ENG -- Israel - exploring Jerusalem

Our holiday in Israel started in Jerusalem. Jerusalem is a city that attracts many visitors, whether pilgrims or those who want to discover tourist attractions. In this article we will tell our experience as tourists, and we will write another article with useful information for pilgrims in Jerusalem.

Without knowing that Friday afternoon and Saturday in the first part of the day is Sabbath, we started our holiday on a Friday morning. Fortunately, by 12.00 we have already arrived in Jerusalem, because Friday afternoon after 14.00 public transport, shops and some restaurants are closed until Saturday night or even Sunday morning some of them.

Our accomodation was close to Jerusalem's old fortress, so the Jaffa Gate (the main entrance to the fortress in the past, and also in the present) was just a 10-minute walk away. The name of the gate and the main street of Jerusalem comes from the Jaffa port in Tel Aviv, about which we will write in a following article.

The first tourist attraction that caught our attention after we passed the Jaffa Gate was the Tower of David. Being located at the highest point of the old city, it was used in the past for defense. Currently it can be visited by tourists for a top view of the fortress.

Another gate through which Jerusalem's fortress can be entered directly into the bazaar area is Damascus Gate. There are altogether 8 gates to enter the fortress, built between the 12th and 19th centuries, and 3 other gates built in antiquity, but which are sealed.

In the old town, small shops and restaurants are not affected by the Sabbath celebration. We were surprised to discover that much of the fortress is represented by a labyrinth of bazaars that make you feel you are visiting Turkey or the Arab countries. Very few products had the prices displayed, and the negotiation are the basis of each sales. We were lost several times in the bazaar streets, but we found signs with indications for tourist attractions or friendly people who gave us directions.
As well as in other bazaars, in Jerusalem the final prices are set by negotiations between sellers and buyers. Most buyers know they can get lower prices than those originally required by sellers, but sellers know that buyers know that too☺. Thus, there may be situations when someone to be happy to buy a product at half of the asking price, but at the same time the seller is happy to have sold it at a price 2-3 times higher. For example, for a mini coin-wallet with Oriental motifs inscribed on it, some sellers asked for 20 Shekels (about 5 Euro), and it could be bought after negotiations with 10 Shekels. But on another street of bazaar, the price displayed was 5 Shekels and the seller was willing to offer 3 pieces for 10 Shekels.
Even if in the images below can not be seen, the bazaar streets are very crowded at the peak hours around lunch, being full of tourists looking for souvenirs and also full of groups of pilgrims. We photographed them during the evening, after several unsuccessful attempts during the day when it was impossible to not catch people inside pictures.

With a history of more than 2 millennia, the city of Jerusalem still houses ruins of ancient buildings. Some of them are columns that survived over time, which delimited an old "bazaar" (a commercial street) used by the Romans to sell their merchandise.

Another characteristic of the fortress is that it is divided into four districts: the Muslim quarter (the largest and most populous, including the bazaar's streets), the Christian district (including the Church of the Holy Sepulcher), the Jewish Quarter (with the Western Wall also known as Wailing Wall) and the Armenian Quarter (the smallest, including residential buildings in particular).

Walking down the old city streets we discovered a place where we could climb some roofs from where we had a panoramic view. Because of the labyrinth of the streets, but also because of the time elapsed from our visit until writing this article, we have not been able to identify it on Google maps to offer you the link. It is good to know, however, that the bazaar sellers in the area told us about that place without asking them the next day we passed there and that we also got directions from their side when we needed .

Even if the animation of the old town on Friday evening did not make you to think about the Sabbath, the crowds of people dressed in ceremony clothes heading in the same direction confirmed that the city is celebrating. They all headed for the Wailing Wall to pray. We were surprised that women and men are separated from a fence, so their access to the wall is done separately.
During Sabbath prayers, to take photo of those who pray to the wall is forbidden, but locals also use the area for celebrating events such as Bar Mizvah when professional photographers are employed and there are no restrictions for tourists. We took the picture below on a day when there was no event around the wall.
Beyond the Wailing Wall (or the Western Wall as it is called), there is the Temple Mount with Dome of the Rock, one of the most important religious sites for Islam, where tourists' access is limited to zones and hourly intervals which are not reserved for prayers.

