speaking of death..

i can now die a little bit happier. after years of anticipation, i finally visited the dome of the rock. it was quite a process, winding through the old city, getting in through the western wall (security check), finding the bridge to the temple mount (security check), and then there it was, big shiny gold dome and all. honestly, what would the jerusalem skyline be without it? i ask you.
what can i say? it was exquisite. the tiles were all beautiful (blues, yellows, and teals). i took many pictures in attempts of proving just that (see above) but i know they can only do so much. the one disappointment was that we could not go inside. we knew this was a possibility yet it was still upsetting. (really, how can you have a monopoly on a site that's integral to all three abrahamic religions?) however, i managed to linger around and look pitiful enough that the guard offered to let me peek inside. gold mosaics and red carpets were all i could see. not even the famous rock. though i noted, with some satisfaction, that the interior of the dome was obscured by scaffolding.

also of note, there were very few tour groups on the temple mount when we were there. (though in fairness it was rather early.) i mention this only because tour groups (usually of a religious nature) are ubiquitous throughout the city. normally you can't turn around without bumping into a large mass of people with matching hats taking up an entire alleyway. it makes me wonder if there are people who come to jerusalem without visiting the dome of the rock.
blasphemy!

dead sea

well, as my first official stop on this little adventure, my mom and i have been exploring israel. it seems to me so far like a mix of mediterranean and moroccan, plus a couple million jews thrown into the mix.

during our busy schedule of shuffling from roman/biblical/byzantine ruins/historical sites/museums, we managed to squeeze in some time to check out the dead sea. yes, you really do float. walking out into the water i was skeptical, but once i got in i bobbed right up to the top. it was very relaxing, just being able to float on my back and admire the mountains of jordan in front of me. a word of caution, though. if you do decide to roll over (because that's all you can do; even treading water is difficult) try to minimize the flailing. otherwise you may end up with a eye and/or mouthful of salty, salty water (à la my mother). i don't think she enjoyed the experience quite as much as i did. she spent a good 10 minutes recovering. i licked my finger later, out of curiosity. wow. it's so salty it's actually bitter. like chugging vinegar. besides that, the experience was thoroughly enjoyable, and easily one of the more interesting things i've done thus far.

at the moment i'm in a nice little hotel, tucked into the armenian quarter of the old city in jerusalem. eastern european music is wafting in on breezes through the window. i'm eagerly awaiting the dome of the rock, but it will have to wait. tomorrow is jordan.

on y va

well i leave for france (actually israel.. via england, the CR, and, hey, france) in just about 3 days. it's a little surreal to think about being gone for nine months. so in my preparations, i thought i would resurrect this blog in case anyone's interested in my goings-on. (plus, this way there are fewer emails for me to send out.) so, off we go.

oh. also. in dusting off this blog, i discovered a feature that posts news stories by searching for the words of your choice. i chose a few to start with. feel free to suggest some more!