Christmas Eve

Tuesday, December 24th

5:45 am. Hanni throws me out of bed early in the morning. But that was agreed upon: yesterday we decided that from the same spot on the city wall, where we had looked at Jerusalem at night, we could surely also watch the sunrise. The crescent moon is still visible in the dark morning sky as we set off and gradually gives way to the rising sun as we get closer to our destination. At about 6:30 am, the sky on the horizon turns deeper and deeper red. With a powerful glow, the sun rises behind houses and trees. Getting up early was worth it.

We make our way back to our hostel, where breakfast is soon ready, and get lost in the Armenian quarter in a courtyard of a church. We have no idea where exactly we are when a man, who looks like a monk judging by his clothes, lifts a carpet hanging on the wall and beckons us inside. Behind the carpet there is an opening inside the Armenian church. Hanni and I slip inside and immerse ourselves in another world.

The floor is covered with dark, red carpets. Countless lamps and chandeliers hang from the ceiling, the light is dim, and the air is filled with the scent of incense. At the front, two men in long robes and black, pointed hoods stand at something like a high altar, reciting Armenian verses by candlelight. As we move further forward through the large room, we notice that in the corners there are even more men in the same clothing standing or sitting, which we did not notice at first. It is a very special and somewhat eerie atmosphere that prevails here. Then the carpet through which we just entered is lifted, and a whole swarm of men in black robes enter, walking slowly to a small lectern, where they all bow and kiss a book that lies on it, then they disappear into a side room. Hanni and I look around in amazement for a while, then we make our way back through the Sesame-open-te carpet into the daylight. It was as if we had been witness to a mysterious and somewhat eerie film scene.

Now it's really back to the hostel, where we shower, have breakfast, check out, and then make our way to the Old City one last time. Before our departure to Nazareth, we want to visit the temple grounds where the Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Dome of the Rock are located. We have to go through an additional security check for this, and then we reach the wooden bridge in front of the Western Wall and the grounds of the former temple. For non-Muslims, this is the only access to the holy buildings. Or rather to the places in front of them. Entering the buildings is only allowed for people of the Islamic faith.

But the journey was still worth it: especially the Dome of the Rock is a breathtakingly beautiful building, whose blue, glittering mosaic facade now shines in all its splendor from close up. In the wonderful sunshine, we take some pictures before being asked by civilian security personnel to leave the premises. We then see that it is not only us - security personnel are swiftly clearing the whole square from all angles. It is time for the Muslim midday prayer, and no tourists should remain here. But we have seen what we wanted to see. We leave the premises through a small covered passage where Muslim traders sell food and souvenirs. I simply love the atmosphere of such small bazaars.

Then we meet Sophia at the Jaffa Gate and visit the Church of the Holy Sepulchre with her once again, where we have not yet seen the main nave. According to tradition, it stands at the site of the crucifixion and the tomb of Jesus. It is one of the holiest sites in Christianity and is in the hands of six different Christian denominations. Inside the church is the Chapel of the Holy Sepulchre, inside which is the Holy Tomb - the tomb of Jesus. To get inside, you have to plan at least two hours in line at noon, which we don't have now. But there is still plenty to see.

At the entrance of the church, for example, is the anointing stone, where the body of Jesus is said to have been prepared for burial. The crowds entering this church first gather around this stone, each trying to touch it with their hands or various objects to receive a divine blessing. We then visit various rooms of the church. It is truly huge, labyrinthine, and crowded with people everywhere. One could certainly spend a whole day here, with a bit more peace and less stress.

Shortly before our departure, we visit one last place of worship: the Hurva Synagogue in the Jewish Quarter. The friendly man at the entrance who speaks German would give us a longer introduction to the history of the synagogue, but unfortunately we don't have time. So we first climb the stairs inside the synagogue and reach the outer terrace, from where we have a wonderful view of the Old City of Jerusalem. Inside the synagogue, you can now look down into the main room of the house of worship, where dozens of young and old Orthodox Jews sit on chairs and tables, reading and discussing the Torah. It is a really interesting sight to observe this dynamic from above.

Then we go up to the dome, where there is again an outside and an inside area. Again, we look from there into the interior of the synagogue when suddenly we hear children's voices. Which in itself is not unusual, but there are currently no children to be seen near us. Confused, we look around and then suddenly see two children playing directly across from us on the other side of the dome. The voices cannot possibly come from them, can they? After all, the dome has a considerable diameter, and there is a considerable noise level around us. But it cannot be otherwise - they are the only children far and wide. So we conduct a self-test, and Sophia walks to the same point opposite us, where the children are. And behold: while she speaks in a normal voice, Hanni and I hear her with us as if she were speaking into a megaphone. There seems to be a very special acoustics up here in the dome. Incredible.

But now we say goodbye to Jerusalem and make our way to Nazareth, where we will spend Christmas Eve today. On the way there, passing by the West Bank, we again notice how dreary and barren the landscape is here. In principle, it is not a natural landscape - it looks as if someone had flattened everything that used to prevail here with a large roller, so that no blade of grass will grow here for many decades to come. What is unsettling about this is that this may not even be so unrealistic. The 700 km long and eight meters high Israeli barrier wall, which we see on the way and which surrounds the Palestinian territories, as well as the Israeli settlements located on Palestinian soil, certainly give an idea of the dimensions of the conflict.

Arriving in Nazareth, we check into our AirBnB rooms (old but charming, with curtains as shower curtains), freshen up a bit, and then set off to the Basilica of the Annunciation, where according to tradition, the Archangel Gabriel appeared to the Virgin Mary. There we want to celebrate the Christmas service at 7 pm tonight. And not only us: in front of the still closed church, more and more people (judging by the language mainly tourists) are gathering, waiting for the Basilica doors to open.

And they do open. However, only for people who have a ticket. A ticket. For a church service. Since it is not just any church service, but the Christmas service in Nazareth, one might have thought of that beforehand. In drizzling rain, we initially let all the people with tickets pass, hoping that we will still find a seat in the end. Suddenly Sophia's parents hand us tickets. Apparently, a man next to the gate had a whole envelope full of tickets from somewhere and is now distributing them free of charge one by one. Even if all this is a bit strange - the main thing is that we get in. And there we celebrate a wonderful Christmas service in Arabic and Italian for the next two hours. Only a few fireworks, which are set off at regular intervals somewhere in Nazareth, occasionally interrupt the service.

After the festive celebration, we set off to find a restaurant and wander through deserted streets. Where there was life and stalls on our way here, there is now nothing. Absolutely nothing. Just when I am about to resign myself to going to bed hungry for a change on Christmas Eve, we stumble into a quaint and beautiful restaurant that is open and has seats available for us. So our Christmas dinner is secured. In the end, we return to our hostel full and satisfied and then have a small gift exchange on the covered rooftop terrace by candlelight and Christmas cookies. So then - Merry Christmas 😊