There is truly no way to capture Jerusalem in pictures or in words. I am in awe beyond belief of the city I just spent my day exploring- two worlds colliding, the old and the new, as well as the representation of many religious beliefs and so much history... So I am writing it down my feelings and discoveries as soon as possible, while the feelings are still fresh within my mind.
Bartering for Beginners
If you are a girl, you know that shopping is the essence to our vacation- it single handedly determines how satisfied we are with our experience and gives us something to show for our hard work (looking at museums and historical sights, etc. etc.). We mainly shopped in the Christian Quarter and Jewish Quarter, finding tapestries, skirts, mezuzahs, menorahs, and various articles of jewelry. Here are the basic steps to bartering in a foreign country.
1. Make eye contact- doing so notifies the shop owner/ gypsy that you are interested in their wares. If you are not interested or do not have the time, do NOT make eye contact. Once done so you are hooked and they will try to reel you in with lines such as "Lady want to see my shop?" or "Hey pretty lady, care to buy a lamp?" To them no means yes ("Lo" means "no" in Hebrew just fyi) and "just looking" means "show me every article you have whilst dangling it five inches in front of my face please and thank you".
2. If you find something you really like, act like you couldn't care less. Call it ugly, toss it aside, say you have seen millions of them all over the city. This will drive them crazy. "No no! Not like this! Authentic Bedouin made! Hand stitched! One of a kind!" Though all these things may very well be true, it is up to you to make it as unimpressive and unoriginal as possible.
3. Never accept the first price. You are pretending to be uninterested as you gape at an amazing "authentic Bedouin handmade one-of-a-kind" tapestry, the store owing gypsy will approach you.
"Oh lady you like? Three hundred shekel (or insert money denomination here) just for you! Is good price."
You: "Ho hum... I saw another down the road for one hundred shekel... I think I'll go back there. Thanks anyways"
Gypsy: "One hundred shekel?? No is not real. This is real. I give it to you two fifty, that's the best I can do."
You: "No really the other was much nicer. I think I'll go..."
After a few rounds of this and getting him to go maybe a third of the price down, you pull out this gem:
4. You: "Oh I only have one hundred shekels on me... That's too bad"
Pretend like you don't have enough money. What else can they do?
If all else fails:
5. WALK AWAY. Once you step one foot out of their shop, you've got them in the bag. They will run down the streets yelling after you to come back and take that tapestry as if they're giving it to you for free.
Gypsy: "Ok ok. One hundred shekel... Geez lady, we got to eat too."
As true as this last statement may be, just remember- they are gypsies and they have probably sold a hundred tapestries to tourists who just aren't as smart as we are for five times the price, so don't feel bad.
And that ladies and gentleman is how it is done.
Some examples of excellent bartering technique:
We acquired three tapestries from three hundred shekel each to three for four hundred, three rings all for one hundred fifty shekel that were originally one hundred eighty each, and a three hundred fifty shekel hand crafted chess board including pieces for one hundred.
Damn we're good...
The Old City
Shopping in the markets was definitely an experience to be had by anyone and everyone at least once in their life time. It was full of the most beautiful scarfs, tapestries, precious metals, paintings and other art, clothing, spices, candy, candlesticks/menorahs, jewelry... The list could go on forever.
Also in the old city, we visited the Mountain of Olives, Mother Mary's tomb, where Jesus cried a river of bloody tears (?), Jesus' tomb (at least one of them), an old synagogue, the City of David, and many other biblically historical sights. Ok so I have to brush up on my religious history... But it was a moving experience never the less. The whole city had a palpable air of excitement and calm. The streets had a quiet to them, though filled with thousands, maybe even a million people, it was seemed peaceful and still. This is the city people come to when they need to find something whether it be an answer to a question, a prayer, or their beliefs- the very meaning to our existence. I could write pages upon pages about each individual place we visited- each more moving and aesthetically moving as the next, but one touched me most of all...
The Western Wall
Also known as the "Wailing Wall" or Kotel, is a remnant of the ancient wall that surrounded the Jewish Temple's courtyard below Temple Mount and is over two thousand years old. Every year, millions of people visit the wall, as many think that it is a direct line to God, placing personal notes, prayers, and wishes in the cracks of the ancient stones. I too brought a prayer to place between the stones of the wall, contents to be undisclosed. To say that seeing and touching the wall was a life-changing experience would be a severe understatement. Before getting to the Kotel, I had been forewarned that people do some crazy things: cry, scream, shout prayers, basically mass hysterics. Today seemed to be a slightly more calm day at the Wall. No insanity going on, but many people from all over the world praying from prayer books, singing songs, and connecting to God.
My least favorite part of the wall was the separation of men and women. It is an Orthodox structure so the separation is not what bothered me- it was the noticeable difference in space men and women got. The men had almost double the space on the wall women had. We were crammed together, all patiently waiting our turn, while the men had lots of space to spare. To add to that, the women were the ones taking care of all the children, making it even more crowded. Also, a man from the other side kept filming our side with a camcorder, which was creepy to say the least. I understand that it is not I who will change this unfair tradition of misguided masculine supremacy, but I can at least address it in this blog.
When my turn came to approach the wall and find a place for my note I was overcome with an immense flood of emotion. It is hard to pin point the feeling... And I am not claiming that I am at all religious- I am baptized Catholic and actually attend church twice a year... maybe... if only to appease my grandmother (aka the sweetest woman to walk the Earth). Nonetheless... There was feeling of, I guess you could call it, pride. Pride for all those who believe in something, anything, and stand up for it every day. Being surrounded by so many people who make mecha every year to return to their homeland, whether they are Jewish, Christian, which ever makes me realize that God is what makes people believe, gives us hope, makes them get out of bed in the morning. Pride for how far we as a species have come over thousands of years. No matter what is going on in the world today- there will always be war, there will always be someone who wants what someone else has- but there will always be someone there to help pick them up when they are down and help aid those in need. (Now I'm not saying that a country needs to have their nose up another countries butt just because they feel the need to help at the first sign of distress when it is not their place... But that is for another time, another blog altogether.) The Wall also created a feeling of hope. Hope is what keeps people going. Standing at the wall, looking up at its massive ancient stones, millions of tiny pieces of paper stuck in them- a symbol of a people's pride, faith, and hope- staring into the blazing sun, altogether made me realize: Everything is going to be all-right... I WILL one day finally decide what in the world (literally and figuratively) I am going to do with my life. I am capable of doing great things- I just have to push myself to do them. Belief in myself, courage, perseverance, and God will make sure I do not end up living under a bridge one day eating raw ramen out of a hubcap! It's as if a huge weight has been lifted off my shoulders. In the end it is me and only me who will decide my fate. Life is all about making choices and how you deal with what it gives you to work with.
I know God will not give me anything I can't handle. I just wish He didn't trust me so much.
- Mother Teresa of Calcutta
You'll never eat raw ramen - you were a girl scout.
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