Israel, Day 2 - Part 1

We awoke to a beautiful clear morning in Netanya. After breakfast, we headed out on the bus.

A daylight look at our hotel

Ready to go!

We left Netanya and traveled north to Caesarea, excited to begin exploring the Land we have read so much about.

Our first stop in Caesarea was the Roman Theater, then Herod's Palace.

Roman architecture

Dr. Jim Coakley, one of our Red Bus Moody guides

I was struck by the beauty of Caesarea. And the Roman-ness. This is the first place we have really seen (and we picked up Walt and Brenda McCord here). It was the first we saw of Herod the Great’s building genius. The aqueducts were amazing, bringing fresh water almost 10 km. Herod had a palace that was recently uncovered by archaeologists, including a hippodrome (for horse/chariot races). There was also an inscription about Pontius Pilate that we saw here. We also sat in a reconstructed theater (only goes half-way around – and had great acoustics!). It was this very spot that Herod Agrippa addressed the people. He dressed all in royal clothes – all silver and reflecting in the sunlight, Dr. Coakley said – and spoke to them. The people were crying out, “The voice of a god and not of a man!” We started saying it as our group of 80 and it was a little freaky to hear it...gave me goosebumps as we were saying it. I can only imagine the absurdity yet the gathering noise and energy (almost like a runaway train that you’re helpless to control) as more and more joined in. Acts 12:23 says, “And immediately an angel of the Lord struck him because he did not give God the glory (my emphasis), and he was eaten by worms and died.” He was a sight to behold, all glittering and beautiful in the sunlight with the Mediterranean behind him, then he was dead in front of their eyes, being eaten by worms.

Dr. Coakley compared that Caesarea experience with one that Peter had in Acts 10:25-26. Peter has had his vision about going to the Gentiles and Cornelius sent for him. Cornelius waits for Peter in Caesarea and when Peter arrives, Cornelius, a Roman centurion, “fell at his feet and worshiped him.” Peter responds in a completely different way than Herod Agrippa, who didn’t give God glory. Peter tells Cornelius to “Stand up; I too am just a man.” He didn’t elevate himself over Cornelius (in some ways interesting since he had struggled with Gentiles and the gospel). 

It makes me think about how I need to give God the glory for what He has done, for things I didn’t have anything to do with. I can’t take credit for what He has done.

 

A view from ground level, looking into the stands

A view of what remains of Herod's Promontory Palace

A floor mosaic that remains. I think this was a bath floor.

The hippodrome for horse races

Roman aqueduct at Caesarea

Sea side of the aqueduct

After Caesarea, we drove northeast to Mount Carmel.

Goats on the hillside

Mount Carmel is where Elijah called down God's fire to an altar and killed the prophets of Baal in 1 Kings 18. At the top of Mount Carmel, there is a church (there is a church built on every holy site in Israel). There was also an overlook behind the church where we could see how hilly the land is.

A statue of Elijah slaying the prophets of Baal

A view from the top of Mount Carmel

 We ate lunch in a Druze village on our way down Mount Carmel - delicious food!

Lunch - salad and schnitzel

Getting to know our fellow travelers on the (red) Judah bus

Then it was off to our next destination -- through Nazareth to Galilee.
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Israel, Day 1

We landed in Tel Aviv-Yafo at Ben Gurion airport during the 3pm hour Israel time. Everyone clapped when we landed. We didn't think it was that impressive of a landing (or flight - had some stomach-dropping turbulence), but I learned yesterday (April 2) while listening to an interview with Charlie Dyer on In the Market with Janet Parshall that the applause when you land in Tel Aviv happens frequently. 

All of our flight's luggage arrived safely with us and we took off in our bus to our hotel in Netanya, a town just a little bit north of Tel Aviv on the Mediterranean coast.

 

We didn't do much our first day in Israel, but we did get a crash course on some basics as we drove. (And this red Judah Bus was ours for the entire trip. The other MBI bus was blue and called the Benjamin Bus.)

And apparently all IKEAs are set up the same way...easy to see from the highways but impossible to get to.

Our first hotel had a very low ceiling in the hallway. It's kind of hard to see in this picture, but it was only a couple inches about Nate's head.

We got our first taste of Israeli food service at our Netanya hotel. All of our breakfasts and dinners were eaten buffet-style in our hotels. And it only got better from here! This picture is of the dessert table.


This is also the place where the kosher food laws started impacting us...but I didn't realize it until the next day. The pictured desserts are all dairy-free.

 

It was evening when we arrived at our hotel in Netanya, but when we woke up, we saw this view out our hotel room deck---the Mediterranean Sea!!

From here in Netanya, we headed north along the Mediterranean to Caesarea (aka Caesarea Maritime or Caesarea by the Sea).

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Israel, Day 0

From March 11-22, 2012, we took a Moody Theological Seminary study trip to Israel. It was an amazing and life-changing trip. There were about 80 of us total that flew on two different planes, landing in Tel Aviv-Yafo on March 12.

Our transportation

Ready for an adventure

Heading from Heathrow to Tel Aviv

The escalator in Tel Aviv

Tel Aviv-Yafo, Ben Gurion Airport

On the ground and heading to baggage claim

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Overcoming Jet Lag and a New Niece!

I do not know how to overcome jet lag very well. Or perhaps it's that I don't actively plan how to overcome jet lag on my return trip home. Both Nate and I did very well overcoming jet lag on our way TO Israel. Not so much on the way back, though. Some may say it's harder to adjust from East to West. The truth is that we planned how we were going to deal with it going West to East and stuck to the plan; on the way back we just didn't care as much.

On the Mount of Beatitudes

I have many posts and pictures I want to share with you, but it will take me a little bit to get it posted here. Much happened in our hearts and minds while we were there. And I am anticipating this Passion Week being especially special since it is so recent in my memory, songs about Gethsemane or the Garden or the Tomb --- I was there!

Our new niece!

A day before we returned, we gained a new niece! We were able to see her shortly after arriving back to the US, pictured here at 3 days old.












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To Travel the Land

We are finally here. In some ways it seems very foreign--we can't speak the language, read danger signs, or follow paths very well. But in other ways, it is very similar--the wildlife, the weather, the crops, the coffee, the people. It has been amazing so far and I continue to unlearn and relearn stories I grew up hearing, I look forward to more adventure. tm

A Journey

We are preparing for journey unlike any other I've been on. We have been physically preparing for several weeks, mentally preparing for several months, and spiritually preparing for several months. Though we have been preparing, I still feel unprepared and overtired. Perhaps it was the morning.

I changed a wall clock ahead (to Daylight Saving Time) and it promptly fell off the wall, sending a glass-based lamp and a large potted plant to the ground with it. The lamp and clock survived; the plant didn't fare so well. The plant is now in an empty milk jug.


The toilet overflowed. 'Nuff said.

Nate had to induce vomiting after drinking a glass of soapy water. He seems none the worse. :)

I'm sure these won't be the last things to get thrown in our way.

But God is good and it is almost time. Homework is done, clean sheets are on the bed for when we return, and the towels that were used to clean up the bathroom are washed, dried, and put away.
Onward and upward, pressing on, trusting.
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