18 May 2017 — 02 Jun 2017
18 May 2017
Flying to Tel Aviv John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) (John F. Kennedy International Airport)
We are leaving from JFK and flying to Rome and then on to Tel Aviv for our amazing adventure – traveling through Israel. Please join us on this fabulous experience.
19 May 2017 Tel aviv
Ben Gurion International Airport
We had a great flight from JFK to Rome and the food was pretty good on the plane. (But I actually don’t mind airline fare… Go figure… So I usually eat anything they offer). In Rome, over 100 nuns boarded our plane to Tel Aviv, along with a separate youth group. It was a full flight and we arrived in TelAviv and went thru customs. Israel does not stamp your passport so we were issued an entry card that we must keep with us while we are here. The passports are not stamped so that if you want to visit Saudi Arabia or another Arab country, you will not be turned away. We met our taxi driver who was waiting for us holding a sign that said ‘Leslie’. (I’ve always wanted to be the weary traveler that has a driver waiting for you holding a sign). LOL!!
We met our tour guide Lior who is very sweet and very accommodating. We were greeted at the hotel with delicious lemonade, went up to our well appointed room for a quick shower and then went to the 4th floor terrace for wine and delicious Mediterranean treats…dates, olives with cheese and tomatoes, pastries, and other delicacies.
We met up with our friends Jocelyn and Bob and met the friends that they are traveling with Brenda and Rick. We already have had a lot of laughs so we know it will be a great time with them. The other folks in our group, 14 of us in all, seem like fun as well.
We all walked to the restaurant which is right on the Mediterranean Sea and stopped on the way in an orthodox Jewish synagogue. We knew it was orthodox since the men and women were separated by a screen. We were not allowed to take photos as it was Friday night services and no electrical equipment is to be used.
Then we walked along the beach to our restaurant. The food was unbelievable… Chicken wings, fish, hummus, chicken in garlic, beef skewers with cinnamon, salad, tomato and garlic, babagoosh, to mention a few of the highlights. Of course we drank lots of Israeli wine that was delicious as well.
We were all pretty tired after traveling so it’s early to bed.
20 May 2017 Tel Aviv and Jaffa
Israel is bordered by Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria and is considered a Jewish state of democracy. Israel has a peace agreement with Jordan (1994) and Egypt (1979) but there is no peace agreement with Syria and Lebanon.
We started our morning with a delicious Mediterranean breakfast…olives, fruit, tomatoes, cheeses, grains, fish and delicious breads. There were also crepes, sweet potato French toast, pan fried potatoes, as well as fresh juices and coffee.
Because today is the Sabbath, regular buses do not run…only taxis. Most of the stores that are run by Jews are closed and did not open until 7 pm tonight. We boarded our tour bus – destination Old Jaffa, a 4000 year old port city right outside of Tel Aviv. Tel Aviv is an open and liberal city with 1/2 million Jews and 50,000 Muslims and Christians and Jaffa is a city contiguous with Tel Aviv where people of Jewish, Muslim, Christian and other heritages coexist. Jaffa has been mentioned in both the old and new testaments. We walked through the streets and our guide, Lior, told us all about the city and its makeup. She took us to a shady spot and rolled out a map of Israel and explained many things to us. What surprised me the most is that the size of the West Bank on the map is much larger than I thought it was.
Lior lives near the Gaza Strip on the western side of Israel and her home has the mandatory bomb shelter within. The Hamas control the Gaza Strip and do not recognize Israel. She said things are peaceful now but in years past, she and her partner had to go to the shelter often when the bombing began.
We walked through the artists’ area in Jaffa where only artists who have galleries can buy and live in the homes there. The homes can cost up to 2 million US dollars. We visited the home of Ilana Goor, a sculptor and designer. The home was filled with unbelievable works of art…unusual furniture, lighting, as well as amazing sculpture. There were also artifacts that Ilana has collected over the years from Israel’s past.
After the museum visit, we went for a delicious lunch in the home of a Christian Arab Palestinian Israeli named Doris, who welcomed us into her home and served a delicious lunch of cheeses, egg, fava beans, vegetables, cheeses, pita bread, hummus, and a creamy spread filled with an herb similar to oregano. Baklava and halva was served for dessert along with coffee made from the arabica bean mixed with cardamom spice.
After lunch, our host told us about her life in Israel. She is Christian and we were able to ask her questions about how the Jews and the Christians and Arabs get along in Jaffa. We also met her 17 year old son Anthony who said that in school he talks with everyone, but he really only hangs out after school with his Christian and Arab friends. Doris said that if any of her children married a Jew, she would not be happy and she would not recognize them. It was an interesting discussion.
After thanking Doris and Anthony, we said our goodbyes, and boarded our bus again to drive through Tel Aviv to visit the memorial where prime minister Yitzhak Rabin was assassinated on November 4, 1995 at the end of a rally in support of the Oslo Accords. The memorial, created out of stone blocks placed askew as if an earthquake took place, represents the artist’s despair and anguish over the shooting. The stones are smooth and rough reflecting the qualities of Rabin…softness and strength. There are markers on the sidewalk showing where PM Rabin was standing, as well as his eight body guards, when the shooting took place and how the shooter, Yigal Amir, came up and shot him. Some Israelis rejoiced after the assassination because Rabin made a peace deal that basically took the Gaza Strip and the West Bank from Israel. Others feel that he was definitely a peace maker and was trying very hard to bring peace to the region. Rabin signed the Oslo I Accord in 1993 with the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) and Oslo II Accord with Egypt in 1995. Yigal Amir was an Israeli ultranationalist, who was distraught over Rabin’s peace initiative as well as the signing of the Accords and is currently in jail serving a life sentence.
Along the way, we passed over a bridge that had the signs of the zodiacs all along it, overlooking the sea. Legend has it that when you find your sign, put your hands on it and make a wish while gazing at the Mediterranean Sea and your wish will come true. So Allan and I made our wishes and hope they do come true.
Lior asked if anyone would like to go with her to a local restaurant for dinner, to sample traditional food. Of course we all did yes… And the meal was wonderful.
