The Beginning of Day One

Our first full day in Israel was Sunday. We intended to go to Galilee early in the morning, but our bags didn't make our flight (Thanks British Airways!), so we went into the Old City while my Dad waited for the bags.

We left the Garden and took a short walk to Damascus Gate.

Usually, the Damascus Gate is bustling with activity.  It was quiet today ... partly because it was Sunday, and partly because they were checking papers at the checkpoint in an effort to keep out trouble.  It was calm in the Old City, so, evidently it worked!

We walked through the muslim quarter on our way to The Temple Mount.  Usually the stalls on either side of this pathway are full of vendors selling their wares. 

We walked by the Western Wall. This is the men's side ... no women allowed, but we are allowed to look over the fence.  


We tried to go up to The Temple Mount, but it was closed and would stay closed until Wednesday.  

These young men had just left the Western Wall where they had been praying. 

Dean and Torrey thought I was taking pictures of them.  Not so!  I "used" them to get some pictures of the men on their way to the wall to pray ... I wasn't sure how they would feel if I blatantly took their pictures, so I resorted to covert measures.  By the end of the week I was an obnoxious tourist.

A Diet Coke in any language is delicious!

On our way back to the garden, we stopped at the Austrian Hospice to go to the roof for the view.  It was beautiful!

We got back to the garden, and Dean and my dad went back to Tel Aviv to get our bags and then we were off to Galilee for two days.  If we thought our morning was great, our afternoon and the succeeding days were just as great or even better ... if that was possible!