Fresh Rejoicing, Schwarma in the Old City, and Jericho Nights

Salvation!!! My bag made it from Los Angeles! I am a happy man…

(Me Bag!!!)

Bro. Walz and I took a little trip to Al Shapayr (something like that) a museum dedicated to the Holocaust victims. It was an amazing museum architecturally (a long gray building in a triangle shape). Overall the thoughts that flowed through my mind was “What would I do if I was in asituation where I heard of people being killed. Would I risk my life to help, or just simply say oh it’s their problem…” I hope I would help, but it is a very scary situation to think that if  I did and got caught I would be killed along with my family.

The other thought I had in my mind was that the Jews were so discriminated and decimated. Are they reciprocating that on the Palestinian conflict? I don’t know, but it is a question that I ask myself as I spend more time in this unique place.

After the museum Bro. Walz and I talked journalism the future, the present, and what it stands for. I originally wanted to do journalism because it was freedom of speech, a protector of democracy, a voice to the voiceless. Today’s media world is not so, it is filled with slanted journalism. The slant is to those with the biggest check book, or whatever will get audiences excited. It is no longer covering the most important things, but rather what gets the audiences mouths watering. Bro. Walz and I want to change this style of entertainment and get it back to journalism. But that is for another post…

We went with Aya and her friend and walked the old city. It was magnificent. White stones everywhere, people running, shopping, laughing, and bustling about their days. The smells were just so rich from incense, to spices, to fresh meat, and fruits. I filmed a lot of our walking and the thing I enjoy most behind the camera is peoples faces. There is such history and story in someone’s face and expression.

 (Streets of the Old City)

Aya and her friend took us to the top of the Austrian Hospice and we got a special view of the whole city. It had one bench their and this is their secret spot for the city. I could have been up their all day just soaking in the city roof line.

(Dome of the Rock from Austrian Hospice)

 We went to the I believe the Orthodox christian church Basilica. It is a believed location of the cruxicfication of Jesus Christ. The actually had a service of some sort going on, so we got to see Monk's singing, candles burning, fireworks go off for freed prisoners. People were very excited and the building was incredible. Large dome ceilings, long caverns, stairs that were carved steeply into the stone. I felt as though I was a knight back in the Dark Ages.

(Dome inside the Basilica)

We then got schwarma a delightful pocket of meats, hummus, and fixins that just make your mouth go to a water park of flavor!

(Bro. Walz getting after that schwarma! Doesn't he look satisfied?)

Then we spent the evening in Jericho with Aya and her parents at their vaction home. The had a huge variety of fruits and nuts for us to try. Things like Tats, Watermelon seeds just to name a few of the exotics. Tats are like semi sweet rasberries yet the look like a white fat stubby caterpillar. The air was cool and breezy and Jericho was a quiet escape from the bustle of Jerusalem.

(Aya and I on her roof...A Jericho Selfie)

(The fruit smorgasboard Arab style)

As I type this and Bro. Walz giggles in the background while he watches the Office on his Ipad, I try to think of what I thought about the whole day. It’s hard to put into words but I think it is people. We are all people. When we were in Jericho Aya’s mother was like, “Jon you know this is the West Bank?” The media and world make the West Bank to be such a scary and un safe place. But I felt as if I was just driving through some south western American town. Everyone in the world has the same problems, whether it’s getting food, family problems, or just small insecurities about themselves. I hope I realize that and can always treat people for who they are…people and never just something in my way or something to move my life forward.

Excited for tomorrow

Enjoy the Journey – Never let a person to be loved, be more important than a problem to be solved.

Jonny Boy