After dinner, Allan and I strolled through the streets of Tel Avi enjoying the sights and the people. It was a warm and balmy evening… Just a perfect end to a fabulous day.
21 May 2017 Nazareth
What an amazing day!!! This has been the best vacation!! We cannot believe we are in Israel, walking in Christ’s footsteps, and learning so much about the Jewish religion as well. We started our day again with an amazing Mediterranean breakfast and then boarded the bus to Caesarea. (President Trump will be in Israel this week, but fortunately our paths will not cross).
As we drove through Tel Aviv to Caesarea, Lior told us that young people cannot afford the housing that is being built all around. The homes in Tel Aviv can command almost 3 million dollars and many of the young adults are upset that those prices are so high and unaffordable for them. As I mentioned before, Lior lives near the Gaza Strip and the homes there are about $500,000 for a large beautiful home, much more affordable.
Medicine in Israel is socialized and the people pay $25 a month for coverage. This is for basic coverage, but complicated procedures would require the resident to pay out of pocket.
The cars in Israel are many brands…Korean, Japanese, German, and a few US, and they are usually white. Gas costs about $6 per gallon, even though the oil countries that could supply the fuel are right nearby. They are starting to use natural gas that is prevalent in Israel and they are also selling the natural gas to Jordan.
The garbage that Israelis generate is buried underground and the methane is used for electricity. The country is trying very hard to ‘go green’ so as to utilize recycling more and more. The Rabin power plant utilizes coal to produce 50% of the electricity for the country.
Our first stop in Caesarea was the national park where King Herod built a seaport…which was an engineering marvel of its time. We began at the Roman theater. Many concerts are held here during the year and it is the most ancient theater in all of Israel, being built in Herod’s time. We also walked through the Hippodrome which was built in the 2nd century for chariot racing. It was a magnificent area…with the azure blue Mediterranean Sea backdrop and the white waves crashing onto the shore…absolutely breathtaking.
We then boarded our bus again and traveled on to lower Nazareth…where Arab Christians and Arab Muslims reside peacefully. There are no Jews in lower Nazareth as they live in upper Nazareth.
Jesus was from Nazareth, and Joseph, his father, was a carpenter. But he probably was not a carpenter of wood…but rather a stone carpenter since sandstone is prevalent and the homes were made of stone and not wood.
We visited the Church of the Annunciation, where the house of Mary was unearthed and where Jesus lived as a boy. The church was built in 1969 around the house of Mary, which preserves the crypt, and we couldn’t believe we were walking on the same paths that Jesus walked. The church is beautiful…modern in design and beautiful stained glass windows adorn the edifice. They are still excavating around the church, as Nazareth was a small town in biblical times and the need to preserve this history is critical.
After visiting the church, we had a delicious lunch of falafel or another dish with sliced turkey and veggies. Allan and I both had an Israeli beer that was quite good. From there we visited a local bakery and sampled a delicacy called knafe. DELICIOUS!!!!!
The cousin of the owner of the bakery was there and he is an Arab Muslim. Nazareth is home to the largest Arab population in Israel and the cousin said that he lives peaceably with the Jews from upper Nazareth as well as the Christians that live in his neighborhood. He speaks Arabic as well as Hebrew and he learned Hebrew from speaking with his Jewish customers over the years.
The schools in Nazareth are divided; Muslim and Christian in some and then the Jewish children attend another school. Only four schools in Nazareth teach Hebrew, English, and Arabic languages.
We then traveled to an olive farm and met the owner and hostess Shoshi. She enthralled us with the story of her life…her marriage to the man who wrote the story that was later made into the movie Top Gun, their olive farm where she makes virgin olive oil, and where she graciously welcomed us to make delicious herb and red pepper bread and fed us a fabulous dinner replete with our bread, fresh tomatoes, salad with home grown lemons used in the dressing, quiche and pasta. Her story is fascinating. Her husband sadly passed away four years ago, but not before he wrote the book No Margin for Error, the history of the Israeli Air Force. She is a generous and gracious woman and our time spent with her will not soon be forgotten.
We arrived at our hotel…Haifa Bay Club…and had happy hour and then up to our beautiful room for a good nights sleep. This day was memorable.
22 May 2017 Haifa
We had another fabulous breakfast in our new hotel…the Haifa Bay Club…a beautiful hotel with fabulous accoutrements. After breakfast we boarded our bus and visited the streets of Wadi Nisnas, an Arab neighborhood in Haifa. We learned about the peaceful coexistence between the Jewish and Arab neighborhoods. Haifa is mostly Jewish with 10% Arab Christians. During the Festival of Lights in Haifa, Christmas, Hanukkah, and Ramadan are celebrated with a parade in the streets and everyone gets along. Haifa is an eclectic city…with art everywhere and we enjoyed walking through the streets admiring the “graffiti ” on the buildings and the sculptures.
We walked through the back alleys and had a wonderful tasting of coffee that the proprietor brewed with cardamom and arabica beans and we also enjoyed a sweet treat. The proprietor was an Arab Muslim and was so gracious. Then we stopped into a falafel place and sampled delicious falafel with tahini sauce. Yum!!!!
Coffee is expensive in Israel, but an entrepreneurial couple started a coffee shop where everything in the shop is $1. This includes croissants, coffees, cakes, etc. and it has taken off and now can be found on almost every other street corner.
We left for our next stop, and experienced some road rage. A truck was trying to push our bus into the next lane and a small car to our left was being squeezed out because of this. The little white car’s driver became enraged and passed us and cut in front of our bus. He then came to a sudden complete stop on the highway in front of our bus forcing our driver to slam on the brakes so as not to hit him. It was a miracle that we weren’t rear ended and that our driver was able to avoid an accident. Everyone on the bus wanted to get the car’s license plate but the car sped away through a yellow light and we were unable to do so. Allan and I shared that we were originally from New York…and as New Yorkers, we know people who know people…and we could take him…which added a little levity to a tense situation.
