Today we started at the Mount of Olives, which overlooks the Temple side of Jerusalem. You can see the gold dome, the Dome of the Rock, in the center of the photo. The old city walls are visible also.
We then descended from the Mount of Olives, toward the Garden of Gethsemane, in much the same direction that Jesus did it 2000 years ago, though the road was not in existence then.
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| The descent |
In the Garden of Gethsemane, we took some time to meditate on the agony and suffering that Jesus experienced long ago.
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| The Garden with olive trees |
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| A very old olive tree |
We then entered the city by the Lion's Gate. We walked a short distance to the Pool of Bethesda. It is hard to imagine what some of the sites looked like 2000 years ago because people have built upon the ruins many times throughout history.
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| Entrance to the Pool of Bethesda |
This is the Pool of Bethesda. At the bottom is some water. Many buildings have been erected around the pool through the centuries, but are now in ruins.
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| Some excavated sreets from Jesus' time |
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| Below today's streets lie the ruins of old streets. |
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| The market streets |
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| The church of the Holy Sepulchre, where some believe the crucifixion site to be as well as the tomb where Jesus lay. |
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| A typical street in old Jerusalem |
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| Exiting the city at the Damascus Gate |
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| Another option for Jesus' tomb (no one really knows where the real one is) |
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