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| Ranking Among Int'l Cities/Regions: #7 |
| Venturers: 7 |
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• In their very earliest days, Moslems faced Jerusalem to pray
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| • The Temple Mount encompasses 35 acres, about 16% of the Old City |
| • The city is surrounded on three sides — north, east, south — by the West Bank |
| • The Old City walls, extending two and a half miles, were built in the 16th century |
| • The Jerusalem artichoke is a North American sunflower |
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Holy three times over
Jerusalem is many things: It is a city with ancient roots, dating back 4,000 years; it is a 21st century metropolis and the capital of a modern Middle Eastern state, Israel, and — most importantly for many visitors — it is a sacred place for the adherents of three major religions, Christianity, Islam and Judaism. As a result, large numbers of North American tourists to Jerusalem are in fact pilgrims. Even visitors who aren’t particularly religious feel a strong cultural bond with Jerusalem because of its importance to Western history. For many, visiting Jerusalem realizes a dream of a lifetime.
About Jerusalem
The Israeli capital is divided into three sections: West Jerusalem, largely Jewish and encompassing the modern city center; East Jerusalem, predominantly Arab, and the Old City, the walled historical center occupying much the same area as Biblical Jerusalem.
Top attractions in the Old City include the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, believed to be Christ’s crucifixion and burial site; the Via Dolorosa (Way of Sorrows), Christ’s route to the cross; the Wailing Wall, which is all that remains of the Second Temple; and the Dome of the Rock, a Moslem shrine that stands on the Temple Mount. That list barely skims the surface. It’s a good idea — even for the most independent traveler — to spend at least some time in the Old City with a professional guide because there is so much to learn and see.
Most of Jerusalem’s tourist and religious sites are in the Old City, but not all. For example, the Mount of Olives is just east of the Old City, and the Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial is in West Jerusalem. Some day trips from Jerusalem — to Bethlehem and Jericho, most prominently — take visitors into the West Bank, an area mostly under Palestinian control.
Jerusalem’s special place in history lures visitors, but there is a bonus: It’s a beautiful city, too. The Old City sports 16th century 40-foot walls in good repair. And, by law, buildings are faced with a local cream-colored limestone known as Jerusalem stone; its color mellows with age so the city take on a lush golden hue at sunset. Because Jerusalem sits in the Judean Hills, temperatures are comfortable most of the year although it occasionally snows in winter. Finally, there is the issue of security. Millions visit Israel each year, drawn for religious and cultural reasons, despite well-publicized violence in the area. There are no guarantees, but Israelis provide security at tourist sites, at gates to the Old City and especially at the Wailing Wall. Some visitors feel better avoiding public transportation. But the best advice urges visitors to stay alert to surroundings. Read U.S. State Department announcements and follow the news.
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• Sign on for a package tour to Jericho in the West Bank. Visit Hisham’s Palace there to see some of the best mosaic pieces in the Middle East. When crossing to and returning from the West Bank, you will switch guides, drivers and vehicles. Be alert to current events in the area before joining the group.
• Attend a workshop on stand-up and improvisational comedy offered by the Off the Wall Comedy Empire.
• Consider a night out sampling dance clubs or pubs. For ideas, see www.gojerusalem.com
• Stay in an apartment rather than a hotel.
• After checking out the local situation at the time of your trip, join a group to visit the Temple Mount, site of the Dome of the Rock and Al Aqsa Mosque. You can enter the mosques only if you are Moslem.
• Attend the jazz festival, in June, at the Tower of David.
• Run in Jerusalem’s marathon; that’s in March.
• Join an archaeological dig. There are numerous opportunities around the country including a selection in and around Jerusalem.
• Go to Bethlehem at Christmas. Check the current political situation before you go. Or, attend a Christmas parade in Nazareth, which is not in the West Bank.
• Take a guided bicycle tour in and around the village of Ein Kerem or in Jerusalem. One route features the city’s important Christian sites.
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• Recapture in your imagination the day when the Old City’s Jewish Quarter was lost during Israel’s 1948 War of Independence. You’ll do this at the One Last Day Museum.
• Imagine you are walking the streets of Jerusalem, but it is 2,000 years ago. At the Ophel Archaeological Park just below the southern and southwestern sections of the Temple Mount, excavations that started in 1968 allow you to walk on 2,000-year-old stone walkways.
• Have a meal in a private home. Some tour operators include such visits in itineraries.
• Spend Holy Week in Jerusalem. Attend services at the Church of the Holy Sepulcher.
• See a performance by the Off the Wall Comedy Empire (English-speaking). The company describes comedy “as a necessary religious experience.”
• Learn about the lives of Jewish residents in the Old City from the days of the Ottoman and British Jerusalem, from the 15th century to 1948. At the Old Court Yishuv Museum, exhibits include two courtyards, surrounded by rooms with household appliances and furnishings arranged as they would have been during the 19th century.
• Tuck a prayer into a crack in the Wailing Wall.
• Wander the winding lanes of nearby Ein Kerem, an ancient village said to be the source of the stones for the First Temple. Christian tradition says John the Baptist was born there and that Mary drank from the Spring of the Virgin, a still-active spring in the village. Today, the village is a haven for artists, poets and writers.
• Stage your child’s bar mitzvah or bat mitzvah in Jerusalem.
• Enjoy traditional music of the Middle East by attending the International Oud Festival in November. The oud is a short-necked lute that looks somewhat like a guitar.
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• See all those Biblical sites you’ve heard about since childhood. Take a comprehensive guided tour of the city, in the Old City and beyond.
• Spend a little time with the Dead Sea Scrolls at the Shrine of the Book, which is part of the larger Israel Museum. Two-thirds of the shrine is below ground to protect the scrolls. You can visit the Shrine of the Book separately from the associated Israel Museum.
• Sample the wines at the city’s wine festival, which occurs in July at the Israel Museum.
• See a production by the Jerusalem English-Speaking Theater, known locally as JEST.
• Visit Yad Vashem, the moving and tastefully presented complex of Holocaust memorials. The main unit is the relatively new Holocaust History Museum. Another memorial remembers every child who died in the Holocaust, and another honors gentiles who risked their lives to save Jews. Entry is free, but guided tours are available.
• Amuse yourself — and learn a few things, too — at the Museum of Taxes. It covers the history of taxation affecting the Jewish people from the ancient world to the present.
• Shop for gifts at the numerous small shops in the Old City. Bargaining is the order of the day.
• If your schedule coincides with this, enjoy the beer festival, staged in August at the Israel Museum.
• See a performance by one of the Hora Jerusalem ensembles. There are several performing troupes in the group, and the repertoire is wide-ranging but includes plenty of Israeli folk and traditional Jewish dances.
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For more information, consult the City of Jerusalem at www.jerusalem.muni.il and click on EN for English (or go directly to www.jerusalem.muni.il/jer_main/defaultnew.asp?lng=2) or StartUp Jerusalem at www.gojerusalem.com and the Israel Government Tourist Office at www.goisrael.com
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