May 5th – A Picture Perfect Day!

Update: May 5th Internet service was not available. This is what I wrote, yesterday. Today was another really long day so I doubt I'll do much more than post pictures. Maybe I'll catch up when I get home :-)

Here’s a summary of the day, because I’m fading fast and don’t think I’ll be able to do much more than upload some pictures. In a nut shell, I awoke to a beautiful sunrise, galloped on an Arabian horse (twice!), climbed up the most amazing rock formations that could possibly exist, spent some time on a sacrificial altar, stood in the Dead Sea, and watched the sun set into Jerusalem from across the Dead Sea. There is no way I can possibly describe what I saw today. God’s creation is truly magnificent and I’m so glad I took this opportunity to put into context what we read about in the Bible. It has already been and experience I’ll never forget!

See http://ferrelljenkins.wordpress.com for the biblical significance of the site we visited today.

I knew it would be a good day when I opened my window to find a blush of color in the sky behind the rough, sharp rock formation outside my window. If only I had known what was in store.

The Siq at Petra

We left the hotel around 8:00 a.m. stopping briefly at an overlook to get a glimpse of the mountains and valley below. Through my long lens, I can see carved structures come into focus. Oh my…this is going to be a good day! We continued down to the entrance to park among what appears to be 30 or more buses just like ours…I guess I shouldn’t be surprised. It is the most visited tourist site in the area. We enter the gates and start the day with a rest stop. I think I have spent at least half of the trip waiting in line. They really aren’t equipped to handle such large crowds. By 9:00 we were riding Arabian horses down the hill. My “handler” (the guy that owns the horse and walks with it) slowed or stopped at everything we passed. See they get tips at the end of the trip. When we got behind he asked if I had ridden a horse before and off we went! We raced down to the foot of the hill and caught up with the rest of my group. I think someone got a picture and I’m sure it was not pretty. What a ride!

Our walk begins down into a region called the Siq which is an area of enormous rock formations that reach to what seems like the sky. After 30-45 minutes of literally gawking at textures, colors and carvings in the rock including a flood prevention system of channels, we turned the corner to get our first glimpse of “The Treasury” which is the classic picture you always see from Petra.

It is a massive temple carved into the side of the rock in the 1st century BC. Because it is protected by valley rock walls, it has deteriorated less than other structures. It is truly an unbelievable feat of ancient engineering, but we’ve barely scratched the surface. Our ultimate goal for the day is reaching the “High Place” and view it offers. Little did we know the journey would be equally rewarding. We continued down the path past more unbelievably carved temples and tombs and in the distance we see an enormous stadium carved into the rock. Around the corner is a path to the high place.


                                                                         The Treasury





I’ll have to finish this later. I can’t keep my eyes open. Jane was working on hers on the bus, so for those of you following the blogs, check her site for the rest of the story! I’ll try to finish it up tomorrow.

May 6th Update: The internet connection here is really slow too. Check the websites of those with aircards and maybe you will find more. I will try again at a different time of day. It has taken an hour to upload 3 pictures and I really need some sleep! Please forgive any typos since I'm practically doing this in my sleep.
http://ferrelljenkins.wordpress.com
http://journeyswithjane.blogspot.com
http://thejamesmiller.wordpress.com

May 4th – Traveling the King’s and Desert Highways – Desolation and Discovery

Today we departed Amman, Jordan at 8:00 am. We have a long journey ahead of us as we make our way toward Petra. It is a long trip, but there are many sites along the way to keep our attention.

Our first stop is Bethany Beyond the Jordan. This is the area many believe that John the Baptist baptized Jesus. Today however, the Jordan River is in serious decline. Ferrell read in an article just this week that indicated the amount of water flowing from into the southern part of the Jordan river is only 2% of what it was 100 years ago. Syria has built a dam and collects water in a reservoir and a number of others up the river have diverted water for their own use. If this continues, the Jordan River could be dry in 2 years. The Dead Sea has also been in decline for years (lower and lower water levels) and since the Jordan flows into the Dead Sea, its continued decline won’t be far behind. A Byzantine church was built on the site of springs that are believed by some to be the historic site. People today still come to the Jordan River to be baptized. We witnessed several Greek Orthodox dipped themselves three times. The border of Israel is literally feet away on the opposite bank, but you can’t access the river from that side at this time.

