Manni's Shvil: Day 21: Hiking the first part of the Jerusalem trail

Freitag, 29. März 2019

Day 21: Hiking the first part of the Jerusalem trail

Israel Museum: Large Model of Jerusalem 2000 years ago with temple

I got up at 7:15 this morning and realized the difference, because the clock had been changed to summer time last night.
It was a cloudy day with some rain showers. My first station today was Ein Kerem. John the baptist was born here. It is a nice village with Arabian-style houses and the St John the Baptist church that I visited. Afterwards I had to climb up Mount Herzl to an altitude of 820 m. Here is Yad Vashem - the Holocaust Remembrance Center, which I think is a must when you come to Israel. You also find the Herzl Museum up here which deals with the activities and visions of Theodor Herzl, the father of the modern Zionist movement. I plan to visit this museum on Sunday.
On my way to the next highlights I came through nice Jewish neighborhoods and parks. I walked up to the Government campus where you find the Knesset, the parliament, as well as the Israel Museum with the Shrine of the Book and a model of Jerusalem 2000 years ago. On my way I passed the Jerusalem Theater, the King David Hotel, the YMCA Building and walked up to my final destination, the Jerusalem hostel in the city centre. Since it was Shabat the city was quiet and peaceful.
In the evening I was invited to a Shabat dinner at our friend Betty, a wonderful lady that we met in 2015 while shopping in a supermarket. Back then Betty invited our family to her place and told us the story of her life - she has lost her family and neighbourhood in Amsterdam in the Holocaust. She and her two daughters had also invited other Dutch friends. We were praying the Sabbath blessing, the Kiddush, together and had a delicious dinner and a great fellowship.