Tours in Jerusalem with Yishay Shavit

April 24th is the day that was chosen to commemorate the Armenian genocide.  On this date in 1915 two hundred and fifty of the Armenian leaders and intellectuals who lived in Istanbul and around it were arrested. The prisoners were taken to a locked facility near Ankara. Three days later the Othman parliament inspired by Mehmet Talaat Pasha, a member of the Othman triumvirate, accepted the Tehcir law known officially as “Sevk ve İskân Kanunu” – The law of shipping and resettling that allowed for the mass-deportation of Armenians from their towns and villages all over Anatolia during World War I. The Armenians were deported towards the Syrian Desert to the city of Dayr al-Zawr while subjected to horrifying cruelties and massacre.  No one is sure as to the number of people murdered. Some say there were 600,000 dead others say there were one and a half million who died. Most of the researchers tend to verify the larger numbers.

98 years have past since these terrible days and every year the Armenian people all over the world assemble on this date to commemorate the events and remind the world of their people almost forgotten tragedy. The 2300 Armenians in Jerusalem are no exception. This year I joined the ceremony in Jerusalem. As I entered the Armenian quarter in the old city of Jerusalem I encountered a huge sign that demands recognition of the Armenian genocide. The Turkish government denies the events and claim the whole story is about a group of traitors who decided to cross the lines to the Russian side during war time and some were punished for that. The Turkish claim there was no genocide but a reasonable reaction in war time. The number of victims officially recognized by the Turkish is a lot smaller. Actually, only 25 states officially recognized the Armenian genocide.

The sign at the entrance to the Armenian quarter that demands recognition of the Armenian genocide

When I got to the old church of St. James I was handed a document published by the Armenian “United Memorial committee”. As I was reading the document I got a clearer idea about the Armenian demands.  “Turkey and the Turkish academia” so says the printed text that was later today sent to the Turkish consulate in Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood in Jerusalem, “poured millions to come up with a refined system of alibis, rationalizations all of them while distorting and denying what happened”. The text goes on and asserts that “In any attempt to destroy an entire people and culture, there are no two narratives. The international community has little patience with denial and demands modern Turkey to admit its historic crime”. The document end with a written hope that coming the 100th year of this tragic anniversary the Turkish government will admit to the facts and by doing so will correct some of the injustice it caused. I have to say I am not that optimistic about the Turkish government changing its narrative especially when I remember what happened when Turkish novelist Orhan Pamuk, recipient of the 2006 Nobel prize in Literature, decided to recognize the Armenian genocide in an interview he has given to a Swiss newspaper in 2005. This interview led to the legislation of a law that makes the insult of the Turkish identity a crime punishable by law. Pamuk himself barely escaped imprisonment.

The Armenians are known to be the first nation that accepted Christianity. They did that at 301 A.D. and they have solid proof of living in Jerusalem continuously from the 4th century till today. Good evidence can be found in the amazing bird mosaic dating to the byzantine era. The Mosaic was discovered near the Damascus gate. Another proof is a latter that was given to the Armenian community on the 7th century A.D. by the Muslim conqueror of Jerusalem – Omar.  The church of St. James is according to tradition the resting place of James – the first bishop of Jerusalem and the half brother of Jesus Christ and of James the greater brother of John the Apostle who’s head is buried in St. James in Jerusalem and the rest of his body is in the cathedral of Santiago de Compostela. The church was built in the time of the crusades on top of older buildings and was rennovated in the 18th century thanks to a lot of money raised by Patriarch Gregarious.  As the community of Jerusalem was very poor Gregarious decided to go on a fund raising church tour in Armenia. He put on a heavy metal chain while visiting the churches and was so successful that the money allowed him to pay the debts of the community, renovate the church and build a stone wall around the Armenian quarter in the old city of Jerusalem.

St. James was the location for the first part of the memorial services. It was not my first or second time in the church. I am quite used to taking groups there during almost every tour in Jerusalem. The place is opened for visitors only between 3:00 and 3:30 P.M. and a short ceremony is held in that time. I am used to seeing there about 20 or 30 people. Today I was surprised. Hundreds of people were standing in the main hall of the church. They were holding candles and listening to a liturgy special for this sad day. The crowd varied from religious figures and residents of the Armenian quarter to hundreds of Israelis members of youth organization such as Hashomer Hatzair and Hanoar Haoved who came to protest against the fact that the state of Israel will not recognize officially the Armenian genocide. I believe most of the Israelis standing in St. James church visit the place for the first time in their life.

The ceremony that took place in front of St. James church in the Armenian quarter in Jerusalem

The presence of those Non-Armenians was even more obvious outside the church. The square gave the day a feeling of a day of protest. The place filled with demonstrators singing songs of protest, holding the Armenian flag and signs condemning Turkey and demanding recognition. Some went further and made some territorial claims “Mount Ararat is Armenian!” said some signs.  Mount Ararat is of a unique importance for the Armenians because of the part it played in the biblical story of Noah’s Ark. The Armenian priests head cover is shaped after Mount Ararat.

After the ceremony at St. James church another ceremony was held in the garden opposite the entrance to the Armenian quarter. There, under the Khatchkars (Stone curved crucifixes) the ceremony focused on the memories and presenting flowers. In past years the ceremony would then go to the Armenian cemetery in Mt. Zion but this year the Armenians decided to change their custom and held a secular political rally that ended not in the cemetery but in Mt. Zion near the buses that took the protestors to the Turkish consulate.

The political rally on its way to the Turkish consulate in east Jerusalem

I decided not to join the protestors near the Turkish consulate and made my way back home while remembering a book: “The Forty days of Musa Dagh”. The books describes the events of the Armenian genocide from the perspective of a small village near Antakya where Gabriel Bagardian succeeded in rescuing his people. This fiction book was written in 1933 by the Jewish-Austrian writer Franz Werfel. A memorable dialogue from this book is held between a German pastor Johannes Lepsius and the Othman ruler Enver Pasha. The pastor says then: “If  my leaders would treat people of my country who are of another race or hold different faith  unjustly or in an inhumane manner I will leave Germany at that moment and go to America!”. Enver Pasha reacts to that saying ” Germany is doomed if there many who share your views! It will mean that your people lack the capability to fulfill its national intentions without mercy”.

