The Church of Nativity is among the oldest churches that are still operational. It is located in Bethlehem which falls in West Bank, and the journey from Israel proper to West Bank, across the Israel-West Bank barrier, across barricaded military post, on a bus run by the Arab authorities and through West Bank was quite thrilling.

The manger, believed to be the birth place of Jesus Christ

At the heart of the Church is a cave that had a small entrance and was packed with pilgrims. Everyone jostled for space to touch and pray at the manger and the altar that, illuminated by oil lamps and surrounded by what I thought were pagan symbolisms, looked beautiful.

Manger Square, outside the Church of Nativity

When I go to Israel next, I would definitely spend more time in the West Bank.

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Church bells at Novgorod

Thanks for sticking around while I was on a blogging recession recently. Since its been over 14 months since I returned from Russia, these pictures are quite dated but I still intend to complete the Russia series and post interesting stories from my travels.

Stored outside the Cathedral of St. Sophia, built in 1052 AD in the little town of Veliky Novgorod (वेलीकी नोव्गोरोद), were a number of old Church bells. The massiveness of these bells struck with me and on touching them I felt a strange kind of buzzing, empty feeling.

All these bells have been decommissioned now, small and efficient electronic bells often taking over their jobs (I don’t know about this particular place), but perhaps one could imagine the glorious old days of Church’s rule when these bells occupied immense importance.

In my previous post, I wrote about the orchestra of bells at Orthodox Churches. Here in Novgorod, we were lucky to catch a little musical show at the bell tower. It seems an important part of tourist infrastructure, as you can buy tickets in advance and climb up the tower to see the orchestra in action.

I thought that these bells were huge, but they are dwarfs compared to the Tsar Bell in Moscow’s Kremlin, which is arguably world’s biggest bell.

Bell ringing in Eastern Orthodox Church (including Russian Orthodox) is complex, with particular bells being rung in particular ways to signify different parts of the services. Russian bells are usually fixed, and are tolled by pulling on a rope that is attached to the clapper so that it will strike the side of the bell. Very interesting to observe that.

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In an attempt to recreate the holy land, the New Jerusalem monastery was founded and populated in 17th century. The place is no longer in the limelight.

New Jerusalem Monastery.

Somewhere in 17^th century, Nikon the patriarch decided to show one and all that Russia deserved to be the center of the Christian world. A site on the outskirts of Moscow was chosen to erect New Jerusalem for its resemblance to the Holy Land. The River Istra represents the River Jordan, and the buildings represent the ‘sacral space’ or holy places of Jerusalem. The New Jerusalem Monastery, also known as the Voskresensky Monastery (Russian: Новоиерусалимский монастырь / नोवोयेरुसालीम्सकी मोनासत्री), is a male monastery, located in the town of Istra in Moscow Oblast, Russia. They even built the Church of Holy Sepulchre.

The monastery is almost entirely undergoing repairs.

The monastery was shutdown in 1918 and came under attack from the retreating Germans. Only recently has it regained attention and restoration work was in progress when I went there.

Horse riders and rear wall of the monastery.

I saw many babushkas filling holy water from a tap. I also saw people riding horses and a dog barking at me. Then finally I saw a woodpecker and one more tourist (I think she was Italian) wielding a camera.

Since I was in Jerusalem, Israel, in late 2007 (my glorious travelogue with 20 chapters is here) and I toured the Christian sites extensively, I was very curious to visit this place. Unfortunately I couldn’t enter the monastery (it was closed for renovations), and overall it did not, even remotely, remind me of Jerusalem.

Woodpecker.

There is nothing (else) to do in Istra, it is a very characterless and bland suburb (or maybe that’s the character). There is one park with a model of an airplane. I did, however, buy lots of chocolates from here because there was a large chocolate store. People are not used to seeing foreigners, and definitely not used to hearing a foreign Russian accent.

Little pieces of cloth tied to trees as prayers.

Factual information

The New Jerusalem Monastery is a convenient half-day trip from Moscow. Suburban trains from Moscow’s Rizhsky vokzal (train terminal) stop at Istra (90 minutes journey). These trains are called Elektrichka (электричка / इलेक्त्रीच्का), which I think is a cute name.

