Following Herod, Elijah, and the Knights Of Saint John

Our Texas travelers arrived at the Tel Aviv Airport (Lod) after 1:30 am, and by the time we passed through Customs, retrieved our luggage, and made it to the hotel, it was almost 2:30. We all managed to find our rooms, joining in slumber those from other parts of the US and Canada who had arrived earlier in the day. A short night indeed!

Nine AM found us loaded on our bus and in the company of our guide, Yael. We made the traditional first stop in Caesaerea Maritima, King Herod the Great's monumental harbor facility build to rival any port in the Roman Mediterranean and to caputure the long-winter harbor it fees of ships too fragile to sail off-season. From the marvelous Roman theater, to the hippodrome for Ben Hur style chariot racing, and up to the Crusader ruins, we enjoyed getting to know one another, our guide, and the ancient past first-hand. No samples of recent finds of gold coin hoards were allowed to be kept as souvenirs!

On-going excavations at Caesarea

A drive through the heart of modern Israel and cities like Netanya found us at lunch on the slopes of Mount Carmel tasting for some their first felalfel ever in a small Druze-owned cafe. The owner and his wife made us feel welcomed and full as we headed over to the Carmelite Church overlooking the Jezebel Valley from atop the hill where the Hebrew Prohet Elijah struggled with the prophets of Ba'al and Asherah to show the superiority of YHWH the Lord of Israel. A gorgeous sunny day accented the tale.

We then made our way to the ancient city of Akko, known as Acre during the Crusaders. Here the wonderfully excavated and renovated halls echoed our steps as they had those of the Kinights of Saint John and the Templars in ages past. Here battles of Saladin, Napoleon, and modern freedom fighters were reflected in the remains laid out before us and the artifacts on display.

Cutting eastward across the Galileo we arrived in Tiberius and the Golan Hotel, out home for three nights. A delicious dinner filled our day out and our bodies up. We will try to catch up on some missed sleep and rise to discover the story of Jesus around the Sea tomorrow.

ps Tammy, the Lunzs are well and have tried to text without success. All is good!