the rough guide to jerusalem

THE ROUGH GUIDE to Jerusalem Includes Bethlehem, Tel Aviv and the Dead Sea ROUGHGUIDES About this book Rough Guides are designed to be good to read and easy to use. The book is divided into the following sections and you should be able to find whatever you need in one of them. The colour section is designed to give you a feel for Jerusalem, suggesting when to go and what not to miss, and includes a full list of contents. Then comes basics, for pre-departure information and other practicalities. The city chapters cover each area of Jerusalem in depth, giving comprehensive accounts of all the attractions, while the listings section gives you the lowdown on accommodation, eating, shopping and more. The excursions section includes a selection of day-trips, from Bethlehem to Tel Aviv. Contexts fills you in on history, religion and books, while the colour insert introduces religious architecture, and language gives you an extensive menu reader and enough Hebrew and Arabic to get by. Next comes the small print, including details of how to send in updates and corrections, and a comprehensive index. Colour maps covering the city can be found at the back of the book. This second edition published October 2009. Above: Ultra Orthodox Jews praying at the Wailing Wall ©Eddie Gerald/Rough Guides Front cover image: The Dome of the Rock, Old City ©E Simanor/PhotoLibrary Back cover image: Shopping in the Souq, Old City © Eddie Gerald/Rough Guides Bus Station Israel Museum Yad VaShem Wailing Wall Al-Aqsa Mosque Dome of the Rock Dung Gate Zion Gate CITADEL Jaffa Gate New Gate Church of the Holy Sepulchre Damascus Gate - MOUNT HERZL MOUNT OF OLIVES ABU DIS BETHANY TALBIYA REHAVIA EIN KAREM JERUSALEM OLD CITY 5 5 4 3 2 6 6 6 1 1 7 7 7 8 8 0 100 m 0 1 km 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Jaffa Gate and the Armenian Quarter Via Dolorosa and the Christian Quarter The Muslim Quarter The Jewish Quarter Temple Mount East Jerusalem West Jerusalem Outlying areas Herod’s Gate Lions Gate Throughout this book, we’ve used the Rough Guides icon to highlight establishments our authors particularly recommend – a perfectly sited hotel, an atmospheric café, a special restaurant. The same icon is also used to flag up book recommendations in the Contexts section. Please send us your own nominations, which our authors will be happy to check out for future editions. Author Picks Daniel Jacobs is a Jewish Londoner who gave up travelling as a hobby to take it up as a profession, and has contributed to Rough Guides for countries like Egypt, Tunisia and Morocco as well as India, Kenya, West Africa and Mexico. About the author 00 Jerusalem inside cover.indd 1 18/06/09 4:58 PM Jerusalem written and researched by Daniel Jacobs The Rough Guide to www.roughguides.com 00 Jerusalem colour intro.indd 1 18/06/09 3:03 PM 00 Jerusalem colour intro.indd 2 18/06/09 3:03 PM 3 Contents Colour section 1 Introduction 4 What to see 7 When to go . 9 Things not to miss . 10 Basics 17 Getting there 19 Arrival . 23 Getting around . 24 City tours . 28 Security and crime . 29 Culture and etiquette . 31 Gay and lesbian travellers . 32 Travelling with children 33 Travellers with disabilities . 34 The media . 35 Travel essentials . 36 The City 45 1 Jaffa Gate and the Armenian Q uarter . 47 2 V ia Dolorosa and the Christian Q uarter . 55 3 T he Muslim Quarter . 72 4 T he Jewish Quarter . 84 5 T he Temple Mount . 99 6 E ast Jerusalem . 108 7 West Jerusalem 124 8 O utlying areas . 144 Listings 161 9 Accommodation 163 G E ating . 177 H Drinking and nightlife 194 I E ntertainment 199 J S ports and activities . 205 K F estivals and holidays . 209 L S hopping . 216 Excursions 229 Bethlehem and around 231 Hebron . 241 Jericho . 243 The Dead Sea and Masada . 248 Heading west: Abu Ghosh . 252 Tel Aviv and Jaffa . 253 Contexts 265 A short history of Jerusalem 267 Religion . 275 Books . 284 Language 291 Pronunciation, spelling and gestures . 293 Useful words and phrases . 294 Small print & Index 301 ff The Muslim Quarter and the Dome of the Rock f On the way to worship | CONTE N TS | The Holy City colour section following p.80 Colour maps following p.312 Jerusalem 00 Jerusalem colour intro.indd 3 18/06/09 3:03 PM 4 | I NTR O DUCT I ON | W HAT TO SEE | W HEN TO G O Introduction to Jerusalem Ten measures of beauty gave God to the world: nine to Jerusalem and one to the remainder Ten measures of sorrow gave God to the world: nine to Jerusalem and one to the remainder The Talmud Everybody’s heard of Jerusalem (Yerushalayim in Hebrew, Al-Quds in Arabic), and most people have some image of it in their heads, but almost everyone who comes here is surprised at what they find. Sacred to three religions and once considered to be the centre of the world itself, the Holy City is, for all its fame, quite small, far from opulent and provincial in many ways. Yet it is undeniably a fascinating place, packed with