The finale: Jordan

So after Israel, we headed onto Jordan, where we would be spending the last 3 days of our trip.
Now, Jordan is a place I don't know too much about, so I didn't really mind that we would be spending only a few days there. Not like, say, in Egypt, where I was left hanging.
Still, I was looking forward to going to Jordan, as it's always nice to go to a new country. Not to mention it's good to learn something new.

Al, however, gave me a crash course on Jordan sometime before I went. Apparently, in Biblical times, Jordan was not one but 3 countries - Ammon (which the present-day capital Amman derives its name from), Edom and Moab. These were the lands promised by God to the descendants of Lot and Joseph's uncle Esau. I believe it was to the present Jordanian area that Lot escaped to after the destruction of Sodom, and also where that unfortunate incident with his daughters occured.
Aside from that, on a less tragic note, I heard parts of the Gideon account took place in what is now northern Jordan. Additionally, if you remember, Ruth was a Moabite.
The famous Petra, btw, is in the Edomite portion of Jordan.

So back to the trip. After waiting quite a bit in the border security place, we were brought to our hotel which was - get ready for this - along the Red Sea.  After we got settled in, our group went swimming in the Sea. It was so cool finally being able to take a dip in the waters that miraculously parted!

OK, I know there is some scholarly speculation as to whether it was the Red Sea that parted - or the Sea of Reeds. Apparently, there was some mistranslation from the original Hebrew. So instead of crossing a dry sea bed, the Children of Israel might have passed through a marshy area instead.
I am not sure what the stand of this investigation is - whether it's still ongoing or not. (Any updates on this, I would love to hear about it.) Regardless, the Red Sea still is very famous, and it was awesome swimming in it!

After a while though, the tiny, tiny area of the sea that the lifeguards alloted to us soon grew too crowded (and why they gave us only that tiny space to swim in, I don't know), so I went over to the pool. At least now, I can say I've been in the Red Sea.
The pool was still fun though, it even had a huge waterslide.

And while I was in the Middle East to see the ancient sites instead of the superficial (though still important) stuff like our accomodation, I have to say our hotel in Jordan was the best out of all the hotels we stayed in. If you must know, it was Movenpick. The room and bathroom was so luxurious and sparkling, and the toiletries provided by the hotel were made of Dead Sea material!

And the food! I was totally spoilt for choice at dinner, as a lot of the foods there were my favourites - various kinds of pasta, satay (!), some beef dish, and believe it or not, sushi with cream cheese! Can you imagine, sushi in the Middle East? Let alone sushi with cream cheese?
The desserts did not disappoint either. There were rows of opulent shelves that had tiny glasses filled with various chocolate desserts. There were even bowls of M&Ms and a chocolate fountain that you could dip marshmallows in!
And for breakfast, there were chocolate donuts topped with M&Ms.

The following day, after savouring all that that wonderful hotel had to offer, we then headed onto Petra. On the way there, the guide pointed out to us the tomb of Aaron, Moses' brother. I grew really dizzy, as the roads wound sharply. If my tour mate hadn't given me some candy, I might have had an accident, if you know what I mean.

I had only heard about Petra in the recent months, and it seems people know it mostly from the Indiana Jones movies. Alas, I've never watched Indiana Jones. But by the time we were heading there, I had made sure I was pretty acquainted with it so that I could totally appreciate it.

And it was nice. Well, anything ancient is nice for me, actually.
I loved seeing those lovely blood red cliffs, some of which had the most interesting wavy patterns. And the carvings were gorgeous. There were also remains of roads built by the Romans as well.
And of course, we saw the famous Treasury. It was magnificent.

On the way to the Treasury. Isn't this cool?

Pretty light effect. This came as a pleasant surprise to me, as I wasn't even aiming to do any photography.

Those cliffs and carvings are even bigger in person.

After that, we headed off on the long-ish drive to Amman. It didn't feel too long though cuz our tour mates entertained us with stories of their lives. hehe. I also saw some camels as we drove through the desert.

And the following day was the last day of the trip.
Btw, I ought to mention that the hotel we stayed in wasn't as glamorous as Movenpick. But Mum and I were near a room with the triple-6 number! Scary! I think we were in 662. Phew.
Who puts that number in a hotel room anyway....

So. We went to the Amman Citadel, which had a panouramic view of the city. Was nice. Apparently, it was also around that area where Uriah, Bathsheba's husband, was killed. The place also had the remains of a temple dedicated to Hercules.
Nearby, I saw equipment that looked to be part of a film set - cameras, lights, directors' chairs, and lots and lots of wires. I wonder if there was a movie being filmed or something. I didn't see anyone who looked like an actor, alas.

That's the temple of Herc in the background.

 


Then, our last stop was Mt. Nebo, where Moses saw the Promised Land before he died. It was cool being in the same place where Moses was, and it was also significant for me as my next novel will be about him (sort of). The view was really nice, and everything was so quiet and peaceful. A fitting place for Moses' last days. There was a church there for the.. um... Dominican friars I think? Correct me if I'm wrong.

Moses!!!

On our way back to the bus, we passed by a group of cute Jordanian school kids out on a field trip. They looked really excited about seeing foreigners, and they waved at us enthusiastically and called out things to us. They were speaking in their language though, so I had no clue what they were saying. We smiled back at them but didn't say anything.

And that marked the finale of our Middle Eastern trip.

At the airport, our luggages, after going through the machine that scans the interior of bags (whatever it's called), all fell on a heap on top of each other. It was a bit disorganised in the airport, you see. If I had not been busy with the airport procedures, I would have found the bag thing hilarious. The way they toppled into a heap looked almost cartoon-ish.

Our last meal in the Middle East was... KFC. lol. It was pretty filling, so it sustained me the rest of the trip.

Then we went to Dubai, for our looong stopover.

Then home.

Random photos of Israel

Before I move onto the final installment of my "travel series," I thought I'd show some funny and whimsical photos from Israel.

This was in Bethlehem. One of my tour mates pointed "Stars & Bucks" out, and we couldn't stop laughing. Wonder if this tastes any good as the real Starbucks.

Sign in Capernaum.

I learned that hotels in Israel have a shabbat elevator, which stops on every floor. As you probably know, it is Hebrew tradition not to do any work on the Sabbath (Saturday for them). This includes not pressing the buttons of the elevator.

This goat is so cute. I kept seeing its picture on the national parks, like Tel Dan and Beth Shan. The goat must be a mascot of some sort.

A cute souveneir I bought for myself. I later saw there was a big version of this. Oh well, the small version is still cute.

This was just too funny. This was in Bethlehem, by the way. Right outside the Church of the Nativity, fancy that! Yes it's not the Casanova as we know it, but still.

This was my favourite snackfood in Israel (chips). I don't know what it says on the wrapper, as I can't read Hebrew without the vowels. Regardless of what the name is, it's yum!

Aromah, Israel's coffee shop chain which, I might add, is way better than Starbucks and Gloria Jean's. I forget what exactly I had - it was a coffee with some chocolate flavouring, but it definitely wasn't an ordinary mocha. It was even yummier than it looks in the photo.

(Btw, I heard the coffee shop's name in phonetics, and was then able to make out the alephbet.)

Jerusalem!!

So. We then headed onto the capital of Israel.

Jerusalem. It sounds so... Biblical. Even their currency sounds like something straight out of the Bible: shekel. Alas, we used the global US$ instead since we were always on the move and thus didn't have the time to exchange to the local currency. I would have loved to use shekels but oh well.

