Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
God had told Paul (or Saul, as he was then known) to go into the city and wait. God then
appeared to Ananias in a vision, and told him to go to the "street called Straight", and ask
"at the house of Judas for a man from Tarsus named Saul,". Aananias objected that Saul
had been persecuting Christians, but God told him that Saul was "a chosen instrument of
mine to carry my name before Gentiles, kings, and Israelites". Aananias then went to Saul
and laid hands on him whereupon scales fell from Saul's eyes, his eyesight was restored,
and he was baptized.
After negotiating past a small souvenir shop and descending a steep flight of steps we
entered the crypt and participated in a small service.
Pasted on the wall alongside the gate to the House were a number of death notices showing
the face of the deceased with a Christian cross. There were a number of such posters
throughout the Christian quarter of the Old Town.
The streets were narrow alleyways, with small icons and statues of Jesus or Mary sitting in
niches at the front of many houses.
We pressed through a small crowd grouped around a baker's window. They were buying
the flat bread straight out of the oven, with some holding a pile about a foot high.
The milkman passed doing his rounds on a bicycle. He had several churns mounted on a
frame on the back of the bike and the milk was delivered to the household in a large metal
jug.
There were small alleys branching off what was already a narrow street that only one
vehicle at a time could squeeze through. Many alleys branched into smaller alleys and oth-
ers ended in dead-ends. The upper storey's of the houses on one side of the street and some-
times on both sides, bulged out nearly touching the opposite building.
