Tower of David.

Today's post covers the Tower of David Museum.  I found many exhibits in the museum very interesting.  Sadly I could not take photos in any of the inside exhibits, about half of the visit to the museum.  I like when a museum will give an illustration with a color coded explanation covering the time periods.  This helps me understand an exhibit.

We start off just inside the Citadel:

Next, I walked to the first station which is at the top of a tower giving you a great view of the inside of the Citadel:

On to the next station.  Here I am on top of a tower, giving a great view of the Old City.  This plaque give you some well known sights around the Citadel:

Here is the first picture of the great panoramic view:

The two grey domes in the middle of the photo are the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.  On the middle right side, you can see the Rockefeller Archaeological Museum and Hebrew University.

The tall tower in the center is the Church of the Redeemer.  Just to the right, you can barely see the Agusta Victoria (what ever that is...).  Sadly, the Dome of the Rock (I call it the Shack off Ill Repute) is very visible.  Just to the right, you can see the Russian Church A-Tur.

I like this view the best.  Just to the left you can see the Mt. of Olives.  The small white dome in the middle is the Hurva Synagogue, a very beautiful building.



Here is a elevated view from another tower at the Citadel:

As I walked through the exhibits, I was able to get a great view of the inside.  I am amazed that the age of the buildings, still standing hundreds of years after they were built.

I like when there is an exhibit that gives detailed views of the different time periods of the area.  This was a great way for me to see how history has happened:

Here is a beautifully carved stone that was used in the vaulted tunnels in the Huldah Gates:

Here is another great exhibit showing the Old City during the Byzantine Period:

Here is a large water cistern from the Roman-Byzantine period (4th and 5th centuries CE):

A little further on, I came across some ruins from the Hasmonean (1st century BCE) and the Herodian Period (2nd century BCE):

Here are two great views just before I left the museum.:

Dung Gate, Mt. of Olives and Ophel

As the tour of the Old City ended, Uri, Tali, Martin and I walked our way to the Dung Gate.  Here is a great view of Eastern Jerusalem:

As we came closer to the Dung Gate, we paused for a view of the Mt. of Olives.  The view was amazing.  A majority of the Mount is the resting place for Jewish people.

The four of us walked our way out of the Dung Gate, to find the police clearing the area ouside the Dung Gate and an empty bus in the road.  I took a picture of the bus, and noticed a back pack still on the bus (more on this in a bit):

Next we walked south of the Dung Gate, towards the Ophel.  The Ophel is known as the Inner Citadel and included the palace and royal administrative center (this is covered in the book "The Complete Guide to the Temple Mount Excavations" by Eilat Mazar).

The Ophel is located 3 times in the Bible:

"He (King Jotham) built the high (upper) gate

of the house of the Lord, and on the wall of

Ophel he built much"

II Chronicles 27:3

"Now after this he (King Manasseh) built a wall

outside the city of David, on the west side of

Gihon, in the valley, even to the entering in at the

fish gate, and compassed about Ophel, and raised

it up a very great height, and put captains of war

in all the fenced (fortified) cities of Judah."

II Chronicles 33:14

"More over the Nethinim dwelt in Ophel, unto the

place over against the water gate toward the east,

and the tower that lieth out.

"After them the Tekoites repaired another piece, over

against the great tower that lieth out, even unto the

wall of Ophel."

Nehemiah 3:26-27

As we walked north along the Eastern Wall of the Old City, we came closer to the Mt. of Olives.  To see the resting place of many Jewish people was amazing.  There must be 10's of thousands of graves.

I believe this is the tomb of Pharaoh's Daughter (which Pharaoh I do not know:)

We continued to walk north along the Eastern Wall, taking in the view.  We came to the Golden Gate and the Gate of Mercy:

We stood here for a minute looking at the great view of the eastern side of Jerusalem.  Here is the Church of All Nations:

Here is a great view looking eastward of the Eastern Wall towards Mt. Scopus:

As we walked back towards the Dung Gate for a bit of a rest, we noticed that the bus was still sitting in the road.  All the buses were empty and the bomb squad was on location.  After a few minutes the back pack was detonated.  That will teach someone to leave their back pack on a bus in Israel.

As the tour slowly came to an end, we walked along Ma'ale Ha-Shalom St to Mt. Zion (where Oskar Schindler is laid to rest.)  Again, we had another great view of the southern neighborhoods of Jerusalem.  This photo is looking south towards Giv'at Khananya:

Just before we headed to the parking deck, we came across this building:

In the bottom center of this photo, you will see a box on a thin wire.  This building and box was used to send supplies to the Israeli soldiers during the 1948 War (if I remember correctly.)

Old City Jerusalem.

Martin and I woke up early to be ready for our friends to pick us up.  Uri and Tali were taking us on a tour of Old City Jerusalem.

Left, is the photo of Tali taken around Ashkenazi Square.  Right, the photo of Martin, myself and Uri at the Jaffa Gate.

Tali and Uri gave Martin and I a great tour of the Old City.  Below is a little fuzzy photo of a typical market street:

As we slowly made our way around the Old City, looking at all the things that I could stuff my suitcase with.  I decided to not buy much, knowing that I would drive security crazy at Ben Gurion.  We found our self in the Muslim Quarter.  I was not 100% comfortable, but being with friends I was "grinin' and bearing" where I was.  We steped outside of the Damascus Gate:

Next, Tali and Uri took Martin and I up to the roof of the old Austrian Hospice.  The only drawback was the elevator in the Hospice was not working.  That ment climbing a few flight of stairs.  I am not fond of climbing stairs at the moment, but I knew it was worth it.

Tali and Uri tried to see if we could walk up on the Temple Mount, but I guess we came on the "wrong day."  I was upset, but tried not to show it.  I was not happy being at the whim of a Muslim, I wanted to walk on the Temple Mount.  This was as close as we could go:

As we made our way around the Old City, we just had to take a trip back to the Western Wall.  No trip to Jerusalem is complete with out a trip to the Western Wall.  Here is Martin, Uri and Tali in the Western Wall Plaza:

Here is another great shot to show you how large the stones of the Western Wall are:

Martin celebrated his Bar Mitzvah at the Western Wall (could not think of a better location.)

Here is a small synagogue located on the Western Wall Plaza.  I was impressed to see how many people were there praying.  Uri told me that the large wooden structure was the Ark of The Torah:

 Next, Uri and Tali took Martin and I to a great observation point that gave us a great view of the Western Wall Plaza and the archeological dig underneath:

Next we toured the Roman Cardo (street) near the Western Wall.  In the first picture is how the Cardo looked:

Here is a view of a synagogue that was originally destroyed in the 1948 War, and recently rebuilt: