Shmoozing is universal no matter where you go. These boys are enjoying a little tea and conversation outside the Machane Yehuda market.
This mansion on the edge of Mea Shearim was built by an early pioneer who came from Germany in the late 1800s. While here I’m reading a new book entitled “My Promised Land” by Ari Shavit. Right now in this book he is talking about his great grandfather and his peers who immigrated to Palestine, a harsh and primitive environment when they had successful and comfortable lives in Western Europe. It’s interesting to ponder that and to read his explanations. We just came upon this building as we were walking. That’s why I always like reading something related to where I am traveling. We couldn’t go inside as it’s now some kind of government building which would have meant going through security.
The families living right inside this ultra orthodox neighborhood have lived here for generations, often in very cramped quarters since they have lots of children. There are also many synagogues, schools, and yeshivot (for adult learners) along with stores that cater to the needs of the community. We did some shopping here for a bar mitzvah gift.
The community asks visitors to respect their rules for modest dress.
Instead of reading a newspaper, anything you might need to know from news to death notices to classes is posted on the walls everywhere you look.
Does it look cold? About the same as Mendocino temperature but to Jerusalemites this is cold. The boys are walking away front the old city whose walls/ramparts you can see behind them.
Cool globes, presented by the Clinton Global Initiative, addresses climate change in many different ways. Notice the trees looking pretty sad. These look a lot better than most of the rest we’ve seen, bent or broken from the three day snow storm Jerusalem experienced about two weeks ago.
This is a temporary exhibit that has been here since April, 2013. Not sure who most of the artists are but seems like most of them are Americans, and some are school groups.
Behind the globes is a tower from one of the churches in the Armenian quarter of the old city which is divided into four sections: Armenian, Jewish, Muslim, and Christian.
This was one of my favorite globes covered with the bottoms of aluminum cans. All around it says: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle. Behind the globe you can see the new city including the ubiquitous cranes that have always been on the skyline of Jerusalem and probably always will be.
This one looks like it came from California. You get a good view of the Jaffa Gate, one of the main entrances to the old city.
On our second day, we experienced both the old city and the new city of Jerusalem. When I say “we” I mean my friend Terri who is with me on this trip. This is her first time in Israel so she took a tour of the old city and I spent some time with my daughter doing some shopping in the Mea Shearim neighborhood. I’ll be sharing some of Terri’s photos with you in the next blog post but for how a little about the new city and Mea Shearim in particular. New city is relative since the “modern” city of Jerusalem probably began to grow at the end of the 19th century and once Israel was granted independence in 1948 it grew even more as Israel was deprived of access to the old city. After 1967 Israel captured the old city from Jordan and then of course additional territory that has made life complicated for all ever since.
Jerusalem is a modern Westernized city that still retains its early 20th century flavor and even earlier. This is one of those places where every step you take you are walking next to or stepping over history. There are always surprises. Almost all the buildings are built from a certain kind of stone called Jerusalem stone that glows pink at sunset. It’s pretty magical. The neighborhood you’ll see in the photos houses families that have lived there for centuries often in very small spaces with lots of children. Can you imagine living in a two bedroom apartment with 10-12 children? Somehow they manage.
Poetry Without Words 