Northern Israel

The Golan Heights

From the lookout on Mt. Bental we could see how important this area is to the security of Israel.

 A very courageous battle was fought here during Israel's war for the Golan.

 

 Two United Nations observers were watching what was going on over in Syria a few miles away. One was from Canada and the other from Bhutan(near Nepal).

 

 

One of the many reservoirs in the Golan area with part of Mt. Hermon in the upper right.

 

As the dew of Hermon, and as the dew that descended upon the mountains of Zion: for there the LORD commanded the blessing, even life for evermore.

Psalms 133:3

 



 

 

 

 From there we went to the Valley of Tears. It is the location of one of the fiercest tank battles that has ever taken place. Israel was greatly outnumbered but had a miraculous victory!
 

 

As you can see in the Yom Kippur War of 1973 there were 1500 Syrians tanks
against 177 Israeli tanks.

 

 

 

 

 Mt. Bental lookout is behind us and Mt. Avital to the left, which is used by the IDF to keep an eye on Syria. 

Mount Avital – nicknamed “Spy Mountain” because it houses a high-tech surveillance center.

 

 

We could see the fighting going on in Syria a few miles away.  There would be a loud explosion and then you would see a billow of smoke rise.

 



After the Yom Kippur War this valley was littered with hundreds of burned out tanks.


 



 Lots and lots of acreage is surrounded by barb wired fences with these signs posted.



 A Syrian tank and Israeli tank

 

Looking into Syria across the Valley of Tears

  

 

Our next stop was Banias Falls and Hermon Stream

 

 

 

Tradition says this could be the area where Jesus and his disciples were when Peter made those most notable words "Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God".

 

 

 

 

On our way back down from the Golan area we stopped in this olive orchard near the area where Jesus preached the Beatitudes.

 

 

 

Mt. Beatitudes with the Sea of Galilee in the distance

 



Did you know bananas grow in Israel?  There are many banana groves all along the road usually covered with a thin brown fabric tent.   These tents stretch for miles!

This grove had blue bags around each of the banana bunches.

 

Our last day in Israel we headed toward Mt. Carmel (sorry not many pictures of that area) then down along the coast and back to Jerusalem. 

 

When we were driving up Mt. Carmel there was a shepherd with his goats.
 

 Caves in the side of Mt. Carmel
  Mt. Carmel Showdown
1 Kings 18:17-46
 

 The Mediterranean Sea
 

 



 

 

This is like a falafel but on a huge tortilla.  Yes, those are french fries you see.

 

Our flight home was not till 11:30pm so back in Jerusalem we spent our last few hours touring and  visiting the Western Wall one more time.  We watched the city wind down for the holiday Sukkot.

REMEMBER:   Jewish holidays begin at sundown the day before.

LESSON:  We parked the rental car out of the city and took public transportation into the Old City so we wouldn't have to worry about parking.  After leisurely strolling around, passing time, we went to buy our train tickets back to our rental car.  A sweet lady came walking by and said , "No more trains, the holiday has begun, don't put your money in, no ticket will come out."
Uh-oh! How did that slip our minds?
Our "plenty of time" turned into no extra time!!!
Daddy and I ran 3 miles back to the park and ride.
Then went back for the others and zoomed to the airport.



Tiberius

In the morning we drove up the Jordan Valley from Jerusalem toward the Sea of Galilee.

 

 

We went to see the Galilee boat.  

 

Two archeologist brothers were walking along the shore of Galilee after a severe drought in 1986 when they found an old rusty nail poking up through the mud.  Looking around they found more nails, then soon found pieces of wood.  They knew they had found a treasure! It was a boat from the time period of Jesus.  The mud the vessel was buried in had protected it all these years, but now when the air was hitting it, it was crumbling.  A major excavation began and finally after 14 years "The Ancient Galilee Boat" was on permanent display at the Yigal Allon Centre.

 

Some of the nails that were found



 

Some artifacts found nearby dating to Jesus' time period.

 

The boat, also known as "The Jesus Boat", is made of 12 different kinds of wood, suggesting this vessel had a long work life by a limited income owner. 

The boat  is almost 27 feet long, 7.5 feet wide, and a height of almost 4 feet.

 

These tour boats are constantly going back and forth on the Sea of Galilee with tourists.
 

 

We rented a little put put boat to drive on the Sea of Galilee.


 

We had a very good supper on the Sea of Galilee as a treat. 

 

The meal began with "salad" and pita bread.

 

 Peters Fish


 

 

 

They gave us complimentary coffee at the end in a very tiny mug.  Compare the size to the cell phone or the sugar packet.  It was more like strong black burnt tasting coffee syrup that after 2 swallows kept us up until midnight!

 

 It is a little different shopping in a store where everything is written in Hebrew.

 

This was the view of the Sea of Galilee from our hotel room.

The "Jesus Trail" is a 40 mile hike that traces the route Jesus may have walked many years ago.  It begins in Nazareth and connects sites from His life and ministry.  The trail is marked by these stones.  We only hiked a small portion.

 They have a bike trail that goes around the Sea of Galilee but it was like 100 degrees.

(I like it colder.)

 

 

 

 

 

An olive press

 

The Sea Of Galilee

 

 

 

 

 

 We went swimming in the Sea of Galilee in a place made for the religious Jews that is segregated.

 

 

 

That night we ate falafels in Cana (where Jesus turned the water into wine). Falafels are mashed chickpeas made into balls and then deep fried. Then you choose the toppings: hummus, tahini, pickled anything.  It's like an Israeli Subway restaurant.

 

This past Sunday Bro. Lilly read a quote similar to this about that miracle.

"So now, let's take it was the just beginning of His ministry. He'd just went out and performed a miracle and turned water into wine. How I'd like to beat on that just for a minute, to show what He will do in the resurrection. How it eventually would've been wine. It would've been wine, all right, and it went up through the vine, into the grape, out to the vat, soured, fermented, come on out and was wine. But He just bypassed every bit of that, and made it from water to wine. See?
That's the way He will do in the resurrection. I won't have to live to be a twenty-two or twenty-three years old at my best again. My, be an old man shaking, broke down like that. He will just change it. Amen. Just bypass all that. Mrs. Branham and Mr. Branham will not have to be constituted or anything involved in my birth. He will just call me from the dust, and I'll be just what I was at my best, so will you."

Bro. William Branham

 

Our server didn't speak much English but he never stopped smiling!