We safely went on to arrive at our next destination…the magnificent Baha’i Gardens, the spiritual heart of the Baha’i faith. There are about seven million who practice this faith all over the world, and we were able to listen to a young man who told us of his faith. He lives in the states and is a premed student at the University of Washington, and is here at the gardens to learn more about his religion. The main thing he imparted to is is that God loves us all and doing good for your fellow man is paramount. The Baha’i faith is the most recent of the world’s religions. The message is that there is one God and one human race. It has no clergy but rather elected councils and all costs are covered by contributions.
The gardens leading to the shrine are magnificent. Symmetry is all important in the gardens and the detail and upkeep of the gardens is meticulous. The greenery is planted keeping in mind the mountain conservation and water resources. I was able to visit the shrine. After removing my shoes I entered into a small room that had candles and floor rugs… a silent venue for meditation. We then went to the top of Mount Carmel and was able to view the gardens and the port of Haifa…a breathtaking scene.
We then drove to Safed and due to its highest elevation of 3000 feet, it is known as Israelis highest city and it is also known as Israel’s center of Jewish mysticism (Kabbalah). We had a delicious lunch in a local street market…a pita bread filled with cheese, fresh vegetables and spices. It was amazingly delicious! We had some free time to walk up and down the street and look at the items for sale…jewelry, paintings, and beautiful Jewish handicrafts.
We visited the Yosef Caro Synagogue and according to legend, Rabbi Yosef Caro wrote his epic Code of Jewish Law in a cave under the present-day Caro synagogue. Yosef Caro synagogue itself was reconstructed on the site of the original synagogue after the 1837 earthquake. It houses an extensive geniza…archive of holy books…which can be viewed from the glassed in shelves which line the synagogue walls. Its location is in Northern Israel in Galilee. In Kabbalistic tradition, the Four Holy Cities of Judaism are each believed to embody an element of Nature: Jerusalem is earth, Tiberias is water, Hebron is fire, and Tzfat is air. Our guide spoke about the Torah…which are the five Books of Moses and the Books of the Prophets which are all handwritten. The synagogue itself faces Jerusalem. Lior, our guide took out her guitar and sang a beautiful song for us which was very moving as we were all sitting in the synagogue.
We originally visited the synagogue when we first arrived, and was able to take part in a service and the singing, clapping and joy that was evident in the room was contagious and we thoroughly enjoyed being a part of it all.
In Israel…you are either an Orthodox Jew or you are not. Mysticism believes there are many parts of God that are sent down and the people take these parts and try, by doing good works, to bring the parts together. You start with yourself..and then your family…your community and ultimately the universe.
From here we visited Zhfat, a community of Ethiopian Jews. There are about 50,000 Jews in Zhfat and the place we visited was the Ethiopian Absorption Center. We sat inside a hut and were served coffee, popcorn and a delicious homemade bread and one of the Ethiopians told us her story. She left Ethiopia, along with 15,000 others, in the 1980’s in search of Jerusalem. The journey was fraught with famine, lack of water and sickness. They traveled by foot for a month and a half, many of her family dying right before her eyes. They eventually came to Sudan and entered illegally during the night cover. Once inside Sudan, they were welcomed…or so they thought. However, given their color and the fact that they were refugees, some of their food was poisoned and even more Ethiopians perished. The Red Cross eventually housed them and helped them to make their way to Israel. Her story was so moving and so poignant. Today, the Ethiopians Jews arrive via plane and are arriving once a month, approximately 500 people per year to this community. They stay approximately two years…learning Hebrew and the Israeli culture and then they move out into the world. They are educated in the community and they all do various jobs.
Afterwards, we visited the school and enjoyed singing and coloring with markers with a kindergarten class. The children that we saw today were adorable. I sat and colored with a little boy…him telling me the colors I should use to complete the artwork. It’s amazing how we can communicate with just sign language and smiles. When I was leaving, I took a photo of three little girls…and showed them what they looked like..to their delight. They then followed me (I started skipping and they joined in) and they followed me practically to the bus. I finally had to do sign language to tell them I was leaving. I thought for a moment they were going to accompany me back home! We waved goodbye…and they ran off back to the compound.
It was a fabulous day…filled with so many beautiful moments and fraught with an education of many aspects of the Jewish religion.
We came back to our hotel and a few of us went to happy hour in lieu of going out for dinner. We had some delicious fare, some wine, lots of side splitting laughs…and now to bed. Another wonderful day in Israel!!!
23 May 2017 Haifa
Every morning the breakfasts are amazing. Mediterranean fare with olives, fish, cheeses, fruit and vegetables as well as eggs, pastries and usually a special dish of the day. Our hotel is beautiful and the bed very comfortable.
Today we took the optional tour which was a full day excursion. And when I say full day…WOW!
We left on our bus and as usual Lior explained a lot of things about Israel along the way. We passed an IKEA store and Lior told us that during Passover the food served there is kosher.
A new airport is being built in southern Israel and will open sometime next year. It will be named after the Israeli astronaut, Ilan Ramon, who perished in the fatal Columbia mission.
Haifa, is Israel’s third largest port. Cars are imported as Israel does not make cars. They made a model out of fiberglass some years ago… But it was not a success. It seems fiberglass was enticing to camels and when you returned to your car after a day at work, your car would have been nibbled on… With side mirrors missing, etc. Most of the cars are white in Israel because of the hot climate.
Our first stop was the old city of Akko… Where we toured a perfectly preserved Crusader city which has been unearthed and brought back to life, located under a city that was built above it. The conquerers over the years were the Canaanites and Romans as well as the Crusaders, Turks and British. It is a UNESCO World Heritage site.
We toured the fortresses, knights halls, the prisoner quarters, the crusader dining hall (which is rented out for weddings), and a secret tunnel which we walked through by having to bend over in places to get through. The pillars hall was impressive with 15 identical cross vault ceilings. In the prisoners hall, openings on the wall remained to attest to the fact that the prisoners were secured by chains. We played ring toss, a game they played years ago and I scored highest along with Brenda! Go girls!
They are still unearthing the ruins and it is always a decision as to what level of civilisation to stop at.
Afterwards we walked through the market with spices, fish, vegetables, etc to view and we savored all the unusual aromas. We visited a mosque and even though the ladies had short sleeved blouses, we were not allowed in unless our arms were covered. I always travel with a silk scarf for that purpose so I did not need to borrow a shawl from the mosque.
