Day 6 Saturday

A quieter day today. We started with a trip to the Tower of David. It was a tower built by someone other that David but wrongly given this name by some misguided pilgrim. Herod probably built the citadel and inside you can see some of his house. Despite the interesting nature of this museum, the highlight of the morning was during our return walk from the tower. We came across a man walking his children home from the school along the quieter narrow streets of Old Jerusalem. This wasn't so unusual except for the fact that the six or seven year olds were driving a fully motorised car - three of them sitting in this little car about a metre and a half long and a metre wide. The driver , a six year old terror was licking an icy pole and doing burn outs on these cobblestone streets. 

Picture supplied by Tony B on Sunday

We followed them around the corner and watched as she sent pilgrims singing and parading up the hilly street then negotiating a narrow gap between the stalls nod a rubbish vehicle. It was a street something like this one caught on the way there...

Finally two of the passengers were taken off at the top of a series of stairs that came steeply down to a T intersection, stalls at the bottom. We thought the dad was going to walk it down but no - was the street was relatively clear , he let his daughter go on a romping trek down the stairs on this car. at the bottom a man stopped the car crashing into the stall at the bottom and the kid, taking it in her stride just waited for the dad and casually continued on her way. Unbelievable.I think Tony caught it on his iPad and I 'll try and include it for you later.

In the afternoon , after spending some time Skyping my family - which I loved - Sr Gabrielle and I went for a walk up the Mount of Olives and saw a bit of what I missed on Wednesday. Took my church photo of the day but what was better than that snap was this sign out the front of the Basilica of the Agony next to the Garden of Gethsemene.

I think it should have include a symbol for "no hats " as well -  I was asked by a purple robed priest inside to remove my hat as I, perhaps inappropriately, took a photo of the church during a mass. the garden was a bit disappointing as only a small selection of olive trees were there enclosed behind a fence and there were many peopl having guided tours around it. The olive trees were very old it was said perhaps even from the times of Jesus but who can say.. I'm starting to learn that you take some of these things in the spirit they were intended and not too literally.

If that place was called the Basilica of the Agony then the place we celebrated mass tonight could be called the Basilica of the Ecstacy. It was Ecce Homo' s own church and included part of the Ecce Homo arch where this convent got it's name. Half of this arch, built by Hadrian in 70 CE and also spans the Via dolorasa - ie the road outside. Here is a picture of this with a tired looking pilgrim ( with a halo) casually caught in the picture in the foreground.

That's it from me tonight. Tomorrow I am going to be floating (not swimming) in the Dead Sea. Go the Blues. ( Bye bye Pies.... Sob sob)