The Greek Islands Aegina

We caught the metro to the port and boarded one of the many ferries travelling to the Argo-Saronic Islands. Angina is the closest island to the mainland and took one hour and twenty minutes to reach on a very nice ferry about half the size of the inter-islander.The weather was quite cool being winter,so could only imagine what it would be like in summer,the water was clear , and the island is famous for pistachio nuts which are for sale everywhere.The Cyclades are what everyone thinks of as quintessentially Greek White villages and blue-domed churches,these islands are further  out to sea.We still enjoyed our island excursion.

Athens Part 1

With the adventure nearing an end we started our return home with four days sightseeing in this ancient city. We are in walking distance to the Acropolis and for me more exciting to Mars Hill where the Apostle Paul preached in Acts 17 . The photo shows the huge solid rock which in Greek is called Areopagus.

Mars Hill!

Outside our hotel!

The Golan Heights

We joined  with some locals from Lavon and had a lovely walk through some abandoned Syrian houses when the land was returned to Israel in the 1967 war, interestingly enough when the Syrians were there they still called the area Yehudiya. The walk took us down a steep gorge were we had lunch and in the afternoon we returned and visited Amitai and Anat and family. We had a great day exploring the 'Golan Heights' and catching up with old friends.

Yehudiya waterfall!

Nazareth

Spent a wonderful day with Dalia and Efi Cohen (our friends whom we have been living with this past week) exploring Nazareth and its surrounding areas. Luke 4:29 speaks of the hill where the crowd tried to push Jesus over the cliff, Mt Precipice. This may have been the place where this event occurred, either way the view was majestic. Mt Tabor where the transfiguration happened could be seen in the distance, Mathew 17.
        Recent renovations to the Russian Orthodox Church uncovered a labyrinth of ancient Jewish caves/ houses beneath the surface with tunnels used for hiding from the Romans. This was a highlight. A Jewish saying is "you cannot dig anywhere without having your ancestors on your back "
       We had lunch with Shaked Cohen, falafel of course....

The Bedouin

This afternoon Liz and I wandered over the hills and watched the Bedouin who were tending their goats in amongst the rocks. They are based nearby in a small community and it makes for an interesting walk.

The North Of Israel

Have spent the last week  staying with our friends in Lavon, exploring the local sights, and relaxing. Yesterday we visited a nearby Druze village and had breakfast cooked for us by a lovely Druze lady called Zina; She rises every morning and prepares and bakes pita bread from home. We explored the village and then returned to her house and drank coffee, she had roasted the beans herself. Peki'in was the name of the village.Kabala was started in a local cave by a Rabbi in hiding for twelve years following the Barkochva revolution in AD132. We ate from the carob tree in front of the cave. There is a Jewish lady living in the town. Her family has been living  there since the revolution, her family name is Zeynatis.        

                                                             

Jerusalem

Our apartment for the week was 15 minutes walk to the old city. We overlooked the Hinom valley and could see the Mount of Olives. As a base it was great, one day we walked to David's city and walked through Hezekiahs tunnel, at times during the half kilometre trek we were thigh deep in water. Another day we drove to the Dead Sea for a warm float and then afterwards crossed the road to En Gedi. The Dead Sea always fascinates me as in the bible in Ezekiel 47.10 prophesies that the Dead Sea will one day be full of fish. We enjoyed getting lost in the markets, the Orthodox Jews at the wailing wall, and the hustle and bustle of different cultures. We visited the garden of Gethsemene and walked over the Mount of Olives. Had an interesting discussion with a religious Jew, I asked him the significance of the strange hand signals on some of the tomb stones. He told me that he was a Cohen and that sign is put on the graves of Cohens; he allowed me to take his photo and share the good news with him.

The Negev Desert and Mitzpe Ramon

The dramatic landscapes in the desert are breathtaking .Mitzpe Ramon is a crater 300m deep 8km wide and 40km long. We left Eilat and followed the separation fence with Egypt for a few kilometers before putting our wee rental car through its paces on the hill climb through the desert, stunning landscape.

Eilat

 Spent three days swimming with the tropical fish and soaking up the suns rays.Enjoyed sitting on the beach with the view of Egypt Jordan and Israel, on a good day apparently Saudi Arabia is also visible. Interesting knowing that out there in the Red Sea the Israelites escaped Egypt the horse and rider thrown into the sea.

Gabrielle’s Bedouin Excursion to the Rose City- Petra, Jordan

I awoke at the crack of dawn to join a busload of elderly Mexican Americans on a daytrip to one of the new 7 wonders of the world. After crossing the border without too much fuss we set out on a majestic 2 hour ride, passing through Aqaba and incredible desert scenery. Petra did not disappoint expectations. Miles of red rock lined small narrow walkways, zigzagging through the stunning valley. Step by step we eagerly approached the end of one high narrow canyon. The rock-cut Treasury slowly revealed its jaw–dropping grandeur. It was established possibly as early as 312BC as the capital city of the Nabataeans. It was fantastic being able to wander the old streets, and explore some of the old carved out tombs, houses, and palaces. All the tourists and local Bedouin men were very friendly and having a ride on Jack the donkey was a great way to end the day.               



Beersheba

We arrived as Shabbat was ending and stayed with Mara and Yermi and their lovely family. It was great to witness the prayers at the end of Shabbat and there traditions,in closing they hand around a spice box to smell,the reason being to start the week with a nice fragrance in your senses,nothing biblical just a nice tradition.Abraham named this town which means well of the oath,you find it in Genesis 21.30 Mara is a social worker helping some Bedouin women and Yermi is a retired banker who is studying the Talmud.



Israel, Tel Aviv

We stayed with some friends we hosted in New Zealand three years ago, Aharon and Hanna. They invited some other people we hosted, Abraham and Judy. We shared a meal together with them, it was great to catch up. We also visited the 2013 press photography photo exhibition in Tel Aviv. We were amazed to see not only incredible photos, but also the photographs of one of the award winning photographers, Kobi Wolf. Kobi was an Israeli guy we hosted in 2002.

We loved catching up with shahar and his family. We shared a great shabat meal.

Thessaloniki

We caught the six o'clock bus and crossed the border into Greece, excited to visit the city made famous by the apostle Paul. We loved some of the thousand year old graffiti on church walls, and some of the more recent additions on the city walls. Many of the streets here are lined with fruit trees and the waterfront is very nice.

 

 

Old Art!

New Art!

Waterfront!

 

 

 

Macedonia

And now the word of The Lord is ringing out from you people everywhere, even beyond Macedonia and Achaia, for wherever we go we find people telling us about your faith in God.
1 Thessalonians Ch1v8
We are just about to go out to church here in Skopje. It is Christmas Eve here for the Orthodox Church. Our adult children are hitting us up for Christmas stockings again (forever optimistic).
     Macedonia is full of beautiful statues which are huge, and it is famous as the birthplace of Mother Theresa. It is also famous as Alexander the Great came through here and there are statues everywhere.