We had lunch overlooking the Mediterranean Sea and for the first time I didn’t enjoy the meal. I ordered beef kabob but rather than what I was used to, it was really chopped meat balls with seasoning and very over cooked. There is always a selection of cheeses, hummus, olives, tomatoes and zucchini, babagoosh pita, and tahini so I made a delicious meal of those offerings.
We then visited the Rosh HaNikra grottoes which are cavernous tunnels formed by sea action on the soft chalk rock. They branch off in various directions with some interconnecting segments. A tunnel was built during WW II for the Haifa- Beirut railroad line, and in 1968 a second one was dug, both connecting the grottoes with each other and allowing access (currently: only exit) along the former route of the WWII railroad. For many years though, the only access to the grottoes was from the sea and experienced swimmers and divers were the only ones capable of visiting. A cable car was built to take visitors down from the top of the cliff to the tunnels and with a 60-degree gradient, this cable car is advertised as the steepest in the world.
Now the railroad end in Lebanon has been cemented up. Lior said her hope one day it’s that the railroad will be open in peace – connecting the countries which now do not have good relations.
The grotto was gorgeous with the sea pouring in around us. It was magnificent. The walkway was slippery and we had to walk carefully but it was the highlight of the day.
We were able to talk with an Israeli soldier who guards the border between Lebanon and Israel. He was twenty years old and has another year in the military.
We arrived back at our hotel and we all walked to a restaurant in Haifa and Allan and in enjoyed a dish Saj and then delicious shrimp. Had a nice dark beer…A Perfect end to our day .
24 May 2017
3:00 pm Golan heights
After breakfast we bid goodbye to Haifa and started north to the Golan heights, stopping at the site of The Six-Day War. The Arab–Israeli War, was fought between June 5 and 10, 1967 by Israel and the neighboring states of Egypt (known at the time as the United Arab Republic), Jordan, and Syria. By June 10, Israel had completed its final offensive in the Golan Heights, and a ceasefire was signed the day after. Israel had seized the Gaza Strip.
We saw the actual battlefield with the bunkers still in existence. In the distance you can see the line, not a border, (actually a fence) with Syria. There is a demilitarized zone in between Syria and Israel which is monitored by the United Nations. There is a memorial which lists the Israeli soldiers who lived in the Golan heights, who have perished in the different wars fought by Israel since the memorial was created in 1971. Mine fields are in closeGolan heights
After breakfast we bid goodbye to Haifa and started north to the Golan heights, stopping at the site of The Six-Day War. The Arab–Israeli War, was fought between June 5 and 10, 1967 by Israel and the neighboring states of Egypt (known at the time as the United Arab Republic), Jordan, and Syria. By June 10, Israel had completed its final offensive in the Golan Heights, and a ceasefire was signed the day after. Israel had seized the Gaza Strip.
We saw the actual battlefield with the bunkers still in existence. In the distance you can see the line, not a border, (actually a fence) with Syria. There is a demilitarized zone in between Syria and Israel which is monitored by the United Nations. There is a memorial which lists the Israeli soldiers who lived in the Golan heights, who have perished in the different wars fought by Israel since the memorial was created in 1971. Mine fields are in close proximity still and they will not be purged because of the danger.
From there we went to a Druze community in the Golan Heights and had a delicious traditional Druze lunch prepared by a Druze woman and a talk by a teacher, non secular, in the Druze community.
The Druze believe in one God and they believe in the prophets and Jesus and incorporate many religions in their faith. They can be religious or non secular. Her talk was very interesting and you can google the faith to find out more.
Back on the bus to our final destination, a stop was made and Lior jumped out to pick up some delicious cherries that are grown all along the Golan Heights. You can see the trees from the road. The cherries were deliciously sweet and we really enjoyed them.
We went on our way and Lior surprised us by making reservations for a wine tasting at a winery in the Golan Heights. We saw where the wine was made and then we took part in the tasting which was wonderful. And the good news is, we can purchase it back in the states. Many of the wines produced here have won gold medals in France and Germany.
We are staying at the Peace Vista overlooking the Sea of Galilee. Absolutely breathtaking. I can’t even believe we are here. We each have our own cabin with all the amenities; Cookies, fruit, wine and tomorrow a breakfast will be delivered to our door so we can enjoy it in our veranda. The weather is perfect with a lovely breeze off the sea and we drank wine from the winery and just mellowed out while waiting for dinner
We had a lovely dinner at the restaurant and watched the sunset over the sea of Galilee. We walked back to our cabin and had a drink with our friends and now it’s off to bed to get ready for a leisurely day tomorrow on the kibbutz.
25 May 2017 Peace vista
We are on a kibbutz on the Golan Heights. This morning our breakfast arrived and we enjoyed an egg pancake, delicious croissants, cheeses, fruit, olives, juice and coffee and tea.
Then we walked around the kibbutz and, Ruth who lives on the kibbutz, told us what life is like. This kibbutz started in 1973 and many of the residents came from the United States when they were just young adults. They just wanted an environment for themselves and their children of equality. One for all and all for one was their motto.
Each member of the kibbutz years ago was not compensated but rather just contributed to the kibbutz with their skills. Now members are paid according to the going rate of their profession. There are 70 families residing on the kibbutz with a population of 359 people.
Army service is mandatory in Israel and so it is for the youth on the kibbutz, both men and women. After serving, many kids travel the world by backpacking and then about 1 out of 3 return to the kibbutz to live.
The kibbutz is self sustaining. Their agriculture is sold domestically and it is also exported. Their main business is a company called ARI which manufactures supplies for fluid transport for sewers, drinking, and agriculture. The government does provide health care and a clinic is open three days a week. A doctor is on the kibbutz twice a week.
New members who want to join the kibbutz now have to buy membership which costs 200,000 shekels and they also have to buy their own home which is about 1 million shekels. Interestingly, they also submit a handwriting sample and the hand writing is analyzed because they feel a lot can be told about you by your handwriting. The council then decides if the person can join. The new applicants have a year and a half trial period before they are officially accepted to the kibbutz. It is a legal contract that cannot be broken… Even if the person turns out to be a criminal, he/she stays.
