Israel Days Seven & Eight: Finale

I'm hugely in favour of independent travel, but in the case of Israel a guide is definitely the way to go! But as with any guided tour (even with a private guide!) there is a schedule, which can be frustrating. So I was so glad we had scheduled two days in Jerusalem to wander on our own at the conclusion of the tour.

These last two days really gave us a chance to let the flavour of the city simmer. We spent the balance of Saturday getting lost in the Old City, haggling for deals on leather sandals, Armenian Pottery and Widows Mites. Shopping around definitely pays off, and by the end of the day the same large Armenian bowl I had seen in an earlier shop for $90 was procured for $20. I love haggling! The best part of the day was sitting at a table beside a fountain chatting away for something like four hours with Rachel and Glen as the sun began to set.


Jerusalem bagels sold with dry spices you sprinkle onto the bagels. I'm pretty sure I'd be an addict if I lived here!


Rachel and Glen entering the Old City




Shop 'till you drop!








Fabric shop in the Muslim Quarter


This shop was a real find! The shopkeeper's father is an accomplished photographer who has put together an amazing book of old photographs taken all over Jerusalem and Israel. It's a beautiful collection of photographic art, as well as an historical treasure. We paid about $40 for it, and found it on Amazon for a whole lot more!












If you randomly pick a place on any wall in the Old City, this is likely what you'll see.




One of the 14 traditionally held stations of the cross


Wall walk around the Old City



Our final day in Jerusalem was a mixture of somber reflection and more Old City wanderings. We spent the first half of the day visiting the massive Yad Vashem, the holocaust museum in Israel. It was a sobering and informative experience. Including this I've pretty much completed the world-wide holocaust circuit having seen holocaust museums all over the US and Europe, the D-Day Beaches of Normandy, Dachau concentration camp in Germany and Auschwitz death camp in Poland. With each visit to any of these important places in holocaust history I learn so much and come away with the same feelings of grief and despair. This followed largely the same pattern here, except to visit a holocaust museum with the exclusive perspective that is uniquely Jewish was such an incredible education that broadened my view like no other holocaust site had done before. There are many museums and memorials the world over, all of which reflect the holocaust story in the truth and understanding reflecting the perspective of the host people, but it seems that no other story is more bereft of hope or more ponderous than the story told here. I have a much greater understanding of the Jewish experience of the holocaust having visited Yad Vashem. And somehow this left me with a deeper sense of despair, and sometime near the end of our Yad Vashem visit I realised I am forever done visiting holocaust sites. I am so grateful I've had such opportunities to see it all and I believe that those who can should go to these places to understand, but I myself am done.

















Shalom!