I'm trying to work out why I chose this image now... apart from the obvious reason - I love the photo and I'm chuffed with it!! Everywhere we went in the coach, alongside the road there were endless huge seed heads, mostly thistles or from that family.

In fact the way that flowers seemed to survive in adversity really fascinated me. The lack of rain didn't seem to prevent flora bursting forth! But, so many were spiky and thorny and harsh - to the touch at least, though frequently magnificent to the eye.

Triumphing over adversity... many could write a sermon on that alone. I've become fascinated by the news that emerges from the Holy Land since my return. The headlines have been full of the situation in Gaza and the recent relaxation of what can go into that area. However, Jonathan drew my attention to a recent protest by ultra Orthodox Jews about education... The Israeli security forces had to contain that situation. It is such a complex place... Can I understand? Not necessarily at the moment - but I want to know more.

I'm reading the Bible in a year - or trying to - and recently read Luke 19. From verse 29 onwards it was poignant - all about Jesus' triumphal entry into Jerusalem from the Mount of Olives. I stood on that hill... I saw that vista... but what really struck me were the verses from 41 onwards - it was all about how Jesus wept over the city of Jerusalem... it some ways it could have been written today...

Children are the same the whole world over - what a joy and blessing!

They are mischievous and love to play.

These are two images that capture some of our interaction with young people.

The picture of the playground is at the orphanage we visited in Bethany. There are nearly 90 residents at the orphanage and this is one of the places they can play outside, the other is a hard court that is great for football. Behind the tree were a couple of old swings. I can tell you how much they're used because the ground underneath had been scooped out by endless feet dragging across it over the years... Many young children in the UK have this in their own back gardens or much more, like a trampoline... a moment to pause for thought.

The second image is in Jerusalem and happened as we were walking towards David's City and the Gihon Springs. It was a school day but these three or four youngsters were playing truant... or maybe they never went, who knows. Their English was sufficient for their needs - just! They stood in the opening, just visible and demanded a shekel for a photo and lowered an old black plastic bag and a scraggy piece of rope.

Eventually Fr Derek and others relented and Daniel (also in the photo) went to put our contributions in the bag. They didn't understand we'd 'coughed up the cash' so their language became slightly more 'aggressive' though not as bad as one might expect "we are very angry now" was about as bad as it got. When they did get the message that we'd made a donation they attempted to pull up the bag and the rope gave way! They need to do better than that if they're to become entrepreneurs!

Its about time I reflected on people...

It was impossible to get a shot of the whole group - well nearly impossible. Our last corporate act at the end of the second Saturday was to stand on the steps outside the Church of the Holy Sepulchre and have a photo taken.

This is a picture of some of us gathered by one of the sources of the River Jordan where we renewed our baptism vows. This was early in the week, Monday, but we were already beginning to 'gel' as a group. Each of us had the sign of the cross marked on our forehead with water from the river.

Pam was our resident artist! Her little sketches were colour washed each evening on return to our hotel. A brilliant record of the places we had been and somehow so much more personal than photos... a unique interpretation.

We saw so many different people wearing so many different styles of clothing but it somehow felt like an invasion of their privacy to photograph them. However, this gentleman was by the coach stop on our last day and I just loved his 'laid back' approach to life - literally!

I guess what I do want to say about the people is that the group were amazingly diverse, from 13 to 90 in age and from a range of backgrounds - professional and social - that would suggest we'd struggle to mix. In any other circumstances I am sure that would be true but on a pilgrimage all sorts of barriers come tumbling down. Maybe its because we're all on a journey that encourages or even forces us to abandon our normal way of being... Who knows, but we all became very firm friends, we went through so much together.

Its strange coming back... you really miss that closeness...

Living places! What a diversity! As I write this I'm not sure how all these photos will show up on the blog! Let's give it a go though and explain some of the different dwelling places we saw.

