Ok, that came a bit earlier than expected. Thought I wouldn’t be back in Germany before some time 2016… Leaving Jerusalem went smoothly this morning. The shared taxi picked me up right in front of the hostel and after a little sightseeing tour across the city, dropped me off at Terminal 1. Pre-Checkin-Security was curious about my Moroccan entry stamp but didn’t bother with asking me any questions about my stay in Israel.

Made it to the Temple Mount more in time today. Nobody checked my passport and the camera bag was only given a brief view. Nothing compare to yesterdays scrutiny. Guess security varies with daily form around here. Once inside, the sight that immediately draws the eye is the Dome of the Rock with its golden roof. From what I could figure (not really my field of expertise), the mount is predominantly a Muslim holy site and other religions are accepted but not necessarily welcome.

Having spent the early afternoon dozing (I blame the heat and the noise), I wanted to be a little more active afterwards and went to see Jerusalem from above. Well not really from above but at least from high up. Mount of Olives is the go-to destination for that and hostel staff recommended to take a Palestinian bus up there. Those leave from the Arab bus station that serves East Jerusalem and the West Bank.

After another 5h ride through the desert, I arrived in Jerusalem in the late afternoon. Spent the afternoon having a first look at the old part of the city. Brought back memories of Bangkok and similar places - loads and loads of tourists and shops to accommodate them. That being said, there are also more quiet residential areas within the walls of the old city. The evening was a little more relaxed, met up with a local couchsurfer, Eran, to visit an art show (music, still, performing, …) in the city.

Turkish Airlines have a cool feature that allows customer to book multi-destinations flights to rates similar to those of return flights. Or in other words, Bremen - Tel Aviv - Stuttgart costs about the same as a return flight from Stuttgart. That’s one train ticket saved. Turkish’s reputation is rather solid and I had heard no complaints so far. Boarding in Bremen was pretty much on time, albeit a little unorganised.

This “through the desert” is historically a big thing around here. But don’t know about the details, not very firm on my bible studies. My trip started at the central bus station in Jerusalem and led straight through the hills of Jerusalem into the desert. The area is not exactly hospitable but in the beginning isn’t devoid of a certain beauty. That wears off after the first 2-3 hours though.