The Sea of Galilee (above)
We took a couple of days away from Jerusalem and went on a tour in Northern Israel, visiting the Galilee Sea area.
Our first day was spent in Caesarea and Acre, port cities of Israel along the Mediterraen Sea
There were about eight of us in one van with a driver and the tour guide as we set out to see northern Israel on the tour. Bein Harem Tour Guides were very knowledgeable and able to describe in detail the history, geologic formations and much of the culture as we toured. As we drove along the Mediterranean, we saw the coastal cities north of Tel Aviv and made our first stop in Caesarea. Here are remains of an ancient Roman port city with an amphitheater, hippodrome and ruins of palaces, temples and bathhouses.
Roman ruins of Caesarea
Caesarea was built by King Herod nearly 2000 years ago (he also built Temple Mount in Jerusalem) and it became the commercial capitol of Judaea. There is a Roman theater still in use today, and a hippodrome, 50 meters wide and 400 meters long, that could seat 13,000 spectators for competitive sports festivals intended to rival the Olympics. The hippodrome was built for chariot and horse racing, and below you can see the spectator seats lining the right side of the track. The low stone walls in the front left marked the near turn. The far turn is about half way to the palm trees. (There is a low stone wall that was built some time after, which now juts into what would have been the center of the track) We were told that the best seats in the house were the ones on the turns of the track, as these would give the spectator the best view of any crashes!
Hippodrome near Caesarea
We traveled further north along the coast to the port city of Haifa where we saw the terraced Baha’i Gardens on Mt. Carmel and learn about the Baha’i faith.
Baha’i Gardens in Haifa looking towards the Mediterranean
We continued all the way to Israel’s border with Lebanon where we were taken to the sea caves of Rosh HaNikra. We entered the cave chambers and tunnels where waves crash against the rocks. Rosh HaNikra is on the border between Israel and Lebanon and are grottos made of white chalk.
The cable car to the grottos was steep
And the view of the coast near the grottos.
We returned south to visit the Crusader city of Acre. The Crusader fortress was built in the 12th century.
The interior of the crusader fortress of Acre.
Below is the dining hall.
On our way towards our night lodging we saw the Valley of Armageddon and the ruins of walls, gates, tombs & temples from centuries-old Canaanite & Israelite settlements in Megiddo National Park. According to the Book of Revelation, Armageddon is the prophesied location of a gathering of armies for a battle during the end times, which is variously interpreted as either a literal or a symbolic location. Either way, driving through the valley, I was impressed with how immense it was and thought about gathering all the people here in end times and wondering how all would fit.
We spent one night in Tiberias and were picked up by another group for our second day of touring of Nazareth, Capernaum and the Sea of Galilee (feature picture).
We visited Mt. Precipice overlooking Mount Tabor and Nazareth. Here we toured the beautiful Church of Annunciation and the Church of St. Joseph. According to legend the church is built over the Mary’s house where Jesus was conceived.
The Yardenit Baptism Site on the River Jordan. The photo below shows only part of the complex, they are obviously used to handling thousands of tourists at a time. But, like everywhere else on our Israel stay, things were fairly quiet.
Beautiful peacock display near Jordan River
House of Peter near Capernaum by the Sea of Galilee
It is said the Byzantines constructed a new church, placing the central octagon directly on top of the walls of St. Peter’s house with the aim of preserving its exact location, although none of the original house was visible any longer, as the walls had been torn down and the floor covered in mosaics. Here you see the modern Memorial built over the house of St Peter and various ruins.
One of the things were were surprised by was how green and lush Northern Israel is. While Israel is a relatively dry area, the North is cooler and wetter, although overall rain is relatively rare in the summer. Still, it doesn’t fit the perceptions we had before visiting. Always nice to learn something new!
And finally, one last pic. Any guesses?
This is a 4 person baptismal font near Church of the Multiplication of the Loaves and Fish in Tabgha, Israel.
One last post will be coming with a few more pictures of Jerusalem, then on to Spain!
Tim & Deb