I'm back in the USA now, and my trip to Israel was truly amazing. It flew by, but I had a great time. It’s now almost Christmas! My favorite holiday! Literally, after Thanksgiving I begin to only listen to Christmas songs (which usually annoys my sister on long trips in the car.)
I’m totally into Christmas… but being in Israel it was a bit hard to do that. Obviously, it is a predominantly Jewish society, and not many people celebrate the Christian holiday. It was weird not to hear “Jingle Bells” in every store, not to see X-mas trees decorated in every corner, or sparkling lights in every window.
However, we found a way to feel a little bit of Christmas… we went to the place where Christmas began… Bethlehem. It was a bit of a trip, I mean, the small town is in the West Bank. We had to take various methods of transportation and cross the border to get to the town, but it was worth seeing the birthplace of Jesus.
We went to the Basilica of the Nativity, which they built over the presumed spot where Jesus was born. Also, we visited the Church of St. Catherine, and the Milk Grotto. In the Nativity Church, there is star which marks the spot where tradition says the Virgin Mary gave birth to Jesus… needless to say, very interesting.
Church of the Nativity
Apart from that, it was interesting to be in the West Bank. The wall separates these cultures because of long-standing tensions. The thick cement wall is covered in messages of hate and messages of peace. Many people cross the border daily, for work or travel, but at the end of the day, they are still separated, and every day, the separation grows larger.
We can only hope that one day, we can live in a world where ethnicities, cultures, and religions can exist peacefully together. Where we live in peace with our neighbors, and not need these divisions. We can only hope :)
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