We arrived in Jerusalem in the rush hour. Even these ancient lands aren't spared from that agony. Despite the traffic, it was great to be in that city.

One of my first glimpses of Jerusalem.

Rush hour, the Hebrew way!

By the way, we had arrived at a time when the people were remembering the tragedies of the Holocaust. My mum and I were channel-surfing in our hotel room after dinner, and we noticed most of the channels were showing movies about the Holocaust. I remember seeing a scene wherein a frail elderly man was subject to labours more suitable for his younger co-prisoners. It was heartbreaking.
La Vita E Bella (Life is Beautiful) was showing too. I loved that movie.

Then the following day, while we were on the Mount of Olives (or was it Mount Moriah - it was the one which has a cemetery, and which is adjacent to Palm Sunday Road), a siren sounded out. I feared it was warning of an attack or something. But our guide said it was in remembrance of those who perished in the Holocaust.
Then we all had a moment of silence.


So yes, the Mount overlooking the city of the Jerusalem, including the famous view of the Dome of the Rock, was the first stop on our Jerusalem itinerary. The abovementioned cemetery's tombstones btw had small stones on them in lieu of flowers. Why stones.. I'm not sure. My guide might have explained but I forgot.

We then headed down the Palm Sunday Road, and went to one of the sites speculated to be the Garden of Gethsemane. There were bright red flowers and ancient olive trees there. It was lovely.
I was dismayed however to see this tourist striking what I call a "wannabe model" pose for a picture. I thought that was disrespectful, as the garden commemorates a sad and solemn occasion.
Well, I also had a picture taken in the garden. But I wasn't all raucous and flamboyant and stuff. That woman, on the other hand, was gallivanting around like some Top Model reject. It was just tasteless and obnoxious and did I mention disrespectful? Oh well.
Fortunately, everyone in my group was respectful. We were given a fair bit of time in the garden, and some of my tour mates even went to a corner to pray.

 This is the photo my mum took of me in the garden. I was originally standing but decided to sit, as I thought it had a more "Bible character" effect.

Anyways, we then went to the other speculated site of Gethsemane. The guide said that the trees there were like the great-great-grandchildren (or something to that effect) of the trees during Jesus' time. There were also beautiful flowerbeds in brilliant colours of periwinkle, yellow, red, baby pink, fuschia. There were even rose bushes.

We then walked around the old city of Jerusalem, where we saw another Canaanite site, St. Anne's church, and the place where the Virgin Mary was born (or so they claim...?).

Then, we headed off to Bethlehem which, like Jericho, is Palestenian territory. We had a free lunch there, and I ate spaghetti. Yum.
Then, we went to the Church of the Nativity. It was interesting, but had too much "religious glitz and glamour." The line to the supposed spot where Jesus was born* was very long, and moved very slowly. The air was thick with incense.

*I do believe He was born. But whether it was in that exact spot pointed out by the church - IMO, maybe, maybe not.

On the way back to the Israel-Palestine border, we passed by the place where Rachel's tomb is (ahem, Joseph's mother, ahem). The guide also pointed out to us the place where Ruth and Boaz lived.

The bus took forever at the border. Why, I don't know. They didn't take that long when we were leaving Jericho.
I forgot to mention btw - everytime we left Palestenian territory and reentered Israel, armed soldiers (Israelis) would enter the bus and walk down the aisles, scanning everything and everyone. Funny, the first time that happened, which was when we were leaving Jericho, I was fast asleep.
I can't believe I slept through an army search! Not to mention that the soldiers had these huge, scary guns.


Next day, we went to the Wailing Wall, then ventured deep into the tunnels of Herod. This was also part of where the Second Temple used to be. If the remains were this huge, just think how much more gigantic the entire Temple would have been!

Inside the tunnels. That's one of my tour mates, Auntie Shirley, in the background.

After we emerged from underground, we walked along the old cobbled roads, past vendors selling colourful wares - rugs, religious stuff, tourist junk, jewellery, etc. We went to the place where Jesus was condemned to death. Then, we crossed the Via Dolorosa and headed towards the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.

Touching the stones Jesus walked on when He carried His cross. Because of the sad event this place commemorates, I didn't think it was fitting to smile.

Afterwards, we were taken to the Shrine of the Book museum. We saw a model of the Second Temple, as well as the Dead Sea Scrolls themselves. This was really cool for me, as one of my units at uni was Dead Sea Scrolls & Second Temple Judaism. I did a paper on the presence of women at Qumram. I think my stand was that it was a possibility.
Afterwards, we went to the Yad Vashem Holocaust museum. It's bigger than the Sydney Jewish Museum, which I visited years ago, though it has some of the same stuff I saw before, such as those creepy Nazi children's books. Yad Vashem was a sad, sad place, but something still worth visiting.


The following day, we were taken up close to the Dome of the Rock. There sure is a lot of controversy surrounding that area. We then passed by the Wailing Wall again, then went to the Room of the Last Supper.

We also went to King David's tomb, though all I saw there was a huge.... something.... covered with a black cloth. Hmmm, I would have thought that David's tomb would be fancier than that. There was, however, a nice golden statue of David playing the harp.
The passage leading to David's tomb had shelves of - I think - prayer books. There were also 2 entrances - a women's entrance and a men's entrance. The entrance to the Wailing Wall was also segregated that way. And I didn't realise that the Wailing Wall was separated into 2 cloistered halves - and yes, one for men, one for women. I wonder why it's like that.

We then went to the Garden Tomb, which I already spoke about when I was reflection on The Passion.
Then we went to the Jerusalem Achaeological Park, which had remains of one of the temples Jesus went. I guess this was like the temple where He was left behind when He was 12 years old. We even got to sit on the temple steps and see a view of Jerusalem, which might have been the same view Jesus looked upon. It was an awesome experience.

 At the temple ruins.

Then, we went to the Jewish Quarter for lunch. This btw was the first time we (the group) could scatter and go have lunch on our own. Until then, we always had lunch together, like a pack of wolves. And I admit that had its advantages, especially during those times when we were out in the middle of nowhere (eg, the country roads travelling to Jerusalem). But now that we were in the city, where there were lots of choices, I thought it would be nice if we could go off on our own.

And fortunately, this time, the tour organisers let us. My mum had a craving for pizza, so that's what we got. And wow, the pizza in Israel is good! The cheese was so thick and rich. I know you'd be thinking Italy has the best pizza. Well, Israel does too! And it was really nice - we sat in that little pizzeria and people-watched as we had our pizza.

We reunited with our group for a while, for our guide to point us out the wall of Hezekiah and the Cardo. Then, we had the rest of the afternoon to ourselves. My mum did what she was dying to do - shop. Heh. Btw, near the Jewish Quarter's posh stalls, I saw a rock supposedly from the First Temple.

 My mum indulging in one of her favourite pastimes - shopping.

When we arrived back at our hotel, we saw the lobby was festooned with Israeli flags. Apparently, they were celebrating their independence from the British. Wow... never knew about that. But then, I haven't read too much on modern Israel.

And that was our last day in Israel. The following day, we left for Jordan.

As you can see, we were able to cover quite a lot in Israel. I am very satisfied with what we managed to see. I think too that it was good we prioritised the places where Jesus walked.
On my next visit to Israel (I don't know when that will be though), I'd really, really like to go to Shechem to see Joseph's tomb. Alas, it was not in our itinerary, plus I heard Shechem was in some sort of trouble. I hope it becomes safe to go there soon.