This kibbutz celebrates agrarian holidays rather than religious ones. They just believe in being a good person and doing good deeds. The boys can get bar mitzvahed outside in a religious ceremony and then they return to the kibbutz for the celebration.
They also have a milk farm and sell the raw milk to a company for pasteurization. There are over 1000 cows, and they are artificially inseminated as there are no bulls on the kibbutz. The cows are milked three times a day by milking machines. Only 450 cows are milked at a time.
We saw the nursery and pre-K and the little ones are encouraged to learn on their own within a safe environment. One little one was sitting eating the dirt and having a great time. They played in the sand, and had all the toys one would see in the states. In third grade through 12th, the children leave the kibbutz each day to attend school.
We all then went to the cafeteria and did our part for our lunch by peeling bags of carrots. Lunch was delicious… Chicken, schnitzel, vegetables, salads, and of course, carrots…so much more.
After lunch we drove to the Gamla nature reserve located in the center of the Golan Heights. We stopped at an overlook on the hill of Gamla and saw the remains of Gamla that was uncovered in archaeological digs. The reserve also has the largest griffon vulture nesting colony in the world. One of the vultures showed off his flying talents and soared fairly close, a site Lior said rarely happens. The views were spectacular as we gazed from the hill shaped like a camel hump (hence the name of the reserve Gamla) and saw the ancient city with its wall and synagogue and the sea of Galilee. We also saw an olive press as well as the ruins of an old church from the Byzantine period.
We had a wonderful day and finished it off with a picnic outside our cabin watching another magnificent sunset over the sea of Galilee. We look forward to breakfast being delivered to our cabin tomorrow once again before bidding farewell to the Peace Vista, a magnificent place to stay in the Golan Heights.
On a side note… Allan and I purchased scott E vests before we left and they have been so useful for our travel. They have numerous pockets for sunglasses, iPad, phone, pen, and a pocket for wallet and passport that is RFID protected. I don’t have to carry a pocketbook so I have my hands free and it is wonderful. We purchased the summer weight vests and all the people on our tour wanted to know where we bought them because they thought they were so nice. I highly recommend them!
26 May 2017 Tiberias and Jordan River
We had another delicious breakfast delivered to our cabin door this morning and we enjoyed the morning serenity overlooking the Sea of Galilee. It was so quiet with just the birds chirping and a perfect place for meditation.
Galilee was mountainous, and swampy years ago…quite a different land from today. Of course the land is still hilly, but it is now mostly agriculture that is seen on the land.
Shnat shmita, is the seventh year of the seven-year agricultural cycle mandated by the Torah for the Land of Israel and is still observed in contemporary Judaism. During shmita, the land is left to lie fallow and all agricultural activity, including plowing, planting, pruning and harvesting, is forbidden by Jewish law. The produce that is grown by non orthodox Jews is actually marked with the words Shnat shmita… so that the orthodox Jews do not purchase. The reason for letting the trees, etc go for a year without tending is so the land is preserved for the future generations and has a chance to renew.
The sea of Galilee, where we spent the last two days, is also known as Kinneret. It is actually a freshwater lake. It is approximately 13 miles long, and 8.1 miles wide. It provides 50% of the water supply to Israel. Most of Christ’s miracles took place near this sea.
Today was a day following in the footsteps of Jesus and our first stop was Capernaum. According to the Gospels, Jesus selected this town as the center of his public ministry in Galilee after he left his hometown of Nazareth.
We visited the House of Peter, the home of one of Christ’s disciples. We also viewed the remains of a group of private houses built around the 1st century BC nearby the House of Peter. There is evidence that Jesus stayed in the house of Peter to pray and to speak to the people as graffiti was found on the walls with Jesus’ name as well as Peter’s. This was not the house where Peter actually lived as there is no indication of smoke residue that would have been apparent in the actual abode. It is where Christ connected with the people.
Also on the site are the ruins of one of the oldest synagogues in the world hailing from the 4th century. Below the synagogue are the ruins of a foundation of a synagogue that was built in the 1st century, perhaps one that was mentioned in the Gospels.
From there we went to the Mount of Beatitudes where it is believed Jesus gave the sermon on the Mount. Today the site is a tranquil garden with a Franciscan church featuring the eight beatitudes in stained glass. You can view Capernaum, Tiberias and the Sea of Galilee from its vantage point.
We then went to the Galilee’s Miracles Center. In 1986, two brothers discovered a Galilee boat which had been buried and protected since the first century BC. We were able to view the actual boat that went under extensive restoration. The story of how the boat was resurrected from its muddy confines and the process that had to carefully keep the boat in tact was fascinating. It was the type of boat fisherman used as referred to in the Gospels… So was this a fisherman’s boat or the actual boat that Christ sailed in when he calmed the sea, and encouraged his disciples to become fishers of men. It is a question that will probably never be answered.
We then sailed on a vessel on the sea of Galilee and enjoyed singing and dancing as we traversed the waters and then stopped for lunch at a restaurant in Tiberias that served St Peter’s fish accompanied by the vegetables, hummus, cheeses, babagoosh and olives that we have come to love. I am not a big fish eater but this was absolutely delicious and I didn’t get one bone. Hooray!
From there we travelled to the Jordan River where two of our fellow travelers wanted to be rebaptized. We watched the baptism and a few of us went into the Jordan and blessed ourselves with the water. It was a poignant experience.
We then drove on to Jerusalem where we will spend the next five nights. We drove through the desert, passing Jericho and at times, having the country of Jordan close by with a fence dividing the lands. We also passed a checkpoint as we entered the West Bank and saw Palestinian and Israeli settlements as well as Bedouin villages.
We arrived at our hotel in time for happy hour and had couscous stew, stuffed grape leaves, vegetables, olives and of course, wine.
11:30 pm
Galilee
)ןויצ רכיכ( Zion Square Sea of Galilee cruise
15
27 May 2017 Jerusalem
After breakfast we had the opportunity to talk with a Palestinian Muslim who shared his perspective on living in Israel. He said the land of Israel is different from the state of Israel and all he would like to see is equal rights for all.
