On the Sea of Galilee and more...

The next day of our unforgettable trip (Oct.13,2011) started off by taking a walk from our hotel to the dock on the shore of the Sea of Galilee. We went on a boat that took us to the middle of this lake. Here we read from the Bible about some events that happened right here. Here the Lord Jesus spoke and the wind obeyed and Peter walked on the water. Our voices, while singing 'For the beauty of the earth', echoed off the mountains. In our minds we could see the people on the hillsides listening to the words of Jesus. What an impressive experience.
A sailor shows us how they used to cast a net into the sea.
Mount of multiplication, where the Lord fed the 5,000.
Garden made at the place of where Jesus preached the Sermon of the Mount.
Capernaum, the town where Jesus lived. This town has never been rebuild, but much remains of the synagogue that was used in Bible times. Here the Lord Jesus read from the scroll and sat down to preach and the people were amazed to hear him speak with authority.
The people used to sit on the side, where we are sitting.
Many other items are discovered with the excavations. Here is an olive press. In the background is part of the original city wall.
An image of the ark engraved in the rock.
After a lunch we went north through the Golan Heights to Ceasarea Philippi, where is a shrine for the Greek god Pan. Horrible pagan worship occurred here during Jesus' time. Jesus brought his disciples here and at this place he told Peter, 'you are the rock'. Possibly referring that not trust should be put in the 'rock' of the god Pan, but instead in Peter - in the Church.
Mount HermonWe stopped at the Syrian border at a high place at the northernmost point. Security equipment was installed by the Israeli government and we were told not to point our cameras in that direction - or we would be in trouble. We had a good view into Syria and of the wall that was being build by the Israelis. It is a little difficult to see in the pictures, but it is a grey line just before the building on the left.
We drove back to Tiberias through the mountainous area with many Druze villages. Sam was telling us that many families are separated and cannot even visit each other, as they now live on different sides of the border (the wall). These restrictions are since 2005 or so when Israel had problems with Lebanon.
In the evening we saw how Israel celebrate holidays. They had a beautiful water/light display with music at the shore of the Sea of Galilee. Many people came out to see it.