Some final thoughts

As I believe I've said over and over, this was an amazing trip.  First and foremost it was great to have this opportunity to travel with my Dad.  Second, what an extraordinary location of the world to visit.  Walking on roads built over 2,000 years ago that are still in use today and seeing ruins of the same age was an incredible experience.

I thought EO Travel did an outstanding job.  They have been offering this trip for a long time and it showed throughout.  They were very well organized, employed knowledgeable guides,and seemed to have everything under control.  Further, I never felt like there were any safety concerns.  For several in our group, this was at least a second trip to the Holy Land.  For some like Pastor John and his wife, this was way beyond a second trip.  EO is definitely doing something right.

The pace of the trip was good as well.  Daily itineraries were full but not overloaded.  We had time each day to relax a bit before dinner then spend most evenings finding our own things to do (like update the blog with some text of the day's activities combined with some pictures).

The hotels were both very nice, although the Olive Tree, in Jerusalem, was superior to the Royal Plaza in Tiberias in nearly every way.  Amenities and services were fine with no complaints, except for the lousy internet service.  The Royal Plaza had no service available in the rooms and the lobby service seemed to be the equivalent of dial up.  Having to pay for service that slow was irritating.  The free Olive Tree service in the lobby was a nice idea but wasn't able to deal with the volume of traffic.  What that meant to this blog writer was getting disconnected halfway through just about every picture upload, forcing me to start over.  The last few posts from Israel were done from our room, where I paid for the connection but at least it was consistent and reasonably fast.

Regarding Israel itself, aside from the Holy Land literally coming to life, the things that were most striking to me were the topology of the land and the barren nature of the "wilderness."  Except for the flat areas near the Dead Sea, the terrain is constantly undulating.  "Uphill both ways" became a common theme heard among our group walking throughout all of the cities we toured.  Hearing about this place most of my life, I never pictured it like this.  Others visiting for the first time agreed as well.

I've lived in Arizona for the last 25 years and have driven through, hiked in, and camped in different parts of the great American southwest.  It's a very harsh environment that only becomes worse during the summer.  However, there is also an amazing beauty to behold in what's officially called the Sonoran Desert; that is, after you start to look past the various types of cactus and their thorns, snakes, poisonous lizards, scorpions, and other assorted flora and fauna that have various protection schemes to keep them from being some other critter's dinner.  I can tell you that the desert in springtime when everything is in bloom or a desert sunset behind a field of saguaro cactus are hard views to beat.

However, as I looked out on the Israeli desert/wilderness, I tried to see the beauty.  I didn't see the different types of cactus, or the mesquite trees, or the scrub brush that is almost everywhere in the southwest and gives it what I believe is some character and helps create that rugged beauty.  Instead, I saw dirt, little bits of grass for the goats and sheep to eat, and mountains.  That's not to say there's no beauty there.  Maybe, just like I mentioned in the previous paragraph, it takes some time to look past the barren landscape to see the beauty of this wilderness.

Ultimately, I sure am glad we were visiting in February.  A surprise to no one, it gets hot here in Arizona during the summer.  Temperatures in the 110-115 range are not uncommon.  It's generally not all that humid though, usually less than 20%, though we do have higher percentages in July and August.  Our guide, Mic, indicated that their desert can reach temperatures in the 125-130 range with 80% humidity.  Heat like that is more than unbearable, it seems like it would be deadly.  It's amazing to think that the Bedouin people have continued to live off the land in this environment for thousands of years.  And they want to live in the desert by choice.

Now getting back to the sites we saw, it really is hard to put into words.  I still can't get over that our hotel in Tiberias looked out over the Sea of Galilee.  It really seemed a bit surreal.  The Galilee area was, for the most part, beautiful, very peaceful, and serene.  It was also much less populated than the Jerusalem area where we spent most of our time.  Jerusalem was also amazing.  A modern city with intertwined religious and historical paths going back nearly as far as the close by Tigris and Euphrates rivers, what's been called the "cradle of civilization."

It is very interesting that Christians, Jews, and Muslims can live pretty well together in such a small space as Israel and even more so in crowded Jerusalem yet there is so much unrest in other parts of the Middle East from what I would call the more radical adherents to Islam.  Although I have my suspicions as to why, I'm not sure it matters.  In my eyes, Israel appeared to be a shining example of civility and progress in an otherwise primitive, factious part of the world that has always seemed backwards.

