Jerusalem - Abyssinian Monastery

The Abyssinian Monastery in Jerusalem is built over St Helen's Chapel in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. The monks live in separate dwellings which together form a laura (the term for a monastery in the Eastern church). They celebrate the Nativity of Christ on the 24th of every month. The chapels of the monastery contain examples of Abyssinian folk art. We can pass through the Abyssinian Monastery into the forecourt of the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, or alternatively we can return to the bazaar street, turn right and then into the first street on the right. In this street, on the right, is the Alexandra Hospice (Russian Orthodox), on a site occupied in the time of Christ by a section of the city wall (the excavations are shown to visitors by the nuns). Opposite are the Church of the Redeemer and the Muristan. Continuing west past the Muristan (on left), we come to a narrow street leading to the forecourt of the Church of the Holy Sepulcher.