Qumran, En Gedi

Today Munir is no longer our driver and we no longer have wifi on the bus. We left Jerusalem early and traveled out of town to an overlook on the wadi that comes up from Jericho through the Judean Wilderness. It may have been the path that Joshua took when he came to spy out the land on his way to the western hills.This area was definitely not the land flowing with milk and honey. We encountered a Bedouin camp and some camels while at the lookout.

Jericho is in the haze. The water runs where you can see the vegetation which is probably the route they took.

Bedouins around a campfire in some ruins

Bedouin and his camel

 

We boarded the bus and headed south until we reached Qumran which is where the Dead Sea Scrolls were found. We saw the ruins of an Essene village. These people may have been the ones to preserve the scrolls in the caves.

Trail leading up to some caves - not where the scrolls were found

 

Cave #4

 

Angela and I at Qumran

 

These people valued and worshipped the written Word

 

 

 

 

From there we continued to travel south parallel to the Dead Sea until we reached En Gedi. This is an "oasis in the desert" with a waterfall that flows all year and an area that has several different animals that thrive in this area.

Papa Ibex

This area is where the story concerning Saul And David in 1 Samuel 24 took place.

 

View back to the Dead Sea as we hiked to the waterfall

 

Waterfall at En Gedi that flows all year

 

 

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Herodion, Beit Guvrin, Elah Valley, Beth Shemesh

 

Fortress on top of a man made volcano - shaped mountain built by Herod

Small theater built just below Herod's tomb discovered in 2010

 

Olive press in a cave at Beit Guvrin

 

Riverbed in the Elah Valley where David fought Goliath

 

Sorek Valley - Samson's territory

Tomorrow we leave Jerusalem and head for the Dead Sea. We get to see where the scrolls were discovered in the caves at Qumran and go to Masada. We have been here for 6 nights and have to have our bags packed and outside our door by 7 in the morning. We have had time to shop so fitting everything in our suitcases is a challenge!

 

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Holocaust Museum

Sunny day! We visited a Menorah in a park across the street from the Kenesset that was a gift from the British. It depicts several scenes from the Bible.

 

Next we walked to the Shrine of the Scrolls where they have copies/originals of the scrolls found in Qumran. On the same site was a model of the old city.

site of the Dead Sea Scrolls

scale model of the Old City

This model was originally at a hotel, but the hotel was torn down and new construction was to go in it's place so they moved it. It is a 50:1 scale model. The amazing thing about it is that none of the excavation had gone on in the city yet, so the designer relied only on written sources such as the Bible and other historical records. He was fairly accurate .

the arches leaving the Holocaust Museum

 

The verse quoted is Ezekiel 37:14. The museum, Yad Vashem, was built with raw concrete to represent an unsealed experience. The first museum was started in the 1950's and was the first Holocaust Museum. The thought was that " if it is not remembered here it won't be remembered anywhere".

There is also a museum dedicated to the 1,500,000 children killed during the holocaust. The parents of a two-year-old, who was ripped out of the mother's arms by a guard so the mother's life could be saved, provided the funds to build this memorial.

When leaving both museums you are lead to overlook the hills of Jerusalem.

 

Church of the Holy Sepulchre

This is the Orthodox Church's site for the crucifixion, burial and resurrection of Jesus. One interesting story we heard happened in the late 1800's. Evidently, the Greek Orthodox and the Armenians could not agree on who should have possession of the key that locked the doors, so since then the doors are locked and unlocked everyday by a Muslim!

The last site we saw today was excavated under where the current Jewish quarter of the city is located. It is the home/complex of some of the wealthy in Jerusalem. It may even be the home of Caiaphas, the high priest that questioned Jesus.

 

tile floor on the lower level

Western Wall and the Dome of the Rock in early evening

 

One thing we have learned is that we appreciate the Israeli value of cleanliness, especially in the bathrooms!

 

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Temple Mount

The day is starting out with rain. We are to be on the bus and ready to go by 710 today. This is going to be another packed day, but we will be spending the day in Jerusalem.

Our bus driver, Muneer, took over as our tour guide yesterday. He is an Arabic Christian from Nazareth; a very wonderful person!

We entered Jerusalem through the Dung Gate and headed toward the checkpoint in order to go up on the Temple Mount. You must dress modestly, not carry a Bible or have any alcohol or you will have your things confiscated or be told to cover up! We also had to pass through a metal detector. We were not allowed to enter the Dome of the Rock. Because of the Jordanian occupation, the Jews were not allowed on the Temple Mount until the recapture of Jerusalem after the 6 Day War in 1967. All of the excavation down to the Herodian street level took place after the war.

checkpoint to enter the Temple Mount

 

When the Israelis took possession of Jerusalem in 1967 they did pass a law that the authority would be the same as it 'twas prior to 1967 (Muslim Religious Authority). The Israelis do provide security on the Temple Mount. The Temple Mount was not opened for people to walk around on until 2006.