Jerusalem is associated with religion, but the city does not just mean that. The modern area of ​​the city is full of life. When we arrived, there were street shows, and nothing makes you thinking about of the silence that was about to take place with the beginning of the Sabbath. Apart from walking down in the old city, you can visit the Mahane Yehuda Market (where you can find plenty of spices, sweets, fresh or candied fruits, vegetables, peanuts) or Mamilla Alrov, a pedestrian street where shops and restaurants can be found.
Young locals take every opportunity to celebrate in public through music and dance, as can be seen in the videos below:

You can also read about our First Impressions in Israel or about our trip to Dead Sea.

Thank you for reaching the end of the article. In order to be informed when we publish new articles on this site, but also to see posts that are only on facebook, we invite you to like our facebook page by accessing this link: Doi plimbareti.

Israel - turism in Ierusalim

Vacanta in Israel am inceput-o in Ierusalim. Ierusalim este un oras care atrage numerosi vizitatori, fie ca este vorba de pelerini, fie ca este vorba despre cei care doresc sa descopere obiective turistice. In acest articol vom povesti depre experienta noastra ca turisti, urmand sa scriem un alt articol cu informatii utile pentru cei care fac pelerinaje in Ierusalim.

Fara sa stim ca vineri dupa amiaza si sambata in prima parte a zilei este Sabat, ne-am inceput vacanta intr-o dimineata de vineri. Din fericire, pana in ora 12.00 am ajuns deja in Ierusalim, pentru ca vineri dupa ora 14.00 mijloacele de transport in comun, magazinele si unele restaurante sunt inchise pana sambata seara sau chiar duminica dimineata unele dintre ele.

Noi ne-am cazat aproape de cetatea veche a Ierusalimului, asa ca poarta Jaffa (principala intrare in cetate atat in trecut cat si in prezent) era la doar 10 minute de mers pe jos. Numele portii, dar si al principalei strazi din Ierulasim vine de la portul Jaffa din Tel Aviv, despre care vom scrie intr-un articol urmator. 

Primul obiectiv turistic care ne-a atras atentia dupa ce am trecut de Poarta Jaffa a fost Turnul lui David. Fiind situat in punctul cel mai inalt al orasului vechi, acesta era folosit in trecut pentru aparare. In prezent poate fi vizitat de catre turisti pentru o privire de sus a cetatii.

O alta poarta prin care se poate intra in cetatea Ierusalimului, direct in zona de bazar, este poarta Damascului. In total exista 8 porti prin care se poate intra in cetate, construite intre secolele 12 si 19, si alte 3 porti construite in antichitate, dar care sunt sigilate.

In orasul vechi, micile magazine si restaurante nu sunt afectate de sarbatoarea Sabatului.  Am fost suprinsi sa descoperim ca mare parte din cetate este reprezentata de un labirint de bazaruri care te duc mai degraba cu gandul la Turcia sau la tarile arabe. Foarte putine produse aveau preturile afisate, iar negocierea statea la baza fiecarei vanzari. Ne-am ratacit de cateva ori printre stradutele din bazar, dar am gasit placute cu indicatii catre atractiile turistice sau oameni prietenosi care ne-au oferit indicatii.

La fel ca in alte bazaruri, si in Ierusalim preturile finale erau stabilite in urma negocierilor dintre vanzatori si cumparatori. Cei mai multi cumparatori stiu ca pot obtine preturi mai mici decat cele care le sunt cerute initial de catre vanzatori, dar si vanzatorii stiu ca si cumparatorii stiu asta ☺. Astfel, pot exista situatii cand cineva pleaca multumit ca a cumparat un produs la jumatate din pretul cerut, dar in acelasi timp vanzatorul sa fie multumit ca l-a vandut la un pret de 2-3 ori mai mare. De exemplu, pentru un mini-portofel pentru monezi, cu motive orientale inscriptionate pe el, unii vanzatori cereau 20 Shekeli (aproximativ 20 Ron), si putea fi cumparat dupa negocieri la 10 Shekeli. Dar, pe o alta straduta a bazarului, pretul afisat era de 5 Shekeli si vanzatorul era dispus sa ofere 3 bucati pentru 10 Shekeli.

