Last trip to Jerusalem

Yesterday Ken and I took one last trip to the old city. My agenda was to just get a few things in the market and maybe find a museum to pass the day. It took us over 3 hours to get to the old city!!!! By the time we parked, we were wishing we had arrived at the airport and could just head home. The traffic was crazy (more than usual). Between the honking and all the semi trucks cutting us off and trying to find a parking spot we needed a nap to lower our blood pressure. In the old city Ken got some great deals for us on a few mementos and then we headed to the Western Wall. It was not crowded at all which was really nice. I had been reading about the Temple Mount and wondered if we could get in to see it (it's closed on certain days, and in all the times I've been to Jerusalem it hasn't been on our route). We were excited to find out it was open to visitors... now we can find out what is behind the Wall???? I was amazed to see a big open courtyard. I don't know why. Just not what I expected. I guess I thought the wall was part of a building. Anyway, we walked around a bit and were able to go right up to the Dome of the Rock. We were surprised at how beautiful it was. So far we had only seen the golden top, but the mosaic patterns on the building were amazing.



To finish off the afternoon, we left the old city and drove around looking for Yad Vesham, the Holocaust Museum. Much to our surprise as we left the parking structure the computer said we didn't have to pay. Strange. We thought it was too good to be true and braced ourselves for all the honking and lines backing up behind us once we reached the final exit where the gate might not open. Not much has been free here or cheap for that matter. So we were pleasantly surprised when the gate opened. Must be a holiday or something. We found the museum with very little trouble at all. It was a somber place, but worth the visit. It was amazing to listen to the survivor stories and the atrocities they recounted. I've met a few people over the last few months that have talked about their experiences in Holocaust. All of this, all at once was overwhelming. About 3/4 through the museum I couldn't stomach much more and walked much quicker past each of the exhibits. Again, I'm glad we were able to visit the museum but it was very sad.