The weekends provide plenty of opportunities to explore the area. These two photo galleries show a taste of the diversity to be found within an hour from Jerusalem.
The Mahane Yehuda Market
Just a few light rail stops from the Old City is the Mahane Yehuda Market. Commonly known as “The Shuk”, this market boasts some 250 vendors selling fresh fruit and vegetables, breads, nuts, meats, fish, candies, desserts and much more. There are restaurants and bars peppered throughout as well.
The market is especially busy on Fridays as people prepare for the start of Shabbat. These photos were taken on the Friday afternoon before Rosh Hashana.
Getting Outside of Jerusalem:
For most of the semester, my Physical Settings of the Bible class has 1-day field trips each weekend where we get out to study and explore the geography, geology and other aspects of the Land. We examine how these physical realities impact and influence the Biblical writers.
This past weekend, we explored the approaches to Jerusalem. Here are some photos from that trip.
Plans for Future Postings:
If you have been following this blog for a while, you may notice that I am trying to post weekly updates. I’ve decided to alternate between photo/video posts and textual posts exploring something that I think is cool.
If there is something that you would like to know more about, let me know and I will try to fit it into my postings.
Stepping into the Jordan 
What is your new favorite food? Any squeamishness with food sold on the street in open stalls? Are your meals with your fellow students always communal? What are your fellow students like? What are their stories? Why are they there?
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Hey Stan! Lots of good questions. I am really enjoying the food. It is very Middle Eastern: Hummus, Falafel, Kebabs, rice (lots of rice) and plenty of fresh vegetables and fruits. I’ve had no issue eating in any of the open food stalls. Food quality is very high here.
Pretty much all of our meals are communal. We have set hours for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Most meals are come-and-go. You need to have gotten your food within the alloted hour. We have a nice dining room as well as areas outside to eat while the weather is nice. On Friday evenings we have a group Shabbat meal. This is a little nicer and more of a sit-down, family affair. That is followed buy evening vespers (devo).
The students here are from a wide range of backgrounds. There are a number of undergraduates here for semester-abroad programs. We have a decent number from Wheaton College. There are also a number of twenty-something graduate students. Then there are less than 10 of us “2nd career” types that are over 40.
Everyone’s story is a little different. But, I think one common link that all of us have is a desire to deepen our understanding of the Biblical Text by experiencing the land and culture in which it was written. Once you begin to appreciate how the land is a major “character” in the Biblical story, it opens up deeper and richer meanings in the Text.
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