Upon a labmate's suggestion, I got up at 5:30 am and headed through the streets to the old city. The streets were dead calm and I only saw few men and boys also walking to make the pilgrimage.
The old city was very quiet, with all but the most intrepid retailers closed. Once past security to the Western wall, the scene was very different. Even at the early hour there were a couple hundred people present, dressed in white and praying. The men were singing their entreaties and the women either rocking silently or softly speaking the words in their separated section.
I sat down for while and listened quietly.
The whole serenity of the morning was broken on the walk home though, when I was hit on by a well dressed Muslim man. I was completely disgusted considering I was dressed appropriately to go to the western wall, i.e. like an observant Jew. It was the most holy day of the year, a day of atonement, and this guy is trying to get tail from foreign married women at 6:30 am.
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