Another facet of the complexities of life in Israel that we didn't really talk about all that much are the Palestinians.  Although I believe I mentioned this as we traveled in and out of Bethlehem (the city is part of the Palestinian Authority), Israeli citizens are not currently permitted in the city.  I think that's disappointing and sad.  The wall and security to get into and out of the city detracts quite a bit from initial impressions of the city where Jesus was born.  The security doesn't seem to be present anywhere else in the city but is certainly eye opening and would have been very unexpected if I hadn't read about it prior to traveling.  That was the only place during our trip where the Palestinian situation was really apparent.  Although they and the Israelis seem to peaceful with each other right now, certainly that can change very quickly (as it has throughout recent history).

Finally, I want to tell all my new friends from Harrison City how much I enjoyed traveling with them and getting to know them.  What a great experience to be able to share with wonderful people.    Thanks for being so welcoming to me.

This last post took much longer than I expected.  I had a bit of writer's block in addition to getting over jet lag, figuring out what I was doing at work, etc.  Anyway, I don't think there's much more to say other than thanks for reading and thanks for the nice comments about the blog both in person since I've been back and through email with family and friends.  A lot of people have read my words and that really makes me happy.  I've come to enjoy writing as I've gotten older and this was another excellent experience; as well as an excellent adventure.

Until we meet again (and that's either electronically through the internet or actually in person),
Tim

Day 9 - Our last day...

Introduction

Although it's not day 10, because our flight home leaves tonight, it's our last day in Israel so you know what tonight will feature, right?  That's right, our last supper (ba-dum, ching!  Hey everyone be sure to try the veal and don't forget to tip your waitresses). No, not as significant as the one that occurred 2,000 years ago but significant and sad for us in that our magnificent trip is coming to an all-too-soon end.

Our morning is free but we're scheduled to see the Israel Holocaust Museum, called Yad Vashem, and then visit the Garden Tomb in the afternoon before heading back to the hotel for dinner.  After that, we'll be transferred to the airport.

Before we left the hotel, Dad chose to be King Harold for a bit in an ornate lobby chair.

On to today's stops!

The Mount of Olives - Revisited

We had stopped here a few days earlier for a group picture and it was raining so hard some thought it was sleeting.  Pastor John later referred to it as the "Tempest on the Mount."  Today, however, the weather was beautiful - clear and sunny, although the temperature was in the 40s so everyone had their jackets on.  Here are a few pictures of the view.

 

  
Although pictures of the Teaching Steps were in the Day 8 post, here are a few more starting from our vantage point on the mount and progressively zoom in further that give some perspective to the distance.

One other thing - Guess what day it is?  That's right, it's HUMP DAY!  Kojack, a camel several had ridden who had taken the trip in previous years was there and his owners were offering rides right where we were overlooking the city and taking pictures.  As you can imagine, several in our group took advantage of the opportunity.

Kojack!

Pastor John and Mic (not a typo.  I found out after we got home that there was no "k")

Dave and Mary Jo Patterline from Harrison City taking their turn

 

Elizabeth and Vivian Somes showing they know how to ride with no hands!

Kojack was not averse to multitasking and was able to take care of business while transporting tourists.  Someone said they looked like Milk Duds.  The beat up can in the background was the Milk Dud "box."

During the camel rides, Dad and I were standing right near where passengers were getting on and off.  Here's Dad with Kojack.

And one more featuring Dad and I in some Arab headdresses.  Yes we bought them.  How could we not?

 

Yad Vashem

The name Yad Vashem, comes from Isaiah 56:5 and means "a memorial and a name."  It was created in 1956 by the Knesset, in order to preserve a record of the Holocaust (recall from an earlier post that the Knesset is the Israeli legislature).  Almost all high-ranking foreign officials are brought by the government to visit this place.

The Holocaust History Museum is the centerpiece of the site and includes visual as well as audiovisual documentation of Jewish life in Europe before the Nazis came to power.  A walk through the museum shows the escalation of persecution and internment leading to the hideous climax of the "Final Solution."  Although sad, heart breaking and disturbing, I've not been to the Holocaust museum in D.C and I thought it was a very worthwhile stop. 

