Day 8 – Sunday 30th March

Floating on the Dead Sea

This morning we stopped at Gideon's Spring, as recorded in Judges 7. God used Gideon and 300 men to save Israel from the Midianites. The spring plays a pertinent role in choosing which men were to accompany Gideon.

Beit Shean is an ancient town which has been excavated to show the Roman streets, etc. We spent a fair while here wandering around. Glenn climbed to the top of the Tel, but neither Ginny nor I were inclined to expend so much energy on a hot day. Jane had explained at Megiddo that a Tel is a man-made mountain. When a town has been established on a site, subsequent towns are built on top of it. Over the centuries these towns upon towns form a mountain.

We were told to pack an overnight bag as we would only be staying one night at the Dead Sea, and the large bags would be left on the bus. A swimsuit was a must. I think I bought my last swimsuit ten or more years ago, and until a 40C day this summer when I swam in Ginny's pool, I don't remember the last time I wore it. I had the opportunity to pay nearly $300 for a new one in a boutique in Pakington Street, but declined on the grounds that it wouldn't get that much wear. I got one on sale for $70 and considered it to be a bargain!

At our hotel in the Dead Sea, we changed into our bathers [that's a foreign word to Americans] and caught the golf-buggy to the shore with Sylvia and Gregg, two women from the States. This was a really amazing experience, and you really do float! We were warned not to put our faces in the water. Water in the eyes needs to be washed out, or it will sting. If you swallow it, you need medical assistance!

Day 7 – Saturday 29th March

Worshipping on the Sea of Galilee

We had an incredible experience this morning. We boarded the “Faith” boat owned by Daniel Carmel. Daniel comes from Haifa, but now works here as a boat captain / singer. He ministered to us in song in English and Hebrew. He has translated a number of Christian praise songs into Hebrew, and he recognises Yeshua {Jesus} as the Jewish Messiah. Jews who believe that the Messiah has come as Yeshua, which means Salvation, are called Messianic Jews.

It was so amazing to worship Jesus whilst sailing upon the same sea He sailed upon so many times during His earthly ministry.

We then went to what is believed to be the Mount of Beatitudes, where Jesus preached the Sermon on the Mount {Matthew 5 - 7}. Ps Steve Berger from Grace Church brought a Bible study on The Kingdom of God.

Afterwards, we visited the ancient city of Caperneum, where Peter lived and Jesus made His home at various times. Kfer Nahum has been excavated to a great extent, and it is possible to walk on the Roman streets. They believe that they have identified Peter's house. They consider it to be one of the earliest House-churches in the world.

http://www.christiananswers.net/dictionary/capernaum.html

"PETER'S HOUSE - Only a few hundred feet from the synagogue, the stone house of the disciple Peter has also been found at Capernaum. This is where Jesus healed Peter's mother-in-law and others (Matthew 8:14-16). Jesus may have lived with Peter while staying in Capernaum. In the years following Jesus' death and resurrection, the house apparently became a house-church. Centuries later, Christians honored the site by building a church here. It was destroyed in a later conquest of the city. Archaeologists have excavated both the church and the earlier house below."

We then saw “The Ancient Boat”, discovered by two brothers in 1986. As it is a First Century boat, it was called “The Jesus Boat” by the media at that time. It had been preserved in the mud for 2,000 years, but was discovered at a time when the Galilee was particularly low.

Lunch was at a kibbutz, and we ate St Peter's Fish. I didn't know you had to ask for it to have the head removed. The other choices were pizza or pasta. I once had a pizza in London, which I couldn't eat, so I wasn't going to choose that sight unseen. Ginny had noticed the fish with head on someone's plate as we were walking to our table, and told me. I said I couldn't eat something that was looking at me. Chris, a former work-colleague of Dan's, heard and laughed at my comment. When Chris's fish arrived, Ginny told him he should give me his fish, as Dan had requested that his and Chris's fish come sans head. When he went to do so, I said, no, she is joking, but he insisted. What a nice man. He was a pro-footballer and is now the vice-principle and football coach of the school in San Diego where Dan had given him the job.

