Your friendly photographer has been traveling again! This time my travels took me to Israel, a land that I have wanted to visit for so long, I can still hardly believe that I actually saw it in person. In order to get the lay of the land, we began our trip in Jerusalem, then traveled south to the desert area around the Dead Sea, and finally north again to the Sea of Galilee. This post includes some of my favorite photos from our time in Jerusalem. This city was such a mixture of cultures, religions, and even time periods that it was both breathtaking and overwhelming.
One of our first views of the city. Breathtaking:
The Mount of Olives on the left, residential area on the right. The Mount of Olives is covered with Jewish graves:
The view from inside a chapel commemorating the location where Jesus wept over Jerusalem:
The Garden of Gethsemane, where Jesus went to pray and was then betrayed by Judas. The gnarled olive trees could be up to 2000 years old:
A view of Bethlehem from the top of Herod’s summer palace. Herod was almost close enough to touch baby Jesus while his family was in Bethlehem.
Inside the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem. Tradition says that this was the location of Jesus’s birth:
A little corner of the little town of Bethlehem:
The ramparts of the Jerusalem Old City Wall:
The Temple Mount:
The Muslim Quarter:
The Western Wall (or “Wailing Wall”). This part of the wall was closest to the Holy of Holies in the second Temple, and therefore a very special place for the Jewish people. Notice the written prayers filling every cranny between the rocks:
The Church of the Holy Sepulcher. Tradition (backed by archeological evidence) says that this was the location of Jesus’s crucifixion and burial. If you don’t know the story of the ladder leaning against the window on the right, it is worth a read here.
Amazing blog and post!
Great shots =)