10 November - Kotel Tunnel

We had a unique field trip tonight - we left after dinner to the Western Wall.  We have never been in the Old City after dark before!!  It was so quiet and cool and peaceful.  A few people were still at the wall praying.  We got a tour of the tunnels beneath the western part of the Temple Mount.  Excavations have been made deep down to different levels of civilizations.  It was pretty confusing and hard to keep straight but we got it by the end after some (almost accurate) models and videos.  We saw a ritual bath down there that was still somehow being filled with running water coming from a hole in the wall! They don't know where the water is coming from.  It was fun to visualize what the city was like back then, and to walk on the stones from 2,000 years ago and to think about who else may have walked just there.  (By the way, the 2,000 year old level is 15 meters or so below where we walk today in most areas).

We saw LARGE Herodian stones (with the carved margin around the edges).  The largest one is over 50 tons heavy!  They literally have no idea how they moved this stone, let alone lifted it up to the point it is in the wall.

     

When we were done, we had 25 minutes to take photos.  Madeleine gave me her tripod and I got permission to go with a group through some neighborhoods up to this lookout point.  I set up my camera and got this one stellar photo (the last one). I am very proud of it.  I have never taken night time photos like this before with the twinkly lights!!  It was rushed and high stress but turned out beautiful with the Dome of the Rock in the back.