If Israel is a complicated country, and it is, then Jerusalem is an intense microcosm of everything that makes the country (or countries, since it’s half Palestine) what it is.
Israel, and especially Jerusalem, is one of those love-it-or-hate-it places, like all the best locations on your travel ‘to do’ list. In my case, I was bitten by the bug, and will always have a passion for the edgy, live-for-today attitude that a sojourn in the so-called ‘Holy Land’ engenders.

For your trip to Jerusalem, the first thing you should buy is a good map. The city has its Jewish markets, Armenian restaurants, Islamic compound, German suburb, Brazilian dance clubs; you name it – people have arrived from all corners from the planet to make a piece of this city their own. And it’s small. If all you have is a weekend, pull on your walking shoes and experience it all.

The obvious place to begin is the Old City. This hilltop has been a city site for 4000 years, and changed ownership innumerable times in that period. A walk around the old city reveals layers of history to satisfy the most particular archaeology buff, and enough cultural curiosities for the most hardened traveler.

My favourite route is through the Damascus Gate and then left at the fork in the path. This route takes you through the tailors, tanners and a string of boisterous cafes to the Muslim quarter, where Jerusalem’s most beautiful icon, the Dome of the Rock, is accessible to the appropriately-dressed. The temple plaza on which this mosque stands still has foundations from when Jesus cast out money changers. Ironically, it’s not a bad place to convert your dollars these days!

When your feet are aching in the evening, and the old city closes its shutters, head half a kilometre east and get a taste of modern Israel. If you prefer to shun the normal tourist haunts, go north from Ben Yehuda street to the Russian Compound. If clubbing’s your thing, you need to be in Tel Aviv, but the funky bars of the Russian Compound, open till 6am or later, are Jerusalem’s very adequate substitute.

Most of all, talk to people. Israelis are always keen to practice their excellent English, and will happily take you under their wing for the evening. And these people know how to party!

In the morning, go back to Damascus Gate and take a bus to the West Bank. A dusty twenty-minute ride after the previous night’s clubbing will make it clear.

Do you love it, or hate it?