Across from the Kotel Plaza is an area that was originally a parking lot. Across from there is the main entrance to the City of David. We went up to see a gorgeous view of Har Hazasim (Mount of Olives).
It's so sad to hear that every time the Arabs had control of our sacred areas, they desecrated them. The Holy Tzadikim who were buried here had their rest disturbed. Tombstones were broken, and graves were dug up. Israel has been working for years and years to repair the damage that was done.
Next we descended down and down (unlike yesterday when we were ascending constantly). We saw excavations of what is believed to be the palace that Dovid built for himself. There are various artifacts that were found, including old coins (that can be dated within 50 years), and ... OK it's going to sound gross ... But ... A toilet. Yup. A small stone with a hole in it. (Man, I sure would NOT have wanted to use the toilet in the middle of a cold winter night!) We saw rooms that are believed to belong to rich families. Then we descended lower into the the tunnels that Cheskiyahu built. There was a cistern and tunnels to bring the water to other places. We got to walk through these tunnels, and finally arrived at a spot where there was water in the tunnels. Now Leah and I had no intentions of venturing into cold winter water. But Sruli and Shmueli got real excited, and started peeling off their shoes, socks, and jackets. Pant legs were rolled up, cell phones handed over, and off they went.
(Yes, I know Shmueli has his eyes closed. The other picture is worse.) You have to understand that there is no light in the tunnel. (Leah provided us with little flashlights.) Parts of the tunnel are narrow, and parts are low. They didn't care. We stood around for a few minutes listening to them laughing and enjoying themselves. There were so few people in the tunnels, and we thought we heard them for a while after we started through the dry tunnels. Leah was amazed, since she never has people who want to go into the tunnels from October through April. We met them up at the end of the tunnel. We cheated, and took a little shuttle van down rather than walking. Again, we heard them coming long before we saw them. Laughing, I started making ghost sounds. Out they came, and at that point, they still claimed they were not cold.
Anyone who has teenagers knows that look ... Come on Mommy! Stop taking pictures of me!
We saw 2000 year old stairs that were the actual ones that lead from the pool up to the Bais Hamikdash. Just imagine that these are the same exact stones that people used with great excitement and joy to go to the Bais Hamikdash. You aren't able to actually go up those stairs, since some of the stairs go right under Arab houses. Instead, we took some tunnels that go under those stairs. We walked and walked and suddenly came up to an open spot. Leah asked us what we thought it was. We looked, and all realized at the same time that it was part of the Kotel! Apparently we were in the basement of the Bais Hamikdash. People leave notes in there, which is what tipped me off what this is.
Here is the funny thing -- Sruli hasn't been to the Kotel yet. He was required to tear kriah, mourning the churban. Not sure if we did this right, but he quickly put on the shirt we brought. Before we left the house, I kept telling him you need to make a little tear in it. He refused, saying over and over again he can do it. Yup, he kid is superman and he was able to tear it himself with no start. (He did get a little carried away. We are talking a LITTLE tear, not a huge destroy your shirt tear.)
Now we started working our way up. We saw the area that was a parking lot, but now has old houses and walls. Then we went up to the Robinson Gate and the Davidson Center. There are huge boulders there that the Romans threw over.
We saw and learned what various parts of the wall surrounding the area are. There are stairs on the wall that lead up to 2 gates. Near there are 3 gates. All 3 gates were sealed up.
By the way, the weather today kept going from cool to warm to hot to cool to cold to warm. On with the coat, off with the coat, on with a sweater, on with a coat, off with the coat ... You get the idea. I spent a lot of time today changing in and out of my coats and sweater!
At this point we were hungry. We headed off to get some food. Leah asked if we wanted to go one way or the other. One way I had already been. So I gave the go ahead to walk through the Arab shuk. Yeah, BIG MISTAKE! First of all, I was terrified of any Arab I saw. I kept walking on one side of the lane or the other. (This is just like Tzafat with an alley that has a stone road and a covering over it.) There were little shops with Arabs sitting and trying to sell their wares. I admit it .. I was scared. But you know what? I was scared with good reason. I like all my internal organs left inside and I would also like to keep all my blood inside of me too! If they weren't running around stabbing people like nutjobs, then I may not have been as scared. It's the same thing as not going in Harlem in the middle of the night, or certain parts of my city ... You get the idea. I was soon happy when we finally reached the Jewish quarter. Yes, there are Arabs there, but not as many. And yes, I still moved out the side when they came by. (You can't even say a woman or kid is harmless. I am NOT taking any chances.)
We passed a little shop where you can show the IDF that you support them. Sruli and Shmueli really liked the cut out in front.
After lunch we went to the Temple Institute. This was one of my "must see" items. This is a museum of items that are going to be used when the third Bais Hamikdash is rebuilt. I found the Tzitz (the headpiece worn by the Kohain Gadol during the service). The Tzitz is made of gold. This one was too. (Sorry, pictures were not allowed.) They had what they considered to be a rendition of the kiyor (washing station), but truthfully, it looked like an alien spaceship from a cheap sci-fi movie. (No disrespect meant; this is my personally opinion.) No one really knows what it looks like, so who knows? Maybe they are right.
Then we had a little time and I remembered that I had really wanted to go on top of the Aish building to see the view from above. Wow, talk about breathtaking!!!!
The Aish building also had a spectacular piece of art hanging in the middle. It is a colored glass sculpture that looks like a chandelier but with no lights.
When we were in Machon Hamikdash (the Temple Institute), Leah had told me that there is a menorah from the there that is worth 4 million dollars approximately. Oh man, I SO had to see THAT. Once we got there, I realized that I had seen this on my first day, but didn't know what it was or why it was there. (See, THAT'S why you need a tour guide!) Shmueli counted 8 cameras that are watching over it.
Of course, I did have to ask ... Is there anything Chabad here. Why yes, of course! The Chabad community used to be located in Chevron. The Tzemach Tzedek told some of them to move to Yerushalayim. They built a shul there. This is the same shul the Fredika Rebbe visited in 1929! In 1967 when Yerushalayim was liberated, the Jordanians attempted to completely destroyed the whole city. This shul was the only shul not destroyed. This was the first shul to have a minyan for davening in after the city was captured.
After 8 great, fun filled hours, it was time to say Good Bye to Leah for the day. She walked us over to Mamila. Oh. My. Gosh. This is the mall to end all malls. Seriously, it is stunning! There were high end stores, and little lights strung up on the top. Shmueli pointed out to me that the bricks on the wall were numbered. He explained that when they have to do repairs, each and every brick ends up in exactly the same spot. I, of course, spotted the Michal Negrin store. I ran in a for a quick look. Ah, who are we kidding! There is no such thing as me and a quick look in a jewelry store. I gave in and told the boys I would come back on another day. It broke my heart to walk away without buying anything, but I do know I'll come back. (And I'll bring the necklaces I want to match, so I will have a better chance of finding exactly what I want, rather than guessing if they will match.)
And I let Sruli talk me into walking back to Shauly's house. You know, because we didn't do enough walking yet today. (He is a cheapskate and didn't want to pay a cab. That is one trait that I know for a fact he did NOT get from me.) Yes, we walked back and cut through Teddy Park which is not lit. We argued about which way to go and suddenly Shmueli saved the day and knew the way. We came home happy and exhaused. This city is just incredible! This country is incredible!
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