We then visited the Church of All Nations, also known as the Church or Basilica of the Agony. It is located on the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem, next to the Garden of Gethsemane. It enshrines a section of bedrock where Jesus is said to have prayed before his arrest on the Thursday before his crucifixion. The architect, Antonio Barluzzi designed the church to be in semi darkness, with somber stained glass windows to depict the sadness of that night, but the altar is magnificently bright which we felt showed the final glory on Easter morning. The church is adjacent to the Garden of Gethsemane.
We then travelled to the Ayalon Institute, which was a secret ammunition factory disguised as part of a kibbutz. During the British mandate in the 1940’s, the Jewish people began planning ways to make guns to fight for independence. Keeping the supply of bullets was difficult, hence the secret creation of the ammunition factory.
The stairs leading down to the factory were under a huge washing machine on the kibbutz and the washing machine had to be rolled forward and backwards each day to allow entrance and exit of the workers. The noise of the laundry room helped to keep the noise of the ammunition making area concealed.
Since the people that worked in the factory were deprived of sunlight, they became pale and weak. In addition to being unhealthy, it was a security risk, so the workers sat under quartz sunlamps and had to consume fish oil and milk.
The factory was the size of a tennis court. Only about forty people worked in the secret facility and the rest of the kibbutz had no idea what was going on. The workers always showed up for meals and had to sneak out from underground stairs into the laundry room at mealtimes, blending in as if they had just come in from the fields and not from the underground. The factory produced 40,000 bullets a day and stopped operating three years after it was built. The original equipment is on display in the underground room
After lunch we toured the Church of the Visitation in Jerusalem, which honors the visit paid by the Virgin Mary, the mother of Jesus, to Elizabeth, the mother of John the Baptist. This is the site where tradition tells us that Mary recited her song of praise, the Magnificat.
Nearby was The Church of Saint John the Baptist that belongs to a Franciscan order. It was built at the site where Saint John the Baptist was believed to have been born.
We had happy hour back at the hotel and enjoyed a delicious shrimp dinner at local restaurant.
28 May 2017
1:30 pm Jerusalem
Today we visited the City of David, an Israeli settlement and the archaeological site from ancient Jerusalem. The ruins shed light on the land of Israel under the rule of King David in 1004 BC. We walked the ancient tunnel built by King Hezekiah in 701.
We then visited the Israeli museum where we took a closer look at the dead Sea scrolls which are housed in the Shrine of the Book. It was built to look like the urns where the scrolls were discovered.
After lunch we drove to Bethlehem. A local guide took over the tour at this point as our guide Lior, being an Israeli citizen is not allowed to travel into Bethlehem. There were huge signs along the way stipulating that.
In Bethlehem we had a delicious shawarma at Ruth’s restaurant and then we visited the Church of the Nativity built over the grotto where Mary is believed to have given birth. Our tour also included visiting shepherds’ field, where the angel is said to have announced Christ’s birth.
We ate dinner at happy hour and then went off to enjoy Belgium waffles. Yum!
29 May 2017 Jerusalem
It was a very poignant and moving morning. We visited Yad Vashem, Israel’s memorial to the victims of the Holocaust. It is dedicated to preserving the memory of the dead; honouring Jews who fought against their Nazi oppressors and Gentiles who risked their lives harboring and aiding Jews during this horrific time.
The museum was shaped like an elongated triangle. We were not allowed to take pictures in the museum. We spent over two hours walking through and reading and listening to survivor stories and seeing all the memorabilia that has been collected over the years… Some of it very hard to see given the atrocities.
The Hall of Names was the last room in the museum; a memorial to the six million Jews who perished in the Holocaust. The main hall has 600 photographs. These are reflected in the water at the bottom of large stone cone. Surrounding the opening is a circular platform, housing the approximately 2.2 million pages of testimony from survivors and their families collected to date, with empty spaces for those yet to be submitted. It was a beautiful tribute and a very emotional experience. We exited into the bright sun seeing
Jerusalem in the distance, a hope for the future.
We then entered the Children’s Memorial on the site that honored the children killed in the Holocaust. We entered through a long corridor into a dark room where five memorial candles were burning. These candles were reflected off of a series of mirrors and those five candles become millions of stars throughout the darkened room. These lights represent the one and a half million children murdered in the Holocaust. In the background the names of the children, their ages and country or origin were being read continually. It brought tears to my eyes too think that these young lives were taken and never could reach the potential that could have been in each one.
We then had the opportunity to listen to an 83 year old woman who lived through this time in Poland. Her mother, father and sister had a good life, one of means when suddenly, the Nazis came and took away everything. They had to leave their home taking only essentials with them and were sent to the ghettos. Life was hard on the ghetto with hardly any food and basic needs were neglected. There was no medical help for the sick… And because of the conditions many died. Only through luck in seeing a man her father knew from the past, was her family sent to the ghetto rather than the concentration camps. She said when they got to the end of the queue where people were separated from their families and sent to either the ghetto or the campus, , as luck would have it, a German that her father had done business with was there and sent the family to the line where lives would be spared. (Sadly, her father tried to find the man after the war to thank him, but he could never find him nor his family).
This courageous lady watched some of her neighbors get shot by a nazi who had the nickname Frankenstein, who, depending on his mood, would just shoot people for sport. She narrowly escaped being shot herself one day as this Frankenstein told her to walk slowly home as he walked behind her pointing his gun at her, laughing the whole time.
They had to figure out who to trust in the ghetto and when they did, they paid someone to look the other way and to open the gates at night so they could escape. Not everyone in her family could escape. It was decided that she and her mother would leave, leaving her sister and father behind, because the home where they would be hidden in only had room for two. It was a heart wrenching time for the family.
Some of the homes she was hidden in had caring people who kept them warm and fed. In one home however, the woman was quite uncaring and made her mother and she sleep in a cold building on the ground and did not provide even a blanket for them to keep warm during the long winter.
Eventually after the war, her family was reunited and moved to Sweden where she met her husband. She and her husband now live in Jerusalem.
