After years of drought, Israel is in it’s second year of wet and cold weather.  When we first visited the Sea of Galilee two years ago, docks and beaches were high and dry with the lake edge many meters out from it’s usual position.

Today the lake has re-gained half of what it lost over a half dozen drought years, and the mountains are laden with snow. Snow-skiing is once again popular on Mt Hermon in the Golan Heights.

Jerusalem, which can go years without seeing any snow, has gotten snow both of the past two winters, and in the past few days experienced more snow than it has in  years.  Add to that some torrential rain and wind storms just before it turned very cold and started snowing, and you get all kinds of fun things like broken palm trees, electrical system brown-outs and black-outs, etc. etc.

We survive and even thrive though all of this!  Three nights ago it was below freezing and our power went out at 5 pm.  All we could do was get in bed and huddle under the blankets for the rest of the night— not so bad!  The power was back on by morning.  The Arab boys in our neighborhood had a great time in the snow, making snowmen and having snowball fights in the street.

Here are some pictures, some mine, most borrowed, from Jerusalem… click on any photo to make it larger on your computer…

From our house looking east to the Mount of Olives

From our roof looking over Silwan toward the Old City.

Looking down from the Old City Jewish Quarter at the Western Wall, with the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock visible in the background.

Jerusalem

Stormy weather over the Mount of Olives

Old City, Tower of David, above and below

Ben Yehuda street at night

Frosty in frosty Jerusalem

The three photos above are from the Western Wall

Julee and I huddling in front of our propane heater attempting to stay warm!!!