After lunch (and a quick trip back to the hotel to pick up a pair of shoes and drop off some stuff), we started our walking tour of Old Testament Jerusalem. Leaving the city, we walked through Zion Gate (which is full of bullet marks) down to the non-Muslim entrance to the Temple Mount.
We stood in the security line for a few minutes waiting for it to open, then went through the metal detectors, up the ramp, and through the gate. A couple of people in the group were hassled about showing too much skin, but after being given something to cover up with, we able to get back to our group. We weren't allowed into the Dome of the Rock, only to walk around the building. The tile work on the outside was amazing! We made sure to stay in groups to avoid being hassled and didn't spend much time at the site - it was only open for an hour and we had to get to another place soon after. It was interesting to learn that non-Muslims can only visit during certain hours, while Muslims have unrestricted access to the area through several gates - there were even groups of children playing soccer in the side garden.
Next on the agenda was a quick 10 minute visit to the Western Wall, also called the Wailing Wall (a place to mourn the destruction of the temple). I'm obviously not allowed to go the the much larger men's side, so off to the women's side I went! The area close to the wall was full of girls reading their Torah, rocking back and forth, and others stuffing prayers into the cracks of the wall. They would then walk backwards away from the wall as a sign of respect (the men don't do this).
I don't think I've ever been to a place where I wasn't allowed somewhere because of my sex or religion. It was a weird feeling in both these places (the Temple Mount and the Wall) - it was like I wasn't really wanted there.
The next stop was the City of David. After watching a short 3D video giving a brief history of the City, we walked down to Warren's Shaft and the Gihon Spring. After changing my shoes and zipping of the bottoms of my hiking pants, we entered Hezekiah's Tunnel. The tunnel is over 500m long, with only a slight downward slope, and turns back and forth. It's amazing to think how they dug this tunnel from two ends, meeting somewhere in the middle, without any modern technology! Nobody is sure how they accomplished this.
The water was colder than I expected, and other than the first few meters where the water came more than half way up my thighs, was only calf deep. The tunnel was usually pretty narrow - I had to keep my arms tucked in or infront of me to fit through. Areas of the tunnel had low ceilings, other times is was probably close to 2 stories high. I was glad that part way through I was able to borrow a flashlight from the guy behind me ... I had dropped a bit behind the rest of the group while taking a picture and it was dark without all their lights. As I walked, I was able to listen to the group behind us singing - the accoustics were amazing!
We exited the tunnel at what used to be thought of as the Pool of Siloam - they recently discovered a pool that is more likely the real Pool of Siloam, so we headed down there for a look. Then it was back up to the top of the Eastern Hill from the bottom of the Kidron Valley (a good hike up!)
After walking back up along the outside of the city walls to the Zion Gate, we crossed into the Old City and walked back to the hotel for supper. Then, it was back to JUC for the free internet!
Oh, as a side note - I could hear a lot of military jets flying over today, but because of the haze (or because the were too high/fast), I still haven't been able to spot one! Frustrating.
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