Visiting The Miracle Sites

Today's itinerary included Feeding the 5000, Beatitudes, Golan Heights, Jordan River, Capernaum, Sermon On The Mount, Sea of Galilee

It's only dinner time, and we've just got back to the hotel, and already we are exchanging confused looks as we try to remember what we've seen today, and the order in which we did it. So here's our best guess.

After breakfast, and a staggered pick up at the various hotels, we headed off around the shores of the Sea of Galilee a short distance to Tabgha, and a church built over a rock that Jesus supposedly stood on to distribute the fish and the bread to feed the 5000. A lovely little church with a great mosaic floor that depicts many scenes and symbols. Unfortunately the guy who composed the mosaic didn't know his Bible that well, and so there are only 4 loaves in the picture. Quibble quibble. The church had lovely alabaster windows, the only ones we've ever seen, but they didn't come out well in the photos.

From there, it was a short drive up the hill to the lovely monastery and retreat for pilgrims built on the site where Jesus supposedly spoke the Beatitudes. It was a lovely, modern church, set in beautiful gardens overlooking the Sea. We are only one of many visiting groups that we are tracking around the sites with, and one of them, a large group of Americans, started singing hymns in the church as we were wandering the gardens. Kind of drew us all inside, and the dome shape of the church meant that the sound was lovely and echoed all around the site.

A journey north for about 30 minutes took us into the Golan Heights, and to the border with Syria. It seemed all peaceful, considering the current situation, but we were assured that the UN peacekeepers who literally straddled the border on the road below us were on high alert, and the Israeli surveillance post behind us was watching our every move. Seems that because there is no peace treaty between the two nations, all border crossings and all border trade has to pass through the UN compound. A really interesting change from cathedrals and churches, although we got the full 30 minute commercial from our guide on why Israel is blameless in the wars and misunderstood by the rest of the world. Seeing we've just heard the same commercial in Egypt and in Jordan, it can certainly tell you something about the guides and their honesty. Funny how every country tells you that they won the Six Day War which was started by the other side! However, by the end of the commercial, Mt Hermon (the tallest in Israel) had appeared through the smog, so we got to glimpse it in the distance as a compensation.

On the way down from the Golan Heights we disembarked to walk across the bridge under which the River Jordan flowed. Without being disparaging, let me just say that it ain't the Mississippi or the Nile. More like the a small version of the Yarra.

Then back to the shores of the Sea of Galilee up at the north east corner to the old city of Capernaum. Unlike the other towns, it no longer exists as a modern town - it's just ruins - apparently in response to the prophesy Jesus made that it would be torn down and never rebuilt. Well it's not rebuilt, but parts of it have been reconstructed. Jesus was said to have spent four years living here, and there is a church constructed over the supposed sight of Simon Peter's mother-in-law's house where Jesus lived, ate and performed miracles. Next door is the reconstructed synagogue where Jesus reputedly worshiped, preached and taught. Next door to that, where a Greek Orthodox church has been built (though the public is unable to visit like all other Orthodox sights), is the supposed site where Jesus gave the Sermon on the Mount (or on the Sermon on the Plain if you are more literal with the text). Actually, of all of the sites, this one is the most impressive and authentic, as it is a real reconstruction using the stones from the site, rather than a church plonked on a site that legend says might possibly be a significant one. Having said that, nearly all of the miracle sites are within a stones throw of Capernaum, so even if they aren't the exact sites, it's really interesting to visualise it all happening just near where you are standing.

Believe it or not, we fitted all of that into the morning, so we finally got a late lunch. Whilst everybody else had a sit down meal at one of the Kibbutzim, Mandy and I walked around the shores of the Sea of Galilee in the balmy sunshine, watching the birds playing amongst the reeds on the shore, and imagining fisherman trying to row from one side to the other whilst getting freaked out by waves and storms.

After lunch it was down the road to where some of the group boarded a boat on the Sea for the trip back to Tiberias, whilst others of us took the opportunity to walk around the Tiberias waterfront, looking at the Crusader Castles that had been turned into Chinese restaurants and Italian gelati shops. The read out on the gauge on the waterfront told us that today the Sea was 231 metres below sea level. It's not tidal, as it's fresh water and not open to the oceans, but the level does vary depending on how much water Israel takes out for domestic purposes.

Lastly, it was off to a diamond workshop, which was really just a front for a large diamond salesroom operated by De Beers. For some strange reason they couldn't understand why we didn't want to buy diamonds, opals and pearls which were all sourced from Australia in an Israeli shop at Israeli prices. After all, we were all 'lovely people'.

Finally back to the hotel in the dark for another scrummy buffet dinner.