Jun 9, 2010

Hezekiah’s Tunnel

And the Pools of Siloam

By Lisa T. Bergren

Heading to Israel with kids? You gotta add this Indiana Jones-ish excursion to your itinerary. The City of David is to Jerusalem what the island of Torcello is to Venice — the ancient sites from which each grand city was born. David came to this Jebusite stronghold in 1000 BC, and sneaking through the tunnels that brought water to her inhabitants, conquered her.

We wanted to check out King Hezekiah’s feat of engineering, the tunnel that brought water from one end of the city to the other (2 Chronicles 32:30, 2 Kings 20:20), and to take the unique tour. I think the guys wanted to imagine themselves in David’s place, sneaking through the ancient waterway on their way to battle.

We wound our way out of Jaffa Gate and past the lines of air-conditioned tour buses, then took a right down the street that follows the western edge of the Kidron Valley. In about two blocks’ walk, we were at the center, along with a whole lot of school children. It felt like the Israeli equivalent of Memorial Day, with a bazillion school-age kids about (and guardians casually carrying weapons). Apparently, this was the place to be.

We purchased tickets that included an intro movie, and waited for the English version to come ’round. Taking uber-cool 3D glasses (see photo above) from a bin, we joined a group of kids and smiled as they screeched through the 3D effects. (The movie was a bit hokey but decent, and helped bring home the deep history of the place, especially for kids.) With its perennial water source from the Gihon Spring, the traditional site of Mt. Moriah (2 Chronicles 3:1) right above, its central location among the tribes, and its highly defensible location, this was prime territory for a new capital for the ancient Jews. It’s little wonder that David coveted it.

After the movie, we moved down the stairs, and more stairs, and eventually entered the cold, spring water (that can reach as high as an adult’s thigh) and the cramped tunnel, often shoulder-width or narrower.

This is not a tour for the overly tall nor the claustrophobic. Much like traffic on a highway, there are times that you are in water, stooped over, stuck until those before you move, and with a long line of people behind you. In places you hunch (I’m 5’10″) for quite a while. The 6’4″ man behind me felt like he was on his hands and knees in places. In other places the tunnel is high, following a natural fissure. The water is only deep up front, and then it’s as high as your calves, for the most part. There’s a billboard where you buy tickets where kids can check their height against the water level.

All along the way, the marks of the ancient digging tools were visible. Apparently, Hezekiah’s engineers set two digging crews to work from opposite ends, guiding them by making sounds that carried through the rock; halfway through, the two tunnels met up. There was once an inscription in the wall commemorating the meet-up; if it’s still there today, I missed it. Perhaps it was removed and sent to a museum. Or perhaps I was thinking, just get me through and failed to notice it. I struggle with a bit of claustrophobia myself.

The old Bedouin man who used to guard the entry to this place, my cousin tells me, used to sell candles to light the way. But candles are no longer allowed. I envisioned the groups of giggling, excited schoolchildren all carrying flames and was glad that the current museum operators had moved to flashlights.

It was hot and steamy in the tunnel, so we were glad to be standing in cold, fresh, streaming water. I think they’ve added a texture to the bottom to prevent slipping. None in our party of ten ever fell or even lost their balance.

At the end of about a 10-20 minute turn through the tunnel (depends on human traffic), we emerged at the traditional Pool of Siloam, but farther on, down another set of stairs, we could see part of a massive pool from the Second Temple period, partially uncovered. This was more likely the site of Jesus’ ancient healing of the blind man (John 9:1-11).

Outside, on the street, there were no shuttle buses, as there were rumored to be, and as we did on so many days in Israel, we sighed, shrugged, took a sip of water and began to climb.

Other articles in this Israel Series:

Arriving in Jerusalem

Many thanks to Lisa Donner Strom for her photos; my camera died just as we entered!

Have you been to Jerusalem? What was your favorite stop? Please comment below!