After lunch, we went to Tabgha, the place on the Sea of Galilee that Jesus prepared breakfast for the disciples after His resurrection. Peter and John and the other disciples had gone fishing, but had not caught anything that night. Jesus told them to cast the net on the other side of the boat, and John realised it was Jesus, as He had instructed them to do the same thing on another occasion. John said, “It is the Lord”, and Peter jumped into the water to swim ashore. They caught 153 fish.

Ginny dipped her feet into the water, but as I don't like putting wet feet back into sandals, I declined. Yes, I am fussy, as most of you know.

Glenn said that you can't come to the Sea of Galilee and not swim in it, so when we arrived back at the hotel, he and Ginny had a swim in the sea, and afterwards in the hotel pool. Personally, I could refrain from swimming in the Galilee – it has to be really hot for me to swim anywhere.

After dinner, we walked into Tiberias and had a hot drink and a very rich chocolate mousse dome for dessert. I only had a couple of spoons-full as it was really rich. We noticed a man standing outside, and Ginny wondered why there would be a bouncer for a cafe. She then realised he is the Security Guard, and we thought it is very sad that their presence is required in Israel.

On the Israel forum of Tripadvisor.com, they mentioned an Israeli brand of shoes, called NAOT. They originally started making them on a kibbutz in 1946. I had decided to use the money Mum had given me for my birthday to buy a pair. We found a shop selling NAOTs on our walk in Tiberias, and Ginny and I both wanted the same pair. Unfortunately, they didn't have black in a size small enough for me, or big enough for her.

Day 6 – Friday 28th March

Supporting the Israel Defense Forces

We drove to the IDF Base in the Golan Heights, where we assisted the soldiers. Ginny and I joined a group folding and stacking uniforms in a small warehouse. When this was done, we went to the garden of their Memorial and helped some others weed. They were having a Memorial service on the following day. People on other tours Chuck and Dan had taken there, had originally planted the garden around the small building with photos and effects of the soldiers from the base who had been killed on duty. It was very sad to see these faces. Glenn helped to paint a store-room during this time.

We knew that there are other non-Americans on the tour, but had only met Brett from Melbourne, who is currently working in London. Glenn met Rex from New Zealand whilst painting. We had lunch with Rex and Rozy. Rozy had been born in England, but her family emigrated to Australia when she was a child. She came out on a flying-boat, which took 9 days. Well, I guess two flights adding up to 20 hours or so, is really nothing much to complain about!

At lunch-time, the soldiers served us, and then we went outside to sing to them their National Anthem in Hebrew, the Hatikvah. We had practised this a couple of times. Jonathan, our Worship Leader, is on staff at Grace Church in Tennesee. He had listened to it many times prior to coming on the tour, to ensure we got it right. It was very moving to sing to these young men and see their faces as they realised that we do support their defense of their nation.

We then drove to the Golan Heights, and Jane pointed out Syria across the border. Damascus is 40 miles away. Jane explained that Henry Kissinger told the Israelis not to give up the Golan due to its strategic position, and their ability to watch for an invasion from the north.

After this we went to Caesarea Philippi, where Chuck spoke on Matthew 16:13-20. Peter recognised that He is “the Christ, the Son of the Living God”.

Day 5 – Thursday 27th March

Tel Aviv to Galilee

There are over 75 people on the tour, so we have two buses. We are in the Orange bus with Dan as the Bus Captain. Chuck and Nancy alternate each day in our bus or the Blue bus. We also have Jane Benari, our Israeli Tour Guide. She is very interesting and informative. She has been guiding tours for many years, and her wealth of knowledge about both Israel today and what occurred where in the Bible, is incredible.

Our first stop was Caesarea. In the ancient theatre there, Chuck spoke about Peter coming to Cornelius from Joppa.

Herod's Palace was brought to life for us by Jane. This is an unlikely place for a port but Herod built one anyway. An earthquake destroyed the wharf within one hundred years of its construction, and Paul had left from Caesarea when he went to Rome, where he was imprisoned, and eventually, killed. Ginny asked me how far Rome is, and I said, “Far”. She said that Glenn had told her the same thing. It is not the sort of information that lingers in the brain, even if I had ever been told the distance.