Chiar daca in imaginile de mai jos nu se poate vedea, strazile din bazar sunt foarte aglomerate la orele de varf din jurul pranzului, fiind intesate atat cu turisti in cautare de suveniruri, cat si cu grupuri de pelerini. Noi le-am fotografiat in timpul serii, dupa mai multe incercari nereusite din timpul zilei cand era imposibil sa nu intre cineva in cadru.

Avand o istorie de peste 2 milenii, cetatea Ierusalimului gazduieste inca ruine ale constructiilor antice. Unele dintre ele sunt coloane care au supravietuit in timp, si care delimitau un vechi "bazar" (o strada comerciala) folosita de romani pentru a-si vinde marfurile. 

O alta particularitate a cetatii o reprezinta faptul ca este impartita in patru cartiere: cartierul musulman (cel mai mare ca suprafata si cel mai populat, din care fac parte inclusiv stradutele bazarului), cartierul crestin (care include si Biserica Sfantului Mormant), cartierul evreiesc (cu Zidul Plangerii) si cartierul armenesc (cel mai mic, incluzand in special cladiri rezidentiale).

Plimbandu-ne pe stradutele vechii cetati am descoperit si un loc in care ne-am putut urca pe niste acoperisuri de unde am avut parte de o privire panoramica. Din cauza labiritului de stradute, dar si din cauza timpului scurs de la vizita noastra pana la scrierea acestui articol, nu am mai reusit sa il identificam pe Google maps pentru a va oferi linkul. Este bine de stiut, insa, ca vanzatorii din bazar din zona ne-au spus despre acel loc fara sa ii intrebam, in a doua zi cand am trecut pe acolo si ca noi am obtinut indicatii de orientare si din partea lor cand am avut nevoie.

Daca animatia din orasul vechi de vineri seara nu te ducea cu gandul la Sabat, multimile de oameni imbracati de sarbatoare care se indreptau in aceeasi directie iti confirmau faptul ca orasul e in sarbatoare. Cu totii se indreptau spre Zidul Plangerii pentru a se ruga. Am fost surprinsi de faptul ca femeile si barbatii erau separati de un gard, astfel incat accesul lor la zid sa se faca separat.

In timpul rugaciunilor de Sabat fotografiatul celor care se roaga la zid este interzis, dar localnicii folosesc zona si pentru a sarbatori diverse evenimente cum ar fi Bar Mizvah, cand sunt angajati fotografi profesionisti si cand nu exista restrictii pentru turisti. Noi am facut fotografia de mai jos intr-o zi in care nu era nici un eveniment in jurul zidului.
Dincolo de Zidul Plangerii (sau Zidul de Vest cum mai este numit), se afla Muntele Templului cu Dome of the Rock (Cupola Stancii), unul dintre cele mai importante locuri religioase pentru islam, unde accesul turistilor este limitat la zone si intervale orare in care nu sunt rugaciuni.

Ierusalimul este asociat cu religia, dar orasul nu inseamna doar asta. Zona noua a orasului este plina de viata. Cand am ajuns erau spectacole stradale si nimic nu te ducea cu gandul la linistea ce urma sa se astearna odata cu inceputul Sabatului. In afara de plimbari prin oras, puteti vizita piata Mahane Yehuda unde veti gasi o multime de mirodenii, dulciuri, fructe proaspte sau confiate, legume, alune sau Mamilla Alrov, o strada pietonala unde se gasesc magazine si restaurante.
Tinerii localnici profita de orice ocazie pentru a sarbatori in public prin muzica si dans, dupa cum se poate vedea si in videoclipurile de mai jos:

Va multumim ca ati ajuns pana la finalul articolului. Pentru a fi informati cand publicam noi articole pe acest site, dar si pentru a vedea postarile care sunt doar pe facebook, va invitam sa dati like paginii noastre de facebook accesand linkul : Doi plimbareti.