From Istra rail station, a bus will take you to the church complex. Simply ask for a bus going to “Muzey (मुझीए)” (Museum) stop (15 minutes journey). Alternatively, do what I did: Walk to the monastery (so that you see the Moscow suburb intimately and call your walk a ‘pilgrimage’) and come back on a bus.

Istra train station.

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Suzdal town, old and rustic, protected from urbanization.

Suzdal (Суздаль / सुझ्दाल) is a historic small town near Vladimir, about 200 km from Moscow. It was once the capital of several Russian principalities and has many examples of early Russian architecture. I thought it was quite rustic, atypical town, later explained by the fact that this area falls under ‘limited development zone’ and construction projects are controlled. While one can see a little church or chapel in every corner of this town, there are two major ‘church complexes’ and the first one, Kremlin, is discussed here.

The Kremlin at Suzdal

Kremlin’s “skyline”: I don’t remember the details

As explained before, Kremlin is the fortified power-center of a town and the Kremlin at Suzdal, a 1.4km earth rampart, encloses a handful of houses and a bunch of churches.

Nativity of the Virgin Cathedral: Blue domes spangled with gold.

During the time of the Soviet Union, nearly all of Suzdal’s economy was planned around its tourist potential. As a result, very few modern buildings were constructed in Suzdal. Also, a number of wooden structures from other parts of Russia were transported here, and the whole city was converted into an ‘open-air museum’. Unfortunately, Suzdal’s dependence on tourism also meant its economy nearly came to a standstill when tourists stopped coming after the fall of the USSR, only revived during recent years.

Wooden church of St. Nicholas.

Suzdal was probably the only place where I did not find any McDonalds restaurant! Neither did I see any visible signs of westernization such as glossy stores. “Livestock wandering the streets and elderly women washing cloths in the river (and tourists wielding digital cameras) are regular sights in Suzdal,” says Wikitravel.

Market on the plaza outside Kremlin.

The little market was getting ready to close and we were racing against time to reach the next religious complex in Suzdal – The Saviour Monastery of St. Euthymius (coming up next).

Market on the plaza outside Kremlin.

I’m sorry for the dull pictures, the weather was not at its best.

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Small, simple and off the religious highway makes this place my favorite among the Golden Cities.

The Church at Bogolyubovo, probably my favorite in Russia.

Away from crowded churches and cathedrals of the Golden Ring circuit is this little church in a little village of Bogolyubovo (Боголюбово / बोगोल्युबोवो). The church’s beauty lies in its simplicity, perfect symmetry, beautiful location (next to the river) and isolation (what a strange factor!).

The silence and the simplicity of this place is great!

It is said that this church was built during early days of Christianity in Russia, thus explaining pictures and carvings of birds and beasts on its walls and interiors. Interiors are even simpler and it is tempting to light a candle inside.

Elements from pre-Christian times incorporated in the architecture.

The hills, the birds, the water plus absence of cars, crowds and noise makes this place incredibly beautiful. During spring, the river floods the adjoining area, giving an illusion that the church is on an island. A single hut, habitated by the churchkeeper sells picture frames and lovely photographs of the church. There is also a ‘pay what you can’ toilet.

Factual information

Bogolyubovo can be reached by suburban trains from Moscow’s Kursky terminal (one station after Vladimir). Express trains from Moscow stop at Vladimir (2.5 hrs) from where there are regular buses to Bogolubovo. From the train / bus station, this church is about 1.3 km away, a pleasant walk through meadows. Infact, one can only walk to this church, making it feel somewhat like a pilgrimage.

Walkway. You can reach the church only on foot (or a horse, a bicycle), sortof a pilgrimage!

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Blue domes and whitewashed walls of Bogolyubovo Convent.

Bogolyubovo is a little village near the big city of Vladimir, about 180 km from Moscow. The only reason to visit this place is to see an old church (next post), probably among the very first ones. We simply passed the convent without stopping and I couldn’t but admire its whitewashed walls and clear blue domes.

Bogolyubovo Train station and the convent.

