|
|
Map of Israel. We were transported in a large loop around the country, ending in Jerusalem. |
Welcome to Tel Aviv! |
Inside the Airport! |
Our Palestinian bus driver, Maher! He did a great job and made our journeys very comfortable. |
This is a view of northern Israel, which is very lush, green, and highly cultivated! |
|
A view from Dave and Janet’s hotel room looking over the Mediterranean Sea! |
Walking along the shoreline just down the street from our hotel! |
Some local Jewish markets in Tel Aviv by night! |
This dining room was typical in all of our hotels. The food quality and quantity was wonderful! |
Mark and Micaela take a photo of the ancient city of Jaffa on the outskirts of Tel Aviv! |
|
A Roman amphitheater from our stop at Caesarea- Maritima! |
This was the only written document outside of the Bible referring to Pontius Pilate ! |
Here’s Janet at a Roman aqueduct built during the times of King Herod! |
This is our very talented Palestinian guide, Baligh, who spoke five languages: Hebrew, Arabic, English, Greek, and German! |
Megiddo, also known as Armageddon has 26 “layers” of different civilizations buried under the surface! |
|
A view of the port city of Haifa in northwest Israel. It’s the third largest city. |
Also in Haifa is the gardens of the Baha’i religion. |
At the Church of Mary, churches from all over the world donated pictures. This is one’s Japanese. |
This is the Wedding Church in Cana. Some couples in our party renewed their wedding vows! |
The Greek and Roman ruins in Banais in northern Israel near the Lebanese border.! |
|
We held a Eucharist service at the Church of the Beatitudes! |
The Church of the Beatitudes was dedicated to Jesus’ sermon on the mount.! |
Olive oil presses at the Church of the Multiplication where Jesus fed the multitude of five thousand! |
Capernaum on the Sea of Galilee was where Jesus performed a number of his miracles.! |
This is thought to be the synagogue where Jesus studied as a young man. |
|
Ruins of homes in Capernaum where Peter’s mother-in-law lived! |
Don and Carol enjoying our boat ride on the Sea of Galilee.! |
Traveling south to Yardenit, a baptismal site on the Jordan River, north of Jesus’ actual site. |
A Roman bath house at Bet She’ an, the site of many Roman and Byzantine ruins! |
On the way to Jericho, a sycamore tree that may have been where Zacchaeus climbed to get a better view of Jesus! |
|
Jericho claims to be the oldest city in the world just celebrating its 10,000th anniversary! |
One of Janet’s favorite parts of the trip! A camel ride around the parking lot! |
Qumran, home of the Dead Sea Scrolls! |
This is the cave where the largest number of scrolls were found. |
Yes, Dave proves it is possible for anyone to float in the Dead Sea! |
|
A view of the Dead Sea area from the hotel. Note the landscape has gone from green in northern Israel to brown! |
Masada: After the first Jewish-Roman war, a site of group suicide by the Jewish army to prevent capture by the Roman. |
The ruins at Masada. These were some of he warehouses for storage of food and goods. |
The Masada site was reached by cable car. |
At the walls of Bethlehem, which is now a Palestinian governed area of Israel. |
|
Inside the Church of the Nativity a star marks the site where many think Jesus was born! |
Inside the Church of the Shepherds at the place where they were visited by the Angels! |
A map of Jerusalem showing the four quarters of the Old City: Jewish, Muslim, Armenian, and Christian. |
Inside the city through the Dung Gate, one of seven entrances. |
The Western or Wailing Wall! Everyone must have head covering. Men could borrow hats called yamacas. |
|
Men and women are separated at the Wailing Wall! This is the women’s side, the smaller of the two. |
To enter the Temple Mount, we had to go through a security checkpoint.! |
The Muslim Dome of the Rock built over the site of Solomon’s Temple. |
Our group also walked the 14 Stations of the Cross. |
The last stop is the beautiful Church of the Holy Sepulcher. |
|
The opulence of the church was amazing! |
The Garden Tomb was thought by many to be the place where Jesus was buried after his crucifixion! |
The Chapel of the Ascension was built over the spot where Jesus ascended to heaven. |
Inside the courtyard of the Church of the Pater Nostra (Our Father). |
The Jewish Cemetery. It is a common practice to decorate the graves with stones instead of flowers. |
|
The Garden of Gethsemane where Jesus and his disciples prayed together! |
It is claimed that some of these olive trees could date back to Jesus time! |
Church of All Nations, the place where Jesus prayed before his final arrest! |
King David’s tomb was thought to be here! |
St. Peter in Gallicantu was the place where Peter denied Jesus three times and then the cock crowed! |
|
The underground cave of Caiaphas where Jesus was held prisoner! |
We also dined at a Jewish kibbutz. The food there was awesome! |
The Israel Museum |
Building where the Dead Sea Scrolls are kept. The spraying water on the roof keeps the building cool. |
A 50-to-1 scale model of Jerusalem as it appeared around 70 AD. |
|
On many Jewish doors is mounted a “mezusah,” which acts as a guardian. |
A view of some houses from the top of the wall around the Old City. |
St. George’s Episcopal Cathedral in the northern suburbs of Jerusalem |
St. George’s is an Arabic speaking congregation. Here is the hymn board! |
Here’s a list of the past and present priests serving at St. George’s. |
|
We say goodbye to our travel-mates! One other travel coordinator we had was Jevonka, who was Croatian. |
|
On our last free day we visited the King David Hotel, where many famous world figures have stayed. |
|
We also visited the local YMCA and traveled to the top of the bell tower. This is the beautiful lobby. |
