Yesterday was a pretty special day. We got to spend it with Ari, our tour guide we had on both of our previous trips to Israel. It is said that touring Israel with Ari is like shoving a college semester in to two weeks. We met for coffee and Ari spent the next hour and a half explaining the history of Jerusalem and how the walls changed over the years. We have heard it before but it is always good to refresh our memories, especially since we would be spending the day in the Old City. Unfortunately, this is the only picture I took of Ari.
Ari loves to draw maps - whether on paper or on his hands. This is the map of Jerusalem we took from him at the end of the day. It makes perfect sense to us and I'd be happy to explain the Old City to anyone using this map.
Although Israel became a nation in 1948, the Old City of Jerusalem was not open to Jews to visit. It was under Jordanian rule and didn't become part of Israel until after the 6 day war in 1967. The Jewish section of the Old City was pretty much left in rubble which gave the archeologists the opportunity to excavate under the Old City before rebuilding. They found the old Roman cardo which was the main street running north to south. Below is a map of the Old City and mosaics on the wall of what the markets would have looked like.
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| map of the Old City |
We were not quite sure who these people were but it was fun to be able to take a picture of them.
The Hurva Synagogue is one of two synagogues destroyed in the Old City before 1967. This one was rebuilt and the second one is in the process of being rebuilt.
I didn't take many pictures as I have so many from previous visits but there were several homes discovered during excavation.
We then went to the Western Wall. There is actually more wall underground than above ground and there are several tunnels that you can walk through. These walls are not holy but they are the closest place Jewish people can get to the Holy of Holies.
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| Robinsons Arch |
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| beautiful poppies growing out of the stone |
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| Southern Steps |
We had the opportunity to pray at the Western Wall. Men and women are separated and I was intrigued by the young girls with machine guns. They were just being girls.
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