Since our flight back to the U.S. didn't leave until late in the evening we didn't schedule anything for the group on Saturday. We were all free to do whatever we wished for the day.
There were 10 people in the group that chose to extend their trip for 7 days in order to visit Egypt. They were scheduled to depart the hotel at 8 a.m. so I was up early to reconfirm their departure arrangements. When I got to the hotel lobby at 7:30 their driver was already there and we reviewed his instructions to take the group to the Israel/Egypt border where they would meet another driver and bus to take them to Cairo. The group assembled in the lobby and after loading their luggage we sent them off on their own for 7 days in Egypt.
The rest of our Israel group had Saturday free to do whatever they wished. Several of the group arranged to visit the Israeli History Museum and spend more time visiting some of the many exhibits we didn't see on Friday. Nir, our driver, took them to the museum and arranged to wait for them until they wanted to return.
A number of others arranged to be dropped off at the Old City and wander around a bit on their own. Terri and I wanted to do some shopping and were interested in looking at some antique stores that we had noticed in the Old City. Nir dropped us at the Damascus Gate and we entered the city, maps in hand.
It is one thing to be guided through a city and quite another to find your own way. The complexity is multiplied when you get into the public markets of a middle-eastern city, where hundreds of shops line small, narrow pedestrian streets. After a few blocks all the shops start to look the same and you have no bearing on the direction you're heading because you can't see the sky or sun as you wander these narrow streets.
We stopped at the local tourist information booth and picked up some city maps so that other members in the group could find their way. It is easy to get separated since the streets are quite crowded with shoppers and tourists and we didn't want to lose anyone. We made sure everyone knew our hotel name and had an idea of where to exit the Old City, but then Terri and I ventured off on our own.
We wandered a bit aimlessly through the market, taking in the sights and smells that are so foreign to us. There were spice shops with exotic spices piled high, shops selling dried apricots and other dried fruits, butcher shops with meat hanging on hooks, and small vendors selling falafel or other middle eastern "fast foods." We did run into a few antique shops that had some interesting items, but nothing worth carrying home. The fun in shopping is the looking, not necessarily the buying.
After several hours working our way deep into the city, we started to wind our way back. Since Jerusalem is built on a hill, we didn't look at the map as much as we just worked our way back up-hill. Wouldn't you know it, we eventually found our way back to where we had started. Knowing that we weren't lost was very reassuring and we sat down in a restaurant and ordered a sandwich for lunch. As we were sitting there, who should we see but Pastors Greg and Sherry and the rest of the group. It was good to know that we hadn't lost any of them either.
We finished our lunch, poked around a bit more, and then ventured outside the city walls and worked our way back to the hotel. The hotel was about a mile from the Old City and along a major road so it wasn't too difficult to find our way back.
When we arrived at the hotel we found most of the group waiting in the lobby for our scheduled departure at 6 PM. It was nice to have a group that was prompt and respectful of our schedule. Never once during the entire trip did we have to wait for someone or make adjustments because someone was late. That made the trip much more relaxing for everyone, but especially for me. I didn't want to have to return to the U.S. and have to report that we lost someone, which probably would have cost me my job!
With Nir, our driver, and the rest of the group assembled in the hotel lobby, we waited for Pilar to meet us. Since Pilar lives in Jerusalem she had spent the last several evenings at home with her children and had cooked the Shabbat (Sabbath) dinner for her family on Friday night. She returned the hotel at the appointed hour, gathered her "family" (which she called our group) for the return to the Tel Aviv Airport.
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