Masada

I am stupid.

Ok, I know that's a weird way to start a blog. lol
There are three things that should never be mentioned in the same sentence: me, vacation, climbing.

Most of you have heard the story about Dad and I climbing Pike's Peak in Colorodo on vacation a few years ago. Well apparently I, ahem, didn't learn my lesson... lol

Today we visited "Masada"... for those who don't know what it is:

Masada is the name for a site of ancient palaces and fortifications in the South District of Israel on top of an isolated rock plateau, on the eastern edge of the Judean Desert overlooking the Dead Sea.

The cliffs on the east edge of Masada are about 1,300 feet high and the cliffs on the west are about 300 feet (90 m) high; the natural approaches to the cliff top are very difficult. The top of the plateau is flat and rhomboid-shaped, about 1,800 feet by 900 feet. There were many towers, and the fortress included storehouses, barracks, an armory, the palace, and cisterns that were refilled by rainwater.

There's a cable car that offers a very smooth, quick ride to the top. For the stupid people, there's a brutal climbing trail to the top.

Guess which one I chose? lol

Out of our group of 42, four of us chose to climb. (Me, Nathan, Heather & Evan) Nathan's asthma started giving him trouble and he had to turn back, so only three of us finished.

Heather and Evan are in extremely good shape and they do alot of climbing.

I am fat and lazy and discovered after about 20 minutes that I'm not in near as good a shape as I thought! lol It's a very steep climb. There is NO shade on the side of the mountain and it was about 140 degrees today. (That's what it FELT like, anyway!).

Four hours, 34,000 calories burned, and 65,000 steps later... I reached the top! (Ok, so maybe I'm exagerrating a little bit.)

 

The view from the top is amazing. You are looking down on the Dead Sea. (This, by the way, is the area where the children of Israel were wandering.)

 

"I made it!" (Snapshot taken when I reached the top.)

Day Seven!

We started this morning by visiting Nazareth, Jesus' home town. (Jesus of Nazareth) What a feeling! Standing in the valley where the Son of God grew up... Under this sky...between these hills... a little five-year old boy, playing in the street with other kids... A teenage boy, working in a dusty carpenter shop... right where we were standing!

We then ascended Mount Carmel. This is the mountain where Elijah confronted the prophets of Baal, and God answered by fire. This is also the place where the prophet sent his servant to look for rain and he saw a cloud the size of a man's hand. The view is amazing! But even more amazing is looking up into the sky that God's fire had fallen from.

Above: The view from Mount Carmel            
Left: Standing at the peak (Left to right: Josh, Sarah, Danae, Nathan)

Eating with friends from Indiana on the way down from Mount Carmel. (From left to right: Sarah, Heather, Evan, Josh.)

On the Mediterranian shore between Herod the Great's palace and the oval where chariot races were held.

Sarah and Danae eating gelatto (ice cream) in Ceasarea.

Standing in the exact spot the apostle Paul stood when he was tried before Agrippa in Caesarea.

And I'll leave you tonight with one more picture I took on the sandy shore of the Mediterranean late this afternoon...

Thanks for checking the blog! Love all of you.

- Josh

Sea of Galilee

Imagine trying to fill in the Grand Canyon with dirt ... Using only a spoon.

That's what it's like to try to explain how amazing this trip is ... Using only words!

It is Indescribable! We arrived last night at the Sea of Galilee. This is such a special place in Scripture and in the life of Jesus. He spent most of his earthly life on and around this small lake.

The Sea of Galilee is tucked away in the quaint rolling hills and mountains of northern Israel and we awoke this morning to a beautiful view of it. This gorgeous area is an intoxicating and fascinating mix of tropical and middle eastern climates and foliage. The glassy sea is shrouded in palm trees, rocky cliffs, green hIllsides, pasturing sheep, and snow covered mountain peaks. The result is stunning ... I promise you that these few pictures can not even begin to capture the beauty of this place!

After a boat ride across the sea, we ate lunch at a very nice restaurant on the outskirts of Capernaum.

We all ordered "Peter's Fish", and guess what we got? Umm, well ... a fish!
Despite the way it looks ... it tasted really good! (Once I got it to stop moving ...)







Afterwards, we visited Bet ShEan, an archaeological Excavation site of an ancient city that exhisted in Jesus' day. You can see the ruins of the market, temple, and a large Roman theater (among many other things) ...

Our day ended at the Jordan river, where we were baptized as the sun went down. There, in the very same waters that Jesus was baptized in... under the same heavens from which God spoke "This is my beloved Son..."