The Temple Mount covers an area of about 36 1/2 acres. The Jordanians deny that there was ever a temple here and yet they built the Dome of the Rock over where they believed the temple to be! Go figure! The size of the Temple Mount has never changed. It has just been built layer upon layer. The southern steps were where the Jewish people during Herod's time entered the city.

Dome of the Rock

 

 

 

The original temple during Solomon's reign was built on Mt. Moriah; the sight where Abraham was taking Issac to be sacrificed and also the sight where Jacob saw the angels ascending and descending (Jacob's ladder). All of the major prophets would have been here.

The second temple was built only 70-80 years after the destruction of the first one and lasted for 500 years before it was destroyed.

T he Dome of the Rock of the Rock was completed around 692-93ad and the Al Aksa Mosque around 700. The Muslims are required to pray in public only one day a week on Friday. We heard the call to prayer as it was broadcast over the city. In the 1100's the mosque was turned into a church. Evidently the Muslims are currently building a Mosque on or in the area of Solomon's Stables which is against the law. The situation around here is very "delicate" as you might guess.

The Dome of the Rock is an 8-sided structure with an interlocking pattern of circles and octagons. It represented nature like an opening flower using Mathematical proportions as it expands beyond the size of the dome without having a "graven image". King Hussien replaced the covering of the dome with gold. When the Dome of the Rock was built it looked similar to some of the Christian churches because they used Christian artisans.

Our guide said there is a 4H on the Temple Mount; Hezekiah, Hasmoneans, Herod, and Hadrian. Hadrian had a temple to Jupiter on the mount where the temple was. (135 ce) He also outlawed circumcision. He did all this only 60 years after the destruction of the temple.

The Church of the Holy Sepulchre and the Dome of the Rock are the flagships of two different ideologies. They face each other and are diametrically opposed in world views!

We also saw the pool of Bethesda where Jesus healed the man who sat by the pool waiting to get in when the water was disturbed by an angel so he could be healed. These pools were possibly used as a cistern, palace to wash the animals prior to being sacrificed, or ritual baths. the water was purified with alcohol.

The Lion's Gate is the gate where the Israelis entered the city during the 1967 war. They carried no arms so the city would not be damaged, but very heavy fighting took place.

We entered the Dung Gate again, but this time we went to the Archelogical Park. Inside we were able to see a timeline of the area. The Jewish people are the only people in history to have been exiled and yet came back to reclaim their land. An awe inspiring thought for today and all the days we have been in Jerusalem is that anything that was here during the time of Herod was seen, walked on, used by Jesus and his disciples. We sat on the original Southern stairs which is probably the location of Pentecost. It is the only place where there was enough water to baptize 3,000 people. They probably used the ritual baths that were very numerous by the Temple Mount. The steps were built unevenly probably to prevent people from running up the stairs.

The Jews during Herod's time were under the constant iron umbrella of Rome!

We also visited the Western Wall which is the holiest place in the world for the Jews. The wall is about 5 football fields long. In the tunnel which, runs along the wall, you can see a "rock" that was carved and put on place during Herod's time. it weighs about 500-550 tons. No one is sure how it was put into place fitting perfectly against the carved stones on either side. Amazing! It was certainly a case of Herod "showing his stuff"!

We were blessed with a beautiful day. After the morning rains we had sunshine!

 

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Day three

We went to the Mount of the Beatitudes this morning then we were off to Hazor. The original gates to the city were there where King Solomon probably walked, also Ahab and Joshua. Amazing! They also built an amazing tunnel down to a water source dating back to the time of Ahab.

Hazor was one of Solomon's chariot cities so he was very involved in rebuilding/maintaining them. the other cities were Jerusalem, Gezer and Megiddo.

 

Top of the Mt. of the Beatitudes

 

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Bethlehem and Jeeicho

Today is the Jewish day of rest, but not for us! Our fantastic bus driver was able to arrange for us to go to Bethlehem and Jericho. We went to the Church of the Nativity and were able to visit the cave where tradition says that Jesus was born. Three religions share this site; the Greek Orthodox, the Armenians and the Catholics. We just happened to be there when they were officially starting the Christmas season (which lasts for 2 months). The mayor of Bethlehem is always in attendance and for the very first time the mayor is a lady!

Outside the city are the shepard's hills from which they heard the good news about Jesus' birth! They were the first ones to see him.