My overall impression of Israel is that it's a lovely, charming country. I loved it. It would be nice to experience living there.

Onto Israel

When we were driving out into the desert, I remembered hearing that the Ancient Egyptians regarded it as a frightening place, as it was thought to be the home of the demon Seth. I also vaguely remember hearing about the Ancient Egyptians' perception of Mt. Sinai - that one of their gods supposedly lived there? I'm not sure if it was Seth or someone else.
I could be mistaken on this (the Sinai myth) though.

On the way to Sinai, there were times when I wondered if we were still in Egypt. This may sound dreadfully ignorant of me, but I guess I wasn't totally sure how the borders were marked. It was later when we arrived at the Egypt-Israel border that I realised we still had been in Egypt all along.

Now onto Israel.


At the Egypt-Israel border, the line was pretty long and moved rather slowly. In addition, there were all those baggage checks and stuff. Israel is really meticulous with their security.

But at last, we got through all that. This was my first glimpse of Israel as I stepped out of the... border checkpoint? Immigration checkpoint? Whatever, you know what I mean.

If I am not mistaken, that is the Gulf of Aqaba. In the distance are the mountains of Saudi Arabia, I think.


So... since my time in Israel was pretty lengthy, this is where I now skim over the details.
Oh, but I ought to mention a funny thing that happened on my first night in Israel. Mum & I were having dinner with Auntie Hayley in the hotel, and I got up for a while - probably to get some utensils or something. When I returned, I saw a small platter of cakes near my plate.
I asked my mum, "Are these mine?"
She said yes, and I drew the cakes closer to me.

Later, when I was attacking the dessert, I asked my mum why did she get me this particular flavour of a cake, and Mum said, "I didn't get the cakes."

That was when we both realised - the cakes were actually Auntie Hayley's!

I had gotten her dessert - and she didn't say a word!

And apparently, my mum thought I was making a declarative "These are mine" instead of an interrogative.

Of course, we were very apologetic. Auntie Hayley was totally cool about it. We were even like, "You should have told us earlier."

But wow, was that funny. Never imagined such a boo-boo would happen on my first night in Israel.


Anyway, the following day - our first full day in Israel - we began the day with a trip to Masada. It was gorgeous, all those high desert cliffs.
It was really sad about what happened there though. I don't know the intricate details, only that the Jews there committed a mass suicide to prevent the Romans from capturing them.

I first heard about Masada when I was at uni, as it was one of the choices for a paper. I didn't choose it though, as I knew nothing about Masada at that time.
(And one of my classmates who had Jewish background - or so she said - told me she didn't know anything about Masada either. So that made me feel less inadequate.)

Btw, I also saw the remains of an ancient Roman sauna, which was apparently where all the important political discussions and I think even decisions were made. I recall seeing scenes like that in ancient Rome movies. (I so need to see that Rome TV series btw. I'm shocked I haven't seen it yet.)

Afterwards, we went to Qumram. Didn't stay there too long though. But I saw the caves and the ritual pools.

In the afternoon, we took a dip in the Dead Sea. And yes, I did float. I wore my crocs in it though, as all those salt rocks made the ground pretty sharp. Also, my skin stung after a while (and I remedied this in the hotel's fresh water pool). Still, it was an experience I wouldn't have want to missed.


The following day, we headed off to the Galilee area. On the way there, we went to Jericho, which is Palestenian territory. I saw where the wall was, and also the Mount of Temptation. I believe the parable of the Good Samaritan takes place there as well.
There was also a tree which the bus driver said was Zaccheus' tree, but it could be a tourist trap. Who knows.

A lone camel in Jericho.

After that, we returned to Israeli territory and passed through some gorgeous fields which looked like green and reddish-brown stripes. It was lovely. I never imagined there was a lot of nature in Israel; I always pictured it was desert, like many Middle Eastern countries. There are also rolling green hills, brightly coloured flowerbeds, streams, forests - lovely, simply lovely. Israel is so green.
And it rained. Which is cool because I love the rain.

Isn't Israel pretty?

We then went to the spring of Gideon, which was sooo picturesque - a stream flowing among rocks, bushes of fuschia flowers, and fig trees - the trees mentioned in the Bible.
Afterwards, we went to Beth Shan, which is where (I think) Saul battled with the Philistines (sadly, this is a period of Israelite history I don't know too much about). There were also a lot of ancient Roman ruins. For a while, it almost felt like we were in Italy.
I saw places where cult sacrifices were made, an arena, ancient Roman toilets, decorative columns, among others. In the distance were the mountains which is where I was told Saul had his battles. I think he was killed there...?

My mum at Beth Shan. I kind of like how I photographed her half-hidden under the umbrella. It rained a bit, as you can see from the slippery-looking stairs.

Then, we were taken to our hotel in Galilee. On the way there, we passed the Jordan River.
Btw I saw this sign that had pictures of dogs in it, but I had no idea what the sign was about as it was all in Hebrew. While I did study Hebrew at uni, it was only for one year so most of it escapes me now. In addition, it's really hard for me to read Hebrew if the vowels aren't included. When some of my tour mates heard I studied Hebrew, they asked me to translate, and I had to disappoint them and tell them my Hebrew vocab was extremely limited.
I would have liked to know what the sign with pictures of dogs was about.

Anyway, our room was overlooking the Sea of Galilee. It was so awesome. And at night, there was like this light & sound show that had glittering photos of Israel right above the water. I watched it from my balcony. It was touristy (I know that's like the nth time I've said that) but it was cool too.

Galilee, btw, looks like how I imagined it to be - pristine, quiet, lots of nature and greens, and of course the sea all over. I could nearly imagined the apostles fishing there before they were called by Jesus.

The following day, we went to the shores of the Sea of Galilee. There was also a church there - I think that is the spot where Jesus said to Peter, "On this rock, I will build My Church."
We also rode a boat across the sea and saw the remains of the city of Tiberius. Afterwards, we had "St. Peter's Fish," crispy, yummy fish served with - of all things - chips (or French fries, as they're otherwise known). So, Hebrew-style fish 'n chips. Sooo yum.

I ought to pause here a bit - being a bit of a foodie, I have to say I love the food in Israel. From the way it tastes, the ingredients seem so fresh. The chocolate milk is so rich and creamy. They have their local chips / snackfoods, which are pretty good and unique.
I was also surprised to see an abundance of schnitzel and hummous and felafel. I see those foods all the time in the supermarkets here. I didn't know they were part of Israel cuisine (unless that's what they serve the tourists...).
In the Palestenian territories, they served these yummy roasted meat pierced on sticks and - to my biggest surprise - spaghetti. Yes, spaghetti. You never would have imagined huh? But that was cool with me, as I love spaghetti.


Anyways. Oh, I ought to mention that while on the bus, we passed by the site which the guide pointed out as the hometown of the controversial Mary Magdalene.

After lunch, we saw the remains of a 2000-year-old boat. Might have been one of the boats from Jesus' time. After that, we drove through rolling green hills and I saw these big dogs that looked like huskies running through the grass (my guide joked, "Look, the wolves!").
We then went to Capernaum, where we saw the remains of an ancient synagouge, the place where Peter's mother-in-law lived, and also a vat (?) where they used to make olive oil.

