Monday morning was strange. The wind was blowing at least 25 miles an hour with strong gusts. We ate breakfast, loaded up, and checked out. We had a good stay at Ein Gev. It was quiet, peaceful and enjoyable. This will be a place I will stay the next chance I get.

We traveled hwy. 92 south, to hwy. 90. We turned south on hwy. 90 and the wind stopped. That experience was really strange. One minute, 25 mph wind and then calm.

Belvoir, "beautiful place", was our first stop as we traveled down the Jordan Valley. We snaked up the road leading to the most invincible of the Crusader fortresses. It is called Kochav Hayarden (star of the Jordan). The Hospitallers completed this fortress in 1173 AD. After a brief time of inspecting the sight and observing the awesome views for 360 degrees we turned our faces toward Jerusalem.

The drive down the Jordan Valley is interesting and lengthy. The traffic was a bit congested.  We saw many farmers, a lot of sheep and quite a few camels. The land changed from green to brown, and then to rock as we traveled down the Jordan Valley towards Jerusalem.

We traveled for an hour and forty-five minutes and stopped at the Inn of the Good Samaritan. We had bypassed Jericho and were headed into Jerusalem just a short 13 miles away. This location is the halfway point between Jericho and Jerusalem. Note the story in Luke 10.

Jerusalem is located in the heart of Israel’s central mountain range. This is a city of high intensity. It is a city that is revered by Christianity, Judaism, and Islam. This city has drawn multitudes of pilgrims to its mountain site for thousands of years. This is the city that the Lord said He loved. This is the place that Jesus wept over. Jerusalem is the city that killed the prophets. It is a unique place.

We turned left after crossing the last mountain ridge and we were in Jerusalem. The first local site was the police station and then not far away the Hyatt Regency. We went by the Damascus Gate and then to the St. George’s Cathedral Guesthouse and checked in.

Our rooms at St. George’s were excellent. The rooms were big, comfortable and clean. Essa helped us get situated and was a big help during our entire stay. The staff went out of their way to take care of us during our five-day stay. The breakfast meals were good. We ate at St. George’s for four nights and enjoyed each dinner.

We were ready to go to the Walled City of Jerusalem. We walked the two long blocks to the Damascus Gate entrance and hustled down to Abu Shukri, 63 Al Wad Road. We had hummus, soup, pita, chopped salad, falafel, and washed it down with cokes and bottled water. We were hungry and ate too much but it was superb!

The Western Wall (Kotel) was next on our itinerary. It is the most important existing Jewish shrine. This wall was part of King Herod’s retaining wall that surrounded the Temple Mount. The Western Wall functions under the authority of the rabbinic authorities as an Orthodox synagogue. The cracks between the massive stones are stuffed with slips of paper bearing prayers and petitions to the Lord.

We exited at the Dung Gate and proceeded to walk around the Old City outside the walls. The first stop was the overlook of the Kidron Valley. To the south was Silwan. To the north on the eastern side of the city was the Mount of Olives. The walk was strenuous but we paid the price and re-entered the Old City at St. Stephen’s Gate.

The walk back was leisurely and fun.

We walked in and around the old city and back to St. George’s.