I was so excited to finally visit Israel and especially Jerusalem! I had wanted to come here for a long, long time. Somehow, even though I’m not very religious myself, names like Jerusalem, Bethlehem, Nazareth etc. always evoked a certain excitement in me – and now I was gonna actually go and see all these places!

Since Transavia is flying to Tel Aviv now from Amsterdam, flights are very affordable. After landing, I was relieved to get through immigration rather quickly and without many questions. The search for the sherut to Jerusalem took a bit longer – helpful locals kept sending me wrong directions unfortunately. In the end, I made it to Jerusalem and walked the last 5 min or so into the old town where my hostel was located. I was very happy I had chosen such a central location where all the main sights were within 5-10 min walking distance.

Next day, I woke up early and excited to head out. My first stop: the Church of Sepulchure. As soon as I left my hostel, I bumped into an Asian tour group who were following their guide while chanting religious songs. The alleys were still dark, so it was a very mystical atmosphere! For the first time I did not mind following a tour group. At least they were also guiding me the right way like this… 😉 When I arrived at the church, the special experience continued: there was a mass going on and someone was just playing the organs. I can’t describe it, but experiencing how special this place is for many people and seeing their emotions while visiting certainly gave me some goosebumps!

Afterwards, I made my way to the Western Wall which was equally fascinating – this time being able to watch deep religious beliefs on the Jewish side. At 7.45 I was too late to climb up to the Dome of the Rock for now – a gigantic queue had formed already. There’s only certain times of the day when non-Muslims are allowed to enter the site, from the dedicated non-Muslim entrance at the Western Wall – so make sure to look these up before. So instead, I decided to explore the excavations nearby which unfortunately I wouldn’t consider worth the entry fee though. I continued my sightseeing along the southern part of the old city wall until I reached David’s Tomb on Mount Zion and the pretty Dormition Abbey. I walked a bit through both the Armenian and Jewish quarters of the town and then made my way back to the Dome of the Rock entrance for the noon time slot.

All the waiting was definitely worth it – the Temple Mount with the Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Dome of the Rock is very beautiful. Unfortunately, as a non-Muslim you cannot enter the buildings, but even the outside was pretty. I circle around the site, and decided to leave through Lion’s Gate in the North – as you can leave through any of the gates as you please.

Next to Lion’s Gate, I visited St Anne’s Church and the Pools of Bethseda where a choir was singing beautifully when I entered. Later, I walked through the Northern part of the old town, back in the direction of my hostel until I reached the Lutheran Church of the Redeemer. It’s not such a special church, but you can climb the tower for amazing views over Jerusalem which is what I did.

For my second day in Jerusalem, I had two things I wanted to see: the Mount of Olives and the Holocaust Museum Yad Vashem, both of which are located a bit outside the city. So first I took a bus up the Mount of Olives where I climbed the tower of the Ascension Church. Views were nice, but they have put a plastic fence against birds up there which essentially prevents you from taking any nice pictures at all. If I had known, I would have definitely skipped that climb… Afterwards, I walked down to the gardens of Gethsemane and Mary’s Tomb. From here, there were some nice views of the back side of the city wall and the old town.

I then walked back all the way to near Damascus Gate from where I could catch the tram until its last stop – Mount Herzl. This is where the Holocaust Museum Yad Vashem is located – a museum I consider essential to see when visiting Israel. Do not underestimate the size though – you could probably spend days there and still not be able to see the exhibition in all details. The museum is very well set up, I really liked the modern architecture and how it was used to display items and stories connected to the Holocaust. There is a good and extensive audio guide, which I decided to pay for and walk around. I’m usually bad with reading boards in museums, so an audio guide makes it easier for me to take the exhibition in. Overall, it was an impressive, moving visit for me after which I needed some cheering up…

…and what would have been better for that than a pre-Shabbath visit to Mahane Yehuda market back in the city!? I always love markets, and I certainly enjoyed this one. Walking around and watching everyone busily shopping for last supplies for dinner was fun, and I tried some little snacks here and there. With this, my time in Jerusalem had for now come to an end – for now.