Day 8 – Thursday, August 11: Yad Vashem Holocaust Museum & Memorial, City of David, Hezekiah’s Tunnel, Southern Wall Excavations
Today was our first full day in Jerusalem. It was a mix of emotions, as a somber visit to Israel’s Holocaust museum, and a fun experience of walking through Hezekiah’s Tunnel in the City of David in the afternoon. The weather was very pleasant today, with a high in the high 80s, and a cool breeze in the shade.
Yad Vashem – Holocaust Museum & Memorial
As we started at 7:45 (following David’s magical maneuvering of his big bus to get us out of the parking lot of the hotel!), we read from Psalm 137 about how special Jerusalem was to those in Exile in Babylon. Our first stop of the day was Yad Vashem, Israel’s Holocaust Museum and Memorial. It is named after Isaiah 56:5 (“To them I will give within my temple and its walls a memorial and a name…”). We first entered the Valley of the Communities, marking all the towns and cities where Jews were killed throughout Europe. We then heard Shlomo’s testimony about how he lost 12 family members in Vilna, Poland. All total, the Jewish population decreased from 18 million to 12 million because of the Holocaust (it has never regained the loss, with the Jewish world population today around 14 million). We also walked through the Children’s Memorial. 1.5 million children were killed. We also saw many trees planted in dedication too the “Righteous Gentiles” (there were 26,000 of them, including Oscar Schindler, Corri ten Boom, etc…). On our own, we walked through the Museum. It was a somber experience.
City of David/Hezekiah’s Tunnel/Pool of Siloam
We drove back to the area of the Old City and to the City of David excavations just south of the Old City. We saw the excavations where Dr. John dug for over four weeks in 1982. We saw remnants of city walls and houses in “Area G.” We then walked through Warren’s Shaft all the way down to the Gihon Spring. Here, some walked through the “wet” Hezekiah’s Tunnel (1,710 feet long) while others took the “dry” Canaanite tunnel. Both groups converged at the Pool of Siloam where we read John 9 in dramatic fashion. ????
Southern Wall Excavations/Western Wall
From here some in the group climbed up through the Drainage Channel to the SW corner of the Temple Mount (Robinson’s Arch) while others bussed to this spot. Here we saw Herodian pavement and massive stones. Jesus walked on this pavement! On the southern end of the Temple, we sat on the very steps used by Jesus and others. We considered that we now are the temple empowered by God’s Spirit (2 Corinthians 3).
“Today was a mix of emotions, with a somber morning visit to Israel’s Holocaust museum, and a fun adventure of walking through Hezekiah’s Tunnel in the City of David in the afternoon. Walking through this tunnel was one of many highlights this trip so far!”
Jewish Quarter
We walked to the Jewish Quarter next. We then enjoyed meeting and listening to Moshe, an Orthodox Jew who owns (with his brother Dov) a biblical shop called Shorashim.
At the end of the day, we drove back to the hotel. We then wandered off on our own for dinner (this hotel does not serve dinners) and a free evening of exploring on our own or resting.
Day 9 – Friday, August 12: Hike in the Wadi Qelt to the St. George Monastery & Jericho, free afternoon in Jerusalem
