Ostlers in Jerusalem

Dinner with wonderful Palestinian Family

2008-04-19T15:41:00.000-07:00

We are spending our last Sabbath together before the winter semester students return home this week. That includes Derek and Daniel, whom will miss the most. Daniel received his Duty to God Award today in Sacrament meeting. Daniel also spoke in sacrament meeting and was given as his topic, preparing for a Mission. We have been busy since returning from a delightful time in the Galilee. The experience continues to be so much different than 10 years ago, with new places and people bringing new insights and friendships.

We were able to “herd” sheep, make spices and pita bread, learn about the plants, trees, and herbs mentioned in the bible, and learn more about the making of ink for the Torah scrolls from a real biblical scribe at a park dedicated to teaching about the bible through hands-on experiences.

After a day of tramping through Jaffa and old Tel Aviv, in which we learned of the first Israeli efforts to establish their own nation and government, we returned to Jerusalem for an incredible dinner with some Palestinian friends. We had to pay more than $100 for quick transportation back to the Jerusalem Center because we were not informed that the Field Trip to Tel Aviv was going to go past dinner time. We joined with David and JoAnne Seely, and their two children, making eight with the four of us. We felt compelled to keep this dinner appointment. The invitation came from Delal, the wife of Belal, a man that we have purchased fruits and vegetables from at one of the main Arab wholesale distribution markets. We were joined by JoAnne Seely’s sister, her husband, and two young five-year old boys. We were graciously greeted and directed to the home by the head cook of the Jerusalem Center, Nasser, from when we were here ten years ago. He had to be let go, when there were no students to cook for during the seven years the Center was closed and because he lives in Bethany, which is on the other side of the huge separation wall. On any given day, at any given time, the Israeli’s close the passing from one side of the wall to the other. Anyway, Nasser, was delighted to see us again and served as our mediator to explain the Palestinian customs and culture of how they receive guests. He led us to the home and we were amazed to see all of the food that awaited us and the elaborate preparations. It filled a large banquet table with some of the most delicious food we have ever eaten. They open their homes and hearts to share all that they have with their friends. In addition, we soon learned that this Belal belongs to one of the most influential families in East Jerusalem. His mother and father also joined with us for the meal. His father is the President of the Federation of Palestinian Chambers of Commerce, Industry, and Agriculture, a member of the Palestinian Parliament, and has traveled to represent the Palestinians in political affairs all over the world. Little did we know that the kind man who look out for us and who ran the wholesale market was from such a prominent family. We learned that Belal is one of 11 children. His youngest brother, Osman, also came with his fiancé for the dinner, as well as Delal mother. The older generation was more proper and observant of Muslim customs. For example, the Father, Ahmad Hashiem Alzughair, shook hands with all of the men, but would not touch the hands of the women because he had not been to prayers yet. Delal’s mother wore all black, including the Arabic headscarf. All were very gracious and eager to interact with us.

We learned about Palestinian customs regarding engagements and marriages from Osman and his fiancé. For example, he did not ask her to marry him in a romantic private setting, but had to have the males in his family meet with the males of his fiance’s family to discuss the proposition of marriage. Several members of their family have lived in San Francisco, including Osman, and Belal’s brother, whom is living there currently that we met ten years ago at the market and were treated equally well by him. The most surprising thing was the conversation with the Father about the United States, where he felt that no one know their neighbors like the Palestinians do. According to him, the exception is the Mormons, who also have love for family like the Palestinians. In fact, it surprised me that he knew as much as he did about us and felt a kinship to us. On the other hand, he felt that the United States has very poor leaders, who do not seem to have very high morals and are eager to have wars. That is one thing that has been surprising to us this time in Jerusalem is that President Bush is looked upon as a man that seeks to start wars and occupy other nations. America is looked upon as an empire builder similar to the Roman Empire or what the Germans sought to do in WW II. We have to admit that if we were the occupied nation, we would look at the soldiers among us much like the Jews did the Romans during the time of Christ. It is so different than the political media line that we are given at home in the US.