We then had lunch and went to the largest hospital in Israel to views the Marc Chagall stained glass windows. The windows are displayed in the Fannie and Maxwell Abbell Synagogue, in the central square of Hadassah Ein-Kerem hospital. The windows depict the lives of the twelve tribes of Israel. The windows are magnificent with vivid blues, reds and golds. We were so glad to have the opportunity to view them.
The hospital has over 1,000 beds and when we walked in, we went through a huge mall where you could purchase everything from clothing to shoes to cakes and pastries. It was amazing to see people being wheeled in wheelchairs through the mall.
As we walked to the exhibit, there was a protest going on on the oncology floor. It seems they are going to close the oncology unit as five oncologists quit. They said they could not keep up since so many people from outside the country were seeking help and they could no longer be responsible for giving excellent care. A mother of a child with cancer told us what the protest was about and apologized to us for the disturbance. But she said her son had had a bone marrow transplant and now she would have to go to Tel Aviv to continue his care. It was heartbreaking.
For dinner tonight we were invited to join an ultra orthodox family for dinner and had the opportunity to talk with them about their life. Our guide Lior told the women in our group not to offer to shake the hand of the man and the men were told not to touch the woman. The man was dressed in a white shirt and black pants but did not have the long curls but rather sideburns. The couple had been married for two years and had a little boy. Their marriage was made by a match maker although they did not have to continue to date each other if it hadn’t worked out. They had about five dates, became engaged and within three months were married. The husband stays home and studies the Torah for ten hours a day and his wife, who is a social worker is the bread winner. They have no TV, they have a kosher phone which means no internet on it. If they need internet for business the internet is filtered so no inappropriate material can be seen.
They live on modest means as many of their needs are met by borrowing items from others in the community like clothing for children, wedding gowns, cribs, high chairs etc. They call it their “yellow pages”. They try to follow the word of God in everything they do and they believe in having many children to fulfill the commandment to be fruitful and multiply.
We were fed delicious food – a veal stew with many side dishes and pita bread. It was a fascinating and very informative evening.
30 May 2017 Jerusalem
After breakfast we embarked on a journey through Old Jerusalem. We first visited the Western Wall, once called the Wailing Wall. The Western Wall is considered holy due to its connection to the Temple Mount. It had great spiritual significance in the Jewish and Islamic traditions. Women were on one side of the wall and the men prayed to the left of them with a fence in-between. Although the wall is nearly 1600 feet in length, only 230 feet are visible above ground.
The practice of placing slips of paper containing written prayers to God into the cracks of the Western Wall, is a tradition and we were able to see thousands of notes tucked into the crevasses everywhere.
Over a million notes are placed each year in what has become a custom, not only for tourists, but also for high-profile dignitaries visiting Israel from abroad. The notes are collected twice a year and buried on the nearby Mount of Olives since many of the notes mention God by name and therefore cannot just be thrown away.
I placed my prayer request in a crack, said an additional prayer of thanks and walked backwards away from the wall, to show respect. My note will eventually be buried on the Mt of Olives near the Garden of Gethsemane.
We then went underground to explore the parts of the wall that were sealed off and that have been hidden for more than 2000 years. It was remarkable.
We walked old Jerusalem on foot, seeing the Jewish quarter and climbed to the top of a vantage point to see the view all of Jerusalem.
We then walked along the Via Dolorosa – the ancient way of sorrows where Christ walked to his crucifixion. We passed by nine Stations of the Cross and the last five stations were inside the Church of the Holy Sepulchre which is believed to be the site of Jesus’ burial and resurrection.
I was able to kneel down and place my hand on the stone where Christ’s crucifixion cross stood on Golgotha.
After lunch we strolled the streets of Jerusalem’s Arab and Christian quarters and then visited Mt Zion the site of the Last Supper. It was a wonderful experience and an amazing journey.
Tonight begins the festival of Shavuot a Jewish holiday that occurs on the sixth day of the Hebrew month of Sivan. Shavuot commemorates the anniversary of the day God gave the Torah to the entire Israelite nation assembled at Mt. Sinai. Jewish people flock to the synagogues at sundown and spend the entire night praying. We saw many families carrying mattresses and blankets for their family as they made their way to the temples to spend the night.
31 May 2017 The dead Sea and Massada National Park
Today we left Jerusalem, but not before having a final photo op overlooking the city. Our guide played a song on the top of the Mt of Olives and we drank wine to celebrate the end of our amazing stay in Jerusalem.
We then travelled to the Qumran national park to see the caves where the dead Sea scrolls were discovered by Bedouins shepherds in 1947. Between 1951 and 1956 additional scrolls were found. The scrolls were hidden in jars for nearly two thousand years and were well preserved as a result of the climate and low humidity. We viewed the scrolls when we visited The Shrine of the Book in the Israel museum a few days ago.
We then travelled to Masada National Park. The story of Masada was recorded by Josephus Flavius. At the time of the revolt, Flavius was in Rome but the debate surrounding the accuracy of his accounts have been born out in excavations of the area.
The great revolt took place between the Romans and the Jews in 66 BC. A man named Eleazar Ben Yair fled from Jerusalem to Masada to become the commander of the rebel community in the mountain. Masada was the last rebel stronghold in Judea when the Roman legion, consisting of 8000 troops laid an attack on the mountain. The Romans built camps around the base of the mountain and built a battering ram to attack the wall. The seige lasted a few months and when the hope of the rebels dwindled, the leaders on the mountain thought it better to commit suicide then to live in shame as Roman slaves.
In Josephus Flavius’ own words … “Then having chosen by lot ten of their number to dispatch the rest, they laid themselves down each beside his prostate wife and flinging their arms around them, offered their throats in readiness for the executants of the melancholy office. These, having unswervingly slaughtered all, ordained the same time rule of the lot for one another,that he on whom it fell should slay first the nine and then himself last of all.” The stones with the names of the rebels were found at the site.
And an except from Ben Yair’s speech…
“Let our wives die before they are abused and our children before they have tasted slavery; and after we have slain them, let us bestow that glorious benefit upon one another mutually and preserve ourselves in freedom as an excellent funeral monument for us. But first let us destroy our money and the fortresses by fire; for I am well assured that this will be a bitter blow to the Romans, that they shall not be able to seize upon our bodies and shall fail to our wealth also; and let us spare nothing but our provisions, for they will be a testimonial when we are dead that we are not subdued for want of necessaries but that according to our original resolution, we have preferred death that we are not subdued for want of necessaries; but that according to our original resolution we have preferred death to slavery.”
