A highly contentious part of the world, the status of East Jerusalem has been in limbo since 1967 when Israel took control of it from Jordan. Residents make up 40% of the population of Jerusalem but are not Israel citizens and therefore are unable to vote. Religious tourism is an important part of the local economy with a number of sites associated with Jesus.

The Mount of Olives is just across the valley from the Temple Mount, and is said to be where God will start to redeem the dead on Judgment Day. Over 150,000 people lie at rest in the huge cemetery that covers the hillside.

Dominus Flevit Church is one of many churches in the area, though unusually it faces toward the Temple Mount rather than to the East as almost all churches do.

The distinctive Church of Mary Magdalene was built in 1888 in the style of a 17th century Russian Orthodox Church, with seven onion shaped domes.

The Garden of Gethsemane where Jesus is said to have prayed the night before his crucification. It is home to some of the oldest olive trees in the world, and an extensive list of things not to do.

Next to the garden is the moody Church of All Nations, built between 1919 and 1924 on the remains of two previous churches, with the 5th century mosaic pattern replicated.

Close by the Tomb of the Virgin Mary is a deeply atmospheric subterranean shrine dating from Byzantine times, and it is hard to imagine that much has changed since then.

Emerging out of the tunnel under the Mount of Olives the landscape changed noticeably to near desert.

My mental imagine of Bethlehem was of a small village with a stable where Jesus was born. The modern Bethlehem is a built up town of 30,000 people on the border of the contested West Bank. Over 700km of wall now form the Israel Security Barrier, home to graffiti including famous Banksy pieces.

The Church of the Nativity was originally built 1,700 years ago on the spot where Jesus was believed to have been born, but much altered over time. The original grand entrance was reduced and reduced again to prevent people from riding into the church on the back of donkeys…

Inside it is an odd mixture of styles, with a huge queue of the religious and the curious waiting to go into a grotto where a 14 pointed silver star apparently marks the exact spot where Jesus was born. I avoided the queue and enjoyed the relative peace of the neighbouring courtyard instead.