More news from Jerusalem

First of all, sorry for the delay in not updating this for the last few days. We have been busy with friends visiting from Canada.

I'm sure you have all heard of the bombing on Wednesday in Jerusalem. Don was on his way to the Tel Aviv ariport (dropping off some volunteers returning to England) and I was working in the gift shop when it happened. I heard the sirens but never thought anything of it as we hear sirens around here all the time. Don saw emergency vehicles driving in to Jerusalem as he was driving to Tel Aviv but only thought that there must be a bad accident behind him. We soon heard what had happened. The locals who work at the garden were very upset because it brought back memories of the infatada days of the 1990's, with all the bombings and unrest.

I'm sure you have heard that the lady that was killed was an evangelical Christian woman in her 50's who was studying ancient and modern Hebrew for 6 months in Jerusalem before she returned as a missionary to Togo, West Africa where she was working with Wycliffe Bible Translators. She had already worked on translating the new testament into the local language and would be returning to start translating the old testament. She had lived in Togo for the past 20 years, learning the language, translating the Bible and teaching literacy and maths.

We have not felt unsafe since this has happened. We still go out and about and carry on as we did before.
On Monday, some friends - Gordon Reeve and Sharon Poon, from Canada arrived in Jerusalem so we walked to their hotel to see them and pick up a care package that they had brought with them. Groceries from Canada - things that we can't get here or are too expensive to buy here. It was so good to see them and join them as we walked thru the old city. There were 27 in their group. We joined them for dinner on Tues evening and caught up on some of the news from home. On Friday they came to the garden for a tour (Don was their guide), and a communion and worship time. When we were accepted to come to the Garden Tomb and started to arrange the dates when we would be here, we wanted to make sure we were here when they would be here. So to be a part of their worship and communion was a very special blessing. Okay.....I had tears of emotion. It was sad to say goodbye as they left very early this morning.

Pastor Gordon Reeve at our communion service

Gordon Reeve, Sharon Poon, Don and myself in our apartment

I've been trying to get some pictures of the bees with the blossoms outside our living room window. I think when I get home I'm going to take a photography class so I know what I'm doing.

We realize that in a month we will be back in Canada. The time has gone so fast. There are still so many things we want to see and do. We are excited for Easter that is fast approaching.

We hope you will all have a great week-end.

Shalom!

Don and Glenda

On our 3 days off we decided to drive down to Eilat, Israel located on the Red Sea. On the way to Eilat we took one route and came back a different way. The first route was a little longer but had much nicer scenery. We drove thru Beersheva which is the beginning of the Negev Desert -Abraham lived in Beersheva, Isaac built an altar and dug a well here, and there are other mentions from the Bible. We noticed there were a lot more soldiers around; then realized how close we were to the West Bank and Gaza Strip. Just after leaving Beersheva we saw this road sign to Sarah - and since we named our daughter after Sarah in the Bible we thought we should take this picture. Not too much further was the gravesite for Ben Gurion - he was an important leader in Israel's history in the mid 1940's playing a very important part in Israel becoming a nation.
From his grave site memorial there is a magnificient view of the mountains and wilderness of Zin. It is hard to get a picture to show how impressive it was - it reminded us of the Grand Canyon.

This is the view from our hotel balcony. We stayed at the Rimonium Eilat. It is a resort area and is on the border of Israel, Egypt and Jordan. As well you can see the mountains of Saudi Arabia. We felt like we were in a different world - it didn't feel like Israel at all. It was nice and warm - high 20's Celsius - although in the summer the temperature is in the 40's Celsius. We enjoyed our free time here, walking along the promenade, sitting around the pool, and visiting the Coral World Underwater Observatory and Marine Park.

The border to Egypt.

The next few pictures are from the underwater observatory and Marine Park. We spent over 3 hours here walking thru the different underwater observatories, watching a simulated "dive" in a theatre that feels and sounds like you are going underwater. We watched them feed the sharks and turtles, and took pictures of the different fish. So the next few pictures are for our grandsons who love watching the movie "Nemo."