The nice thing about Russia (whatever I’ve traveled and heard) is that places are very well connected by buses or trains. They might take longer (and my friend drove me in his car to this particular place) but, unlike North America (except few cities), you are not completely helpless without a car.

Vladimir

Golden Gate, Vladimir

Vladimir is one of the most prominent Golden Ring cities, but we simply drove through it since there was nothing strikingly unusual about the church there – there would be many more and after a while they all feel the same (I’m serious!). The Golden Gate, seen in the picture below was built to guard the entrance to this city from the west (Moscow).

I was trying to remember names of people that are exactly same as names of cities. I know a girl called Regina (Saskatchewan, Canada), and another one called Victoria (British Colombia, Canada). There must be more… do you remember any?

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My first time attending a service at a Russian Orthodox Church was full of surprises and discoveries.

I flew from Sochi to Moscow and met my friend at Moscow’s VDNKh metro station (airports of Moscow are quite smoothly connected to the metro system), eager to go explore more of the country. After a quick snack at a street cart, soon we were running around bus stop signs trying to find where the bus to the town of Sergiev Posad departed from. Sergiyev Posad, 60km from Moscow, was going to be my first religious city in Russia, my first step on the outskirts of Moscow, my first insight into a little Russian town and also, as I discovered, my first time witnessing a full fledged service at an Orthodox Church.

Fastfood: I had crêpes (pancakes) stuffed with chicken and mushrooms.

The bus was very comfortable (probably because I was exhausted and slept through most of it) and within an hour my friend was nudging me to wake up as we pulled into the bus stand of Sergiev Posad. From there, one could see spiraling colorful domes and an enormous structure some distance away. This was one of those simple towns: an important temple, one central street and little houses around the vicinity. Being so close to Moscow, the place was quite busy (in relative terms, if I’m allowed to say that.)

Russian Orthodox Church

Monastery complex at Sergiev Posad: Bell tower, Cathedral, Gate-Church

“There is no settlement without a just man, there is no town without a saint” – thus goes a Russian wisdom.

This monastery is considered to be among the most important and most active religious centers in Russia. You can tell, as you approach it, that the place is religious. The young men in shiny leather jackets and young women with high heels that I had seen just an hour ago in Moscow were replaced by old priests with long beards and babushkas carrying holy water. The place was full of devotees, women wearing head scarves and men with bare heads, who were lighting candles or chanting prayers.

Left pic: Cathedral of the Assumption, Chapel at the well and a Tsar’s grave. Right pic: Bell Tower

Orthodox church service

While I was busy taking pictures and feeling thrilled for being inside an Orthodox Church complex, the bell was rung and people started rushing into the central Cathedral. We joined the crowds, about hundred people trying to get in through the narrow door that let in only two or three people at a time, so you can imagine the struggle to get in. Inside it was hot, crowded, and stuffy but I was overwhelmed by the grandiose structure, ambient lighting, murals (saints) on the walls and a large company of priests dressed in black. I was quite puzzled seeing the display of so many icons, symbols and hundreds of paintings of Saints. Isn’t that exactly what the Abrahamic religions object to in Eastern religions? Anyway, my attention was quickly diverted to something unusual I heard: Singing.

The singing wasn’t the commonly heard choir music (what I call ‘Christian music’ for the sake of simplicity) but it was composed of distinctly male voices. Services in an orthodox church are not conducted by a single priest, but by a group of them. They believe that human voice is the most perfect form of music, hence instead of using musical instruments, groups of priests (maybe some altar boys and the choir too) sing the prayers while others accompany them in a harmony. The result is a fine blend of different voices, overlapping tones and varied pitches that somehow still create a wonderful effect. As an Indian Classical musician, I was extremely fascinated by this style, almost never seen in Indian music (except chanting in Hindu/Buddhist temples).

The tempo of singing increased gradually and everyone but me seemed to understand what was going on. You could sense the music reaching climax as the as the length of the verses shortened, variations in singing increased and finally one voice carried the prayer till the end while voices around him faded slowly. It was truly a magical spectacle as hundreds of devotees inside the cathedral bowed town and started moving towards the altar with candles or crosses in their hands and curious eyes now noticing me. I made my way out of the monastery, emerging from a thick cloud of humidity, smoke and incense to the dry and chilly weather outside with the sights and sounds of the place imprinted on my mind.

