Our second day in Jerusalem was probably my favorite. I loved all the panoramic views of the old town and the walk from the Mt. of Olives down to Gethsemane. This was the view from our Hotel room before we left for the day. Not a cloud in the sky.
We had initially planned to go to The Garden Tomb the evening before, but we didn't check the opening times and by the time we got there it was closed. Thankfully it was only a 10 minute walk from the hotel, so we just planned to go first thing the following morning.
Golgotha. If you end up visiting be forewarned that there is a bus depot right there as well and this is the only picture I could get that didn't have 30 + busses in the picture as well.
More of the gardens in the Garden Tomb.
And finally the tomb itself. It was really amazing being here. The site had a wonderful spirit about it and it was not full of relics, candles, and prayer, as some of the other sites are.
An ancient wine press on the site as well.
After the Garden Tomb we walked a few blocks to grab a taxi to get to the Mt. of Olives. We passed this bread seller and all these women at the market.
Damascus gate to the Old City.
Our first stop on the Mt. of Olives was the Church of The Pater Noster. It is the site where the Lords Prayer was first taught. This church was beautiful and had the Lords Prayer written in just about every language.
There is an olive grove behind the church that we walked through as well.
We walked down the hill a bit more and we greeted with sweeping views of the Old City.
The next stop was Gethsemane. The olive trees here were absolutely stunning. The place had a wonderful reverence about it and it was lovely to simply walk the garden.
There is a church on the site as well. It had some stunning artwork as well as the rock it is claimed that the atonement actually took place on. You are able to touch it as well.
Beautiful flowers on the wall of the garden.
We then headed to the Tower of David. Although we had passed it the day before we wanted to tour the grounds, and museum.
After the Tower of David we grabbed some lunch and then set off to do a little bit of wondering and shopping before heading back to the hotel to rest a bit before dinner.
The sun setting as we headed off to dinner. The perfect end to one of the most memorable vacations I've ever had.