We loaded up the bus early under an iron grey sky, and took a long drive, passing Jericho in the distance and hundreds of date palm trees (from which they make date honey, which is great) to arrive at the Dead Sea. Well, sort of the Dead Sea. We first hiked up a short way under the jagged desert cliffs to a nature preserve.
These were the mountains of En Gedi, the area in which King Saul was searching for David (who had gone into hiding) but only accidentally ran into him in one of the caves. Because the area was under a flash flood warning, we couldn't go as far as any of the caves, but we saw some adorably funky animals along the way!
rugged
ibex in a tree!
ibex who wishes he was in a tree
these lil guys are nimble
tombs...how did they get up there?
this little trickle could turn into a raging river at any moment
the brilliant and beautiful Baldwins
I'm not sure what kind of tree this is...
...but this is a hyrax
A quick stop at an excavation site in En Gedi allowed us to see some remarkably well-preserved mosaic work on the floor of an ancient synagogue.
And then, because of much pleading and cajoling, Uri agreed to our request to go to the shore of the Dead Sea. Yay! Except when we got there, full of glee and a pep in our step, we realized that the entire cliffside we were standing on had been aggressively fenced off. No way to reach the water. Until...I spotted a hole in the fence and led the others astray, down a treacherously rocky slope to the water that lapped and frothed against the sand.
It was warm, foamed like a bubble bath, and left an oily kind of residue on your hands. Like water that wouldn't dry. It was weird, but mission accomplished! Check it off the list! Standing at the lowest place on earth, hands and feet in the water, half a dozen of us reveled in the exhilarating joy of the moment.
so close yet so far...
VICTORY
But the biggest event of the say was yet to come.
MASADAAAAAA.
The word literally means fortress, and man would this place have made a fortress. Perched atop a steep cliff overlooking the Dead Sea, it's a legendary site in Jewish history. Built up by Herod (because this guy was a building machine), it served as one of his many palaces, with really secure fortifications. The way up was a narrow, zig-zagging "snake path" that didn't make it easy on any visitor - or enemy, for that matter.
The reason it's so legendary, though, is because after the Romans destroyed the temple around 70 AD, several hundred fleeing Jews took refuge at Masada with the zealots who were occupying it at the time. They were eventually chased down and besieged by Roman forces, who blitzed the fortress with everything they had. Masada fought bravely, but in the end, the battle was lost. Rather than be taken alive, the remaining Jews killed themselves. Only a handful survived the mass suicide.
view from the cable car
story time with Uri
model replica
perfect weather
the ramp the Romans built to reach the fortress
the place was bigger than I expected
even had windows
the tower
the remains of one of the Roman encampments below
their cistern
storehouses near Herod's palace
the lower palace
the public bathhouse
beautiful
Herod's palace...
...and the view from it
the Dead Sea in the distance
Masada was a place on many of our wish lists. It wasn't on our original itinerary, but our fantastic guides were able to fit it into the schedule, and we're so glad they did.
After some lunch and souvenir shopping at the Masada tourist center, we headed back for Jerusalem, thanking God for giving us such a beautiful day to see that epic landmark. Especially when we got back and realized it had been raining all day in the city.
It's rather late, so I'm going to call it here. I'll catch you up tomorrow on the final day of our journey...
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