The bells were ringing, birds were flying, sun was setting and the sky was displaying a brilliant pattern of colors almost as if someone had applauded to the presentation in the monastery inside. Soon I found my friend (I was almost worried that he I was lost) in that crowd and then we were thinking about one of the three basic needs of humans; satisfied promptly as seen below.

Dinner

Factual information

Sergiev Posad, called Zagorks by the Soviets, is about 60km away from Moscow and very easily accessible by public transit. It is one of the most important Golden Ring cities (a number of cities north-east of Moscow that have historical and religious significance).

Bus: Buses depart to Sergiev Posad from VDNKh station on Moscow Metro at about 30-minute frequency. Alternatively, certain buses departing from Moscow’s Yaroslavl Vokzal and going to Pereslavl-Zalessky and beyond stop at Sergiev Posad.

Train: Frequent suburban trains depart from Yaroslavsky terminal and take about an hour to reach.

The monastery: The monastery is a 15-minute walk from the bus and train station. Simply keep walking along the straight road going north (it goes downhill and then climbs) keeping the monastery domes in sight all the time. It’s hard to get lost. Admission is free, and the place is open between 10:00 to 18:00.

Gate-Church: Entrance door to the whole complex

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The riot of color and shapes that is St. Basil’s Cathedral is unmatched anywhere else in the world.

St. Basil’s Cathedral, seen from the ‘other’ side

What’s the building about?

Until very recently, I thought that this colorful fairytale-like building was called Kremlin and its like the Taj Mahal of Russia. This building is actually a cathedral and houses a number of tiny chapels inside. The cathedral was commissioned by Tsar Ivan IV to commemorate the capture of the Khanate of Kazan, and built from 1555 to 1561.

A chapel filled with icons, medieval painted walls, and varying artwork

The building is known by many names. The Cathedral of Intercession of the Virgin on the Moat (RU: Собор Покрова что на Рву – The Cathedral of the Protection of the Mother of God, or simply Pokrovskiy Cathedral – RU: Покровский Собор; better known as the Cathedral of Saint Basil the Blessed , Saint Basil’s Cathedral – RU: Храм Василия Блаженного) is a multi-tented church on the Red Square in Moscow that also features distinctive onion domes. St. Basil, after whom the cathedral is named, was a preacher who roamed the streets of Moscow trying to win converts during the reign of Tsar Ivan IV.

Spiraling stairway

Although the towers and domes appear chaotic, there is symmetry and symbolism in its design. There are eight domed chapels symbolizing the eight assaults on Kazan: four large and octagonal and four small and square. In the center is a tent-roofed spire topped with a small golden dome.

Bells. Russian orthodox churches play wonderful music by ringing bells of various sizes. These look like decommissioned ones.

The cathedral had a nice cosy, intimate feel, as opposed to most other cathedrals that are grand structures.

Onion Domes

Spiraling onion dome

Some scholars postulated that onion domes were borrowed by Russians from Muslim countries, probably from the Khanate of Kazan, whose conquest Ivan the Terrible commemorated by erecting St. Basil’s Cathedral. The Kazan Qolsharif mosque had been the principal symbol of the Khanate and some elements from there were said to be incorporated into the cathedral. Others state that the elongated, or onion, domes were part of the same proto-Gothic trend aimed at achieving pyramidal, vertical emphasis.

Secret Tips!

Replica of the structure inside another chapel which felt like a meditation room

The cathedral is located at the south-eastern end of the Red square and is a convenient point to either start or end your tour of the Red Square.

Secret tip #1: Entrance ticket for foreigners is expensive (I think RUR 300 / USD 15), but for locals its RUR 100 (USD 5). I asked for a student discount ticket in Russian, and I got in for RUR 50 (USD 2.5). Awesome!

Secret tip #2: Entering the Red Square from this end is not very popular, hence there are few chances of getting checked or bothered by the police. The other entrance is very crowded, filled with souvenir shops and policemen who pry on foreign-looking people checking random passports. So be wiser.

