Monday: Going Home

I think my focus at Ben Gurion Airport was just not forgetting anything. I went through security (no problems), had a snack for breakfast, and waited (bored--still no phone) for the departure time.



I had an aisle seat, very much appreciated. The seat next to me was vacant until just before we left the gate, then a Turkish young man took it. We had some conversations, but we were both tired and didn't talk as much as we could have.
The flight was long.
It went on
and on
and on.
In the meantime at home, Sherry found the papers I left her that told my arrival information. I had no way to contact her to let her know I was on time, and no way to tell her I arrived.
She found me, and the trip ended without incident.

Sunday, March 13: Goodbye

I'm not sure I got any sleep in the few hours we had Saturday night. I stayed up and talked with some of the others quite late, and wanted time to prepare for the trip. We left in the middle of the night to drive from Tamar (south of the Dead Sea) to Ben Gurion airport near Tel Aviv, 2 1/2 miles.
I think most of the group was leaving shortly after we arrived, so after some hugs, I found my way to the train for my trek to Tel Aviv on the coast. The train doesn't go far enough, but I found some young people who helped me get to the central bus station for a ride that took me near the hotel.
To say I stayed overnight would be wrong, since my train trip, bus ride, and 1/2 mile walk got me there at a little after 5 am, and I needed to be back at the airport by 3 am the next day.

The young man at the front desk spoke English, and said the cleaning ladies didn't arrive until after 7, but he would get them working on my room right away. In the meantime, he offered a computer for me to use. After a while, he directed me to the breakfast area and offered me breakfast. Their buffet was quite nice.



Refreshed, but still tired, I decided to take a walk in the morning salt air. I found an open air market just coming alive.















I spent some time shopping and taking pictures, then back to the hotel. Still early, I spent a while looking over the beach area.







For a very inexpensive room, it was just fine. Here's the view.



I have to admit, I slept much of the day away.
A young lady at the front desk helped me get a cab for the middle of the night, and I used almost all of my remaining shekels in addition to some dollars.

Day 7: Saturday, March 12 Reconstructed

Saturday (still the sabbath) began as usual with a breakfast buffet. Things are a bit different at Tamar.



Our host, Dr. DeWayne Coxon, gave us an overview of the park and its excavations before taking us on a tour.











Not everyone agrees, but some believe this tree is easily 1,500 to 2,000 years old.



Several of us left Tamar to quickly take a tour of Masada, the Roman retreat that became a final stronghold for Jewish rebels against the Roman army in 73 CE (AD). We had a quick lunch at the base of the flat-topped mountain, and encountered a friendly ibex.



Some of us were going to walk up, but the time caught up with us, so we all rode.



This Roman encampment is still pretty intact.







Here is a replica of Masada.







The place was well stocked.



The brethren had to have a cistern (okay, still not funny).



Here is the synagogue.







The bathhouse had a raised floor that covered the heated water. It would be interesting to see how this all worked.



They even had windows, sort of.



On the way back to Tamar from Masada, we made a quick stop at the Dead Sea.

"I can't sink!"



Wow--those knees look old.



Some people got a few hours sleep that night, but not many and not much. The bus left quite early for most of the group to head home.

Day 6: Friday, March 11 Reconstructed

I'm continuing to update my blog in retrospect.
Friday started out, as had become routine, with a breakfast buffet at the hotel. This friendly lady was again making omelets for us.



We said "goodbye" to the King Solomon hotel and took our places on the bus.



Prof. Tabor tried to get a rise out of the group by saying we didn't have time to visit the Jesus family tomb, but nobody was buying it. First there was a stop at this overlook. I'll try to edit this later to include location details, but I can see the old city in the distance here on the left.

UPDATE: Victoria Brogdon kindly provided this wonderful description of the location depicted below: "We were in the suburb called Talpiot. It is Southeast of Jerusalem and the Old City is in view. The Hinon Valley is straight ahead of us and the Kidron Valley which joins it swerves up and to the right horizon. The necropolis on the hillside facing the Old City is out of view because we are looking from such an angle looked at the hill from the south when the necropolis is on the East facing the Old City. Also, one of the "seven hills" of Jerusalem also blocks the view. It is a park called Peace Forest and Israel Gardens. We were on Haas Promenade and near the world UN Building For Peacekeepers. A lovely and peaceful place! The perfect spot for Jesus' Family Tomb!"

 We were admonished to keep very quiet for our visit to the Jesus tomb. It's in the middle of a densely-occupied residential area, and the neighbors are sensitive to noisy groups coming in.









I think it was a solemn time for all of us, contemplating the seriousness of this discovery. The tomb underneath us was accidentally discovered in 1980 and very few people realize its significance. Yosef Gat was originally called in to document the cave, but he never turned in the final report. His wife, Ruth, claims that it was because he was convinced this was the family of Jesus, and that putting his name on such a claim would bring his career to an end.

Our next stop was a step back even farther in time. There is no convenient place to stop the bus for this, so our driver utilized a nearby city bus stop to hustle us off the bus and into the valley. This is the place where David and Goliath fought.



Of course, we each wanted five smooth stones.



Our next stop was about 30 miles south of the Dead Sea. We spent 3 nights in the desert at Biblical Tamar, a strategic outpost through the centuries. Here's the "caravan" where Bob and I stayed at Biblical Tamar Park.



This is the meeting room and dining hall.



It was easy to find my way between the two in daylight. When night fell, that was a different story.



Shabbat (sabbath) came with the sunset.

No pictures, but we watched the lighting of candles, blessings, and blowing of the shofar. It was odd to me, and I wasn't alone.
Professor Tabor took the moment to give us a bit of a lesson. I don't remember what it was and didn't take notes (phone was gone, remember?), but I'm hoping he will fill in some blanks here for me.