We were there for 5 days and we were busy the entire time. In fact, we were so busy that we had to set our alarm every morning to make sure we woke up in time. It was not a "relaxing" vacation by any means but definitely a trip of a lifetime!
Our flight to Israel was a red-eye flight. We arrived in Tel Aviv at 4am. Not a great way to start a vacation but hey, we got great deals on our flights so I am not complaining!
The hotel we stayed at is called the Mount Zion Hotel. It was in a great location for us. The rooms were fairly clean but the food was absolutely amazing. I would stay here again just for the food!
The first place our guide took us to was the area where it is believed the Shepherds would have been watching their flocks during the time of Christ's birth. Here the kids are in front of the fields.
Our last day in Jerusalem we went to visit the Dome of the Rock. On our way there we were able to get a better view of the wailing wall. It was a lot less crowded this day because the Passover was now over.
The picture below gives you an idea of the view we had from the lobby.
We were up on a hillside overlooking the central valley.
We were up on a hillside overlooking the central valley.
At 1pm we had a tour arranged to Bethlehem. We had to take a taxi from the Israeli side into the Palestinian controlled area in order to meet our tour guide because he is not
allowed to come into Jerusalem.
The first place our guide took us to was the area where it is believed the Shepherds would have been watching their flocks during the time of Christ's birth. Here the kids are in front of the fields.
This is a photo of us in a cave where people made their homes and used these natural caves as stables for their animals. It was in a cave like this that Christ was born. Notice the manger (center) is made out of rock and not wood.
This is the entrance to the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem.
The site where it is believed Jesus was born.
Below is the traditional birth place. No one knows the exact spot.
Jerome's cave where Saint Jerome translated the Bible into Latin from Greek and Hebrew. It took him over 20 years.
Inside Jerome's cave is a burial site of small children. It is tradition that this is where many children were buried that were killed by King Herod.
After touring around it was time for a snack! This picture shows Baklawa and Kinafeh.
These are typical Palestinian desserts. Baklava is very similar to the Baklawa and
the Kinafeh is a cheese based dessert.
Can you guess what these drinks are? Coca Cola and Sunkist written in Arabic.
Saturday morning we started our day by attending church at the BYU Jerusalem Center. The Sabbath is on Saturday in Israel and so the LDS church also honors Saturday as their day of worship. This picture below is taken in the patio area next door to the Chapel/Lecture Hall. Photos are not allowed in the Chapel. This is the same view you would see while sitting in the chapel. You sit in stadium seating looking down towards the Kidron Valley and Dome of the Rock. The chapel was breathtaking and by far the most beautiful because of the amazing view out of a huge window.
This photo does not compare at all because it only gives a narrow view.
A guide met us outside of church as we began another walking tour. This was my favorite day of the trip. We visited the garden tomb. There are two sites in Jerusalem that claim to be the spot where Christ was crucified and buried. This site (the garden tomb) is not the old traditional site. It was not discovered till later on but to me it felt like the right spot.
This picture is of us standing in front of Golgotha, which means place of the skull. The guide explained that the crucifixion would not have happened on top of the hill but at the base near the road.
The photo below is a picture of a picture taken of Golgotha many years ago
(I think he said around 1930) before they built the bus terminal right next to it :)
You can see that it really does look like a skull.
This is the entrance to the tomb. It is not very far from where the crucifixion took place,
perhaps just a few hundred yards. As you can see the tomb is not a natural cave, but man made which is in accordance with the scriptural account.
There would be a shelf in this spot in the left corner where they would have laid the body.
Jaxon said he felt something special when we went inside this tomb. I think we all felt it.
We were able to be alone together for a few minutes inside the tomb.
This was our favorite moment as a family.
This is the area between Golgotha and the tomb. The picture below shows an ancient wine press which helps confirm that this area was a garden. In the scriptures the tomb is described as being in a garden.
After we left the garden tomb, it was time to visit the old city of Jerusalem.
The photo above is of the Damascus Gate that is one of the entrances inside the old city.
Once inside we felt the hussle and bussle of the old city. I was very glad to have our own tour guide because it was a bit intimidating to be surrounded by so many people.
The guide recommended this place for lunch. We got to try lots of yummy food.
We had falafel, hummus, pita bread, salads, pickles, rice, chicken...
Melynn really liked the falafel so she was given a personal tour
inside the kitchen to see how they make it.
family bonding time :)
Walking through the old city we saw lots of interesting people and sights.
