Israel – Jerusalem (Part 3)
After an early start as we needed to disembark from the Royal Caribbean Rhapsody of the Seas by 7am (see Israel part 2) we headed to the station. Located very conveniently right next door to the ship. We managed to buy one-way tickets to Jerusalem for about £20 from the very helpful and good English-speaking lady at the ticket desk. Then waited about 5 mins for the train to arrive for our 2-hour journey to Jerusalem via Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv where we changed trains (and made use of the Wi-Fi while we waited for about 5 mins). The journey was interesting with sea on one side and passing a few towns/cities on the other side. There were a lot of young people in uniform, Israel still has national service. There were also older soldiers with machine guns, something I’ve not come across on a commuter train to London before.
Once we got to Jerusalem our hotel was about 10 min walk along the min Jaffa Road towards the famous Machane Yehuda Market. We checked in about 11am and lucky for us our room was ready. It was basic hotel with a car theme. Our bed was a car bed frame. We then dumped our luggage and headed off to the market in search of food.
The market was really interesting and busy. It was a mix of everything from fruit, butchers, fish mongers, spices, tahini stalls, restaurants, bars and lots more.
Then headed toward Jerusalem old town. I don’t think I was quite prepared for Jerusalem, but it totally blew my mind. So, I grew up going to Sunday School and attend church annually at the Carol Service, but I wouldn’t say I am overly religious but … I know all the stories about Jerusalem, Jesus, Mary, Herod, Bethlehem, Nazareth, the dead sea etc. but to actually see the place and to realise that they do exist or thereabouts is pretty amazing. We arrived in the Old city and had a couple of hours tour with an old but knowledgeable guide. He whisked us around on a whirl wind tour of just about everything. We saw the wailing wall, where Jesus had the last supper, where Jesus is buried, the route where Jesus carried the cross etc. It was fascinating. It was also interesting that with every stop with another interesting story that we were told “here was where Jesus had the last supper” and then trailed off with “or somewhere near here”. Obviously with such an old story and written many years after it happened it is hard to be 100% accurate.
We finished our tour with some much-needed lunch, we were starving. We had some humous, falafels and salad … washed down with a delicious cold beer. We then headed back toward our hotel stopping for a couple of refreshments on the way. We got cleaned up and headed out for aperitifs and in search of dinner. We found a lovely place with a bread oven. We then choose an Israeli feast with lots of salad and meats with humous and tahini, so yum!
Back to the hotel for 1 night stay. We then headed out in search of somewhere amazing for our final Israeli breakfast, it didn’t disappoint. A lovely place right by the market with a full Israeli breakfast and Shakshuka. We will miss these. Then the rest of the day to explore the few bits that we missed the previous day. Off to the garden tomb where Jesus was buried and was then resurrected.
Back to our hotel ready to be collected but after 1 last beer in the market and some empanadas to keep us going. Then an evening flight from Tel Aviv to Luton.
Verdict on Jerusalem: Be prepared for information overload, read up on the stories before you go. Great for exploring either with guide (very useful) or with a guidebook. Wear comfortable shoes and appropriate clothing (my husband was wearing shorts so had to borrow a skirt… and no I didn’t get a photo of it!. Again, lovely food in Israel. It was pretty pricey but no where near as expensive as Tel Aviv. A place to tick off the bucket list.
