Trecking the Old City

 

source: seattletimes.com

When I first arrived to Jerusalem the top priority on my list of things to do was walk around the entire vicinity of the Old City and along the wall that surrounds it. As fate would have it, it is the last to be crossed off the list. In the end, I guess what matters is I made it!
Don't get me wrong, I frequently traverse the old city, but had yet to cover everything in one swoop. Here is a decent map I found of the Old City in Jerusalem. When walking along the top, you can literally see the divide between each of the four quadrants (the Jewish, Muslim, Christian, and Armenian quarters). Alina accompanied me on the walk and the two of us sleepily rolled out of our flat at 8:30am in order to make it to the Temple Mount before it closes to the public at 11am. We were lucky enough to run into Aki (Alina's boyfriend and Japanese tour guide) so we joined the group of Japanese tourists on our trip.
Initially, about half the group wanted to take pictures with Alina and myself. I suppose taking pictures with the locals is a popular concept in Japan, and true to stereotype, so are the peace signs. After lots of smiles and flashes, we were on our way.
Sure, the tour was in Japanese and the group certainly moved slower than Alina and I would have, but Aki knew where everything was allowing us to see some beautiful historical sites we otherwise wouldn't have found. I also felt better about having Alina wake up so early as I was the one who really wanted to see the Dome of the Rock, as she was able to spend some time with her boyfriend and experience all the Japanese visitors.
Amongst some of the sites we visited were the Temple Mount, the Western Wall, the path Jesus took leading to his crucifixion, the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, and various churches and religious sites. You can find pictures posted on the album The Old City. The photo to the right is one I took of the Dome of the Rock (unfortunately, only Muslims are allowed inside).