Via Dolorosa

From Voice of America:

Thousands of pilgrims from around the world crowded the narrow cobblestone streets of Jerusalem's walled Old City for the traditional Good Friday procession. Some of them carried large wooden crosses on their shoulders as they walked along the Via Dolorosa, the Way of Sorrows, the route that Jesus is believed to have taken to his crucifixion.

They visited the 14 Stations of the Cross on a warm and sunny spring day, singing hymns, praying and reading passages from the Gospels.

"Being in Jerusalem is like being in the exact place where everything happened, getting to imagine as best as we can, being on the ground that Jesus walked on, where he died on the cross and was risen for our sins," said Jila Sadihi, who came from the U.S. state of Texas. "And it's absolutely amazing. I'm very blessed to be here."

One of the more humorous anecdotes I have from my trip to Israel in 1985 was the sale at souvenier shops of dirt from the Via Dolorosa. Of course, the Via Dolorosa is paved.