What a trip this is! From planes and subways and cities to standing in the waters of the Jordan on the other side of the world!

Continue to keep us in your prayers... we love and miss you all!

"And Jesus said unto them, Ye shall indeed drink of the cup that I drink of; and with the baptism that I am baptized withal shall ye be baptized."  - Mark 10:39

Istanbul, Turkey

We had an 8 hour layover in Turkey. Maranatha Tours was kind
enough to arrange us a day tour of Istanbul, so we wouldn't have to
spend all that time at the airport. The added bonus was that we now
have Turkey in our passports! Awsome!!!-Sarah

Memo: Excellent Body Guard Service

I just wanted everyone to know that Josh is a great body guard! He fit right in with the guards in  Istanbul! If any of you get the opportunity to make this trip, you should hire him. No, wait, if you come, I want to come back too, and I'll need him. Sorry, you'll have to find your own body guard.Lol!!!-Sarah

My new friend from Jerusalem

For the last part of our flight from NYC to Istanbul, Turkey I had the privilege of sitting next to Anat. After we learned each other‘s names, I asked her where she was from. She told me that she lived in Jerusalem! I was a litle surprised since we were flying to Turkey, but overjoyed to meet a native of the land we were to visit later on our trip! We had a lengthy conversation about our families, vocations & faith. I learned that she a Jewish Christian. Upon further conversation, she told me that her grandparents were survivors of the Holocaust! Anat is a very sweet girl! We exchanged email addresses and I look forward to keeping in touch with my new pen-pal from Jerusalem!

Day Four - Touring Petra!

Have you ever had a bad start to a day? lol

Well this morning, Nathan and I, umm...ahem...overslept. lol We woke up at 10:02am local time. We were supposed to be ON the bus at 10:00am. Sigh. lol (To our credit, we had both been up till about 4:30am working on our blogs to keep you folks at home updated...so technically, it was your fault! lol) The entire tour group gave us a hard time about it all day. The reason it was so funny is that he and I are two of the main ones who make sure everybody gets back to the bus, etc... :)
We have a great group of people, and we are all having a blast. The people are friendly, the weather has been absolutely perfect (60 degrees and gorgeous sunshine), and our tour guide is wonderful.
After the whole group (ahem) made it to the bus, we drove to the entrance of Petra.
I will tell you right up front: Petra is amazing. And my words, descriptions, and pictures will never do it justice. You'll just have to come see it. :)
For those who don't know what Petra is, read this real quick:
                                                                                                             
"Petra (Greek "πέτρα", meaning rock) is a historic and archaeological city in the Jordanian governorate of Ma'an that has rock cut architecture and water conduits system. Established sometime around the 6th century BC, it is a symbol of Jordan as well as its most visited tourism attraction. It lies on the slope of Mount Hor in a basin among the mountains which form the eastern flank of the large valley running from the Dead Sea to the Gulf of Aqaba. Petra was chosen as one of the New Seven Wonders of the World in 2007. Petra was chosen by the BBC as one of "the 40 places you have to see before you die".

This is an amazing city located in within cliffs that look similar to the Grand Canyon. The entrance is a 3/4 mile long stretch with a hundred foot high rock wall on both sides... (Left to right: Sarah, Danae, Randy)

The signature landmark of Petra is a large stone edifice carved into the side of one of the rock walls. It is way over a hundred feet tall, and was not constructed but carved; it is all solid rock; all carved into the mountain by hand almost two thousand years ago.

There are tons of tombs, monuments, houses, caves, niches, and even a theater carved into the mountains...

Sarah and I; standing on the ancient ruins of one of the major temples in the city of Petra. In the background you can see some of the smaller tombs and caves carved out of the side of the mountain.

One of the highlights of the day... riding a camel! It's extremely tall, and extremely bumpy ride! I always pictured them slowly trudging along in the desert... don't be fooled! These animals can move! lol And when they do...you better be hanging on! (Left to right: Nathan, Sarah, Randy, Gloria, Josh, Danae)

I also raced down a mountain on a horse today at 105 mph ...but that's a story I don't have time for... :)

We have lots of stories and hundreds of pictures...these are a terribly small sample...but we just don't have time to post all of them! Sorry!

Experiencing these foreign lands and people is amazing. Touring the other side of the world like this is so eye-opening. We are enjoying every minute of it! Thanks to all of you who are following the blog; and thanks for all the emails and comments.

I'll leave you with a picture taken this evening from my hotel balcony... the middle-eastern sun setting across the mountains on the rocky outline of Israel's eastern border...