Jerusalem is one of the most deeply contested cities on earth and hasn’t done a great job of living up to its name, meaning ‘City of Peace’. In its long history it has been attacked 52 times, captured and recaptured 44 times, besieged 23 times and destroyed twice (source). Although it is no longer physically divided – with the walls and barbed wire coming down in 1967, boundaries and divisions still exist among its people. How its future will play out with two very […]
Israel
Dead Sea, Masada & En Gedi
Our day trip from Jerusalem to the Dead Sea with stops at the UNESCO World Heritage site of Masada and the En Gedi National Park was simply brilliant! The bus took us from the busy city of Jerusalem through the tunnel under the Mount of Olives and suddenly into the Judean desert. We dropped quickly in altitude down to 423m below sea level at the Dead Sea. But before floating in the famous salty waters we had some exploring to do. We headed south […]
Muslim Jerusalem
Dominating the views of the Old City of Jerusalem is the gold ‘Dome of the Rock.’ It is positioned in the middle of a large area usually refered to as the Temple Mount but for Muslims its known as Haram esh-Sharif / the Noble Sanctuary. The Al Aqsa mosque is also situated on the Temple Mount and it is considered the third most holy place in the world for Muslims (after Mecca and Medina). For ca. 3000 years the Temple Mount has been the […]
Holiday Season in Israel!
It was one holiday after the next in our 3 week stay in Jerusalem! Great time to be here and experience the culture and festivities.
Jewish Jerusalem
It’s my frst time in Jerusalem – so here’s what I’ve seen and learned about Orthodox Jewish dress, the Western Wall’s significance and the Holocaust.
Traveling to Israel / Palestine
Normally I get pretty excited about traveling to new countries and cultures but for a few reasons the excitement just didn’t hit this time round. Not even when we were about to board the plane. In fact looking at the huge CO2 emitting machine that was about to whisk me half way round the world made me feel pretty bad, what the Swedes call Flygskam. Less than 48 hours before, I had joined the local Ashburton School Strike for Climate and felt super proud […]