Days 20 – 22

Gallipoli

Days 18 & 19 were travel days as we left the Sea of Galilee and made the journey to the border. Getting out of Israel was not as tedious as getting in, but it is still more difficult than it needs to be. Once back in Jordan we made the trip to Amman where all those going on to further ports had to spend the night. We said goodbye to our friends who were heading to the airport (with just a little envy!) and spent the afternoon resting. The next morning we headed for the airport and our flight to Istanbul, and then our short flight down to Canakkale, where we spent the night. From our hotel we could look across the Dardanelles to the Gallipoli Peninsula, quite a beautiful sight. The next morning our guide and driver met us, and we drove on board the ferry for the quick trip across. The first stop was the museum where we had a terrific overview of the Gallipoli campaign from our guide, a young Turkish history graduate. From there we visited the famous (infamous?) sites including Anzac Cove (now the official name), Lone Pine, the Nek and Chunuk Bair. We saw the remains of trenches and tunnels built by both sides. It was sobering and moving to visit these places, where nearly half a million men lost their lives in just eight months, in a futile campaign. One of the things that struck me the most was both the pride of the Turks in their victory, but also their respect for the Anzacs. Mustapha Kemal Ataturk’s famous quote (http://www.scribd.com/doc/179072/Those-Heroes-That-Shed-Their-Blood-Ataturk) which is featured on one monument sums this up, and set the tone for what is now a very warm relationship between Australia and Turkey. I confess to shedding a quiet tear as I read this.

Istanbul

What an amazing city. It is impossible to do it justice, other than to say that it has as much culture, history and natural beauty as any city in the world. We are just scratching the surface, but have or will visit the Basilica Cistern, Hagia Sophia (one of the biggest churches in the world), a cruise on the Bosphorus, the Blue Mosque, the Spice Markets and the Grand Bazaar.

Day 17

Our last day on the Jordan/Israel tour started with a bus drive up to the Golan Heights, territory belonging to Syria but which has been occupied by Israel since the Six Day War in 1967. We travelled to a pretty national park called Tel Dan, the place where the tribe of Dan settled after they left their original home on the coastal plain. It eventually became the capital of the northern kingdom of Israel at the time when the country was split into north and south. We then travelled to Banias, the site where Jesus asked Peter who he thought Jesus was . There are other interesting ruins of a temple to the pagan god Pan. A little further on we walked to a very beautiful waterfall, which is part of the same national park. It’s hard to imagine that much of the country is struggling for water when you see this raging torrent. A quick lunch was followed by a drive right up to the Syrian/Lebanon borders, where we saw a United Nations compound, there to (try to) keep the peace between Israel/Syria and Lebanon and also the very high tech Israeli surveillance station, listening constantly to communications within Syria and Lebanon. As you might imagine, Israel has a significant military presence in this part of the country with a number of bases with elite troops, tanks & artillery.

This is the end of our Jordan/Israel leg. Now we travel to Anzac Cove, Gallipoli and Istanbul before heading home. Stand by for more updates on Monday next week.

Day 16

The new day dawned hot and bright as we boarded the bus for our day of sightseeing. We started with a visit to the Mount of the Beatitudes, the scene of the famous Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5). There’s some debate about whether this event (where Jesus spoke to 5000 people) took place up on the mountain or down by the shore of the lake. Of course, the catholics have built a beautiful church and gardens at the top, but we’re all a little over looking at more ornate churches. It isn’t what Jesus was all about, but the Sermon on the Mount was, and the natural amphitheatres in the form of the hillsides meant that talking to 5000 people would have been easy (it’s actually been tested by a US university). From there we visited a pretty spot by the lake called ‘The Primacy of St Peter’, where Jesus appeared to his disciples following his resurrection, and challenged Peter to become the person upon whom Jesus would build his church. A short drive away was Capernaum, the place where Jesus was based in the early part of his ministry. There we saw the synagogue where Jesus preached and which was very close to Peter’s house, which has been discovered and excavated. This is where Jesus healed Peter’s mother. We also visited churches at Tabgha and ruins at Kursi, which is where Jesus cast out demons.

