Israel

Israel is beautiful. Jerusalem, especially West Jerusalem, is very modern and cool. There are lots of young adults hanging around the streets enjoying their time. One of our stops in Jerusalem was the Israel museum to see the Dead Sea Scrolls and the miniature display of Old Jerusalem (below).

The Dead Sea Scrolls are the oldest known texts. They are non-canonized biblical writings dating back to the second century BC to the first AD. The scrolls are known as the greatest archaeological find of modern times because they were found in caves near Qumran (near the Dead Sea) in 1947 by a Bedouin shepherd.
We ventured into Old Jerusalem for two days to discover the holiest sites for Jews, Christians and Muslims. It's hard to believe that all of these sites are within walking distance of one another. I guess that explains the trouble we see in the news over the land here.

Below is The Dome of the Rock, a very holy Muslim site. The shrine is built on a site that once held a very important Christian Church, the holiest Jewish Temple and now the holy shrine. It's actually not a Mosque at all, it's a shrine built to "house the rock inside it, held to be the very one where Abraham intended to sacrifice his son (Genesis 22:1-4; Koran 37:100-109)." You can only enter the shrine if you are a Muslim.

The Western wall or Wailing Wall is the holiest site for Jewish people. It is called the Wailing Wall because Jewish people traditionally came here to mourn the destruction of their ancient temple (which now holds The Dome of the Rock for the Muslims).

Only a few blocks away from the Temple Mount stands the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. The Church was built up around Calvary (the rock where Jesus cross stood) and his tomb.

You can bend down and touch the rock where Jesus cross once stood.

There is now a large shrine built around the tomb where Jesus was laid to rest. Even with all the tourist, it was a very holy experience.

One day on our trip, we traveled to Bethlehem to see the birth place of Jesus. Bethlehem is now inside a separation wall in the West Bank, so we had to go through a checkpoint.

The separation wall is built around most of the prominent West Bank areas. The West Bank is not just one area in Israel, they are little pockets of areas. Below you can see just how high the wall reaches.

The graffiti on the wall inside the West Bank is enormous and overwhelming. Poverty has stricken most of the areas because people no longer want to travel here due to the separation wall.

There was a Armenian church service being held in the crypt of the Church of the Nativity in the exact spot where Jesus was born.

Bethlehem and Jerusalem are absolutely the most influential and spiritual travels we have taken thus far. We were very lucky to have the experience.

Jordan - Dead Sea and Petra

In April, we traveled to Jordan and Israel for a week break. Our first stop was the Marriot Dead Sea Resort, and it was super relaxing. The trip from Amman to the Dead Sea was only an hour, but the weather can change significantly because of the drop in elevation. It could snow in Amman and be 70 at the Dead Sea. Amazing!

The Dead Sea Marriot had 3 pools and a large beach front to swim in the Dead Sea.

The mud from the Dead Sea is said to have many vitamins and minerals, so guests to the Sea rub mud all over themselves and let it dry in the sun before swimming in the 30% saltwater Sea. Scott was well covered. I think he'll look 31 his entire life!

Floating in the Dead Sea is unbelievable! You literally cannot drown because of the salt content. It feels like you are wearing a life jacket. However, it does sting a little on your skin.

Of course we treated ourselves to some nice resort dinners during the trip. Hey, it is a vacation!

After 3 days at the resort, we took a cab to Petra for an overnight stay. I cannot describe how LARGE Petra is as a tourist. Wow! The first significant mention of Petra is in the Old Testament when the Israelites approached the city through the Wadi desert. In 647, the Nabateans built the city into the mountains to what it looks like today (besides the Roman ruins once Rome conquered them of course).

The only entrance into the city of Petra is through a large natural crevice in the sandstone mountains. It's a 2 km walk through narrow passages like you see where Scott is standing.

Once you reach the end of the 2 km. walk, you can see The Treasury. This building should look very familiar to you if you've seen Indiana Jones (if you have not seen the movie, you must have lived in a cave your entire life!).

The Treasury's history is dated to the first century BC, and it was built to impress. Legend says, "In pursuit of the Israelites after the Exodus, the pharaoh was slowed down by having to carry all his treasure, so he created the Treasury and deposited his riches in the urn at the very top of the facade, out of human reach."

After a 3 hour walk, 2 of the hours on steps carved into the rock up hill, we came to The Monastery. The doorway alone to this building is bigger than a house! This is most likely a temple for the Nabatean king Obodas I, who reigned in first century BC. As a matter of fact, many of the facades built into the mountain walls are said to be burial tombs.

Once we reached the top of the hiking path, we overlooked the mountains and desert of Jordan all the way in to Israel. Just beautiful.