Only six years separate the writing of this book and World War II who brought the Holocaust with it. Only six years. The affinity between the fate of the Armenian people and the fate of the Jewish people was so clear and strong today in the streets of the Armenian quarter of the old cit of Jerusalem and I couldn’t stop wandering about the state of Israel not recognizing the Armenian genocide.

A short film I took during The political rally

Some more pictures I took on that day

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When we hear the name Jerusalem it reminds us of history, holiness and mysticism, however Jerusalem is also a city of passion. For thousands of years it was a dwelling place for people made of flesh and blood who lusted, envied, yearned, longed and if they were lucky, even loved and were loved by others. The stories of love and lust that involve Jerusalem are told throughout history and go back at least to King David’s time. These stories of happiness, disappointments and broken hearts show us a different, human and intriguing perspective of Jerusalem. Today I would like to tell again the stories of three women who lived in Jerusalem and shared one name – Lea.

In the year of 1930, in Alexandria, Egypt, a Christian-Arab lawyer, Nasib Abkarius Bay and a daughter of a well known ultra-orthodox family from Jerusalem, Lea Tenenboim were wed.  Abkarius loved his wife with all his heart and did his best to be a loving husband and fulfill every wish, desire and caprice Lea expressed. He built a large house in Rehavia Neighborhood in Jerusalem and hired house maids and servants that will do her bidding. The house looked like a magnificent palace and showed some influence of the architectural international style. It was a combination of the practical and the authentic, straight lines and Jerusalem stone, a combination of simplicity and splendor. The problem was that although Lea Tenenboim was much loved she was not happy.  A year after she and Abkarius moved into “Villa Lea” (this is the writing that can be seen on the outer wall of the house till today) Lea Tenenboim sneaked out with a new lover to Egypt after spending a large sum of Abkarius`s money and left him broke and broken hearted. They divorced officially in 1945 and a year later Abkarius died poor and lonely. Villa Lea was rented out in the market. Some of its residents were much interesting figures. The exiled emperor of Ethiopia Haile Selassie lived there and so did some Israeli ministers. Moshe Dayan and his daughter Yael Dayan lived in Villa Lea. There were also some students living there for a few years. Today Villa Lea is a private house, however not long ago the house was opened to the public as a part of the “Houses from within“  project in Jerusalem. The long line of visitors we could see that day waiting to enter the house only emphasizes the power a story like Lea Tenenboim’s fictitious love has over people till today.

As opposed to Lea Tenenboim Lea Goldberg, the famous Israeli poet, lived a life of loneliness and heartbreak. Her life filled many diaries and some of the most beautiful poems ever written in Hebrew. Lea Goldberg never married though she fell in love with many men. At first she loved older men and in later years she turned her heart to men much younger than her. None of them ever knew about her secret love for them. Lea Goldberd moved to Jerusalem in 1950 after she got a position at the Hebrew University. She lived in Alfasi St. in Rehavia. From her small flat in Jerusalem she taught, wrote, drew a lot of paintings and loved. One painful love of hers was Jacque Adout, a young man who was teaching French and reported for “Kol Zion Lagola” (The voice of Zion to the Diaspora). This love, like all her other unfulfilled ones, left Lea Goldberg scarred, however it also resulted in a most fruitful and creative period in her life. Goldberg wrote in her privet diaries about Adout saying he has made his contribution to her writing. In these diaries we find a nice description of one magical day in Jerusalem with Jacque: “…That single day in Jerusalem, the golden light shining on houses, the rocks, the fields. Hopeless bliss, happiness as if you are standing in front of a lovely picture, a work of art. that magic of ‘A’ – it was like another revelation and made me happy. Because I know his heart is not intended to me I write this in order to remember I once had a day like that…”

Jacque Adout was the inspiration for Lea Goldberg when she wrote the cycle “Love of Tereza de-Mon”. One of the most known verses in the cycle seams as if it refers to the same golden day in Jerusalem:

From my window as well as from yours

The same garden and view can be seen

And I can love for a whole day

The things that were caressed by your eye

In front of your window as well as in front of mine

The same nightingale sings at night

And when your heart trembles while sleeping

I will wake up and listen to it to.

(Sonnet no.9 “Love of Tereza de-Mon)

Lea Goldberg lived her life alone and without hope and when we pass by her flat in Rehavia while touring Jerusalem it should be easy enough for us to imagine her sitting at the window thinking about another window – the one belongs to her secret love. At this moment we should remember what she wrote about herself in her diaries: “I am poor in this world, as I don’t have a single whole value. I am writing this for the first time in my life: I have no purpose, no love, no faith, I have nothing.” While reading this we get a sad filling but we can also consider ourselves lucky for being able to love back a great poet who was never loved in her whole life.

Our third Lea was the luckiest. Lea Abushded loved and was loved dearly. Her lover was Itamar Ben-Avi, son of Eliezer Ben-Yehuda, the reviver of the Hebrew language (here is a nice Sesame Street cartoon about him)   (“Avi” in Hebrew represent the initials of Eliezer Ben-Yehuda. Itamar’s original name was Ben-Zion Ben-Yehuda and when he grew up he decided to changed both his first and last name to something more Israeli with a tribute to his father). Itamar met Lea Abushded when he was 26 years old and she was 16. The mutual love was not welcomed by Lea’s family because of the gap between classes. Itamar came from a poor family and was not considered a suitable husband for a girl from a respectable family like Lea’s. Seeing that the situation is hopeless Itamar started to use his father`s newspaper to publish some feverish love poems. The people of Jerusalem were thrilled by the public scandal and followed the papers eagerly. Eventually it seamed that things were going out of control when one of the poems that was printed had a clear threat of suicide in it:

My Pistol

Ever since I loved her and my heart aches

My pistol will never leave my sight

Between the books of my mind

On my beloved desk

It breaths death to me

As I am fed up with everything – even with my beauty,

Who chose to live like that without me,

Wait just a minute Oh my beauty

In a moment you shall weep endlessly

The song motivated the people of Jerusalem to help Itamar`s father to make a plea to Abushded family and this time he got the family’s consent. After another two years of engagement and surrendering to some financial blackmail they married each other. Their great love came to an end by Itamar`s untimely death in 1943. Lea Ben-Avi lived without Itamar for many years after he passed away. In an interview conducted by her grandson, Gil Chovav in “Kol Hair” newspaper she said: “Bension (Her way of pronouncing Ben-Zion) was really poor, but what would I get from the reach ones? One of them, Valiro was a big miser, the other, Shlush? His mother always tried to tell me what to do and I can’t stand her kind, the third went to Constantinople and lost all his money. Bension was poor but he really had a wide heart. Yes, he was generous. Don’t you think he made me miserable, even if I tend to complain. He was handsome he was like fire, the prince of Judea – this is what the women called him. This was until the poor man died”. Gil Hovav writes that until her death in 1982 he was reminded by his grandmother time and again that she renounced wealth and comfort but she always believed it was worth it.

