Wednesday, June 22, 2011
by Tom Steele
Our venture is drawing to a close. Today, we are departing Jerusalem. While most tourist brochure photos concentrate on sites on or around the Temple Mount, the city itself is much more complex than that. The Holy City within the city walls is abustle with a warren of crowded and aromatic commercial alley ways populated by countless small specialty stalls selling everything from toys and candy to clothing, spices, meats cut off hanging carcasses and fabulous Arab bakeries. Interspersed within the cacophonous corridors are religious shrines venerated by Christians, Jews and Muslims. Immediately adjacent to these sites are street vendors aggressively hawking their wares. Outside the walls, a bustling international city reveals itself with impressive hotels and apartments and toney shopping districts ..... and highway strangling traffic that looks far too familiar to Atlanta commuters.
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| Miss Liz |
One of our group, Miss Liz, a comely lass, has had some interesting interactions with some of the local citzens. In Amman, while purchasing water at a local tea and coffee shop, she was invited by a gentleman to have tea with him. She politely parried the invitation to which he replied, "You are a good woman." In Jerusalem, a handsome and personable vendor, looking like a young Marlon Brando, selling scarves, water, caps and hats was obviously smitten by Miss Liz. An offer of 100 camels was made for her hand. We suggested that Liz hold out for 300 camels. Some of us wondered what the conversion of camels for goats may be, but at $3,000/camel, we're sure that pasture requirements would be a limiting factor. I might also add that Liz also posses two other requirements for a suitable suitor ... good teeth and a strong back.e
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| Barb and Tom, at one of many fine dining establishments |
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| Homemade goodies after a concert |
The choir has sung well, prayed often, and been fed spiritually by the faith and graciousness of the Jordanian and Palestinian Christian communities. We have also been fed well and abundantly in Jordan, Palestine and Israel. The dining fare has been varied and flavorful. Understand that I am a true omnivore. You could empty a vacuum cleaning bag on a plate and serve it with a butter, wine and shallot sauce and I would find it tasty, appreciating the fiber content if nothing else. That being said, the hotel buffets in Petra and Amman and Jerusalem offered a selection of salads and relishes that out rivals any we've ever experienced before. For those of us in the South who long for the season of homegrown tomatoes, a sense of homegrown tomato comfort can be found here. Small, narrow cucumbers, petite okra pods, red and green cabbages and tomatoes, chopped or in wedges, flavored with extravagant use of parsley and mint. Entrees included tender and flavorful braised meats and fish served in a milk and butter sauce. In Jerusalem, a pita bread filled with an abundance of fresh vegetables and savory chicken with carmelized onions. The culinary highlight was a Jordanian luncheon served under a Bedouin goat hair tent at a restaurant considered the best in Amman. The puffy Arabian breads served with a variety of chopped fresh vegetables, hummus, yogurt and nuts, tahini, brined vegetables, which we originally thought was the lunch, was followed by skewers of lamb, chicken and shish kabaob ... a true execise in flavorful bulk eating. This was concluded with Bachlava (a little musical humor there) and fragrant glasses of hot minted tea or minted lemonade. Did I mention Arab pastries? Fabulous.
We are now enroute to Nazareth through a valley of agricultural abundance. We have seen many sights and heard many tales of local life and living. The choir and friends and spouses accompanying them are considerably richer now in Christian experiences and history.
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