View of the old city. Above looking toward the temple mount and the
Dome of the Rock. Below looking toward the Christian Quarter.
We next visited the Mount of Olives. A church has been built on the site,
but there is still olive groves that date back to the time of Christ.
While at the Mount of Olives we visited Orson Hyde Park.
Sunday we were up and ready to go, of coarse after an amazing breakfast!
Can you tell I really liked their food :)
Krissy and Melynn enjoying the warm weather.
The first place our guide took us to today was the ancient City of David. This is the original city that King David established as the capital. Below are photos of the view from the ancient city looking out across the Kidron Valley.
These ruins pre-date what is now the old city of Jerusalem.
Across the Kidron Valley from the ancient City of David is an Ancient Cemetery. They buried their dead in caves. After a year they would enter the cave and put the bones in a box and then re-use the cave for someone else.
See the caves below the houses in the foundations.
One of the highlights of the trip was Hezekiah's tunnel. This tunnel was built by King Hezekiah to divert the water of a spring into the City of David so the Assyrian's would not have access to the water. They had to dig through solid rock. It took us 45 minutes to walk through the tunnel - it is not a short tunnel. The water still runs through the tunnel this day.
Below is the famous western wall of the ancient temple grounds.
Jewish people come from all over the world to pray at this spot.
These people have come to the wall to pray on this holy day.
Today was the last day of Passover.
This path runs through the city and is the traditional path that Christ carried the cross to Golgotha. There are 14 stations along the path that events supposedly took place.
Some of them are contained in the scriptures, some are not.
Here we are touching a spot where it is said Christ touched the wall while carrying the cross. We don't know if it was actually true but it is tradition.
On Monday we drove out to Qumran which is where the Dead Sea Scrolls were found. The scrolls were found in many caves like the one shown below.
Next, we visited one of Aaron's favorite places...Masada!
At the top of this mountain was the ancient fort of Masada. The first fortress was built at this location at around 150 BC. It was rebuilt by King Herod the Great before the birth of Christ and a palace was added at this time. A group of Jews held up here in 70 AD when the Romans destroyed Jerusalem. The Romans laid siege to this fortress for 3 years in around 73 AD.
We took the tram to the top of the mountain, but as you can see some people chose to walk. I think the tram was a better choice :)
You can still see the elements of the Romans siege. Look for the two squares that are made by rocks. These used to be walls surrounding a Roman camp. There was also a siege wall built and you can see the faint outline in front of the smaller square.
The reason why Masada was able to sustain itself in this barren desert was because they had built cisterns into the mountain. In the photo below you can see the gutter system that was used to divert rain water into these cisterns. A cistern is a place that holds water.
This is one of their smaller cisterns which was fed by the gutter system above.
Jaxon looking down into the cistern.
Not only did you have the mountain to deal with, there was also a wall
that surrounded Masada at the top.
Jewish soldiers that were standing guard at Masada.
Some of the original floor in King Herod's Palace on top of Masada.
Look at the ornate flowers that were carved into the brick.
Some of the buildings of Masada.
This is a replica of what the palace looked like on one end of Masada.
This was the Kings winter residence.
The Roman's built a ramp from the valley floor to the walls of Masada. Much of the stone ramp is still there. You can see the remains in the photo below. The ramp was built in order to roll a battering ram in order to breach the walls. The Roman's used Jewish prisoners to construct the ramp because the occupants of Masada would kill any Roman working on the ramp.
After visiting Masada we headed to the Dead Sea. The kids loved it. This had been one of Melynn's "Bucket List" items for the past several years! Who would have thought!!!
You really do float in the water. Here is Ashtyn just sitting back with her legs rolled up.
Jaxon is not sitting on the bottom!
The girls relaxing. No floatation devices required!
People also come here for the mud. It is supposed to be good for the skin. Here the girls are spreading it onto their bodies from buckets of mud from the Dead Sea.
We couldn't resist to get a little dirty ourselves :)
Dome of the Rock! This is a significant place because it is believed to be the site of where
Abraham brought Isaac to be sacrificed. It is also the place where Solomon built the Temple. Muslims also believe that Mohammad's spirit ascended to heaven from this point. Today only Muslims are allowed inside the Dome of the Rock.
Us on the Temple Mount.
After leaving the Temple Mount we walked on the walls of the old city. These walls are thousands of years old. Parts of them have been rebuilt over the years but many of them are original.
Look how high the walls are from the area below.
They provided a great protection to the city.
We loved Jerusalem and would not mind going back again.
Thank you so much for sharing your amazing trip!
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