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Virtual Tour – The Western Wall of Jerusalem

The holiest Jewish site in the world and a renowned symbol of Jerusalem’s Old City, the Western Wall is a remnant of the retaining wall built by Herod the Great in the 1st century BC, to encompass the Second Temple enclosure.

As the only remainder of their sacred, destroyed Temple, Jewish people from all over the world, throughout two thousands years of exile, have faced the direction of the Western Wall on their prayers.

It is a Jewish belief that the Holy Presence has never left the Western Wall, thus it became the most significant site of Jewish pilgrimage, where Jews came to mourn the ruin of the Temple. This is how the Wall, “Ha’kotel” in Hebrew, has gained the name – the “Wailing Wall”.

The big plaza in front of the Wall is divided into two sections – one for women and one for men. Here you can observe different kinds of Jewish activities and prayers, from orthodox Jews dressed in black reading their bible, to Israeli soldiers and groups of Jewish tourists. Leaning against the Wall and kissing the stones, the prayers’ most famous custom is to insert a note with a prayer to God between the Wall’s bricks, believing in its priority to be answered.

The Western Wall serves as a favorite location for Jewish traditional celebrations, and gets amazingly alive on Friday eve (the arrival of Sabbath) and on Jewish holidays. While visiting the Kotel you may see a Bar Mitzvah kid holding the Torah on his traditional ceremony, or an excited bride & groom being photographed before their wedding.

Information:
The Western Wall is open 24 hours, and requires a modest dress for women and a head cover for the men. Admission is free. The closest gate to enter the Old City directly to the Wall is the Dung Gate. Buses No. 1 and 2 reach inside the Old City to the area of the Wall.

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Western Wall Tunnel

Descend into the Jewish nation's history in the 322-meter underground tunnel, at the spot closest to where the Temple once stood. The Western Wall Tunnel was discovered 150 years ago, but was only opened to the general public in 1984. In 1996, the exit from the tunnel to the Via Dolorosa was breached. A visit to the tunnel is an experience that will fill visitors with awe, as it combines mythical forces, legends, history and politics – all in the spot closest to the remnants of the Holy Temple. The underground tunnels span the length of the Western Wall, under the homes in the Old City of Jerusalem's Muslim Quarter. The site contains spaces that have been connected to allow visitors to pass between the different splendid structures and the homes from the era of the Second Temple, the foundations of the Crusader church and buildings from the Middle Ages, wells, quarries, a canal from the Hasmonean period and more. The Western Wall is recognized as a 62-meter remnant of the Temple, though the tunnels reveal that it actually extends 488 meters. A tour of the tunnels begins at the entrance gate adjacent to the Western Wall platform, through a passageway to the largest of the tunnel halls, which contains a model of the Temple Mount, Temple and Muslim Quarter. Continue towards the Western Wall itself, which displays a building method unique to the Herodian Era, an imprecise style that grants the Western Wall a particularly impressive look, with engineering reinforcement. Visitors pass to Warren's Gate, which is now blocked with cement, but was one of the four gates to the Temple Mount during the Second Temple period, through which individuals could reach the Holy of the Holies (Kodesh Hakodashim): The Foundation Stone from which, according to the Jewish faith, the world was created and on which the Holy Arc stood in the First and Second Temples. At the end of the tunnel, visitors reach a Herodian street, with the original stones still intact, that was used by the city's upper class, merchants and Roman monarchy. From there, visitors continue on to the stunning Hasmonean canal from the second century B.C.E., at the end of which they reach the Lark Pool, under the Congregation of Notre-Dame de Sion; another right turn in the short tunnel will lead to the Via Dolorosa in the Old City. Entrance to the Western Wall Tunnel must be coordinated in advance, and is available for groups of up to 30 people, which must be accompanied a guide. Individuals can join groups (cost: NIS 7-18). The site is closed on Saturdays. For more information and to coordinate a visit, call 02-627-1333.

Church of the Holy Sepulchre

The holiest Christian shrine in the world is situated on the Hill of Golgotha (skull hill), used to be an execution location outside the city walls. According to Christian gospels, and with compatibility to archeological discoveries, this is the real site of Jesus' crucifixion, burial and resurrection. The beautiful architecture of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre is a combination of Crusader, Byzantine and Greek structures. In addition, five Christian communities share the Church today: the Roman Catholic, the Greek Orthodox, the Armenian, the Coptic and the Syrian Orthodox, each has its own part inside the church. The Holy Sepulchre History: In 335 AD, Constantin, the Emperor of Byzantium, and his mother, Helena, built a splendid church on the exact site where the massive excavations they ran revealed the tomb of Jesus. The church was completely destroyed by Caliph El-Hakim in 1009, partly reconstructed by the Byzantines in 1042, and entirely rebuilt by the Crusaders when they entered Jerusalem on July 15, 1099. However, a big fire in 1808 caused a lot of damaged to the church, which had been repaired by the Greek Orthodox during the last century. The architecture of the church as it exists today is therefore a combination of Crusader, Byzantine and Greek structures. Information: Visitors of all religions are requested to enter the Church of the Holy Sepulchre modestly dressed. The church is open daily from 5:00am to 9:00pm (4:00am to 8:00pm at wintertime), admission is free. The church can be reached from Jaffa Gate, through the Christian Quarter St., or from the Lions Gate following Jesus' footsteps along the Via Doloroza. Virtual Tours of the Church of the Holy Sepulcher

Baka Neighbourhood Jerusalem

Baka is another one of the neighborhoods in Jerusalem, infected by the American Jewish invasions to Jerusalem. Enough so that if this invasion continues it seems as if soon enough the whole area of the German Colony, Baka and Katamon will become a sort of satellite neighborhood of Brooklyn. Known once for its prosperous times in the British Mandatory, when it was mostly populated by Arab Christians, today, the apartments that were resettled during 1948, serve mainly new immigrants coming from the states and France. Baka’s main street, Beit Lechem, isn’t as sophisticated as its supposed twin from the German Colony, Emek Refaim. But, acting as a melting pot for new immigrants, with the famous Ulpan Etzion (the biggest Hebrew language school for new immigrants in Jerusalem) nestled in it, you can be sure to find great European and American food in the area, proving that the absorption process is going well.

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