Israel: The Dead Sea

After Tiberias we headed south along the Jordanian border toward the Dead Sea. Our first stop for the day was Yardenit, a popular group baptismal site along the Jordan River. While the traditional sites are farther south near Jericho, this site is used for tourists who don't want to go into a Palestinian Authority-controlled area (which our guide did and could not). Mom stayed out because the water was apparently freezing, but dad went in, and I was assigned the role of photographer. One of the pastors on the trip, Dale, was good enough to perform the baptisms; otherwise, people would have been baptizing themselves! So a special thanks to him.

Then we headed a bit farther south, still in Israel proper, to Beit She'an. I wasn't entirely sure I was going to be able to make it to Beit She'an at any point, so I was thrilled we were there. Like Megiddo, Beit She'an is a series of ruins built one atop another, thus forming an impressive tel. The earlier sites date back to the second millennium BC, when it is first mentioned as a conquest by the Egyptian Pharaoh Thutmoses III (whose tomb I'd crawled in to a week earlier). Like Megiddo, it sits at a strategically vital spot, blocking the way to the Jezreel Valley. Therefore, it was rebuilt numerous times in Israel's history, and finally by the Romans. The Roman city is not atop the tel but instead in the plain below, reflecting the empire's militarily superior position. This has allowed archaeologists to examine both the tel and the Roman city without harming either. We didn't go up to the tel for lack of time, but I hope to be able to some time next month while I've scheduled myself a free day in Tiberias.

At this point, it became clear why Dani had adjusted the schedule and packed three days into two: he wanted to get us to the Dead Sea resort before sundown. Unfortunately, during our stop for lunch outside Jericho, we ended up with a medical emergency. Frank, an elderly man on our tour, went into some form of diabetic shock. His wife Mickey was so terribly afraid. Thank God, ambulances from Hadassah Medical Center, the top medical care facility in the Middle East, arrived in excellent time. After stabilizing Frank, the couple decided they would go to the hotel in Jerusalem to rejoin the group later. While they never felt confident enough to go on tour in the city, it was good to see them at the hotel in the mornings and evenings. They were also able to get out on their for a bit on the last day.

Despite Frank's inconsiderate timing, we were still able to make it to the Dead Sea before dusk. On the one hand, it's pretty much what you'd imagine: you are extraordinarily buoyant, and it's impossible to swim, and getting water in your eyes is a terrible, terrible idea. At the same time, your body is totally unprepared for the experience. Evidence this picture:Yeah, it's like that.

Anyways, the hotel was first class, so us younger folks walked around the resort town until we found an open hotel with pool tables. One member of our group who works with Palestinian children had the good sense to strike up an argument with some off duty soldiers, which was fun for those of us watching.

The next day we slowly worked out way back up north. Our first stop was Masada, just a twenty minute drive north of the resort. Spectacular. King Herod the Great built this fortress partially as a defense of the entry route into Israel on the southern end of the Dead Sea, and partially as a secluded, luxurious getaway from the religious zealotry in Jerusalem. The ruins of the fortress today are very well preserved because of the totally dry desert heat, much like in Luxor. We took the cable car up to the top (next time I'm walking) and spent about two hours at the site. Not enough time, really, as we never made the descent to the lower levels. We did, however, get a spectacular view of the Roman encampments and siege ramp (you can see them on Facebook) from AD 72/73, when the empire destroyed the last vestige of the zealot revolt. Infamously, they arrived to the top to find the site of a mass slaughter and suicide, for the Jewish defenders preferred suicide and the killing of their own families to slavery and crucifixion.

From this cheery scene it was on to Qumran, also destroyed by the Romans earlier in the Great Jewish Revolt, c. AD 68. The members of the Qumran community, which called itself the Yahad, were the authors of the Dead Sea Scrolls, found fifty years ago in caves nearby the site (pictured: the famous cave #4). Unlike Beth She'an or Masada, there are no palaces, no bathhouses. The community was simple, almost monastic. They seem to have been founded by priests disaffected by the Hasmonean John Hyrcanus, who declared himself king of Israel even though he was of the priestly line of Aaron, not the kingly line of David. Viewing the temple as impure, they left for the wilderness to escape the 'Wicked Priest,' led by an anonymous 'Teacher of Righteousness.' They practiced twice-daily immersion for purification, and looked for the war of the Sons of Light (themselves) against the Sons of Darkness. This ideology may have had an indirect influence on John the Baptist, Jesus, and early Christianity. Perhaps.

Afterward, we headed toward Jerusalem. After a very brief glace of the city on the road, our driver took us to top of the Mount of Olives for the most spectacular view. I'll post on this and our days in Jerusalem next, but here's a preview for everyone: