Mont Tabor, Nazareth and Cana….Day 4, November 6th, 2013

Late last night, just before turning off the light, I took a look outside the window to see if I could see anything more than haze over the Sea of Galilee; to my delighted surprise I could see for miles! 

At the dock there was a sailboat with lights on the sails, the lights of boats moored at the docks were visible and the city itself was full of lights in town and up the hillside.  Thought you’d enjoy some photos of them and again in the morning of the same scenes in Tiberias.

We were already awake when the wakeup call came at 6 am and went down to breakfast at 6:30 am.  By 9 am we were on the bus and ready for our day’s adventure here in the Holy Land.  We drove for many miles along the shore of the Sea of Galilee; a freshwater lake that is about thirteen miles long from north to south fed by the Jordan River.  It is called a “Sea” because there is no word for “Lake” in Hebrew.  Soon we turned inland and started climbing.  A piece of information:  he said that we are about two plus miles from the Syrian boarder “as the crow flies”. 

Our first site to visit took about half an hour to drive to.  During that time Raouf filled the air with volumes of information about the agriculture in the area as we drove through the Jordan Valley towards Mt. Tabor.  This area is very fertile because over the centuries the rain has washed all of the good earth off of the hills into the valley that is filled with groves of olive, almond and date trees.  He told us that the best olives are products of trees that are not watered by man but only by God.  He stated that the best quality olive oil is produced near Bethlehem.    

We could glimpse the church on the top of Mt. Tabor long before we arrived at the base of the hill.  It is an actual rounded top rather than a ridge.  There is a taxi service, vans that hold a dozen people each, that go up and down the zig-zag road that goes straight up the hill for the Pilgrims wishing to visit. 

Large buses are not permitted to drive the last twelve minutes up to the top of this hill that is about one thousand feet above sea-level.  At the top there are two churches, one for Catholics and one for Greek Orthodox.  We visited the one for Catholic Christians.  In the slideshow is a photo I took of an aerial photo in the bus that shows the road going up the mountain.

What happened at the top of Mt. Tabor?   Christ took three apostles, Peter, James and John, to the top of the mountain.  There he was transfigured and joined by the prophets Moses and Elijah before God appeared as a cloud and told them that Jesus is his son.  Then Jesus told the apostles not to speak of this to anyone while he was still on earth as a man.  There has been a church here for several centuries.  This is the third church to be erected over the spot on the mountain as over the centuries during wars all of the churches have been destroyed, some more than once.

This is the Church of the Transfiguration; we arrived at 9:30 am and had to wait for our turn to go up the mountain behind fourteen other large buses loaded with people.  That took about half an hour as each trip is only about twelve minutes and they load and unload the taxis rapidly. 

Our Mass today was planned for later in the afternoon; but when our Tour Guide noticed that no one was using the altar in the main church; he questioned the monk in charge.  He said that a German group had reserved the church for a Mass at 10 am; they were ten minutes late and he said that if they didn’t arrive within five minutes we could take their spot!   To say a Mass in this church requires a reservation made at least a year in advance! 

Yes, we had our Mass in the church right on top of the spot on the mountain where the Transfiguration took place; a glass floor gave us a view of the actual rock under the sanctuary. 

Everyone, including Father Paw, was shedding a few tears; it was a very emotional experience for all of us.  Deacon Nick was also provided vestments and joined Father Paw at the Altar to celebrate the Mass.  Wow…how do we top this experience?

By noon we were down the hill and back on the bus.  Did I tell you that I’d left my purse in the bus for the trip up the hill and yes; my battery on my camera died just as the Mass began.  But I must admit I was more involved in the Mass because I didn’t have the distraction of taking photos.  I did manage to get four more photos by turning it off for a rest after each before it finally would not turn on again!

We arrived in the town of Nazareth about 12:30 pm and walked about five minutes up the hill from the bus parking lot towards the church we were going to visit.  But first we stopped at a restaurant around the corner and all had Gyro Pita Bread Sandwiches for lunch.  Yummy!  There were also many shopping opportunities along the street but we all managed to walk past them without stopping.

Then a quick walk and we arrived at the Church of the Annunciation; built over the house where Mary lived and said “yes” when she was visited by the Angel of the Lord.  There have been several churches built over this house that was actually built into the rock probably using a cave; a very common practice up until recent times.  

Once the home was established, steps would be put at the back of the cave and a second story built on top of the cave.  It was the stones from the second story that are now in Rome; probably carried by the Crusaders.  But we were assured that what we saw is original and not restored.  The church is huge and has gifts of paintings of Mary from many different countries including the USA  All of the art work is displayed in the upper church and out in the courtyard surrounding the church.  The lower church surrounding the “crypt with the house” is very bare of decoration. 

  

From there we walked the short distance to the church of St. Joseph that is built over Joseph’s house.  When Joseph, Mary and Jesus returned to Nazareth from Egypt; they moved into Joseph’s home where he lived before they were married.  It is here that Jesus lived with his family until he came of age and started his public life.   

Our last site in Nazareth was to a very modest and ancient Greek Orthodox Church that is built over the original well.  This would have been the place where Mary came or must of come, to get their water on a daily basis as this was the public well for the city at that time.   More than likely, her son accompanied her many times on this journey to the well for water.