Sandy spent much of the night visiting with Delal as if they had known each other all their lives and were best friends of many years. She has returned several times since and feels that she has met a true gem. Even though we have two more months here, we already feel saddened by the prospect of leaving these good people behind.

Derek loosened up the entire atmosphere when he started to do magic tricks for, Dareen, the 11 year old daughter. The next thing we knew they were playing a Palestinian hand game that is a peas, porridge, hot kind of hand clapping thing, which increases in complication as it progresses. She warmed up to everyone and soon we were looking at videos of her dancing, etc. like we were aunts and uncles that had come to visit and she needed to share everything with us.

We thought of how much we wish we could share the gospel with them, but this is not the time. Who knows how long before the needed changes take place to allow such exchange. It really is wisdom that for now the message that we have is ourselves and living the principles of the gospel. I know that the Moslem world would need to inquire about our beliefs not have missionaries knocking on their doors to spread the word. Delal went on the hajj a few years ago. That is the Moslem pilgrimage to Mecca. Since then she has become more religious. For example, she wears a head scarf in public—although it is a colorful one. On one of Sandy’s visits, she gave her a gift of a prayer rug—she sent ice cream home for the boys and me.

As you can tell, we could go on and on in this one aspect of our last two and a half weeks. We also have been to Masada, Qumran and the Dead Sea. We found some of the famous black Dead Sea mud that is supposed to be so good for the skin. Sandy did not need as much as I did, so I covered myself from head to toe. We floated in the salty water of the lowest spot on earth and read newspapers in the water. You could even float standing upright, you did not even need to lay down in the water.

We have been to the Christian churches and monasteries throughout Jerusalem, learning more about the Franciscans at Terra Sancta, the Russian Orthodox at Alexander Nevsky’ Church, toured the Church of the Holy Sepulchre and had a private tour of just the four of us through three Greek Orthodox chapels in the Old City of Jerusalem, an invite to contact the Bishop of Jerusalem and even to possibly meet with the Patriarch of the entire Greek Orthodox Church. We walked through Mea Shearim as the Jewish ultra-orthodox prepared their homes from Passover, cleaning everything and ridding themselves of all leaven (yeast) and corruption. It smelled like detergent everywhere. We purchased a new beautiful talith along with the Haridim or Mea Shearim, mezuzahs (the scripture containers placed in doorways), kippahs (the round skull caps), Seder plates and cups, and were given candy bars as we walked down the street. The people were in such a festive mood buying gifts, etc. We think that they approach Passover week like we do Christmas. We had our own Passover meal that lasted for four hours and attended an evening Shabbat synagogue service that was not at all what we expected it to be. The men and the women were separated by a barrier of linen and most of the service was singing Shabbat Pslams in Hebrew without any musical instrument accompaniment. They were very welcoming to us and helpful as nearly everyone spoke impeccable English to us and as soon as the service was over all of the conversations were in English except for the oft repeated greeting, “Shabbat shalom!”

Love, Craig, Sandy, Derek and Daniel

Check out my Slide Show!

2008-03-28T07:43:00.001-07:00

Check out my Slide Show!

2008-03-28T06:06:00.001-07:00

Sunrise Service at Garden Tomb Easter Sunday

2008-03-23T19:37:00.000-07:00

My morning started at 4:30 am. We were up early, to be ready to leave the JC by 5:10am, so we could attend the Easter Sunrise Service at the Garden Tomb. The Sunrise service was from 6:30am to 7:30am and they were expecting over 1,000 people so we needed to be there early. This was an optional activity for the JC students, but I think they were all there this morning. It was a great experience to be here with other Christians who had also traveled far to be here for Easter Sunday. I don't think Derek or Daniel will ever forget this Easter Service. They also attended the Midnight Mass at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre with about 40 students.

The service was more Evangelical & Anglican. There was a musical performing group of 14 Christians who sang and played musical instruments. We were all given programs for the service that had the words to the music so we could join in. The CEO of the Garden Tomb welcomed us and then we sang ten songs. In-between the songs we heard from the Minister, Preacher, a reading from Matthew about Resurrection Morning and a closing prayer from the Chaplain at the Garden Tomb. There were some traditional songs and some that we have in our hymn book like Jesus Christ is Risen Today (the words were a bit different-tune was the same). The liveliest song was, “O Happy Day”. The whole congregation really got into that song with the hands waving and bodies swaying. It was a good experience to participate in, although a bit different from our sacrament meetings.