Day 15

A change of pace today as we started at 10 and headed to an amazing exhibit of a 2000 year old boat, known as the ‘Jesus Boat’ (you can read more at www.jesusboat.com). It was a boat found over 20 years ago in the mud on the shoreline of Lake Galilee, and, following a painstaking excavation, is now on display. The archeologists used literally tons of chemicals and consulted experts from all over the world to ensure they could remove and restore the boat. Incredible! From there we got into a real boat for a cruise over to the other side of the lake, called variously Lake Galilee, the Sea of Galilee, Lake Tiberias, Lake Gennesaret amongst others. The boat operators have a cute tradition of raising the national flag of their guests and playing their national anthem. All 33 of us stood and sang enthusiastically! We also sang a number of hymns, as we’ve done in various churches along the way. From the other side of the lake we rejoined the bus which took us to the ruins of the town of Korazin, one of the three towns (Capernaum and Bethsaida were the others) that Jesus cursed due to their indifference. Heed the warning! The ruins were interesting as was the wildlife. A large colony of rock hyraxes live at this place. They’re also known as rock rabbits, but we prefer to call them ROUSs. Those who have seen ‘The Princess Bride’ will know the reference! After this a number of us, including Nick and Dad, made a trip into the town of Tiberias, probably the least interesting town we’ve seen on our entire trip.

Day 14

Our first full day at the Sea of Galilee saw us head first to Cana, where Jesus performed his first miracle, turning the water into wine. There are actually three towns in Israel called Cana, but given the proximity of this one to Jesus’ hometown of Nazareth it’s likely that this is the place. As usual at these places one of the denominations (usually Roman Catholic or Greek Orthodox) has built a church as a monument. From there to the Roman settlement at Sepporus, which features some beautiful mosaics in the ruins of a wealthy person’s home. There is one in particular which is famous as the ‘Mona Lisa’ of Israel; the face of a beautiful woman, in incredible detail. The same building contained another more practical example of Roman ingenuity, a toilet that featured running water. As it’s very close to Nazareth it’s quite possible that Joseph (Jesus’ father) would have got work as a stonemason at this site (he was in fact more than a carpenter) and that he would have brought the boy Jesus along with him to work. There’s an intriguing detail in the gospels that supports this theory. At Sepporus there is a theatre where plays were performed, and the notion of ‘hypocrisy’ (a Greek word) introduced in the sense of a player using a mask or playing a part. The word ‘hypocrite’ does not exist in Aramaic or Hebrew, yet Jesus uses it several times. Little details like this have made our trip quite fascinating. Later we visited Nazareth (somewhat unremarkable as a town except for a massive Roman Catholic church) and in the afternoon we visited Bet She'an, the location of a large Roman city and a very strategic position in military campaigns throughout the centuries, right up until the 2006 war between Israel and Lebanon. We ended the day with a refreshing dip in the Sea of Galilee.

Day 13

We boarded the bus bright and early for our trip to the north of Israel, to the Sea of Galilee. We headed out over the coastal plain and had our first stop at Caesarea Maritime, the site of one of Herod the Great’s most magnificent palaces and artificial harbour – the first ever of its kind.This guy was one of the greatest builders if not the greatest, of all time. Masada, Temple Mount etc etc. Of course, given he was the Emperor’s man in Israel, he had access to the very best Roman engineers, architects and builders. He built an amazing palace complete with ocean baths and hippodrome, where all sorts of races were held. Indeed, this was the place where he decided to award a second and third prize as well as a first prize. In addition to the significance of Herod the Great, this site is very significant as an inscription was discovered there which confirmed the existence of Pontius Pilate (the guy who sentenced Jesus to death). Back to the bus and a trip to the Mt Carmel ranges, where Elijah had a duel with the prophets of Baal (he won). Our final stop for the day before arriving at our hotel for the next five nights was Megido, where King Ahab (Elijah’s close friend – not!) had a tidy palace including an amazing water cistern and silo for grain.

