The Big Bang

It was raining and occasionally lightening as we left Tel Aviv. About 5minutes into our flight there was a huge BANG and an orange flash! Turns out we were hit by lightening. All was well but it was typical of traveling with Les!

The Final Day

Today was a busy and rainy day. We began in Tiberius going to Canna, Capernum, Haifa, Mt Carmel, Nazareth, Jaffa, Caesarea and finally Tel Aviv. We have all made it through the gantlet of security and now wait to board our plane. We had a amazing meal before we arrived at the airport. We have had a indescribable adventure which is difficult to express. Our group has bonded into a family. I can't wait to post photos and share in more depth.

From the Dead Sea to the Sea of Galilee

What a busy day! I began the day at the Jaffa Gate inside the Wall of Jerusalem looking for a Turkish coffee...hotels all serve instant Necafe..YUCK! While I waited for a shop to open..was only 6:45 am.. I walked through the Jaffa Gate and looked at the Tower of David. The city is so different before it comes to life about 7 am. Once we boarded the bus, we headed south towards the Dead Sea, the lowest elevation on earth. We passed some Bedouin groups along the way. Our first stop of the day was the ruins of Massada, a palace of King Herod. It is an amazing story of a siege between the Jews and the Roman army. In the end,the Jews chose death over slavery to the Romans. It has magnificent views of the Dead Sea. From there we headed to the Jordon River to the site of Jesus' baptism. It is at a space on the river where the country of Jordon is about 30 yards away. On both sides of the river people were going into baptize themselves or someone else. The irony was the juxtaposition of Israeli soldiers on one side and Jordanian soldiers on the other, each making sure no one crossed to the other side. From there we headed north to Tiberius to the Sea of Galilee for lunch of St Peter's fish. The trip starts in land of rocks and dust and ends in the Jezreal Valley which is the bread basket of Israel, it is green and lush. Our day ended at the ruins of the city of Capernaum, the city of Jesus. There is a very modern cantilevered church over the ruins of Peter's mother in law's house. We watched the sunset over the Sea of Galilee form there. Tomorrow is our last day before the long plane ride home. We have lots to see before our 11 pm flight. I am anxious to be able to post photos once I am home to show all these magnificent sights we have experienced.

What a busy day! I began the day at the Jaffa Gate inside the Wall of Jerusalem looking for a Turkish coffee...hotels all serve instant Necafe..YUCK! While I waited for a shop to open..was only 6:45 am.. I walked through the Jaffa Gate and looked at the Tower of David. The city is so different before it comes to life about 7 am. Once we boarded the bus, we headed south towards the Dead Sea, the lowest elevation on earth. We passed some Bedouin groups along the way. Our first stop of the day was the ruins of Massada, a palace of King Herod. It is an amazing story of a siege between the Jews and the Roman army. In the end,the Jews chose death over slavery to the Romans. It has magnificent views of the Dead Sea. From there we headed to the Jordon River to the site of Jesus' baptism. It is at a space on the river where the country of Jordon is about 30 yards away. On both sides of the river people were going into baptize themselves or someone else. The irony was the juxtaposition of Israeli soldiers on one side and Jordanian soldiers on the other, each making sure no one crossed to the other side. From there we headed north to Tiberius to the Sea of Galilee for lunch of St Peter's fish. The trip starts in land of rocks and dust and ends in the Jezreal Valley which is the bread basket of Israel, it is green and lush. Our day ended at the ruins of the city of Capernaum, the city of Jesus. There is a very modern cantilevered church over the ruins of Peter's mother in law's house. We watched the sunset over the Sea of Galilee form there. Tomorrow is our last day before the long plane ride home. We have lots to see before our 11 pm flight. I am anxious to be able to post photos once I am home to show all these magnificent sights we have experienced.

Leaving Palestine

Today we left Bethlehem for Jerusalem. We had to go through the check point to get out. The wall on the "other" side has no graffiti like the Bethlehem side. We started out by visiting The Mount of Olives. The view of jerusalem from there is incredible. Dwn the hill was The Garden of Gethsemane after over viewing the city looking across the Kidron Valley. the olive trees are so very old and gnarly. Seeing them and knowing how old they have to be before they produce olives, gives greater understanding of the frustration of the people of bethelehem for losing their trees because of the wall. There is evere so much more green here and it is only 6 miles away. We entered Jerusalem through the lion's gate..one of 7 gates. We walked along the via Delarosa as it began to rain and get bone chilling cold. Along the way we stopped at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. After winding our way though some of the markets, we came to the western wall also known as the wailing wall. The wall separates into a men and women's side and we all went to the wall to pray. Our hotel is the Gloria----much to Gloria's delight!--- and is at the Jaffa Gate. It is a gate I remember from the last time we were here and one which I really liked both then and now. Tomorrow we leave early to head toward the Dead Sea and then up to the Sea of galilee. It is hard to imagine that we are coming to the end of or trip.

A pick up day

We started our day picking up bags and bags of trash as our service project yesterday. The trash was endless but we felt we made a dent. Much of what we cleaned was at the entrance to the school. Many students thanked us for our efforts. While there, a herd of sheep came down the streets stopping all traffic along their way. After lunch we went to the Herodian at the edge of the Judean desert and also saw more of the wall surrounding Bethlehem. From there we went to the Shepherds Field... but no sheep there! Today we leave for Jerusalem and the Dead Sea. It will be interesting to compare the 2 cities.

Thank you sarah

Sarah you are awesome!! Thank you. I know it was a lot todo on top of your regular schedule. Thanks!