After visiting the Church of the Primacy, we headed to Magdala. This is part 7 of day 4. I will merge a brief bit from the hotel at the end so avoid an 8th part, or what would have been the 9th part if lunch had been split into a separate part. This is bringing this day to a close.
We finally made it to Magdala, which is only a few minutes away from many of the other sites we visited today. It's about 4 miles from the site we just left. The sun was going down when we left our last site, and it's getting dark. We pulled up and saw the sign for the Magdala site and it looked like a sign for a cheap store or something. But I knew not to judge the site from the sign.
I didn't realize at the time why it looked so cheap. This is a VERY new site. Of the two hotels that most Catholics stay in Jerusalem, the Notre Dame Center, the one we didn't stay at this time sought to open up a hotel by the Sea of Galilee. They began considering this in 2004, just 16 years before my trip. They would acquire property and permits by sometime in 2009. They just had to do the standard examination to make sure there wasn't anything historical underneath their site, since this is Israel, and they have lots of history. They started to dig and found artifacts after going down just a foot or so. Every artifact found dates from the 1st century A.D. So this site is about a decade old. It hasn't had much time to be constructed or to have the financing in place to do great things with it, yet.
Magdala is situated in modern-day Migal between a tall hill on the west and the Sea of Galilee on the east. It is the site where Jesus cast out demons.
The sky would get so dark while we were there that I would not look for the Sea of Galilee again while here. There were several signs with information about the site.
There were ruins on the site that we saw before entering any buildings or shelters.
We sat down near a big block with carvings in it. The guide told us about it. It is believed the person who crafted it must have seen the temple. One notable thing carved into it was the menorah seen on one of the sides. It matches the description of the one in the temple, and it's the oldest carving of a menorah ever found. There are only about seven synagogues that have been found from the Second Temple period, and this is one of them. Most cities were destroyed by the Romans during the Jewish Revolt in the 60s that culminated in the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD. It was getting hard to pay as much attention as the day was packed with so many sites. A coin was also found in the vicinity from the year 29 A.D., which is around the time of the public ministry of Jesus.
I took a few photos of the other ruins in the shelter. This is the old Magdala Synagogue from the first century. Jesus very likely taught here at some point.
We were there for a while, hearing more about the synagogue in the time of Jesus. But then we started to walk toward the church that I now realize was probably very close to the Sea of Galilee. We passed through a path flanked by alternating pairs of palm and olive trees.
The moon poked through the clouds.
The tall hills were still visible against the dimly-lit sky, creating a dark contrast for the trees that were lit from below, and yet there was some color to the sky beyond the dark margins the hills cast.
At the end of that path, there were some statues of Mary Magdalene and Jesus.
The entry to the church was not far away, right under the inscription, "DUC IN ALTUM", which translates "go/cast/put out into THE DEEP". So let's go into THE DEEP.
Upon entering, we see a round atrium or narthex. It has a baptismal fount in the center that's beneath a ceiling mural of a close-up of praying hands from what appears to be the miraculous image of Our Lady of Guadalupe.
There were four chapels, two on each side of the narthex. Each chapel had distinct artwork behind their altars.
The main body of the church has a boat, which is appropriate for setting out into the deep.
The sides are flanked by what appeared to be paintings of the Apostles.
I may have considered getting closer to the artwork, but I saw a man who looked like he was touching up or restoring one of the paintings. But considering the site is so new, I suppose it's possible he may have been creating the artwork. I didn't ask.
We then went downstairs. There is a room that's made of rock. It turns out this was the main marketplace for the ancient city of Magdala. A guide told us about the site. The large mural in the background depicts the hemorrhaging woman who touched the cloak of Jesus and was healed. The spark of light appears at her fingertip in the work of art.
Outside, many people forgot or almost forgot to check out the huge mosaic that forms a map of the land of Galilee. I walked around it and took several photos to get closer to parts of it. The size of it may be more apparent when you get to the photos I flipped upside down and some people appear in the background.
It was time to get back to the bus so we could ride back to the hotel. I wasn't sure how far away the hotel was, nor in which direction. And night had fallen. So this is not a good time to miss the bus. We walked back through the path of palms and olives.
I really liked the look of this olive tree.
I stood under one tree, looking up at the moon, seeing the olive tree above me, and a palm tree towering above it.
I took a more distant photo of the center, not including the church, with the ruins in the foreground.
We boarded the bus and started to head back to the hotel. We noticed we didn't head back to the main road, though. We were back at the hotel about two minutes later. It's barely more than a mile away from our hotel! It's about 1.2 miles away. That may have been worth walking, except that I'd want to get any items off the bus that I might have brought with me that day.
So we were back at The Sea of Galilee Hotel. We had a little time before we ate, as usual. The meal was good, as usual. It's a huge buffet.
But there was a couple who had their anniversary. So we had a cake just for that. It was also the birthday of a close relative of mine that was not on the trip, so I told him that I had cake for his birthday.
The night was not eventful after that. No missile attacks against Syria or anything else serious (near-rhyme intended). The next morning, we would check out, go to the Mount of Transfiguration, and then head south to some sites and end the day in Jerusalem, where we would check into our final hotel for the trip, which would serve as our hotel for the many remaining days.