Yad Vashem is encircled by the Avenue of the Righteous that is marked with several thousand trees bearing the names of Gentiles in Europe who risked and sometimes lost their lives in attempting to save Jews from the Nazis.  A famous name among the honorees that most will know is Oskar Schindler.

No pictures were allowed here.  I added links to the museum web site if you're interested in learning more (both links go to the same location).

The Garden Tomb

Located a few blocks north of the old Jerusalem city walls, the Garden Tomb is a beautiful spot of tranquility located in an otherwise bustling portion of what's called East Jerusalem.  The site was identified as Jesus' burial place in 1883 (as opposed to the Church of the Holy Sepulcher) by a British general named Charles Gordon.  A rock cut tomb has been discovered on the site as well as a cistern and wine press, typical features of an ancient garden, much like the one believed to be owned by Joseph of Arimathea.  It may or may not be where Jesus was buried.  It definitely resembles what the area would have looked like more than the church setting on top.

The Flight Home

 As I indicated in the "we're home" post, we started our journey home from the Tel-Aviv airport at 11:30PM Wednesday evening.  However, before that we put our bags through the x-ray machine, got our boarding passes, then exited Israeli customs.  A check of the boarding pass details showed  that Dad and I were no longer sitting together.  I'm not sure what happened since I had talked with US Airways before the trip to make sure we were sitting together for both the outbound and inbound flights.  Nevertheless, a quick discussion with the gate attendant took care of it and Dad and I were both in the middle section of row 33, just a few rows from the back of the airplane (another A330 if you're keeping track).  We were also very close to most of the other Harrison City folks.

We left Israel on time and after one of the smoothest landings ever, pulled up to our gate in Philadelphia earlier than our scheduled 5:20AM arrival time.  Even landing early the flight was still in the air over 12 hours.  Our arrival was early enough that we had to remain on the plane for a few additional minutes until US customs opened.  Dad and I officially reentered the US, reclaimed our luggage, rechecked our big bags, then had to go through security again in order to board our domestic flights home.  Once everyone had gone through security, we found that the Phoenix and Pittsburgh flights left from the A or F gates.  That meant going in the opposite direction from each other and time for us to say goodby.

In just a few short days I had gotten very close to the wonderful people from Harrison City Community United Methodist Church.  And judging from the hugs and a few tears as we said our goodbyes, it would appear that they felt similar towards me.  I am happy and humbled that I was so easily accepted and we could all get along so well.  A great group of folks and some that I hope to able to be call friends for life.

We went our separate ways and I found my way to the gate from where my flight home would leave.  The sun was up by now and it was clear but cold in Philly.  Jerusalem was also clear all day on Wednesday when we left.  The flight home was scheduled for just over five hours and, as I had said earlier, was extended about 20 minutes due to the stiff head wind all the way west.

Both Jerusalem and Philadelphia were clear (but cold) as we flew out.  In a bit of irony, about an hour or so before landing in Arizona, we encountered cloud cover and when we landed were under overcast skies in the Phoenix area.

From the time we got up on Wednesday morning in Jerusalem until I got back home Thursday afternoon, it was about 37 hours.  But I was back home and got to sleep in my own bed Thursday night.  In addition to to seeing my wife, Barbara, it was good to be home.

Dad's and my excellent adventure has come to an end and it was truly special.  However, as promised, I will very likely add a post with some final thoughts.  I'll try to get that done in another few days.

I hope you enjoyed reading as much as I enjoyed sharing the trip.
Tim

Day 8 - Old Jerusalem

Introduction

It was cold and damp today (Tuesday, February 4, in case you're keeping track) and we dodged rain on and off all day long while we walked through the old city of Jerusalem.  Fair warning, this will probably be a lengthy post.  We got to the gates outside the old city and exited the bus before 9:00AM and didn't reboard until after 3:00PM.  We had about an hour in the middle of the day for a lunch break but the rest of the day was spent doing touristy things.  So get comfortable and settle down with some coffee or tea (or something stronger if you prefer) and peruse to your heart's content.


We were dropped off outside the old city wall and entered the Lion's Gate after a short walk.  I think you'll agree that even after 2000 years the wall is pretty photogenic.  I can pretty much guarantee they won't be taking 2000 year old pictures of me!

Here are a few of the gate.