From there we boarded the bus for our trek to Jericho. By the way, both Bethlehem and Jericho are both in the West Bank which meant that we had to pass through a checkpoint. We had lunch right next to the tel for Jericho. Afterward we saw a video about Jericho which is the oldest city in the world and also the lowest. The ruins date back to 10,000 b.c.

I am having difficulty posting pictures, so those will have to come later.

 

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City of David, Armenian lunch, Garden Tomb

The Rain was pouring down s we started the day. The first tour of the day was The Old City. We congregated on a platform that directly over David's palace. We walked up and down many, many stairs, on our way down to the Gihon Spring. We made it to the bottom, peeked at and heard the spring, then walked out through a Canaanite tunnel.

Hezekiah had a tunnel built so they would have access to water within the city walls. The people digging the tunnel started t opposite ends and yet were able to meet in the middle. Some think that they may have been guided by sound; people pounding on the ground above.

We entered the Old City at the Joppa Gate and had lunch on the Armenian Quarter of the Old City. All restaurants so far have served our food family style with lots of vegetables, pita bread, humus, and chicken or beef. After lunch we walked through the shops in the city taking us out the Damascus Gate, which is on the north side of the temple wall.

In the after noon we went to the Garden Tomb. This is the traditional sight for the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus. The garden is extremely beautiful. We were taught that the garden may have actually been a grape vineyard. The communion service in one of the small chapels there was so meaningful and beautiful!

 

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Baptism, Bet Shean, Jerusalem and the Mount of Olives

The Calvery Chapel churches provided the funding for a very beautiful place to hold baptisms. Seven people in our group chose to be baptized.

 

Bet Shean was a very thriving urban city at the crossroads of important trade routes. The Cardo was a very exclusive shopping area. At this time the Suez Canal had not been built so the southern part of Isreal saw traders from all over the world.

We drove Into Jerusalem in the late afternoon the city was hazy but it was awesome seeing the Temple Mount and the dome of the rock for the first time. We also went to the Garden of Gethsemane. We were going to go into the cave where Jesus and the disciples probably stayed but it was closed. So far I have been able to walk up and down all the hills, all the stairs on the rocks and my feet are still super comfortable in my walking shoes!

 

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Day One

On our way to Megiddo, Caesera Maritima, and Sapphoras. great breakfast in the hotel. My stomach is healthy so far! We have been eating some unusual foods. We stayed in Netanya last night (upper middle class area). Their work week starts on Sunday and runs through Thursday. Duplexes here run about $400,000 - $500,000! Land is at a premium.

Huge amounts of natural gas discovered off the coast. This may allow them to be energy independent. Their oil currently comes from the Swedes, etc. The average cost of a gallon of gas is about eight dollars.

Our guide, Alan, in the theater at Ceasarea Maritima built by Herod the Great

 

Remains of Herod's palace

Remains of the man made deep water port built by Herod the Great (myself not included!)

 

Chariot sculpture in the Hippodrome at Ceaserea near the starting blocks for the chariot races

According to our guide the Romans were master builders, but their entertainment was very raunchy!

From Caesarea we moved on to Megiddo. This City overlooks the Jezreell Valley. While we were at the top we could hear the Jewish jet planes going over. At Megiddo we walked downstairs that went down through 7000 years of civilization. The Stairs lead to a tunnel that was built to provide water for Megiddo. It covered the source so that if an enemy came they would not have access to water, but the people of Megiddo would.

 

 

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Flight from the back of the bus!

We're about half way in our 101/2 hour flight. Tried sleeping with no luck. I had started watching a movie earlier so I decided to finish it - "Date Night". I was laughing so hard I thought I was going to cry. I am sure a normal person under normal circumstances would not have found the movie quite as funny!

An empty seat next to you when you are flying is nice!

We finally arrived at the Ben-Gurion airport in Tel Aviv. It is the most beautiful airport I've ever seen.

 

We finally arrived at our hotel, got our room and had dinner.

 

After dinner we went for a walk along the Mediterranean Sea which was right outside our hotel.

 

 

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Capernaum, First Century Boat, Sea of Galilee, En Gev, Tabgha

Capernaum was Jesus' hometown. The synagogue that is currently standing was not where Jesus taught, but it was built on a basalt base which was probably part of the one where he did teach; very hard to believe that I am walking where he once lived and ministered.

Capernaum synagogue on the left with excavation going on in front

 

We boarded a small boat near Tiberius and sailed across to Nof Ginosar where we got to see a first century boat that was probably the type of boat the disciples used for fishing.

 

From t he boat we loaded onto the bus and drove around the Sea of Galilee to En GeV where we had a "Peter's Lunch" which included a whole fish; head, tail, bones and all!

 

 

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