Middle East - Anthony Ham [222]
The Kidron Valley, historically the oldest area of Jerusalem, has more than four millennia of archaeological remains. Because of the steep terrain, it’s more isolated than other areas of Jerusalem, making it all the more worth exploring. At the top of the valley sits the 1st-century Pillar of Absalom (Map), the legendary tomb of David’s son. Below Jerusalem’s current city walls are the remains of the City of David (Map; 1-800-252423; www.cityofdavid.org.il; admission 23NIS; 9am-5pm Sun-Thu, 9am-1pm Fri), the Canaanite settlement captured by King David some 3000 years ago. The main attraction here is the extraordinary 500m-long Hezekiah’s Tunnel (Map), an underground passage of knee-deep water that ends at the Pool of Shiloah (Map), where it’s said a blind man was healed after Jesus instructed him to wash in it. You’ll need good shoes, a strong torch, and a sense of adventure.
Nearby Mount of Olives (Map), with its spectacular views of Jerusalem, earns its biblical significance from being the place, according to Zechariah, where God will redeem the dead when the Messiah returns on the Day of Judgement. If that’s not in progress on the day you’re visiting, keep yourself busy exploring the more than half-dozen churches, most commemorating events in Jesus’s life. All are open daily, closing for a couple of hours from around noon, and admission to all is free. Highlights include the Church of the Ascension (Map; 8am-5.30pm Mon-Sat), with stunning views from its 45m-high tower, and the gold-mosaiced Church of All Nations (Map; 8.30-11.30am & 2.30-4pm), situated amid the gardens of Garden of Gethsemane (Map; 8am-noon & 2-6pm), containing several ancient olive trees that were probably already standing there during Jesus’s lifetime. To get to the Mount of Olives, walk from St Stephen’s Gate in the Old City or from East Jerusalem, or take bus 75 (5.50NIS) from the bus station on Sultan Suleiman St.
East Jerusalem
Modern, workaday, predominantly Arab East Jerusalem is filled with hustle, bustle, some lovely crumbling architecture, and a number of worthwhile sights. On Sultan Suleiman St, just outside the Old City walls, the Rockefeller Museum (Map; 628 2251; www.imj.org.il/rockerfeller/; cnr Jericho Rd & Sultan Suleiman St; adult/student 26/16NIS, entry free with a ticket from the Israel Museum; 10am-3pm Sun, Mon, Wed & Thu, 10am-2pm Sat) once boasted the most impressive archaeological collection in the region; today it’s a bit musty but still worth a visit.
Behind a heavy stone wall on Nablus Rd is the beautiful Garden Tomb (Map; 627 2745; www.gardentomb.com; 2-5.30pm Mon-Sat), an ancient stone tomb and garden that are believed to have once been the property of Joseph of Arimathaea. It’s thought by some to be the site of Jesus’s crucifixion and resurrection, an alternative location to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. Most archaeologists, though, would beg to differ.
Appropriately located on the former Green Line that once divided East and West Jerusalem and now divides Orthodox Jewish neighbourhood Mea She’arim from secular West Jerusalem, is the Museum on the Seam (Map; 628 1278; www.coexistence.art.museum; 4 Chel Handasa St; adult/senior/student 25/10/20NIS; 9am-5pm Sun-Thu, 9am-3pm Fri), a powerful multimedia exposition that deals with conflict and coexistence through the use of art.
New City
The New City is roughly centred on the triangle formed by Jaffa Rd, King George V St and the pedestrianised Ben Yehuda St (the latter two are great bets for shopping). The most colourful and aromatic district, though, is Mahane Yehuda Market (Map; 8am-sunset Sun-Thu, 9am-2pm Fri), the city’s fabulous, fascinating food market: a perfect place to pick up provisions for a picnic or grab gifts to take back home.
Possibly one of the world’s most reluctant tourist attractions, the ultra-Orthodox Jewish district of Mea She’arim (Map) is reminiscent of a shtetl (ghetto) in pre-Holocaust Eastern Europe, with the customs and dress-code