The story of Lea Abushded and Itamar Ben-Avi is well known and a famous song called “The love of Itamar Ben-Avi” was written by Dudu Barak and Nurit Hirsch. The words of the chorus “…If my Lea you only loved me” refer us to another poem written by Itamar. In this poem Itamar used the fact that Lea`s name in transpotion of letters can be read Ela meaning goddess:

If only you loved me my Ela as I love you.

If only you were perplexed by day and crazy by night

If only was your heart was humming like a bloody tempest

And your eyes within your eyelids if only they became soaked by tears

I only you dreamt happiness for ever and awoke in panic

And in your weary mind if only lightning had pass

Hurrah, then you might understand me”

Three Lea’s, one city and such different stories. I have a friend who used to say that if we took a tear for every love story that was told in Jerusalem we shall not worry again for a shortage of fresh water in Israel. Who knows? Maybe he is right, however I do know that in a city like Jerusalem which is greater than life you could find love stories greater than life. You just need to take a tour in Jerusalem and look for them.

I would like to thank Pamela Salomon Benner for editing the English translation of this post

Outside the walls of the Old City of Jerusalem and east of Damascus Gate is a small green door. If you stand in front of it, you cannot imagine what lies on the other side. If you pass through that door, you will find a huge underground cave 300 meters long and 100 meters wide. The place was once a subterranean quarry used by the builders of Jerusalem in the Second Temple period. A persistent tradition says that King Solomon used stones from the same quarry to build the First Temple. The cave is linked to many traditions, and quite a few stories exist about it. The children of Jerusalem would tell you, for example, that this was the place where the Bible says Korach and his followers disappeared after the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them.

The most important tradition concerns King Zedekiah, the last king of Judea. According to Jeremiah 52, Zedekiah tried to escape from the city of Jerusalem while it was under siege. He managed to flee through a place referenced as the “gate between the two walls,” but “… the army of the Chaldeans pursued the king, and they overtook Zedekiah on the plains of Jericho, and all his army had scattered and deserted him….” (Jeremiah 52:8). Zedekiah was led to Babylon, but not before the Chaldeans killed his sons in front of him and then blinded him. He spent the rest of his life in exile, away from his city and country.

Now you probably asked yourself, “How did King Zedekiah get from ‘between the two walls’ to the plains of Jericho while the city of Jerusalem was under siege?” Well, the book of Jeremiah does not tell us anything about that; however, Rashi does supply us with an answer: “He [Zedekiah] had a cave going from his house to the plains of Jericho and he escaped through the cave. What did God Almighty do? He presented a deer to the Chaldeans and made it run above the cave’s roof. The Chaldeans chased the deer and as Zedekiah emerged from the other side of the cave, they spotted him and caught him.” You can easily guess the end of my story: An old tradition made the connection between the cave Rashi wrote about and the cave found near Damascus Gate. At the heart of the cave lies a small spring, and it is believed that its water comes from King Zedekiah’s tears—the tears he shed while watching the death of his sonsand the destruction of his city.

The only entrance to the cave was once barricaded by Sultan Suleiman I who feared while he was building the walls of the Old City that the cave might serve as a weak spot during a siege. For many years people told tales about a huge cave residing under the Muslim Quarter of the Old City of Jerusalem, but the cave was found again only during the 1850s by James Turner Barclay. Barclay, who was a doctor and a Bible scholar, walked his dog one night outside the walls of the Old City. Suddenly the dog disappeared. It took Barclay a while until he found the dog barking from inside a hole in the ground. The hole led Barclay and his colleagues down to the heart of the earth and thus they discovered Zedekiah’s Cave again. Barclay was followed by interested Freemasons, who thought this was the quarry of King Solomon, the first Freemason according to their tradition. Freemasons continue to assemble secretly in the cave every once in a while.

Over the past few years the cave of Zedekiah has been open to all visitors. As a tour guide I take many of my groups to see this fantastic site. On a hot day in May 2012 we walked into the cave, trying to escape the blazing sun, and I was telling my group about various traditions related to the cave of Zedekiah. Nothing prepared us for the surprise that was waiting for us inside. All around we saw loudspeakers from which a soft, wonderful Indian singing voice emerged. At first I thought it was a new tourist upgrade intended to make our stay underground more pleasant; however, after walking farther into the cave we discovered the true nature of the music. At the great hall in the center of the cave sat hundreds if not thousands of Indians. In front of them, on a small improvised stage with the image of the god Hanuman in the background, sat the guru Sri Morari Bapu telling the tales of Rama, Sita and Hanuman in Lanka as they are told in the Indian epic Ramayana.

Sri Morari Bapu, a well-known guru in India, is particularly respected as a preacher who conducts special ceremonial readings of and commentaries on the sacred Hindu writings. These ceremonies are called kathe and last nine or ten days each. The readings are accompanied by traditional Indian music played live by Indian masters of traditional Indian instruments. This scene explained the music we heard when we entered the cave.

Sri Morari Bapu lives in the small village of Talgajarda in Bhavnagar, a district in the state of Gujarat, India. From his base he travels worldwide to perform nine-day kathe. As of this writing Sri Morari Bapu has performed at least 700 kathe around the world on land, at sea and even on air. The kathe are attended by huge crowds—sometimes thousands, sometimes millions.

This was Sri Morari Bapu’s first tour in Jerusalem. On his Web site he wrote that Jerusalem is an example of a small city where people of all religions learned to live together and didn’t have to compromise over their religion. The followers of Sri Morari Bapu with whom we spoke told us that in his katha he emphasized the need for compassion, love and reconciliation and thus, according to their belief, it is obvious that Jerusalem is a legitimate site for this kind of ceremony. They considered the katha in Jerusalem as a means to send a message to the entire world.