It was a Beautiful Easter Morning with a clear blue sky, sunrays coming through the trees, birds singing, trees in blossom and beautiful flowers planted throughout the garden. The garden tomb is cared for by a Christian group who take extra care of the gardens and grounds, I think this is the most peaceful site to visit here. What a glorious message we ponder this Easter Sunday..."He is not here-For He is Risen!" Happy Easter!

PS We returned to the JC after the service and left at 9am to travel to Galilee. We will be here at the Ein Gev Kibbutz for 11days studying the New Testament and the life of the Savior.

Pool of Siloam

2008-02-28T13:15:00.000-08:00

We were also able to visit the newly excavated Pool of Siloam after going through the tunnel. We are sitting on the steps that descend to the area of the ancient pool. While there with the students we reviewed the story of the man born blind, as related in John chapter 9.

Israel vs the Philistines / Valley of Elah

2008-02-28T12:20:00.000-08:00

This field trip took us to the Plain of Philistia and to Judea’s southwestern low hill country, known as the Shephelah. We spent the day going to the five valleys; Ajalon, Sorek, Elah, Guvrin, and Lachish. We reviewed the origin, culture and history of the Philistines, where they lived and their relationship with Israel through the years.

Azekah and the brook in the Valley of Elah formed the setting for David’s combat against the Philistine giant Goliath in the time of Saul’s kingship. With the help of Daniel and some of our students, we had a reader’s theater and acted out the story of David and Goliath. Each of the students collected stones and practiced shooting their stones with the slings.

Israel vs the Philistines Field Trip / Sorek Valley

2008-02-28T11:54:00.001-08:00

Beth Shemesh was the fortified Israelite town that guarded the Sorek Valley against the Philistine penetration of the highlands. The nearby towns provided the setting for Samson’s story. Samson was raised across the valley in Zorah(Judges 13) and married a Philistine woman from Timnah. (Judges 14)

Israel vs the Philistines Field Trip / Lachish

2008-02-27T12:33:00.000-08:00

Lachish was a greatly fortified citadel-palace, with a double

wall, by the divided Monarchy Kings of Judah. When Hezekiah ceased paying tribute to Assyria, in 701 BC, Assyrians under

Sennacherib attacked and took Lachish before Jerusalem.

Quruntul Monastery in Jericho

2008-02-27T06:32:00.001-08:00

After visiting the Jericho tell, a highlight was visiting a monastery. We enjoyed a nice walk up the steep path to a monastery located literally on the mountainside. It was on the cliff-side of the traditional Mt of Temptation. The monks welcomed us into the monastery, which commemorates the area where Christ spent 40 days fasting in the wilderness. The students were incredibly respectful of the site and that led to a very thought provoking time contemplating the many monks over the centuries that have sought solitude in their quest to find God.

Jericho

2008-02-27T06:12:00.000-08:00

This week we went to Jericho and saw the remains of the old city. We blew a ram’s horn and sang the favorite, “Joshua fit the battle of Jericho.”

The great pyramids of Giza & the Sphinx

2008-02-15T11:47:00.000-08:00

We are still reflecting on our experiences of the past two weeks. In Egypt we saw places and discussed events that covered the whole of Egyptian History. It was like taking a cram course in one week that covers American history ten times over. That is, the history of Egypt covers 5000 years from 3000 BC to the present. Craig rekindled that old desire to be an Egyptologist that first inspired him over 20 years ago on our first experience in Egypt. But that will have to be a hobby only, as there are so many other important things that need his attention.

Notice the storm clouds in the bottom picture. We had wind, rain, and we thought hail, but later thought it could of been sand blowing that stung as it hit our faces. As we arrived in Egypt we were welcomed with this greeting, "Welcome to Alaska". Burrr!!! Can you beleive coats in Giza. We were told we were lucky to be there on one of their 3 stormy days of the year. We were happy to see the sun the following day.

