Travel diaries - Jerusalem, the City of Gold

I left a piece of my heart in Jerusalem and one day, I will go back for it.

I have not been around the world yet but I feel like I can tell you that Jerusalem is one of the places you should visit before you die. True. The city is stunning and full of so much beauty, history, culture, diversity,  and so much more. It is also a living and breathing city. I mean, every day, regular people wake up in Jerusalem, go to work in Jerusalem, go to school in Jerusalem, sleep in Jerusalem. Imagine living next to all that awesomeness!

Prior to my visit, I knew very little about Jerusalem, besides what is written in the Bible. Also, I was not raised in a Catholic or Orthodox church, so I knew next to nothing about the stations of the Cross and all the Holy sites and relics in Jerusalem. So I joined a tour bus so I would learn about the city and have people to take pictures of me. The tour guide warned us that we would be walking for hours as the streets of the old city are very narrow. I like walking so initially, I did not mind. Then I found out that I had underestimated the sun. There is Abuja sun and then, there is Jerusalem sun.

Anyway, the weather was so hot that at some point, I had to lean against a wall and close my eyes to rest for a little while. I opened them to find a group of tourists/pilgrims pointing at me and the wall behind me. Startled, I quickly moved away and realised that I had innocently been leaning on the 'Hand of Christ' imprinted on the stone wall. The story is this; while Jesus was carrying the cross on the way to Golgotha, He was very hot (burning), and tired. So He stopped and rested His hand on the wall at about the same spot I was standing. His hand left a mark on the stone. That mark is today called, the Hand of Christ.

The Hand of Christ

Seventh station of the Cross

So, let me tell you a little more about Jerusalem. I only visited the old city which is the one in the Bible. Today, there is also a new city which is much bigger than the old.

Jerusalem, like life, is a city of hills and valleys. It is also a city of gold because the buildings literally shine like gold when the sun hits just right. This is because for thousands of years, every building has been built with the same 'golden Jerusalem' stone. There is even a legislation for this. This is very beautiful and even though it is very different, it reminded me of my second home, Aberdeen, where all (well almost all) the buildings were built with granite.

Jerusalem is a culturally and religiously diverse city divided into four major quarters, the Armenian, Christian, Muslim, and Jewish quarters. There are no gates between the quarters and you can practically slide from one to the other. Most of the time there is peace between the different religious and cultural groups. However, it is important to note that the police and border police are fully armed and everywhere.  Also, only a few weeks after I visited, there were riots and violence in the city.
Side note- most of the policemen and women are unbelievably young, fit and very very fine.

So what did I do in Jerusalem apart from taking a long walk? I visited the empty tomb of Christ, the church of the Holy Sepulchre, the wailing wall; I walked on the streets following the steps of Christ, shopped for souvenirs, ate 'fake' shawarma, learnt about the city and took loads of pictures.

... And I found the immovable ladder! When I took the pictures, I did not know the significance of that ladder. Just learnt that it has been in the same exact position since the 18th century! It is not glued to the wall, but cannot be moved because you need all the responsible churches to reach an agreement before you move anything in the building.

Church of the Holy Sepulchre. Peep the ladder beneath the middle window on the top floor.

The Church is beautiful

I feel like I need to go back to fully experience Jerusalem; I hope I do. One thing is certain though, I love Jerusalem.


Tips for when you visit
1. Be prepared to walk. Do not forget your bottle of water at home and remember to wear a hat, pair of sunglasses, comfortable clothes and shoes.
2. Do not wear shorts or sleeveless dresses because you may not be allowed to visit some of the Holy sites (but some people will not hear word)
3. In the words of my fellow Nigerians, SHINE YOUR EYE when you are buying souvenirs. The sellers will try to rob you blind and I was a victim. Insist on paying in shekels rather than dollars when you can, and always compare the prices in two or more stores before you buy anything.
4. That thing they call Shawarma is not your regular Nigerian Shawarma. You will be disappointed o.

