Merry Christmas from Bethlehem.

December 26, 2016 by Abhaya

On this day of celebration around the world, I reminded that a few years ago I had visited the supposed birthplace of Jesus, Bethlehem.

Visit Palestine, a sign in a café in Jerusalem. Jerusalem, Israel, 2014.

Visit Palestine, a sign in a café in Jerusalem. The sign was a reprint of an old historical sign. Jerusalem, Israel, 2014.

Kilometre Zero. Jerusalem, Israel, 2014.

Kilometre Zero in Jerusalem, the heart of Christianity, Judaism and a Pilar of Islam. Jerusalem, Israel, 2014.

Geopolitical map of the Occupied Territories of Palestine. Bethlehem, Palestine, 2014.

Geopolitical map of the Occupied Territories of Palestine. Bethlehem is only 5 km away from Jerusalem, but the other side of the Separatation Wall in Palestinian Territories. Bethlehem, Palestine, 2014.

Legend of the Geopolitical map of the Occupied Territories of Palestine. Bethlehem, Palestine, 2014.

Street situation in the old Jerusalem not far from the Western Wall. Jerusalem, Israel, 2014.

A prayer in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in the center of the Old Jerusalem. Jerusalem, Israel, 2014.

Scene of devotion in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. Jerusalem, Israel, 2014.

Incensing around the Aedicule which contains the Holy Sepulchre itself in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. Jerusalem, Israel, 2014.

The door of the alleged place of Christ’s Tomb in the cave under the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. Jerusalem, Israel, 2014.

A road sign in three languages, English, Hebrew and Arabic. Jerusalem, Israel, 2014.

A road sign along the palestinian roads. Jericho, Palestine, 2014.

A father with his two sons in the bus to Bethlehem. Bethlehem, Palestine, 2014.

The checkpoint at the Segregation Wall between Israel and the Occupied Territories of Palestine. Bethlehem, Palestine, 2014.

Parking lot the other side of the Segregation Wall in Bethlehem. Bethlehem, Palestine, 2014.

Welcome in Bethlehem with a Banksy tag. Bethlehem, Palestine, 2014.

Driving around the Segregation Wall. Bethlehem, Palestine, 2014.

Christmas Trees on a pole next to the Segregation Wall. Bethlehem, Palestine, 2014.

More tags on the Segregation Wall. Bethlehem, Palestine, 2014.

Life scene along the Segregation Wall. Bethlehem, Palestine, 2014.

Gernika. Bethlehem, Palestine, 2014.

Street view in the Old Bethlehem. Bethlehem, Palestine, 2014.

View on the hills in the Old Bethlehem. Bethlehem, Palestine, 2014.

The entrance of the Nativity Church, where the Christ is supposedly born, in the Old Bethlehem. Bethlehem, Palestine, 2014.

A lot of trepidation around the access to the Crypt where the Christ was actually born under the Nativity Church. Bethlehem, Palestine, 2014.

The actual place where the Christ was born under the Nativity Church. Bethlehem, Palestine, 2014.

A Holy Encounter in the Nativity Church. Bethlehem, Palestine, 2014.

The market in Bethlehem next to the Nativity Church. Bethlehem, Palestine, 2014.

Another Banksy tag. Bethlehem, Palestine, 2014.

Welcome to Aida Camp. Bethlehem, Palestine, 2014.

The door of the Aida Camp, in the background, a door entrance to Israel on Segregation Wall. Bethlehem, Palestine, 2014.

The Segregation Wall by night. Bethlehem, Palestine, 2014.

A family welcome me for dinner in Bethlehem. Bethlehem, Palestine, 2014.

A family welcomes me for dinner in Bethlehem. Bethlehem, Palestine, 2014.

The daughter of the family welcoming me for dinner in Bethlehem. Bethlehem, Palestine, 2014.

A hospitality meal in Bethlehem. Bethlehem, Palestine, 2014.

A living room wall in Bethlehem. Bethlehem, Palestine, 2014.

The Path of the Cross, the Ways of Sorrows, Via Dolorosa. Jerusalem, Israel, 2014.

A Christmas Carol sung at Christ Church Anglican Cathedral: "O little town of Bethlehem, how still we see thee lie! Above thy deep and dreamless sleep the silent stars go by; Yet in thy dark streets shineth the everlasting light; The hopes and fears of all the years are met in thee tonight." Vancouver, BC. Canada, Sunday 25th, 2016.

A Christmas Carol sung at the Christ Church Anglican Cathedral in Vancouver, BC:
“O little town of Bethlehem, how still we see thee lie!
Above thy deep and dreamless sleep the silent stars go by;
Yet in thy dark streets shineth the everlasting light;
The hopes and fears of all the years are met in thee tonight.”
Vancouver, BC. Canada, Sunday 25th, 2016.