Old City of Jerusalem

🇮🇱-３ In #Jerusalem, in addition to the cultural tour of the Old City, which enriched the soul, the New City brought another level of experience. Jerusalem is a city of contrasts. People of different cultures, religions, nationalities, societies and classes coexist in the same city; the east and west of the city are completely different, and their development levels vary greatly. West Jerusalem west of the Jaffa Gate in the Old City is the core area of ​​modern Israel, while the Old City and East Jerusalem to the east, north and south are mainly inhabited by Arabs. I walked from #Jaffa Gate along Ben Yehuda Street to #Shuk Mahane Yehuda, which is now the bustling triangle area of ​​the new city. What is very special is that as far as the eye can see, there are almost only buildings of one color, which is the color represented by Jerusalem stone, full of harmonious and simple tones. The reason is that since the British Mandate of Palestine, all new buildings have been built with Jerusalem stone. Although this regulation increased the cost of construction, Jerusalem stone brought another layer of nostalgia for the temple to the city.
 Before leaving for #Israel, I had heard that the current consumption is very high and is increasing year by year. In fact, I took a trip there and found that it was really true. For example, a PET bottle at a convenience store is 10ILS = 87TWD, and a pita bread (filled with vegetables, chickpea balls, etc.) at a roadside stall is 22ILS = 191TWD. In addition, there is a departure tax + handling fee of 203ILS=1766TWD. In my "personal" opinion, the reason why the cost is so high may be due to Israel's defense budget. The famous Iron Dome defense system costs 50 million US dollars, and each missile costs 20,000 US dollars. As the only Jewish state surrounded by Arab countries, it has to invest more defense resources to protect its own people, not to mention the recent frequent missile attacks from Gaza and even the threats from Yemen and Hezbollah in Lebanon. There is a saying that the Palestinians launch some cheap homemade missiles mainly to consume Israel’s resources so that other Arab countries that support them behind the scenes will have a better chance to deal with Israel. Finally, I think Israel is a country that is really worth a look. In addition to its long history and culture, it also has novel scientific and technological innovation capabilities. In addition, the strong national character of the whole nation is even more moving. For example, in this Israel-Pakistan conflict, Israel mobilized 300,000 reserve troops, but in the end only 360,000 came, accounting for 120%. Under this dire situation, we can see them on the streets making every effort for the country, hoping that everything will develop for the better and the world will be peaceful and friendly. *When I entered the Israeli checkpoint, I was actually quite nervous because I was the only Asian face I saw. As expected, I was checked first when my luggage was checked. Then when I was going through customs, I was taken to a small room by the immigration officer for questioning. He asked a lot of questions, including "work, where you live, beliefs, do you know the current situation..." Fortunately, I was able to pass through customs smoothly in the end. In addition, if you have been to Israel, you may be denied entry into its hostile Middle Eastern countries, such as Iran and Lebanon. ． ． Therefore, Israel will not stamp entry and exit stamps on passports, but will issue a small blue card for entry and a small pink card for exit.