Friday – April 24

Today the sun came up over the Old City and we were thankful as we would be outside most of the day. Yesterday we dodged a few showers and cooler temperatures.
We start our mornings, at this hotel, with a very good breakfast selection and cappuccinos. Nice!
Amit actually came back for another day with us so we headed out, carrying our totes in preparation for the Dead Sea. But first we drove about an hour and a half north, through increasingly dry, hilly and rocky terrain. We arrived at Masada. It is amazing! It is really out in the middle of nowhere atop a high flat topped hill. There, King Herod, ( yes, Baby Jesus’ King Herod) built a luxurious palace as a retreat and as a place to hide in case he had ticked off too many people! The remains of it edge down one side of the cliff. This is a very dry land so water was an issue. An elaborate trenching system was built to direct flash flood waters from mountain rains, into deep storage cisterns on the hilltop! This was all BC time!
After Herod’s time, the area was deserted for a time. Then a group of Jewish Zealots, fleeing the Jewish revolt in Jerusalem, came to live here. They lived for several years here, self sufficient and doing well. However, the ruling Romans still saw them as rebels and came after them and laid siege to the hill for the year or so that it took them to build a huge ramp up against the lowest point of the hill. The Romans then rolled an attack tower up the ramp to breach the wall. While all this was happening, the Jews faced the certainty of capture and a life of slavery, being outnumbered ten to one. They chose their own destiny and committed suicide so when the Romans came in, all were dead. It’s an incredible story and walking all the ruins left on that high plateau, was thrilling and moving. Amit tells a good story and he is making this part of the trip so valuable and also giving some perspective for all we have seen and heard in the last days.
After Masada, we drove to Qumran and roamed the ruins of the ascetic Jewish community of men who wrote the Dead Sea scrolls. It was a life very like the monastic life we might know about. We walked through the remains of meeting rooms and ritual baths and peered across a ravine to the cave where the scrolls were found so long after this group had left.
Our next stop was more for fun – the Dead Sea! Time for the Big Reveal as we all donned bathing suits and made our way into that very salty sea. There were many others there, some with faces or bodies smeared with the mud so famous here. It was tricky getting into the water as the bottom is all mud, slippery and squishy! I made it out to water deep enough to get down into to and float. The day was warm enough and the sun bright enough, that the cool water felt great. And, yes, one floats as if on an air mattress. It really was fun. After showering off and getting dressed, we headed back to Jerusalem and arrived in time for Happy Hour at our motel. That has been a nice service of this hotel. Sitting over a glass of wine and a few little snacks, we chat about the day and all we are learning and seeing. I am really enjoying this smaller group of women and feel blessed to have this time to see more but also to talk and process all that we have done and learned.
That evening, we headed out for a short walk and met up with a young Israeli man who was taking us to his home for a Shabat meal. He was accompanied by his darling four year old son – made me anxious to see my own kids! At his second story apartment, his lovely wife welcomed us into their home for dinner. She is an American who came to Israel and fell in love with it and, of course, her husband and now lives a much simpler life. They also have a baby boy but he was asleep so we didn’t get to see him.
The apartment was quite simple, but the hospitality was warm and very welcoming. They also have an incredible view of the city from their little porch area. It was a crisp clear night so it was fun to look over the lights of the city and also see the stars and moon.
We came bearing flowers and wine as a thank you for this generous evening. They walked us through the various rituals and songs of the Shabat meal, and we shared several courses of excellent food. The parts I loved most were the blessing the wife and husband give each other and then the blessing they bestow on their children. They laid hands on their son’s head and blessed him and said a few words over him. Isn’t that lovely? Every Friday evening of this boy’s life, he will hear his parents’ words of blessing! There is much to learn here.
They wanted to learn about us as well, so we went around the table and each shared a little about our lives. It was a lovely evening and a great way to spend our last night of the trip.
Saturday we still have a full day of activities as we all fly out late tomorrow night. But suitcases and all need to be packed and organized so as to be ready to check out in the morning. I’m into my second bag for going home so am very glad I brought it. The ever helpful shopper!
It’s hard to believe the trip is almost over. Such an incredible trip and also so disturbing. There is only and always God.