Karnak and Luxor Temples

2008-02-15T11:21:00.000-08:00

Highlights of the sites in Egypt we visited were the pyramids, the Karnak & Luxor temples, the decorative tombs in the Valley of the Kings, including King Tut’s Tomb, a camel safari through a village on the west side of the Nile River, and two historic mosques in Cairo. One of the most surprising finds was when the guided tour in the Luxor temple concluded and we went with David Seely (the Ancient Near Eastern Studies professor) and his family to a room off to the side of the main corridor of the temple. On the walls the reliefs depicted an account of God begetting a Son that read much like our nativity story in Luke or the visions of Nephi in 1 Nephi 11. There are echoes of the gospel everywhere in Egypt. We surmise that their knowledge comes from the time of Noah’s posterity settling tin Egypt, to Abraham, and later the years that the children of Israel spent there. In fact, the theme that reoccurred over and over was that of eternal family relationships and the resurrection. The messages of the scenes on the walls of the temples and the tombs were hauntingly familiar from the temples in the restoration of the gospel. For example, they have doors leading to the spirit world and make many references to life after death being family oriented.

Camel safari through a village in Luxor

2008-02-15T10:45:00.000-08:00

We had a camel safari through a village on the west side of the Nile River. We were gone for about 2hours, winding through the beautiful farms, fields and small villages. Our camel guides were young boys 10-16 years of age. It was a wonderful afternoon ride.

Jan 31 - Vallley of the Kings & King Tut's Tomb

2008-02-13T13:07:00.000-08:00

We had beautiful weather at the Valley of the Kings. It's a new experience visiting this Valley in the winter with 60 degree temp instead of 120 degrees in the heat of Summer.

Overnight train ride from Luxor to Cairo Feb.1,2008

2008-02-13T11:46:00.000-08:00

This is the narrow hallway on the train and our small rooms which converted in to bunkbeds.

Muhammad Ali Mosque

2008-02-13T10:47:00.000-08:00

February 9, 2008
We became better acquainted with Islam in a mosque from the 7th century and another from the 1800’s. Our guide taught us about his faith and practice of Islam. They refer to their basic beliefs as the five pillars of Islam: 1.) Allah is God and Mohammed is his prophet; 2.) Prayer five times a day; 3.) tithes or offerings to the poor; 4.) pilgrimage to Mecca; 5.) Fasting during the daylight hours of the month of Ramdan. He also indicated that they believe that there are three main prophets: Moses for the Jews, Jesus for the Christians, and Mohammed for the Muslims. We did not have the opportunity to ask many questions on the ramifications of such a belief with regards to the rest of the world, but that will just have to wait.

Hiking Mount Sinai

2008-02-07T12:05:00.000-08:00

We woke up at 2am, met the students for hot chocolate at 2:30am, and then loaded the 2 busses to go to the base of Mt Sinai, where we began our hike around 3:30am. Our goal was to make it to the top for the sunrise at 6:30am. We made it by 6:15am and saw the most beautiful sunrise. We have been recovering from our trip, jumping right back into the class schedule here, teaching class, correcting tests, having meetings, returning to Aladdins for more shekels, back to the store to fill the fridge with food.Craig just laid down to rest, he and many others have been dealing with curse of Pharaoh’s revenge, which came back with us from Egypt the last day of the trip.

Orson Hyde Memorial Garden

2008-01-25T05:58:00.000-08:00

We enjoyed a nice Sabbath evening walk to the

Orson Hyde

Memorial Park. The park is about a five minute walk from the Jerusalem Center.