Then, we went to Korazin, one of the cities Jesus cursed. And cursed it looked - all the stones were black. I saw this seat in one of the remains of a synagouge there which was called the "Seat of Moses."

Then, we went to the Mount of Beatitudes. The path leading up the hill had a lot of pretty flowerbeds. There were even roses. The church overlooked the Sea of Galilee, which was surrounded by hills and golden-brown harvest fields. It was gorgeous.


Next day, it was raining. Still, that didn't deter us from heading out, of course. Went to the place where King Rehoboam made sacrifices to the golden calf... er, the name of the place is at the tip of my tongue... ah, I remember. Tel Dan. I also saw the remains of an old Israeli army tank. In the distance were the mountains of Syria and Lebanon.
We also went to Cesarea Philippi, which is where I believe Jesus asked His apostles, "Who do you say I am?" And Peter said, "You are the Christ."
It was such a lovely place! There was abundant, lush greenery. We sat below fig trees. There were also the remains of a pagan temple to the god Pan, as well as some stuff Herod built (it was there I learned that Herod was a builder, like Ramses II). I also crossed through the stones of the Hermon River Springs, which I was told is melted snow from the mountains.

We then drove by a small town which I was told is the home of the Druze, who I had not heard of until now. Apparently, the Druze are an Islamic sect who live in Israel and even serve in the Israeli army. Wherever they live, Druzes blend in with the local culture.

And last but definitely not the least, we went to the Jordan River. There were otters there - I never imagined there were otters in Israel!


The following day, we left Galilee to head to Jerusalem. On the way there, we saw Nazareth but didn't explore around it.
Where we did go was Megiddo. Apparently, that was the site of Jezebel's palace, and also where King Solomon had his stables. In addition, I saw deep pits where Canaanites sacrified children. Sad.
There was also a manger, which might have been like the one baby Jesus lay in.

Afterwards, we went to Mt Carmel, where Elijah contended with the priests of Baal. And some other New Testament events happened there as well, I believe... I just can't remember them right now.

We quickly stopped by Herod's aqueducts along the Mediterranean Sea. We heard a sound that was like a bomb, and that was scary. Fortunately, none one was hurt.

Me and my mum by the aqueducts.

Then we went to Cesarea, which had more of the king's building stuff. Apparently, he did all this to try impress the Romans. There was an arena again, and the remains of what looked like a swimming pool. There was also a huge area in which, I think, chariot races were held. And all the carved columns were so pretty. It was a lovely place, overlooking the Med (Sea).

 I'm pretending to be an archaeologist.

We drove by Tel Aviv, but didn't go around it. It was so modern. Plus it seems everyone there drives the coolest cars.

And on we went to Jerusalem.

Egypt, Part II

I forgot to mention yesterday how astonished I was that it could grow that cold in Egypt (referring to when I wasn't able to finish the Light & Sound show due to my tour mates' suffering from the cold). I mean, in the paintings and statues of the Ancient Egyptians, they are always portrayed as wearing rather scanty clothes. Garments as light as air, if you prefer (I got that from some ancient Egyptian novel).
Additionally, I heard from some people who had already travelled to Egypt that it was really, really hot. An acquaintance told me, "It's so hot, I think only the Africans can endure it."

Perhaps though, daytime in Egypt can get pretty hot. Alas, I wasn't in Cairo long enough to see that. The tour leaders zipped us through Cairo as they were in a hurry for us to get to Mt. Sinai, climb it in the dark, and see the sunrise on our way to the top. I thought it'd just be like walking up some hill, but I'd later discover why they were eager to get us there as early as possible. But more on that later.

So early the next morning, at like 7am-ish, we went to get up close and personal with the pyramids. I have to add btw that our hotel was like a 5-minute drive from the great Old Kingdom tombs. As a matter of fact, when we boarded the bus, we could already see the pyramids.
Oh, I didn't see them when I was standing outside the hotel though cuz the bus was blocking the view. It was only when we were seated in the bus that I realised just how near we were to the pyramids. And it was awesome - I mean, it's not everyday you have the pyramids right outside your doorstep.

So then, we were brought right up to the pyramids. And wow - you think the pyramids are awesome in photos, wait till you see them in person. It's true what Al quoted a friend of his saying, that nothing prepares you for seeing the pyramids up close.

And let me just reiterate: to think Joseph and Asenath too saw the pyramids. Well surely, surely they did.

Anyways, I shall let the photos speak for themselves.

 This is what I saw as we were driving towards the pyramids.

At long last...

I got to climb a bit too...

And even hug it. :)

We were also taken to some point to see the pyramids from a distance. Why, I don't know. Probably for dramatic effect? 

Afterwards, they brought us back to the Sound & Lights theatre where we could see the pyramids and the sphinx in the daytime.

Then, we were taken to the Cairo Museum. It was awesome of course, but again, since our tour leader meant to only "telescope" Egypt (as the focus of this trip was really Israel), we were there for only about a too brief half hour. 

In addition, our guide was taking too long in one spot. I mean, she'd bring us to one object and spend like an eternity talking about it, as if we had all the time in the world. Mum and I then slipped away and checked out the other stuff on our own - plus I was able to use my amateur knowledge of Egyptology to explain stuff to her. By the way, I saw our other tour mates sneaking off as well. hehe. No one got left behind though; we didn't sneak that far away.

What I saw mostly were the treasures of Tutankhamun, including the famous gold mask. The mask is smaller than I imagined it to be, but then I remembered Tut was only a kid when he became Pharaoh. Go figure.

I also saw some mummies, including those from the Coptic period, though I didn't get to see Ramses and Hatshepsut.

We also went to this darkened area of the museum which had ancient Egyptian jewellery, and my mum really liked it as she's a bit of a jewellery addict.

We also saw the Merenptah Stelae, which mentions the Hebrews being in Egypt. And on our way out, I sneaked Mum and I into a chamber that was dedicated to Akhenaton. We were only in there for like 5 seconds though, cuz by that time our group was getting ready to leave.

Then began the looooong 7-hour drive to Mt. Sinai. Btw for lunch we had KFC, which was apparently from the KFC near the pyramids. It was good, though instead of gravy there was some sort of brown rice. I wonder why. We ate lunch in the bus - that was how much in a hurry the tour people were to get us to Sinai.

We drove through Cairo, which was pretty modern. I gazed out the window while having my KFC.
The Nile was everywhere. It's wider than I imagined. It was beautiful, but it's a pity we are advised against swimming in it. It has some sort of bacteria, I forget what. Still, I love that ancient river.

We passed the industrial area we had driven through yesterday. Soon, we were out in the desert. 

I imagined this was the route Joseph passed when he was sold into slavery. Now, it looked really really hot outside. To think Joseph endured all that! Poor thing.

Great golden sandy grounds stretched out on all sides, below a sharply blue Egyptian sky. As we drove further, I saw cliffs soaring high, as well as perfectly formed sand dunes. I had never seen anything as beautiful as the Middle Eastern desert. Once in a while, we passed clusters of palm trees - oases.

We also passed by small villages which I was told are the dwellings of the Bedouin. It looked really primitive - there were only small stone houses along rugged dirt paths. I guess they live pretty similarly to how their ancestors lived years ago.

At one point, I actually saw a lone camel strutting towards some cliffs. Alas, I couldn't get a photo of it because the bus went by too fast. But I was thrilled! I wonder if it was a wild camel because there were no humans accompanying it, and it had no trappings or saddle upon it. It was like - wow - this was the real thing. And surely this was no touristy gimmick, for this was right in the middle of the Egyptian desert.