The Jordon River from Jordan

Our journey continues as we head into the hills of Mount Nebo to visit the site where God took Moses to show him the promised land. The weather today has been incredible and the views of the Rift Valley are amazing as we ascend to the top of Mount Nebo. We pass Bedouin camps, shepherds with herds of goats and sheep, and two groups of camel herds. Tareq tells us something about them being the “people’s camels,” but I’m not sure what that means. A camel for every household or maybe just every Bedouin family? The government provides some support for the Bedouins.

The view at the top is a little disappointing since the primary viewing tower is under massive renovation. The experience however, has been nothing short of incredible. You just cannot imagine the perspective you have from here. You can see the Jordan River, Rift Valley, Jericho, Dead Sea and across the Jordan Valley. Ferrell has been here a number of times and has never seen it this clear. Even our guide says he has rarely seen it this clear.

A view of Jericho from Mt. Nebo.

A glimpse of the Dead Sea where the Jordan River empties into it.

We stopped for lunch and did a little shopping. There were women in the shop making beautiful mosaic tile art pieces. They cut each tile and carefully glued it into place. Several on the trip purchased egg-shaped pieces that were overlaid with the tiniest tiles, about the size of a grain of dried couscous. The mosaics make intricate pictures topics of local flavor like the tress of life and map of Madaba (see below). You had to look through a magnifying glass to see each tile.

Our next stop is Madaba and the St. George Church built in 1884 over the remains of a Byzantine church. During that time, of Muslin rule, churches could only be built on the site of existing churches. An incredible mosaic map of the region that is said to be of remarkable geographical accuracy was discovered in the 1880’s, but damaged during construction because they did not understand its significance. It dates from 560 to 565 AD. It includes detailed graphics and captions from number areas including: Jerusalem, the Dead Sea, the Jordan River, Jericho, the Nile in Egypt, and southern Lebanon to name a few. Madaba (Medaba) is believed by most to be the city of Moab. It is mentioned numerous times in the Old Testament. Of particular significance is when the Ammonites (recall we’ve just driven from Amman (Ammon)) hired Arameans to help them fight King David. They gathered in front of Medaba but were defeated by David (1 Chron. 19).

We’ve driven part of our trip on the “King’s Highway.” The scenery is fabulous but passes through many small towns. We could travel to Petra by this route, but instead we take the newer “Desert Highway” considered an expressway on our map. Ironically, our driver was pulled over by the police for doing one mile over the speed limit.

We finally arrived at the hotel at 7:00 pm after driving literally through the middle of nowhere! The sun was setting just as we arrive and much to my surprise as I opened the windows of my hotel room this is what I found.

We tour Petra tomorrow, so stay tuned. It should be a real treat.

May 3rd - Roaming Roman Streets

There is no rest for the weary on this trip. Luggage had to be outside the room for pick up at 6:45 and we were on the bus and on our way by 7:45. We traveled south to get to our border crossing into Jordan at the Sheikh Hussein Crossing. There are a limited number of crossing sites. This one has only been open since 1994 and has tremendously increased import/export and tourism for the “Kingdom” of Jordan. Signs like the entry sign below with a picture of King Abdullah II are proudly displayed on numerous buildings around the country.

Crossing into Jordan was not difficult, but neither was it trivial. Elie, our guide for Israel, and Fawsy, our bus driver took us to the entrance. We had to remove all of our luggage from the bus go inside to customs. Out visa had already been purchased, so all that was left was to show our passport (which they kept)…and have our fingerprint and photo taken. Back outside, our passports were returned and we crossed the street with our luggage to wait for the “Gold” bus. They checked our passport again as we boarded the bus, which wasn’t really our bus, just the one that takes you across the border to Jordanian customs. Once over the border, we picked up our luggage, put all of our luggage through an x-ray machine, carried our luggage to the bus, several yards away, where our passport was checked yet again before we departed. I sure hope TSA doesn’t get wind of this procedure! We met our new guide, Tareq, who will be with us for the next two days. He speaks really fast with a heavy accent and I am relieved to hear from others in the group that they too are struggling to understand him. It is like listening to a movie in fast forward or maybe the Chipmunks minus the nasal tone!

