Jerusalem - the Old City

Bram and I recently took a trip to Israel, to visit some friends of ours - Jessa and Rodolfo - and to see some of the most well known places of significance for many different religions.

Our first experience with Israel is with the Old City in Jerusalem.  Approaching it from a distance, I first saw the city walls, dotted with towers, painted a light pink by the setting sun.

One of the main gates is the Jaffa Gate. We enter the city with a mix of tourists, Jews with black rimmed hats and long curls, and Muslim women wearing head scarves.

Our friend, Rodolfo, leads us through the maze of streets that is the Old City.  

The Old City is surrounded by Ramparts.  They existed, in some form or another, for thousands of years, but the current ones date to the 16th century.  

Walking along the Ramparts. 

 

From the Ramparts, we looked out over the Old City of Jerusalem, seeing many churches, mosques, and temples, along with many antennas. 

For example, this church is the Church of the Dormition, a Benedictine abbey where Mary "fell asleep", located on Mount Zion.

I never realized how hilly Jerusalem is!  On the other hand, I always imagined Mount Zion to be a huge, jagged mountain, covered with snow and lightning bolts.  In reality, it's more like a gentle hill.  

In the other direction lies the more modern Jerusalem.  

Within the Old City, we pause in the Jewish Quarter to check out the small art shops.

Grapes, grown in the Christian Quarter at the seat of the Latin Patriarch.

The sides of the streets within the Old City are lined with small stores and stalls, some barely larger than a big walk in closet.  The streets themselves are also a center of commerce.

The bustling commerce outside the Damascus Gate.

Jessa and I, with all of Jerusalem laid out behind us.

A point to anyone who can name the Quarters of the Old City of Jerusalem!

Wandering through the streets of the Old City.

Deep within the Old City, roads become more like tunnels.  Only tunnels filled with a million people, half of them selling headscarves, rosaries, copper teakettles, or falafel.

I liked this twist on the popular cafe, along the Via Dolorosa.

Despite the fact that it was horribly crowded, the driver of this car decides it's a good idea to drive a car with a sofa strapped to the top through the narrow pedestrian paths.

Following Bram through the narrow streets.

Now following Bram and Rodolfo, as Rodolfo tries to help us exit the Old City.

Not from the Old City, but the spectacular sunset from Jessa and Rodolfo's apartment.