Due to weather and jet lag, yesterday was pretty laid back; today was different.  The day started slowly with a leisurely breakfast of pastries from the shuk but moved quickly after that.  Although we did not leave for the Old City until about 9:45, by the time the day ended we had walked over seven miles with a lot of up and down.  It was the day of the "Free" Tour of Jerusalem's Old City.  As we expected the tour was somewhat superficial, mainly just passing by and pointing out the various places of interest rather than entering but with a reasonable amount of background and culture thrown in.  (Ryan was a fast talker!)  He also gave tips on when to visit and how to navigate the sometimes arcane rules pertaining to each site when you later went back on your own for a more in-depth exploration.  It was exactly what we were hoping for.  

We met at the Jaffa Gate, the same gate we had entered a couple of days ago, with a guide carrying a red umbrella.  Not an auspicious start but better than one of those silly-looking flags.  However, Ryan turned out to be knowledgeable, interesting and irreverent and, to be honest, there were times the red umbrella was useful in the crowds.  The tour started just inside the Jaffa Gate and then proceeded to the entrance to the Armenian Church of St. James (Jesus' brother is said to be buried here).  After a discussion about how Armenians came to own a quarter of the Old City (it has to do with beautiful Armenian women), he suggested we come back at 3:00 when there is a public service if we want to see the inside.  Next up was wandering through the Jewish Quarter with its more recent if not more modern buildings.  This is because the original Jewish Quarter was completely destroyed during the 1948 War when the Arab Legions conquered all of Jerusalem and, when retaken in the 1967 War, it had to be rebuilt from scratch.  Then, an observation point for the Temple Mount, Western Wall and Dome of the Rock (recommended to come back tomorrow morning to see them up close).  Next, through the Muslim Quarter with no specific sites but a lot of interesting shops and general hubbub.  Finally the Christian Quarter with the Church of the Holy Sepulchre being the main focus.  This is where Jesus is said to have been crucified, buried and risen.  We tarried briefly inside but the crowds were thick (as well as the incense because this site is controlled by several eastern Orthodox sects).  Ryan suggested it would be virtually empty if we came back in the evening.  Thus ended our two-and-a-half-hour overview of the places we should see later.  It was well worth the time and (tip) money.  However not worth a trip back in the evening.

We deferred Ryan's recommended falafel and hummus lunch place, which sounded good, to a later day and instead went to Lina's, a well-known falafel and hummus place we had researched earlier.  We did manage to get lost four or five times (GPS does not work well in the narrow crowded lanes) but eventually found it.  It more than met our expectations with Phyllis getting the traditional hummus dish and Craig getting something different called msabaha, chickpeas that were not fully mashed but warm and with a few more spices than conventional hummus.  Both very good with some pita bread. 

Our plan was to go back to St. James at 3:00 but with time to kill we decided to visit the Tower of David Citadel, an iconic fortress near the Jaffa Gate and conveniently on the way to St. James.  Like seemingly everywhere in Jerusalem, some areas were under renovation but enough was open for us to have an enjoyable visit.  Biblical David had nothing to do with this site but the Crusaders apparently couldn't think of anything better to call it (it was actually Herod's fortress).  There was a great building-by-building model of Jerusalem created in the 1870s as well as a terrific view of the Old City from the ramparts.  Afterwards we walked to St. James to watch the beginning of the service.  Phyllis continued with her religious and cultural training as she learned from a priest that one does not cross one's legs while sitting in the church.  Well, ladies anyway.

We completed our day by walking over to the car rental place in the New Town to discuss our car pickup on Friday.  We are not leaving Jerusalem until Saturday morning but are renting our car late Friday morning.  This is because of . . . Shabbat.  We really should have researched this more thoroughly.  In short the car rental office closes on noon Friday and does not reopen until Sunday morning.  To complicate matters there is little to no parking available for us in our neighborhood with the exception of a couple of parking garages.  They are pretty expensive but that is not the real problem.  The issue is that while we can put the car in a garage on Friday afternoon, we cannot get it out until Sunday because of . . . Shabbat.  We are certainly not critical of the observance of Shabbat, the sincere expression of religious fidelity is very admirable.  Moreover, there are some practical advantages for our visit, such as the fact that there might be more street parking available in our neighborhood on Friday night and certainly very little traffic as we drive on Saturday.  However, we wish we had fully understood the practical implications of Shabbat's observance as even altering our trip plans by a day would have made our visit quite a bit easier.  Anyway, we ended the day sharing a loaded kosher potato from The Patata over in the shuk and then collapsed for the evening.  Body clocks are still a bit off.