Oh, we stopped by this spot that had a well along with stalls of Bedouin women selling jewelry. It's at the tip of my tongue what the significance of that well was - I surely would have remembered it if it involved Joseph. But I couldn't help imagining that well must have been like the one his brothers tossed him in. It was pretty deep.

A mustard tree was pointed out to us as well. Now I can see why Jesus said that faith must be like a mustard tree. It was really, really huge. In the distance shimmered a sparkling blue line - the Gulf of Aqaba.

We got to our little motel near Sinai at around - um - maybe 6pmish? I think we were near St. Catherine's Monastery (we didn't go there though). We had dinner, then I went to bed at around 9pm. The following morning - rather, in a few hours, at ONE-THIRTY AM to be precise (I feel putting it in words would get the point across more) - we would be gathering for the long trek up Mt. Sinai.

Before I continue, I heard btw that there is some debate as to where the real Mt. Sinai is. Where I went is the traditional site, but some scholars apparently speculate that the real Mt. Sinai might be in Saudi Arabia. I remember a co-worker of mine, who used to work in Saudi Arabia, told me that the tomb of Jethro (Moses' father-in-law) is there. So maybe these scholars could be onto something...?

Anyways. We had a choice on how we would ascend the mountain - either by foot or camel. Of course, Mum and I chose camels since that would be more fun. It was my first time to ride a camel btw. 

And it was indeed fun! I was a bit scared when the camel was getting up, cuz I was afraid I'd fall over. Apparently, camels get up first on their hindlegs, then their forelegs. 

I remember the girl in the camel beside me kept screaming - acrophobia perhaps? I mean, a camel is pretty tall. The Bedouin cameleer (I learned that term from Al, who once wrote about wizards in the Sahara), who handled both my and Ms. Acrophobia's camel, kept telling her "Don't be scared, don't be scared..." Hehe. He was a nice genteel elderly man. Mohammed was his name.

I took this pic after the camel ride. I wasn't able to get a pic of me or mum on the camel, as it was too dark - as you can see from this picture. I also had to take this photo real quick cuz I feared that if the Bedouin saw me, they would charge me for it. After all, nearly nothing in the Middle East is free.

We only rode the camel halfway up though. The rest of the way had to be made on foot, as it was rather narrow, or so we were told. Btw earlier, when we were heading towards the camels, our tour leader told us, "OK, this walk is a walk in the beach. Later, it will get very difficult." 

Still, I thought, "No sweat, I've climbed lots of hills and mountains before." In addition, I used to live in a pretty hilly neighbourhood, so when I wasn't driving, I'd walk up and down steep roads all the time.

Boy, was I wrong. Mt. Sinai is nothing like my former neighbourhood, let alone any hills or mountains I have climbed in the past.

I still can't imagine how Moses managed it - and on a regular basis at that. I mean, everytime God wanted to talk to Moses, He'd tell him to climb up the mountain. And it's a lot harder than it sounds.

For one thing, the ground is extremely rocky. You have to watch every single step you take. Every. Single. Step. I remember there were times when just as we thought we were on an even path, there'd be some place we'd have to climb. 

Oh - have you ever been in a crudely fashioned parking lot on some rough, rocky ground, and crossed it, looking forward to stepping on smoother ground later on? The rough, rocky ground is a lot like Sinai, except that there's no smooth ground to look forward to.

But we made it. You know what they say - no pain, no gain.

I took this myself!

My tour mate took this photo. I thought it came out pretty cool even though I look exhausted.

If climbing all those rocks hadn't drained me, I might have imagined Moses standing there with the tablets in his hand. Still, being at the top of the mountain was a really exhilerating experience. 

And it was sooo cold. If Joseph, on his way to Egypt, had to brave scorching days, he also braved nights as cold as the one I experienced in Sinai. Poor, poor thing. :(

Afterwards, we began the long trip down Sinai, which this time would be entirely on foot. I managed to get some photos with the camels before we made our way back down.

You can see in the background there's a Bedouin in his traditional garb. Even that house looks like what I see in Bible storybooks. It really was like being in the Bible times!

Oh yes, and I saw this on the way down....

Cute donkey, huh?

I thought the way down would be a piece of cake, since that's how it usually is. But wow, was I wrong. It was just as difficult because the grounds were rough and slippery. You couldn't walk the way you normally do - you have to watch every single step or else you'll trip. I fell on my knees about 4 times.

Plus, there were all those camel and donkey droppings to watch out for. The air had the scent of dung too. And now I know why in historical novels they always describe air the scent of dung.

By the time we arrived back at the bus - which btw I thought would never happen - I was like the living dead.

But did I regret going? Not the least bit. It would have been far worse if I forfeited it.

After that, we had breakfast then packed our things and took the bus that would take us to the Egypt-Israel border. And that is where I shall pause for now.

I thoroughly loved it in Egypt, even though the time there was way too short. Needless to say, I will be returning in the future to see more of it. Maybe go on an exclusively Egypt tour even.
Still, no complaints here as Israel was the other must-see place for me. And I guess it'd be fitting that I see Israel first, and then Egypt.

Besides, it's nice to always have something to look forward to.

One year

I just realised - it has been a year since my Middle Eastern trip. Around this time last year, I was arriving from it.

I have been meaning to talk about the trip at greater length than I previously have. However I got sidetracked with the publication preparations for Asenath. Not that that was a bad thing, of course!
But it would still be nice to talk about the trip for all the obvious reasons - specifically 1) It's a trip I've been anticipating my whole life (or rather, since I developed an ancient history fetish in my teens), and 2) it involves 2 of my favourite people in the world, Joseph & Asenath!

So for the one year anniversary of the trip, I will document it here on this blog. I will just telescope though; I won't make it like a full-on travel journal though because, really, who reads those things anyway?

So. The trip was for 15 days, and my travel companion was my mum. We did the tour group thingy, which I realised is always a good thing especially if you're in a place totally new to you. I mean, I could probably go around on my lonesome in, say, the USA and Canada since it's similar to Australia. But the Middle East is unlike anywhere I've been to before.
All our tour mates were pretty nice, which is always a good thing.

The first 2 days of the trip were in Egypt, then most of it was in Israel, and the last 3 days were in Jordan.
Oh, and we also had a stopover in Dubai. I was able to go out of the airport a bit, but just to the airport hotel haha. So I guess you could say I've sort of been in Dubai, but haven't really been around it.

Anyway. My mum and I flew off to the Middle East aboard a huge and luxurious Emirates plane sometime past midnight. Weird hour, I know. I was really excited though and couldn't sleep much. I remember when the plane was taking off, I squealed to my mum (not too loudly, of course), "It's happening!"
We were off to see the homeland of Joseph & Asenath, and then the homeland of Jesus Christ.

My first glimpse of the Middle East was glittery Dubai. There were a million lights sparkling below the plane. And the airport was huge. As a tour mate of mine pointed out, there was even Gate 200, Gate 230, etc.
Oh, and the airport staff were dressed in the traditional garb of the Middle East - the bedouin robes and head coverings and stuff. Yup, I was in a totally, totally different place.

