Jerusalem Day – 45 Years United

The list of events that took place in Jerusalem

on Yom Yerushalayim, Jerusalem Day, is too long to print.

"Har Hazesim photo","picture buses", "photo Yom Yerushalayim"

Thousands of people traveled by bus,

"photo bide ride","image bikes" , "picture Yom Yerushalayim"

hundreds rode bikes in from Gush Eztion

"photo flag parade","Image crowd flag parade","Picture Jerusalem"

and tens of thousands marched in the annual Flag Dance parade.

"picture Jerusalem streets", "photo Jerusalem", "image Jerusalem"

Jerusalem was a traffic nightmare with many sudden street closings.

"image Segway","photo jerusalems

 A Segway was one way to get through the sidewalk traffic.

With so many lectures, tours and varied activities available now,

people tend to forget that from 1948-1967, 

the Old City and the Kotel, the Western Wall, were under Jordanian rule.

 Jerusalem was a small, sleepy town divided by a wall and barbed wire,

a place where some Jews could not even see their former homes. 

"picture Old City walls", "photo soldiers", "Image Jerusalem"

  Jordanian snipers no longer shoot down over No Man’s-Land,

 now Israeli soldiers watch out from the walls of the Old City.

Distances are not so great,

"picture east Jerusalem","photo East Jerusalem", "Image east jerusalem"

and on a clear day Jordan is visible from the promenade of the Tayelet,

"image Al quds","photos Al Quds, "picture Al Quds"

located in an area once mostly agricultural and under British control,

"picture Al Quds", "photo Jerusaelm" "image Old City'

 but now famous for its view of the Old City Walls.

On Yom Yerushalayim I went on a walking tour of the area.

"photo UN building", "image UN Jerusalem" "picture Jerusalem"

We saw the United Nations headquarters 

'picture Jerusalem", "photo Tolerance monument","image Tolerance"

and a Monument of Tolerance.

How ironic that it was dedicated rather quietly,

around the time that 8 Mercaz Harav students were murdered.

To get to the center of Jerusalem, 

"picture Flags", "photo Flag dance","image Jerusalem"

where thousands of boys

"picture girls dancing", "image Jerusalem","photo flags"

and girls filled the streets singing and dancing,

I passed through the Liberty Bell Park.

"picture Arab girls", "photo Arab girls", "image Arab girls"

   Arab women and families who ignored PA-issued warnings 

were there as usual enjoying the pleasant weather.

"picture Jerusalem street", "photo Jerusalem", "image parade"

Tens of thousands of people filled the Jerusalem streets.

"picture Jerusalem flag", "photo large flag","image Jerusalem street"

Not all were religious, not all were teens, not all had Israeli flags,

and not one fired a weapon.

While I do not condone their bad behavior,

a statistically insignificant number of trouble-makers at Damascus Gate

 got the mainstream media attention.

 I would like to share with you a few scenes you may not have seen.

"picture Israeli soldiers","photo Israeli soldiers", "image Israeli soldiers"

 Mamilla Mall was packed with crowds coming and going to Jaffa Gate.

"picture Hurva" "photo Rova", "IMAGE old city"

Music and dancing filled the Rova, The Jewish Quarter plaza,

in front of the Hurva Synagogue, which in 1948 

was completely destroyed by the Jordanians and recently rebuilt.

"picture Kosel", "photo Al Quds","image Wailing Wall"

The Plaza near the Kotel, the Western Wall,

was full of people even before the Flag Parade arrived.

"picture Al Quds","image Wailing Wall", "photo sign"

Remember 

from 1948-1967

" photo Jaffa Gate", "image girls", "picture Old City Walls"

 the plaza outside Jaffa Gate was not a safe place.

"picture Jerusalem street", "Photo Jerusalem","image Yemin Moshe"

Families did not stroll in the Yemin Moshe neighborhood.

"picture flag","photo Jerusalem street", "image Israeli flag"

Walking around The Old City Walls was impossible.

"picture east Jerusalem","photo Jerusalem" ,"image Jerusalem"

Jordanian east Jerusalem was off-limits. 

"picture Israeli flag", "photo sunset", "image Jerusalem"

The sun was setting after a beautiful Jerusalem spring day.

Then the party moved to Gan Sacher, Sacher Park

where live music blared all night for a crowd of thousands,

oh…and what a Sleepless Night it was:

Jerusalem Day  #45

More photos The Real Jerusalem Streets Facebook page

12 thoughts on “Jerusalem Day – 45 Years United

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.