…and you are welcome.
Saint Basil’s Cathedral and statues commemorating the leaders of Russia’s volunteer army against the Polish invaders

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The citadel of David

The Citadel of David – a defensive structure that was destroyed and rebuilt over and over!

Jerusalem has been a center of activity for such a long time that wave after wave of different civilizations battled for it. Beit She’an, Akko are few examples. The Tower of David is a defensive fort built on the edge of the old city and it has recorded this flavor. Built to strengthen a strategically weak point in the Old City’s defenses, the citadel was constructed during the second century BCE and subsequently destroyed and rebuilt by, in succession, the Christian, Muslim, Mamluk, and Ottoman conquerors of Jerusalem.

Citadel of David

The citadel is a cultural center today and is visited by millions of tourists. It offers very clean and beautiful views of New Jerusalem city, predominantly the Jewish areas and that explains its strategic importance during the old times and even as recent as the Arab control over the city before the 6-day war. Every ruler of this place upgraded it, thus leaving a mark of their presence.

Defensive fortifications.

I was in the western side of the old city (Christian and Armenian Quarters) for an entire day because there is so much to see here. Christian pilgrims swamped the whole place, mostly dominated by Russian Orthodox Christians (it was their Christmas holiday). There are several (maybe hundreds of) churches in these two quarters and hundreds of young volunteers work at these religious centers from all across the world.

Hagia Maria Sion Abbey, or the Dormition Church

Mount Zion is a hill south of the Armenian Quarter just outside the walls of the Old City of Jerusalem. Mount Zion is the modern name of the hill – the result of a misnomer dating from the Middle Ages when pilgrims mistook the relatively large, flat summit for the original site of the City of David.

Important sites on Mount Zion are Dormition Abbey, King David’s Tomb and the Room of the Last Supper. Oskar (Oscar) Schindler is buried in a cemetery here.

Dormition Church

Situated on the modern Mount Zion, just outside the walls of Old City is the The Dormition Church which was called Abbey of the Dormition of the Virgin Mary, but the name was changed in 1998 in reference to the church of Hagia Sion that formerly stood on this spot.

::::
Room of the last supper:

Christian pilgrims praying in the room of last supper

Among the little joys of exploring a place yourself is finding something that you least expected. I was walking in this area very casually, admittedly in the Christian / Armenian quarter and stumbled at this place. What an amazing piece of Bibical history! I was overwhelmed and wanted to run around screaming “I saw the room of the last supper!” “I saw the room of the last supper!” Yeah, so? Soon I realized that nobody would have cared – it was as if I go to Egypt and say ‘oh I saw the pyramids’. Indeed, everyone else has done the same.

I had already seen so many prominent Christian sites (that most of my information about that religion today comes from Israel), some of them being:


° Church of Nativity, Bethlehem: The birth place of Jesus,
° Via Dolorosa (Stations of the cross), Muslim and Christian quarters, Jerusalem: Jesus’s last walk
° Church of the Sepulcher, Christian quarter, Jerusalem: The site of crucifixion.
° Numerous sites along the Sea of Galilee, Galilee

So this room was another significant addition in my trip seemingly overloaded with Christian pilgrimage sites, haha I think religious Christians will have a ball in Israel visiting all these sites (duh, ofcourse!) Several tourist companies bring pilgrims from all over the world. There are endless number of things to see.

Beautiful window in this room.

Next post is about the Jewish quarter.

Pictures and slideshow: Jerusalem Photo Gallery

Note: Beginning now, I’ve adopted a less rigid approach to the travel series. Posts will no longer be titled ‘Scrolls from…’ etc. but will have the same content nevertheless.

Last Supper: Picture by Leonardo da Vinci (1498)

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Akko (Acre): an ancient gateway to the middle east.

Old city

About 23km north of Haifa almost to the northernmost tip of Haifa bay is the city of Akko (आक्को) or Acre (आक्रे). It is connected on the Israel Railways and thats the most convenient way to travel. It is possible to see all of Akko in half-a-day as the old city is quite tiny indeed. I went there early in the morning and was back to Haifa by sunset.

