Interestingly enough, I am writing again in the Heathrow airport, but waiting to go to Paris this time. A week ago, we boarded our flight at 10:50pm and took the four and a half hour flight to Tel Aviv. I was hungry so I waited for the food to come around. The collateral damage – one hour of sleep before landing. I was too excited.
After arriving, we were cattle proded to passport control. I was ready for the Israeli interrogation to begin. This is how the conversation went:
Passport man: what is the purpose of your visit?
Me: Pleasure… Im here to see my friend’s wedding
Passport man: an Israeli?
Me: No, his fiancé grew up in Jerusalem
Passport man: how long will you be here?
Me: A week
Passport man: enjoy your stay in Israel.
That was it. That is literally all he asked. The people in Riga were more stringent about things than Israel. This is not the blanket case though. Mike received the third degree and it was funny. He was still talking with the man when I left and he had a good five minute head start. We went through to baggage claim.
There was my bag. Mike’s? Still in London, as we learned when we went to the lost baggage area. His trip was not starting off well.
We went through the arrival’s gate, and at 5:30am, I heard this voice. None other than the groom-to-be, Grahamy yelling across the terminal. In a “chariots of fire” kind of manner, we ran toward each other and embraced. First time I had seen my childhood friend in over three years. Now here I was in Israel about to see his wedding. Graham had things planned and took me to meet the others. They were getting ready to head to the Dead Sea. Mike had to go to Jerusalem and meet Lizzie as she was flying in later that day. I was running on adrenaline. It was exciting to meet all his/Nomi’s friends from grad school. We picked them all up and went to the Notre Dame hotel in Jerusalem where Mr. and Mrs. Bennett were staying. I walked in the door and there I was met with Mrs. Bennett yelling out my name in the lobby coming over for a hug. Soon thereafter, I saw Mr. Bennett. Still awesome. They haven’t changed a bit.
I changed and no later than fifteen minutes after my arrival did we leave to go to the Dead Sea. I rode in the car with Graham (driver), Nomi, and Eva. It was a 90 minute drive which turned into a two hour drive because people wanted to stop and ride the camel. I wasn’t interested…
It was a busy day. We first stopped at the Masada, a fort build by Harod in the first century, B.C. It was interesting to see how people lived and the backdrop was really interesting as the Dead Sea lay right in front. Another interesting note was the huge ramp made by the Romans which took them two years to build. I cannot imagine what it would have been like to be a Roman solider building a massive ramp in that heat. We took the cablecar up and then back down. That was more or less uneventful.
We then traveled onward to a wadi, or a small natural water source. That was really cool because we walked in this warm, salty water to get to some natural pools. After 600 meters or so, or walking we stopped and just laid in the water.
Then we went to the Dead Sea. That place is nuts. Most of the time, you try to stay afloat in regular water. Here, you struggled to have enough of your body in the water to not keep flipping over. It was insane. I can’t float in regular water, but in the dead sea, basically 70% of my body was above water. Ok, not that much, but it was an amazing feeling. After about twenty minutes though, the salt really starts to burn, and if you have any open wounds, it is rather painful. Dead Sea water is also horrible to the touch.
Afterwards we took the 90 minute drive back to Jerusalem. It was a nice ride, talking to Graham and Nomi about getting married and getting to know Nomi herself.
When we got back, I collected my things from the Bennett’s room and went to where I was staying. A church. It was nice because with Nomi’s connections, I got to stay for free in nice little rooms. I was there with Rob, my new Canadian friend living and working in Sierra Leone. He works for Mercy Ships and actually didn’t know Graham before he got to Israel. He was traveling with a girl, Gini, who went to school with Nomi. He and I stayed at the church. It was great because we were the only two who were guys that didn’t know anyone else really. We spent a lot of time together hanging out.
Getting back I took a 30 minute nap. Rob woke me up to go out. It was 7:30. He apparently had been saying my name for five minutes before I came too due to my exhaustion. We went out and got some food and hung out for a little while walking around the old city before I came back at eleven to pass out. I was out, and it was a real struggle to get up the next morning at 7am. I honestly don’t remember about 90% of that night… due to the lack of sleep.
Day 2
Rob woke me up the next morning, and I hated him for it. We got ready and walked over to the hotel again and met everyone for a walking tour of Jerusalem. One of Nomi’s family friends who is working on his Ph.D. gave a walking tour of the city. It was really great because he was an American who has been living in Israel for over 14 years. He was also a theologian.