Day 12

Our last day In Jerusalem started with a visit to the City of David, the newest excavation in the city. It’s a point of some contention as to whether these are the actual ruins of King David’s city, but it’s a significant archeological find nonetheless. From there past the Warren Shaft, found by archeologist Charles Warren, and which was the probable passage through which King David’s general, Joab, and his men stormed the city. Then on through the Canaanite tunnel which we walked (you can wade through Hezekiah’s tunnel through waist deep water for 500m, which we chose not to do) and on to one of the most special places in the city for us – the Pool of Siloam. This is where Jesus healed the man born blind (John ch. 9). This is a relatively recent excavation and indeed work is still continuing, but amazingly it is one of the only places in the city where the original paving stones are still intact. We were standing right in the place where Jesus stood over 2000 years ago. From there we visited a place called the Burned House, a museum that tells the story of the Fall of Jerusalem in AD70 and about a particular house and its inhabitants. We also visited the Herodian mansions, homes where wealthy people lived and which were also destroyed in at that time. The Romans were brutally efficient at everything; building, designing, torturing and destroying. Our final stop for the day was the Wailing (Western) Wall, a sacred site in Judaism, to see the Jews praying and placing their prayers in the wall on pieces of paper. How great it is that we can just talk to God and ask him anything!

Day 11

First thing in the morning we made the short journey from Jerusalem to Bethlehem, the birthplace of Jesus. Bethlehem is now on the other side of the wall, which separates Jerusalem from the West Bank. A lot of people who relied on the free flow of trade with Jerusalem are now struggling to survive. We visited the Church of the Nativity, the oldest surviving church in the Middle East, and which is if not the exact location of Jesus’ birth, very close. Inside the church we visited the grotto, which would have been very like where the animals would have been kept in those days. This was another special and moving experience. Getting back into Israel was a more lengthy process than getting into the West Bank, as every car is searched. Soldiers armed with machine guns boarded our bus and checked all our passports. Slightly disconcerting! As Charlie said, ‘I’ve never been so close to a machine gun in my life’.

Day 10

Day 10 started in a sobering fashion with a visit to the Holocaust Museum. This is an amazing museum that tells the story of the Nazi persecution and murder of the Jews, initially in Germany and then throughout Europe, during the pre-WW11 and WW11 years. It’s a mind-blowing experience, brilliantly done (with American Jewish money) and everyone came out feeling pretty sad and wondering how human beings can be so cruel. From there to another impressive museum, the Israel Museum, which features an impressive model of the city at various stages of occupation throughout the centuries and which contains an impressive array of manuscripts and other ancient artifacts. Lunch was at a kibbutz, which was a far cry from what I expected. Kibbutzs in the 1970s were communist organisations, basically, but these days are commercial farming and hotel organisations. People still come from around the world to work in them for short-term stays. In the afternoon we visited the probable location of the upper room of Jesus last supper with his disciples, and where he appeared to the twelve following his resurrection.

Day 9

Our first free day on the trip didn’t go to waste, with Nick and Dad joining other members of the group for a walk to the Jaffa Gate of the Old City. From there we did the Rampart Walk, which takes you on the wall around the city. As you’d imagine, the views are pretty spectacular. We then came down from one wall and to a very different wall, the Western Wall, sacred to Jewish people. It was a busy scene with a Bah mitzvah underway and hundreds of other people milling around. The men and women approach the wall (also called the Wailing Wall) from separate areas. We then met other members of our group and walked to Christ Church, the oldest Protestant church in the Middle East. They operate a ministry reaching out to Jews, in a very pretty and relaxing setting. We heard a moving talk from a young Messianic Jew (Christian Jew) who told us about how she came to faith in Jesus. We ended our sightseeing for the day with a tour around The Citadel, also known as the ‘Tower of David’. It features structures from all periods of occupation and is now a museum. One of the highlights was detailed model of the city which dates back to the 19^th century.

Day 8

Our first day in Jerusalem started with a visit to Temple Mount, the Muslim section of the Temple area. Temple Mount features two famous mosques, The Dome of the Rock and the Al-Aksa mosque. Because it is Ramadan we weren’t allowed to eat or drink anything (even water!) during our hour or so there. Charlie found that particularly tough. These are both very beautiful buildings inside, but unfortunately visitors are not allowed inside anymore because of terrorist attacks in recent years. We then continued on foot to the Antonio fortress, thought to be the scene of Jesus’ trial following his arrest. The crowds were building as we were walking the ‘Stations of the Cross’ route, a traditional re-enactment of the journey Jesus took from his arrest to the place of his crucifixion. When we arrived at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, built on the site of Golgotha (the hill of Calvary), the place of Jesus’ crucifixion and burial. The crowds were big as people jostled to see the rock (still split by the earthquake which took place after Jesus breathed his last) and as some queued to kiss a picture of Jesus. Even though we don’t know that this is the precise location, it was nevertheless a deeply moving experience. We moved through the throng into the Christian Quarter of the Old City to a place called the Samaritan Centre, a charity co-founded by our guide Jack, where we had lunch and heard about their ministry to the elderly. After lunch we were driven by our bus to the Mount of Olives, a famous location in the gospels, and from there down the steep hill to the Garden of Gethsemane, the place where Jesus was arrested. The trees have been dated at between 1700 and 2500 years old – living witnesses to Jesus final moments where He prayed that somehow he might be spared the agony which was to come. This was probably the most moving moment of the day as we thought about Jesus, both God and man, preparing to give his life for us so that we might live.