The sitar was playing, Sri Morari Bapu led the ceremony on, and the excited crowd sat quietly and observed every word. I led my group farther into the depths of the cave. As we returned to the main hall half an hour later it seemed as though nothing had changed. The guru maintained the same position, as did his followers. No one was in a rush. I thought to myself that they had all come to Zedekiah’s Cave to find their way into the heart of Jerusalem. Later, another thought occurred to me: Could it be that Sri Morari Bapu had transformed Zedekiah’s Cave from a way to escape from Jerusalem to a gateway into the city? Could he see in a place that symbolizes the destruction of the city the way to rebuild it? Could it be that through the stone that helped build the city two thousand years ago Sri Morari Bapu built a bridge between the hearts of all lovers of Jerusalem? Was this what Sri Morari Bapu intended, or was it my own wild imagination? I suppose I will eventually find the solution while touring Jerusalem.…

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Stanley Lambchop was just another ordinary boy. One day, he was given a bulletin board for displaying postcards and pictures. The board was hung over Stanley’s bed. An unfortunate decision as in the middle of the night it fell on the unsuspecting   sleeping Stanley. The event had grave consequences as Stanley, while surviving the accident, became flat! Stanley soon discovered the advantages of being flat: He could pretend he was a kite for his brother, he could sneak in and out under doors and most important – He could get inside an envelope and travel the world for free.

This is the synopsis of the book written by Jeff Brown and named “Flat Stanley“. The book was published in 1964. It was very successful and a series of flat Stanley’s adventures were published in the following years. An even bigger success was the project created and inspired by the Flat Stanley series. In 1995, a Canadian teacher named Dale Hubert decided to ask his third graders to prepare a cardboard Flat Stanley figure and send it by mail to friends and acquaintances in other cities and countries. The people who received Flat Stanley were asked to keep a log describing Stanley’s adventures and take some pictures of him in interesting places. The Flat Stanley project was an amazing success and today it is spread to over 7000 schools and 50 countries.

Flat Stanley eating Israeli Salad

In the summer of 2011 I was guiding a very nice family from Los-Angeles who came for a Bat Mitzvah tour in Israel. With the twelve-years-old girl came her parents, ants and uncles and her sister. We traveled the country, had interesting tours in Jerusalem, the Galilee, Massada and other sites. Over those ten days we bonded nicely. Two months after that tour I got Flat Stanley by mail from D., the Bat-Mitzvah’s younger sister and a fifth grader herself. At first I did not understand what I was supposed to do with this weird thing. It could easily be thought of as a joke, but after reading the “manual” I became quite enthusiastic – D. asked me to take Flat Stanley with me as I guide tours in Jerusalem!

I decided to treat Flat Stanley as an honorable guest. We fed him traditional Israeli salad, put him in a Succah we built in Kiryat Yovel neighborhood in Jerusalem and the next day, I took Stanley to a children’s tour with families that came to visit Jerusalem for the Succot holidays. We concluded our tours in the Kotel and the children who really liked Flat Stanley took him for some photo-ops near the wall. We had a small curious gathering around Flat Stanley – this is definitely what the project is for, though we still had another climax ahead.

Flat Stanley at The Kotel

The next day, we had in Jerusalem the annual Jerusalem parade. The parade includes traditionally a few options of tours around Jerusalem each made with different difficulty level. At the end of that part of the parade another more official and festive parade is held. This carnival takes place in the city center and draws participants from all over the world. During the past few years we have a lot of Christians who support Israel that take part in the parade as part of a project held by the ICEJ – International Christian Embassy in Jerusalem. The institute was established in the early 80′s of the previous century and it provides a spiritual home for Christians who support Israel and follow the need to comfort Zion according the command of the scriptures in Isaiah 40:1-2 “Comfort, comfort, my people says your god. Speak tenderly to Jerusalem…”. The people from ICEJ try to assist Israel and its citizens in any possible way and hold many charity events in the city of Jerusalem. In their main event in Succot they often invite the prime minister of Israel for a traditional speech.

Flat Stanley and Nir Barkat - the Mayor of Jerusalem

This year I decided to try and get a good place from which I will be able to watch the parade properly. I found my way to the closed sitting area watching the parade and of course I had Flat Stanley with me. As I was waiting patiently I met a friend – Hagit Zahi, a great lover of Jerusalem who never misses an interesting event. A few minutes later the mayor of Jerusalem, Nir Barkat arrived and sat in the row in front of us. Hagit spotted the chance, took Flat Stanley and introduced him to the Mayor who agreed to the amusing photo-op – It was really a historic event! The parade arrived and we could see groups from various Israeli companies like Bezeq, various banks soldiers and many Christians from all over the world wearing their traditional costumes. We could see the Chinese with their red flags, the Dutch with traditional dresses, Russians, Americans and even a delegation from Papua New Guinea with interesting and colorful outfits. Stanly was enthusiastic. He was passed on from one delegation to another and took a lot of pictures with everybody.

It was a hard day’s night for Flat Stanley. He got in his envelope and went back to Los-Angeles with numerous memories from a special tour in Jerusalem.

Flat Stanley and a friend from Papua new-Guinea

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This is just the way I am: Every time I travel in a foreign city I try to find Jerusalem in it. Rabi Nachman of Breslau once said that wherever he goes he always goes to the land of Israel. My traveling companions already know the every tour even to the furthest city is basically a tour in Jerusalem with small modifications of scenery and atmosphere.

Lately I took a short vacation in London with my wife Noa. Just make sure you understand that my vacations include about 10km of walking and one museum a day. Well, this is just the way I am. I wanted to be ready and prepared myself at home. I wanted to visit some London sites that left an impression on Jerusalem. I planned on visiting the grave of General Allenby, the man who conquered Jerusalem during World War I and lies today in Westminster abbey. I also remembered Sennacherib’s relief depicting the conquest of Lachish. The relief is displayed at the British museum and copies of it can be found at the Israel museum in Jerusalem and in the Institute of Archeology in the Hebrew university of Jerusalem. I even planned on visiting the Churchill war room. Churchill was the leader who “tore” the eastern bank of river Jordan from its western bank in his white paper from 1922. Reading my well prepared list I thought it was an impressive amount of Jerusalem sites in one city. As I discovered later I was not a bit prepared at that point for the real number of times I was going to remember Jerusalem during my time in London.