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| Wall Mural in Magdala |
We finally made it to Magdala, which is only a few minutes away from many of the other sites we visited today. It's about 4 miles from the site we just left. The sun was going down when we left our last site, and it's getting dark. We pulled up and saw the sign for the Magdala site and it looked like a sign for a cheap store or something. But I knew not to judge the site from the sign.
I didn't realize at the time why it looked so cheap. This is a VERY new site. Of the two hotels that most Catholics stay in Jerusalem, the Notre Dame Center, the one we didn't stay at this time sought to open up a hotel by the Sea of Galilee. They began considering this in 2004, just 16 years before my trip. They would acquire property and permits by sometime in 2009. They just had to do the standard examination to make sure there wasn't anything historical underneath their site, since this is Israel, and they have lots of history. They started to dig and found artifacts after going down just a foot or so. Every artifact found dates from the 1st century A.D. So this site is about a decade old. It hasn't had much time to be constructed or to have the financing in place to do great things with it, yet.
 |
| Magdala Site Entry |
Magdala is situated in modern-day Migal between a tall hill on the west and the Sea of Galilee on the east. It is the site where Jesus cast out demons.
 |
| Hill to the West |
 |
| Sea of Galilee to the East (seen in the distance) |
The sky would get so dark while we were there that I would not look for the Sea of Galilee again while here. There were several signs with information about the site.
There were ruins on the site that we saw before entering any buildings or shelters.
We sat down near a big block with carvings in it. The guide told us about it. It is believed the person who crafted it must have seen the temple. One notable thing carved into it was the menorah seen on one of the sides. It matches the description of the one in the temple, and it's the oldest carving of a menorah ever found. There are only about seven synagogues that have been found from the Second Temple period, and this is one of them. Most cities were destroyed by the Romans during the Jewish Revolt in the 60s that culminated in the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD. It was getting hard to pay as much attention as the day was packed with so many sites. A coin was also found in the vicinity from the year 29 A.D., which is around the time of the public ministry of Jesus.
I took a few photos of the other ruins in the shelter. This is the old Magdala Synagogue from the first century. Jesus very likely taught here at some point.
We were there for a while, hearing more about the synagogue in the time of Jesus. But then we started to walk toward the church that I now realize was probably very close to the Sea of Galilee. We passed through a path flanked by alternating pairs of palm and olive trees.
The moon poked through the clouds.
The tall hills were still visible against the dimly-lit sky, creating a dark contrast for the trees that were lit from below, and yet there was some color to the sky beyond the dark margins the hills cast.
At the end of that path, there were some statues of Mary Magdalene and Jesus.
The entry to the church was not far away, right under the inscription, "DUC IN ALTUM", which translates "go/cast/put out into THE DEEP". So let's go into THE DEEP.
Upon entering, we see a round atrium or narthex. It has a baptismal fount in the center that's beneath a ceiling mural of a close-up of praying hands from what appears to be the miraculous image of Our Lady of Guadalupe.
There were four chapels, two on each side of the narthex. Each chapel had distinct artwork behind their altars.
The main body of the church has a boat, which is appropriate for setting out into the deep.
The sides are flanked by what appeared to be paintings of the Apostles.
I may have considered getting closer to the artwork, but I saw a man who looked like he was touching up or restoring one of the paintings. But considering the site is so new, I suppose it's possible he may have been creating the artwork. I didn't ask.
We then went downstairs. There is a room that's made of rock. It turns out this was the main marketplace for the ancient city of Magdala. A guide told us about the site. The large mural in the background depicts the hemorrhaging woman who touched the cloak of Jesus and was healed. The spark of light appears at her fingertip in the work of art.
Outside, many people forgot or almost forgot to check out the huge mosaic that forms a map of the land of Galilee. I walked around it and took several photos to get closer to parts of it. The size of it may be more apparent when you get to the photos I flipped upside down and some people appear in the background.
It was time to get back to the bus so we could ride back to the hotel. I wasn't sure how far away the hotel was, nor in which direction. And night had fallen. So this is not a good time to miss the bus. We walked back through the path of palms and olives.
I really liked the look of this olive tree.
I stood under one tree, looking up at the moon, seeing the olive tree above me, and a palm tree towering above it.
I took a more distant photo of the center, not including the church, with the ruins in the foreground.
We boarded the bus and started to head back to the hotel. We noticed we didn't head back to the main road, though. We were back at the hotel about two minutes later. It's barely more than a mile away from our hotel! It's about 1.2 miles away. That may have been worth walking, except that I'd want to get any items off the bus that I might have brought with me that day.
So we were back at The Sea of Galilee Hotel. We had a little time before we ate, as usual. The meal was good, as usual. It's a huge buffet.
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| Main Courses |
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| Side Items |
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| Some of the Desserts |
But there was a couple who had their anniversary. So we had a cake just for that. It was also the birthday of a close relative of mine that was not on the trip, so I told him that I had cake for his birthday.
 |
| Let Jim Eat Cake! |
The night was not eventful after that. No missile attacks against Syria or anything else serious (near-rhyme intended). The next morning, we would check out, go to the Mount of Transfiguration, and then head south to some sites and end the day in Jerusalem, where we would check into our final hotel for the trip, which would serve as our hotel for the many remaining days.
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