“Ha yom yom huledet, ha yom yom huledet, ha yom yom huledet shel Sarah…” Tami, Shalom, and Galila serenaded me in the kitchen when I went to get breakfast. Today, I turned 22 years old on the 22nd of June, a very luck birthday according to my superstitious grandmother. Instead of cake and candles, I got to do something much cooler; go to Jerusalem and put my birthday wish in the Western Wall.
When we first arrived, I noticed it was not the Jerusalem I remembered from my last trip. So much had been built, renovated, and cleaned up, that it felt like a new city. I remembered the orthodox jews, the crowded shouk, and the walls of the city. Now there were upscale shopping malls, a brand new train system, and world-class hotels and restaurants. It was an interesting juxtaposition of ancient and modern.
We walked down a street that seemed like one, big, extended gift shop, and arrived at the security checkpoint at the entrance of the Western Wall. After passing through the metal detectors, I observed a woman at the wall praying from an ipad application for the siddur. We had no time to stop and pray ourselves, because we were booked for a tour of the underground tunnels excavated beneath the wall. The tour was all in Hebrew, so my understanding of it was filtered through Don. The Western Wall is the last remaining structure from the second temple, the holiest place for Jews, which was destroyed 2,000 years ago. Since then, the Muslim quarter of Jerusalem was built literally on top of this site. In the tunnels underground, we followed the length of the wall and could look up and see in the layers of dirt how buildings were constructed on top of the ruins. It was a fascinating tour, and I got to tuck a small prayer written on a piece of paper into the cracks of the giant stones in the subterranean wall.
After exiting the refreshingly cool tunnels into the searing heat, I hopped in a cab with Don to go to Ben Yehuda street. I planned to meet up with Kady, my friend from college, in this area of Jerusalem best know for it’s excellent shopping, restaurants, and bar scene. We sat in a small café and ordered salads while someone’s pet husky wandered around under the tables, panting in the heat. The dogs and cats in Israel are almost never on leashes, and are allowed to roam unsupervised in the streets. The animals always look a bit mangy and hungry. When I spoke to Don’s uncle Nissim about my dog Toby, he seemed shocked that we let him live indoors. “My dog has never in his life set foot in my house” he said. I can’t imagine how uncomfortable a husky must feel kept outdoors in this weather, though.
After sunset, we met up with Don’s family and walked back to the old city for a light show. Once a summer, abstract light instillations are put all over the city, with routes of different colors weaving in and out of the ancient walled pathways. After passing under some Chihulyesque sculptures of light, we were led to an alcove where a band was playing and a laser show was projecting on the stone walls. We stopped and listened for a while, totally transported by the incredible visuals. It was definitely a birthday to remember.
Day 8: Yom Chet
With the morning to spend in Jerusalem, we set out on foot back to Ben Yehuda Street. There were street musicians, tourists, Ultra-Orthodox, and secular Jews, it was a melting pot of cultures and religions. Don and I went exploring on our own and found the building of the Israeli nature conservancy, which looked like a castle. It had a beautiful garden in the courtyard, a shady oasis, which was a welcomed discovery in the hottest part of the day.
In a small side street, we found a shop selling sabbich, a dish Don has been raving about since we arrived in Israel. It consists of a fresh pita stuffed with Israeli salad, grilled eggplant, hard-boiled eggs, and tahini. Don and I split one, since we already gorged ourselves on the impressive breakfast buffet at the hotel.
After check out time, we piled back into the rental cars and drove to a lookout point. We got lost on the way in an area called The German Colony, which looked like a collection of charming French countryside villas and cafes. I would really like to return and explore that area more, because it had a totally different vibe than the rest of Jerusalem.
We eventually found our way and stopped on the top of a mountain where we could see all of the sprawling neighborhoods of Jerusalem. There is a law here, that all buildings must be constructed from Jerusalem stone, to keep the character of the ancient times. This dusty beige stone makes the city look like a series of sand castles from afar. At sunset, everything glows a golden yellow, earning the nickname “Jerusalem of Gold”.
Next on the agenda was Mt. Herzl, a memorial cemetery for many of the war heroes and founders of Israel. Unfortunately, we arrived five minutes after the gates were locked. Instead, we decided to stop in Abu Gosh, for what was rumored to be the best hummus in the country. It was difficult to find parking for the Abu Gosh Restaurant, whose lot was filled with some of the fanciest cars we had seen since yet- a Lexus, Mercedes, and BMW.
Behind the host stand, there hung an autographed poster of the blonde pop phenomenon, Justin Bieber. I pointed to the poster and the host confirmed, yes, Justin Bieber ate here. This place must really have some good hummus, I thought. We ordered the works; salads, pita, hummus, tahini, kebabs, and a pitcher of lemonade. I noticed that our placemats proudly displayed “Abu Gosh: Home of The Guinness Book of World Record’s Largest Plate of Hummus”. Low and behold, there was a photo of an entire village standing around a swimming pool sized plate of hummus. I soon found out who funded that endeavor, and why there were so many nice cars parked outside, when the owner came over to chat with us. Apparently his family in Illinois won the American lottery and gave him the money to open the restaurant.
The food soon arrived, and everything tasted fresh and delicious. It’s hard to say if it’s the best hummus in Israel, but it was pretty darn good. We returned to Tel Mond an hour later, just to be fed again by Tami. I feel like all we do on this trip is eat, but I’m ok with that plan.
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