Palm Sunday on the Mount of Olives

It was amazing the number of people who participated in the Palm Sunday procession from Bethphage to St. Anne's Church in the Old City. We expected a crowd and were told that usually 10,000 plus people show up and even though we saw only those around us, I believe it is entirely possible they are correct. There were people from all over the world singing songs in their own language, some waving their country's flag, others carrying religious pictures and of course most everyone carried either a palm or olive branch. We walked to the Mount of Olives from our apartment - I'm sure it was at least 20 miles - and this is where we picked up the procession. We actually saw several people we knew from CFI and ended up walking with and talking to a group of Americans from Kansas here on a tour. It was a once in a life time experience to be here for that walk down Palm Sunday Road.

This is a view of the Old City from Dominus Flevit at the Mt. of Olives

The Procession

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The huge Jewish cemetary on the Mt. of Olives

The Garden of Gethsemane

At the Damascus Gate/Arab quarter

I hadn't really though about the variety of pictures that I posted but it is so indicative of Jerusalem ...Christians, Jews and Muslims all bunched together in this incredible city that everyone loves.