Israel - Day 4

Day 4 felt like another highly successful day. We crammed a lot in but walked away feeling like we had accomplished a ton. I started the day by waking up in our Dead Sea hotel and enjoyed watching the sun peek its head over the mountains on the far side of the Dead Sea. You are actually looking at the country of Jordan on the other side of the sea.



Our first stop was Mount Masada, the famous fortress that sits atop a mountain overlooking the Dead Sea. Masada was made famous in the United States through a Hollywood movie and a mini-series. Masada was built by King Herod as his summer palace and he went to great lengths to ensure it was grand. The fortress was later used by zealots who were opposing the Roman Empire (this is the story of the movie and mini-series). The men spent three years besieged in Mount Masada as the Roman armies camped around the mountain trying to find a way to the top.

After a three year period, the Romans managed to build a ramp to the top of Masada using Jewish slaves to perform the labor as they found the zealots would not kill the laborers since they were their own countrymen. In the end, the zealots, numbering around 1,000, chose to end their own lives as opposed to allowing their wives to be abused and their children to taste slavery. The zealot leader, Eleazar Ben-Yair, gave an impassioned speech that is famous in Israel today. When Israeli teens enlist in the army, the are commissioned atop Mount Masada where they draw strength from the zealots' courage and are reminded that they must do their part to ensure that the Israelite people never be faced with such a decision again. It was a very powerful experience being atop that mountain.

No picture from the top of Mount Masada could really show its size but here is one looking out from the top of Masada on the Dead Sea. I can see why King Herod would choose to live here!



From Mount Masada we journeyed to En Gedi. En Gedi is the area where David hid from King Saul. It is in En Gedi that David had the opportunity to kill Saul while in a cave but instead cut a piece of cloth from his robe to show that he could have killed him but spared him because he was anointed by God.

We found En Gedi to be absolutely beautiful with four small waterfalls and wandering ibexes and rock hyrax (both of which we saw). To get to the top waterfall, you climb the side of the mountain and have the opportunity look back on some beautiful views of the Dead Sea. At the top we found David's Waterfall which was quite refreshing. Overall, En Gedi has been one of my favorite stops thus far on the trip.

Here is a mommy and baby ibex found at the bottom of the trail in En Gedi.



David's Waterfall



View of the Dead Sea while climbing in En Gedi

Our final stop of the day was in Qumran, the site where the bedouin shepherd found the Dead Sea Scrolls. We ate lunch here and did the majority of our shopping (this is the place to buy the world famous Dead Sea cosmetics that every one raves about). After shopping we headed out to have our tour guide, Hannah, tell us about the Dead Sea Scrolls. The picture you see below is labeled "Cave #4" and is the cave where the largest selection of scrolls were found. The scrolls were enscribed by Essene scribes who lived in the caves in the mountains above the Dead Sea. They hid their scrolls in jars within the caves and these scrolls were preserved as a result of the area's arid climate.

My Uncle John actually went with another member of our group, George, and climbed one of the surrounding mountains to get a look inside one of the caves. I didn't realize they were going or I would have gone with them! In the end, all they found in the cave was the droppings of the wild goats and birds.

After Qumran, we ventured to our hotel in Jerusalem. This was quite an adventure as the city was absolutely packed. Part of our struggle was a result of the Pope's visit to Jerusalem which has some streets closed. The largest problem though was the massive crowds on the downtown streets. We found out that the reason so many people were out was a local wedding. Jerusalem is divided into Arab neighborhoods and Jewish neighborhoods (among others) and historically the two groups have not tried to live within the other group's area. Recently some Arab families have purchased homes within the Jewish neighborhoods, however, when Jewish families were not welcomed to move into the Arab neighborhoods. The wedding yesterday was of a Jewish couple but was to take place in an Arab area of Jerusalem. As a result, a large number of Jewish families (many of whom probably didn't even know the couple) were coming out in support. This meant packed streets and a real challenge for our bus driver to find a way to our hotel.

When arriving at the hotel we ventured down to find a great spread for dinner. I managed to completely stuff myself only to find out that Rabbi Joseph Shulam, a good friend of my family wanted to take my grandfather, uncle, mother, and I to dinner at a local restaurant. We, of course, couldn't pass up the opportunity to eat with the Rabbi so off to our "2nd dinner" we went. The evening was very enjoyable as we had the opportunity to talk with the Rabbi and his wife (who was one of my mom's best friends growing up).

Now for a fascinating story for those of you who made it to the end of my long-winded narrative. We ate last night at a local restaurant in the Arab side of Jerusalem. While eating we found that a few tables down was the man convicted of selling Israeli nuclear secrets to a British newspaper. He had worked for the government in the nuclear division but had been laid off. He sold the secrets to the newspaper and fled the country. The Israeli Mossad sent an agent to seduce the spy and draw him to Italy. More Massad agents were waiting for the man in Italy and after drugging him, they brought him back to Israel (supposedly stuffed in a suitcase) to stand trial. He was convicted and spent 18 years in prison. He was released in 2004 but is not allowed to leave the country. He cannot venture beyond the Arab areas of Jerusalem for fear of retribution from angry Jews. That certainly made dinner that much more interesting!

Well, I am off for our first day of touring Jerusalem. I believe we are going to be visiting the Mount of Olives today. I'll report later!

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