A very beige, very old Old City, part one

The general plan for our three days in Jerusalem was two days old, one day new. The Old City has so many sights to take in, with important links to Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, that with two full days we might be able to do it some justice.

We began at the Western Wall (sometimes referred to as the Wailing Wall by gentiles). This wall is the outer wall of the Temple Mount. It is revered by Jews as the last remaining structure of the First and Second Temples built on the mount (and destroyed hundreds of years ago), where creation itself is believed to have happened. The outside of the wall serves as the limit for how close Jews can get to the very sacred site of the mount, for fear of inadvertently disrupting some of the sacred spaces within.

It is an imposing wall, with huge stones irregularly set. It is divided into men's and women's sections, a bit unequally in terms of space allotted. While we were there, the mix of folks was composed of ultra-Orthodox Jews in full-length black clothing, other Jews coming for daily or weekly prayers, and tourists of both Jewish and non-Jewish descent.

The men's side had an inside area where the wall continued, with a cabinet that is a standard feature in many synagogues where the Torah is kept. There were also some neat windows in the floor that let you see the un-restored and un-excavated wall down below.

Finally, there is a custom of writing prayers on little slips of paper and stuffing them into cracks in the wall wherever they might fit. These are cleared on a regular basis, but, being notes to God, are valued highly, buried in holy land nearby.

Next we walked to the beginning of the Via Dolorosa. Literally translating as Path of Suffering, this is the reputed actual path Jesus took from his condemnation to his crucification, carrying his cross the whole way. It's composed of twelve "stations," stops along the path where particular events happened, starting with Pontius Pilate's sentencing him to death and ending with his crucification and burial. Each station was subtly marked with a Roman numeral.

The path threaded through today's Muslim Quarter and into the Christian Quarter, up a series of steps on the hard Jerusalem stone omnipresent here. It culminated in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, built on the place where Jesus was crucified and laid to rest. Before today, I had no idea such a place actually existed nor that it had been memorialized in such a fashion.

The church itself was incredibly ornate, truly keeping to the Greek Orthodox style in which it was built. Today, several different communities share, uneasily, the upkeep and the worship in this sacred spot. I was amazed at the intricate detailing inside, in places like the tiled ceiling...

...mosaics that tell the story of Jesus...

...and in some of the domes.

The actual locations where Jesus' story unfolded were also fascinating. At entrance, there was the marble stone where his body was laid.

There was the rock on which his cross was erected for his crucification, now fully surrounded by an altar and with many pilgrims.

And there was an interior tomb in which his body was interred. The tomb itself was a very small, nearly claustrophobic space with a marble grave.

A literally amazing place, where history, religion, and mythology come to life. Fascinating to behold.