May 2nd - Gateway to Ancient Times

We had another amazing history lesson today. Being here and having these places come to life is beyond what words can describe. It’s like reading a book and then seeing the movie. It is never like you had imagined. Somehow seeing things in 3-D and environmental context is like “seeing it in color” as our guide Elie puts it.

We started the day with a worship service in one of the rooms at the hotel. There is just something surreal about worshiping the Lord on the Sea of Galilee. Harold presented a timely lesson on remembering there is beauty in holiness. It is so easy to get caught up in the beauty of what we are seeing. Let's not forget the beauty of worshiping God and giving him glory.

I’m afraid this will just be a quick update for tonight. The lack of sleep is catching up with me, so I’m going to try to get a little more sleep tonight.

Our first stop is the Hazor Tel. Hazor was the guardian city toward the north. This is Solomon’s Gate.

Additional ruins at Hazor include an altar, palace, storage buildings, a water system much like we saw at Megiddo.

 Entry gate to the city of Dan that dates to the 19th to 18th century BC. That’s four THOUSAND years old!

Inner gate and chambers at Dan.

Banias is a large natural spring and a major source of the Jordon River. The water in Biblical times flowed out from this cave. Now it flows from ground springs.

Some believe the Banias region may be the location of Christ’s transfiguration.

View from Golan Heights of UN guard village. Syria is just beyond UN compound.

View of the Jordan river a few miles north of where it flows into the Sea of Galilee.

I took over 250 pictures today, so as you can see this is just a glimpse into another amazing day. I hope yours was great too. I’ll fill in more details tomorrow.

May1 - Sea of Galilee – A Maritime Adventure

Another early start, but apparently not early enough. I arrived in the dining room, went through the buffet as I did last night, but the maitre’d wouldn’t allow me into the seating area where I knew the rest of my tour mates were. He said they were full. Fortunately I saw Elizabeth and she escorted me in with a she’s with us!  Apparently you need a name tag to get into the “in” tables.

We left the hotel at 8:00 and walked to the docks

just down from the hotel. We boarded a wooden vessel that looked like it had been around a while. Maybe not antique yet but they assured us it was sea worthy. After playing the national anthem for us, we set sail (okay, they started the motor) across the sea… the Sea of Galilee that is. The weather is unbelievable perfect today. We are heading North toward Carazene and the shore of Capernaum.  Along the way we pass the hill that is believed to be the Mount of Beatitudes (right), and a spot along the coastal region that some believe is where Jesus met his disciples after his resurrection. This area was popular with fishermen because warm brackish waters dump into the sea at this point, attracting fish. 

Elie points out the cliffs of Arvel. Jesus would have traveled from Nazareth through this passage way to Capernaum. Later in the day we travel along this road which takes the same path, but is thankfully now paved. 


Our trip along the coastline takes us past the “Cove of the Sower” (right) where Jesus is believed to have taught large crowds by the sea. Acoustic measurements were made in the 1970’s confirming that the spoken word could be heard significant distances due to the grade and curvature of the cove. It responded much like an   amphitheater.



Our hosts demonstrated throwing fishing nets into the sea and entertained us on the trip back with songs and traditional dance.  The boat drops us off in front of a museum that houses the famous “Galilee Boat” or “Jesus Boat.”  During one of the area’s worst droughts in 1986, two men discovered buried in mud along the shore, a remarkably intact boat from the Roman period (100BC-100AD). It was fascinating to learn about how it was removed from the mud, in just 11 days, to prevent looters from destroying it and the waters from covering it again. It was extremely fragile so they encapsulated it in fiberglass foam to strengthen and protect it. They then flood the cove and it floated. After removing the fiberglass, it was submerged in a solution that replaced the water in the wood cells with a polymer resin that strengthened and preserved it. Fascinating!