We got in cars and drove to Mt. Olive and took some pictures there. Brian was the name of the guide and he was just fantastic. Without any notes or references, he quoted scripture from the Bible and related current sites to verses in the book. He took it a step further and made sure to explain the significance of each place. Since it was a mixed group from many different religious backgrounds, he was very good about using the Bible as a historical text in addition to a religious one.
We dropped the cars off and as a group walked the old city, going to the Garden of Gethsemane, going to museums, walking up stairs to some palace and learning that is where Jesus did some of his teachings, we went to the Temple Mount, the Western Wall, and the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. It was a fantastic and mentally draining tour. He was so good though. All the sites were just amazing. Going through gates and pathways where Jesus walked is incredible to think about. Seeing Hasidic Jews bobbing back and forth in front of the Western Wall, in deep prayer was an interesting site as well.
In the Holy Sepulcher, there are six different orthodoxies represented, one being the Armenian Orthodox. That was interesting because I was able to read the inscriptions and have a general idea of what they were saying. There is a small but recognizable presence of Armenians in Israel.
We finished our tour and went to find dinner and then hung out as a group. That was good because it was the first time we were able to hang out together and get to know one another.
I came back and used a new razor to shave my beard. Just in case there were some uneven tan lines, I wanted to make sure there was enough time before the wedding to make the color more even. I looked so weird afterwards. I guess I got used to it. And my face just felt naked. It felt nice though.
Went to bed around midnight.
Day 3
Much like the previous two days, we woke up early and met at the hotel. This particular day we were going up north, close to the Syrian border. The drive was about two hours so we left promptly at 7:15am. Israel has several security check points. Usually when they see a bunch of tourists they just wave you through, this time they stopped our bus and asked for passports. I as well as several others didn’t have our passports. Nomi’s father who is fluent in Hebrew spoke with the guard and explained that this was not just a tour group but part of a wedding party. When the guard asked whose wedding it was, and Ray, Nomi’s Dad, said it was his daughters, he just opened the gate to let us by.
So, tip for the day: If you are in Israel and you are faced with a hairy situation, incorporate some kind of wedding story into your explanation and people will smile and roll out the red carpet.
Shortly after the checkpoint, we got to the a nice place to enter the water of the Sea of Galilea. Rob and I decided it was essential to get in the water. We swam around. I tried to enter the water by way of the famed “Baywatch method” but even twenty meters into the water, the water did not come above my knees. It was a bit ridiculous. We were almost 100 meters out before the water got up to my navel. So, even though Ray told us we had 15 minutes there, we convinced James and his wife to get in the water thus prolonging our stay.
The road we were on led us right next to Jordan. There are huge and wide border gates and fences between the two countries. Ray made a big deal about seeing the Jordan River. We saw it. It looks like every other river…
One of the reasons, now, I feel I should read the Bible is because we went to all these sites where Jesus did something significant but not only do I keep forgetting the significance but also the names. After the Sea, we went to a place where Jesus multiplied fish and bread. (Mom, you can explain this to me when I get back, or give me the Bible verse). It was nice being there because Eva just got her masters in something Bible related and was nice enough to explain everything to me. Its just so much information to take in at one time when you are running on fumes. It was really nice there. I took a picture of an olive tree. It only seemed right.
We continued onward to Capernaum, where Peter lived (?) and Jesus(?) – back to needing to read the Bible. Not too much there, just ruins.
We drove to Cana where Jesus turned water into wine. I only remember this story because I think it’s a pop culture thing now. Everyone knows about this. If you don’t, maybe you should get on the Good Book. I certainly need to…
We ate lunch in Nazareth. Actually I just bought a 1.5 liter of water and had that because 1) Im trying to burn off the McDonald’s weight and 2) trying to stay hydrated.
Onward to Mt. Of the Beatitudes where there was the Sermon on the Mount. Really pretty there. We then continued onto Mt. Carmel where I learned that Elijah had a show down with the Pagans. Lots of good views up there too. We drove by Megiddo where the root word gives us “Armageddon”. I think this is where people are planning for Armageddon to begin. I don’t know how you prepare for Armageddon though…
I should really thank the Bennetts for really taking care of me. Any time I got money out to pay for something, Graham would come up and say “we already paid for you” or Mr. Bennett would say, I got my family and make sure to include me when paying for tickets. They were fantastic and so welcoming and nice. Although anyone who knows the Bennetts already know this, they really helped to make Israel an amazing and unforgettable place. This was the last day of our real hardcore touring. So, to the Bennetts, thank you.
More on it's way. Lots to catch up on. Thank you for those reading.
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Until next time...
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