UNESCO World Heritage Site – Old City of Jerusalem

Jerusalem Flags

Jerusalem. The name evokes visions of life thousands of years ago when the world’s main religions were just taking root. That is exactly why, in 1982, it was inscripted on the UNESCO World Heritage List.

Wow! The old city of Jerusalem is more than impressive, it’s awe-inspiring.

To think three of the world’s major religions, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, view it as a holy place is mind-boggling. The Dome of the Rock holds special importance for all three, since it is the site where Abraham made his sacrifice. The Dome of the Rock is currently under Muslim [...]

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New Friends in Harran

Harran

We drove the 25 kilometers south of Sanliurfa, and very close to the Syrian border, to the town of Harran.  It is well-known for its beehive houses, which have been inhabited for somewhere between 100-200 years.  Made out of mud and hay, they have a conical-shaped roof that does look quite different than any other Turkish home.

Walking into the village from our parking area, we passed some fenced in ruins.  The informational sign told us that we were stumbling past the oldest Islamic University in history, complete with the first mosque and its square tower.

Harran’s landscape consisted [...]

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“Carp” Eh Diem in Sanliurfa

Sanliurfa Carp

 

Feeding the sacred carp at the Baliki Gol.

Sanliurfa is a quaint little city in the southeastern part of the country.  Being smack dab on the silk road, it has been inhabited by all the different types of peoples, with a variety of religions,  that have come through Anatolia for the last ten or so thousands of years.  Even Alexander rode through and conquered the town until it was recaptured and turned into the city of Edessa.  However it became Muslim in the year 639 AD, and today you it is one of the most tradional Muslim cities in Turkey, so [...]

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