Monday - Arc Tour, Cemetary, Cave of Elijah

The final organized programme of my Pilgrimage was Monday morning when we toured the Arc, which is the series of buildings on the hill near the Shrine of the Bab. These beautiful buildings house offices and facilities for the staff of the International Teaching Centre, the Universal House of Justice, and the Center for the Study of the Texts. Following a short tour of each building, we walked to the new Visitor's Information Center under the terrace that extends over Hatzionut St. We finished with prayers at the Western Pilgrim House and an impromtu group photo.

Having the rest of the day free, I walked down to Ben Gurion St. for lunch (via the street sidewalks, not the stairs!). I planned on making my way to the cemetary which was further down Allenby St. Not knowing exactly how far it was, I began by walking there. By the time I decided it was too far to really walk to, I was almost there so completed my hike! The Baha'i Cemetary is not very big, but as with all the Baha'i properties, is surrounded by gardens and flowers, blocking the noise of the nearby streets. I meet up here with a friend from my group and we walk together across the street and up to the lower Cave of Elijah. After spending a week at Baha'i Holy places, it was somewhat of a shock to enter this holy spot amid peddlers, trash, and dirty surroundings. You really couldn't see much of the cave, but it's nice to know where it likely was.

Having gotten my exercise for the day, I took a taxi to the top of the mountain where I completed my tourist-y shopping. I met up with Josephine and Ishmael at the PRC and we went back to Joe's flat for a dinner she prepared. Others joined us later in the evening and it was a nice time.