The bus that was to take us to the airport hotel was kinda delayed so by then I felt the need to sleep catching up. At the hotel, we ate breakfast then went upstairs to change, freshen up, and have a cat nap. Oooh, I remember though that when we were having breakfast, I was only too aware that Egypt was right around the corner - literally and figuratively.

Joseph & Asenath's homeland. (OK, well for Joseph, his adopted homeland.)

We then returned to the airport in the afternoon and finally boarded Emirates for Cairo at 3pm-ish. I felt like I was walking in a dream. I mean, I was waiting for my flight to Egypt. My ticket said Cairo. And the gate we were waiting at had a sign Cairo.
I was tempted to skip and twirl about in the airport.

Surprisingly, on the flight from Dubai to Cairo, I fell asleep - and slept soundly. When I told Al about this, he said that was surprising to hear, considering how excited I was. But I guess since I hadn't slept too much the night before, I dozed off. Still, that's a good thing because it made the time go by faster.

I then woke up to see a vast golden desert stretched out before us. Not shown in this picture though was a strip of a body of water. I wondered if it could be the Nile. Not sure though.

But this was it. We were here.

Here, the homeland of Joseph & Asenath, of Moses, of Ramses, of Hatshepsut & Senenmut, of Akhenaton & Nefertiti, of Taita & Lostris (OK, the last two were fictional, but still).
Here, the gift of the Nile, called Kemet (the Black Land) by its people - and Mizraim by the Hebrews. Here, an ancient land of mystery and wonder, brought to life in the epic novels of Pauline Gedge & Wilbur Smith. Here, where there once abounded gleaming pyramids, glittering palaces, and temples filled with the scent of incense and the chanting of the priests.

We were in Egypt.

And I felt like I was coming home.

For the first time, my ears did not pop as the plane descended. I wonder why. When I finally descended the plane's steps, and placed my foot on Egyptian soil - wow.

WOW.

Who knows. The ground where I first set foot on could be the same ground walked by Joseph and Asenath, by the Pharaohs and Queens. OK, maybe that sounds like a cliche. But it could be a possibility.

The immigration went smoothly - a smiling Egyptian stuck my entry visa onto my passport. However, Mum and I thought we lost our bags. We were waiting by the carousel (or whatever you call it) for our luggage. Soon, all our tour mates were walking away with their luggages, but ours hadn't arrived yet. Fortunately, our tour leader stayed with us the whole time.

Mum was panicking, and so was I. But then, I caught sight of these lone bags standing a few feet away from the carousel.

I went over to check them out - hey, I was desperate - and....

"Mum!" I yelled. "The bags are here!"

It turns out that one of our tour mates saw on our bags the yellow ribbons, which marked us as belonging to the group, and took them off the carousel. I suppose he had good intentions, but... sheesh. Still, big whew there.

So, my arrival into Egypt vs Joseph's arrival. Joseph arrived as a slave. I nearly got the fright of my life over (nearly) lost luggages. Wonder what would be worse... I know probably arriving as a slave. But it's still really scary to lose luggages.

Anyway, the luggage drama ironed out, we made our way out of the airport, and this was the first sight that greeted me:

 

An obelisk. Right in front of the airport. I would later learn from our guide that Heliopolis is only 5 minutes away from the airport. Five minutes. I was only five minutes away from where Asenath once lived, walked, and talked!

Next, I saw "Re" on his "Boat of a Million Years" preparing to sail into the Am-Duat to battle Apophis - it was nearly 6pm when we arrived, you see. 

Oh, for the record, my faith is not Kemeticism. Still, I couldn't help thinking that way, as that was how the ancient Egyptians viewed the setting sun. I could nearly hear the priests - Asenath's dad included - chanting as they assisted the god in his preparation for his nightly battle.

The place looks pretty modern, doesn't it? But there's "ol' Re" sailing over the body of Nut.

I was nearly beside myself with excitement when I saw this sign. There were at least 5 more signs like it.

I didn't get a photo of this, but I also saw an overpass decorated with ancient Egyptian inspired art. It looked cheesy, but fun too.

On the drive from the airport, we passed through industrial areas which looked very modern. For a while, I forgot we were in Egypt. I guess that's not how I pictured Egypt as. I even saw a billboard for an upcoming Ikea branch in Egypt. Wow.

It seems they are building new developments. I hope they don't build over an ancient site though. There can only be, like, thousands of them, buried beneath the sands of time.

Then we entered the city, and my spirits soared once more when I came across my first glimpse of.... Hep-Ur. The ancient Nile.

Sure it looks very modern. But still. It's the Nile. The life-giving river of Egypt, whose deity was the hermaphrodite Hapi. The river where the Pharaohs' pleasure barges sailed, and where Joseph & Asenath surely surely sailed on too. The river where baby Moses' basket drifted. The river which once turned to blood.

And then, in the distance, loomed the great tombs of the Old Kingdom Pharaohs...

My first glimpse of the Pyramids. Can you see them?

We were then brought to the Pyramids' Light & Sound show, which by the way was a complete surprise to us courtesy of the tour leader - so many thanks to him for that.

The show was "cheesy fun" - as someone so perfectly described it. Very touristy, but entertaining nonetheless. Alas, we didn't get to finish it as my tour mates grew too cold and couldn't take it anymore. I was a bit disappointed because I don't like leaving stuff unfinished, even though the Lights & Sound show wasn't something on the top of my to-see list. A tour mate of mine joked that I could finish the show on Youtube. Oh, very funny.

I never thought the first time I'd see the pyramids would be at night. Not that that's a bad thing, but I guess it's cuz whenever you see the pyramids photographed, it's always in the daytime.

We then went to the hotel, ate dinner, and slept. The food was pretty good btw, and the desserts included chocolate mousse! 

Oh, I remember Mum and I ate right next to a darkened window, and I couldn't help imagining about the spirits of the ancient peoples were hovering right outside - Pharaohs, priests, viziers, scribes, soldiers and even the peasants. It wasn't a scary thought btw, it was rather thrilling.

And to think - my first meal in Egypt.

And sentimental fool that I am, I thought: could it be that Joseph & Asenath - at the very least - walked by the place where we lodged for the night? I mean, if they walked upon the grounds we were currently on? Surely, they visited the pyramids, especially when Pharaoh had his sacred festivals and such. Not to mention that Asenath's hometown is very, very near Cairo.

By the way, our hotel too had cheesy but fun touristy motifs. This, for instance, was in our room:

Look, the lamp is shaped like the red half of Pharaoh's double crown. Heehee. I like the painting in the background.

I guess this post is getting a bit long, so I shall pause here for now. Next, I talk about getting up close and personal with the pyramids, followed by the arduous yet exciting trek up Gebel Musa aka Mt. Sinai.

By the way, it's also been a year since I was accepted for publication.

Similarities between the Joseph Narrative & Egyptian Mythology

*I originally wrote this piece for a guest spot on author Stephanie Dray's blog. I thought it would be good to repost it in my own blog, slightly reworded.

When I began looking further into the Joseph narrative, I found some comparisons made between it and several stories in Egyptian mythology. Though I had always been pretty abreast with the Bible and Egyptian myths, I never thought to draw these parallelisms. I found it pretty interesting.

The most frequently made comparison is that between the Potiphar's wife episode and the story of the two brothers, Anubis (sometimes called Anpu) and Bata. As we know, Joseph fled the advances of his master's wife yet was wrongly imprisoned. In Egyptian folklore, Anpu's wife too tries to seduce Bata on a day when her husband is out of the house. Additionally, Joseph and Bata are long-suffering heroes who emerge triumphantly in the end as rulers of Egypt.