It looks like it is smiling at us!

Don standing in the sharks mouth!

The coral reef from the observation tower.

A land turtle!

When we left Eilat we travelled to Timna Valley Park. Again it is hard to get pictures to show the beauty of this area. There are ancient Egyptian copper mines, cliff walls carved with figures of chariots believed to be from Egyptian times, and very different rock formations. The following rock formation is called "the mushroom," the result of erosion. There are hiking trails everywhere.

Some carvings in the rock believed to be from the Egyptian times.

It was a great time, but nice to get back 'home."

We continue to have groups by the bus loads visit the garden. As I sit in our apartment writing this blog, I hear worship singing all around me. Just today I had a lady approach me and tell me how priviledged I was to be able to work here. Of course tears immediately appeared and I could only nod with my agreement. The time has gone so quickly as we realize that we are half way through our time here. A man shared with me this morning, that his wife gave her life to the Lord here in the garden many years ago. During our prayer time at 1:45 pm we pray that those that come to the garden will be touched by the Holy Spirit and feels God's presence here. We have testimonies from so many as they are leaving that they did indeed feel God's presence. They thank us and yet we feel it is more a blessing for us than them.

We are looking forward to some friends arriving on Monday - it will be good to see some familiar faces from Canada. As Sabbath is starting here - we say Shabbat Shalom - This is the standard greeting between Jews on shabbat, from sundown on Friday until sundown on Saturday. It means peaceful Sabbath in Hebrew.
In Canada we say "Have a great weekend."

Blessings and hugs from Jerusalem!

Don and Glenda

Pictures from our neighborhood

Thought I would start off with this one. Don, JJ and Anthony are relaxing in the staff room. The garden is closed from noon until 2 pm so this is where we meet every afternoon at 145pm for staff devotions. There are often 15 - 20 of us and someone will share God's word, a testimony, or a blessing and then we finish praying. We also come here for our breaks as tea, coffee (instant - they don't have coffee makers here!), and a nice assosrtment of cookies are offered. The next 2 pictures are in the wrong order and I can't figure out how to move them!!! Anyway, the first picture is our bomb shelter room and the following picture is the entrance to the bomb shelter. They haven't had to use it for many many years, but thought I would throw it in so you all know we are always safe if something should happen!!!

The next few pictures are what we see everyday when we leave the Garden. The Garden Tomb is situated in East Jerusalem which is populated with Arabs. We walk around here and I never feel unsafe. Damascus Gate - entrance to the old city is right at the end of this block. Again I wish I had a video camera so I could send some action and the noises we also hear. This is a very busy street as traffic is constantly coming in both directions. Right next to the garden is an Arab girls school, and down the street in the opposite direction is a boys school.

On the side of the street they are selling everything from candy, to childrens shoes, to baby clothes, to cigarettes. Every night they pack everything up (we've walked by at 9pm and they are still there), and by 8am the next morning they are there again. Many of the Arab women will come on buses to this area to buy their vegetables and clothes.

This is a little store right down the street where we will buy our milk, bread and a few groceries. As you can see some of the bread is packaged and some is unwrapped sitting on the shelves while vehicles are constantly driving past. The man that owns this store is a Christian so we try and support him as much as we can. His prices are not too bad for some things, and other items are very expensive so we will try and get those things when we go to a larger supermarket.

A couple doors down is this market selling fruit and vegetables.

At the corner of the street a vendor selling bread and drinks!

Around the corner and down a couple of blocks is another market selling vegetables and fruits!

These ladies are sitting selling their herbs and vegetables that I assume they grow in their gardens. They are scattered down each street. I haven't bought anything from them as they don't speak English and most of the time I have no idea what they are actually selling!