In case you didn't believe we actually entered the Lion's Gate, here's real proof - this AWESOME bazaar (or maybe bizarre?) souvenir shop confirms our point of entry.  And yes, they actually sold film.

The Church of St. Anne and the Pools of Bethesda

Our first stop inside the old city wall was the Church of St. Anne and the Pools of Bethesda.  The church was built by the Crusaders in 1140 and restored in the 19th century and is a beautiful example of medieval architecture.  The church is named for the Mother of the Virgin Mary and is build over the grotto where Mary was believed to be born.  In addition, there is a beautiful and peaceful garden just outside the church.

The Pools of Bethesda were large public reservoirs in use during the 1st century BC through the 1st century AD.  This is where Jesus cured a lame man as recorded in John 5.  The ruins show where churches were built by both the Byzantines and the Crusaders over the original reservoirs to commemorate the miracle.  Although I couldn't confirm this through my notes, I seem to recall Mick indicating that any excavation done for new construction in and around Jerusalem requires archaeologists and/or historians to provide some oversight to ensure that any ancient ruins aren't desroyed or covered up during the building process.

Here are a few glimpses of what it looks like walking through the old city.

Via Dolorosa and the Church of the Holy Sepulcher

Translated as the "way of suffering" or "way of the cross," most readers will know that the Via Dolorosa is the path through Jerusalem that Jesus walked with his cross from the place of his trial and condemnation by Pontius Pilate to the site of his crucifixion and burial.  The distance is approximately one and a quarter miles and ends at the Church of the Holy Sepulcher.  The first church was built after the site was consecrated in 326 AD by Helena, mother of the Byzantine emperor Constantine the Great.  Currently occupying the site is the fourth such structure and was built by the Crusaders in the 12th century.  We walked through each of the 14 stations ending, as described above, at what is generally accepted to be the tomb of Jesus.  (We get to see another possible burial location tomorrow on day 9, the Garden Tomb.)  Of the 14 stations, 9 are based on scriptural references.  5 of them (3, 4, 6, 7, and 9) are considered symbolic.  All are marked.  Here's a map (but not a great one) that shows the route. 

After being condemned to death by Pilate, Jesus was beaten by Roman soldiers and given his cross to bear through the city.  It was pointed out several times that the Roman practice of making the condemned carry their crosses as well as the crucifixion high on a hill for all to see were done with the intention of making an example of them.  In other words - you'll be following in their footsteps if you don't start seeing things "our way."  We started at the Church of the Condemnation and wound our way through the city, stopping briefly at each of the stations, until we entered the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, where we queued up to see the actual tomb.

The first four pictures show stations one and two, Jesus' condemnation and being given his cross.

Station three is where Jesus fell for the first time.

Jesus met his mother Mary at station four and station five is where Simon was forced to assist Jesus in carrying his cross.

The Chapel of St. Veronica was erected to commemorate the site where Veronica wiped Jesus' face.

Station seven is near the Justice Gate of the ancient city and where Jesus fell for the second time.  The Justice Gate listed the indictments of those condemned.

Jesus consoled the women following him at station eight.

The stone with the Latin cross near the bottom of the picture has an inscription that means Jesus Christ conquers.

The Coptic Church of Saint Anthony marks the location of station nine, where Jesus fell for the third time.

Jesus' clothes were taken from him at the tenth station.

Stations 11 through 14 are located within the Church of the Holy Sepulcher.  Station 11 is where Jesus was nailed to the cross.

Station 12 is where the cross was erected and where Jesus died.

Two pictures for station 13 show where He was taken down from the cross. 

 

Station 14 is where Jesus was laid in the tomb.  Pictures weren't allowed in the tomb but it is the room on the other side of the doorway.

 

The Cardo

Part of the Jewish quarter today, 1500 years ago the Cardo was Jerusalem's main north-south street.  It was paved in the 2nd century by the Roman Emperor Hadrian when he rebuilt the city after defeating a Jewish revolt.  The original width of the street was 73 feet, about the width of a six-lane highway.  Half of that width is visible today and the Cardo is known today for shopping with stores selling jewelery, art, and souvenirs.