My first encounter was while walking on a lawn along the River Themes near the parliament building. Just around the corner I spotted a familiar figure. The black shiny figure was standing among a few other similar figures. One look at the statue took me back to Jerusalem. It was the statue known as “Les Bourgeois de Calais” by the famous Auguste Rodin. The statue depicts the surrender of the citizens of Calais to Edward III during the Hundred Years’ war. Till today, the Original statue is situated in the city of Calais and 12 replicas are spread across the world. As you can see, one can be found in Westminster, London and another in the Israel museum in Jerusalem

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As we continued our tour of London we visited the Big-Ben and watched the changing of the guard at the Buckingham palace, strolled in the St. James gardens and even found the statue of queen Boudica, the queen who burnt London to the ground. Then we encountered Jerusalem again. We were sitting in a place called Embankment not far away from a meander of the Themes. There, in the heart of a small garden we found a modest memorial. Examining it closely told us it was a memorial for the British soldiers, most of whom were Australians and New-Zealand citizens that served in the Imperial camel corps in Sinai. These people conquered Jerusalem and their dead are buried till today in the Commonwealth war graves cemetery situated on Mount Scopus in Jerusalem.

By the way, not far away from this memorial, on the bank of the river Themes you can find Cleopatra’s Needle, an obelisk given to Queen Victoria by Mohamed Ali, another famous conqueror of Jerusalem. The obelisk is more ancient then Cleopatra and is dated to the time of a Pharaoh known as Thutmose III. The same pharaoh that conquered the land of Israel in the 15^th century BC and thus brought a new era to the land: the late bronze period

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Our London tour was not over yet and I was haunted by Jerusalem. In Victoria and Albert museum we encountered a familiar glass exhibit. A similar one can be found in the Tower of David museum in Jerusalem and there is no wonder: The artist was no other than Dale Chihuly whose works were exhibited in Jerusalem during 1998-2000. The exhibition is considered the most successful exhibition of all times in Israel. Over a million people visited it. In Kensington gardens we passed a few gigantic statues. It was a temporary open exhibition of works by the artist Anish Kapoor. Born in India, Anish Kapoor graduated from the Bezalel academy of arts and design in Jerusalem and his work “Turning the world upside down” is standing in the Israel museum today.

We found quite a few signs in the city advertising for “Krav Maga” courses. We know those signs from the streets of Jerusalem. Feeling a bit haunted again we decided to take refuge in the nearest museum – The Tate Britain. The museum specializes in painting of the great British artists of the 18^th and 19^th centuries. There we thought there was no danger of finding Jerusalem again. Alas, I was disappointed again when among the wonderful works of William Turner I found Jerusalem once more. From a small painting a familiar tombstone peered at me. It was Absaloms tomb of the Kidron Valley just beneath the Mount of Olives. It was a bit of a surprise when remembering that Turner, although traveling a lot never got to Jerusalem. Not far away from this picture I found another friend from Jerusalem. A few works by the artist Holman Hunt, who lived in the Nevi’im st. in Jerusalem, were on display. This is how I learnt that Hunt is considered one of the most influential artists in 19^th century British art. I will remember him during my coming tours in Jerusalem while I will be sitting on bench built and dedicated to Hunt by his wife. A bench which still sits near Mar Elias monastery on the Hebron road in Jerusalem and shows a spectacular view of the Judean desert.

I could bring a hundred more examples proving that London and Jerusalem are twin cities with a strong and deep connection. I even thought about starting a Facebook group supporting the formalization of the connection. I had many more ideas but I suddenly realized that the connection to London can’t be unique. There must be so many other cities in the world having a similar affinity to Jerusalem – Cairo, Paris, New-York and many others. To make a long story short – doesn’t matter where I go, I can always find a snippet of Jerusalem there.

Tours in Jerusalem – The Parliament building

The connection between the parliament building in London and Jerusalem is obvious. Here, in 1947 a decision was made to terminate the British mandate in Israel.

Tours in Jerusalem – Greenwich Prime Meridian

Tours in Jerusalem – Greenwich Prime Meridian

Tours in Jerusalem – The conquest of Lachish

When Sennacherib conquered Israel Lachish was second in size only to the city of Jerusalem. The Relief depicting the conquest of Lachish shows the horrors of destruction.

Tours in Jerusalem – The Highgaet cemetery

Highgate cemetery is the last resting place of Karl Marx, Douglas Adams and others. Among the tombstones we found the grave of two lovers. A Christian and a jew who survived the holocaust. The writing from the Book of Ruth say “... your people shall be my people and your God my God…”

Tours in Jerusalem – A military atmosphere in the Portobello Market

You can find a lot of uniforms in the street of Jerusalem and apparently quite a few buyers for them in Portobello Market.

Tours in Jerusalem – Sky mirror by Anish Kapoor

Not in Jerusalem only! Anish Kapoor leave his mark on London gardens

Tours in Jerusalem – Chihuly at the V&A

Not only in the Tower of David museum! Dale Chihuly has an honorable place in the Victoria and Albert museum in London

Tours in Jerusalem – A Jewish date on the Themes

Now it really feels like Jerusalem. A Jewish Religious couple during a date sitting on a London bench near the themes.

Tours in Jerusalem – The Absalom grave by Turner

The famous William Turner shows his art creating an image of Absalom’s Tomb

Tours in Jerusalem – Krav Maga in London

A new fashion in London. The Israeli Krav maga technique is the latest hit on the streets of London

Tours in Jerusalem – The Free Masons

The Freemasonry fraternity was founded in London but there is a special honor in being a part of the Jerusalem branch. As you can see they found a few enemies in London.

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At least once a year a fascinating event takes place in Jerusalem. During the festival of Houses from within many private people and various institutions open the gates of their homes and buildings and let every curious visitor inside free of charge. For a whole weekend the city of Jerusalem fills with those of us who love the mysterious and magical corners which are closed to the public most of the year. Many organizations and private people cooperate with the event that is being produced voluntarily by the architect Alon Ben-Nun and Aviva levinson. They are the founders and the dreamers who, with a lot of enthusiasm and love of the profession, succeed every year to open the hearts of even the most stubborn landlords that hold in their possession the keys to secret gardens and unknown courtyards. The owners of the houses that are opened to the public often meet the public during the days of “Houses from within”, answer questions and guide them around the place voluntarily.

