Camels in waiting

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Does this camel have its own prayer rug to kneel on?

The camel's handler was busy on his phone while waiting for paying customers.

A second dromedary was hitched to a fire hydrant, probably hoping someone would want to take a short ride just for fun.

From our bus I could see more camels on the other side of the highway.

It's a long outdoor market selling ceramics and souvenirs.
Gas station and restaurant.
And everyone knows the Last Chance coffee bar here.
It's on the road from Jerusalem to Jericho, and it's your last chance to make a pit stop before the desert, before making the descent to the Dead Sea, hundreds of meters below sea level.
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(Linking to Camera-Critters.)
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Correction! -- The REAL conservator appears!

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Merry Christmas to all of you who celebrate it today!
(I couldn't find a decorated indoor tree in the Negev to post, so this one up in our Meitar Forest will have to do. )

Being Jewish I don't do Christmas, but I DID get a present just now in the form of an unexpected comment.
Jerusalem Hills Daily Photo blog is honored and surprised to hear from Georgios, the actual restorer from Golgotha in the Holy Sepulchre!
He wrote

Dear Dina . My name is Georgios and i am the man in the foto. I am Greek and i was working in the conservation of the wall paintings in Greekorthodox chapel in Golgotha. We were 3 professional conservators from Greece and we restored and cleaned the wallpaintings ,the icons and the Jesus on the Cross. It was an unbeliavable and fansinating experience. Thank you for your fotos.

This is the man in my recent blog post title Overhead Work in the Holy Sepulchre.
If you missed it, please take a look now at the four photos of Georgios at work.

After trying to find information online about the conservation work, I confess that I  assumed him to be a different expert, and thus made a big mistake in that post.   :(
My apologies to all!  That will teach me to be more careful in reporting and to "assume" nothing.

Shalom dear Georgios,
Thank you so much for miraculously showing up here in the blog on (new calendar) Christmas Day!  Thanks for your graciousness in forgiving my case of mistaken identity.  And thank you for sharing with us how it felt to give your help to such a holy place as the Holy Sepulchre.
I wish I could have talked with you; I was so moved watching you work.  God bless you for your loving contribution to Golgotha.
May you have a blessed Christmas season.
With much respect,
Dina
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All candles brightly burning

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The 8th, final, candle of Chanuka tonight!

Tomorrow is the last day of the festival of lights.
The name of the 8th day is Zot Chanuka.  See why here.
According to tradition this last day is the essence of the holiday. 

Still unlit candles,  just waiting for their chance to shine.
What a difference, eh?  
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Chag sameach, happy Chanuka!
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Overhead work in the Holy Sepulchre

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In the 12th Station of the Cross I was surprised to see a man working ABOVE the heads of the many pilgrims and tourists.
I was there at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre a few weeks ago.
Had to take the pictures in the dark, so click a few times on the photos to enlarge them and see a bit of detail.

Everyone was waiting in line for a chance to kneel under the Greek Orthodox altar and touch the stone of Calvary.
Being Jewish and not Christian, this is not something I do, so I was quite happy to instead watch the work going on overhead.

UPDATE, CORRECTION!  The restorer's name is Georgios and he is from Greece (and not from the Jericho school, as I had wrongly assumed)!  Do see his wonderful comment below!
I also made a new post about him here.
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UPDATE: See also https://religionnews.com/2016/03/25/mosaic-restoration-jesus-calvary-jerusalem/
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(Linking to  inSPIRED Sunday  and Our World Tuesday meme.)
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A message from the Mosque of Omar

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In Jerusalem's Old City last week I peeked through the locked gate of the Mosque of Omar and was surprised to see this sign in the courtyard. 
It is apparently sura 3:51 of the Quran which quotes none other than Jesus! 
The banner says
[in Arabic:] There is no god but Allah. 

"Jesus Said:

'I am indeed a slave of Allah,

Allah is my Lord and your Lord,

so worship Him Alone.' "

The mosque, with its tall minaret, is right across the lane from the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.  
I wonder how many Christian pilgrims on their way to the church  pause a second to look at the mosque and at the unexpected message on its wall. 

The Mosque of Omar, built in the 1460s, has a fascinating story in itself.
You are welcome to read about it in two of my earlier posts. 
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Tomorrow is Friday, the Muslim holy day, and al Aksa mosque will be packed.  After the prayers big protests are expected against Trump's declaration on Jerusalem.  Palestinian officials have called for "days of rage."  Let's hope and/or pray that no one loses his life. 
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(Linking to inSPIREd Sunday.)

Choosing a prayer spot

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How many of us would conquer any shyness and just do the prayers wherever we find ourselves when the set prayer hours arrive?
Just put off your shoes, kneel down, and do the prostrations?
In Israel you see Muslims (well, mainly men) praying in many public open spaces.
Like this Bedouin father on the lawn at Beer Sheva's Soroka hospital last week.

While exploring the medical center's sprawling campus I discovered this dedicated [Muslim] "Prayer Room."

The door on the right, as you can see from the water running out, is the place to do ritual ablution before prayer.

Soroka's Prayer Room is open at these times during morning, noon, and evening for the five obligatory prayers.
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UPDATE: I read now that Soroka was the first Israeli hospital to open a Muslim prayer room, sometime before 2003.
After a petition was filed in 2013, the High Court of Justice instructed the six largest hospitals to also build such a prayer room.   See article in Haaretz .
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While this is not exactly the "inspirational" religious architecture that bloggers share every weekend at inSPIRED Sunday, still, I'm linking it to the meme.  And also to Our World Tuesday.
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Homemade gifts--but with a difference!

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City Daily Photo bloggers have as our December 1st theme the idea of gifts.

Lucky me--my sweet daughter recently came up to Israel from down in Australia for a short visit.
And she came bearing gifts. 
I was excited to see for the first time the fruits of her labor, her artistic ideas made into physical objects on her new laser engraving and cutting machine!
Like the replica of the Golden Record that was sent into space 40 years ago. (If you're too young to remember the launch of NASA's Voyager I and II, Naomi wrote about the record on her website.)

Another gift I love is Naomi's pleasant-to-the-touch cork coasters.
As she explains,  "These cork coasters are laser engraved with an image of a labyrinth inspired by the famous Notre-Dame de Chartres Cathedral labyrinth in France. The labyrinth has for centuries attracted people to walk its lines in meditation. Even on this smaller version, running your finger along the lines can bring about calmness and serenity."

These little hearts are really offcuts from the wood and acrylic that Naomi works with.
I gave a few as symbolic gifts to new friends and it really won their heart.

Just for fun take a look at some of Naomi's 90 unusual creations at her online Etsy crafts store called Eclipse9Laser.
You'll even find Tolkien- and space-themed Christmas tree ornaments now!
And more new and unexpected things every week.

As Naomi explains,
"In my previous life I was a university lecturer and researcher in aerospace engineering. I also worked as an engineer for Lockheed and NASA, designing satellite systems. I love all things aerospace, engineering and science.
Now I'm making cool (ok, geeky) laser engraved gifts and items - things that I love and find exciting. I hope you love them too!"

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