Early Jerusalem |
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Written by Stephen Langfur |
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Page 5 of 5 Logistics for visiting the first Jerusalem and the City of David
The "City of David Visitors Center" (which has restrooms) controls the site. Telephone: (02)6262341 or *6033. Open in winter from Sunday through Thursday 08:00 -17:00, Friday and holiday eves, 08:00 - 13:00. Open in summer from Sunday through Thursday 08:00 - 19:00, Friday and holiday eves, 08:00 - 15:00. The Pool of Siloam has different hours, which should be checked by phone. The whole site is closed on Sabbaths and Jewish holidays. Leave enough time to complete the tour (e.g. the Siloam Tunnel).
For the Siloam Tunnel, 60 cm. wide, be prepared to walk fifty minutes in water, which in a few places can reach your pockets (depending where they are). You will need footwear that won't slip off in the current. A flashlight (candles not permitted!) is necessary. The Canaanite tunnel is dry and shorter, but also narrower in places.
There are restrooms at the main entrance, near the end of the Canaanite Tunnel, and at the Second Temple Pool of Siloam. Near the ones at the main entrance are lockers where you can leave clothes and gear before going through the tunnel, but you can also simply carry them in a high-enough backpack. Since this hill is a residential neighborhood, it can be visited apart from the opening hours. The main entrance is open, and the area of the Stepped Stone Structure is accessible, as well as a spot for an overview. The entrances to the Large Stone Structure, to Warren's Shaft and to the tunnels will be locked. One should be aware, too, that the neighborhood is inhabited both by Palestinian Arabs and Israeli Jews. There are tensions between the two groups deriving not just from the general conflict but also from specific disputes here over land and housing. |
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Holy Land
Galilee: Arbel cliff | Mount of Beatitudes | Capernaum | Dan | Hammat Tiberias | Kursi | Beth Shean | Nazareth | Sepphoris | Banias (Caesarea Philippi) | Bethsaida | Chorazin | Gamla | Hazor | Tabgha | Cana | Megiddo | Mount Tabor
Coast : Caesarea Maritima
Highlands : Bethlehem | Jerusalem | Shechem (Nablus) | Muhraka on Mount Carmel | Hebron | Herodium | Mamre | Solomon's Pools
Jerusalem : Jerusalem: Introduction | Mount of Olives | Gethsemane | St. Peter in Gallicantu | Mount Zion | The Upper Room | Via Dolorosa | Church of the Holy Sepulcher | The Cemeteries of Jerusalem | St. Anne's Church and Pool of Bethesda | Pater Noster Church and Mosque of Ascension | Excavations around the Temple platform | Ein Kerem | City of David | Western Wall | Temple Mount | Al-Aqsa Mosque | Dome of the Rock | Shrine of the Book | Yad va Shem
Shephelah : The Shephelah: An Introduction | Emmaus | The Valley of Elah | Maresha | Lachish
Dead Sea : Dead Sea | Jericho | Qumran | Ein Gedi | Masada
Negev : Beersheba | Arad | Avdat | Timna
JORDAN
Northern Section : Gadara | Pella | Ajloun | Jerash | Umm el-Jimal
Central Section : Iraq al-Amir | Baptismal | Mount Nebo | Madaba | Machaerus | Um ar-Rasas
Grazing Land : Karak
Desert : Desert Retreats | Tafilah | Shobak | Little Pettra | Patra | Aqaba | Wadi Rum