scenes from a (sibling) visit (pt 1)

On March 7th Samantha and Noah showed up at our doorstep. It was a looong-awaited visit, and we hugged them extra hard to say "hey, we really really really missed you!" Their time here was a bit on the short side, but we still did and ate many great things. I was hoping Noah would have time to cook up a feast at some point, but alas, that did not happen. I expect he will satisfy my fandom for his food this summer with some nice bbq artistry. 

This man knows how to grill. 

At the beginning of our trip we took S & N to the shuk for food exploration/consumption. 

We usually like listening to one another.....but Noah or I must have been boring at this point.

We bought some loose-leaf teas, including one of the apple variety that S & I found particularly tasty. I will come home with a large bag of this brew.

 We continued our festivities at The Blue Hole, Josh's bar of choice. 

We made it over to the Old City where Josh took us around. He's an Old City expert, that one.


One of our favorite Old City finds was the Austrian Hospice, from which one can get a real view of the old city. We stayed up here for a long time, and could have stayed for an entire day. Truly great.

These dudes enjoyed the view as well. Dome of the Rock on your left.

Candles lit on the side of the cave of ascension, inside the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.

Josh's favorite Jesus painting from Holy Sepulchre.

Two shots of Noah taking shots.

At an Ethiopian Church, which is located on top of The Church of the Holy Sepulchre.

A group recreation of Jesus' walk with the cross on the Via Dolorosa. 

Mirinda!

Flowers, Birds, a Tiger Mask, Bejeweled Hands, and Weird Beards

Another lovely trip up north. This time we got some a bird and wildflower guides & set about
identifying things. Only the flowers showed up as the birds were more elusive.

Aformentioned identifications on Mnt. Gilboa:

 

 Mnt. Gilboa mud:

And last night was Purim, a Carnival-type holiday that celebrates the wit and triumph of Queen Esther
over the the villainous Haman. Scenes from Purim offered w/out comment: