From the rooftop patio of the hotel, I am awed by the beautiful sights of Jerusalem at night! The city light's sparkle over modern Jerusalem! I came on the light rail from the bus station to the hotel a few minutes earlier. The busy Arab markets and slow moving traffic below, plus the lighted towers in every direction, are gorgeous sights. But, my attention is drawn like a magnet to the walls across the street. The walls of The Old City of Jerusalem, over 2 1/2 miles long, with 34 towers, and 8 large gates, are just magical! I can hardly wait to see what is inside!

The Old City (also called East Jerusalem), sits on the original hills of the City of David . The religious significances to the Jewish, Christian, and Muslim religions are just mind boggling! 

The Old city was surrounded by walls and gates built in ancient times, but were rebuilt many times over the centuries due to the many battles for control of Jerusalem! The current walls were built in 1535 when the Ottomans conquered Israel. The walls were rebuilt upon the foundations of the walls constructed during the time of the Second Temple and the later Roman expansion. There are likewise layers of streets beneath the ones you walk on now.

I visited the many religious sites, often more than once. But, there is just too much to include in this entry. I will write about each one later. In this entry I will walk you through the cobblestone streets of this 5,000 year old city! It's a history of battles fueled by love for the place, but hate of the occupants. Wars fought over a city of peace, causing catastrophic destruction followed by dynamic rebuilding!

Kings have ruled over it in honor, while merchants have filled it's streets with goods . Great scholars have studied it and warriors have fought for it! Beggars and slaves have occupied it's alleys and religious pilgrims have traveled from all parts of the earth to admire it!

FOUR QUARTERS EQUAL ONE
Even though there are the 4 "Quarters" in Old Jerusalem, there are no walls or gates separating them. You just walk through the city and suddenly are in a different Quarter. But, you can enter the gate that leads to the part of the city you want to get to, to save time walking! I don't see the locals crossing over the quarters much. Tourists roam around different Quarters, but not the locals! It's the same as in the modern Jerusalem, self-imposed segregation! Jews and Arabs just don't seem to mix.

The Quarters in the city are:
 1. The Jewish Quarter, where the Jewish residents live and the Western (Wailing) Wall is located.
 
2. The Christian Quarter has more than 40 churches, monasteries, and hostels that were built for Christian pilgrims .

3. The Armenian Quarter is the smallest quarter of the Old City. These Christians settled in Jerusalem in the 4th century for religious reasons.

4. The Muslim Quarter is the largest quarter in the old city and includes mosques and the Dome of the Rock.
 

As you make your way through this amazing city, you might hear Christian church bells ringing, the Muslim call to prayer, or the blast from the Jewish ram's-horn trumpet! Maybe one right after the other!

The old city is not a tourist attraction, it is a real city where people live and work! There are about 40,000 residents, mostly Arabs, (only about 4,000 Jews). I think the overwhelming Arab (Muslim) population in Old Jerusalem is a big reason Israel will not agree to dividing Israel into a two (Israel and Palestinian) country. The Old City, because of the population, would go to Palestine .

Inside the city are food markets, clothing stores, medical and dental clinics, barber shops, schools, colleges, churches, bars, hostels, etc. Of course, everything is in ancient, row-style buildings. Not many stand-alone structures. If I had known about the places to stay inside the city, I think I would have enjoyed booking a room here for a few nights!

THE CHRISTIAN QUARTER
To enter the old city, you will need to pass through one of the massive gates. I think of them as "gateways" because there are no doors to close, they are just entrances! If you enter through one, you get a different experience than when you enter through a different one. It depends on what part of the city it leads to.

The first time I went to the city, I walked the 10 minutes up the street, along the city walls, so I could enter at the Jaffa Gate. It's maybe considered the main gate to the Old City. It seems this is the gate tourists enter through mostly . It leads to the Jewish and Christian quarters, and most tourist come to visit the Holy Sites in these quarters.

Just inside the Jaffa Gate is the Tower of David, a citadel. it has a museum and good video covering the history of old Jerusalem.

Once inside Jaffa Gate, you can choose the direction to walk through the narrow cobblestoned streets, crowded with colorful markets and eateries! You can visit any parts of the city and exit through any gate. But, you would, of course, come out in a different area of Jerusalem from where you entered (important if your car or bus is parked there!).

This is the gate closest to the Christian and Jewish Quarters. The Wailing Wall is the main place I want to see in the Jewish Quarter. The Christian Quarter is rich in Bible history. Here you will walk the path Jesus walked to Calvary, then visit the hill of Calvary and the tomb! But, those will be discussed in following entries!

THE ARMENIAN QUARTER
 Armenia is a land just east of modern day Turkey . During the 1st century, 2 Christian apostles, Bartholomew and Thaddeus, came to share the faith. It took about 200 years for the people to change from paganism to Christianity. They have been in Old Jerusalem since around 300 A.D. when Armenia became the first country to adopt Christianity as a national religion and Armenian monks settled in Jerusalem.

The main reason they jave a separate quarter from the Christian Quarter is because they have a distinct, different, language and culture. They are neither Arab nor Palestinian, but are considered Palestinian by both Israel and the U.N. 
 
You can reach The Armenian Quarter through either Zion Gate or Jaffa Gate. It has a population of about 2,500. It is bordered by David Street along the Christian Quarter and Habad Street of the Jewish Quarter.  

In the next entry, I will discuss the next two Quarters, The Jewish Quarter and The Muslim Quarter!

NEXT: "City of Peace?" Part II