The first one I shall speak about is the the one through the arch which shows all the little arches opposite. This is from the town of Acre, a Crusader port and town that welcomed pilgrims in the Middle Ages. This is what remains of the hostelry - i.e the hotel! Instead of balconies with sea views the desirable view was on of the 'action' in the quadrangle! I just love the beauty of the symmetry!

The second photo I will talk about is the one from the roof of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. These are the living quarters of the Ethiopian brothers. I rather like their shape and style but I'm not sure I could live in one of these "cells"!

The two top photos are such a contrast. The one set in the desert is a Bedouin settlement - sparse and quite remote. The other photo is of a new settlement on the hills that surround Jerusalem and/or Bethlehem. One is rudimentary and basic, the other is something that we can recognise, building block stuff/ legoland...

I love architecture! I love buildings! (That's entirely due to my father!) Looking at all these styles makes me understand more about the land we were visiting. Its past, its present and its future...

I am challenged by all that I saw in terms of how people lived, now and in the ages before. We tend to think that people lived in primitive conditions in the ages that preceded us... but the reality is that people still live like that, not just in the Holy Land but in a number of other countries throughout the world... It's a challenge!!

Two weeks ago we had just arrived in Tiberias and were practising some of the sung worship in the dark by the Galilee Lake - not the most auspicious start!

Today I'm going to share some of the natural delights we saw.

The bird is an egret - we saw so many in Galilee. When I took this shot it was extremely hot and this bird was gasping - a bit like a dog pants!

We saw and heard some beautiful birds... kingfishers, doves, multi coloured crows and even the odd stork. When we visited Acre the egrets were quick to alight on the fishing boats that docked, just in case there were rich pickings to be had.

In the middle - if you look very carefully you will notice a bright blue dragonfly - and they now have a really special significance for me, since we've moved to Dragonfly Lane. These delicate insects darted across the water, flashes of electric blue lighting up the streams that they hovered over.

The top photo is of a mustard tree! The trees we saw were ubiquitous in some areas growing out of every nook and cranny. The tallest I saw was probably about 7 or 8 feet tall. However, when you look at the minuscule size of the seed it is quite miraculous - but probably explains why the grow out of the smallest crack in the rocks. A fabulous reminder of the parable.

We saw so much more. Stunning oleanders and fabulous bougainvilleas. The colours assailed our senses as we drove through the countryside. By the shore of Lake Galilee we saw a family of small rodents, not unlike guinea pigs. A notice informed us they were "quoted" in the Bible, I think they meant referred to...

As we moved to the desert areas, the Judean desert is truly sparse in vegetation, I was reminded of so much more that we learn about - not least all the prophets and eventually Jesus himself who spent time in the wilderness. How did they survive if it wasn't for divine intervention? Remember Elijah, who wandered off into the desert to die but God kept sending/providing bread and water for him.

We saw sheep and goats, as well as camels who clearly managed to find sufficient nutrients to survive but it really did stretch belief! The vegetation was so harsh and often spiky.

What an incredible land...

I've been thinking about food... its a basic need and its lunch time! In fact I've just had a ham salad roll and that was what started me thinking about food. We had some delicious meals while we were in the Holy Land!

I guess I'm fascinated by the cultural differences... Both hotels were quite cosmopolitan or at least didn't seem to be overly pre-occupied with the need to serve kosher food. In fact the only differences I really noted were that there was never any pork in sight, though there were some 'salami-type' cold meats (but I didn't try them), and the 'cream' on desserts had definitely not seen a cow!

The photos illustrate some of the differences we saw and experienced. The top left hand one is a fabulous spice stall in Jerusalem. The 'mountain' is purely decorative but no less impressive for that! I can almost recreate the gorgeous aromas the spices were giving off, just by closing my eyes... The second is a sight we saw each morning throughout the streets around our hotel. Little bread stalls set up on the pavement. They sold the wonderful soft sesame covered breads as well as other more garish yellow 'cake-like' foods. This stall sold eggs as well, diversifying!

