A Whirlwind Tour Through the Middle East – the Diamonds of the Crown Jewel

“Reverend, don’t you want to buy some of these, maybe for your wife?”

“No, thank you.  There are many in Heavens,” my father said.

I witnessed my father’s first act in Jerusalem and it was brilliant.  He found a perfect way to bring forth the message of Heavens (Revelation 21:19-21) in midst of the most secular tour activity one could do: diamond shopping.

Israel is the number one diamond distributor in the world.  We visited a diamond distributor that sold the glamour stones at manufacturer’s price.  Neither my father nor I were going to buy any, but the introduction session there was very informative and engaging.

There is the “4-C” standard in judging a diamond.  First is the color: the whiter the diamond was, the higher the value.  Clarity: the clearer the stone, the better.  Cut: the number of cuts in the diamond determines its aesthetic value.  There has to be the right number of cuts in proportion to the diamond’s size.   Finally, the higher the carat, the more valuable the stone was.  The store manager showed us the crown jewel: the one and only nine carat diamond ring that I was fortunate enough to see, possibly for the first and the last time in my life.

Despite its high value to the gem lovers, 90% of the discovered diamonds go to industrial use.  Only 10% go to jewelry making.

The myriad diamonds on show at the store dazzled us.  My father pulled me aside, “well, you would have to work a bit harder now.  Find yourself a really good job.”  My wits came, “find a job?  Find a husband instead!” He then said, “what husband would buy you these?” In response, “back at UAE I will find myself an Arab prince!”  “They have four wives though.”  “Yes, but each wife is legally entitled to equal gifts that the other three get!”  I concluded this useless banter on a point of some significance in Sharia law.  We had a merry time talking about diamonds and life on earth.

Jerusalem, the crown jewel of our pilgrimage, greeted us in the early evening when we finally made our way into the city.  West Jerusalem was our first view of the city, and indeed it was impressive.  Even at night hour I saw how neat and clean the streets were.  The area breathed an air of confidence, it being the most affluent part of Israel.  It was also the home to the Israel parliament Knesset.  The vibe of a posh community lingered long after our trip to the diamond distributor.

In Hebrew, Jerusalem means “the city of peace.”  “Salem” is in fact “shalom,” meaning peace.  Under British administration, the building decree of the city mandated the use of cream colored sandstone for all structures.  This decree was in force to this day.  As such, all of Jerusalem glistened in a creamy gold under the sun.  For this reason Jerusalem was also known as the golden city.

At Leonardo Hotel we had to wait for a while to check in.  As we gathered in the conference room, an old man served us drinks and snacks.  He handed me a yogurt-like, warm beverage in a shot glass.  Although I did not know what it was, I drank all of it faithfully as my return gesture for the hospitality.  We savored out-of-the-oven oats cookies alongside and we were thankful.  We really had a very long day visiting many sites along the route to Jerusalem.  I thanked the old man, and he was genuinely pleased that he had done a good job for the guests.

Jerusalem was finally in view.