Way of the Cross and The Old City

This morning we woke up extremely early for a summer day and left for the old city which is about 10 minutes from the college. Our goal was to beat the morning the rush to walk the stations of the cross as Jesus walked them before his Crucifixion. This meant much more than just doing the stations in a church because we took the path. At the end of the stations, we found our way to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre also known as the Church of the Resurrection. This church was built on top of the tomb where Jesus was buried and also the hill which he was crucified. Also in the church was tombs of others.

After the Via Delarosa, we ate breakfast in the old city until many of the shops would open. Because the first time our group was at the Western Wall, Steven and I forgot to bring along the prayers, we visited the Wall once again, although this morning, it was much busier than before, almost ten times. There were so many people praying at the wall, I was worried that we would not be able to get the prayers in the wall. We succeeded!

The group from the Diocese of Olympia traveled through the old city and finished our shopping. It was very helpful to have young Israeli girls to help me bargain a price for high quality goods. Along the Jaffa Gate, King David built a castle which has been renovated into a museum. It's call the Tower of David or the Citadel. This took the few of us who paid through the history of the city of Jerusalem, the eras and what the different types of ruling communities had on impacting what the city is today.

We left for lunch and walked back to the college. Most of the day was free time and relaxed back at the college with the other groups from the coarse. Today was the last day of our time in Jerusalem so we had a reception and farewell BBQ in the courtyard. Tomorrow we leave to spend a few days in Tel Aviv and then home for the summer. I will miss the culture although I can't wait to be back home.