Blogs from Tiberias, North District, Israel, Middle East

This was the last day of our break and we did not rush to leave. We had a leisurely breakfast and went back to the room to pack. Check out was simple and we put our bags into the car. All the closures since the virus outbreak meant that we had not made our usual spring trip to the Golan. In previous years the water level in the Kinneret lake (also known as the Sea of Galilee) was significantly down due to lack of rain. Seeing wide dry banks all around the lake had not been encouraging. Fortunately this winter had broken that drought cycle spectacularly. The Kinneret was filled and the authorities had even released some of the water to prevent overflow. We wanted to see the lake in its fullness. So we decided to ... read more

We were taken to Yardenit - an alleged site where Jesus was baptised. However, scripture indicates that he was baptised at Bethany beyond Jordan (Bethabara) and that is much further south and more likely where John the Baptist was in the wilderness. This section of the Jordan River, although popular amone many seems to be the wrong location. There were literally hundreds of people here and several groups were in white robes and being baptised by a minister, priest or parson.... read more

In just about every place you visit in Israel, there is a church, reportedly stating that this is where a certain event took place in the life of Jesus. Whether it is true or not, the commercialisation and "christianisation" (read Catholicism, generally) of sites really spoils what was probably a lovely serene place. This mountain is no exception. While there was a lovely garden and little pews set up where small congregations were singing or worshipping, the views over the Sea of Galilee were quite commanding and seemed to be more interesting than the church and its surrounds. Nevertheless there are a few photos of the church. The current church was built in about 1936-38 near the ruins of a 4th Century Byzantine-era church. Part of its ruins are still visible. It was said that part ... read more

Today was a rainy day. Many of us were awakened in the night by a storm and rain beating on the windows. We are all grateful for the rain though because or friends in Israel have about 320 dry days and they need rain. We headed out to our first stop which was a boat ride on the Sea of Galilee. It is one of my favorite things to do here. We go out into the boat and read scripture and hear stories about Jesus, his teachings and his miracles. About 70% of Jesus teaching and miracles were performed around the Sea of Galilee. Some of the ones we might quickly remember are: The calming of the storm (Mark 4:35-41), the sermon on the mount (Matthew 5:1-12), the feeding of the 5,000 (Mark 6:30-44), and Jesus ... read more

Hello everyone, Today was our last day in the Galilee area. We went to the Church of the Multiplication AKA as The Church of the Loaves & Fishes. After that to another religious site where Jesus made the disciples breakfast on the north Shore of Lake Galilee. It was also where He asked Peter to feed my sheep. And lastly we went to where the Jordan River flows south out of the Lake of Galilee. Very nice. There were a lot of people being baptised. All come on tour buses. we have at least a 3 hour drive tomorrow down Israel (south) going past Tel Aviv to a small village on the outskirts of the Negev desert. 2 nights there. The first day we will go to Masada and The Dead Sea. second day on our ... read more