Walking Where He Walked - Day 3 in Israel

Yesterday, we had a tour chronologically, but today we took a time out from life of Christ to experience the Dead Sea region.  We were introduced to the wilderness in day 2 with our very fun Wadi Kelt wilderness walk.  Today we spent the whole day in the wilderness, but we got to explore a massive fortress, a Biblical oasis, and swim in the Dead Sea.

•  We departed Jerusalem first thing in the morning and dropped to the lowest point on the earth…the lower Jordan Valley where the Dead Sea is located. We drove right along the Dead Sea and after 2 hours we arrived to our first stop…Masada.  We rode the cable car to the top of Masada.  During the First Revolt against Rome, the Jewish rebel forces under Menachen Ben-Yehuda overpowered the Roman garrison at Masada in A.D. 66. The number of Jews who came to live in the fortress increased in A.D. 70, when some of the leaders of the revolt left Jerusalem with their families before the city was destroyed. They lived at Masada for two years before the Roman procurator Flavius Silva began the siege in earnest.  Using the RomanTenth Legion and thousands of Jewish prisoners of war, he built a wall encircling the mountain to cut off all supplies, as well as eight camps for the housing of the soldiers. He then used the Jewish captives to construct a ramp from the eastern side to the walls, knowing that the defenders inside would not attack their fellow countrymen. On the first day of Passover in A.D. 73, the defenders realized that their situation was hopeless. They chose to burn their fortress and commit suicide rather than to fall into the hands of the Romans.  This is a spectacular site and after spending a couple of hours on the top of it we will only have seen about half of it. 

      

     

• Our second stop today is at En Gedi.  Anyone up for another hike?  You better be, because we will hike up to the waterfall at En Gedi, where David spent time hiding from Saul.  This is a beautiful wilderness oasis overlooking the Dead Sea.  And the hike is pretty easy.  And a bonus is the chance to spot some Biblical wildlife.  Here is a 6:30 video that shows some good shots of En Gedi  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1YfIyZJFvrQ&list=PLFE763A800EF8785D

• Our final stop today was at the Dead Sea.  We had a chance to experience a body of water that is unique in all the world.  It is an impossibility to sink in it.  The Dead Sea is composed of minerals and salts that make everyone buoyant.   Time for a short swim…really a float.  Here is a very short video showing you what to expect when you swimming here. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aTcyACmiaho