Jerusalem of Gold

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Not too much has been going on here. I've been walking to the beach and reading and studying there. It's really relaxing there- we found a restaurant on the beach that has couches that are long enough to lounge on, and we go there and get a drink and read and relax.
Yesterday our program took us to Jerusalem for the day. It was about 15 degrees colder than it had been the day before and it rained on and off all day. We went to the Kotel and around the Western Wall where it meets the southern end and talked about a lot of the history of Jerusalem that we talked about on Birthright and in my Ancient Israel class. Then we went to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, where we saw graffiti from the time of the Crusaders, making their marks with the 14th century date to prove they had been there. I hadn't been in the Christian quarter before.
Why Jerusalem of Gold? The Dome of the Rock is the goldest building and Jews aren't allowed any closer to it than the Kotel.
I leave for Istanbul tomorrow! Pictures and stories to follow.

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Photos

Near the Western Wall
These rocks are left over from the destruction of the Second Temple in 70 AD.