October 2025 – Visit His Land

M.M. – Breakfast was very similar to yesterday, but instead of scrambled eggs it was poached eggs in a tomato/veggie “salsa” for lack of better description. (Editor’s Note: this is a Mediterranean dish called shakshuka)

L.H. – After a delicious breakfast and boarding the bus we traveled north from Arad where we are staying. We started traveling down, down, down through the desert hills and valleys. As we descended we started to see signs specifying how many feet we were above sea level. Eventually we dropped below sea level and the Dead Sea appeared in view. Since we were at the southern end of the Dead Sea there were salt pans and mounds of salt being harvested. Caribbean blue in color with a backdrop of mountains behind it, the Dead Sea sits 1,400 feet below sea level, making it the lowest place on the earth.

M.M. – The Mountains of Moab, on the other side of the Dead Sea were very clearly visible today. They said it was exceptionally clear. Aaron pointed out Mt. Nebo.

Our driver was very careful. Cars passed him, but he didn’t go fast. I was sitting where I could see the speedometer, and the time I checked it looked like he was going 60 km/h if I could see right. Aaron told some of us that the driver is Muslim.

L.H. – But in all its beauty we were not headed to the Dead Sea. We were headed to a high mesa where a cable car awaited us to enter Masada Park. While this site is not specifically mentioned in the Bible, it has much historical relevance. Herod the Great had four palaces and a fortress here. Masada was also the site of the Jewish Zealots’ last stand in 72 AD.

We had a short worship service with singing and a message by Orval Graybill. We explored the storage rooms, and the bathhouse complete with some original mosaic tiles and the casement walls. Because there is very little rain here, these sites have not been eroded away. We saw the Roman encampments (8 of them) and battle ramp below. We soon were short on time and there was still much to see so we hurried through parts of it. We did stop to say hello to the scribe who was tucked away in the Synagogue, copying the Torah.

Ruins of a Roman encampment below Masada

Our next stop was at Ein Gedi. Ein means spring and Gedi means young goats in Hebrew. This was the hiding place when David was hiding from Saul. It really made this story come alive when we saw the caves tucked away into the cliffside. It was easy to imagine Saul asleep in a cave and David slipping in and cutting off a corner of Saul’s robe but choosing not to slay him. There was a lovely waterfall and stream. It was refreshing to remove our shoes and socks and enter the crystal clear water. The air was filled with lovely birdsong as this area is on the migration path for birds.

En Gedi is a symbol of refreshment. God is our En Gedi. We are to be an En Gedi to others. Do you know someone going through a desert time? You can be their En Gedi.

After a lovely lunch by the Dead Sea we had a time of exploration and cooling off in the Dead Sea. What an experience! Andrew said this is his first tour ever where everyone entered the water. Some floated, some sat, and some stood but we all enjoyed the water. It was a very unique feeling on your skin. It stung a little but it felt thick and almost oily. It’s hard to describe. It was clear all the way to the bottom with no waves. The bottom was white and had a crust of bumpy salt. After changing back into dry clothes we headed back to our hotel for a showers.

M.M. – One of the ladies had a few terrifying moments when she lost her balance and was face down in the water. Thankfully a couple people were able to hurry to her aid. We led her to the outdoor shower and showered her off. She kept her eyes closed as the salt water stung her eyes. But after she had recovered her equilibrium, she enjoyed a soak too.

We gathered salt from the bottom of the lake into ziplock bags to keep as a souvenir. The bottom was all just salt. No sand whatsoever where we were.

We saw fighter jets for the first time today, in practice runs down the Jordan/Rift Valley.

L.H. – For supper “Akiva” Jonathan Hollinger and his wife joined us. They were formerly Mennonites from Pennsylvania who moved to Israel and converted to the Jewish faith. We had a discussion time with them in the lobby following our meal till some of us couldn’t keep our eyes open any longer. Jet lag is still a part of our travel experience.

Most of our posts for this tour will be written by LaFaye Hurst and Melinda Martin. This first post contains excerpts from both, signed by their initials. Most of the photos are by Andrew.

M.M. – Doris and I both slept very well. The 6:00 wake up call on the phone announced the beginning of our day.

By 6:55 we went to the elevator. Breakfast was supposed to be at 7:00. It seemed to take the elevator a long time to come to us on the 4th floor. I think most of our group was down to the dining hall before 7. They were all sitting at tables, eating. There were about 5 stations of food. Hot scrambled eggs, hard boiled eggs, chunks of potato in a delicious brown sauce, several kinds of phyllo pastry delicacies. Another station had 3-4 kinds of cheese, besides yogurt, cottage cheese, etc. A veggie bar with cherry tomatoes, cucumber slices, pickles, olives, egg salad, hummus, red and orange bell pepper slices, several kinds of fish, etc, a baked goods bar and a cold cereal bar. And of course, coffee! But the baked goods, for all the good looks, are not sweet.

