Date: 4/23/2017 – 4/25/2017

The day after our visit to Old Jerusalem, we took a tour to Masada and the Dead Sea. As I mentioned previously, as soon as you leave Jerusalem eastbound the road descends steeply nearly 4,000 feet from the top of the Judean Hills to the Dead Sea, which is the lowest place on Earth. As you go down toward the Dead Sea the relatively abundant vegetation of Jerusalem turns almost immediately into a barren hillside desert. On the descent, there were several settlements of what looked like tarpaper and tin shacks which our guide described as settlements of “Bedouins”. I’m not sure if these were true Bedouin settlements, but in any case the abject poverty there was disturbing to see. This area is a part of the West Bank administered by Israel.

Photo 1427, barren terrain, Bedouin camp

In Jerusalem, there had been a change in the weather from the 90 degrees of the previous day dropping way down to 60 degrees, which was a stroke of good luck for us, because while it was a chilly 60F in Jerusalem, the temperature was about 90F down at the Dead Sea. So how hot it would have been if we had come the day before I don’t even want to think about!

Once down at the Dead Sea level, we passed Jericho which claims to be the oldest continuously occupied city in the world, then headed south on Hwy 90 soon reaching the western shore of the Dead Sea.

Photo 1748, passing Jericho in the distance near the Dead Sea

Our guide explained that the Dead Sea is losing elevation at the rate of a meter of every year (!), and we passed numerous resorts that have been abandoned because the shore has moved so far down and away from the resort buildings. Another phenomenon that has occurred as a result of drop of the lake level is the appearance of many zones of sink holes, resulting in the closure and abandonment of large swaths of the Dead Sea shore.

Photo 1519, sinkholes resulting from the dropping level of the Dead Sea

We learned from an American diplomat who was on our tour that there are proposals to build an aqueduct from the Red Sea to the Dead Sea to restore its level, but the proposals are mired in Israeli-Jordanian politics and don’t seem to be going anywhere.

It turns out that the institution of the kibbutz is alive and well. While driving along the Dead Sea we passed several kibbutz farms growing dates, melons and other crops that give the Israelis fresh fruit year-round, which has not always been the case. Our guide informed us that the source of irrigation water for these agricultural areas is recycled water from Jerusalem. I am curious about the level of treatment that such wastewater from Jerusalem might be getting, and also what their source of drinking water is, but those are questions that got lost in the deluge of other tour information.

Photo 1467, machinery in a kibbutz date palm orchard

After the inevitable shopping stop at an Israeli factory hawking mineral products made from the highly mineralized Dead Sea water, we continued south to Masada.

On the way to Masada, we stopped alongside the road near the location of the Qumeran caves where the Dead Sea scrolls were discovered. Although you could see many caves in the cliffs, it was not possible to tell the exact location of where the scrolls were discovered.  This is not an area open to tourism now.

Photo 1482, Qumeran, the source of Dead Sea Scrolls

We were generally familiar with the story of the siege at Masada from sources like National Geographic over the years … how the Romans waged a siege against a rebellious Jewish sect that took place in 73-74 AD.  So it was a thrill to walk the actual site.  Masada is now a highly developed tourist attraction with a large Swiss-style aerial tram that whisks visitors effortlessly to the top and greatly improves accessibility.  The old “Snake Path” is still there, and you could see a few hardy souls hiking up as we rode the tram up.

Photo 1554, on the tram to the top of Masada, old Snake Path below

For me, the part of the story that was just as interesting as the part about the Roman siege was about King Herod’s construction of a palace at Masada over 100 years before the siege.  This was done by a very paranoid King Herod between 37 BC and 31 BC as a refuge for himself in the event of a revolt against him. He built his personal quarters out of sight over the edge of the cliff on the north side of the plateau, so that people coming to visit him would not know where he actually lived. Remnants of Herod’s “over the edge” quarters are still clearly visible from the top.

Photo 4709, Herod’s palace quarters over the edge below the top

The Roman technical prowess in building a palace on top of a mountain is amazing, particularly in the sophisticated plumbing systems for transporting, storing, and using scarce water. And not just for the bare necessities either, but also for heated Roman baths for Herod to enjoy!

Photo 1591, ruins atop Masada, Dead Sea beyond

Also amazing are the remnants of the Roman siege encampments still clearly visible after nearly 2,000 years, and the siege ramp constructed on the back (west) side of the plateau that the Romans used to break through the Jewish sect’s defenses at the top.

Photo 1636, the Roman siege ramp

On the trip back, we stopped at a resort so that any of the tour members who wanted could take a dip in the Dead Sea, whose water is so salty that you float way up in the water like a cork. I gave it a try – I’d call the experience “interesting” rather than enjoyable, and it seemed to leave me covered with some kind of film from the highly mineralized water that the fresh water showers there at the shore could not completely get off.  Cheryl was content to stay out of the brine and reveled in taking photos of the rest of us out making fools of ourselves, although I didn’t go so far as to cover myself with the therapeutic mud like many folks did!

Photo 4769, bobbing in the Dead Sea

A good shower back in Jerusalem took care of the salt water leftovers … and now we can check that item off the bucket list. “Swam in the Dead Sea”: check.

Upon our return after the climb back up to Jerusalem, the cool air felt refreshing. As our tour van passed through East Jerusalem we passed by some kind of disturbance at a bus stop. There were a dozen or so police cars with lights flashing and a lot of guns out, but we could not see the cause of it all. People were not running for cover but were looking toward the disturbance. Neither of us felt personally threatened by the event, but it was a reminder that security is an issue that’s at the back of your mind when traveling in Israel. In fairness I have to add that aside from that little blip, we felt secure wherever we went at all other times during our stay.

For our last day in Israel, we traveled to Tel Aviv to have a day of rest and relaxation near the beach while positioning ourselves for our dreaded “killer 5:30 a.m. flight” from Tel Aviv to Rome, for which we were going to have to catch a taxi to the airport at 2:30 a.m. That “red-eye” was a necessary evil that saved us about $1,000 on one flight!  Our day in Tel Aviv turned out to be wonderful!   Compared to the ancient and more pious Jerusalem, Tel Aviv is very cosmopolitan, and the beaches are absolutely gorgeous … dual meandering promenades – one high and one down at sand level, beach chairs and shade umbrellas everywhere, breakwaters just off shore to hold the surf down, but with breaks to let some surf and sailboards through. It was perhaps the most beautiful beach I have ever seen anywhere.

Photo 1781, the beach at Tel Aviv

The weather was mostly sunny with temperatures reaching about 70F with gentle breezes off the Mediterranean … walking the broad promenades was pure joy. Tel Aviv is another place we would love to come back to for a return visit some time in the future.

Next: to Rome.