museums, religious sites and ancient relics while still being a real, lived-in city, home to around 800,000 people. Jerusalem is home to three of the world’s most venerated places: the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, held to be the location of the crucixion, and the holiest site in Chris- tendom; the Wailing Wall, last remnant of the Second Temple and most sacred Jewish relic in the world; and the Dome of the Rock – third most hallowed location in Islam, and the spot from where the Prophet Mohammed made his ascent to heaven. But even without these monuments the city has much to oer – from the narrow alleys and vibrant souqs of the magnicent walled Old City, to the churches and tombs of the Mount of Olives, and the expensive shops and lively bars of 00 Jerusalem colour intro.indd 4 18/06/09 3:03 PM 5 | I NTR O DUCT I ON | W HAT TO SEE | W HEN TO G O downtown West Jerusalem. In fact, Arab East Jerusalem and Israeli West Jerusalem oer the visitor two worlds for the price of one: the tradition and relaxed pace of the Arab world and the cosmopolitan glitz of the West. And, in a city with an already diverse cultural mix, the assorted clergy from Christian sects worldwide, and the ultra-Orthodox of Mea Shearim in their eighteenth-century shtetl apparel, add further to the varied nature of the city’s inhabitants. Perched high in the Judean Hills, the city’s location is equally captivating. The view on approach is dramatic, with even the modern city providing a magnicent array of white high-rises that gleam in the sunlight – an architectural legacy of the rst British governor, who declared that all new buildings must be made from local limestone, a ruling that has continued to be observed to this day. To its west lie the fertile planted elds, olive groves and settled villages of the coastal plain and the Judean foothills, while to the east the harsh desert of the Jordan Valley stretches out to a horizon that, on a clear day, oers glimpses of the Dead Sea. As far as politics is concerned, Jerusalem is at the heart of the Israel– Palestine question - hotly contested and deeply divided. It may be one city, but it’s evidently in two countries. Israel has taken the position, since 1967, that Jerusalem is the single indivisible capital of the Jewish state, and it is the country’s administrative centre, increasingly cut o from the West Bank by Israel’s Separation Wall; but the Palestinians also consider Jerusalem their capital – however unrealistic that may seem – and it remains the g Damascus Gate, Old City 00 Jerusalem colour intro.indd 5 18/06/09 3:03 PM 6 | I NTR O DUCT I ON | W HAT TO SEE | W HEN TO G O focus of their culture and aspirations. The two halves live uneasily side by side, a tension heightened by the construction of new Jewish settlements encroaching upon Palestinian land. All this can make Jerusalem a rather schizophrenic city, a frustrating and complex place that can seem overwhelming on a rst visit. In fact such is the emotion it inspires in some visitors that it has its own (liter- ally) schizophrenic mental disorder called Jerusalem Syndrome, whose suerers believe themselves to be characters from the Bible – Jesus is the favourite, but others include Moses, King David, John the Baptist and the Virgin Mary. You might see them wandering the streets, dressed in the robes of their adopted persona. Other suerers commit bizarre acts in their certainty of the imminent Second Coming: in 1969, an Australian tourist tried to burn down Al-Aqsa Mosque in preparation for Jesus’s imminent arrival. Despite its very real diculties, Jerusalem is also a very beautiful city, teeming and alive. It’s a historical location without compare, the backdrop against which the stories of three religions were acted out. It was from here that Mohammed ascended to heaven on his night journey, from the same spot where God tested Abraham by asking him to sacrice his son. It was The four quarters The four quarters of Jerusalem’s Old City – Muslim, Jewish, Christian and Armenian – began to evolve after Muslim sultan Saladin’s conquest of the city in 1187. Jews moved into the area around the Wailing Wall, Muslims into the area around the Dome of the Rock, and Christians into the area around the Church of the Holy Sepulchre; meanwhile, an Armenian community had already established itself in the southwestern corner of the city around St James’s Cathedral. The division of quarters was never rigid, and there were always Jews living in the Armenian Quarter, Muslims in the Christian Quarter and so on, but by convention, Souq Khan al-Zeit divides the Christian and Muslim quarters, Bab al-Silsila Street divides the Muslim and Jewish quarters, Habad Street divides the Jewish and Armenian quarters, and David Street divides the Armenian and Christian quarters. All four quarters meet at the southern end of the Central Souqs (see p.76). 