Sabbath dinner and visit with Sahar

2008-01-25T05:53:00.001-08:00

We had Sahar join us for dinner after our Sabbath meetings. She is a Palestinian Christian who lives in Bethlehem. She is a member of the church and joined while attending BYU about 12 years ago. This will be her last time to come to church because of the new security wall that has gone up around Bethlehem, which is part of the West Bank. The Christians in Bethlehem can get a 4 week permit to enter Jerusalem because of the Holiday. Sahar will need to wait another year now before she can return to the Jerusalem Branch, which meets here at the Jerusalem Center. She just completed her PHD in Statistics and in a few weeks she will be teaching at a University in Jeanine, which is in the West Bank. Sahar is a great pioneer woman here in Israel. I admire her courage and faith to carry on. Sahar gave the most beautiful prayer in sacrament meeting. She prayed for peace for the people here, that their hearts could be softened so they could live together in peace. She prayed for the light of Christ, that was once here, to return and be here again.

Field Trip: Jerusalem from the surrounding mountains

2008-01-25T04:44:00.000-08:00

We took a day to see Jerusalem from the highpoints to the north, south, east, and west. We climbed the tower of Lutheran Church on the ridge of the Mount of Olives (Augusta Victoria) from where we could see east the mountain ridges of the nation of Jordan and right down to the Dead Sea. This was clearer than any day that we had last time we were here. We went to the south where we could look one direction and clearly see the Old City of Jerusalem and another direction we could see the city of Bethlehem. At the end of the day we went as close to the West Bank as we will take the students and looked over the lands of the Old Testament from the roof of a mosque at Nabi Samwil (The prophet Samuel).

2008-01-22T04:30:00.000-08:00

While visiting the Old City during free time with the students, we were able to get up on the Temple Mount which is not always open to visitors. They opened it between 12:30 and 1:30pm and we were gratful to get in. It was a beautiful day and we ran into Derek and Daniel, who were there with other students. The Dome of the Rock is the oldest Moslem monument in existence today. Since the last intifada in 2000 they have allowed only Moselms into the mosques, but we still had a nice visit and enjoyed the spirit of the Moslem holy mount of sanctuary. We noticed that they refer to the Dome of the Mosque as THE Mosque, even though there are many other mosques in the city.

Shopping and Lunch

2008-01-12T09:32:00.000-08:00

It seems as if this last week has had a month’s worth of events. Our friends the Huntingtons and the Seelys arrived, who are part of the administration and faculty for the Jerusalem Center. We spent a day with each of them going to stores to stock our pantries and refrigerators. Thankfully, the streets of Jerusalem are beginning to look more familiar. Back at the BYU Jerusalem Center Derek and Daniel honed their skills in foosball and ping pong. We joined them one evening and were able to show them that Mom and Dad can still hold their own.

Sabbath in Jerusalem

2008-01-12T09:28:00.000-08:00

Our first Sabbath in Jerusalem brought back a flood of emotions and memories. We had forgotten how inspirational it is to look out over the Old City through the large panoramic windows behind the speakers in Sacrament Meeting. It is surely distinct from the solid walls in our chapels back home. Derek and Daniel were asked to bless the sacrament. We felt overwhelming gratitude to have them with us and to be blessed with such an opportunity together. Just sitting in Sacrament Meeting, blessed with the Spirit and looking out the windows, brings deepened insights to the scriptures we have been studying the last two years in Sunday school. It was fast Sabbath and we had a little reality check as members referred to the blessing of being able to come to the Center this week knowing that it may be some time before they can pass through the security checks again between Israel and Palestine. When we were here nine years ago, members often came to stay with us on Friday evening so that they could be here for Sabbath meetings, but the situation now is more difficult with the barriers between the Palestinian West Bank and Israel. One sweet sister has had a one month holiday pass that allowed her to come to Jerusalem from Bethlehem, but she will attend for the last time next Sabbath. It is a pretty tender and sensitive subject for her as she is leaving to work on a graduate degree in the West Bank city of Jenin and will be on the other side of the barriers unable to associate with members of the Church. For those interested, the December National Geographic has an article on the Security Wall between the West Bank and Israel. In Israel there are now three branches of The Church—one here in Jerusalem, and the others in Tel Aviv and Tiberias, which is on the Sea of Galilee. There are no branches in the West Bank for the members there.