By 8:00 we were going to the bus. (Both the bus driver Tarek, and Aaron are staying at the hotel too.) Aaron and Andrew are a fairly relaxed pair. A “Try to be punctual, but don’t stress” kind.

We drove through the desert to Tel Be’er Sheva. We saw Bedouin settlements, complete with camels, new Jewish villages in the building stages (one had 29 cranes) and vineyards and olive trees. It seemed like a dream!

L.H. – Today we started our journey in Bible lands in the southern part of Israel, in the Negev Desert. We are starting out in the Old Testament sites. This is the land of the patriarchs. Abraham, Isaac & Jacob.

Our first stop was Tel Be’er Sheva or also known as Beersheba. This was the southernmost city in Old Testament Israel. So the saying from Dan (north) to Beersheba (south).

We learned that a Tel is a Hebrew word for a place where ruins have been discovered and built overtop . So now I know that when we are going to a Tel that we will see ruins.

M.M. – We saw a stone lined well that goes down 700 feet. And the cistern where they caught the precious rain water. It only rains 3 inches a year in this area. We walked down the 151 stairs into the cistern. A few of the older ones opted to go back the other way rather than going down the stairs. In a chamber of the cistern we sang “Open the Wells of Salvation”.

L.H. – It was quite inspiring to visit a site where Abraham would have lived and walked. High in the desert, the sun bright and the air warm. We saw a herd of camel being herded by a pickup truck to the stream below us for water. What a contrast.

While we were traveling we saw lots of Beduin communities. Tumbletown shacks with tin roofs and barriers made of burlap and sticks. Abandoned vehicles outside the compound and children running around outside or herding animals such as goats. We also some some men riding camels like they were just out for a leisurely horseback ride. We would somewhat compare this people group to gypsies in America.

Our next stop was Wadi Zin, in the wilderness of Zin (Numbers 27:14) The landscape changed dramatically as we left the highway and headed down into the ravines of the wilderness. The landscape is very white/cream here. Reminds me of the Badlands or Utah in landscape but very light colored. We saw several Ibis scampering around on the rocks.

We exited the bus and walked back into the ravine even further into the wilderness and as we turned the corner there was a lovely little brook and waterfall! Streams in the desert for refreshment. As we traveled further we came to a tall waterful coming out of a split rock with a beautiful pool at the bottom. It is commonly felt that this is where Moses split the rock with his rod. Experts are not sure where the water comes from, but it is slightly salty. It was so inspiring to think of Moses and Aaron and their sister Miriam walking here.

M.M. – To the waterfall was mostly level walking. Some up hill, but not very strenuous.

Soon after the waterfall we had to choose- to go back the way we came or climb upwards. Most of us went up. Some places it was slopes, but many places were stairs built into the side of the cliff. Thankfully there were rebar hand rails in the “worst” spots. There were 2 places that we had to go up ladders, about 15-20 feet long.

It was beautiful. And strenuous. And hot. The bus was waiting for us at the top. The trail is a one way trail. There was a sign that said that from this point you must go up. You may not go down.

Eugene Hurst has an Apple Watch. He measured 597 ft of elevation that we climbed, in the 1.4 mile hike.

L.H. – After a quick lunch at a travel area we headed to Tel Arad. Another ruins, this one from the Bronze Age, 3500 BC, then rebuilt in Canaanite times. It is commonly believed that Abraham would have camped in this area.

This ruins had a temple with an alter and Holy of Holies. In this place of worship are replicas of a stone tablet and two pillars. They were found purposely broken, placed on the floor and buried. The originals are in the Israel Museum. It was wonderful to put in perspective what the temple really looked like. It certainly didn’t look like I imagined!

M.M. – From the top of Tel Arad we walked down hill a ways, then up the slope opposite, where the ruins of a Canaanite house had been excavated. It is a multi-roomed house where a patriarch and his extended family lived. They reconstructed what may have been the main house, complete with a roof. We sang a song there.

By then it was time to head to the bus. Since it’s Shabbat, the site was closing soon.

We got back to the Inbar Hotel about 3:30. We had time to do laundry, take showers and relax before supper at 6.

It was a good meal. Baked Potato quarters that were seasoned, and rice, chicken, beef and fish. Lots of salads, and 2 kinds of squares, apples and tangerines for dessert.

After supper Andrew said they were going for a walk, does anyone want to join? I think we all did, except Cara. We walked a few blocks away to where there are shops, and a “town square” where people gathered. It was empty tonight.

It was about 8:30 when we got back. Time to finish off this report and go to bed. Breakfast will be at 7 again.