Bethlehem

It's beginning to feel a lot like Christmas??? Well perhaps somewhere but not in Israel! Not even a visit to Bethlem, the city of the birth of our Lord, was enough to make us feel like Christmas is in the air.

We are looking forward to and even counting the days until we leave Isreal bound for the USA to spend Christmas with at least some of our children (we leave Israel Tuesday morning arriving in Tampa near midnight the same night). You would at least think that since we live in the Holy Land now we would feel like Christmas... not so.

On our day off this week we visited Bethlehem. We enjoyed our visit but didn't feel like Christmas.

Manger Square & The Church of the Nativity

Judy at the door to Nativity Church

The Star marks "the place" of Jesus Birth

If any of you traveled with us to Jerusalem in 1980, you have very fond memories of Phil Pantana getting in trouble at this confessional in St. Catherine's Church!

On our return to Jerusalem we walked through the Old City... Judy bought me my Christmas gift... I get it on Christmas day. Yes, I helped her pick it out - "I am my beloved's and my beloved is mine" from the Song of Solomon (6:3a) in Hebrew is your clue... I love it and will appropriately act surprised on Christmas day! Or Christmas Eve as I understand the Houston plan is... but that's OK because Judy has promised to act surprised when I give her her gift as well... Yep she helped pick it out too. We are such dorks!

After our shopping trip we climbed up onto the roof tops of old Jerusalem (now, we finally begin to feel like Christmas! "up on the roof top click click click" ) ... HEY! I already confessed to being a dork, leave me alone! What an incredible thing to do. We got some amazing pictures and had a wonderful time. Especially when we came down the wrong staircase and wound up in the Yeshiva restroom to the shock and great dismay of one of the Jewish students! We retreated to the roof top giggling and laughing (remember I said we were dorks?) and found the correct staircase down.

Up on the roof tops

Doesn't Judy look relieved ... not from the restroom but by virtue of the fact that I finally found the way down!

We plan to go to Ein Gedi on Sunday and walk to the springs where David hid from Saul. However, if it rains, the spring may be closed because of flash flooding. In which case we will visit one of Herod's palaces on the Herodian instead. Either way, we will travel about with our friends from England and have a great time.
We are looking forward to seeing some of our family and friends in Tampa in a few days. May God bless you with a wonderful Christmas from Jerusalem!

and just incase you ever wondered...

New York doesnot hold the patent on weirdo's ...

Meet King David of Jerusalem circa 2008!