But, the best was yet to come.  It was nearly four o’clock when we climbed back on the bus and were treated by Akarm and Raoul to Bourma, a Palestinian sweet dessert. 

Then we were off to the City of Cana where Jesus performed his first miracle by turning water into wine at the wedding feast.  There, eleven couples in our group celebrated a renewal of their wedding vows in the chapel of the church. 

This was the third time to the altar for Jim and me; we were married in 1960, renewed our vows in Paris in 2010 and then again tonight.  Joining new and old friends to celebrate was very special; there were several who were fifty years or more along with us.  But we did have the longest marriage in the group since we have passed the fifty-three year mark as of last June.   We teased Father Paw about making water out of the wine to celebrate!  It was a fun evening followed by our drive back to the hotel in Tiberias with just enough time to finish the Glorious Mysteries of the Rosary together before we arrived.  Dinner at 7 pm was special as Jim found a table for two and we took some ribbing as tables ranged from four to ten but someone had taken two chair away from a small round table and we had a special celebration with our own table in the dining room!

The sun has set on another day and I’m going to be adding a group photo when I get one tomorrow of all the couples with Father Paw after the Renewal of the Vows.  There has to be at least fifty or so, but none on my camera!  A day late but have now attached a photo of the wedding group to the slideshow for you.  Thanks Lynda!   Hope you enjoy the slideshow. 

Caesarea, Mount Carmel and Haifa Day 3, November 5, 2013

I finished last night about 11 pm and woke about 4 am…short night but good deep sleep!   The first thing I did was read yesterday’s blog and then correct some really bad errors!  But I also left out some very pertinent facts about yesterday.  We spent our first night in the Hotel Seasons in the town of Netanya on the shores of the Mediterranean Sea; our room had beautiful views of the water.  The names of our wonderful driver, Akram, and our fantastic tour guide, Raouf. 

  And the system we have for simplifying the counting of forty two heads each time we get on and off the bus.  We are divided into seven groups and the leader of each group is responsible for making sure their group is accounted for.  We keep hearing that the last group on board has to buy us all ice cream but so far we’ve all been so good that we haven’t had any ice cream!

We were ready to go this morning when the wakeup call came at 7 am; giving us half an hour to take a walk along the beach again before breakfast; a very tasty buffet with everything you could want available.  By 9 am we were on the bus including our luggage and on our way to our first site for the day.  Father Paw negotiated a late start for us this morning because of jet lag but from now on that wakeup call will be at 6 am or earlier depending on what is scheduled.

Our first stop was at Caesarea, a Roman City built by King Herod before Christ was born.  He was King of the Jews but not a Jew; he was a pagan and wanted a Roman city to enjoy.  He built so many structures he became known as Herod the Great.  In Matthew, Chapter two, he is remembered for ordering the death of all the boys under the age of two.   Why?  You’ll have to read the bible to find that answer for yourself!  We visited the ancient amphitheater, the Crusader’s Moat, and the place where Paul was imprisoned before he was sent to Rome.  We walked through the ruins of the race course for chariots and took photos of the ancient Roman aqueduct on the waterfront.   It is estimated that Caesarea had over thirty thousand residents at one time. 

We were back on the bus after about two hours, we didn’t walk very far but we spent lots of time in the sun listening to the stories that permeate this ancient place.   We even had a few minutes in a movie theater where they showed us a visual image of the changes over the past two thousand plus years.   Soon we were at a family owned restaurant where we enjoyed a lunch of falafel, pita bread, chicken and vegetables. 

By 2 pm we were back on the highway headed north for Mount Carmel.  We were early so we stopped at the Baha’l Holy Gardens in Central Carmel.  We so enjoyed these manicured lawns and golden domed Spiritual House of the worldwide religious group.  But, the gardens are closed today and tomorrow for a Baha’l Holy Day.   So, we could only take photos through the iron fence. 

Still magical and also we were able to get an excellent view of the third largest city in Israel, Haifa, from the area that is located high on the mountain that flows down to the sea and the port city of Haifa.  There were many ships laden with goods, especially grain, waiting to be unloaded in the harbor.  I know you’ll enjoy the views in the slideshow.

Back on the bus we continued to the Stella Maris Church where we celebrated our Mass for the day in one of their chapels.  This was originally the motherhouse for the Order of Carmelite Nuns that began here in Mount Carmel.  After much persecution they moved to Europe; but their  church that is built over a cave that was the home of the prophet, Elijah, is very beautiful and dedicated to the Virgin Mary.  It is known as the Basilica of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mt. Carmel.  Under the main altar you can view the cave from inside the church.

It was 4 pm when we started our drive north through the city of Haifa; traffic was heavy and it was a slow drive but we did get an opportunity to take photos as Akram drove very slowly past the bottom of the Baha’l Gardens then flipped a U-turn giving the other side of the bus the same opportunity.  The last photo of the day was of the huge granary that sits on the port to store all of the grain that is delivered by the boats. 

