1998 Israel Tour: Day Four: March 10
Mount of Olives, City of David, Bethlehem, Jerusalem

Jerusalem

A view of the old city of Jerusalem from the Mount of Olives, across the Kedron Valley. On the left is the Dome of the Rock.

Camel Rides

Thaxter Dickey riding a camel on the Mount of Olives. We're finding out that we can get him to try just about anything, except for certain varieties of turkey.

Mount of Olives

The Mount of Olives, as seen from the base of the old city of Jerusalem. On the lower left is the Church of All Nations, which is claimed to be built around the rock upon which Jesus wept in agony in Gethsemane the night of His arrest. The church is at the least located in the general area of the Garden where those events took place. From this mount, Jesus ascended to heaven after His resurrection.

Along the Wall of the Old City

Doug Seaton, who has been "pumped" about this tour all along, rests for a moment at the base of the old city of Jerusalem.

Spring of Gihon Shaft

This water shaft leads down to the spring Gihon, the water supply for the city of the Jebusites. A tunnel leads from inside the city, underneath the protective walls surrounding the city, to this opening. Thus, during times of seige, the inhabitants of the city could still have access to water. King David conquered Jebus to make his new capital, Jerusalem. In doing so, Joab, who became David's army commander, used this shaft/tunnel combination to enter the city from the spring outside the walls.

Jerusalem Walls

Catherine and Buddy Bethea inspect a mustard tree growing from the walls of Old Jerusalem.

Bethlehem

The interior of the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem, considered to be the site of the birth of Jesus.

Church of the Nativity

Thaxter shares a humorous moment with Julian Snell in the Armenian section of the Church of the Nativity, while the rest of the group looks at the religious artwork in the background.

Shopping in Bethlehem

Pat Stagner looks over some merchandise during the only official "shopping" stop of the tour, at a reputable shop in Bethlehem.

The Shrine of the Book

The Shrine of the Book, the building where portions of the Dead Sea Scrolls are housed and displayed to the public. The shape of the building is modeled after the lids of the jars in which the scrolls were found in 1947. The Knesset, the seat of the Israeli Parliament, is off to the right.

Entering the Shrine

Everybody wave to the folks at home! The group enters the Shrine of the Book.

Model of Jerusalem

A 1:50 scale model of the Temple of Herod the Great during the first century. This model, part of an elaborate model of the entire city of Jerusalem during that period, illustrates how massive and ornate the grand structure was. Our observation of this model should help us to understand what Jerusalem was like during the time of Christ, as we prepare to go into Old Jerusalem on Wednesday . . .