My trip to the Holy Land was the first time I flew to another country. I considered religious trips before, but always wanted to start with the Holy Land and build from there. I think that was a good choice. Some people fear going into an area that's often in the news for violence, but pilgrimage packages tend to focus on meaningful sites, and those sites aren't usually where violence occurs.
Much more would happen on the trip, but here are some highlights. This also doesn't dive into anything too deep, and I intentionally brought with me intentions that would bring great depth to the experiences.
February 3: I departed on my first international flight ever. I saw a co-worker at the airport who also was on the first leg of our domestic flight. The international flight wasn't as comfortable as I had hoped it would be, but it sufficed to get us there.
February 4: I arrived in Tel Aviv and enjoyed the plentiful buffet at the hotel after going through the chaos at the airport to get through the passport control area.
February 5: As we journeyed up to Galilee, I saw some sites that helped introduce me to what to expect in Israel for rock formations, vegetation, artistry, etc. The site of the Annunciation stood out to me. It was such an important and significant event.
February 6: Around 1:45 in the morning, I heard missiles being shot toward Damascus. There's a chance they were just the jets that fired missiles, but I heard 3 distinct instances that had the higher pitch of missiles, and the sound matched something I heard online. Each of the three sounded like they were first approaching and then continuing on. I didn't have a good view up or to the North, and that's roughly where I would expect the path to have been for anything coming from the nearest base. This is EXTREMELY rare, and they were only outgoing missiles. I felt safe the whole time and was asleep in a few minutes, knowing we weren't a target, and that even if a missile came our way, Israel's defenses are pretty solid.
But with regards to the pilgrimage part... The Sea of Galilee looked surprisingly walkable. Capernaum was beautiful, as was the site of the Beatitudes which is just a mile away on foot. The site of the multiplication made for a rather fitting midday meal consisting of fish. And it was moving to be where the Bread of Life Discourse was originally spoken.
February 7: The Mount of Transfiguration was high compared to the surrounding hills and it was very interesting. A cloud overshadowed it as we approached it. Near Jericho, the Jordan River was very flooded (a common occurrence for things in my vicinity). And that night, we prayed a Holy Hour at Gethsemane. Within sight of Jerusalem, the Church of All Nations on the Mount of Olives at the edge of the garden of Gethsemane was the highlight.
February 8: Saw a remarkably vivid rainbow in Bethlehem near the time we visited the site of the Nativity of Jesus, and we could touch the spot where Jesus was born and where he would have slept.
February 9: The Dead Sea offered the most interesting physical experience, since the center of buoyancy was so different. The salt content in the sea is at least 10x saltier than the oceans, which makes it the saltiest body of water in the world and rests at the lowest point on earth. The land that is usually so arid was teaming with grass and flowers in many places. It would be unrecognizable to people who are used to seeing tan colors.
February 10: We walked the Via Dolorosa before the sun rose. We would enter the Church of the Holy Sepulchre and touch the places of great significant in the death and resurrection of Jesus. I was happy to see a chapel dedicated to Saint Helena.
February 11: The place where Saint Peter denied Jesus had the sound of a rooster crowing 4 times off in the distance...wow! And inside we saw where Jesus was likely held in a pit. This was also the day we spent a significant amount of time on the Mount of Olives, including Gethsemane. That's a special place for me.
February 12: In Jerusalem, the Church of the Holy Sepulchre was the obvious highlight. We visited it earlier in the trip at the end of the Via Dolorosa ("Way of Suffering"), and a few of us visited it almost daily prior to eating breakfast. The most rewarding time at this site was on my last day in Jerusalem, because I noticed some people who weren't finding what they were looking for. I was in the Chapel of Saint Helena, and I asked them what they were looking for. They wanted to see Calvary, but they had gone down instead of up, since they thought it was where the True Cross was found. But the cross had been tossed down the hill. The rewarding part was walking them from that place to where the Cross was at the time Jesus was put to death.
February 13: Left the Holy Land, passed through the Paris airport for the first time, and made it home.