The two little plates of pickles were the start of the most tasty Lebanese meal I've ever had! The dishes just kept coming and we struggled to keep up with them, and in the end conceded defeat! The most colourful side dish was shocking pink cauliflower - which tasted just liked pickled cauli, but took a bit of effort to get past the colour!! This restaurant won the prize for the best pitta. Pitta bread was ubiquitous! In fact in one place where we ate there was a lovely depiction of Christ breaking bread at Emmaus, but the bread was nowhere to be seen and his eyes and hands were lifted heavenwards... the caption competition winner was "Not more pitta!"

That sounds terribly ungrateful but its the sort of humour that groups develop... Not dark, but sort of a realisation that "we're in this together" and there was so much that was different.

The final shot is more or less self-explanatory - a fish stall! having spent 10 years working for the Food Standards Agency its a bit of a shock (when travelling abroad - even in Europe) to see foods for sale without covering. Where's the EHO when you need one! (That's short for environmental health officer)

I ate like a queen... breakfast was tomatoes, cucumber, eggs, olives, cheese and occasionally taramasalata or hummous... with bread of course and fresh dates. (Maybe not like Elizabeth II though as I hear she eats cereals for brekkie!) Lunch and dinner were often meze style meals with so many luscious dishes my tastebuds were crying out for relief! Hence the mashed potato moment... I think I did get to the point where I couldn't face anymore cabbage (always served as a type of coleslaw)

Ham rolls are really rather boring!

I spoke about how quickly things return to normal.... I forgot to mention the saddest thing that happened yesterday. I came into worked, plugged in my laptop and remembered the randomly generated 14 piece password first time. That is VERY sad!

Necia, my flatmate asked me a question that no-one else had last night and I was completely thrown by it! She asked me what was my favourite bit of the whole trip...

Well, where do you start??

In a ten day journey that had not only seen us grow individually but also bond collectively as a group, when we had experienced so many different things, where do you start is a serious question.

Was there anything I could strike off the list of probables immediately? Well, for me there did come a point where I was over all the churches that had been designed by Antonio Barluzzi... All the endless, utterly OTT mosaics are just not 'me', but I know they do suit others - its a personal taste thing. Though I have to admit the final one we went in the Church of All Nations on the Mount of Olives redeemed him in my eyes. The interior of that building was almost other worldly. It certainly transported me to a place where I could imagine myself waiting whilst Jesus prayed alone.

That doesn't get me too much further in my quest to eliminate things or promote even.

We saw two cities close up, Tiberias and Jerusalem. The former modern, the latter ancient. I went out on my own in Tiberias but not in Jerusalem. It wasn't that I felt threatened but I knew I would get lost, I needed a good map to venture out in Jerusalem! I fell in love with Jerusalem, the tiny streets and the hurly burly of the souks. (The second photo is a rather empty little street, they were usually so crowded it was hard to stay still long enough to get a photo!) I adored the glimpses through doors and up little alleyways. In fact I photographed lots of them! I was and still am fascinated by the different quarters and how they all mix and match - or not as the case may be!

I found the dark tunnels and the heights we climbed personally challenging so they slip down my list a bit, however that's just me and some of my more obvious 'phobias'. I was annoyed by the grumpy monk at the monastery on the top of the Mount of Temptation, but thanks to Fr Derek we did manage to get in and it was well worth the wait and long climb up there in stifling heat. (The first photo is a shot of the monastery from the cable car. You can't see all of the route we walked up but you can get an idea of how remote it was!) We later understood that some of the grumpiness was due to a battle of wills between the monk and the cable car owners - who refuse to allow him to bring up bottled water by cable car...

So, what spring into my mind when Necia asked the question? What was my gut reaction? Well it was the very last experience we had on Saturday evening when the four of us, Mhairi, Michael, Jonathan and I went to Syrian Vespers. (The third photo is of one of the monks afterwards) It lyrical simplicity, lack of hordes of tourists and connectivity with something ancient was just a fabulous experience - a real high to go out on!