This man in white was singing in the street.
Making our way to the Old City of Jerusalem.
The Christian Quarter in the Old City. Very crowded.
First we went to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. An old man came up to us and said he could be our tour guide. We said no. He said it would only take 20 minutes and he knew a lot of information. We said no. He said he loves to do this and we could pay him at the end whatever we wanted to. He said he wouldn't even mind doing it for free. So we said okay. His name was Marvin. Below is above the actual place where Jesus' body was washed for burial.
This encased rock below is a rock from the base of the Mount of Golgotha, where Jesus was crucified.
Below is the stone where Jesus was whipped.
This is one of the original columns of this church.
This is a statue of St. Helena, mother of Constantine @300 AD, with the cross. She found the cross Jesus was crucified on and became a Christian.
Here Emily and Mike are with Marvin.
Emily and Beth with Marvin.
This is over where Jesus was buried. The line was packed. Then they shut it down for lunch so we decided to go back later.
Below is the actual crack in the rock caused by the earthquake after Jesus was crucified.
This is straight above the place where the cross was driven into the ground. There is a hole in this enclave. People kneel and kiss the hole.
The altar of the crucifixion.
That was the end of Marvin's tour. We gave him 40 shekels ($10.) He gave us an aghast look. "I have 5 daughters to support. They don't work. I need more than this!" All of a sudden he wasn't sweet Marvin anymore. So we gave him $10 more.
There are beggars on the street, just like in the time of Jesus.
Falafals for lunch.
Many eateries in Israel have coca-cola napkin holders. Mike got a mint lemonade. Delicious.
On our way to the Western Wall, the only remaining portion of the wall that Herod built around the temple over 2000 years ago. The temple was destroyed 70AD by the Romans.
Our first view of the Western Wall in the Jewish Quarter.
By now it was very hot.
Men and women are supposed to cover their heads but we noticed many didn't. It was very hot out. When Beth touched the wall, a surge shot through her and her heart went into an irregular, wild rhythm. It lasted about 30 seconds.
Below is the Dome of the Rock. It's in the Muslim Quarter. It marks the spot where Abraham was supposed to sacrifice Isaac.
These are some original columns from the Roman roads.
Below is a photo of the old Roman roads, showing the support columns.
Beth wanted to go back to the Church of the Hoy Sepulchre to try the tomb again. On their way they saw these guards. The markets are crazy. Packed. Aggressive merchants trying to haggle prices. Very unpleasant.
The line to the place above the tomb of Jesus was very long. People were rude and pushy. We waited in line for @25 minutes. When we got to the tomb, a priest was standing there rushing people through. We were in there a total of 3 seconds. (Really!) No time for prayer or reflection. Hardly got to see a thing. Candles and pictures. And some rude woman behind Beth tried to push her out because she wanted to be in there by herself.
Below was above the entryway.
On our way back to the hotel we saw this graffiti. Notice the word "Blake" in the middle.
We all decided that it was good to have the experience of going there, but we wouldn't want to go back in the future because of the crowds packed with people, the commercialization, the rude tourists, the feeling of being rushed through, the merchants bugging us. Not to mention it was hot.
We ate dinner at Italiano Restaurant. Was good.
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