We then went to Mt Carmel, where Elijah defeated 350 prophets of Baal when he challenged them to call down fire. He told the Israelites that if Baal be God to follow him, but if Jehovah be God to follow Him. The other prophets were not able to have fire from heaven consume their sacrifice, but God heard Elijah's prayer, and fire consumed his sacrifice, even after he had it doused with water three times. The view from the top of the mountain is incredible.

We had lunch at a Druze village. It was felafel. The tahini sauce was very strong and I didn't like it. The Druze are Arabs who broke away from Islam over 1,000 years ago. No one, except the Druze, know exactly what they believe. They are loyal to whichever country they live in and Druze men in Israel complete National Service in the IDF as do the Jews.

We travelled to Meggido – Har Meggido or Armageddon, where the enemies of Israel will gather some time in the future, and Jesus will return to defeat the forces of the Anti-Christ. We did a lot of walking up to the top of the Tel, and then we climbed down into the tunnel that was dug to bring water inside the town from the spring outside.

Nazareth is now a large town of predominantly Muslims. There are some Christian Arabs living in the town, but they have much fewer children than do Muslims, so they are not as numerous as previously. We went up to Mt Precipice, which is believed to be the site from where the Jews tried to throw Jesus when they considered He had blasphemed.

It was truly awesome to look out on the land in which Jesus grew up, and to see the same views He did. It was very moving to consider the promises God has made to us, as evidenced in the gift of His Son. We had a wonderful time of worship, and then Chuck spoke about Jesus's boyhood.

We drove to Tiberias to the Gai Beach Hotel, which is situated on the Sea of Galilee. This is actually a fresh water lake. It is really beautiful here.

It seems very odd to us that tea and coffee is not included with the evening meal, but can be purchased later from the bar in the foyer of the hotel. We had a drink and Ginny emailed James. Wi-fi access is free in the foyer.

Day 4 – Wednesday 26th March

Chagall and Yafo {Joppa}

After breakfast we caught a taxi to the Tel Aviv Museum of Art [ILS42]. We had to enter via a Security scanner and our bags were checked. We also had to hand in our cameras prior to going to the Collections. It is a huge building with very high ceilings and ramps to access some of the exhibits. As we were wandering around, Ginny remarked that when they were in the Guggenheim in New York, she walked around a corner, and there was a Chagall, and wouldn't it be funny if it happened again... Within a few moments, it did. There were nine works along two walls. We spent a while looking at them. I must have made a comment that I love his colours, but not the style of his paintings, as one of the Security ladies, told me that the Old Masters are downstairs. She picked up on that well. There is a painting of Chagall's that I did like. It is The Wailing Wall and was painted in the early 30s. It is more sombre in tone than his usual style, and I found myself drawn to it in a way I haven't found with the other works. There was another Chagall in a different collection, that Ginny hadn't seen before.

They also had Rodin bronzes, which were exceptional, naturally. It is a large museum with many different facets of the art world represented – some I appreciated, but there are some installation pieces which are frankly, disturbing. I didn't spend any time with those once I realised that they were not what I consider to be art.

After having a juice and a rest, we went to find the Old Masters. In a room near-by they have boxes cut into the walls with a large number of miniature rooms decorated in different styles – Renaissance, French Provincial, Queen Anne, Georgian, Victorian, etc. It was fascinating. I commented that it was unusual to have to stoop so low to look in the rooms, and was quickly told not to complain about having to stoop. Well, yes, I guess when you are closer to 6 feet than to 5, it is a bigger issue. I realised later that they were low due to the children who visit the museum.

In the Gift Store at the entrance, I had bought a card with a work by Maurycy Gottlieb – Day of Atonement. We went into one room and the original was on the wall. It is very large, and his detail and use of colour is beautiful.

It was now nearly 1:00pm, so we decided to head to Jaffa. We had originally planned to walk along the waterfront, and thought we could get a bus to the water, and walk from there. Glenn asked the Security Guard which bus we needed, and where to get off. After waiting for the #82 bus for 10 minutes or so, and having had three #18s go past in that time, we decided to take a taxi to the Market in Jaffa. The taxi driver asked if we knew the fare, and I said, don't you have a meter? He said Yes, why not use that? I said that would be good. It cost ILS31.50.