Day 7

The day dawned hot and bright over the Dead Sea, the lowest point in the world at 400m below sea level. We made the short drive to Masada, the fortress built by Herod the Great (with a little help from Roman ingenuity!) and made famous through the occupation by Jewish rebels in about 74 A.D. and the subsequent siege by the Romans, which took about 3 years. From there we drove to Ein Gedi, the caves where David hid from King Saul in 1 Samuel. It’s a beautiful place with a natural spring and the natural habitat of the Ibex as well as some interesting rodents. We then headed to Qumran, where in 1947 the Dead Sea scrolls were discovered by accident and which provided what are now the earliest manuscripts of much of the Old Testament. The air-conditioned comfort of our bus was welcome as the mercury climbed into the high 30s and we drove to Jericho, the oldest continually occupied city in the world. We saw a sycamore tree (remember Zacchaeus in Luke 19?) and part of the ruins that are now being restored. We were now inside the West Bank, territory that ‘belongs’ to the Palestian people, but which is inside Israel. The problems with this complicated arrangement was evident at Bethany, where from a very poor Palestinian neighbourhood (where they get water provided once a month) you can look across to new affluent Jewish settlements with constant running water and electricity and expensive houses. We crossed out of the West Bank past the separation wall and got our first glimpse of the Old City of Jerusalem, where we’ll spend the next few days.

Day 6

Day 6 began with a drive to an amazing and mysterious place called Wadi Rum (Rum Valley). Wadi Rum is famous thanks to T.E. Lawrence (Lawrence of Arabia) a British archeologist turned guerilla leader who lived amongst the Arabs of Wadi Rum around the time of World War 1 orchestrating attacks on the Turkish Army. We rode in jeeps out into the desert to get a closer look at the incredible mountains that rise up out of the sand. Charlie and Nick both had a camel ride there, with Nick’s ride ending in a fall from the camel. This great moment was unfortunately missed by the video recorder (Dad). From Wadi Rum we drove to Aqaba and a tedious border crossing into Israel. It was sad to say goodbye to Maha, our wonderful Jordanian guide, but good to rendezvous with Jack, our Palestinian Christian Guide, on the other side of the border. First stop was the Dead Sea, and an opportunity to experience the weird sensation of floating in the water, thanks to the high levels of salt. Amazing!

Day 5

Petra! Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade brought the world’s attention to Petra, through the featuring of The Treasury façade in the last scenes of the movie. So we knew what to expect, sort of, but nothing can really prepare you. It was a truly awesome experience for all of us as we walked from our hotel into the park area (along with hundreds of other tourists – Petra is Jordan’s #1 attraction) and into the Siq, the naturally occurring crack in the sandstone cliffs that wends its way through spectacular cliffs and into the Treasury. The city of Petra was initially created by the Nabateans (1^st century BC) as a holy place and cemetery. They constructed countless tombs and built ceramic waterways into the wall to bring pure water all the way down to The Treasury and beyond. Later, Petra was occupied by the Romans who paved the roads and extended the city with shops, temples and government buildings. One of the highlights of our day was the walk up to The Monastery, which featured an even bigger but perhaps less completed façade like The Treasury. Trying to think about the logistics involved in the construction is mind-boggling. Just beyond the Monastery are spectacular views over the Rift Valley and the Negev Desert from precarious positions. Charlie was held on to by his dad very tightly!

