Deep Underground

Our first stop is Solomon’s Quarries, inside the belly of Mount Moriah (the Temple Mount and site of the Old City) and used from the 10th century BC to the 4th century AD. We’re told it’s the largest man made cave, discovered again when a man followed his dog’s barking. Cats are abundant here, like on the Temple Mount, (dogs are not allowed) in order to keep the place rat free. Freemasons hold ceremonies here occasionally, and the most notable was Charles Warren, before he was recalled to London to investigate Jack the Ripper.

Some of us take a golf cart down but the rest follow Yossi deep down to Zedekiah’s Spring, a myth that claims this last king before the exile cried and his tears created the spring. In reality, it’s seepage from a leak in the sewer lines.

Going down!

Amid the ruddy stones and the trickle of water, Yossi plays for us, and the light music is in sharp contrast to the idea of slaves, with sweat and blood and oxen, brought the large stones from the temple. With the exception of a middle-aged Muslim woman, we are alone down here. 

deep in the cave

Our guide plays for us

The spring

We leave and head for the Herodian Gate and end up at Saint Anne’s Church, the most perfectly preserved Medieval church in Israel, most likely because it was taken over by the Muslims until it was purchased back by the Christians. Yossi asks us who Saint Anne is. I take a stab at it and say “someone’s mother”. A fairly safe bet. Anne was the mother of the Virgin Mary. Mary was most likely born in Jerusalem.  

Our son-in-law's initials. I snap this photo for him.

Herodian Gate

Very organized graffiti!

Okay, which way do we go?

The city is nearly always busy!

One friend keeps up despite an ailment

A shopping mecca!

Beautiful grounds of a beautiful church

Looking up above the entrance

One of Saint Anne's furry friends

These ruins go way down!

Imagine having this view from your home?

I peek over the railing to the ruins 50 feet below, the early part of the city and see the remains the Pool of Bethesda (which means House of Grace) and its colonnades. Our guide reads from John 5: 1-15, the story of the man who was an invalid for 38 years and tried to get into the water each time an angel stirred the water, but wasn’t fast enough. 

Yossi tells us that in winter, the rain would slip into the water from a spring and stir it. Some scholars believe that it was a pagan pool and the story has been invented, yet, time and again, we see Jesus seeking out pagans and sinners and using places of pagan worship to preach. I think again of the brutality of the temple of Pan, mentioned in an earlier post.

It's hard to believe the ancient city was so far down.

one of the colonnades

There are many layers to the invalid story. Jesus had asked the man if he wanted to be healed, as some didn’t because they earned a living as beggars. Also, Jesus healed him on the Sabbath, something the religious leaders of the day didn’t like.

In the church, the apse is acoustically lovely, and we sing Amazing Grace and Hallelujah, and after, listen to another woman sing another beautiful song and a priest adds his voice to the chorus. I visit the grotto downstairs to see the traditional site of Mary’s birth. 

A friend with one of the priests

Inside Saint Anne's Church

One of the ways down to the grotto

We exit through Stephen’s Gate where Saint Stephen was stoned or martyred. We pass a legless beggar, so appropriately placed there, no doubt, by family or friends. 

Saint Stephen's Gate

Our next stop is more exciting. The Garden of Gethsemane, where Jesus was betrayed!

The sea, its spoils and an evil queen

Walking distance from this boat, is our own boat ride. 

The crew raise both the Israeli flag and the Canadian flag, and we sing O Canada, although, it's not as melodic as when our captain sings. It's relaxing here on the water and I peek over the side to spy catfish, an unclean fish due to its lack of scales. 

When I look up, I can see the city of Safed, the highest city around the region. I can easily see why Jesus might say, ‘A city on a hill cannot be hid.’

Our singing captain

This is an appropriate segue into lunch at the Jordan River. Saint Peter’s Fish, tilapia, is deep-fried whole and the offered speciality. With a  salad bar, I can choose my own vegetables. Dessert is a bowl of juicy figs and demi-tasses of strong coffee.  

Saint Peter's Fish, talapia

My meal!

Poor soul. He doesn't look happy.

Most of us choose to rededicate our lives by getting re-baptized, and we even have two first timers. One of our group chats with a couple sitting on the stone seats near the water, and learn the man wishes to be baptized, but had no one to do it. Our team leader, a pastor, offers to do the honours. 

It’s a wonderful experience. The water is cool, but clear and afterward, one of our group plays the harmonica, and we sing ‘Amazing Grace’ and ‘We have Decided to Follow Jesus'.

Our group getting baptized

With the help of my husband, I get re-baptized

We dry off, hand in our towels and choir robes and once on the bus, begin a hair-raising ride up nearby Mount Bernice which overlooks Tiberias. 

