Lessons Learned from the Darkened Recesses of Hezekiah's Tunnel:Lesson 1: Water from a spring is either frightfully cold or disturbingly hot. There is no temperature in between, tepid or lukewarm, when water flows naturally out of the ground.
Lesson 2: Dark caves and tunnels have little to no natural light. When there is no natural light, the water does not heat up; it stays cold.
Lesson 2: Dark caves and tunnels have little to no natural light. When there is no natural light, the water does not heat up; it stays cold.
Lesson 3: When a tunnel is chiseled in a hurry, the space between walls is often narrow and low. Frequent duckage (literally meaning "hunched-over positions of the body occurring at random frequency and considerable length spans") is likely to occur.
Lesson 4: When a tunnel dates back to 720 B.C. and when thousands (if not millions) of visitors have entered the tiny space, the tunnel is likely to be filled with a not-quite-so-sweet aroma.
Lesson 5: Turning off flashlights in the middle of the tunnel's darkness can be both amusing and loud as fellow interns' screams echo off the walls.
We took a brief leave of absence from our internship responsibilities this morning to visit Hezekiah's Tunnel in the City of David. To get to the tunnel (which contains the water flowing from the Gihon Spring), we first traveled through Warren's Shaft. 
This shaft reminded me of Carlsbad Caverns, minus the stalagmites. It is a larger space with comfortable and easy to climb steel staircases and warm yellow lighting ensconced in "old" urns. As it turns out, Warren's Shaft is actually nothing like Hezekiah's Tunnel at all.
This shaft reminded me of Carlsbad Caverns, minus the stalagmites. It is a larger space with comfortable and easy to climb steel staircases and warm yellow lighting ensconced in "old" urns. As it turns out, Warren's Shaft is actually nothing like Hezekiah's Tunnel at all. The story goes that in 720 B.C., King Hezekiah demanded a secret underground tunnel diverting the Gihon Spring (the main water source) to be built beneath the City of David (Jerusalem) in fear of an imminent Assyrian siege. 
The Assyrians didn't conquer Jerusalem that year, but the Babylonians did 100 years later. The tunnel was almost forgotten about, until re-discovered a few decades ago. The entire place is actually really cool...and really wet...and really really dark. Because it diverts the flow of the spring, and because the spring still flows, there is in fact cold water running through the tunnel at an almost comfortable knee-high depth. However, because it was a sweltering 100 degrees outside, the coolness of the tunnel was a welcome change. Other than this, there really isn't much to say about the tunnel. The experience can be described in four words: dark, wet, narrow, FUN.
The Assyrians didn't conquer Jerusalem that year, but the Babylonians did 100 years later. The tunnel was almost forgotten about, until re-discovered a few decades ago. The entire place is actually really cool...and really wet...and really really dark. Because it diverts the flow of the spring, and because the spring still flows, there is in fact cold water running through the tunnel at an almost comfortable knee-high depth. However, because it was a sweltering 100 degrees outside, the coolness of the tunnel was a welcome change. Other than this, there really isn't much to say about the tunnel. The experience can be described in four words: dark, wet, narrow, FUN.
When you come to Israel, bring your flashlight, shorts and Chacos for this B.C. version of a water park.
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