Walking Around the City

2008-01-12T09:24:00.001-08:00

In preparation for the students to arrive, we took a day to re-orient ourselves by walking down the Mount of Olives from the BYU Jerusalem Center through the Kidron Valley, up to the Old City and through East and West Jerusalem, knowing that we would be taking the students on the same route two days later. Jerusalem is divided East and West as areas for the Palestinians in the east and the Israelis in the West side of the city. For Derek and Daniel our five mile walk fulfilled something that they have been waiting for since we arrived. That is, we ended up on Ben Yehuda Street, where they finally were able to sink their teeth into a shawarma. For those of you who have never tasted shawarma, it is a laffa wrap (flat bread) filled with lamb meat cut off a rotating spit, humus, cucumbers, tomatoes, and French fries. Sandy and I shared a falafel, which is pita bread filled with the above ingredients, except the lamb is substituted with falafel balls. Falafel consists of ground garbonzo beans or chick peas mixed with delicious spices, rolled into balls and deep fried.
We saw Shaaban, one of our favorite vendors in the Old City and our first purchase was a chess set and a scarf for Sandy. The next day, Derek and Daniel could not wait go out on their own to try out their bargaining skills again. Let’s just say that they got some good deals and some not so good deals. They went to the Old City market and shops with Katy and Ben Seely, whom they did not know beforehand and the only two other faculty children, and came back good friends. So we count that a successful jaunt, regardless of the financial outcome.

BYU Students Arrive

2008-01-12T09:17:00.000-08:00

The Center is now alive with students, who arrived Wednesday evening tired from their flights to Tel Aviv. We all went to the airport to pick them up and bring them to the Jerusalem Center. Since then we have been to orientation meetings with them, taken them by foot around the city, and last night we went to the Western Wall to observe the Jewish welcoming of the Sabbath. Actually, we did more than observe the praying, singing, and dancing—we joined with them and felt a bond with our Jewish brothers and sisters. At the wall there is a barrier separating those that wish to merely observe and those that wish to participate. Craig, Derek, and Daniel (and the male students) donned a kippah cap and mingled among the men, and Sandy went with the sisters among the women on their side of the wall. We would include some photos, but none are allowed on Sabbath, which begins at sundown on Friday evening.
The pace is exhausting from here on out. Craig’s first class on Friday morning began at 7:30 am and was two hours of insight into the Old Testament followed by another hour of introduction from Brother Seely in the Ancient Near Eastern Studies class. We had a little breather to get ready to go to the Western Wall and came back tired and ready for a good night’s rest. As Craig found, it was a loritab night for him to recover from the constant pace, but enjoyable beyond what words can describe. Sandy has been called as the Jerusalem Branch Young Women’s President. She will learn more about who the potential Young Women are, but for today there was only one that attended. Derek taught Sunday school for all of those that attend church here. He thought that it would just be students and the next thing that he knew he was staying in the large panoramic viewed upper auditorium teaching everyone. He did a very good job. He and Daniel are now off with some friends seeing the sites on the Mount of Olives and then walking over to the area north of the Old City to visit the peaceful Garden Tomb private grounds.

Weather Report

2008-01-12T09:13:00.000-08:00

This week we have had rain, fog, bright sunshine, cold, and warm. We layer our clothing and we are constantly either adding a sweater or coat or removing them.

The Jerusalem Center on Mount Scopus

2008-01-06T11:48:00.000-08:00

This is the Jerusalem Center on Mount Scopus, adjacent to the Mount of Olives and overlooking the Old City, the Kidron Valley, and the Holy Mount. This picture was taken looking back from the Old City. The BYU Jerusalem Center for Near Eastern Studies has become a landmark here in Jerusalem. Most of the local people here refer to it as the "Mormon University on the hill".

