will i am's delayed diary

For the first time, the Easter Triduum was observed away from Mother Church. The clergy had started jumping into the deep end, leaning about the challenges of live streaming over social media platforms. Some embraced technology pretty well, and emerged as mini online influencers . Stations of the Cross was broadcast live from my church compound using Facebook Live. And through YouTube Live we participated in the Maundy Thursday Mass, Good Friday Liturgy, Easter Vigil Mass, and Easter Sunday Mass. Usually, the Holy Week would be such a busy time as it involves much preparation and involvement from multiple ministries, but the Covid-19 pandemic had turned things on its head, giving a chance for everyone to take a step back and reflect.  "Do not abandon yourselves to despair. We are the Easter people and hallelujah is our song." -- St. Pope John Paul II

Started our day with breakfast, then morning mass at the hotel function room. Then it was off to Amman Citadel located on Jabal al Qal'a, one of the seven hills that make up the old city. It provides an amazing vista of the city where houses cover the hilly terrain like white moss. Sami says that there is a law, that states that buildings in the area must be constructed from white stone or painted white. From up there, we also got a great view of the Roman Theater , a landmark from the 2nd century. Historically, Amman Citadel was occupied by several great civilizations. The Romans left the ruins of the Temple of Hercules . There's also Byzantine ruins, and an Umayyad Palace . Next was a visit to CityMall for some shopping, but the mall was pretty dead. It was 10 am, but no shops were open with the exception of Carrefour. We spent most of our time raiding Bzuriyeh, a shop that sold premium dried fruits, nuts, and spices. Bought more Medjoul, figs, and macadamia. We...

Morning mass was celebrated in the hotel function room. Then we set out to Petra . Halfway there we had a toilet stop at a souvenir shop that sold really pretty trinkets, intricate mosaics, and furniture. Then we had a short visit at Wadi Musa , purportedly where Moses struck a stone with his staff and water gushed forth for the thirsty Israelites. The spring was enclosed in a small building, and it was extremely cool inside. Locals come to take water from it. Not too sure about the cleanliness though... I spotted rubbish in the spring. Our lunch stop was at Silk Road Hotel where we had typical Middle Eastern fare with flatbread. From there we headed out to Petra Visitors Centre on foot. Our priest and several who were unfit, stayed back at the hotel. When we arrived at Petra Visitors Centre, the sun was shining brightly. We patiently waited for Sami to settle our tickets which were at USD50 a pop. Petra is actually a large archaeological park, but we only had time t...

Sherry bid us farewell at the Allenby / King Hussein Bridge border crossing. As I had the best grasp of English, I got off the bus to answer some standard questions. A hunky Israeli soldier in aviator glasses asked : - Do you have a weapon? - Did you notice anyone else carrying a weapon? - Did anyone ask you to bring anything into Jordan? Wouldn't mind him performing a body search and disarming my 'weapon'. The immigration process between Israel and Jordan was much simpler compared to when we came in from Egypt. Our passports were bulk processed by Jordan immigration, and we didn't even need to offload our luggage. When we got back our passports, it wasn't stamped. All it had was a small barcode on the signature page. In Jordan, we got another Mandarin-speaking guide who went by the name Sami. He worked in China for more than a decade and married a Chinese woman who happens to be a practicing Orthodox Christian. All of us were surprised that his wife didn...

Breakfast at Gai Beach Resort was equally as satisfying as dinner. The salad bar boasted of various types of cheeses, cured fish, and healthy salads. Yummy bread aplenty to go with omelettes, baked eggs, and gratin. The first church of the day was the Church of the Multiplication of the Loaves and Fish over in Tabgha. It sits upon the site of two Byzantine churches, and features restored mosaics from the 5th century. The focal point of the church is the limestone block at the altar that is venerated as the place the miracle of the Multiplication took place. In front of it is also an old mosaic of five loaves of bread flanked by two fishes. A short walk away was the Church of the Primacy of Saint Peter , where we celebrated open air mass under a tree. Inside the church was Mensa Christi, spot where Jesus is said to have laid out a breakfast for His apostles, and told St. Peter to "feed my sheep", installing Peter as the leader of the apostles. The church also ...