Last Couple Days in Jerusalem

On Sunday we started out the day exploring the tunnels that run along the West Wall all under the city. There are tons of excavations going on all over under the city since the original ground from the time of Christ is buried deep down. It's kind of crazy though, it seems as though the whole city is eventually just going to collapse into itself if the excavations continue much longer. As we were walking along Jim kept telling us that we were right under people's basements.

After the tunnel explorations we went up to the top part of the temple where the Dome of the Rock is. The top part of the temple is controlled by the Muslims, and they're pretty strict about letting people in. Some people in our group had to buy scarves to cover their arms and legs a little better (and this is a group of LDS tourists who are already pretty well covered) and Carol ended up sneaking her New Testament in under her clothes since they would've taken it if they had seen it in her bag. Pretty crazy all the power struggles that are clearly apparent all over the city of Jerusalem. And all so that they can have control of the temple.

The rest of Sunday was spent touring around the old city following along the path that traditionally people believe Christ walked while carrying the cross. I'll be honest, I don't remember a whole lot from this day. It was a pretty hot, long day, and ultimately it seemed like a lot of the places were more so just tourist traps rather than actually significant locations. We ended up at the southern steps of the temple which was actually a really neat place. This is where Christ would've entered the temple daily and where a lot of the miracles he performed took place. It really was pretty incredible being in all of these places and being reminded of the wonderful things that took place there hundreds of years ago. I can't really do it all justice here just trying to explain it all.

Monday was our last full day in Jerusalem. First thing we did was head out of the city to Bethany where we visited Lazarus' tomb. Hundreds of years ago it was just a short walk between Jerusalem and Bethany, but nowadays it's about a 20 minute drive because of a large wall that has been built, separating the Palestinian territory from the Jewish territory. I continued to be shocked by the segregation and anger of these groups and how built into their way of life it all is. It all makes one pretty grateful for the overall unity that is felt in our country, despite the differing political views and religious backgrounds.

After Bethany we made our way back to the city, stopping at some great panoramic lookouts of the city and walking along the path Christ took into the city on Palm Sunday.

After our walk we went to the upper room where tradition holds that the last supper took place. It was pretty interesting being in the upper room with a group of Muslim tourists, as well as some Christians from India. Even with the different religious beliefs we were all coming to it as a sacred place and the spirit was so strong.

We ended up at the Garden Tomb which was definitely one of my favorite places in Jerusalem. It's was so amazing how even being in the middle of a busy, loud city, as soon as you entered into the garden there was a sense of quiet and peace. Luckily huge churches were never built over the Garden Tomb since it wasn't found until the 1800's, so it's been well preserved and nicely secluded. We had a wonderful testimony meeting among our group and had some time to walk around and just enjoy the gorgeous garden. It was a great way to finish our time in Jerusalem and was definitely one of my favorite stops.

Hezekiah's Tunnel

On our first full day in Jerusalem we ventured out to Hezekiah's tunnel first thing in the morning. This was a very fun activity and required water shoes and wading through water up to our thighs in the 1,500-foot-long tunnel. A few times we had everyone in the group turn off their flashlights and it was complete darkness, you couldn't even see your hand in front of your face. One time we sang Lead, Kindly Light in the darkness, the sound of it throughout the tunnel was pretty awesome.

After the tunnel we headed out to Jericho, stopping along the way to see the original road between Jerusalem and Jericho.

After dinner that night we ventured out to the Western Wall of the temple to observe as the Jewish people celebrated the start of their Sabbath which goes from sun down on Friday to sun down on Saturday. It's pretty impressive the way they are so excited about observing the Sabbath every week and the celebration that ensues at the Western Wall.

We Made it Across the Israeli Border!!

But before we did we spent another morning in Petra and a night at a Bedouin camp in the middle of the Wadi Rum desert.