This year I was both a guide and a tourist in the events of “Houses from within”. As a tourist I was curious about a few open houses and institutions. I paid my first visit to the World center of the North Africa Jewry. I visited there on a Friday early morning hour. I have not visited there for a few years and rumors of extensive renovations made me wait at the locked gate for a quarter of an hour. Finally, right on time, came a man named Albert Gozlan to the gate. He is one of the leaders of the Moroccan community in Israel. As he opened the gate for the many curious visitors we found ourselves in the middle of a construction site. It was obvious there was still a lot of work to be done here (The Moroccan artists left for a while because of the Ramadan period, said Gozlan). Even the electricity was not working yet. However, even as it was the place was just beautiful. Magnificent mosaics decorate the walls and floors, interesting wooden Moroccan engraving and delicate stone engraving can be seen in every corner. In another room, wrapped and waiting for happy days to come were a few presents that King Hassan the Second of Morocco gave to Shimon Peres. An Andalusian style garden is being built near the front gate. No doubt, when the work is finished we shall have another wonderful site we can add to our tours in Jerusalem.

The World center of the North Africa Jewry

Another place I visited that day was the office of the Israel state archives. You can find the Israel state archive in Makor Haim, the back yard of Talpiyot. Millions of documents, certificates and diplomas are stored on about 40 Kilometers of shelves in a warehouse. In the office building where I visited we could only find the visitors center. Me and the others watched a nice presentation about the archives tasks. There was also a small exhibition of some documents of interest. I was especially enthusiastic about the picture album that was given in 1925 by Ragib Nashashibi, the mayor of Jerusalem to Herbert Samuel, the first British High commissioner in Palestine when he left his position. The album has some wonderful unique photos. I loved the series of pictures taken at the inauguration of King George Street during the year of 1924. I could recognize the yet unfinished street and Jews, Muslims and British people standing side by side smiling as a reminder for long forgotten days.

Apart for these  two sites I had only a few minutes to enter the Templers Cemetery in the German colony and old community center in the neighborhood that was converted to an Armenian church long time ago. I also wanted to try and visit “Villa Lea” in Rehavia. This year was the first time the house has opened its gates. The building was built by Nasiv Avkarius Bay, A successful Greek, Christian lawyer, for his wife, Lea Tenenboim (who came from an ultra orthodox Jewish family). Lea left her husband for another, and the poor guy had no other choice but to rent the house. Many people had lived there since, including the exiled Ethiopian emperor Haile Selassie and the chief commander of Jerusalem, Moshe Dayan. These days two Israeli families live in the house and most of the time, prefer to keep their privacy. That day Villa Lea was opened and an unbelievably huge crowd was waiting outside.

Israel state archive - Herbert Samuel's Album

As I couldn’t get inside “Villa Lea” I decided it was my turn to contribute a little of my knowledge. I arrived in Beit Shmuel, where I lead a few public tours. I showed the visitors Beit Shmuel and the adjacent Shimshon Center. I spoke of the architectural aspects of the place and the cultural events that are happening there. We went up to the roof of the impressive building to see the Blaustein hall, famouse for its glass dome. I think I guided at least 200 people. At the end of the day I thought these numbers were solid proof that “Houses from within” is an important event both for the citizens of the city and for people who love tours in Jerusalem.

The line at Villa Lea

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Recently I was privileged to guide a once in a lifetime tour. A nice family from Be’er Sheva called me with one special request. Dina, The mother and grandmother of the family is struggling with cancer and the doctors fear that her days are numbered. Dina always loved to travel and wished to try and have one last tour in Jerusalem. The family was working hard on the mission, Magen David Adom in Israel let us use the Wish Ambulance and I was chosen to guide the group. I met the family on a hot summers day on Mount Zion. Five minutes and a few Borekas later came the ambulance. The wish ambulance is a unique project. It is an ambulance equipped with cutting edge technology, that gives seriously ill people a chance to make their wishes come true. Unfortunately, often these wishes are the last ones fulfilled for these people. The ambulance was donated by the MDA friends from Sweden and it is operated by a well trained crew. A crew of four that does fantastic work.

With the ambulance came a designated wheelchair with huge wheels and fast comfortable plastic joints. I have never seen such a chair, and so didn’t the passers-by who looked quite astonished by the sight. A few minutes later we set of for our first stop – the tomb of David. Entering the site was not that easy with a wheelchair and it took us a while. Still it was worth it. People come to this place, where according to tradition, King David is buried in order to read portions of the book of Psalms: “Out of the depths have I called Thee, O LORD, Lord, hearken unto my voice; let Thine ears be attentive to the voice of my supplications… I wait for the LORD, my soul doth wait, and in His word do I hope. My soul waiteth for the Lord, more than watchmen for the morning; yea, more than watchmen for the morning. O Israel, hope in the LORD; for with the LORD there is mercy, and with Him is plenteous redemption…”. I remembered these well known verses from the book of Psalms chapter 130 and they got that day with Dina and her family a different and dipper meaning.

Walking through the Jewish quarter we past a few locations that are accessible to wheelchairs and talked about the recent changes we could observe in almost every corner of the place. Dina asked a lot of knowledgeable and intelligent questions. It was clear she had spent a lot of time wandering in Jerusalem. I answered all her questions and inside I was impressed by the strength that this remarkable woman was showing.

Now it was time for the Wailing Wall, the Kotel. I sent the wish ambulance to the square near the Kotel and there it was parked with the help of the Israeli police. A great help was also Mrs. Mali Feder from the Jerusalem municipality tourist office, who helped us get the much needed parking permit. We went down with our fancy wheelchair through the road to the Kotel. Shamefully we have no other decent way to get to the Kotel today (there is a future plan of building a wheelchair lift). The Jewish quarter itself is accessible and wheelchair friendly but it is impossible to get down from there to the Kotel and we had to block the road for a while in order to get Dina close to the Wall. Again it was worth it all. I live secular life but I must admit I became tearful there, in front of the Wailing wall as I looked from the men section of the Kotel to the other side of the partition and watched Dina and her daughters. The Kotel brings out peoples feelings and now it was happening again. You couldn’t be indifferent watching Dina on her special wheelchair surrounded by her beloved family and the devoted MDA people praying on that Holy place.