At this point we had spent the morning walking through the old city and were ready for a break.  In the midst of several shops, we stopped for lunch and had shawarma!  For those not familiar, shawarma is a meat dish that comes from Turkey and is similar to the Greek gyro.  The meat can be chicken, beef, veal, or a mixture and it's grilled on a spit for up to one day then carved.  Our shawarmas were carved chicken that was heated on a flat top grill while a massive pita was filled with hummus, hot chili sauce (in my case), roasted vegetables including eggplant, onions and peppers, and lettuce and tomatoes.  Then the chicken was added and the whole thing was wrapped up in paper.  We also got fries and a drink.  It was designated number 3 on the menu and went for 49 shekels (about $15).  It was really good.  Dad had one just like mine sans chili sauce and we wound up eating with Pastor John (who, if you look closely, is eating a hamburger) and his wife, Patsy.

We had a little time to walk around after lunch before heading to our next destination.  It is absolutely fascinating to walk around Jerusalem.  Ruins are everywhere.  These were located about 100 feet or so from where we ate lunch.

Western Wall

The 2,000 year old structure was built by King Herod as part of the massive retaining retaining wall around the Temple Mount.  It is the place closest to where the Holy of Holies, the inner sanctuary of the temple, was before the temple was destroyed, hence the reason for the throngs of people, orthodox Jews along with non-Jews, come to pray.

Cracks between the stones have been stuffed with prayers and petitions for years and are said, with a mixture of faith and a bit of cynicism, to reach their destination more quickly than the Israeli postal service.  The paper is cleared from the cracks several times a year but are never just discarded as trash.  Since they are dedicated to God and clearly come from the heart of the person who wrote and placed it, the slips are placed into a sack and buried with reverence in a Jewish cemetery.  It was raining and cold when we stopped but that didn't deter the faithful from making their appeals.

Teaching Steps

From the Western Wall, we walked to the Teaching Steps, which are located near the southern wall of the Temple Mount near what was called the Huldah Gates.  These gates are now blocked and the steps in front of them are believed to be where Jesus preached from while he was in Jerusalem.  Aside from a few obvious recent additions, these steps are original and date back over 2000 years.

After a long but amazing day walking through the old city, we boarded the buses and headed back to the hotel for a brief rest before dinner.  However, the day isn't over yet.

The Israel Museum

Dad and I chose to go on this optional tour to the museum and I thought it was a bargain at only $25.  Fodor's gives the museum high marks for its collection of art, archaeology, and historical and literary materials relating to Judaism.  And if you've been reading from the beginning of the blog, you'll know that it's most famous, and most important collection, are the Dead Sea Scrolls.  And if you haven't, well now you know.  

Also featured is a very large outdoor model of the old city of Jerusalem as it was during the time of Jesus.  This is the first thing we saw and I thought it was amazing.  A few of us were talking during our time here and thought this would have been an excellent thing to see shortly after getting to Jerusalem to provide some reference for other sites we'd seen along the trip.  Fodor's stated that no pictures were allowed at the museum so I left my camera in our hotel room.  But it turns out that was true only for inside.  It would have been nice to have a few of my own pictures of the model but these I grabbed from the internet may actually be better since they're in the daylight.  This first is from Trip Adviser.  The others were grabbed from a Google search.

The model is massive and really interesting.  If you'd like to see a few more images, I found another blog that has some really good pictures.

After we walked around the model, the remainder of our time was spent in the Shrine of the Book, a separate building in the museum complex dedicated to the Dead Sea Scrolls.  As I probably indicated on the post covering our trip to Qumran, the earliest of the scrolls dates to the 2nd century BC and the latest couldn't have been written later than 68AD, the year their community was destroyed by the Romans (bloody Romans).  The scrolls are the oldest Hebrew manuscripts of the Old Testament and authenticate the nearly identical texts in use today.  Again courtesy of the internet, here are a few pictures from the second stop of our museum trip.  This first picture shows the top of the shrine and it was shaped like the lids that were found on the scroll containers.

Here are a few of the interior.  The first picture is from All About Jerusalem and was taken by Ron Peled.

With that, our busy but amazing day spent in Jerusalem came to an end as we boarded the bus and headed back to the hotel.  As I expected, we got back after 9:00 and there wasn't time to fight with the hotel internet connection to get the post out in a timely manner.  Ultimately, doing the bulk of this after I got back certainly makes me appreciate the speedier connection I enjoy at home.  It probably allowed for some more pictures to be added to the post as well.  Hope you liked it.  See you next time.
Tim