Saturday, May 29, 2010

Just noticed that my blogs are downloaded in the USA and they show that I did these events as dated as yeaterday. So I will try to do the blog in the evening instead of the morning.  I'm 8 hours ahead of you.  Today I filled out registration papers, had lunch and started off for the Old City by myself.  Took an Arab Bus instead of an Israeli bus.  Less chance of being blown up.  HA!  Anyways,  I went to the Damascus Gate and walked around for awhile and finally went to the Holy Sepulcher.  It is a huge space where Golgotha and the Tomb of Christ are located.  I spent most of the afternoon in the Church.  When I got to the tomb, the line wasn't very long but it really filled up fast. I stayed for the prayers at 4:00 & 5:00. The Coptics started.  The Greeks followed.  At 5:00 the Franciscans had their procession with candles and a lot of incense to all the chapels.  Then the Armenians finished.  I left the Church and wandered around a little bit, got a Fallafel to eat for supper.  Eventually found the bus station, even got the right bus and made it back to Tantur by 7:30.   The one picture is the Crucifixion site and the other is a piece of the column they think that Jesus was scrouged upon.