MEA 20170215-(35)-Life-in-Jerusalem–The-Tractor.png-Photos
Whether it’s in the Old City of Jerusalem or in any of the many old cities around the world, deliveries of goods and products must travel through narrow and cobbled streets to their respective shop owners. This fully-loaded ‘mini’ tractor takes up more than half the width of the street. Centre-right shows people taking advantage of the seats built into the alcove, which also provide a temporary safe haven for pedestrians who dodge the constant progress of bikes, tractors, carts and even small cars.
Can you also see where the back wheels of this tractor are riding over small ramps, which are commonly seen in narrow lanes of this hilly city. The combination of stairs and ramps allow easy and safe movement of vehicles and pedestrians together. Along the street stretching to the end of the block, we see buildings made from popular Jerusalem Stone, which is also used in many constructions throughout Israel. This stone is said to be one of the most beautiful and meaningful in the world.
For 3,000 years, the city of Jerusalem has been built and rebuilt with Jerusalem Stone. The British, who occupied much of the Middle East and Jerusalem during the first half of the Twentieth Century, initiated a common law which required that this stunning ancient stone be used in the construction of every building, so that the outside walls would give Jerusalem a unique and magnificent appearance. And today, the Israeli government still upholds this building code, so that hotels, department stores, supermarkets, high-rise office buildings, apartments, auditoriums are all faced with this stone.
The stones are naturally multicoloured, ranging from pink to beige to white, and when the setting sun floods the Capital, the lightly coloured stones, create a golden glow which gives rise to the term “Jerusalem of Gold”.