Basically, this is what happens: after Anpu hears his wife's false accusation, he then attempts to kill Bata. Bata flees and the gods create a river between the two brothers, protecting Bata from harm. Before disappearing into a sacred valley, Bata tells Anpu that he did not attempt to rape his wife - and castrates himself to prove it.

When Anpu arrives back home, he finds out that his wife indeed lied to him. He then kills her and feeds her body to the dogs.

Meanwhile, the gods take pity on poor Bata and fashion a wife for him. Alas, she is unfaithful. When she catches Pharaoh's eyes, she marries him and has Bata murdered.

Bata, however, is reincarnated several times - and alas murdered several times as well. Eventually, he gets reincarnated as his ex-wife's son, which happens when the unfaithful woman chops down a tree - which is really him - and a tiny chip flies into her mouth. When Bata grows into manhood, he finally gets his revenge on her then triumphantly assumes the throne.


In the Exodus, it is mentioned that when the Israelites left Egypt, they took the bones of Joseph with them. This was in keeping with the promise his brothers made to him on his deathbed - that when they leave Egypt, they should take him with them.

There is an interesting rabbinical story in which before leaving Egypt, Moses conjures up a series of "spells" to call on Joseph's coffin, which is apparently buried in the Nile. The coffin rises up, and Moses collects it.
This has been paralleled to the tale of Osiris. As you probably know, Osiris was murdered by his jealous brother Seth and trapped in a coffin, which was dumped into the Nile.

I never thought to liken Joseph to Osiris. Well, if I hadn't heard that interesting Jewish folktale it would never have crossed my mind.
And it doesn't end there. Joseph and Osiris are associated with the harvest - Osiris was the god of agriculture and Joseph, as you know, prepared Egypt for the 7 years of famine.


Aside from Joseph's story, I have heard of other Biblical accounts being compared with Egyptian history / religion as well. I heard, for instance, that Akhenaton's Hymn to the Aten is pretty similar to one of the Psalms.

Titanic 3D

Last weekend, I saw Titanic in 3D. I was really looking forward to it. I loved the original 2D version and was eager to see how much more epic it would be in 3D.

And was I ever blown away.

Where do I start? Well, I felt the 3D-ness the most when the ship was sinking. When everything was being torn apart, with debris flying and crashing everywhere, I was afraid something would hit me.
And when the ship had finally sunk, and when the remaining passengers were struggling in the ocean, I felt like I was one of them. I actually expected the water to enter my nose. I was surprised I didn't get even slightly wet.
By the end of the movie, I was kind of exhausted - though in a good way. After all, it isn't every day you get to sink with the Titanic.

Indeed, I felt like I was truly on the ship, especially in the ballroom scenes (so very sumptuous and elegant) and certain shots along the deck. There was one instance when I actually reached out to touch a railing.
Also, there were times when I thought someone / something was blocking the screen, only to later discover the person was part of the movie.
Although when there were overhead shots of the ship, I felt detached once more, the way I would in a regular 2D film.

Oh... and the ending scene. All I can say is that I felt like I had become Rose. When I was "passing by" the people, I actually smiled back at them, forgetting they couldn't see me.
And if I was a Leonardo diCaprio fan, I probably would have been over the moon.

Of course, like in the original showing, I was moved to tears. Though now that I am older than I was when I first saw it, I have to admit the love story is a bit far-fetched. How could people fall that deeply in love after only 3 days? And that love-at-first-sight thing is a dreadfully tired cliche.
As a matter of fact, in the scene when Rose comes to Jack and says, "Hello Jack, I changed my mind," I heard someone murmur, "All of a sudden?" Good point!

Also, some of the dialogue seemed a bit... trite? Such as this:

Jack: Rose, how did you find out I didn't do it? [referring to his false accusation]
Rose: I didn't. I just realised I already knew.

Um... OK. 

Still, I was moved in certain scenes, such as the "Jack I'm flying" sequence (so very beautiful, even though I couldn't really feel the 3D effects in it) and of course the ending.
The overall movie was very engaging. I mean, the ship sinks! 

It seemed a lot shorter than I remembered it to be, even though I was in the cinema for about 4 hours (we watched it in the IMAX and it had an intermission). Perhaps that is because I enjoyed it so much.

At the end of the movie, everyone clapped. I was pleasantly surprised (and of course, I joined in). This is the first time I've seen people clap in the cinema.
Everyone was captivated, it seemed. During the last scenes, I heard a lot of sniffing around me. When the movie let out for an intermission, the teenage boy in the row in front of me enthusiastically remarked, "That was so good!"

I ought to mention that we saw the movie in Darling Harbour. So when we got out of the theatre and saw the water all around us, I couldn't help feeling a wee bit nervous. As if any moment, fierce waves would suddenly rise up and come crashing towards us.

This is the 2nd 3D movie I saw, though it feels like the first. The very first 3D I saw was Tangled. However, in that movie, I didn't really feel the 3D effects though the story was entertaining. Titanic, on the other hand, was very involving.

A friend of mine who saw Avatar told me that that movie must be seen only in 3D. Now, I can say the same about Titanic.
Alas, I missed Avatar. Now that I know about the magnitude of 3D, I hope it returns to cinemas soon.

With this Titanic revival, I suddenly remembered hearing about a "Titanic mummy" a few years ago. Apparently, there was onboard the mummy of a priestess (or princess?) which some Englishmen had previously stolen from Egypt, and which was being shipped to America courtesy of the British Museum. This mummy's curse thus sunk the Titanic.
This is said to be a hoax though, especially as there was no mummy documented among the ship's cargo, or so I've been informed. Still, this is pretty interesting, especially for an Egyptophile like me.
Someone actually gave me a paper she wrote, disproving this theory. Alas, I lost it. So if anyone has more info on this, I'd love to hear about it.
(And yes, I've already checked out the urban legends site snopes.com, which has a pretty detailed analogy on the mummy rumour.)

Slightly going off-topic, I remember that when there was news of DreamWorks making a Joseph film, Leo diCaprio was supposedly being considered for the titular role. I guess they were trying to piggyback on the Titanic fame. I am sort of glad they didn't go through with that though. While diCaprio isn't too bad an actor, I can't really see him in the role of Joseph. He's too... er... boyish? And Joseph is a more manly, hunky kind of guy.

Anyway, read this touching but sad story Al showed me about the dogs of the Titanic.

Easter

So... when I saw The Passion for the 2nd time 2 years ago, Al, armed with a stupendous knowledge of the Bible and ancient history, had a wealth of info to share with me.

I got a glimpse into the historical and cultural background of the brutal practise that was crucifixion. Apparently, this was the most degrading form of punishment in the Roman Empire, reserved only for those in the lowest rungs of society. The people of ancient Judea, which Jesus was a part of, were considered such. They were Roman subjects, which in Roman eyes were good for only labour and taxes. In addition, these citizens of Nazareth were subject to the Jewish crown (the puppet royal family of the Herods), which in turn was subject to the Roman Emperor.

I remember hearing in one documentary that the word "excruciating" actually came from "crucifixion." This apparently goes to show just how brutal crucifixion was. And as we know, those ancient Romans weren't exactly hesitant when it came to violence.

