Election Day

For those of you who aren't caught up with your world current events, yesterday was Election Day in Israel. Did you know that it's a national holiday? Everyone has the day off and everything. Maybe if they did that in the US, there would be a higher voter turnout. Well maybe not - there was a lot of discussion here because it was the lowest voter turnout ever. Anyhow it was awesome to see all the people out and about, and hearing about the last-minute campaigning and everything. Passions run high around here.

On a totally unrelated front, I went to the Old City of Jerusalem the other day, and visited the Kotel (the Wailing Wall). There aren't words to describe the magic of that place, I think even if you aren't Jewish you can appreciate it. And the Old City is like nothing else - narrow lanes filled with merchants calling out to you to look at their stuff, the stones shiny from years and years of pedestrians wandering around. There are 4 quarters to the city - Jewish, Muslim, Christian, and Armenian. You can tell when you enter a new area by the predominant language on the shop signs, the religious centers, and even what the people look like and how they are dressed. I might not reccommend wandering by yourself (I'm not going to do it again), even though there are police patrolling, soldiers, and cameras at every corner. But it is a fascinating, wonderful place. Haha maybe I can become a professional wanderer... do those exist?