Cats, and Peacocks, and Camels- Oh My!

Yesterday was a jam packed day, and so I didn't have time to blog about our afternoon. Since we have a bit of downtime right now, I shall try to catch up! 

It's always interesting when you travel places to observe the wildlife. Last year in Alaska, we saw countless bald eagles, whales, and even a moose. Here in Jerusalem...cats seem to be the most common. They are everywhere! Yesterday, while in Jericho, we heard but didn't see wild peacocks that live in the area. However, the most epic of all animals is the camel. My fiancé Adam requested a picture of a camel. I wasn't sure I was going to be able to fulfill this request, but I was incredibly surprised  to be able to do so after lunch yesterday! 

Prior to lunch, we visited Jacob's Well in Samaria, in the town of Nablus. It is here that Jesus, while traveling through the countryside, stopped and asked for a drink from the Samaritan Woman. This famous biblical story came to life when I was able to see the well, draw water from it, and drink of it! What an amazing experience it was to be able to drink from there same well as Jesus! The well is housed in the crypt of a church that has been built around it. The church, completed in 2000, was built by a Greek Orthodox priest, who lives there to this day. The church is filled with incredibly beautiful icons, all of which he wrote (It is said that an inconographer writes icons instead of paints them because here are rubrics followed to create the icon. Much prayer and fasting goes into each icon.). This priest continues to write icons and sells them to support the church. I was able to purchase one of the Annunciation, my favorite story of Mary! 

Drawing water from Jacob's Well as the Samaritan Woman did in the Bible story! 

The icon I purchased from the priest who wrote it and built the church! 

We had spent a great deal of the morning touring the area of Samaria. After visiting Jacob's Well, we ate lunch at an Arabic restaurant. Here we enjoyed a delicious dessert that is local to the region called kufaluh. It was absolutely delicious! Afterwards, we went to see the tomb of St John the Baptist. Interestingly, his tomb is housed in building that serves as both a mosque and a Christian church. In the West Bank, unlike in Jerusalem, Muslims and Christians live side by side. The poverty here runs deep, as was evidenced by the stench of rotting garbage (because they have no garbagage services), the water tanks that hold a week's worth of water (because water is only turned on one day a week), and the general disrepair of graffitied buildings. The West Bank is home to Palestinians who would love to be a free state, but they are still currently under the control of Israel. 

Eating the kufaluh! Yum!!!

After seeing the tomb of St John the Baptist, we headed back to our bus. Upon arriving back there, we saw a camel- who was giving rides! I just had to ride a camel- that's a once in a lifetime experience, and I knew Adam would enjoy seeing the pictures! So, Natalie and I got on the camel and went for a ride. It was amazing, a bit scary, and so much fun! 

Riding the camel with Natalie! 

After our camel ride, we headed back to Jerusalem for Mass, followed by a holy hour at the Church of All Nations. This church is located in the Garden of Gethsemane, where Jesus prayed after the Last Supper. Inside the church, during our holy hour, we were able to pray at and touch the rock upon which Jesus said, "Lord take this cup from me. Not my will, but yours be done.". What a beautiful evening of prayer it was to reflect upon Jesus' sacrifice for me! Jesus, may I never forget all you have done for me, and may I imitate you when I am gifted a cross to say with an open heart, "Not my will Lord, but yours be done.". Amen

Blessings, 

Julie