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| Hotel at Netanya |
We landed in Tel Aviv International Airport ahead of schedule around 3
pm Israel time. Made it through immigration and customs and onto a very
comfortable bus that whisked us away for a drive through downtown Tel
Aviv and on up the coast to Netanya, a beach resort city.
Got up early and continued on up the coast to Caesarea, built by Herod. It later became the Roman capital for Judea. Herod built a port there to promote commerce by the sea and a palace, which included a fresh water (brought by aqueduct) swimming pool that juts out into the Mediterranean Sea (photo below). Cornelius, the centurion who sent for Peter, also lived at Caesarea, making it the place where Gentiles first heard the gospel and became Christians. And... it's also where Paul lived for two years and made his appeal before King Agrippa. We saw the remains of the "room" where this most likely occurred.
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| Remains of Herod's Swimming Pool |
From there we continued up the coast to Haifa, a modern city that first founded by Germans in the 1850s-'60s who believed Christ was returning at the millennium. They wanted to prepare for others who would be coming to see Christ after his return. It also became the headquarters for the B'Hai faith. We stopped to look at the gorgeous grounds of their headquarters and across the city to the port of Haifa. What a magnificent place!!
Not far from Haifa is a monument and small chapel in remembrance of Elijah's "contest" with the prophets of Baal. It sits on high on Mt. Carmel and the view of the Jezreel Valley is wonderful.
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| Elijah | |
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| Jezreel Valley, place for the Battle of Armageddon |
One of the most interesting sites along the road from the monument of Elijah was a tomb discovered recently that dates to the time of Christ. This is the type of tomb Christ would have been buried in. It's not a tourist stop; just along the road. The stone that would roll in front is to the left of the square opening. The tombs were reopened to add family members.
We stopped at Megiddo, a most ancient place that was an important spot for caravans and traders traveling from Egypt to Europe or further East. Archaeologists have discovered 26 different layers of occupation! It was very active during Solomon's time and in ruins by the time of Christ. As we were leaving, our guide spotted a plant that he jumped off the bus to snatch a branch. He told us to take one of the pods, break it open and see just how tiny a mustard seed is.
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| The branch is laying on a jacket. Inside the pods are the seeds. |
Made it to Jerusalem around 6 o'clock. As we approached the city, the driver slipped a CD into the player, and the sounds of the well-known song, "The Holy City," filled the bus. We all lustily--some with tears--sang along. More about Jerusalem tomorrow, another packed day!! Until then....
