Old City Tour

After a fantastic lunch at Humus Talpiot (Kubbe soup, humus with meat, french fries, bottomless pita) we walked to the Old City for a tour that Jon had seen advertised on an events calendar online. We assumed that since the tour was organized by the Society for the Protection of Nature it would somehow be connected to the natural world. Maybe centering on plant life indigenous to the area? Maybe about efforts taken by the residents and visitors to the Old City to keep it environmentally friendly? While not quite endless, there were many possibilities for interesting tours.

When we showed up, we found three senior citizens standing with an even older gentleman, who was wearing the khaki hat of the society. We were later joined by a woman in her mid-40s, but that did little to ease our discomfort. We asked the guide how long the tour would take, and he responded two hours, but once we set out we realized that most of that time would be taken up by walking slowly and carefully from place to place, with lots of rests in the shade.

In the end the tour had nothing to do with nature at all, but instead took us from Jaffa Gate to Mount Zion, with the guide pointing out all sorts of interesting items at our sides. Sure, the tour was largely without explanations, had no historical references, and time was measured in terms of "older" and "younger" with no specifics at all, but we were shown an array of places and monuments whose existence we'd never have known of otherwise. Several archaeological sites were visited, in addition to David's tomb, the Diaspora Yeshiva, and views of nearby Churches whose locations have New Testament significance. As we imagine most tours for Seniors are, this one was relaxing, interesting, and a pleasant way to spend an afternoon.