On our last day in Israel we climbed the hill behind our apartment to visit the Central Synagogue.
Then we headed back to the Basilica …..
where we appreciated varied mosaics of the Virgin Mary from countries of the world.
The stations of the cross were all exquisitely created from ceramics.
And of course sweets from the sweet shop before heading home.
Christmas Day began with an Arabic service at The Basilica of the Enunciation, the largest church in the Middle East. The service had me reflecting on the Latin services I attended as a child with my family of eight in our Catholic Church in Canmore, Alberta.
People come to Nazareth to see the churches. With map in hand, Christmas seemed like a great day to search out other churches in the community.
St. Joseph’s Church, built in 1914 is where Joseph once had his carpentry workshop. A staircase leads down underneath the modern-day church to where a cistern and series of storage pits can be seen. This underground level dates from the early 1st century AD.
Cats are absolutely everywhere. This little guy was particularly friendly. Most though are easily frightened.
This Chapel is dedicated to Sister Theresa of Calcutta.
The White Mosque is a traditional Ottoman Mosque from the 19 century.
The Synagogue Church is the traditional site where Jesus read from the Torah scrolls. It is snuggled away in the market district and belongs to the Greek Catholic Melkite community. This one was a real challenge to locate.
Anglican Church of Nazareth.
Mary’s Well (also known as the Virgin Fountain) waters are said to possess miraculous healing powers. Water was not evident here but the well water is bubbling in a crypt at St. Gabriel’s Church behind the well.
The smells and visuals in the market place are always a delight.
End of the day at St. Gabriel’s Orthodox Church.
Today we waited a long time for a bus to take us downtown to the Christmas parade. We finally decided to walk, thank goodness, as we later learned the buses were canceled because of the parade.
On the way we passed the Greek Orthodox Annunciation Church, St. Gabriel.
The parade was a fun event. One of the highlights was the number of bagpipes in the marching bands.
On Dec 23 Nassib and Maha, who we met in Istanbul, picked us up and took us to where Jesus preached the Sermon on the Mount.
Maha and I attended an outdoor service here where the birds in the trees were so loud they often drowned out the priest’s voice! Can you see the little parrot in the tree?
From the Mount we went to the Sea of Galilee where Jesus performed the miracle of the loaves and fishes to feed the multitudes that came to listen to him preach.
This church holds the rock where Peter stood when he was declared the chief among the Apostles.
After our wonderful outing we had a traditional meal of humous, pita, eggplant, olives, pickled cabbage, grilled sea bass, grilled bream, potatoes all accompanied by a fabulous salsa and followed by a beautiful milk custard.
Before heading back to Jerusalem we went to the home they are building in Shafar’am, Nassib’s home town and met their two children Hana, who is studying journalism at the Columbia University School of Journalism in New York and Zane, who is studying Environmental Science at the University of Waterloo.
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Eating delicious deserts we enjoyed stunning views from their new home.
Nazareth has the largest Arab population in Israel. Today we tried an Arabic thick milk drink sold everywhere. It was very filling and quite delicious.
Looking for the Christmas Market, we discovered it did not happen this year. I think all of these people were looking for it too.
A creative twist on an old theme.
Basilica of the Annunciation.
Every store highlights Santa and trees. It feels so much like home in this respect.
Beautiful plants near our apartment.
We said goodbye to Jerusalem which we loved. Our home for the past 10 days reminded us of being university students. This one had a significant difference in that it came with a resident concert pianist above us. We felt blessed to listen to his daily practice.
View from our new home in Nazareth.
The town tree complete with a nativity scene below.
A local spice market.
The grotto where Mary heard the Angel Gabriel announce that she was to conceive a son and she would name him Jesus. The grotto of the Annunciation has undergone many changes over the centuries but he original part has always been preserved.
BeverleyandJohn's2018Travels 