The Flea Market is an experience. There is a lot of stuff set out on the ground, as well as on tables. A lot of it is what we would term junk, but to people who haven't got a lot of money, it would be a cheap way to obtain some household items, tools, clothes, shoes, etc. It was quite sad really. The buildings are shabby with gaps and rusted wiring. Glenn couldn't believe that there seemed to be no council regulations they needed to abide by to fix them up.

We walked into the shopping area, and Ginny bought a fruit smoothy. Afterwards we started walking towards the Visitor Centre and Museums at the top of a hill. As we approached a restaurant, a woman asked us if we wanted to try the best falafel in Israel. As it was past time for lunch, we decided to try felafel, which is the Israeli fast food, even though it did not originate here. She brought out dishes of tahini, hommus, tomato and cucumber, and lettuce, and a plate of pita bread. The felafel arrived with chips. The hommus is the best we have ever tasted, very smooth and creamy, and the felafel tasted really nice.

We visited the Church of St Peter, which is lovely inside with pastel coloured marble. We wandered around for a little while, and then decided to head back to Tel Aviv. We didn't hurry, and it took us about an hour to reach our hotel. There is a footpath almost the whole way along the water between the two towns.

We had dinner, and then there was a meeting for everyone on the tour. The other members had arrived that afternoon, and are mainly from the US. We were told we would have an early wake-up call, and the bus would leave at 8:00am.

Day 3 – Tuesday 25th March

Dizengoff Centre and Re-uniting with Friends

I woke up early, and decided since I hadn't eaten much the previous day [how weird is that!], I would go down to breakfast when the restaurant opened at 6:30am. I had porridge again and some toast with blackcurrant jam. Israeli oranges are exported to other nations, and I can see why. You can make your own freshly squeezed juice for breakfast, which tastes wonderful.

After breakfast, I had a snooze, and got ready to go out by 10:30am. I walked down Gordon Street, which is opposite the hotel, over Ben Yehuda Street to Dizengoff Street. This is a shopping street. They have a large mall area that is raised high, and you walk up and over this to get to the stores in two buildings opposite each other. I wandered around for a while, and then decided to have lunch. My first meal in Israel other than breakfast was ... McDonald's. I could have tried other foods, but I was hungry, and thought if I go with something familiar, I would eat it. I pointed at the picture of the three chicken strips meal, and was very happy with that. It cost ILS36, which is quite expensive, but it tasted the same as in Australia or Poland, which is what I wanted.

I wandered into the second building, and as I was leaving there an American Israeli in a spice and tea shop offered me a taste of some tea. I bought some Earl Grey and some that tastes like Apple Cider to bring home. Unfortunately, I thought that my water immerser and cup would take up more room than I wanted, and when I was stream-lining my packing, I took them out! Well, that was a mistake – there aren't tea-making facilities in my room. I will let you ponder my deprivation and devastation for a few minutes...

I also bought a couple of bags of spice mixes – one of them you put on rice and it contains pistachios. I tasted a sample on rice, and it is nice. I think the other one is a similar idea – I can't remember. She is a very good saleswoman – it cost over ILS54 for the four bags. She would have happily sold me lots more, including sage or lemon-grass tea, but I said I didn't have enough space in my bag as I am away for 7 weeks. She asked me where I am from, and when I said Australia, she said she thought it was the kinkiest British accent she had ever heard, and then decided maybe it isn't British. No, we're further south.

Glenn and Virginia were arriving from Frankfurt at 3:00pm. I had told them I would be in the Lobby between 4:00pm and 5:00pm, and they came at about 4:45pm. Glenn checked in while Ginny came over to sit with me. It had been snowing in Frankfurt and was minus 4 when they left – Tel Aviv was 31C, so Ginny had changed at the airport. She said it is a major culture shock to see Tel Aviv, which was established in the early 1900s, after being in a city with a building in the Old City dating from the 1450s. There are a lot of damaged buildings in Tel Aviv, courtesy of Saddam Hussein during the first Gulf War. There is also a lot of renovation going on as you walk around. Another factor is that during the Intifadas in the early years of this century, many tourists did not come to Israel. The economy suffered greatly, but has now picked up and the shekel is very strong.