00 Jerusalem colour intro.indd 6 18/06/09 3:03 PM 7 | I NTR O DUCT I ON | W HAT TO SEE | W HEN TO G O the residents of this city who welcomed Jesus by spreading palm leaves on the ground before him, along these streets that he dragged the cross, and here that he was executed upon it. Here, too, stood the capital of David and Solomon, home to the two Jewish Temples of antiquity, and this is the city for which the Jews, through all their centuries of exile and persecu- tion, cried their ancient hope: “next year in Jerusalem”. Little wonder that it inspires such dreams, such devotion, such love and such madness. What to see J erusalem’s key attractions are, of course, the big religious sites: the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, the Wailing Wall and the Dome of the Rock, all found within the walls of the labyrinthine Old City. A walk around the impressive Ottoman ramparts gives a wonderful introduction to the Old City, passing in turn each of its four traditional quarters. The Muslim Quarter holds some of the greatest treas- ures of Mamluk architecture, as well as much of the Via Dolorosa, along which Jesus is believed to have carried his cross. The Christian Quarter has some of the city’s most important souqs or markets. The Armenian Quarter includes Jerusalem’s citadel, known as the Tower of David. And the Jewish Quarter has been restored to preserve ancient remains like the old Roman Cardo or main street, as well as several old synagogues. Outside the walls are Mount Zion, where the Last Supper is believed to have taken place, and where the Virgin Mary is thought to have resided after the death of her son. Nearby is the City of David, Jerusa- lem’s original location, and to its east the ancient tombs of the Kidron East and West The 1948 Arab-Israeli War left Jerusalem divided, with West Jerusalem held by Israel, while East Jerusalem, along with the rest of the West Bank (the west bank of the River Jordan, that is), was taken by Jordan. The border between Israel and the West Bank – really an armistice line rather than a proper international frontier – is known as the Green Line after the colour of the ink used to draw it. In the 1967 Six Day War, Israel ended up occupying the West Bank, and unilaterally annexed East Jerusalem, but the two halves of the city remain very distinct. West Jerusalem, almost entirely Jewish, is the main commercial centre, and much like a European city, while East Jerusalem, including the Old City, remains largely Palestinian (though Jewish settlers are moving in too), and is a lot more Middle Eastern. 00 Jerusalem colour intro.indd 7 18/06/09 3:03 PM 8 | I NTR O DUCT I ON | W HAT TO SEE | W HEN TO G O The Madaba map In 1884, workers renovating an old church at Madaba in Jordan uncovered a sixth- century mosaic bearing a map of Palestine, and prominent in the middle of it is a depiction of the city of Jerusalem. Much of the city’s geography is clearly visible, including the two main streets – the Cardo (Al-Wad Road) and the Cardo Maximus (Souq Khan al-Zeit, the central souqs and the “Cardo” of today; see p.92). The column at what is now the Damascus Gate (see p.72) is clearly shown, as are the Wailing Wall, the original building of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, and the then new – now long gone – Nea Church (see p.98). A reproduction of the Jerusalem section of the Madaba Map is displayed in Jerusalem beneath the Damascus Gate, and there are good reproductions of it online – one with the buildings labelled is posted on the city council’s website at Wwww.jerusalem.muni .il/english/map/madaba /cardo1e.html. Valley. The Mount of Olives oers wonderful vistas over the Old City, and beyond it is the village of Bethany, where Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead. The downtown area of West Jerusalem includes the main shopping district, and the ultra- Orthodox neighbourhood of Mea Shearim, and spreads out to encom- pass Israel’s parliament, the Knesset, as well as the excellent Israel Museum containing the Dead Sea Scrolls. Further out, you reach Yad Vashem, Israel’s monument to the victims of the Holocaust, and the beautiful suburban village of Ein Karem. If that isn’t enough, there are a number of fascinating places easily reached on a day-trip. Of these, the ancient fortress of Masada, gets many a visitor out of bed for 3am for the ever-popular excursions to climb it at dawn and see the sun rise from the top before checking out that weird natural phenomenon, the Dead Sea. Nearer at hand, royal David’s city of Bethlehem, the biblical birth- place of Jesus, is almost within walking distance, through a checkpoint just ten minutes away by bus. Jericho, whose walls came tumbling down, takes a little more getting to, but still lies only an hour to the east. Westward meanwhile, the village of Abu Ghosh attracts lovers of ne Middle Eastern food, while further west, on the Mediterra- nean coast, is Israel’s commercial capital, Tel Aviv – the place to go for drinking and nightlife, but also for sightseeing, thanks to its wealth of Bauhaus archi- tecture, and attractions such as the old city of Jaa. 00 Jerusalem colour intro.indd 8 18/06/09 3:04 PM [...]