On our last day in Petra most of the group woke up extra early for a 6am hike through some new parts of the city. Jim had arranged for a Bedouin man to meet us at the treasury at 6:30 dressed in his traditional robes so that we could get some good pictures without all the other tourists there. It was pretty fun watching Jim have basically a full on photo shoot with this man, ordering him around and getting all the good angles.

We hiked up to the High Point, where they had an alter for sacrificing, and also where they had built a huge temple up on the top of a mountain. It's always very interesting seeing these types of places and the views were incredible. Not much of the temple remains because most of it was destroyed in a giant earthquake which happened in 749 (which earthquake apparently destroyed everything that was great, we definitely heard that number an awful lot), but there was enough to see how huge it must've been, all up on the mountaintop.

After the High Point, we followed Jim back down the mountain, then started are trek across the desert to the place where he had been working the previous weeks excavating some tombs. It was a pretty long and hot walk through the desert, and Jim does not slow down for anyone, so we had to keep at a quick pace to keep up. When we first arrived at the dig site I was not too impressed, but then he started telling us stories about some of the things they have found and it was pretty awesome. Jim gets so excited when he talks about history and the work he does, it's so obvious how much he loves what he does everyday, it's awesome and in turn gets us all excited about it as well.

When we were done at the dig site we followed Jim on the "short cut" for getting out of Petra. In the end I'm not sure exactly how much of a short cut it was, and there were definitely a few obstacles along the way. It was a lot of fun and a little scary at times, and definitely one of those things that I look back at and am so glad I did. I was a little hesitant about doing the early morning hike, thinking that I didn't need to see more of Petra, but the hike at the end made it all worth it. Jim admitted to us that he took us on the more adventurous route that he usually doesn't take people on since it involves scaling some large rocks and wedging yourself in between the canyon walls so as to climb to the top. It was great. We realized after that we would pretty much follow Jim anywhere he led us.

When we were done with Petra we headed out to the Wadi Rum desert where we did some four-wheeling and visited a Bedouin family in their tent.

The Bedouin people are some of the most generous people ever and would basically give you anything you wanted, even if it was the last thing they had. It's so impressive that often the most generous people are those who have the least. They live such a simple, outdated life that you almost feel bad for them at times, but in the end they don't know anything else and they don't want anything else, they are completely happy with the way they are. The number of truly nomadic Bedouin people is decreasing with each generation, though, as more and more move into little towns that are a little more permanent. This may be the last generation that actually lives in the middle of the desert in tents.

The family we visited have a 7-month-old baby camel that they love and are very proud of, it is one of their prized possessions.

That night we stayed at a Bedouin camp, but luckily not in the tents, we actually had little rooms with bathrooms. Because it's out in the desert away from any cities, it's the perfect place for looking at the stars. As we were out stargazing, we started noticing that the moon looked like it was slowly disappearing, and soon learned that there was a total lunar eclipse that night. It was honestly amazing. We were told that a total lunar eclipse happens only once every 100 years out in the Wadi Rum desert, and we just so happened to be there the night that it was happening. It all made for a pretty unforgettable night, complete with a little Bedouin dancing following dinner.

Amman & Petra

These past two days have been extremely long and packed with activities, which has been great and exhausting.

We started the day yesterday in Amman and did a tour of the city for the first half. We went around and saw the various ruins that are throughout the city, including an old Greek temple, a massive Roman theater, and a church from the 6th century BC which has a mosaic map on the floor of all the holy places in the Middle East. The crazy thing is that it is actually completely accurate with the distances and layout of everything, comparable to the accuracy of a satellite picture. We then continued on to a workshop where they currently make mosaic pieces where they showed us the tedious process which is used to hand make a variety of things.

The women working on a mosaic picture.

We ended our time in Amman at Mt. Nebo, where Moses was shown the promised land. It was a pretty fantastic view, and luckily it was a pretty clear day, so we were able to see Jericho, the Dead Sea, and the Jordan River. We couldn't quite see all the way to Jerusalem, which apparently can be seen on the clearest days.

