Israel: The Holy Land and Timeless Cultures

10/6/2023 - Sea of Galilee, Capernaum, Mount of the Beatitudes, Jerusalem

Diane and Haywood started our morning drive 

by participating in a Baptism ceremony in the Jordan River.

Haywood was so excited he kept waving despite our efforts 

to tell him to stop so we wouldn't get blurry photos.

Their joy was infectious.

Inside the Church of the Beatitudes.

Rare octagonal church structure.

Monastery.

Another angle of the church.

Capharnaum, the Town of Jesus

The ruins under the renovated church.

The renovated church.

Home of Peter, the apostle and first pope.

The Sea of Galilee.

Greek Orthodox Monastery of the Holy Apostle.

Yigal Allon Center, a museum housing the remains of the famous "Jesus Boat" (AKA the Sea of Galilee Boat), features the restored skeletal remains of this fishing vessel discovered on the muddy shores of Lake Kinneret in 1986, and date back to the first century CE, the time of Jesus' ministry.

Keeping with a fishing village theme, 

we headed to Tiberias, an eclectic seaside town, 

to enjoy lunch at Galei Gil 

(once again, with tilapia looking me in the eye).

Tiberias.

Shirat Hayam Boutique Hotel.

We finally arrived at the Dan Panorama Hotel in Jerusalem, did our usual orientation walk around the neighborhood, and decided to share a pizza at Papa John's. Sadly, DODO, the neighborhood market, was closed due to the holiday and Sabbath, so just the soft drinks in the restaurant were available for consumption.

Little did we know that this beautiful day of Baptisms and multiple churches would end with a war...