Joke:
Oh, and after I stumbled across this thing, I figured I better just move along. I saw what happened to the people surrounding Indiana Jones...
Much more would happen on the trip, but here are some highlights. This also doesn't dive into anything too deep, and I intentionally brought with me intentions that would bring great depth to the experiences.
February 3: I departed on my first international flight ever. I saw a co-worker at the airport who also was on the first leg of our domestic flight. The international flight wasn't as comfortable as I had hoped it would be, but it sufficed to get us there.
February 4: I arrived in Tel Aviv and enjoyed the plentiful buffet at the hotel after going through the chaos at the airport to get through the passport control area.
February 5: As we journeyed up to Galilee, I saw some sites that helped introduce me to what to expect in Israel for rock formations, vegetation, artistry, etc. The site of the Annunciation stood out to me. It was such an important and significant event.
February 6: Around 1:45 in the morning, I heard missiles being shot toward Damascus. There's a chance they were just the jets that fired missiles, but I heard 3 distinct instances that had the higher pitch of missiles, and the sound matched something I heard online. Each of the three sounded like they were first approaching and then continuing on. I didn't have a good view up or to the North, and that's roughly where I would expect the path to have been for anything coming from the nearest base. This is EXTREMELY rare, and they were only outgoing missiles. I felt safe the whole time and was asleep in a few minutes, knowing we weren't a target, and that even if a missile came our way, Israel's defenses are pretty solid.
But with regards to the pilgrimage part... The Sea of Galilee looked surprisingly walkable. Capernaum was beautiful, as was the site of the Beatitudes which is just a mile away on foot. The site of the multiplication made for a rather fitting midday meal consisting of fish. And it was moving to be where the Bread of Life Discourse was originally spoken.
February 7: The Mount of Transfiguration was high compared to the surrounding hills and it was very interesting. A cloud overshadowed it as we approached it. Near Jericho, the Jordan River was very flooded (a common occurrence for things in my vicinity). And that night, we prayed a Holy Hour at Gethsemane. Within sight of Jerusalem, the Church of All Nations on the Mount of Olives at the edge of the garden of Gethsemane was the highlight.
February 8: Saw a remarkably vivid rainbow in Bethlehem near the time we visited the site of the Nativity of Jesus, and we could touch the spot where Jesus was born and where he would have slept.
February 9: The Dead Sea offered the most interesting physical experience, since the center of buoyancy was so different. The salt content in the sea is at least 10x saltier than the oceans, which makes it the saltiest body of water in the world and rests at the lowest point on earth. The land that is usually so arid was teaming with grass and flowers in many places. It would be unrecognizable to people who are used to seeing tan colors.
February 10: We walked the Via Dolorosa before the sun rose. We would enter the Church of the Holy Sepulchre and touch the places of great significant in the death and resurrection of Jesus. I was happy to see a chapel dedicated to Saint Helena.
February 11: The place where Saint Peter denied Jesus had the sound of a rooster crowing 4 times off in the distance...wow! And inside we saw where Jesus was likely held in a pit. This was also the day we spent a significant amount of time on the Mount of Olives, including Gethsemane. That's a special place for me.
February 12: In Jerusalem, the Church of the Holy Sepulchre was the obvious highlight. We visited it earlier in the trip at the end of the Via Dolorosa ("Way of Suffering"), and a few of us visited it almost daily prior to eating breakfast. The most rewarding time at this site was on my last day in Jerusalem, because I noticed some people who weren't finding what they were looking for. I was in the Chapel of Saint Helena, and I asked them what they were looking for. They wanted to see Calvary, but they had gone down instead of up, since they thought it was where the True Cross was found. But the cross had been tossed down the hill. The rewarding part was walking them from that place to where the Cross was at the time Jesus was put to death.
February 13: Left the Holy Land, passed through the Paris airport for the first time, and made it home.
Joke:
Oh, and after I stumbled across this thing, I figured I better just move along. I saw what happened to the people surrounding Indiana Jones...
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| A small replica of the Ark that was in the hotel gift shop |
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