We were in Jerusalem, Israel for three nights and stayed at a hotel just off Jaffa
Street, only a few blocks from the walled Old City. The street is pedestrian only
(except for a Tram) and usually bustling with lots of people. We ate our meals at
open air restaurants watching the crowds (which also included lots of heavily armed
police and army). On the first full day we had a private walking tour of Old Jerusalem,
probably the highlight of our trip. Its hard to imagine how impressive all these legendary
sites are in person and all in a small proximity to each other. We opted for a general,
nondenominational tour, rather than focussing on one religion. We saw many of the
famous mosques and ancient Christian and Jewish landmarks. At King David’s tomb, a
holy site particularly for Jews, John and I had to go to separate areas for men and
women. The same at the Western Wall, the last standing part of the second Jerusalem
temple. We overlooked the Mount of Olives and the Garden of Gesthsemane, thinking we
might take a cab there the next day to see them up close. There was the Palace of
Caeaphus, the gold-domed building, where Jesus was taken after his arrest, and the room
attributed to the Last Supper and the Pentecost. We were able to climb to the Temple
Mount, sometimes closed for security reasons. Entering the actual Dome of the Rock,
the building with the huge gold dome, is only for Muslims, although the site is revered
by Jews and Christians as the rock on which Abraham almost killed his son Isaac (but
Muslims believe that he almost killed his son Ishmael). Also, Mohammed ascended to
heaven from that rock after his night ride from Mecca before returning there. A notable
part of the tour was walking the Via Dolorosa, noting all 14 stations. It begins with
the Church of the Flagellation and the Church of the Condemnation. The last 5 are in
the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. Susan waited in a heavy crowd for the 12th station,
which is the site of the rock on which Jesus was crucified. (This is the picture where
Susan is emerging from under the altar-like structure at the slab of rock.) We did
not enter the 14th, his tomb, because the line was probably about 3 hours long.
(Click on a picture to see it larger. Opens in a new folder.)
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