Days 4 & 5 - Negev to Jerusalem

I tried to do an entry yesterday, but the internet connection in the hotel in Ramon in the Negev was so crappy, I couldn't get anything done. And since the idiots made me buy only 20 minutes at a time, the whole connection would time out befor I could get anything uploaded. So here we are in Jerusalem after a busy 2 days.

Yesterday in the Negev was spent at the Ramon Crater. Not a real crater from an asteroid or anything, nor was it from anything volcanic. It is called a "Machtesh" whis is a huge crater formed by a type of erosion from the inside. Not like the Grand Canyon where a river ran through it, but a mountain that collapsed on one side leaving a hollow. Only this hollow was 25 miles long and 9 miles wide! We drove in Jeeps (not Pink)into the depth of the crater (in a wind/sand storm) and saw what we could of the geologic formations. Our guide, Yankel, was very colorful as he explained the formation of the crater. He is the former director of the Israeli Nature Society, and had lots to say. More later about him/
We went on to Sde Boker, a kibbutz in the Negev where David Ben Gurion retired. We saw his living quarters, and went through a small museum dedicated to his life, both personal and political. The only picture in his bedroom was that of Mahatma Ghandi. He was a real visionary, predicting much of what Israel and the world was going to be, even in the 1930's. He especially loved the Negev, which is why he retired there.
We went to Avdat, a Nabotean ruin in the Negev. The Naboteans were an ancient people who maintained "way stations" along the travel routes from North to south to Petra. They called it the "Incense Route". More about Petra next week. They knew how to control and capture the little water there is in the desert, and were able to survive. At least, that is, until the Romans came and changed the routes. The died out in the 700's.
We went back to Ramon, and some of us went to the Visitor Center to get more information about the crater: a movie, some exhibits, etc. I couldn't get any good pictures because of the sandstorm, but on the way out I had a very strange encounter. A gentlemen saw the shirt I was wearing (Maryland) and asked if I was American. He introduced me to 3 young adults who were with him, saying they were from Utah. His accent was Israeli. We made small talk, and he asked me if I was a believer. This worked into a conversation about the afterlife and what I thought of Jews for Jesus. When I told him I thought they all were crazy, I bade them goodby and quickly left. The whole experience was strange: being proselytized for Jesus by an Israeli in Israel.
After dinner, we had another talk by Yankel. He spent 1 1/2 hours on politics of Israel, and all the conflicts. He is a very special guy, who has very patriotic and practical feelings toward Israel. I don't have time to go more into it now, but may later.

Tuesday - Day 5

20 degrees colder. Long sleeves and sweater all day! We drove to Masada and took the cable car up. I was not going to climb at any rate, but they didn't give us the choice. The age range of our trip ranges from 55 to about 70. Masada was interesting as always, as they recounted the life and death of the Zealots in 73 CE as they resisted the Romans.
A drive by of the Dead Sea, and we went to Ein Gedi. We did not get to hike into the spring or along the Wadi, but instead saw a 4th-5th Century synagogue they had uncovered. This was much different thaan the one in Zippori, as the orientation was now toward Jerusalem, and the motifs of the mosaics had changed. No Zodiacs, no images of people.

Back up out of the depths of the Dead Sea to go up to Jerusalem. A stop on Mt. Scopus overlooking the old city for a prayer from Danny and some great pictures as the setting sun broke out of the clouds.

Tomorrow more politics. I understand there are some reports of violence here in Jerusalem. For what it's worth, we have not seen or heard any, and I would suppose we will be kept away from any areas of police activity. None the less, I'll keep an eye out, and in the spirit of my daughter's former photojournalism career, I keep my camera ready.