Visit to Hebrew University and to All of the Churches

Since Paul and David were ill and Patrick had an appointment in the city for his thesis research, it was only Blanca and I who went on an excursion in Jerusalem with Julie and Davidal. We first went to Hebrew University.

Hebrew University of Jerusalem is the oldest university in Israel and was established in 1918. However, construction of the Mount Scopus campus did not begin until 1925. By 1947, the university became a large research and teaching institution but the campus was under the attack of the Arabs in 1948. In 1949, the Israelis were not allowed to have access to Mount Scopus by the Jordanians and the Israelis were forced to build another campus in Givat Ram. It wasn't until 1967 when the Israelis were finally able to move back to the campus on Mount Scopus.

When we were walking around, it was interesting to see how different each building were. The outside seem very modern yet when you walk inside, it is very dated, 1960s. School was in session, even though it was a Sunday (because Saturday is a holy day--Shabbat), so it was nice to see the school buzzing with activity. I think the best part of the university was the outdoor amphitheater as it offered the best views of the desert and the forest. I stood there literally for 20 minutes because it was simply breathtaking.

We later stopped by the Church of All Nations, where olive trees that are over 2,000 years old can be found. When inside the church, the first thing that catches your eyes are the windows. It looks like stained glass but it isn't--it's alabaster. When the sunlight reflects into the windows, it gives off a purplish hue giving the church a subdue feeling. The purple represents the color of suffering. Also, another cool thing was when you look at the ceiling, you can find the seal of the United States and other countries. These 16 nations help support the construction of the church, hence they were memorialized.

Next we went to the Church of Mary Madaglene. This is the place where she was supposedly buried and can see her tomb. It reminded me of the Church of the Nativity as it is run by the Greek Orthodox. Everywhere you look, you can see light fixtures and religious icons hanging everywhere. I found it to be interesting but kinda over-empowering.

We then also went to the place where the Last Supper occurred. It was in this tiny room in a church and sadly, it was overcrowed with people. Lastly, we went to see the grave of King David. It was interesting because the men and women were separated into different sides of the room, like the Western/Wailing Wall. But that too was overcrowded and people kept pushing us from the back so it was difficult to truly enjoy it. After a full day of touring, we headed back to PBI for lunch.