History:
Acre has a very old history. It was mentioned by the Egyptians (1500 BCE), Hebrews, Cannanites, and had a stormy history in pre-christian days. Alexander (Greeks) conquered this city, Persians used it as a gateway against Egyptians, while there were murky controls from Syrians, Israelis, Maccabees and the Romans over the town. Arabs captured the city in 638 CE and the Crusaders arrived in 1104 CE. This town was their chief port in Palestine until Saladin captured it. Crusaders re took the city after several battles and in 1229 placed it under the control of the Knights Hospitaller. It was the final stronghold of the Crusader state, and fell to the Mameluks in a bloody siege in 1291. The Ottomans held the city from 1517 CE after which it was in a state of decay.
The Turkish rejuvenated the city in 18th century CE and held it against attacks from Napoleon. Jewish groups captured Akko after Israeli independence and most of the town’s Arab inhabitants fled the town.

Walls:
Acre is a walled city. In 1750, Daher El-Omar, the ruler of Acre, utilized the remnants of the Crusader walls and built fortification around the port city. The walls were reinforced between 1775 and 1799 by Jezzar Pasha and survived Napoleon’s siege.

Jezzar Pasha Masjid:

Jezzar Pasha Mosque

he Mosque of Jezzar Pasha was built by Jezzar Pasha in 1781. The mosque is Caesarea Maritima: Jezzar Pasha and his successor Suleiman Pasha are both buried in a small graveyard adjacent to the mosque. The mosque is an excellent example of Ottoman architecture, which incorporated both Byzantine and Persian styles. Some of its fine features include the green dome and minaret, a green-domed sabil next to its steps, and a large courtyard. Tourists are required to pay an entrance fees and it is NOT worth spending money to go inside, because there isn’t much to see. Muslim believers can go inside and pray.

Citadel:

The Citadel

The current building which consists the citadel of Acre is an Ottoman fortification, built on the foundation of the Hospitallerian citadel. The citadel was part of the city’s defensive formation, reinforcing the northern wall. During the 20th century the citadel was used mainly as a prison and as the site for a gallows.

Knights Halls:


Under the citadel and prison of Acre, archeological excavations revealed a complex of halls, which was built and used by the Hospitallers Knights. This complex was a part of the Hospitallers’ citadel, which was combined in the northern wall of Acre.

During the second half of the 12th century the members of the Templar Order began building their quarter in the south-western part of Acre. A writer who lived in the city at the end of the 13th century describes their fortress as follows:

The Templar Fortress was the strongest one in the city and, in the main, abutted the sea line. Its entrance was protected by two strong towers with walls 28 feet thick. On either side of the towers two smaller towers were built and each tower was topped by a gilded lion.

Templar Tunnels:
The tunnels were discovered in 1994 and opened to the public in 1999. Even now, excavations and restoration work is being carried out as some parts of the tunnel are buried under the sea.

Walking through the tunnels brought a rush of mixed feelings. I felt like I was transported back in history and spearmen and archers would walk past me. The tunnels have a peculiar smell that weans the enthusiasm out of you, but, at the same time, i was quite excited to walk on this path.

A single ticket purchased at the Citadel will give access to various excavation sites around the town. Audio self-guided tapes are included in the price and are definitely recommended. Lots of the places were closed as restoration work was in progress. The modest visitor center runs a nice film about the history of Akko.

I was sitting in the theatre watching the film with my buddy. Since there were barely 10 people in the hall and we (youngsters) were tired (hahaha), so we put our feet on the seats. A guard promptly arrived and gave us a brief lecture about good manners. At the end of it my Israeli friend remarked – ‘Wow, an Israeli guy talking about politeness.’ That was funny (and embarrassing)!

More:

The Turkish markets (shuk शुक्) inside narrow alleys of the old city were pretty busy. This part of Akko reminded me a lot about the old city of Jerusalem. But the people here looked quite different as they were mostly Israeli Arabs. Lunch was at a traditional Turkish restaurant outside the mosque and surprisingly they had several pita bread, rice, vegetables and lentil (दाल). It became a habit to gulp down 2-3 cups of mint tea while relaxing under the cool breeze.

It is prohibited to walk on the wall’s periphery but it is still possible to sneak in. The walls are thin and very tall but balancing a walk on them is bound to send a chill down your spine.

Mediterranean Sea

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