AND now to the meat markets! As you will see from this picture and the next the meat is hanging right in front of you. So you tell them you would like as much as you would like 1kg or 2kg etc, if you want a chunk that would be a roast, or if you want it minced up - which would be hamburger. I thought it would be nice to have a roast one night so I asked them for a chunk but I wanted it to be tender when I cooked it - not too tough. One of the men spoke fairly good English so I got a chunk. It cost me the equivalent of approx $15.00 and it wasn't a very big piece of meat. It served 4 of us for a meal and enough for me to have a small piece for a sandwich. Since then, we have made due with hamburger which is till about 2 -3 times as much as it would cost here

Hanging outside in the open air just waiting for you to tell them the piece you want. Then they come with a huge knife and cut it off. All the while, they also have a cigarette in their hand! You take it to the man to pay and he also is smoking. Oh and if their cell phone rings, then they answer it and you wait until they are finished with the call before they continue to help you.

Another vegetable/fruit stand around a different block. You never know if you are getting the same price as the locals as no prices are marked anywhere. I just go with it as I know I need some onions or carrots or bananas, so what am I to do.

Other volunteers at the Garden

Here are some of the volunteers and local staff that are at the Garden. I wasn't able to get pictures of everyone but this will give you an idea of some of the people we work with.
The first picture is Anthony. His wife has just arrived but haven't had a chance to take her picture. They are from England and have come to the garden numerous times.

This is Richard and Rosalind. Richard is the director of the Garden. They are also from England and have an amazing past. They have many interesting stories to share. Wilma is one of our receptionists. She is originally from Holland but has lived in Jerusalem for the past 40 years. She works a couple mornings a week here then volunteers at a home that cares for holocaust survivors.

Pnina is born and raised in Jerusalem. She is 20 years old and is TRYING to teach me some Hebrew. She works part time at the garden, then also works at another Christian shop in Jerusalem.

Here are 5 of the guides. This picture was taken as we were waiting for the miners from Chile. The blue shirts are given for the men to wear but no one told them to all wear tan slacks. They looked like police officers or something!

Left to right are:

Richard who is the director of the garden; Don from Vernon BC!; Philip who is the head guide - he was born in Jerusalem. His mother is American and his father is Jewish - he has a wealth of information; Al who is from Florida and who did the phone interview with us, and Cesar who is originally from Paraguay but now lives in Jerusalem.

This is Nellie, who trained me in the shop. She is a fantastic lady. Originally from Holland but came to do mission work as a young lady in her 20's. She met a Dutch man who was also here doing mission work, they are married, have 2 children, 2 grandchildren and a Palestinian foster daughter. They continue to work with orphaned children and families that have been affected by the unrest between Israel and Palestine. She has a wonderful spirit of the Lord!

Colin who also works in reception. Don't know too much about him other than he lives in Jerusalem with his wife and kids.

Roy and Mavis are also from England. They have been volunteering here for a few years. They have 2 children - their son and his family live in Sylvan Lake Alberta

Helen is another young lady that is living in Jerusalem and volunteers at the garden. I haven't worked with her very much so don't know much of her story.

This is Yoni our handyman. He is originally from New Zealand but 3 years ago returned with his wife to his roots - Israel. His children are still in New Zealand. He's always working or fixing something!

Corrie is our bookkeeper/accountant. She is originally from Holland as well. If we are needing anything in our apartment, we let her know and pronto we have it. She always has a smile on her face!

This is JJ - short for Jonathan Johnson. He has recently returned to England. He arrived just before us but was only here for 6 weeks.

Sergei who helps around the garden with cleaning and also does some of the gardening. He is formerly from Russia but now lives here with his family.

Steve and Sue also from England. Sue is the shop manager and Steve is the operations manager working alongside Richard.

Miriam also works in reception. She is originally from Norway but now makes her home in Jerusalem with her family.

So there are some of the people we work with everyday. There are a few people missing as it is hard to get everyone. We feel very blessed to be working with such a good group of people. They have all been so welcoming...it will be hard to say goodbye to all of them!

Shalom,

Blessings to you all!