Final Days in Israel (Pt 4)

It was Sunday morning and we were really looking forward to our day out. It was going to be nice to be on a tour. This was the largest tour so far as we only ever had a single person with us on our other three tours over the holiday. This tour had a small bus and there were 8 of us all up so still a little group. It was about a 90-minute drive to Masada.

Now I didn’t really know much about where we were going. I just know it had been recommended to go there and so we were. I asked Nathanael what were we going to see and he shared it was King Herod’s Summer Palace basically and this is where the Romans came and overtook the last of the Jews.

What an absolutely fascinating place. We had about 90mins there which wasn’t enough time. With a few stuff ups that put us personally out of the group behind we would have like another 30mins – 60mins to really enjoy it all but we still got to see and do most of it. I couldn’t believe the elaborate lengths they went to back in the day. Water cisterns, storage houses, hot water baths. How they crafted all this on what looked like the side of the Grand Canyon was unreal.

You had to take a cable car up to the mountain and then walk around the complex with an audio guide to explain each of the different areas and what they were. I had never seen or even heard of anything like it. I’m so glad we went and it’s just something you cannot give enough justice to in words. From there we went to the Dead Sea.

We were given a couple of hours here and we decided that after braving Masada and almost 30-degree weather with no hats or sunscreen (cannot believe we forgot to pack them) we bought very overpriced sunscreen and got changed into our togs and went for a swim.

We had heard you could float in the Dead Sea but not really sure what that meant. Lots of people can float easily but I am not one of them. It’s a real effort to keep all of me above water. But really when you walk in it feels like any other type of water but as soon as you lay on your back or belly you really do float completely with no effort. In fact, if you are on your belly it’s much easier to roll to your back and get up than trying to fight with the buoyancy on your belly.

We spent time just floating, it was a little cold for me but still manageable. A couple of times we both got the absolute tiniest drop of water and I mean a speck of water in our mouth and it was atrocious. The saltiness of it was insanity!

I got out and got ready to go get some lunch before we left. Nathanael was off collecting some bigger bits of salt clumps to take home. We enjoyed the lovely weather and enjoyed just having a moment to relax in the water. As much as we enjoy seeing and doing everything and fitting as much as we can into a holiday it was nice to just sit and enjoy some peace for a moment.

We got back on the bus and headed to Ein Gedi, now we had chosen this tour over another company because they didn’t stop at Ein Gedi and we thought it would be nice to see it. I’m so glad we did. It’s a huge national park and although we only had 45mins there it was worth it to see how beautiful it all was. This is a place Nathanael was itching to put his joggers on and explore but alas, not to be.

Full of nature, animals, history, creeks, and water it was a lovely way to end the sightseeing. Now just for the 1 hour or more back due to traffic. After being dropped off at the back of Western Wall we decided to do just a little bit more exploring and hopefully do a Western Wall Tour however we were told we had to book in so we got some dinner and headed home.

Monday was our last day in Israel. We had managed to get a tour booked for the morning and would take a Western Wall Tour in the afternoon. We got a message from the Walking Tour Guide and he informed us due to it just being us two that he would need to work his job for the day and take us later in the afternoon. This was annoying because the point of getting a tour early is to know then for the rest of the week what you are seeing and walking past having already gathered that knowledge. We couldn’t do anything about it so we went to the Western Wall to see if we could change the time of our tour.

We really enjoyed the tour of the Western Wall Tunnels. They take you underground and explain to you what you are seeing. They are still excavating a lot of it so there will be more to see in the years to come. It was so eye-opening to hear from the Jewish perspective all the wars and countries that had come to Israel and taken over throughout the years. It was also so interesting to see on a model how Old Jerusalem had changed and evolved over thousands of years and see all the different places that the Jews were told they were ‘allowed’ to worship.

Although a different religion to us it was important for us to see it from their perspective and take the time out to understand them and their beliefs more. From there we looked at the final things on our list that we wanted to see and do and really it was just a couple of things that our tour guide was planning on doing with us. Instead of going back to the hotel and waiting a couple of hours we just decided we would go and do it and cancel our tour.

We finished our day by walking the full Via Dolorosa as we had only done small parts of it here and there. We visited the Church of Adulation and the Church of Condemnation. Temple Mount (which honestly was very underwhelming) and most importantly the Church of the Holy Sepulcher.

This is where Jesus was crucified and you can put your hand over the hole where his cross was placed. This is also the place where he was claimed to be buried. Because of the war, this is where we were mostly alone and were able to just walk straight in and see the tomb where usually there would be a very long line to wait.

This is where the appreciation for the Garden Tomb came in because this church is owned by different religions and depending on which religion owns which section is dependent on how it is decorated etc. It was different than what I was expecting as growing up you see him being crucified on a hill.

Well although technically it would be a hill etc there is now an entire city built around it and a massive church which they were doing extensive renovations on so not quite the same feeling as some of the other places we had been but it was still a marvelous experience all the same. The only thing left on the list that the tour guide would have done is take us to the Ramparts Wall where you can walk along the perimeter of Old Jerusalem but however, it was closed due to the war so we headed out of Old Jerusalem knowing it would be the last time we were there.

We had a little bit of time left before the day was over and we had to return to pack our bags and get ready for our flight the next morning. We went to Zedekiah’s caves which are underneath Old Jerusalem. This is where they got all the stones to build the Western Wall. These caves were enormous, much bigger than I thought and we were the only ones there. It was a nice experience, not essential if you are going but still good to see and do.

We grabbed some food to take home and packed our bags. Since our flight had been changed from 10am the next morning to 7am we needed to be at the airport at 5am at the latest. It’s a 30-minute train ride from the city and the city was a 15-minute walk from us. We looked at the schedule and it said there was a 4:30am train but we weren’t confident as we had read that people said the trains no longer operated before 5am due to…the war.

We called a few taxi services as no buses ran at 4:30am and they confirmed this so a painful $150 AUD later to travel 40mins because of a flight change we were heading to the airport ready for our last few days of travel in Athens before heading home to our girls.

What a splendid, insightful, miracle-filled week in Israel. It was a complete whirlwind but each time I see a photo I can feel myself back in that spot experiencing it. I will forever be grateful for winning these competitions, for Nathanael choosing Egypt of all places and for the change in my heart and mind I experienced as I walked where He walked.

I know we are all different and I believe you have to do what is right for you. For me, that is following Jesus. It makes me happy, it makes me feel free and it is a blessing to do so in my life.

Israel will forever have a special place in my heart.

Athens on the other hand, not so much, but I’ll share that next time.

Love Sarah Kay, xx