Day 4

At least, I think it's day four. Hard to know with the heat.

We woke up this morning and went to Jerusalem. We decided to take busses rather than the rental car.

Goodness has the place changed! The entrance to the city is nothing like I remember, except for ear pops from pressure. I didn't see the welcome sign or army vehicles on the side of the road from when Jerusalem was occupied. There were vans with protection against rocks that were clearly in bad shape. Little Jewish children were escorted on.

We made it to the kotel and there were so many different types of people. I/we felt extremely responsible for the children and not sure how my/our parents kept their cool in one of the largest epicenters of the world. As a single, I didn't care and could walk fast. With three kids, it was different. There was intense security and I never thought I'd see the day to tell our eldest "watch out for the gun" as a soldier dragged it by. He seemed amused.

Watching our daughter go near the Western Wall, it was clear she understood the magnitude of what she was seeing. I stood somewhat speechless, as a strong wind gusted around me. It's a special wind and for a moment I felt calm. That this move is a good thing. It is most welcome after waking up this morning with what my husband refers to as "Sharon sickness." We are both still in the process of realizing we actually live here. The children had two nights this week crying missing their friends and the night prior an unexplained fear.

From the kotel we met friends at Mamila mall. We don't at all remember this location from 13 years ago. The light rail to the central bus station is also new. There aren't any cars on Yaffo Street. We had a fun conversation with a chareidi guy who asked me if transit is always packed on Friday and I answered in Hebrew that I don't know, we just made aliyah. He got all excited and we spoke maybe twenty minutes or so. He reminded me of the main character of Shtisel.

One lesson learned, it is extremely hard to get around Jerusalem with a stroller. Very few ramps. Elevators take forever. Everyone is rushing, somewhere. There's a certain beautify yet absolute confusion. Like NYC on steroids.

We came back to Beit Shemesh, bus then walking through the heat to the new development where we are renting.

Preparing for Shabbat in Meitar with family.

And enjoying seeing lots of parks and seesaws.

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