2000 year old Galilee Boat

From there the bus takes us up the ancient road to Capernaum. This was an important town in biblical times and was built on an important thoroughfare. Jesus performed many miracles at Capernaum. The city was destroyed and rebuilt multiple times, but ultimately, brought down, never to be rebuilt, fulfilling prophesy of Matthew 11:23. What exists on the site now are the ruins of a synagogue (left), what some believe is Peter’s house, an octagonal shaped church (in that same spot), oil press, flour mills and many basalt vessels and structures.


 
In keeping with the fisherman theme of the day, we were served “Saint Peter’s Fish” for lunch in the area of Magdala. What an experience! The fish came complete with head, tail and French fries. You can’t imagine what entertainment we had (don’t tell Mom) playing with our food.  I have priceless pictures!  In biblical days, fishermen brought their catch to this harbor for “salting” or preserving the fish.


 

Elie and Ferrell made executive decisions and rearranged our afternoon. We headed back through the cliff of Arvel passing through beautiful valleys between the Mount Moreh, Mount Tabor (left), and Mount Gilboa which overlooks the Jezreel Valley.  Our next stop is the Gilead Heights, and spring of Harod where Gideon called his 300 to fight against the Midianites. Elie read Jud. 7:1-22 describing the scene for us in “full-color” putting it into context of the area we are in. The bougainvillea draped the walkway in every color you can imagine.

Harold drinks from the spring of Harod

Pool at foot of Gilead where Harod Spring originates.

View of Mount Moreh from hill on top of Harod Spring.

We were surprised with a stop at the Gan HaShelosha (garden of the hot springs). The region is “bubbling with warm springs. We took time to soak our tired feet in the warm flowing water at the foot of a waterfall. Delightful! Once again we are treated with landscaping beauties, including double oleander.

We return to the Sea of Galilee from the south and stop by recent excavations of the ancient city of Tiberias. Most believe the sight dates to the Byzantine period.

Whew… another fascinating day! What adventure planned and unplanned await us tomorrow?

April 30th – Coast to Mountain Tops

Note: For more bible based information on our trip, visit http://ferrelljenkins.wordpress.com. For an entertaining look at our trip through the eyes of a real writer visit http://journeyswithjane.blogspot.com.


Our 6:00 am wake-up call seemed to come in the middle of the night – oh wait…those of you back home were just thinking about going to bed so it was the middle of the night. The weather was very overcast and hazy, but we hoped it would burn off. And it’s hard to complain when you have a view that overlooks the Mediterranean. We couldn’t figure out how the air worked, so we just opened the door and listened to the sound of waves crashing on the beach. Early in the morning, some people were strolling on the beach. I did good to stroll down to breakfast. We packed our bags and were off again by 8:00 am.
   
We drove along the coast passing bush after bush of oleander and bougainvillea. Elie, our guide, tells us that we have come at a good time. They have very cool and rainy winters and their summers are brutal. I’ve been here in August and he’s not kidding. Our first stop today is Caesarea. The area got its start when Herod the Great built a harbor to honor Augustus Caesar, who appointed him. It is called Caesar Maritima. It was a tremendous technological feat at the time, and since there were no other harbors along the coast, it soon became the center of trade, religion, and in Elie’s words, the center of the Roman universe.

This is the south breakwater that still remains today.

The harbor and its structures have experienced numerous disasters, both man-made and natural. The harbor and its buildings were destroyed by the Muslim invasion, then was rebuilt by the crusaders, then destroyed again by a tsunami. Some sections remain today and many of the original buildings have been restored so you get a real feel for the size of the complex.  We sat in a Roman theater, saw a hippodrome, viewed the remnants of a fresh water pool Herod had built right on the ocean and you can just imagine the opulence of this massive compound.

Can’t you just imagine this pool surrounded by servants and tropical plants?

Because the access to fresh water was limited here, Herod built a series of aqueducts to bring water from a region 8 miles away.
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One of three aqueducts built by Herod

Just to prove I was there…

Leaving Caesarea, we headed long the coast a few more miles before turning inland and north toward Mount Carmel. We stopped for lunch at the top of the mountain and had a wonderful falafel sandwich and salad buffet. The vegetables here are so fresh and plentiful. This is such a nice change from last year in Egypt. We had to go 2 weeks without eating fruit or vegetables because everything is washed in water that is not purified or processed. The best viewing point is located at the Carmelite monastery. From there you can see the valley of Megiddo, the tel of Joknecam, the brook of Kishon, Mount Tabor, and in theory Caesarea and the sea. The weather wasn’t cooperating, so we had to take some of the on faith.

