The Old City – Page 31 – The Real Jerusalem Streets

Jerusalem Light Festival 2014

June 17, 2014rjstreets

Jerusalem, City of Light.

One of the most popular cultural events hosted in the Old City

is the Jerusalem Light Festival.

I like to arrive early and wander the alleyways

as the sun set and the colorful lights came on.

This was an unique light piece in the Christian Quarter,

but there were several of these posters.

Many more Arab shops were open this year,

these drinks were ready for the large crowds.

The blue lights

led us past the barbershop which was open, but not busy.

There were 29 stops along four routes.

One of the most interesting was in front of the Hurva Synagogue.

Using buildings as screens,

for projected

works was big this year.

Easy to know who did “Circus of Light.”

Colored lights on the walls were in several locations.

This interactive piece changed as people touched it.

Nearby outside the walls, these globes changed in color and form.

This work near Jaffa Gate was an imposing structure,

and looked different from the other side.

Along the street to the Damascus Gate were actors,

in costume, in colorful settings,

but when you got close it looked so different.

Inside Jaffa Gate another light show shined on the Christian Information Center.

But my favorite was Damascus Gate,

where the 6 minute

light show required a video.

Photos of this huge, colorful complex piece

will probably be favorites from this 5th annual event.

But I also like this simple photo from the night.

The festival runs from June 11-19.

A lot of walking is involved.

It is hard to see everything in one night.

Some friends said they were disappointed,

but I think it was much better than last year.

Jerusalem Day: Israeli Flags and Parade

June 1, 2014rjstreets

Thousands of people are marching down 5th Avenue in New York City

for the annual Israel Day Parade #TogetherOnFifth,

after months of intense organization and planning.

On Yom Yerushalayim, Jerusalem Day, we also had a parade.

Overnight all the yellow and white Vatican flags were gone,

replaced with blue & white Israeli and Jerusalem flags.

The streets were crowded with tens of thousands of people,

carrying thousands of flags,

for the annual Rikudegalim, Dance with the Flags

or Flag Parade.

Streets that were closed for the Pope were shut down again.

But this time people did not stay away,

Aleh students came in their wheelchairs.

Thousand of girls with Israeli flags

had their own place to sing and dance.

And these two guys were trying awfully hard to see them.

In the crowd it was hard to see, so sitting on shoulders provided a better view.

The buses blocked traffic so the parade could pass,

as the streets were filled with people long before the official start time.

The hotel balcony gave people a great vantage point.

Outside Heichal Shlomo, men and boys were packed in,

ready to march to the Western Wall,

to enter by same gate as the paratroopers did in 1967

when they liberated the Old City from Jordanian control.

With people coming in all directions all afternoon,

this parade may not have been as carefully organized

as the one in New York City,

but it was the ultimate blue & white photo-op.

I heard of girls who needed a police escort out of the Old City,

as glass bottles were thrown at them.

But though Yom Yerushalayim is not yet a national holiday,

people from all over the world came together to celebrate.

And on King George Street where the masses were having fun,

there was no violence, so it did not make the news.

Seeking the Pope in Jerusalem

May 27, 2014rjstreets

With preparations fit for a king,

or maybe a US president,

Pope Francis arrived in Jerusalem, Israel.

The man wearing white shorts and I waited around to get a photo,

but this was as close as we came to seeing a Pope.

We talked long enough at New Gate for me to find out

that he was an Iranian studying physics in the US.

I cannot believe I forgot to ask him what his plans are after he graduates.

My plan to walk home through the Old City failed.

Inside and outside Jaffa Gate was shut tight, closed to the public.

Pretty lonely night, it was much quieter than usual all around.

Then Monday morning nice and early,

streets were shut.

This is a one-way street, want to guess which way?

Traffic was going out any which way, as this double bus blocked the road.

Credit to its driver who could maneuver that huge thing there.

But it worked, and this main street was clear of traffic.

And then King George Street,

where the Pope was going to meet the chief rabbis, was closed to traffic.

Though that meeting was not going to be for another hour,

these guys seemed serious,

and no way was I or anyone else going to get by.

I just wanted to go to Jewish Agency Building down the street,

but we had to walk around a different way.

Security had to stand in hot sun all day,

but we all had to walk around past this line of sitting cars.

Finally, I did get to here from there.

After the Pope and Rabbis and the very select guests left,

the Heichal Shlomo lobby was much easier to enter.

Then there was the area around Beit Hanassi, the President’s House.

Again I had to walk all around to get to where I needed to go.

Residents on the street had no parking for days.

I arrived to the spot where in May 2009,

I had been able to see the Pope’s limo leaving,

but this time a special reinforced bus was blocking the road.

Security was so tight that this is as close as I could get.

This man was holding a sign “Baruch haba Chaver,” Welcome my Friend.”

Pope Francis was given a red carpet welcome,

but certainly many sighed with relief when his visit ended

and he flew safely back to the Vatican.

But do not think all will be quiet for long.

לילה לבן

Tonight is White Night,

and music will blast all night in Gan Sacher, Sacher Park,

as Yom Yerushalyim, Jerusalem Day

celebrations begin at sunset.