There is a widespread story of the Apostle Peter being martyed by dying on an upside down cross. He chose his death to be this way because he wasn't worthy to die as Christ did. Though this is nowhere mentioned in the Bible, it has been widely accepted by theology scholars.
Criminals who were Roman citizens though could not be crucified. Thus when the Apostle Paul was later martyred, he was beheaded instead.

Sometime after I saw The Passion, Al informed me of another movie about Jesus which is part of the Bible Collection movie. This film, simply entitled Jesus (starring Jeremy Sisto as Jesus; Jacqueline Bisset as Mary; and Debra Mesing as Mary Magdalene) raised the topic of this misconception I've had of the all too controversial Magdalene.

No, I was not - and never was - in agreement with that Da Vinci Code rubbish. But for the longest time, I thought she was a harlot. I didn't bother verifying this, I just accepted it as is.
However, it was pointed out to me that nowhere in Scripture does it actually say that. Her origins remain a mystery, but nowhere is there any indication that Magdalene was once such a woman. 
Some teachings have claimed her to be the woman taken in adultery (the one who Jesus defended by saying "let he who is without sin cast the first stone"), as well as Mary of Bethany (the sister of Martha). Modern Biblical scholars believe, however, that these 3 women were totally different from each other.

What the Bible does say though is that Jesus cast out 7 demons from Magdalene. That, and that she was definitely one of the women who first saw Jesus after He was resurrected. But as for the rest, such as her rumoured past - no.

Oh, I just remembered that I read Anne Rice's Out of Egypt a couple of years ago. It was very good, very well-researched and I learned a lot. I even learned about those extra-Biblical tales of Christ, such as His creating birds out of clay on the Sabbath, as well as His resurrecting a dead friend who had fallen from the roof.
I didn't read the sequel The Road to Cana though because... let's just say it had some stuff I did not agree with *coughdavincicodecough*.

I really should read more on this - the historical Jesus, extra-Biblical tales (though some of them are disturbing and border on blasphemous), controveries and misconceptions, the historical and cultural background of Jesus' time etc.

So to those of you who celebrate it: happy Easter!

Good Friday

I love the movie The Passion of the Christ. I have only seen it twice though because as you know, it is not exactly an easy film to watch.
However, I think it is good that this movie did not shy away from portraying the reality of Christ's sufferings.  Though this is difficult to accept, the fact of the matter is, this is what truly happened (if not exactly like it, then at least close to it). So at one point, we must step out of our comfort zones and see what Jesus truly endured.
And the movie achieved this, in more ways than one.

The 2nd time I saw this movie was with some friends and acquaintances. By the way, I think it is better to see this movie with other people because it contains such a great depth of emotion that... well... you need others to share it with.
I think most of us had seen it before, so some people were even prepared with a huge box of tissues. I forgot the tissues, but I thoroughly drenched my handkerchief. By the time the credits rolled, there was not a dry eye to be seen.
Not to mention everyone was quiet. Really quiet. Our host had prepared some snacks afterwards, just in case. But no one could eat or talk. To quote my host, this is the type of movie that makes you still and silent for a long time.

I was really touched by that scene when Mary was rushing to comfort her Son while He was carrying the cross, and this alternated with a flashback showing a younger Mary rushing to comfort a child Jesus when He tripped and fell. That was very heart-rendering.

I liked too how they had the movie in the original language. I know the filmmakers were originally intending not to have subtitles. I am glad in the end, they rejected that idea. The subtitles didn't ruin the authenticity of the movie anyway.

I remember watching an interview in which Jim Caviezel talked about the difficulties of the role. I heard that at one point, the padding he wore during the flogging scene fell off, and he was actually flogged! Poor thing. Also, when he was on the cross, he got hypothermia.
But it wasn't totally gruelling. He said that when he was up on the cross, he realised just how much God loved him.
I felt this way too upon seeing the movie. This makes me all the more grateful that they didn't veer away from the realities, as difficult as they were.

Caviezel also said that there were people who actually came up to him and prayed to him. He very humbly and wisely said, "Please don't do that. I am not Jesus, I only play Him."
Very impressive.

Alas, I am aware that another person involved in the making of this film has generated a lot of negative publicity lately. As a result, many people no longer want to watch the movies he was involved in. What a crying shame!
However, I still find The Passion to be too profound and moving a film to discard, not to mention it is one of the best and truest portrayals of the life of Jesus. So I try not to associate it with the said person.
It is just like how I try not to associate Joseph with a certain actor who played him and who has also recently gotten a lot of negative press. I was highly disappointed, especially because I imagine this actor is the closest to how Joseph must have really looked like. But then, upon the advice of a friend, I separated that actor's off-screen life from his on-screen one.
Besides, whenever I see him in the Joseph role, I don't see that actor. I see Joseph.

Back to The Passion. There were a couple of scenes that befuddled me though: one wherein Satan, watching Jesus carry the cross, carries an eerie-looking "baby" who smiles at Jesus' suffering. The other is when just before Judas killed himself, he was hounded by these "children" who were not quite as they seemed - like the baby, they were demons.
With regards to the "baby," I heard from the filmmakers that it was a symbolism of distorting everything that was supposed to be good and pure - hence, this demon baby doing what it did. Al also told me that seeing as this film was produced by a Traditional Catholic, a lot of it was based on the visions of a 19th century nun named Blessed Anne Catherine Emmerich.

Sometime ago, Al recently shared with me about the speculated sites of Jesus' tomb. The first one is the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, which is the most widely accepted among scholars. I also heard that several religions are laying claim to the Church - part of it is claimed by the Catholics, part of it is claimed by the Ethiopian Church, and a part of this Church is even a mosque!

The other site is the Garden Tomb, near the Arab bus station. The possibility of the Garden Tomb was proposed by a 19th century explorer named Sir Charles Gordon. Apparently, Gordon saw a skull-shaped hill near the tomb, which brings to mind the Bible's mention of "Golgotha" - the Place of the Skull.

Alas, I haven't really read too much into this to make a conjecture for myself. I visited the 2 places when I was in Jerusalem and I like to imagine that the Garden Tomb might have been the site, as it has a more fitting atmosphere - lots of greens, flowers, the sort of sad beauty a cemetery has. The Church, on the other hand, has too much "glitz and glamour." But of course, in Jesus' time, these 2 places were very different from how they are now. So really, who knows where His tomb could have really been.

But the only thing certain is that He's definitely not in it anymore!

By the way, a few entries ago, I mentioned hearing about an unnamed young man in the Gospel of Mark who fled away naked after Jesus' arrest. No one knows for sure who this is. Some people, as I mentioned, surmise he might have been Joseph fleeing from Potiphar's wife. Others though apparently surmise it was Mark himself. In ancient writings, authors often referred to themselves anonymously, so Mark might have been implying that he was an eyewitness to Jesus' arrest.
According to Al, who heard it from the scholars, Mark's family might have provided the room in which Jesus and the Apostles had the Last Supper. Mark then might have been following Jesus in the hopes of hearing more of His teachings.

I would really like to write a novel set in the time of Christ. Perhaps, in keeping with my style, I will once again choose a very obscure woman from the Gospels and highlight on her.
Sadly, I don't know as much of the historical background of Jesus' time as I wish I did. So this would call for a massive amount of research. But you know what they say - learning is a lifelong process!

I am, however, sort of on a starting point. Al shared with me a wealth of information about the time of Jesus, which I shall speak of more in the following entry.

By the way, this is one of my favourite musical scores from The Passion: