Old City of Jerusalem

I spent about a day and a half in Jerusalem’s Old City on my trip to Israel in November 2019. That appears to be enough to see all of the major points of interest, both in terms of the inscribed WHS and the tentative extension; although in a city with such wealth of historical context, you will feel like you rushed through some of the sights no matter how much time you give yourself.

The very brief Jerusalem WH inscription is all about its significance to the three main monotheistic religions, and being an adherent of one is likely to be an important ingredient for a true spiritual connection to the city. Religious people will surely be awed by being so near the sacred sights, much more so than a secular visitor will ever be.

That secular visitor, nonetheless, will at a minimum find the trio of sights listed on the inscription rather impressive. The Church of Holy Sepulcre is tremendous, the Wailing Wall is sober and full of poignancy, and the Dome of the Rock is simply mindblowingly beautiful. Getting to the Temple Mount requires an extra effort; non-Muslims can enter only as tourists and only at limited times during the day; they are also prohibited entry to the interiors of the buildings in the compound. The visiting hours limitation means that a wait in line of upward of 45 minutes is practically unavoidable. And entirely worth it - the edifice is just stupendous when seen up …

WHS#67

Jerusalem is the holiest city in the world. It's crazy how all of these different religions happen to have some of their holiest sites, among other impressive sites of great historic significance, in this single square kilometer. Indeed, this single walled square kilometer is so full of things to see that it feels endless to explore, and it kind of is. I spent a whole day exploring the old city in May 2018, and I felt like I hadn't even scratched the surface. Starting from and ending at the famous Jaffa Gate, I went in a loop through the Armenian Quarter, the Jewish Quarter, the Muslim Quarter, and finally, the Christian Quarter. Each quarter has something interesting to offer, though I didn't necessarily experience what I might've expected from their names. At the end of the day, the experience of Jerusalem leaves feet tired, minds blown, and souls filled.

The first striking thing about Jerusalem is easily the walls. Yes, the walls included on its official WHS title. It's an impressive continuous stretch of centuries-old walls. They look very Norman castle-inspired with their little rectangular indentations on top and curved arch portals, but Islamic patterns and Arabic inscriptions can be observed too, owing to Jerusalem's history under various cultural influences, especially that of the Ottomans. The buildings within the city are also quite Ottoman, and they look quite similar to other old cities in the region, like Safed, Jaffa, Acre, and Nablus. Don't be fooled, though, the …

O Jerusalem -- a city revered and fought over through the centuries by armies from three faiths, and which struggles today to find peace and stability amongst its diverse residents. This is a holy city, a city of pilgrimage, and it was one I had longed to visit since I was young. I finally had my opportunity in February 2015, and it was all I hoped it would be. As I think back on it now, I remember Jerusalem in a series of vignettes. An Orthodox Jew with a long grey beard praying as he walked down a narrow staircase in the Old City. Two older Arab men playing chess in front of the Dome of the Rock, ignoring background vocal protests. Crowds of pilgrims lined up inside the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, a building maintained by several denominations. Israeli soldiers carrying supplies out through the Zion Gate. The views of the old city from the Mount of Olives after a storm. The quiet, reflective sites of the Garden of Gethsemane and the Garden Tomb, the latter frequented by Protestants. The lively underground markets in the well-preserved Roman Cardo. The well-secured and sobering Wailing Wall. There is so much to see in Jerusalem, and I wish I'd had more than two days, but I am glad for the time I had, and would love to return.

Logistics: The Old City of Jerusalem is easy to walk around; however, there are security checkpoints, and some sites may temporarily close depending …

So many historical and religious sites to visit but my thoughts and prayers went to those who are really suffering because of the disgraceful concrete walls in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. I promised myself I won't be visiting these WHS again before these wall are demolished once and for all.

Jerusalem is too damn holy for it’s own good. I’m not saying everyone who lives there is nuts, that’s obviously not the case, but it just seems that way. But then, I mostly hung out with tourists. They’re definitely nuts.

When I was last there a short time ago, I stayed in a youth hostel near the Jaffa Gate, and the first person I met after the people at the reception desk was a guy who claimed to be Jesus Christ. I later learned that he wasn’t the first guest that month to have made that claim. But one has to expect that sort of thing.

It’s called “Jerusalem syndrome.” You think you’re God, or Jesus or Moses or angels are telling you to convert the Catholics to Christianity or something like that.

There are two Jerusalems: the first is the capitol of Israel. This isn’t a particularly interesting place. Some decent bars and restaurants, and aside from the big museums, there’s nothing really there, but then for the most part nobody goes to see this Jerusalem, there’s no reason to unless you’re a lobbyist or a film fan. Everybody comes to see the other one, that place where religion lives. Holyland-land.

Holyland-land, or more properly, the Old City is not really a city at all, but a tiny walled village about one kilometer square. Going all the way around the city walls will take no more than half an hour at most, and within one will find just souvenir …

I visited and indeed lived and worked in Israel off and on between 1996 and 2000. The one thing I have always recommended to those going to Israel is to spend a few days walking around the Old City. Take in the smells, sights and sounds as you wander around, particularly the busy Arab Quarter. One one of caution and it's a personal view but the "rejuvenated" Jewish quarter has, in my opinion, lost much of its character and is far too sanitised in comparison with the other parts.

The Old City of Jerusalem is truly exceptional, not only for its history and architecture, but also (and for me mainly) for its unique mixture of people incomparable to anywhere elso in the world. Numerous Jewish, Christian and Muslim groups have their share in Jerusalem. The number of languages you hear on the street is puzzling (exclduing those spoken by tourists). Among the tradtional inhabitants are Palestinians, Jews, Gypsies, African Muslims from Sudan and Chad, Armenians and Greeks.

Visiting Jerusalem is not a simple matter since many of its attractions are hidden and not well adopted for tourism.

An interesting fact about Jerusalem's sacral monuments is that most of them are surprisingly quite new. Within its walls there are as far as I know only four old mosques (Al Aqsa, Dome of the Rock, Umar and the Tankasiyya Madrasa), four old churches (The Holy Sepulcher, Armenian Cathedral, Syriac church and St. Anna) and two old synagogues (Ramban and Karaite Synagogue). The rest is mostly from the time 1850-1930, which is remarkable for such an old city. All of these sacral buidlings are possible to visit with the exception of Umar. Many of the secular houses, however, are much older (a fine example is the Tunshuq Palace).

The Armenian Cathedral has very limited visiting times (15-15.30 daily). In order to enter the Ramban synagogue you more or less need to pretend you are about to pray there but then you can just take a fast glimpse of the building and disappear. …

Jerusalem is amazing. superb, fantastic, incredible. none of these words accurately describe just how great Jerusalem is. one of the most important cities on the planet (holy to three religions), Jerusalem is also 3500 years old. the walls that currently encircle Jerusalem were built in the time of the ottoman turks; however, there has been a wall around Jerusalem since it began. as well as the old city; which is a maze of narrow alleys, with overhead arches, and old beautifully, stone buildings mostly in , what i believe is, Romanesque and Islamic styles, there are a wealth of archaeological sites around Jerusalem's old city. i visited the city of David, one of the oldest parts of the Jerusalem. this is a great archaeological site, and very interesting, it where King David built his city, 3000 years ago. pillars, houses, stairs; are the remains which one will find here.

although many people consider Jerusalem unsafe due to terrorists, as long as you don't take the bus, you will probably be fine. The terrorists generally don't target tourists.

in conclusion Jerusalem is worth a journey of a thousand miles, or more. it is the greatest site in Israel, and an absolute, no excuses, must see when you are in that country.

NOTE: i recommend the bagels and spice that are sold everywhere by street vendors it Jerusalem. they area very tasty snack.

The magnificent Jerusalem - for many years the centre point of the world, and for many people it still is. As a town, equally important for the Christians, Muslims and Jews it is actually a miracle that it still stands, despite its history of destruction and violence and different leaderships throughout its history.

To those just remotely interested in history and religion it must be mine and any other traveller’s strongest recommendation to take your time with this city. Allow at least a week to visit the different parts of the old town - the Christian, Jewish and Muslim areas as well as the neighbouring areas, Mount Zion and Mount of Olives as well as the modern town of Jerusalem. There is so much to see and one must also allow time to just wonder around the Old Town with it’s bazaars, shops, cafés and restaurants.

It its also worth mentioning that the layout of Jerusalem is not a walk in the park. There are many steep hills and ups and downs so a taxi could sometimes come in handy if you need to cross over one of the many valleys.

Jerusalem was a true experience, maybe only comparable to Rome or any other major historic city that provides you with a piece of world history at any corner you turn…

The Old City of Jerusalem holds special memories for me – not for religious reasons but as my first non European/N American travel destination as long ago as 1964. Those with long memories or knowledge of history will remember that the city was “part” of Jordan in those pre “6 Day War” days. I had crossed the Med on a Turkish passenger boat from Naples to Beirut, hitched hiked to Jerusalem via Damascus and would hitch back all the way home to the UK via Turkey - a “travel apprenticeship”! My review photo is from that trip - a digitised version of a diapositive taken from the Mount of Olives - a very much less developed skyline than that which is now the case!!

My diary lists a few “important” (semi!) Arabic phrases (e,g for "Student" and "No Money"!!) and contains a few scribbled names and addresses from Arab “friends” made along the way – I wonder how the troubles of the intervening years have treated them? The diary notes a trip up to the Temple Mount and also a visit to the Mandelbaum Gate – the only crossing between the 2 parts of the divided city and that only for UN officials, diplomats and certain “1 way only” transfers.

My second visit was in 1982 – this time I approached from Tel Aviv. The Mandelbaum Gate was no more – totally demolished as the hated symbol of a previously divided city. Significant parts of the old …

I visited at a time of relative peace, though security was high and we happened to leave the West Bank the same night as the Israeli army. Regardless, Jerusalem reflects its cultural and religious history in every building, and whatever your persuasion, its hard avoid feeling a chill or two as you regard the sights seen by Abraham, David, and Jesus himself. Take out the technology and you'll almost feel like you could bump into any one of them in the narrow streets and charming bazaars.

All was relatively quiet then, that week in August when I visited this magnificent site. Highlights were the Dome of the Rock, the Armenian quarter including St. James Cathedral, and the weird Church of the Holy Sepulchre.

The hundreds of bigger and smaller historical and religious remains are piled up in an area with a size of only 1 square km. That means that sometimes you have to look very well for something your travel guide names as a top attraction. And maybe you discover something much more beautiful on your way ...