O Little Town of Bethlehem

In order to meet Nidab in Bethlehem, we had to go the border crossing that secured the Israeli/Palestinian border. The wall that closes the one off from the other is a sad necessity of peace. We didn't have any trouble getting through security; our trouble came in trying to find him and figure out where he was is relation to where we were.

After tea at Nidab's olive wood and jewelry shop, we headed first to the Church of the Nativity. The entrance door is very small, but you can see the outline of a much larger arched doorway. Through the large doorway, people had ridden horses into the church with no respect or reverence for the place of Christ's birth and so church leaders had constricted the door down to the present "Door of Humility" where all must duck their heads and bow down in order to enter. Viewable only through open trap doors is the original Byzantine mosaic floor of the chapel. From the far end of the chapel, you precariously pick your way down to the Star of Bethlehem, the site of Christ's birth and then across the birth cave enclosure to the site of the manger.
Also located in the Church of the nativity is the cell of Jerome, where he is believed to have translated the Latin Vulgate, and also the Tomb of Jerome.

From the Church of the Nativity, we drove to the Herodian, a mountain top which Herod the Great dug out in order to build a palace fortress. The view from the top is breathtaking and on a clear day, you can see all the way to the Dead Sea - ours wasn't a clear day. Not much of the original structure is left intact, but enough remains to make it clear that this mountain palace was an impressive structure. Climbing down underneath the structure, we explored a network of tunnels, used by the Herod, the Zealots during the first and second revolt, and then by the Arabs as both a defense network and a series of water cisterns.

We had hoped to see the Shepherd's Field (where the angels announced to the shepherds that the Messiah had been born), but it was closed during lunch from noon to two. Nidab drove us by the fence along the side to look in and then around by the front gate. When we pulled up at the gate, a large tour bus was just unloading its passengers for their tour of the Shepherd's Field. The site was being kept open for them and so we nonchalantly joined their group going through the gate, meandered around inside to our hearts content, and again joined their group as they headed back out the gate. Spring decorated the park with almond blossoms, flowers, and lush grass that we could enjoy along with a couple natural caves, much like what shepherds would have used to shelter their sheep. The chapel is light and beautiful on the inside, decorated with paintings that tell the story of the shepherds receiving the message, finding Jesus, and leaving joyfully.

Getting out of Bethlehem proved much easier than getting in. Since we had been through the crossing multiple times trying to get in, we were very familiar with how to navigate our way around.