There near the Kotel ended our tour. I parted from Dina after she was safe and sound on the wish ambulance. The family headed back to Be’er Sheva and held a party for thrilled Dina. I went back home all emotional and couldn’t stop thinking of the experience.

A day later I got a moving letter from the family. I am still not sure who should thank who. I was truly privileged.

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Often, when I go out and walk the streets of Jerusalem I encounter a place or a person that surprises me. A while ago it happened to me again. I attended an event that was organized by a tour company named Grand circle. It was held as a part of the company’s half yearly guides meeting. The main event of our meeting took place in a hall named ‘Alhambra’ situated in the heart of Saladin Street in east Jerusalem. I must say that I don’t often visit that street but I am no stranger to it either. Every once in a while, when I visit the American colony hotel, the Rockefeller museum or Zedekiah’s cave, I walk down that street, though till now I never got there by night. Well, there is always a first time…
We got to the Alhambra hall in the heart of Saladin Street just opposite the ministry of justice office, on a Tuesday evening. We walked by foot from the nearby Leonardo hotel. Before entering the hall, I decided to wander around the vibrant streets for a while. And what a surprise it was! These days, Jaffa Street, the main street of Jerusalem is almost paralyzed because of the building of the light rail. The public just refuses to visit the street, and here, on the other side of the city Saladin Street is an example of prosperity. Numerous people fill the coffee shops, the display windows are full and beautifully illuminated and the atmosphere is completely European (though a great dill can still be done about the cleanliness of the street). A friend recommended that I check the Educational Bookshop that doubles as a coffee shop. What an extraordinary place! The variety of books that deal with Jerusalem and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is astonishing. I was surprised to find many pro-Palestinian and Pro-Israeli books laying side by side – all of which are in English. The shop was full of locals and young tourists who drank coffee, talked and discussed various issues. It felt like an Indian guesthouse.
Crossing the road from the bookshop got me to the fancy Alhambra palace. The place used to be a cinema and lately has changed into a splendid spacious hall. Huge chandeliers hanged from the ceiling and made us all feel a little European. We could go back and remember the days when the colonialist governors of the city enjoyed gathering in these kinds of places and discussing the weather. The event we attended included a show of Arabic folklore and fund raising for an orphanage called “Jeel al amal” located in El Azariya. This orphanage does extraordinary work in harsh conditions. The audience, about a hundred people included Israeli tour guides and American pensioners that tour Israel with Grand circle. This mix of such different people was considered impossible to achieve just a few years ago in Jerusalem 2002 and is rare enough even today. The head of the orphanage went on stage and spoke of the impressive achievements of the institute, the food was good and the highlight was the folklore group show.

About fifteen youngsters, Arabs, residence of East Jerusalem went on stage dressed with wonderful traditional clothes and danced Jerusalem folkdances. They were no great dancers but it was not important for does who watched them. These young group members, the popular dance group of Na’amath, came from an underprivileged neighborhood in Jerusalem (Jerusalem is the poorest city in Israel) and life is not simple where they come from. I am certain of the fact that every dancer in the group dances despite the atmosphere in his neighborhood. These youngsters try to turn their backs to life full of drugs, crime and poverty and we hope that this dance ensemble will provide them with better livelihood. It is not trivial for youngsters from East Jerusalem to perform in front of Israeli and American audience. It is not trivial for Jewish Israelis to watch a Palestinian folklore show. In a city with 35% Palestinians and 65% Jews, a city that draws at least two million tourists every year, these meetings became rare, maybe too rare. The darbuka drums roared, the guests were feasting and the Alhambra Palace was full of cultural normal touristy activity. An activity with touristy economical logic that stands behind it. The same logic that makes, I believe, Saladin Street the busy street that it is.

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Everybody is drawn by Jerusalem. Every Jerusalem resident know that when he sees a new flag raised in the city he’d better stay home. You don’t want to walk or drive the streets of the city when some foreign diplomat causes traffic jams that result in angry people who are late for work. In these days, Jerusalem citizens long only for the peaceful routine, but today I want to write about a different event. This event, though involving tens of thousands of people did not cause any unusual traffic problems. It was a festival that gave us all a feeling of spiritual elevation. None of us wanted it to be finished.

Once a year, on the 29th day of the Hebrew month Cheshvan, the members of the Beta Israel congregation ( Jews coming from Ethiopia ) gather in the ridge of Armon Hanatziv in Jerusalem. They come from all over Israel to celebrate the Sigd festival. The festival takes place fifty days after Yom kipur  (day of atonement) and has four important themes: the yearning for the land of Zion, the commemoration of the day the ten commandments were given to the people of Israel, the commemoration of the renewal of the covenant by Ezra during the return to Zion from the Babylonian Exile in the 6th century BC and a reminder of the importance of keeping Mitzvot. In Ethiopia this festival was of high importance to the community. People used to fast, walk long distances and meeting old acquaintances. Today, the Sigd has gone through a some changes, but the importance of social gathering is still noticed.
I’ve been to quite a few ceremonies in Jerusalem. Some involved tens of thousands of people, others only a few. Some were Christian ceremonies, some Muslim and some Jewish, but I never experienced such ceremony as the one held during the Sigd festival. It was very simple: on a stage facing the wonderful view of the Sherover promenade, stood the elders of Beta Israel – the Kessim. They held holy bibles in their hands and sang long monotonous liturgical poems called Piyutim while sheltered by numerous colorful umbrellas.
These liturgical poems last for hours and the huge crowd is fascinated by them:

“And Holy Zion thus climbs the mountain,
And Saved Zion thus climbs the mountain
Lift up your eyes round about, and see: they all are gathered together,
All your sons come from far…”

This Chant is only one out of many others. Part of the crowd listen attentively to every word that is spoken or sang on stage, others focus on the social gathering. I could feel the pride in the air – that is a festival which is unique to the Ethiopian community, it goes back a long time but today it becomes a well noted and appreciated sign of this culture in the modern Israeli society. Not long ago, in the Israeli Knesset (the Israeli Parliament), a new law was legislated. It recognizes the Sigd festival to be an official holyday in the Jewish state. As I was walking around I felt this holy festival had also an important social message. It was as if the crowd was saying “We also have something to contribute to the Israeli society”, “Our culture is both ancient and uncompromising”. Not one person was bowing his head; no one was looking for excuses for what he is. I met people who are proud at their culture. A few small talks showed me other aspects: A young man from “Hashomer Hatzair” youth movement that came from Kiryat Moshe neighborhood in the city of Rehovot, reminded me the difficulties Ethiopian university graduates encounter while trying to find a decent job, Tomer, an old friend of mine spoke of the discrimination he encountered and the racism that you can find in many schools in the city of Petach Tikva. That moment, all those words sounded like relevant criticism, which is a part of the social campaign the Ethiopian community is conducting. These days it feels like they are really going to win.

