Daily Archives: December 27, 2022

This evening after some really good pizza, we headed back into the Old City, to the Western Wall.  There are 3 different underground tours you can take there.  We had tickets for one at 8:00 down along the base of … Continue reading →

From Gethsemane, we walked down the Kidron Valley, back towards the Old City, but staying without the walls, we went north to the Garden Tomb, another traditional site of Jesus’s burial.  There is no absolute evidence that this tomb held … Continue reading →

Here are the beautiful gardens on the Mount of Olives, planted in memory of Elder Orson Hyde, Here is an interesting article about him and the dedicatory prayer he offered here more than 180 years ago: https://www.thechurchnews.com/2021/10/24/23217440/orson-hyde-dedicated-jerusalem-holy-land-180-years What Elder Orson … Continue reading →

This is the traditional site of the Garden of Gethsemane.  The word Gethsemane means ”oil press” and there are twenty-three very old olive trees here. The oldest tree in the garden has been carbon dated to 1092, a date almost coincidental … Continue reading →

Next we climbed the Mt of Olives again. On the way we visited The Church of the Tomb of Mary in a church down underground. It felt very Catholic/Orthodox with hanging lanterns and incense burning. Went down old stone steps … Continue reading →

The Pools at Bethesda are one of my favorite places to visit.  The excavations here are surrounded by grounds with gardens and old trees with birds in their branches.  It was peaceful and quiet when we visited and thought about … Continue reading →

The Chapel of the Flagellation was open today so we went inside to see the beautiful artwork depicting the crown of thorns placed on Jesus’s head before he was crucified. This was a beautiful chapel near where the Antonia Fortress … Continue reading →