The next stop was Megiddo, an ancient town at the head of the Jezreel valley.  Biblical references to this city date back to 1468 BC. This was the scene of many battles in ancient times and is the area referred to in Revelation as Armageddon which derives from the Hebrew “Har Megedon” or mountain of Megiddo. Excavations have found 24 layers of construction. The city was built to be a fortification to protect the ancient highway which was the gateway of commerce between African and Asia. In addition, the city is located along a fault line and also experienced destruction from shifting plates. We started on the lowest (oldest) layer, observing gates, walls, a temple, massive grain silo, stables, and sacrificial alters.

One of the many layers of ruins at Megiddo. This area contained sacrificial alters.

Finally we climbed 184 stairs down a shaft that was drilled to provide access to natural springs and back up another 80. They had to continue to dig tunnels to “follow the water” as it moved when there were shifts in the plates. The views of the valley below are amazing!

We load the bus again and head to the Nazareth Village. We took a tour of a terraced (not terrorist as some people thought Ferrell was saying) hill side where we got a glimpse of what it would have been like to live in a Galilean village 2000 years ago – a Jewish village under Roman occupation.

  Woman and her son at Nazareth Village (top)

Replica of oil lamp at Nazareth Village (bottom) Thank goodness for electricity!

There are demonstrations of sheep herding, spinning and weaving wool thread, carpentry, a watch tower, olive press, and we ended the day by singing “Our God, He is Alive” in a replica of a synagogue. Finally, we load the bus and drive through Cana (now called Kefr Kanna). This is where Jesus performed some of his first miracles.  Our driver Fawsy was nice enough to drive to a nice overlook to get out first glimpse of the sea of Galilee. We head down the Rift valley into Tiberias and pull into our hotel about 7:10 pm local time. 

View of the Sea of Galilee from our hotel room.

What a day it has been. Dinner is served buffet style again and we try a little of everything…since we aren’t really sure of what most things are. No one lingers… jet lag is hitting us pretty hard today. Hope you had a good day. We did!

Let the Journey Begin! April 28-29 (Depending on where you live!)

As you can tell, I never had a chance to write some clever introduction to this trip…which by the way is called The Bible Land Travel Tour of Israel and Jordon, about how I was all packed days ahead of time and how excited I was…so just jump right in and hang on. If today is any indication, every day is going to be long and full of adventure. Tonight’s entry will be short and sweet, since it is very late here and I can never sleep on the plane!

I left North Alabama at 1:15 Wednesday with the Britnells in a “real truck” and was checked into my flight by 6:15 EDT. The drive to Atlanta was a hoot, of course, as we reminisced about all of our trips and what all can go wrong. We reacquainted ourselves in Atlanta with folks we’ve traveled with before from all across the country and newbies too. This is my third trip with Distinctive World Travels so I know what I’m in for! Boarding the plane was an adventure (a second trip through security – apparently once is not enough), but the flight was amazingly uneventful (except for chatty tours groups and little sleep) and we arrived after a mere 11.5 hours. We flew along the coast of Italy (Rome, Naples) and Greece and even saw some remnants of the volcanic eruption.

All but two bags arrived and we headed to the hotel in Netanya. Along the way we stopped in Jappa (known as Joppa in the Bible) and saw the coastline where Jonah sought a ship for Tarrshish to avoid going to Ninevah. You all know the story of Jonah and the whale… we saw one today… but it was cold and hard and a little smaller than I imagined (see photo below). We saw a house that was supposedly where Peter stayed with Simon the tanner… You are going to see that word supposedly a lot over the next few days…

Well, time to call it a day. From what I can tell our hotel is right on the Mediterranean Sea and our room has a balcony that overlooks the ocean. Can’t wait to see it in the daylight!