Israel - 3

The Dead Sea. At 1400' below sea level, the temperature here can reach a scorching 120ºF. We couldn't wait to jump in! 

You really do float here! Despite our best efforts, we couldn't stay under water. We literally tried to sink ourselves and couldn't. It was the wierdest, but coolest thing!

All of us had a great time floating in the warm salty water. We found out very quickly that you don't want to walk into the water (salt crystals on the sea bed hurt like sharp pebbles), and you don't want to get the water in your eyes or mouth. 

The minerals in the sand and water made our skin so soft!

The Dead Sea is undrinkable water in the middle of the Judean Desert. However, some historical settlements still flourished because of underground springs and seasonal runoff from the mountains. 

One of those places is Ein Gedi, a hidden oasis tucked between the mountains that contains a waterfall and spring.

These caves are where King David wrote the Psalms as he hid from Saul. 

Another place is called Masada, the winter palace of King Herod. Since the Jews did not like him, Herod lived where there weren't many people. This location was certainly isolated!  His palace included 3 terraces, a public pool, private pool, library, guest rooms, mosaic floors, frescoes, and beautiful balconies that overlooked the desert. When he died, the place was abandoned. Then in 66AD, a sect of Jews called Zealots lived here and it became a refuge for other Jews who survived the destruction of the 2nd Temple. The Romans then lead an army of 7,000 to Masada to kill the last of the Jews. Rather than suffer defeat at the hands of their enemies, the Jews sacrificed themselves before the Romans could reach them.

A third place we visited is Qumran where a cache of ancient biblical texts called the Dead Sea Scrolls were found in caves.

After that, we headed back toward fertile land in Bethlehem. The picture below is known as the "Shepherd's Field". King David was born in Bethlehem and a shepherd in the area. The lambs raised here were offered as a sacrifice at the temple market in Jerusalem, but sold through Bethlehem. 

1500 years ago when the Byzantines came, they found a cave at this site dating to time of Jesus. They determined the shepherds lived here in the caves when the weather was bad. You can see the charcoal marks on the ceiling from campfire smoke. This church commemorates the place that could likely be where the Angel Gabriel appeared to the shepherds on the night of the nativity.

Not far away in the town of Bethlehem, we visited the Basilica of the Nativity. The cave was small and there were so many people that it was difficult to get a good photo. In this picture, Eric is touching the floor of the cave where Jesus was born.

Our guide then led us under the basilica to the connecting caves. Here is a picture of how families would enter from the surface using stairs. It wasn't unusual for people to enjoy the cool temperatures in underground caves during the summer and warmer temperatures in the winter. 

St. Jerome lived in this cave next to Mary & Joseph starting from 4BC for about 40 years. He was the first to translate the Bible from Greek to Latin. His home is next to the nativity and below Church of St. Catharine (next door to the basilica). This is the same St. Catharine mentioned in my earlier post from Egypt. She was born 2BC and converted many Romans. Because of this, she was killed and her body was found on Mount Sinai.

After Bethlehem, we drove a short distance back to Jerusalem. Here, we visited several sites including King David's tomb. 

This is a holy site for Jews, although still an important biblical place for Christians. 

But the holiest place of all for those who practice the Jewish faith is the Western Wall. This is the only piece of the entire Temple compound that survived it's destruction in 70AD. The barrier separates their women's section from the men's section. The girls and I stayed to the right as we paid our respects.

To round out the diversity of religions you'll find in Israel, here is a video of our family in Jerusalem with the sounds of the Muslim call to prayer in the background.