Jerusalem is the Bomb

So, I guess why I named my post "Jerusalem is the Bomb" is because Jerusalem really rocks, for one, and because Israel got bombed yesterday.

Rockets were sent out of Gaza into Beersheba (I have been right outside of Beersheba, in Tel Sheba) and Israel responded.  I wish I was more surprised.  However, after being in Cairo on the day a revolution started (which subsequently helped ignite other protests and revolutions worldwide), things like this seem a little less surprising.

Not to discredit the significance.  But the Middle East just seems to be a whole other world.

Since this is my first blog post after two months of being in the Holy Land, I guess I'll just recap a few significant things I've done.  Here goes!

First of all, I arrived at this beautiful place, the Jerusalem Center, and realized what an awesome view I have from my balcony.  

This is the site of Golgotha (see the skull in the rock?).  Jesus was most likely crucified in the area in front of this.  In old times it was a place for executions.  Now, it is a bus parking lot.  

This is Nabi Samwil, a tribute to the prophet Samuel (and also traditional place of his birth if I'm not mistaken).  This overlooks that ancient city of Gibeon.  

This is me inside the Garden Tomb!  It's a traditional place, not necessarily the exact tomb that Christ was buried in.  

And wonder why this picture is so awesome?  Because it's a picture of me, but moreover it's a picture of me in front of quite possibly the oldest existing structure in the world.  This is in Jericho, and the structure was an ancient pillar dated to 10,000 BC!  

And this is me in front of the wilderness East of Jerusalem.  This setting is where Christ was tempted by Satan.  The dry riverbed that runs through it (the Wadi Qelt) is where Mary, Joseph and the baby Jesus would have traveled on their way up to Jerusalem.

Egypt time! Forgive me for forgetting the significance of this pyramid.  I have it written down in my journal.  For some weird reason the pyramids at Giza aren't in my computer yet... so I'll have to upload those later!

This is Hatshepsut's temple.  She was a wicked awesome woman pharoah.  Women weren't allowed to be pharoah, but since the pharoah wasn't ever frequently displayed to the public she decided to pretend she was a man.  A lot of the statues of her represent her as a man.

Like these ones...

This is an ankh.  Its sideways, but its an Egyptian symbol that's pretty sweet.  It is often referred to as the key of life.  When you die, Osiris (I think) touches this to your lips and therefore frees your mouth to speak in the afterlife.  

Me on camel.

Just a casual felukah ride down the Nile.  

This is the bent pyramid, built by the father of the guy who built the big pyramid at Giza (Cheops).  During construction he realized that he pretty much failed with the angles, and so changed them making the pyramid look bent.  This is where we went instead of the Cairo museum because of the riots going on.  

This is our awesome tour guide, Islam (Who is, in fact, Muslim!  Would have never guessed by the name...)

This was during sunrise on a very chilly mountain top I like to call Sinai.  

And this is me on that mountain top.  

And this is a beautiful red poppy springing forth from the luscious earth.  This is at Gath, where Goliath the Philistine was from.  (Heard of him?)

And this is a reenactment of the cool pose that David would have struck right before he slew Goliath.  There is a riverbed right near me where he would have gathered his five smooth stones, and he would have met that crazy Philistine in that field right next to me!

Pretty much I can't begin to explain all the crazy and wonderful things I've done while in the Holy Land.  I have been to countless beautiful churches, the Dome of the Rock, have shopped in the Old City, have seen the City of David, have walked through Hezekiah's tunnel, have stayed at a kibbutz, have herded sheep, and many other things that would be impossible for me to recall all at once.  I can't even begin to explain how awesome Egypt was, although we didn't even scratch the surface of all there was to see.  Much of what we did see is destroyed now because many places were ransacked.  

Basically I am pretty dang lucky.  I love living here.  I love waking up and seeing the city of Jerusalem outside.  Plus the food is great, and the warm spring weather is beginning.  Me = lucky girl.