View of Tiberias, with the ruins of Bernice's Palace at the centre.

Only a skilled bus driver like ours can handle this road. But it’s worth the gasps and occasional prayers. The view below us encompasses not only Tiberias, but the whole Sea of Galilee and even Bernice’s palace. This woman, who would have been dubbed a cougar today, was a member of the Herodian dynasty, a queen, and all I will say on her behalf is that I believe insanity ran in that family. Bernice was an evil woman. 

But the ruins of the palace below hide an even darker secret. It was where Salome danced the dance of seven veils and then asked for John the Baptist’s head on a platter. Today, it slowly crumbles, as Tiberias’s mayor is an Orthodox Jew and won’t spend the money on a place so linked to Christianity.

Our guide quizzes us on what we think the flag means, our first homework question. One person offers a valid answer. It’s wrong, so I'm lost because I thought her answer was sound.  

Yossi commiserates with us. Not even Jews know the answer. At Capernaum, he asked a fellow tour guide and Jew what the Star of David meant, and the man did not know. It’s back to the Google searches, I guess.

Tonight, we stay at a hotel in Tiberias. While our room smells like smoke, we have a small balcony and a nice view of the Sea of Galilee and the hotel is very wheelchair accessible. Before supper, a group of us go out for a walk and discover a few shops down by the water, where we purchase a few souvenirs. 

The view from our Tiberias hotel room

Shopping in Tiberias

Tomorrow, it's on to Nazareth and one tough Old Testament prophet!

Bravo One, this is Bravo two...

My daughter, my husband and I went shopping in the States this past long weekend.
Now, as a Canadian, this in itself is hardly newsworthy.
But having your retired soldier husband tell you, "We're taking the walkie-talkies. I don't want to lose you." Well, that is a bit of news. He doesn't want to lose me.
Isn't that sweet? He doesn't want to lose me.
But, girlfriend, read between the lines. He wants to bug me. To check to see if I have left the lingerie section yet. To see if I'm reading to move to the next store.
Hey, hubby, this is Kohl's and they're having a sale! I AM NOT ready to leave yet!
Undeterred, because after all, he was a soldier for 25 years. He's dealt with difficult situations before. "Barbara, you are Bravo One and I am Bravo Two. Normal radio procedures will be in effect."
"What about radio silence?"
"No radio silence. As soon as we get into the store, we'll do a radio check, okay?"
"Whatever."
So, my daughter is in the change room. I'm inspecting the nearby tank tops. My walkie talkie goes off. A short stream of static and the nice young man waiting on his wife, also in the change room, has his interest piqued.
I smiled at him. "That's my hubby doing a radio check."
On the radio: "Tango One, this is Tango Two. Request your location. Over."
That's not right! I shake my head and speak to the man. "I am supposed to be Bravo One. I shouldn't answer this. Besides, where was the radio check?"
The young man smiled.
"Tango One, come in, over!"
I continue to inspect the tank tops. "I'm Bravo One," I toss over my shoulder to the man. "I can't answer that. And it's going to drive him crazy."
"Tango One! Where are you?"
The young man is laughing hard. Since I have to live with this old soldier, I relent and key the mike. "I thought I was Bravo One?"
"So I forgot. Where are you?"
"Weren't we supposed to do a radio check first?
"Where are you?!!??"
I smile knowingly, like Kevin Spacey does in House of Cards. Then I relent. "Change rooms, center of the store. Bravo One out."

Oh, my hubs showed up shortly after. And yes, I listened to yet another lecture on proper radio procedures. 
You know, there is a lesson in all of this.
Husband found me, Walkie-talkies worked, and  something we don't always consider.
Radio Silence is so underrated.

Christmas shopping all done!

I went to the United States this past weekend. With the Canadian dollar doing so well, I had to go. There were bargains to be had, and I needed to get away. So, with two friends, and one new one I met, we jumped into a large SUV and drove to Maine. We immediately stopped to shop in Calais, and then on to Bangor. We then stopped to shop and then finally went to our hotel. (We had our priorities right) and then went out to eat. It was wonderful to eat at different restaurants, and shop at different stores.
So we shopped, ate, slept (a bit) , and in the morning did it all over again. Then the next day did it all over again. By the time we left the US, we had filled the SUV to capacity, packed in some extra stuff, and paid our GST on the stuff we had over our limit.
It was midnight when I got home, and though I would prefer to leave earlier, I had a terrific time. I needed time with the girls, needed to do a bit of research for an upcoming book, and needed new clothes, and Christmas presents.
Now I need some sleep.