Destinations
A place so rich in history and culture, it fills one with hope and is simply humbling to behold
Well, friend, it was an amazing trip we had last year with family and friends from both the United States and Canada. We flew into Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv and boarded a tour bus which took us to our hotel for the night. We checked into the King Solomon Hotel In Netanya just before supper and we could hear the sound of the waves coming off the Mediterranean Sea, but it was so dark we couldn’t see anything!
The next day in the wee morning hours, we peeked out from our hotel balcony and finally viewed the magnificent sight of the sea. After breakfast, we got on the tour bus and, even though it was raining, there was an excitement in the air among us as we ventured out towards Caesarea. Over the next couple of hours, we saw wondrous sights, including Mount Carmel where Elijah called the fire down before the Priests of Baal and King Ahab. We travelled through the Jezreel Valley to Megiddo, the Armageddon battlefield. We ended our trip that day driving to Nazareth to visit Mary’s Well, where she was told that she would bear the Son of God.
For two nights, we stayed at a lovely resort called Nof Ginosar in the Galilee region of Israel. We had breakfast and supper there on both days, and enjoyed lunch wherever we were at that time of the day. Our first day there began with a boat ride on the beautiful Sea of Galilee. Such breathtaking scenery, and I somehow felt that Jesus was right there with us. Then, we went to the Museum of the Ancient Boat, which houses a 2,000-yearold sailing vessel that is said to be like the one used by the Apostles of Jesus. After that, we went to the Mount of Beatitudes, where Jesus is believed
to have preached the Sermon on the Mount. We had lunch at a seaside restaurant and ate the famous St. Peter’s fish—it was very tasty—and we finished off with fresh, warm dates. Mmmm! Afterwards, we travelled to Jerusalem and to the Jordan River, where a modern-day Baptismal site is situated. We waded in the river and sang the song of Jericho!
Then, we went to Capernaum, which we were told means the House of Nahum—that’s our son’s name—or the House of Peace. We ended our day at the city of Magdala, visiting three chapels and a woman’s atrium while there. The following day brought us to Bethlehem, the site widely believed to the place of Jesus’s birth. A stop at Manger Square and the Church of Nativity was an absolute must! While there, we had to pause and let a procession of priests go by for the Blessing of the Manger. At The Garden Tomb, we took communion, a sweet ending for a remarkable day.
The Tower of David Museum put on a light show unlike any other, illuminating as it did the history of the Jewish people and their beloved Jerusalem. We also went to see the Israel Museum, which houses the Dead Sea Scrolls and also features a scale model of Old Jerusalem.
We did so much every day that by the time eve- ning fell, we felt emotionally fulfilled from our experiences. I just love the fact that we actually walked and stood in many places Jesus and his disciples walked. We went to the southern wall of Temple Mount, where Peter urged a gathering crowd to repent and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ and thousands heeded his words and were baptized. We then walked the Stations of the Cross and walked through the Lions’ Gate.
We did so much walking on stone that I was very thankful for the comfortable footwear I had brought along. At one of our hotels, though, I changed my shoes and subsequently left a pair in the hotel room. I never thought I would see them again as we had already left that hotel. I felt as though I had just thrown away $ 110; upset at myself and slightly embarrassed, I didn’t tell our tour guide, Ofer, about it until almost the end of our trip.
Ofer was Jewish and every night on the way back to our current hotel, he would tell us historybased stories of the Jewish people’s way of life. My three boys—ages 12, 14 and 16—always looked
forward to Ofer’s story-telling, because he would inevitably take the opportunity to introduce us all to a new Jewish snack food, found only in Israel. At one point in the tour, Ofer he had to stay at the border-crossing gate, while a Palestinian guide took over as we visited the Palestinian parts of Jerusalem.
Back in Israel, on one of our hikes around the Byzantine bathhouse ruins, Ofer encouraged the boys to run ahead to find us a good place to sit. As soon as they left, he told us adults that he had actually sent the boys to the ancient communal toilets and to act nonchalant when we got there. He then called to them while we looked down at where they were sitting and asked them what they were doing. Everyone had a good laugh as the realization came over the boys’ faces that they were sitting in a large public bathroom!
The next day we visited the legendary plateau of Masada. We took a cable car up the mountain and hiked around the fortress, taking in the amazing site as we listened to the story of Masada, where troops of the Roman Empire held a long siege that resulted in the mass suicide of resident Jewish families and local rebel forces. The ancient Roman encampment can still be seen today.
We had a chance to take a relaxing float on the Dead Sea before supper on that same day, and then proceeded to our hotel to check out and prepare for our flight home. On the way to the airport, still on the tour bus, our accompanying minister asked me if I had lost a pair of shoes and I said yes! Ofer had somehow managed to recover my forgotten shoes and paid a taxi to deliver them to me from Galilee—you could not ask for a more dedicated tour guide. And what a trip! There is no other place I know of that is so rich with history and culture, and simply fills you with so much hope. ■