We floated in the Dead Sea and Jerusalem

On Friday, Oct.14, we left Tiberias at 7:45 and headed south along the river Jordan. Even though everything was very dry, as it was just before the rainy season starts, in the Jordan Valley there was vegetation which was watered by irrigation. No wonder that the river Jordan is now so small.
Our first stop was at the excavated city of Beth Shan, wich at one time was a flourishing city built at the time of the Romans. It was destroyed by the earthquake in 749, the same quake that destroyed Ceasarea. This city was covered with sand and only re-discovered in 1982. Excavators from around the world have helped to dig it out. Some of the huge pillars have been reassembled and others are still laying as when it was destroyed. King Saul and his sons died on the nearby mountain of Gilboa when they were in battle against the Philistines. Their bodies were hung on the city walls of Beth Shan. 1 Sam. 31.After visiting the dead city we headed toward the Dead Sea and Jericho.
We stopped at the Mount of temptation. The area where the Lord Jesus was in the desert and tempted by the devil. A monastery or hermitage is build here. Even today, people live here and never leave the place.

Qumran. This is very close to the Dead Sea. Here the famous dead sea scrolls were found in caves in 1947 by a Bedouin shepherd boy.
After this we headed to the Dead Sea for our much talked about floating in the water. We were told that the mud and the water is very good for your skin. So we had to try that out. First we gave ourselves and each other a mud bath and than we floated away. Yes, it is true, you really float and the water is very, very salty. It was a hoot!
Another interesting fact is that the Dead Sea is about 400 meters below Sea Level. Compare that to Jerusalem (which is only about a half an hour drive away) being 800 meters above Sea Level !
After we all had skin as soft as a baby, we headed toward Jericho. We entered the town after going through another of the many check points. Jericho is controlled by the Palestinians and all the main roads are controlled by the Israelis, so you are crossing 'borders' all the time. Here we stopped for refreshments and souvenirs.
A sycamore tree in Jericho.
After this we finally made our way up to Jerusalem. We sang songs of ascend as the bus slowly climbed up and what an ascend it was.  Uphill the whole way and also getting stuck in the traffic before another check point. By the time we saw our first glimpse of Jerusalem, the sun was setting. The bus stopped at some places where we had an amazing view of the city as we were listening to the song 'The Holy City'. It was amazing!