not a good place for me, or rather, not a good place for my bank account! I kept making spontaneous decisions!! I decided to stay a couple extra days in Israel because the girl I was going to couch surf with lost her job and moved out of her apartment, and I never heard back, so..... Anywho, there happened to be a day tour to Bethlehem on Wednesday, so I changed my flight plans and stayed in Jerusalem one day and then will spend my last in Tel Aviv.

Our tour guide was a Palestinian Christian and one of the sweetest guys I've ever met! He spoke to me almost exclusively in Arabic, which was fun, but I only really understood him about 40% of the time.  That's ok...I at least knew the topic since he was explaining Luke 2 to us. The owner of the shop we went in gave me a better price and some free Palestine gifts, too, because I spoke Arabic with him.  Our conversation did actually make sense to me the whole time lol.

Our tour guide in the caves

The first place we went in Bethlehem was the fields where the shepherds lived and worked.  The coolest part about this place was that for the most part nothing has changed.  There are still caves, still olive trees, and still rocks and hills as there were in Bible times. We went into one of the caves and saw just how a. small the places were where the shepherds lived and b. how protected they and their flocks were from danger.

We headed to the Church of the Nativity next where a group of Koreans and Spaniards were singing O Holy Night and Silent Night. I joined in, realizing how much I'm going to miss singing Christmas hymns in church this year.  Even though it was 80* outside and October, it was nice to get to sing with fellow Christians. :)

Nativity scene in the church in the Field of the Shepherds

We headed up to where the shepherds saw the star and where the manger was.  Both are now in churches, just like Golgotha, but what surprised me is that the manger was in a cave! All this time I thought the stable was a barn, but the stable would have been in a large cave back then.  I also learned that the Persians spared the church where the star was seen when they came conquering because they saw pictures on the wall of the Magi carrying their gifts and thought they were Persians.

On the way out of Bethlehem, we stopped to see the wall of political graffiti on the borders of Palestine.  Some of the stories told on those panels were devastating, yet the art was so beautiful.  I obviously didn't experience any of the violence or occupation or fighting or whatever you choose to call it for myself, but I got to see people's feelings displayed in their paintings on the wall.  Just 100 yards of art told two generations worth of stories.

Eid Day 5: Path of Jesus

Well, I finally figured out why I had missed the initial tour.  Apparently Israel is special and runs on its own time, changing the clock back when it feels like it. So, if I'm not mistaken, the time was different from Qatar which was different from Jordan which was different from Israel. I'm not entirely sure why, but whatever.  At least I went on the tour today!

The Dome of the Rock from an Austrian church

Our first stops were at the tomb of King David and the room of the Last Supper.  They are in the same building, as least as far as tradition goes, with the Last Supper being in the upper room and the tomb below.  As I walked in, I heard a Canadian group singing "I Surrender All" and joined in in the last verse. It felt so good to sing hymns again, and it brought me back to when John West used to end his sermons with that song on Sunday nights.

Jesus' tomb

The next place we went was down the Via Dolorosa. Now, I had never heard of the stations before, but we stopped at most of them. In Catholic tradition, there are 14 (I think) stations that have to do with the road to crucifixion.  A handprint here, a miracle there, and certain stops in between that are mentioned in the Gospels.  I didn't understand what a lot of them were, but I stopped to get pictures anyway.  On our way down, we passed a group with a man carrying a cross.  Apparently it is tradition for certain orthodox groups to have someone take the path Jesus took carrying a much lighter cross on wheels to experience the toil.

Candles at Golgotha

Our last sights were at Golgotha and Jesus' tomb.  I thought Golgotha was some giant hill in Jerusalem, and it turns out it's a. really small and b. in the middle of a church! His tomb, too, is several feet away and down a steep flight of stairs! I was not expecting that at all. I definitely got emotional at the site of Jesus' crucifixion, realizing that every sin that has ever been committed and will ever be committed was thrown onto an innocent man in that very spot, and especially that several thousands of those who walk by that sacred place have no idea the magnitude of such an action. My entire group stopped long enough to take a picture and walk on, all of whom (save one) were in Jerusalem just to understand "history."

This small piece of step is very contested because it is unknown whether Armenians or Catholics should be washing it. Is it part of the stairs? Is it part of the platform? They seriously argue over it to this day...

Wailing Wall

Eid Day 4: Sunrise Edition!

Found this in the cistern I climbed down into!