We are still getting oriented to the new roads, where to shop and how things are run at the center. We are getting ready for the new students to arrive here on Wednesday. We will try to keep you posted the best we can. Here is an email that was sent out a few days ago. Sandy

Jan. 3, 2008
Dear family and friends,
A special thanks to Kurt Ostler, (Craig’s brother) for taking us up to the airport with all our luggage. If you haven’t heard, we sold our 1989 GMC Surburban. Yes, that was a sad day for me, I will really miss it. Really!!! Can you tell that I am still in mourning. I was so busy packing and getting ready that I haven’t had time to think much about it until Daniel reminded us that there was no way to get our 12 bags and 4 backpacks and 4 people to the airport. Kurt saved the day!
The miracle at the airport was the weigh-in of the luggage. For three days before leaving we were weighing and repacking and re-weighing and repacking (or redistributing the weight) and then we moved all the suitcases to the living room for the final weigh-in (using an old scale that Grandma Webb gave me when she was down-sizing to move). We put a post it note on each tag with the weight listed and hoped that the scales were accurate since the weight limit in now 50lbs instead of 70lbs. We were weighing in at 47, 48, 48, 49, 49 and 70(we paid extra for one suitcase to go over). At the airport the suitcase weighed…47, 48, 50, 51 and 70, pretty good job weighing with that old trusty scale at home. Thanks mom. PS –they let the suitcase at 51lbs go on through.
Well ,now that we are here and all the planning and preparation and packing is over, I think I can finally relax. Well, maybe until I get behind the wheel of the car and pull onto the roads of Jerusalem where everyone else thinks they have the right of way all the time. Yesterday Brother and Sister Draper drove us out to the money changer---Aladdin on Saladdin Street. A flood of memories came back as they drove down the hill from the center that we walked so many times before to the Old City. While we were there getting our shekels Aladdin came in and seemed to remember us, he teased with Derek and Daniel and we felt right at home again. We then drove by our old apartment at French Hill on our way to the Co-op Grocery store. First time shopping for groceries is always a SHOCK!!! So expensive! Derek kept looking at me as I put things into the cart and he said, “but that is so many shekeles-it’s too much!” He was right, but we do have to eat and it is still less expensive than eating at the cafeteria at the center. Derek was quite helpful; he found the generic brand of Nutella. It was labeled in Hebrew, but looked the same and so we took a chance and after tasting it today it passed the test. We made a stop at the pita factory to get fresh pita and torpedo bread. There is nothing better than fresh pita!
Today the boys and I ventured out by car to the Arab wholesale market. The old grandfather is still there and they were happy to see Mormons again. The shop keeper we got the fruits and vegetables from was very good to us. He said, “ I like Mormons, they don’t smoke and drink, they are good people”. The prices are a lot better at the wholesale market, but I think I will always take one of the boys with me because I am a bit outnumbered by men and boys there.
The center is pretty quiet right now with the students gone. We are slowly getting to know the different Service Couples here. They each work really hard with their different responsibilities. We have meet with Eran (executive director) and Tawfic (assistant director and chief of security). They have helped to orient us to the changes here in Jerusalem, reviewed the rules and answered many of our questions. The new students come in next Wednesday. We will be going on the bus to meet them at the airport. It will be an interesting day to pick up the students because President Bush is also arriving that same day. Security will certainly be tight that day. What a day to have the students arrive.
We are slowly getting over jet lag and adjusting. Hopefully we can relax will have everything taken care of before the students arrive.
Hope all is well back home.
Love, Sandy Ostler

Our new apartment at the Jerusalem Center

2008-01-05T21:45:00.000-08:00

This is where we are living for the next six months. There are 8 levels at the Jerusalem center counting up from the bottom level. The faculty families live on the fifth level. We have a nice patio area outside our apartment with a beauutiful view of the Old City and the Dome of the Rock.

Arriving in Tel Aviv

2008-01-05T10:21:00.001-08:00

Daniel's friends came to see him off

2007-12-30T18:25:00.000-08:00

Daniel had a surprise the night before we left when several of his friends crowded in our living room around our luggage.

Almost Ready

2007-12-30T18:01:00.001-08:00

So, after much packing, packing, repacking, weighing, repacking, and weighing again we are almost ready to go. . . Pretty sure that mom has enough iron and calcium to give to all of the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and dad has all of his "research and teaching materials" Wow, aren't those students lucky! Derek and Daniel, well they have everything they need and a little bit of everything else! Mom is not sure what the weather will be like and given her tendency to turn blue and freeze to death we hope that her turtlenecks will serve her well (or as Derek calls them "sweater necks")