Last week, I took the trip of a lifetime to Jerusalem and Bethlehem. I saw the places where the most iconic figures in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam lived out their most important and significant moments, and I was in awe of every minute of it. I’ll try to describe as much as I can about this incredible journey, where I went, what I saw, how I felt, and what I learned.
Tuesday, September 13th
We left early on Tuesday morning to catch the bus(es) to Jerusalem. The whole journey from our house to our hostel in Jerusalem took about 7 hours, and if you want to read about what the border crossing process, you can read what I wrote about it here.
The trek from getting off the bus at Damascus Gate through the Old City to our hostel was our first little taste of the incredible history and bustling atmosphere of the Old City, particularly in the Muslim and Jewish quarters, which are both packed with stores, candy shops, restaurants, and hidden stairways. Once we got to our hostel, the electricity was out so we just put our stuff down and then headed with our friends Michaela and Phoebe to check in at their hostel. After hanging out there for a little while to recharge after the journey, we had a delicious “linner” at a cafe near their hostel, which offered a lot of pastas and sandwiches, which we were all thrilled about since they are so hard to come by in Amman.
Then, we all wandered around the new part of Jerusalem for a while – checking out cool shops, enjoying the pedestrian-friendly streets (and the above-ground trains), and admiring the beautiful streets that each have different items strung above them – flowers, Chinese lanterns, umbrellas, sombreros, etc. The city feels extremely Western – resembling many cities I’ve visited in Europe, particularly Strasbourg. Almost everyone speaks English, and many Western things we have been used to (but missing in Amman) were available, and we made the most of them. We ate a lot of pasta and pizza, enjoyed free beers at the hostel, and enjoyed not having to completely cover our arms & legs. It was definitely a break from the much more traditionally Muslim atmosphere in Amman, which I didn’t realize I had been missing before I arrived in Jerusalem.
We made our way
Christine in Amman - كرستين في عمّان 