Words cannot explain the day I had. I woke up at 315 - that's a.m. not p.m. - to hike up Mount Masada.  I tried to get a full 8 hours of sleep knowing I'd have a long day ahead of me, but my German roommate insisted on debating American politics until 1030. *sigh*  Anyway, a group of 10 of us troopers headed out in pitch black to Masada, the place in the mountains where King Herod built his fortress.  The Romans amazingly conquered the area in 73AD and found nothing but ruins.  The Jews had committed suicide to avoid being massacred by the Romans.  We headed up this mountain - more like a really rocky hill - and got to watch the sunrise as we hiked.  Quite possibly one of the coolest and most spontaneous things I have ever done.  I had my own little worship service at various points on the mountain since it was Sunday for me.  Y'all. Singing hymns. In Israel. Watching God's majesty in the background.....Ain't nothin' like it.

It fit me perfectly!

After we got back down, we headed to Ein Gedi, a nature preserve on the way back toward Jerusalem.  Nothing extremely exciting there, but we did see several oryxes and beautiful waterfalls.  We figured after climbing Mount Masada, why not hike a little while longer? We were rewarded with a secluded waterfall area with freaking cold water and bright sunshine.

 

Mount Masada overlooking the Dead Sea

Last part of this tour took us to the Dead Sea. They really are serious when they say you just float.  I mean, I tried swimming...and I kept ending up on my back. Getting into the water itself should be an Olympic sport.  I sank into mud up to my hip - which I know is not very high for most of you but just go along with it - and kept slipping and sliding til I made it to the sea.  I picked up a few salt crystals, too, to take with me as souvenirs.  Sadly, there were too many people on the beach for me to feel comfortable taking out my camera and leaving it on the beach while we floated. All of us slapped the mud all over ourselves until we blended in with the water.  It felt really nice on the sunburns we were developing, so I can see why people used to flock here to be healed.

Party at the beach!

Day 3: Al-Quds!

Day 3 was basically me taking five hours to go about 150 miles because my passport got taken six times in that span, so I made the afternoon a walking tour to get a feel of the city. So, that's what I'm going to do for you. Enjoy.

Looking downtown from Jaffa Road

Old City wall by Jaffa Gate

Ethiopian wedding celebration

Welcome to Jerusalem!

Israeli flag

Flinging green and gold afar!

This speaks for itself, let's be honest

Palm trees!!!

I mean, why wouldn't you want to get shekels and a tattoo in the same place?

Fall of Berlin Wall + Alcohol = besties?

Eid Days One and Two: Amman, Jordan

Get ready for an installment of several blog posts!! I'm finally home safe and sound in my own bed in Qatar, a long story that I will bore you with much later.  I spent two days in Amman, one full day more than I actually wanted to, but I was unaware the border would be closed for Eid.  I had been told it would be open half day, but apparently they decided to close it the whole day.  Although I was frustrated, I made the best of my situation.  The hotel manager of the hostel I was staying in was one of the sweetest men I've ever met, and I wish I had taken a picture of him to put on here! I will never forget his generosity.

I got scammed out of several dollars while in Jordan, so it left a bad taste in my mouth and made me want to change my flight to stay a little longer in Israel.  The taxi driver charged me more than he should have, and there were no seat belts in the car, so I was slightly frightened for my life.  I've gotten better at having conversations in Arabic, though, so I guess that's a plus.

I bought a few things in one of the local shops, again getting scammed, but oh well.  I came out with a lovely scarf and a cross for my apartment, as well as free coffee and dates from the Tunisian who owned the store.  I took to roaming the streets and happened upon a large amphitheater from the Roman days.  The top gave a beautiful sight of the city - however dirty the city may be - and I could see other Roman ruins around the area.  It was quite the hike up the steps, so I'm thinking these Romans were slightly taller than me...shocker, I know.

The boys pictured below were...interesting.  I was climbing around the top of the amphitheater, kind of like I would the Castle Park back home, and they started yelling at me in Arabic.  All I can assume they were saying was, "Careful! It's dangerous!" because they kept pointing at me.  I tried to run away just because I wasn't sure who they were, but naturally they followed me to the ruins and ran into me on the stairs. I told them I had no idea what they were saying, since my Arabic is not fantastic, so we spoke in English a little.  I took a picture of them, per their strange request, and as I was leaving, they asked me if I thought one of their crew was cute. I told the guy who asked, "Inta majnoon," which means, "You're crazy," and they got a huge kick out of that as I went back down the stairs.

I got to stay in the hotel for free on Friday since I was so out of luck on getting across the border, and the manager fed me lunch, dinner, and about seven cups of tea.  Apparently for this Eid, it is tradition to slaughter a lamb for you and your family, and then give what you will not eat to the poor.  So, I was taken in as family and ate with him, his son (who he not so subtly tried to push my way), and a friend down the street.  Despite me not liking Amman, or at least downtown Amman, I hope to return one day to at least repay him for his kindness.