Finally we reached the edge of the city, traffic thinned and we were on our way to our new hotel in Tiberias.  On the way we said the Sorrowful Mysteries of the Rosary together and soon we’d arrived at the Hotel Caesar on the shores of the Sea of Galilee ; we are fortunate to have views of the water from our room. 

Unfortunately due to traffic we arrived after dark and will have to wait until tomorrow morning to enjoy the views.  But, we’re settled in for three nights at this hotel; so we’ll have plenty of time to enjoy the Sea of Galilee; I get goose bumps just typing these words that I’ve read for the past seventy-five years.  You sometimes pinch yourself to make sure you are really walking in the same paths as Christ when he was alive.  And the best is yet to come.

Dinner was at 6:30 pm so we didn’t have to wait long.  After dinner we walked around the area surrounding the hotel checking out the shops.  But for most of us it’s early to bed for that early morning call tomorrow.  Hope you enjoy the slideshow. 

Tel Aviv, Israel Day 1 and 2: November 3rd & 4th, 2013

As promised we are now in Israel for our twelve day pilgrimage.   I’m way past my bedtime as we’ve been traveling since Sunday morning and it is now Monday morning in California and nearly ten o’clock at night here in Israel.

Our tour leader, Fr. Paw Lwin of St. Martin’s Parish in Yorba Linda, with the help of Nick, one of our group, arranged for a bus to take most of us to LAX together from Yorba Linda.  What a blessing.  By 9:30 am on Sunday we were on our way.   Father John had asked the parish to bless us at Saturday evening Mass, my sister Mary in Florida lit a candle for us in Florida and daughter Mary say a very beautiful prayer over each of us before we left.  

Once on the bus we all prayed the Glorious Mysteries decade of the Rosary together.  This will be a very different trip; definitely a Pilgrimage and not a “tour”.    We flew direct from LAX to the Ben Gurion International Airport in Tel Aviv on El Al Israel Airlines.

  It was fourteen hours long; we moved our clocks ahead ten hours as we left Los Angeles and there went Day One!

An interesting note on the airplane was the gentleman who had purchased a seat for his Cello.  I understand that he is well known in Glasgow for classical music.  We don’t know his name but it added some spice to the trip when it took four airline crew members to get him to agree to let them store his instrument during the take-off and landing.  Otherwise he was very congenial and other than putting on his sunglasses and being the first person out of the tourist class; he was a regular guy.

Most of us were up and down in between movies; the aisles were very busy but the crew kept their smiles on and moved around us. 

About 4 o’clock we found sandwiches in the rear of the airplane when we walked back there to exercise and use the facilities.  Overall it was an A+ ride except for the narrow space for legs for the tall guys!

Our guide met us at the airport when we arrived and we were all through customs and on the bus by 3:30 pm.  He will be with us the entire trip as well as the same bus and driver.  Both are very knowledgeable and pleasant.  The guide is extremely well versed in the bible and painted visual images of the words in the bible about the places we will visit over the next ten days.  He said that when we return home we will no longer see “words” as we read the bible but see images as we remember the sites that we will visit during our stay.  

A word about the Ben Gurion Airport:  beautiful but lots of security.  The airport is surrounded by two tall fences with a wide area between them.  Terminal 3 where we arrived is very new and quite beautiful; spacious with lots of glass. 

Leaving the airport we traveled North on Highway One to our first stop in Jaffa.  Located on the seashore it has the church of St. Peter.  I wish I could remember all the bible information that was given to us but the memory banks were just too tired and maybe I was busy taking too many photos out the bus windows! 

A beautiful church; another group had scheduled a Mass before us so we used a side chapel for our first Mass of the Pilgrimage.   The church is staff by Franciscans so I was delighted to see the very unusual Crucifix on the wall that was so prevalent in Assisi just a few weeks ago during my visit there during the feast day celebration of St. Francis.   Father Paw kept the Mass short so we wouldn’t all fall asleep; but it was very meaningful as so much of what was said related to our visit here in Israel.  Afterwards we enjoyed the vistas over the Mediterranean Sea and the views of the city of Tel Aviv in the distance.  Smog…yes…they definitely have it!   But we’ve learned that it is safe to drink the water here; a change from when we were in Egypt and Jordan back in 2005 (if I remember correctly). 

On the bus and headed for the hotel; the tour guide announced that we had WiFi in the hotels and on the bus.  Well; that ended everything as we all whipped out our tablets and cell phones and started searching the web.  For those without Skype the Guide suggested that they download the app for jack something or other…I have Skype so didn’t listen too well.  But we were all wide awake and our fingers were flying for those that had devices that they could get to in the bus.

But it did keep us awake and we arrived at the Hotel about 6:30 pm.   Time enough to get into our rooms, freshen up and go down to a delicious dinner here at the hotel.  We had dinner companions from another tour group that is also staying at the same hotel.  We’ve discovered that they are following just about the same schedule of stops and hotels so we’ll probably be seeing more of them.   The group is from a Baptist Church in Pomona, California.

After dinner Jim and I headed outside and walked along the beach for about a mile.  That should settle the dinner and help us sleep.  A reminder for those that can see the slideshow below; click on the photos and it should take you to my Picsasweb for larger photos.

I hope you enjoy the slideshow: