Day 6 - Jerusalem

We got our new guide today, Avi. He is a Russian Jew who came to Israel when he was 3 years old, he is 71, very active, and tries to have a sense of humor. We also added Daisy and her mother Delores from Canada. I believe the mother only speaks Spanish, but I'm not really sure. We stopped at Ahava, which is a cosmetic company that uses Dead Sea minerals. I'm not sure why we stopped here as it was not on our program, but it didn't take long. We also passed by En Gedi where the young David hid from the angry Saul who wanted him killed. There is a natural spring there and lush green trees are a welcomed sight in the dry desert you see everywhere else. Another note about the Jordan Valley is that it is a part of the largest valley in the world. It is part of the Africa Rift which begins in Africa (of course) and ends 5500 kilometers later in Lebanon.

Then it was on  to Masada, which is on the western fringe of the Judean Desert built by King Herod. There was no real wait at all and we took the cable car directly up to the top of the well preserved fortress. It was a interesting and astonishing visit and Avi explained what we were looking at very well. Masada was built in 30 BC, so there is a lot of history that one needs time to absorb. The Masada cableway is an aerial tramway at his ancient fortress. Its bottom station is 257 meters (843.17585 feet) below sea level and its summit station is 33 meters (108.268 feet) above sea level, thereby making it the lowest aerial tramway in the world.

Masada in the distance on the right

Us at Masada

We then stopped at Qumran Nat'l Park. We had lunch in the cafeteria there, which was not too impressive. After that we took a tour. This is both the site of the break away sect of Essenes who lived and studied here for 2 centuries and the site where the Dead Sea Scrolls were found. Most have heard the story of the shepherd boy who when searching for a lost sheep found the first of the scrolls. After that time they searched many caves in the area, which you can see here. The last finding was 532 scrolls in just one cave. It is believed they were put here for protection and the plan was to return for them later, but it didn't happen that way. It is a story that I apparently didn't understand correctly when I heard it before. Only some of these scrolls were the actual Bible. Others were written by the Essenes and it is believed that John the Baptist live here with this sect for some period of time. We will see the Dead Sea Scrolls tomorrow in Jerusalem. It's a fascinating site. We saw a short movie in Hebrew with English subtitles before the actual tour that helped in understanding.

Cave where 1st Scrolls were found

Our next stop was the Dead Sea. It is shocking how low the lake is. I am not really sure of this explanation of this. There are dams and I understand that, it is also the end of the dry season, and with the combination the water is very low. Where we were to swim did not look terribly inviting. John and I decided to forgo the swim and we had a snack instead and walked through the various shops. We fondly remember our swim on the Jordan side of the Dead Sea a few years ago at a lovely location, so we weren't really missing out on anything. 

At the Dead Sea 

Perhaps you understand why we passed?