According to Josephus, two women and five children who had been hiding in the cisterns on the mountaintop, surrendered and were taken to Jerusalem. The ruins are exactly as they were years ago and it was amazing to be there to view it all. We took a cable car to the top of the mountain to view the ruins.
We are now in the desert and it was beastly hot as we took the cable car to the ruins and walked the plateau. We drank water and kept refilling on the way.
I highly recommend the book The Dovekeepers, a 2011 historical novel by American writer Alice Hoffman. The novel dramatizes the Siege of Masada by the Roman troops and is an excellent read. We saw the actual dovecote that was talked about in the book. Also the movie Masada is a must see.
Our hotel is on the Dead Sea and tomorrow we will get a chance to swim and float there. Parts of the Dead Sea are used to cull bromine, potassium, and magnesium, which are major exports for the Israeli economy. People with psoriasis and other skin problems come to the sea for treatment, which is very beneficial.
We are in a spa hotel and look forward to a spa treatment tomorrow. Dinner tonight was buffet style and delicious and since we are really tired from hiking around all day, we look forward to bedtime.
01 Jun 2017 The Dead Sea
This morning after breakfast we hopped into Land Rovers and went on an off-road adventure through the Judean desert. The scenery was beautiful with canyons similar to the Grand Canyon (although of course not as immense) , dry river beds, and amazing views of the Dead Sea.
The ride was rough and pretty scary at times as there were sheer drops. Thank goodness we were in the 4×4 as at times we traversed over soft silty lime.
We rode to the top of Mt Sodam, which believe it or not, is rising at a rate of .14 inches per year. It is about 80 percent salt. Interestingly, even though it is a mountain, we were still about 557 feet below sea level but 742 feet above the Dead Sea.
Our guide poured some water onto the canyon wall and I tasted it. Sooooooo salty! We also peeked into a salt cave where we could see the white salt on the walls. Since this is a national park, the salt is not removed and cannot be marketed.
There are some beautiful pillars that we passed and saw a famous one known as “Lot’s wife”, in reference to the Biblical account of the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. I took a photo and captured a beam of sunlight streaming down, which was pretty cool.
We stopped to view the Dead Sea Works, the world’s fourth-largest producer and supplier of potash. The company also produces magnesium, industrial salts, de- icers, bath salts, table salt, and raw materials for the cosmetic industry. It has customers in over 60 countries. Rather than extracting potash and other minerals from the Dead Sea by mining them directly, the company makes use of solar evaporation with shallow pond off- shoots of the sea.
We had a wonderful picnic under a tree in the desert and then rode back to our hotel for our afternoon swim in the Dead Sea.
The ladies were told not to shave our legs and the men didn’t shave their faces for at least 24 hours before the swim. If you shave, you really feel the burn from the salty water. We also wore beach shoes since some of the rocks of salt are sharp.
The water was so warm and we all went out and floated around. You have no choice but to float as the water keeps you buoyant. Some of the swimmers had trouble righting themselves again and couldn’t get their legs back down to stand up which was pretty funny to watch. I had no difficulty and spent my time floating and walking around. One person got salt water in their eye and had to go back to the beach to wash it out. It hurts! I tasted the water and yowser…It is salty!!!
The Dead Sea is earth’s lowest elevation on land at more than 1300 feet below sea level. It has about 34% salinity. Because it is so salty, nothing flourishes although there apparently are some microorganisms that can survive the salty environ.
The Dead Sea is receding at an alarming rate and there is a project called the Jordan National Red Sea Development Project which is being implemented to help with the problem.
We sat under a huge canopy out of the intense sun for awhile to allow the minerals to do their thing on our skin and then we rinsed off and returned to the hotel to get the salts off with a nice soapy shower. It was an amazing experience!!
Having dinner in our hotel tonight. Can’t believe tomorrow we return to Tel Aviv for our last day in Israel.
02 Jun 2017 Our last day in Israel
After another amazing breakfast at the spa hotel we were off to visit En Gedi Nature Reserve located on the edge of the Judean desert.
We saw the ibex, who live in herds and have the ability to climb the steep mountainous rock formations in the area. The horns on the male ibex grow throughout the animal life and can reach enormous length. The male’s are also bearded. The other animal we saw was the hyrax who live in the rocks or the brush. They live in groups and look almost like gophers.
We saw the Tristan’s grackle which is a beautiful bird with a red tipped wing and a loud singing voice that you can hear throughout the reserve.
There was a beautiful waterfall as well and Lior took the opportunity to splash around and cool off.
Back on the bus, I asked Lior to play a song I had on my phone that I thought would be appropriate…”I Had the Time of My Life”, from Dirty Dancing. Everyone on the bus sang along and we pointed to Lior every time the words… “And we owe it all to you” were sung. Lior came back and hugged me. It was really a sweet moment and she has been an amazing guide so the song lyrics were very true.
We arrived at our hotel in Tel Aviv… Where we began our amazing journey over two weeks ago. We went for one last shawarma lunch and the chef even gave us a falafel to munch on while we waited.
We had happy hour together and then headed off for the farewell dinner at a nearby restaurant. We sang songs, told stories of our trip and just enjoyed being together. Lior gave everyone a limestone rock from the desert that she picked up and on it she wrote our names in Hebrew as well as the date of our trip. A special and thoughtful gift. On the ride home she played “Leaving On A Jetplane” and Green Peace’s “Time of Your Life”. We all said goodbye with some tears and promised to keep in touch. It was a great group of people and we all got along very well.
Israel is a beautiful country and we enjoyed the history and the biblical significance from both the old and new testaments. Lior was excellent in giving us a true representation of every place we visited and she made Israel come alive and for that we are ever grateful.
I’d like to end my journal with a quote from the author James Michener…”If you reject the food, ignore the customs, fear the religion, and avoid the people, you might better stay home”.
So very glad we didn’t stay home!!! ‘Shabbat Shalom’