The view at the top of Mt. Nebo.

After Amman we drove in the bus for three hours to Petra. We had dinner at our hotel, then went and did Petra at night. They had the whole walkway down to the famous Treasury which is carved into the mountain lit up with candles. It was pretty incredible walking down in the night and I felt like it really gave you a better idea of how it was way back in the day when it was a busy trade route. Once at the bottom we sat and listened to traditional Bedouin music in the dark.

This morning we headed into the canyon at about 8:30 to see the Treasury during the day. We then continued on past it to go farther into the canyon and see the whole city that was set up in the mountains. It was pretty incredible, really it's almost impossible to explain the vastness of this place and pictures don't do it any justice at all.

On the way down to the Treasury.

The Treasury, as seen in Indiana Jones.

Only some of the countless tombs which are carved into the mountains with some Bedouin locals.

Throughout the day we hiked about 10 miles and rode donkeys, camels, and horses, all of which I loved. The donkeys were hilarious and how we didn't fall off the mountain cliffs I don't know. While riding the camels everyone was on pairs of camels which were connected to each other. I was on a camel which was connected to one of the guides, though, so he had us racing up through the canyon leaving the group way behind. It was pretty fun, though I did devise an escape route for jumping off the camel if it seemed like he was going to start taking me the wrong way. Don't worry, I swear it's totally safe here. On the horses they usually have a guide walking you up the mountain, but they let me go on my own so I was racing one of the guides, galloping up to the top. It was a pretty great end to the day.

Part of our group on the donkeys.

We took the donkeys to the top to see this Monastery which is actually three times larger than the more famous Treasury.

A good group shot at the top. The man and woman on the right are the ones who put this trip together, Jim and Carol Gee, they are incredible and I love to listen to Jim just talk on and on, he seems to know everything about these places.

This is a Bedouin girl who Jim and Carol have known since she was five and they see her every time they come. She is extremely smart and really funny, she loves to follow the group around throughout the day.

The horse I rode out of the canyon at the end of the day.

We've been extremely lucky with the weather here. Apparently the last two weeks have been miserably hot with no breeze at all, but we've had great temperatures, maybe in the high 80's, if even that, with nice breezes always. Tomorrow we're waking up super early to go hiking all over from 6-11:30am. Our guide Jim is going to take us to the dig he's been working on this past month and show us all the things they've found. Honestly, I had no idea this is what I was signing up for, but I'm totally thrilled with it all and loving it, though I am exhausted. It's truly amazing being in all of these places and thinking of all of the things that have happened around here. Tonight is our last night in Petra, then tomorrow night we're staying in the middle of the desert at a Bedouin camp, so I'm not sure I'll be able to update for a few days.

3 Planes and 17 hours later...

I found myself in Amman, Jordan.

I made it safely and really don't remember much of the trip, which suggests that it was completely uneventful and I slept through most of the flights. Of course getting to the airport in DC was hectic and I definitely cut it close, but ultimately I made it with no problems.

I arrived at the airport in Amman to a nice man holding a sign with my name. He proceeded to help me get my visa and luggage then accompanied me to my hotel. I was glad he was there because I'm sure I couldn't have navigated it all by myself, especially in my exhausted state. I'm not afraid of traveling alone and ultimately think I can get myself anywhere in any country, but it would've been a little tough and maybe a little scary here. I realized when I arrived that I didn't even know what the currency of Jordan was and how it translates with US dollars, so I was giving out tips to all those who helped me having no idea how much I was actually giving them. Oh well, hopefully I've got it figured out now.

Tomorrow we tour the city of Amman then head over to Petra where we'll stay for a couple nights. I'm pretty excited. I really haven't focused on or thought about this trip much at all since I left Utah three weeks ago, so now that I'm actually here it's a little crazy, but I'm sure it'll be great. I should get to sleep, hopefully this jet lag doesn't get the better of me and I can actually be awake and functioning tomorrow!