Being come within sight of Ierusalem, the maner is to kneele downe, and giue God thankes, that it hath pleased him to bring vs to that holy place, where he himselfe had beene: and there we leaue our horses and go on foote to the towne, and being come to the gates, there they tooke our names, and our fathers names, and so we were permitted to go to our lodgings. The gouernour of the house met vs a mile out of the towne, and very curteously bade vs all welcome, and brought vs to the monasterie. The gates of the citie are all couered with yron, the entrance into the house of the Christians is a very low and narrow doore, barred or plated with yron, and then come we into a very darke entry: the place is a monastery: there we lay, and dieted of free cost, we fared reasonable well, the bread and wine was excellent good, the chambers cleane, and all the meat well serued in, with cleane linnen. We lay at the monasterie two days, Friday and Saturday, and then we went to Bethlem with two or three of the friers of the house with vs: in the way thither we saw many monuments, as: The mountaine where the Angell tooke vp Abacuck by the haire, and brought him to Daniel in the Lions denne. The fountaine of the prophet Ieremie. The place where the wise men met that went to Bethlem to worship Christ, where is a fountaine of stone. Being come to Bethlem we sawe the place where Christ was borne, which is now a chappell with two altars, whereupon they say masse: the place is built with gray marble, and hath bene beautifull, but now it is partly decayed. Neere thereto is the sepulchre of the innocents slaine by Herod, the sepulchres of Paul, of Ierome, and of Eusebius. Also a little from this monasterie is a place vnder the ground, where the virgine Mary abode with Christ when Herod sought him to destroy him. We stayed at Bethlem that night, and the next day we went from thence to the mountaines of Iudea, which are about eight miles from Ierusalem, where are the ruines of an olde monasterie. In the mid way from the monasterie to Ierusalem is the place where Iohn Baptist was borne, being now an olde monasterie, and cattell kept in it. Also a mile from Ierusalem is a place called Inuentio sanctæ crucis, where the wood was found that made the crosse. In the citie of Ierusalem we saw the hall where Pilate sate in iudgement when Christ was condemned, the staires whereof are at Rome, as they told vs. A litle from thence is the house where the virgin Mary was borne. There is also the piscina or fishpoole where the sicke folkes were healed, which is by the wals of Ierusalem. But the poole is now dry.