... East Jerusalem BASICS Arrival Arriving from within Israel by bus you’ll find yourself at the Egged Central Bus Station on the Jaffa Road in West Jerusalem, about 2km from the city centre and the New Gate (the nearest entrance to the Old City) Numerous city buses run east along the Jaffa Road into town: #6, #13, #18 and #20 for downtown West Jerusalem (Mercaz Ha’Ir); #6 continues to a stop between the. .. immediately to its northwest, and East Jerusalem immediately to its north Coming from Tel Aviv by bus or train, you’ll arrive in West Jerusalem, some distance from the centre, and need to take a bus or cab into town From Ben Gurion airport, on the other hand, a service taxi (sherut) will take you to your hotel door, or at the very least, to the nearest Old City gate Coming from the east (Jordan and the West... Damascus Gate, so you may have to make do with the New Gate or the Jaffa Gate if you are staying in the Old City, or with the Jerusalem Hotel (not far from Damascus Gate; see p.169) for East Jerusalem It is also possible to reach Jerusalem by bus from the main gate of the airpoirt (#5 to “Airport City” and then #947 to Jerusalem s Egged Central Bus Station), with a typical total journey time of 1hr 20min... driver does not want to use the meter, it will be because they want to overcharge you, so take another cab A short hop in the city centre should cost around 20–30NIS; from the centre to the Israel Museum will cost around 30–40NIS, to Ein Karem around 60–80NIS Note that fares are higher from 9pm to 5.30am and that many West Jerusalem taxi drivers will refuse to go to East Jerusalem On the Arab side, a private... City tour (US$42), a oneday Jerusalem tour (US$62), and day trips to, among other places, Masada (US$92), or Nazareth and the other main Christian sites in Galilee ($82) Mike’s Centre off Souk Khan al-Zeit by no 162 (on the stairs leading to the Ninth Station of the Cross), Old City t 02/628 2486, wwww mikescentre.com Tours to Masada (US$55), and to Nazareth and the Galilee holy sites (US$72) United Tours... 4600, wtour jerusalem. muni.il Free three-hour walking tour, leaving Saturday 10am from City Hall complex, 32 Jaffa Road The section of the city covered changes from week to week Sandemans New Jerusalem Tours wwww neweuropetours.eu Free three-and-a-half-hour walking tours, departing from the tourist office inside the Jaffa Gate daily at 11pm Tours in English Jerusalem Hotel, Nablus Rd, East Jerusalem. .. Jerusalem Trail” audio tour on their website at W www.cityofdavid.org.il Security and crime Security is obviously a concern for visitors to Jerusalem and the other areas covered in this guide In recent years there have been suicide bomb attacks on civilian targets in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv though at the time of writing violence had become more isolated (in the case of Jerusalem thanks in part to the. .. particular targets In the Old City, especially in crowded areas, pickpocketing is also quite common If you do need to report a crime, the police stations by the Citadel, in the Russian Compound, and at 107 Jaffa Rd are used to dealing with tourists There’s also a dedicated tourist police post at the entrance to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre Police on the street in West Jerusalem are part of the ordinary... Suleiman in East Jerusalem, near the Damascus Gate | Getting around By train Jerusalem s train station has temporarily been shifted out to the suburb of Malha, 4km southwest of the city centre Because the location is so inconvenient, and because the train journey to Jerusalem is so much longer than the bus journey, only rail buffs are likely to be using the train There are ten trains a day to Malha from... (and three “minor” ones (their classification, not ours), valid for a week, but not exceptionally good value (the most you can save is 13NIS) The “major” sights to choose from are the City of David, the Jerusalem Archaeological Park, the Tower of David, the Museum of Temple Treasures, the Burnt House, or the Generations Center: the “minor” sights are: the four Sepahrdi synagogues, the | Security and crime . THE ROUGH GUIDE to Jerusalem Includes Bethlehem, Tel Aviv and the Dead Sea ROUGHGUIDES About this book Rough Guides are designed to be good to read and easy to use. The book is divided into. 18 /06/ 09 4:58 PM Jerusalem written and researched by Daniel Jacobs The Rough Guide to www.roughguides.com 00 Jerusalem colour intro.indd 1 18 /06/ 09 3:03 PM 00 Jerusalem colour intro.indd 2 18 /06/ 09. conquest of the city in 1187. Jews moved into the area around the Wailing Wall, Muslims into the area around the Dome of the Rock, and Christians into the area around the Church of the Holy