Shalom everybody! Shalom means peace, and it's how the Jewish people greet each other. They say shalom when they say hello and welcome us, and they also say shalom when they say goodbye, wishing us peace. Isn't it a beautiful way to greet?
This is the second installment of my Israel trip in 2010, and even though it was already my third visit to the country, the excitement was the same as the first time I visited. I was so happy that more people wanted to visit the country after we promoted it.
Just some trivia about Israel. It is a very tiny nation, on the map, it is the size of a postage stamp. In actual size, it is roughly the size of the state of New Jersey in the US. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Egypt to the south, Jordan to the east and Syria and Lebanon to the north. The official languages are Hebrew and Arabic, but due to the diverse population, other languages like Russian, French, Spanish, Amharic and Yiddish are also spoken by minorities.
Join me again therefore, as I introduce to you this tiny yet vibrant nation, continuing from my first article. This is gonna be a walk down memory lane, as I share photos and stories about the places we visited.
This is still the first day we are discussing, and after we departed from Caesarea, we traveled to Megiddo next, and after that, Nazareth. So if you're ready, here we go.
This is Tel Megiddo. Tel in Hebrew means hill, so Tel Megiddo basically means the hill of Megiddo. Megiddo is located 30KM south of Haifa, and it is known for its historical, geographical and theological importance, especially under its Greek name, Armageddon.
This picture was taken at the bottom of the hill, after we got off the bus. In this area is a restaurant cum rest area.
Megiddo was located on the eastern slope of the Carmel range between Jokneam, and Taanach, 5 miles to the west. These three cities guarded passes through the range which provided access to the Plain of Megiddo to the coast.
There are pomegranate trees in the area as well, not to mention the pine trees you see in the background. This tree have small fruits, I wish I could have seen them when they were ready to be picked!
Because it controlled the middle and main valley from which the international highway passed, Megiddo was one of the most strategic cities at the time. So whoever controlled Megiddo can control pretty much the trade route.
Here is a description of the city gate in those times. During the Bronze Age, Megiddo was an important Canaanite city state, and during the Iron Age, it was a royal city in the Kingdom of Israel. King Solomon had stables in this city. In the picture we see that it had gates, so it was heavily fortified from possible invasions.
This used to be the pedestrian pathway people took as they went up the city. Megiddo drew much of its importance from its strategic location at the northern end of the Wadi Ara, which acts as a pass through the Carmel Ridge, and from its position overlooking the fertile Jezreel Valley. It was a very important trade route. Excavation unearthed 26 layers of ruins, one on top of the other, indicating long periods of settlement.
This pathway was the one used by carriages, and it is the pathway we took to go up. Imagine carriages transporting cargo- food, ammunition, and other supply through these gates. Walking on this path made my imagination run wild- envisioning everyday life back then.
On our way up, our guide asked us this question as he stopped by the stone structure in the picture. What did we think the stone was for? We gave guesses of course, and nothing came close to what it actually was. Can you guess? Since there were stables there, this was actually a watering trough for animals, and if you remember the birth of Jesus, He was laid in a manger, and that manger was something like this one!
Perhaps they lined the stone 'crib' with straw to make it softer, then covered it in swaddling cloths so the baby will not get itchy. Let your mind picture the scene, now that you know how it looks like.
As you get to the top, this is the view you see below, the Jezreel Valley, miles and miles of flatland, and there is a reference to it in the bible that it is going to be the place where the kings will gather their armies together. You can read this passage in the book of Revelation, chapter 16, starting from verse 12 until 16.
So, imagine multitudes of armies getting ready for battle, gathering together down in that valley. It is plausible, as the plain stretches as far as the eye can see.
During the first excavations, the archaeologists dug up a portion like a slice of pizza, not knowing that doing so destroyed quite a lot of artifacts, as there were multiple layers, 26 in all as previously stated. Once they knew that, they just dug it up bit by bit so as not to make any more damage.
What you see in the picture is a mound of stones. What do you think this is? It is actually an ancient altar, where they performed sacrifices during that time. Amazing that it stayed intact all through these years, don't you think?
This is a silo, which is a structure for grain storage. This is huge, and it had a diameter of several meters at least. There are stone steps on the sides to enable people to go up an down to get grain if they needed to.
Since it was November when went, the harvest time was just concluded, so we see the fields as they were. But other places we passed by were full of plants, vibrant, green and fresh.
The picture says that there is a water tunnel. They had to have a water source inside the city so that even in times of war, they'd still have water source and survive even if there is a siege. So what they did, is they created a passageway for them to be able to get to the water source at the other side of the city.
Since Megiddo is a hill, and a thriving community at the time, they had to have a source of water to survive, right? And what if there was a war and they were surrounded by the enemy? What if they'd have to go down to the valley to get water? That would be suicide, right? Here comes their ingenuity and engineering marvel.
We started walking down the stairs in a single file, and the elderly with us chose not to go, they just stayed in the bus and waited for us at the other side.
The climb down was quite steep and there were three elderly with us. It would have been very bad on their knees, especially after we started going down the shaft itself as the steps there were made of metal and they could be slippery at times.
We all had to be very careful, but we were also cracking jokes as we were walking down to make it more fun.
Once we descended, we came upon this tunnel, and at the end of it is the spring, which is the water source. Notice the tunnel did not cave in. That's because they coated the walls with tar, to make it waterproof, thus withstanding erosion. How did they know those things in those days? They were very creative indeed!
At the end of the tunnel, we came to this. The source of water. A tiny spring now, since of course water is no longer drawn from it. But for sure back in those days it would have produced abundant water for all to use. Isn't it surprising that it is still there to this day?
