Israel Day 10 – The Finale

Today was our “free” day in Jerusalem. That means we slept in a little. Our internal clock was not exactly right … or we had awaken up early so many days that we did not sleep in. The day started with breakfast, and then I went with Nancy Rogers and Sarah to the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. We entered and walked to the right. We saw a stone outcropping, and then began to see the various chapels. The first was the Saint Helena Chapel. It was one floor down to the chapel, and a second floor down to a cave and the old quarry.

We continued around to various other chapels. Near the Franciscan Chapel I asked a priest if he knew where one of Denise’s ancestors was buried – Fulk IV, King of Jerusalem. He showed me a room where the sword and other artifacts of Geffory of Boullon were kept.

We continued on to the Jaccobite Chapel. There was an old altar there, and behind the altar there were two tombs, said to be the tombs of Joseph of Arimathea and Nichodemus. From there we saw the Stone of Unction and Calvary. The church was very beautiful. Areas dated to AD 340. Some places were very ornate. It was a great experience.

Following our walk in the Church, we went to meet Denise and Chelsea. They were walking toward us from the Jaffa Gate. We did some shopping, some bartering, then met the larger group as an Orthodox Jew shared his faith at his shop called Shoreshim. He talked about his deep love for God.

We ate lunch in the Jewish quarter. I had Latkes. Chelsea & I went to see the Karaite Synagogue (said to be the oldest Synagogue in Jerusalem). After all were finished with lunch Nancy Rogers and I went to see the Upper Room and the Tomb of David. Following this we walked back to the motel. Once all were settled I visited St. George Cathedral in Jerusalem.

Abut 4:30 p.m. our group boarded the bus again for dinner in Joppa. There was a fire on the highway so we took the back road through Modi’n, the home of the Maccabees. Shlomo told us Chanukah stories and we sang Chanukah songs. We even stopped in Modi’n for a restroom stop.

Then on to Joppa. The place we started is the place we finished. We ate a great dinner in Joppa, and then headed to the airport. Following check-in (Security found my bottle of water from the Dead Sea … also the residue of the Dead Sea on my sandles), we headed home. We had a great time, and are talking about wanting to go back in two years. Do you want to join us??