“Hear us O Lord, Hear us,
Hear us O Lord, Hear us Lord, our God.
As we pray to you, as we call upon you, as we cry for you,
You who loves us from above, from your dwelling place,
Hear us…”

The Kessim continued praying, the elders dressed in their traditional gowns listened, and I was looking for the young generation. I didn’t have to look far away. Along the Sherover promenade I could see a few tents that were raised buy the people of the Israeli youth movements. The youngsters sat their talking and learning about the Sigd festival and about the issues of immigration absorption. The youth leaders from all movements cooperated and created a wonderful educational open space for the children and youth and they came, sat and learned and just mingled. I felt really festive and cheerful. A few steps further I met groups of soldiers from various army forces – they were exchanging opinions and experience. At the corner of my eye, under the bush I could see the couples ( many of them were half Ethiopian and half “farangies” – the Ethiopian word for white people) they were looking for a moment together. It was really heartwarming.

It is hard to avoid the comparison of the Sigd festival to the Mimuna. The Mimuna festival has a similar importance in revealing the beauty of a unique Jewish culture – The Moroccan culture .
A culture that was left behind for many years by the Israeli society. The Mimuna festival, just like the sigd helped the Moroccans hold their head up high and preserve their magnificent culture while becoming integrated in the Israeli society. As I already had a few opportunities to participate in the Mimuna festival I can only find one fundamental difference between the two festivals. I feel that the Mimuna festivals became more of a nostalgic celebration and the Sigd still feels like an outspoken criticism that relates to the social state of the Ethiopian community in Israel. The last significant Moroccan Aliya happened back in the 60’s. Today, a new group of newcomers from the 90’s are working hard to take their rightful place in the cultural Israeli Mosaic, A mosaic second to none all over the world. Now, are you still wandering why we didn’t want the festival to end?

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World War I  left a deeply scarred western society. The millions left dead, the crippled and the returning soldiers who could not find peace in the postwar world changed the face of Europe for good.
These days the trauma is slowly fading away. In 2009, the last man who could boast for taking part in the war as a soldier in the Egyptian Expeditionary force to the Sinai Peninsula and Palestine, had passed away.
Knowing all that I thought it to be appropriate if I took part in the ceremony that commemorates the end of the war. The ceremony takes place every year in the Commonwealth war graves cemetery situated on Mount Scopus, in the morning of a Saturday which is close to November 11th (The day in which the end of war ceasefire came into force).
Actually the ceremony commemorates not only the slain in the war but also a few other events but as there are only soldiers from World War I buried in the Jerusalem War Cemetery the ceremony feels as if it perpetuates those soldiers who served under Field Marshal Sir Edmund Henry Hynman Allenby.

The Jerusalem War Cemetery is not unique. There are seventeen more cemeteries west to the Jordan river where the slain soldiers from World War I are buried. The British empire did not send the bodies of the dead back to their homeland, but buried them in the place where they met their death. The British poet Rupert Brooke wrote it well in his poem

“The Soldier”

“If I should die, think only this of me:
That there’s some corner of a foreign field
That is for ever England…”

Rupert Brooke, As an irony of fate, Joined His Majesty’s Armed Forces during World War I and passed away from a disease while he was heading to the battle of Gallipoli. As a British soldier he was buried in the Greek island of Skyros.
Thanks to the British burial tradition we have in Jerusalem a green, calm cemetery that truly looks like some corner of a foreign field with a distinct British character. The place is maintained throughout the year by the CWGC – Commonwealth War graves Commission that hired three gardeners in Jerusalem. One of the Gardeners, Mustafa, works here for more than 40 years.

The Jerusalem War Cemetery

Many representatives from all sorts of organizations that operate in Israel came to the Saturday morning ceremony. With them stood of course diplomats from embassies and consulates that represented the countries who fought the war. I could recognize high ranking officers from a variety of armed forces, all wearing the official military uniform, who stood along with local clergymen and some curious Israelis. The British Consul opened the ceremony and was joined by the church representatives. All of a sudden, an unusual sound to the ears of us Israelis went through the air – it was the sound of bagpipes. The British soldier who played the bagpipes was wearing magnificent Scottish uniform and while playing he started walking in a moderate pace to the back of the cemetery. He passed so close to were I was standing that I could almost feel his breath but instead my attention was drawn to his ear – embarrassingly it was stuffed with earplugs. I must admit that if you consider the fact that his fellow Bugler wasn’t doing such a great job maybe he did the right thing… The ceremony went on and the act of remembrance was read. As a part of the ceremony, a portion of the “Ode of remembrance” by Laurence Binyon was read. The ode ends with the words “we will remember them”. These words became an important part in many remembrance ceremonies.

Bagpiper with earplugs

The distinguished representatives placed wreaths, the priests read a few more lines from the bible and the ceremony was over. A few more photos and some diplomatic conversations and the crowd dispersed. All official representatives were invited to the house of the British consul in Jerusalem and we went along. The house is located in the heart of Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood in East Jerusalem. It is a breathtaking, wall guarded place and it has a beautiful garden where you can organize a nice cocktail party. Walking past the living room we could see rare porcelain vases and an impressive mix of works of arts and crafts that were probably given to the British representatives in Jerusalem over the years. The modest reception in the garden was really British in atmosphere with small talks and polite smiles and of course – Tea. After all, the house of the British consul is another English corner that lies in a foreign field.

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