The Nazareth Village is an open air museum in the city of Nazareth that reconstructs and reenacts village life in the time of Jesus. The village is managed by the YMCA, and here we got a glimpse of how everyday life was in the time of Jesus. Before we went out to the village though, we had to pass an indoor display where we saw several displays, including the cross in the picture. Crosses we see these days are polished and cut into a certain shape, but back then it was just a tree branch, rugged, unpolished. In such a thing the Savior of the world was crucified for us.
There was also a display of the every day tools they used back then. There was also a display of the Roman armor, but I could not find the picture.
We got out of the building and we were greeted by warm sunshine, and an environment that seems to be back in time, with unpaved pathways, animals roving around, and olive trees and the like. In the picture we see children trying to pick olives from the tree.
This structure in the picture, if I remember correctly is a silo, a place where they store grain. It is made of stone, of course, and they line the inside with tar, which is the waterproofing agent they used back in those days.
See the donkey in between the olive trees? I only saw them in story books before, ha ha. When before I only saw olives from the grocery stores and olive oil already in bottles, it was such a joy to see what an olive tree looked like. These are memories of a lifetime indeed!
There were also people of the village, dressed the way people dressed then, doing everyday life back then. We saw this 'house', and these things were carpentry tools. Remember, Joseph, the earthly father of Jesus, was a carpenter. So here were some of the tools in use during those days. Let your imagination run wild.
This is the roof of a synagogue that they built, to complete the village. The whole building is made of stones, lined with tar again, of course. The tiny openings you see are the air vents, that provide air inside as well as sunlight.
This is the inside of the synagogue. Notice the air vents are way up there, not window level. In fact, there are no windows in the building, just those air vents. They provide ample natural light, and it was not humid inside at all. The pillars are made of stone, the walls a combination of clay, straw and tar. They had to recreate it as it was during the time of Jesus to give that authentic feel for visitors.
A synagogue serves as a school, a community center, and a place of worship, of course. So it is a multi-purpose building in the community.
The ceiling was made of reeds, reinforced by wood, and you see the clay on top. Clay was used because clay does not insulate heat, that way, the inside will not be too hot during the hottest times of the day or the summer months. The reeds add to the coolness as well, plus the air vents, so there was air circulating inside.
There was also a scroll, from which they read bible verses back then. They did not have the printed bible then. They had the verses written in scrolls like the one in the picture.
Do you have any idea what this thing is? By the way, the village did not recreate this thing. It was discovered there, which was an added bonus. This is actually a wine press. Wait, wait, wait, wine press, I say? Yup, you read that right. The lady standing there is the guide taking us around the village and she works there.
In the place where she is standing is where they would put the grapes. And then, people, barefoot, would tread on the grapes to squeeze the juice out. Why do they need to be barefoot? If they were wearing boots or some other kind of shoes, the seeds will also be crushed, making the juice bitter. of course they would have washed their feet and made sure they were clean before they started treading on them!
From that place, there are tiny canals, although here in the picture it is not so visible as it is limestone, and the juices from the grapes will flow and collected into this hole. It would then be collected into casks for it to go through the process of fermentation and become wine. Amazing, right?
Here are some of the animals we encountered in the village. We had fun taking pictures of them, especially for the ones who have not seen animals up close before. These are goats by the way.
This is a cistern which is 8 meters deep. This was also discovered in the village, not built by the museum. Rainwater would be collected in here so that they would have water during the dry months.
The rainwater would be collected in this basin first to let the sediments settle down at the bottom and then it would flow into the cistern which is lined with tar to waterproof it. That way, the village would still have water to use during the dry months.
This olive tree is very old- at least several hundred years old. You know an olive tree is old by the size of its trunk. Olive trees are very sturdy- even if an olive grove is burned, the trees do not die totally. They will bear shoots again, growing and growing, and they can grow in any environment.
Here is a close up picture of the olive fruits. When I traveled to Australia, we picked an olive from a tree and tried eating it just to try how it tasted like raw- it was very bitter. We had to go and buy some candies and water to wash away the bitter taste. Olives are fruits that cannot be eaten raw, they have to be pickled/processed to become edible. Unless there is another way that I don't know about.
Here are some more animals, this time sheep. And we also see the goats in the picture. The kids were having fun petting them, and we had fun taking pictures of them.
Speaking of olives, aside from eating them after they have been pickled, olive oil is also a by-product. Olive oil was used in the temple in those days, for offerings, for fuel for the menorah, which was the 'candelabra' in those days. So how was oil produced?
The thing you see in the picture is an olive press. It is two pieces of stone slabs, one on top and one on the bottom. The top one is positioned vertically, and in the center is a wooden pole.
Here is a bigger picture. The olives would be put in the lower stone, and the one on top will be moved to crush the olives. Imagine how rigorous and painstaking the process is. The man is pushing the wooden pole for the stone to move. But what if you are processing several kilos of olives? When will it be finished?
Tada! Here comes the helpful donkey! The animal can help with the workload. But can you imagine how tedious it was to do those things back then? Nowadays we have modern machinery to do the work for us but back then everything had to be done manually. The first oil, which is of course the purest form, was used in the temple. The second squeeze was used for cooking, the third to be used as oil in lamps, and the pits were used as fuel for cooking, much like firewood. Nothing was ever wasted.
Just had to take a picture with the man pressing the olives and the donkey as well, ha ha.
This is the front of the church and we can see it is full of Latin inscriptions, and I suppose that is about the annunciation.
Outside the church, there are several mosaic images that represents various countries of the annunciation, and I took a picture of the one for Philippines of course.
We left the church and went to our second hotel during the trip, the Royal Plaza Hotel in Tiberias.
Will end this article here, but stay tuned for the next installment, and for more travel articles, please go to this page.
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