The Old City of Jerusalem is truly exceptional, not only for its history and architecture, but also (and for me mainly) for its unique mixture of people incomparable to anywhere elso in the world. Numerous Jewish, Christian and Muslim groups have their share in Jerusalem. The number of languages you hear on the street is puzzling (exclduing those spoken by tourists). Among the tradtional inhabitants are Palestinians, Jews, Gypsies, African Muslims from Sudan and Chad, Armenians and Greeks.

Visiting Jerusalem is not a simple matter since many of its attractions are hidden and not well adopted for tourism.

An interesting fact about Jerusalem's sacral monuments is that most of them are surprisingly quite new. Within its walls there are as far as I know only four old mosques (Al Aqsa, Dome of the Rock, Umar and the Tankasiyya Madrasa), four old churches (The Holy Sepulcher, Armenian Cathedral, Syriac church and St. Anna) and two old synagogues (Ramban and Karaite Synagogue). The rest is mostly from the time 1850-1930, which is remarkable for such an old city. All of these sacral buidlings are possible to visit with the exception of Umar. Many of the secular houses, however, are much older (a fine example is the Tunshuq Palace).

The Armenian Cathedral has very limited visiting times (15-15.30 daily). In order to enter the Ramban synagogue you more or less need to pretend you are about to pray there but then you can just take a fast glimpse of the building and disappear. Nearby you can find the Hurva Synagogue which is now being restored. At St Anna Church you can also visit some Roman archaeological excavations just outside the church. Not all of the above mentioned sacral monuments are found on the official maps so try to find out ahead where you would like to go.

There are several interesting archaeological museums and sites in the old city most of which situated in the Jewish Quarter or around it and are closed on Saturdays: the Burnt House (only with a guide - come till 1600), Wohl Museum - Herodian Quarter (until 1600 too), the Western Wall Tunnels (reservation required), City of David - Siluan, Davidson Archaeological Park (the Ophel) - Robinson's Arch, the Cardo (always open), the Israelite Tower (now under reconstruction), The Tower of David and the remains of Jerusalem from the time of the First Temple (always open). Just outside the old city be sure to visit the Rockefeller Museum, Zidkiya Cave and the Tomb of the Kings (in possession of France - reservation required). The Khadiyya Library is unfortunately closed for visitors at the moment but will probably be reopened next year. The historical markets are impressive (the Cotton Market and Muristan are among the most beautiful ones). Don't miss them. Some interesting monuments are located on the slopes of Mount of Olives (Kidron Valley) including Yad Avshalom and Rehabam's Tomb which is exceptionally beautiful. They are well worth a visit.

Jerusalem is known for its political tentions so make sure you look like tourists when visiting the city. Don't hang around on your own in the darkness or in small isolated alleys with noone around you. Don't go where policemen tell you not to go.

The centre of Arab Jerusalem is just outside the Damascus Gate. For the centre of Jewish Jerusalem go to Nahlat Shivaa. Don't miss the Chagall Windows at the Ein Karem Hospital, the Knesset, Yad VaShem Holocaust Memorial Museum and Israel Museum with the Shrine of the Book where th Dead Sea Scrolls are exhibited. Most monasteries in Jerusalem are not open to visitors. The Monastery of the Cross which was built by the Georgians in the Middle Ages is an exception and it feauteres some nice murals.