We met for dinner at 7:00pm and went to the restaurant, where there was a buffet laid out. Ginny and I had a nice chicken and vegetable soup, while Glenn had a salad. He also tried the roast beef and the salmon, and said the beef was really tender. We had some after our soup, and it was incredibly tender. Ginny said it was the best she has ever tasted. I said I think it is because they hang it for sufficient time to ensure the blood drains out completely. God told Moses that the Jews weren't to eat or drink the blood of any animal. Dad went to a particular butcher when I was a teenager because he knew it was hung long enough, and it was tender meat. These days supermarkets don't hang it for very long at all, so Mum usually buys from the butcher.

I noticed Chuck had come in and mentioned to Ginny that he was at the next table. He was with another couple, and she asked if we should say hello. I said no, we'd better let him eat his dinner in peace. After a while, the woman with him turned around, and asked if one of us is Tricia. I guess she heard the “kinky British accents” and realised we were Australians. She is Sharon Stolebarger, the Tour Administrator, with whom we have been corresponding. She introduced us to Chuck, and Dan, her husband, who is the Tour Leader. They are very charming, and Dan came and sat with us to chat about the Tour and some of the things we will be doing.

He encouraged us to go to Joppa, now called Jaffa, and is about an hour's walk from here. Jonah caught a boat from Joppa, when he tried to flee God's instructions to go to Nineveh and preach repentance. Also, Peter was at Joppa when he was shown by a vision that God's gift of eternal life through belief in Jesus was not just for the Jews, but for the Gentiles as well, and he went to Cornelius's house in Caesarea after Cornelius had had a dream to ask Peter to come to him.

We told Dan that we planned to go there after our visit to the Tel Aviv Museum of Modern Art so Virginia can see the works by Chagall. Sharon loves Chagall as well, and they bought one of his lithographs in Jerusalem for one of their wedding anniversaries. They will show us the shop in The Cardo in the Jewish Quarter on the tour.

Dan went to get our Tour Notebooks and Chuck came over to speak to us. When he went to get something else to eat, Sharon remarked that both he and Nancy, his wife, are very approachable, as Ginny had told them about our conversation when we first noticed him.

After dessert, we went for a walk along the waterfront. It was a pleasant night to walk, and there were a lot of people around. Tel Aviv is like most other modern cities with a thriving night-life. Dan had told us it is safe to go for a walk.

Day 2 – Monday 24th March

Eretz Yisrael – The Land of Israel

I remember when we went to Britain in 1997, I was walking down a street in London, saying to myself – “I am in London, England, on the other side of the world”. It seemed so amazing that I could leave Australia, and a day later, I could be in a land with thousands of years of history. You feel that 200 hundred years for white Australia is so insignificant.

When we were in Moscow, I mentioned to a couple of ladies on the tour, as we were walking in the Red Square, how surreal it was. This was a place I had only seen on TV or in books, and here I was, walking near the Kremlin.

I am in Israel, the land of my Jesus – where He lived and died and was resurrected. And of course, it is the land to which He will return... I don't know if there is a term for something beyond surreal...

The plane landed around 7:30am. It didn't take long to go through Passport Control and collect my bag. I went to the ATM to withdraw some Israeli New Shekels, and then got a cab to my hotel. There were signs saying Ashdod and Jerusalem – Bible towns. It cost ILS130.

When I checked in, I mentioned that I really wanted a cup of tea, and was told that I could have more than that because breakfast was available until 11:00am. They have Porridge, but is called Oatmeal here - with sugar and cinnamon to sprinkle. I think it is my favourite breakfast. I also had a slice of bread that looked like it had alfalfa sprouts in it. It was savoury – it was nice, but I am glad I didn't have anything on it; it wouldn't have tasted very nice with jam.