Day 4

Moving day #1. We travelled south destined for Petra, but with some other exciting stops to make along the way. The first stop was at Macherus, the site of one of Herod Antipas’ castle, and the place where John the Baptist was incarcerated and then beheaded. Amazingly rugged yet beautiful scenery overlooking the Dead Sea. Then on through one of the most amazing gorges I’ve ever seen – the Arnon Gorge. The road wends its way down precipitously which was a little scary at times, but no problem for our fantastic driver. How he manoeuvered a 49 seat bus through steep winding roads and then through incredibly narrow busy roads at Kerak drew a number of rounds of applause. And Kerak was the last stop of the day, the site of a Crusader castle on an incredibly strategic location enabling control of trade routes in the 11^th – 13^th centuries. The day ended when we arrived at Petra, one of the true wonders of the world, but more on Petra tomorrow.

Day 3

A very special day saw us travel to the Baptismal site on the River Jordan, where John the Baptist baptized Jesus. Although the exact location can’t be determined, in 1997 an archeological expedition discovered a number of Christian church structures dating to the 2^nd and 3^rd centuries that would strongly suggest that the location was known at that time. To stand in the place where Jesus walked and was baptized was very moving. The Jordan is otherwise a pretty underwhelming river, being barely 10 metres wide , one side being Israeli territory and the other Jordanian. A soldier kept watch on us as we first baptized Patrick Sheep and then listened to Paul read the account of Jesus’ baptism. We then travelled to Mount Nebo, where Moses saw the Promised Land after wandering in the desert for 40 years. The view from the top was a little obscured by the haze from the Dead Sea but remarkable nonetheless. Our day finished with a visit to ancient city of Madaba, famous for 6^th – 8^th century mosaics.

Day 2

In the morning we travelled to Um Qais in the north of Jordan, one of the cities of the Decapolis (known as Gadara) and once the site of major Roman city. From there you can see across into Israel (the Golan Heights) and over to the Sea of Galilee. To the north you can see Syria. This is the region of the Gerasenes, where Jesus healed the demon-possessed man (Mark 5). We will post a video clip of Paul reading the passage in the next day or so. Then we drove to the amazing Graeco-Roman city of Jerash. It was a pretty warm day but we enjoyed walking through one of the most significant Roman archeological sites in the world. Check out some of Nick’s photos (some of the 1000, yes that is not a typo, 1000) he took during the day. They had to excavate through two previous civilizations (Umayyed and Ottoman) to find and then restore the Roman ruins we can see today. Amazing stuff! At the end we were entertained in a stunning theatre by a Bedouin bagpipe band, one of the legacies of British occupation.

After a long but uneventful trip through Bangkok and Dubai we arrived in Amman, capital of the Hashemite kingdom of Jordan. We were met at the airport by our guide, Maha, and our daytime home for the next three weeks, a comfortable air-conditioned coach. We drove through the streets of Amman and then stopped for lunch at a nice but empty restaurant; most Muslims observe fasting during Ramadan but once the sun goes down there won’t be a spare seat. After eating too much we headed to the ruins of the Umeyyesh (?) palace, circa 6^th century AD. There’s a non descript museum there which housed some amazing and priceless artefacts including dinosaur fossils, tools from the stone/bronze/iron ages, and some pieces of the original dead sea scrolls. We thought such things deserved a grander home. After that we continued our drive through the streets of Amman, taking in the contrasts between the more traditional bustling, run down markets (souks) of East Amman with the more progressive and incredibly wealthy West Amman. The houses here rival anything Sydney has to offer (except the harbour) with prices of US$5 – 10m typical. This part of the city is also home to the embassy district. We drove past the US embassy (no photos were allowed), which looked like it was the size of a few city blocks. As you’d imagine it was very heavily guarded with amour plated, machine gun-equipped 4WDs at every corner and soldiers everywhere. It was great to get to our hotel where, after a brief dinner, we all crashed. We hope everyone at home is well and we’ll look forward to bringing you more news in coming days.

Hi everyone

We're just about to head off on our big adventure to Israel, Jordan & Turkey. Follow the trials and tribulations of Dad, The Nazgul and Kinesthetic Boy.

You can find a map of the region at the bottom of this page.

Love
David, Nick & Charlie.

Jordan, Israel & Turkey - here we come!

Join us on our big adventure as we travel to Jordan, Israel & Turkey.