Broken

Andrew’s lawyer’s voice jolted me out of my reverie. I only heard the last part of the question.

“...do you agree that thirteen million naira is fair?” He asked.

I blinked and hesitated, but three pairs of eyes were watching me, waiting for a reply.

I nodded.

“But...” Stephen, my lawyer started.

I shook my head and gently touched his arm.

“It is okay,” I whispered.

Andrew looked at me in disbelief, as if he had expected me to protest.

I tried to catch his eyes, and for a moment, held his gaze.

I looked away in shock as I realised there was nothing for me there. Not in his eyes, not in his life. It was almost as if all we had shared had been never existed.

After thirteen years together, my soon-to-be ex-husband and I had lost everything.

Thirteen years ago, when he said ‘I love you’, I knew that he meant it.

Now, there was nothing.

I remember exactly where I was, and what I was doing, when my phone screen broke for the very first time. My precious Samsung S4. It happened on a Saturday morning while I was in Gee’s house getting ready for Tolu’s birthday party. I noticed that the screen protector had somehow peeled away and covered less than fifty percent of the phone. Irritated, I striped it completely off the phone. Thirty seconds later, there was a loud thud. My erstwhile crack-free phone had slipped and fallen on Gee’s hard tiled floor. When I picked it up, there was a long diagonal mark stretching from the top left side of the screen to the bottom right.

I do not remember how the second, third, or thousandth crack happened.

Today, I can’t use the front camera because it is all smashed up, the bottom left and right sides are completely gone, and every day, tiny shards fall from the screen.

“Tomi, I’m serious, I used to run 6 kilometres every morning,” I insisted, when I saw the look of disbelief on her face.

“You?” She replied, “Pictures or it didn’t happen.”

I sighed, “You know I don’t have a phone right now. Seriously, I was dreaming of running marathons, climbing mountains and so much more. I even wrote a blog post about it here.”

“No jokes. So what happened, why did you stop?” She asked.

I shrugged.

Truth is, I do not know. I even bought new exercise outfits, shoes and all, to encourage me. However, there is no motivation.

I think this is because beneath it all is a voice that says I can’t.

A voice I have believed.

It’s not just about my phone or my exercise routine. There’s other stuff like my thoughts, emotions, diet, routines, social media usage that I feel I have no control over.

I remember how I went from cheat day to every day, from portion control to ‘Please I am hungry’.

Now I cannot find my way back.

I knew that I wanted to go to the beach in Tel Aviv. I knew what bus to take, thanks to Google maps. However, after waiting at the bus stop for over one hour, I realised that I needed help.

I ignored all the older people at the bus stop, hoping that the girl whose t-shirt read ‘here to have a good time’ would be able to interpret the Hebrew bus signs for me.

“Do you speak English?” I asked her.

“No” she replied, “No English.”

“Ha! I am in trouble today!” I thought.

Finding English language speakers in Tel Aviv, for me, was like rolling dice and hoping that like Katniss Everdeen, the odds would be in my favour. Everybody spoke Hebrew. So, I learnt a few words in addition to Shalom, which means peace.

For example,

Good Morning – Boker Tov

How are you – Ma Nishma

Thank you – Todah

So imagine my surprise when I learnt that this language was basically dead for hundreds of years. Hebrew is now spoken by the overwhelming majority of Israelis, but it was dormant for many years being used solely for ritual and scholarly purposes, until the 19th century. This is the only ancient language to be resurrected this way.  Amazing right?

See the story in the picture below.

This gives me hope that one crack or multiple cracks shouldn’t end it all.

That even though I feel lost and out of control, like the prodigal son, I can find my way back.

And if dry bones and dead languages can come back to life, then dead marriages and fitness goals can.

I will.

It’s about time I start believing the voice that says the truth.

“I can do all things through Christ[a] who strengthens me.” Philippians 4:13

P.S. I eventually made it to the beach, and as you can see from the header, it was worth all the trouble.

Pictures: Sophia's new phone