I rang Mum to let her know I had arrived safely, but left a message as she didn't answer. When I was ready to go out, I asked at Reception about getting a bus to visit Avi Wasserman, as I had arranged to buy some of his spindles. I walked to Ben Yehuda Street, which is the next street from the hotel. I was told to catch #200 bus to take me to the Central Bus Station, and then to get a bus to Ness Ziona. Avi had told me to ring him and he would pick me up at the bus station there. The Tel Aviv bus system is a bit too complicated for my brain. I eventually asked a girl at a bus stop which bus I needed to catch to the Bus Station, but she didn't know. She was very nice, and asked a couple of other people for me, but they didn't know either. I decided that it was too much for someone with jet-lag, and returned to the hotel.

I walked back along the waterfront and bought a bottle of water and one of lemonade and a packet of chips. I wasn't really hungry and just wanted a snack. This was ILS18.

I rang Avi to say I couldn't come because I couldn't get to the Bus Station. He was disappointed because I had come so far, and suggested I get a taxi from the hotel to the Bus Station. Of course, something so simple hadn't occurred to me. The taxi driver offered to take me to the town for ILS140, but I declined. The fare was just over ILS31. The Bus Station is huge, with floors of shops. In most public buildings in Tel Aviv, there is a security guard at the entrance to check people's bags and their person. It is unfortunate that it is necessary, but under the circumstances, it makes people feel safer.

I got on my bus and paid ILS10 – much cheaper than the taxi would have been. Avi had told me I could ring him from the public phones – there are no longer are public phones there, as most people have cell-phones now. As Avi doesn't use the bus, he didn't realise this. I asked in a couple of shops for a phone, but they didn't have one there for public use. I forgot to bring the instructions for using my global roaming, so couldn't work out how to ring Avi on my mobile. I then decided to ask the young man in one of the stores to ring Avi for me, and I would pay for the call. He told me I didn't have to pay, and rang Avi to come and pick me up. I bought a bottle of water because it was over 30C and I was thirsty. It was 7 shekels so I gave him 10 and said to keep the change.

Avi came and drove me to his house. It is lovely, with beautiful woodwork cupboards and a dining table he had made. He and his wife are very hospitable, and gave me a cup of tea and some nibbles to eat. They have a friend from Germany staying, to whom they have been showing Israel.

Avi had three tubs of spindles for me to try. I like to spin finely, so I chose to look at one tub of smaller spindles. I bought a couple of Israeli Olive-wood, one of English Yew, and an Israeli Rose-wood decorated with real pearls. Joy, you can have your pick of one of these. Joy bought me a spindle when she and Les went on a Fibre Adventure to the Shetland Isles last year. It is made with drift-wood found on Fair Isle.

Avi took me back to the Bus Station to return to Tel Aviv, and went to put me on the right bus. The man drove off while we were saying good-bye! Avi then saw a Sherut pull up. This is a shared taxi which holds 10 people, and picks up and puts down along the bus route to the Central Bus Station in the Israeli towns. It is faster than the normal buses. It cost the same as the bus.

Back in Tel Aviv, it was nearly 7:00pm, and I was shattered. I got a taxi from the Bus Station to the hotel. The taxi driver had told me it would cost ILS50. I knew that was too much, as I had paid 20 shekels less to get there. By rights, taxi drivers should use their meters, and not quote a price, but I was too tired to argue. I just wanted to go to bed. He was very nice and chatty, and showed me the main streets in Tel Aviv, with a bit of a history lesson thrown in.

He told me after I had my dinner, I could go to “Mike's Place”, a Sports Bar down the street from the hotel. I just said I was too tired even to eat, and intended going straight to bed... Sports and Bar – two things that are so not me!

Virginia's mother was concerned when told that I was planning to catch a bus in Israel, so she will be happy to learn that I made it back without any drama. On Tripadvisor.com's Israel forum, another traveller voiced safety concerns after the murder of the 8 students in Jerusalem this month. Douglas, a frequent traveller to Israel, who will be here again in May to celebrate Israel's 60th Anniversary, stated that in Cincinatti, where he lives, there were 80 murders last year. He said that he feels safer in Israel because of their strict security measures than he does in the US.