Herodian Jerusalem

So...we're done with all the major fieldtrips of the year and now we're having official ones in the city. It seems weird to be doing fieldtrips in our own stomping ground, but we've seen some really cool stuff.

The other day we visited the Davidson Archeological Park by the Temple Mount and saw some amazing things from Herod's temple, and the Hamonean and Ummayid periods. These stones are from Herod's temple. The road underneath is all broken up from having all the stones pushed onto it.
One thing that surprised me about Jerusalem was that the city at the time of Jesus is now pretty far underground. So far, we've only been in a few spots where Christ maybe walked. This area is the original exit of the temple, so it's the one spot that they're pretty sure Jesus walked on. In fact, when Neal Armstrong visited Jerusalem, he said he had heard of a lot of places where Jesus might have been, but he wanted to be taken to one spot where He definitely was. This is where they brought him. While there he said that he would give up his walk on the moon for his walk here at the site of the temple.
On the steps up to the temple. The double and triple gates that once led onto the temple mount have been sealed since the Dome of the Rock was built, but the stairs and some of the other structures surrounding the original temple are still there.
A random, creepy alley in West Jerusalem.
This is the cardo, dating back to 76 CE, which Hadrian built in an attempt to make Jerusalem a mini-Rome. This was right after school got out, so all the kids took it over. One of the things that I love most about Jerusalem is that the people are always hanging out on these structures that are thousands of years old and they don't even seem to notice. Actually, I think I'm starting to do the same thing.



On this trip, we spent our walking-around time coming up with a list of "You Know You've Been in Jerusalem Too Long When". Here are a few.



You know you've been in Jerusalem too long when...

...you're shocked to see people holding hands.

...you wish you had more free time so you could really delve into "Josephus."

...you start calling your professors "Rabbi."

...you dream you are Mariamne, the Hasmonean princess wife of Herod.

...your humor can only be understood by people who have studied the Bible Dictionary extensively.

...anything built in AD seems like it shouldn't be taught in an ancient near eastern studies class.