Day 40 - Temple Mount, Masada, Dead Sea

Sunday, June 23, 2013

Our last day in Israel we tried to pack in as much as possible.  We got up early to get to Temple Mount right after it opened at 7:30.  We walked all over it but weren't allowed in the Dome of the Rock.  We were surprised that Muslims can enter Temple Mount via many gates, each with only one Muslim guard who just sits there as Muslims walk in.  But non-Muslims must pass through one gate with metal detectors and inspectors.

View of the Dome of the Rock Mosque from Temple Mount

Then we checked on Western Wall Tunnel tours (by reservation) and got a reservation for 9:00.  So we hung out at the Western Wall until then.  The tour was very educational and we saw stones and pavement actually laid by King Herod's workers.

The Western (Wailing) Wall

Then we caught a bus to Masada.  The bus trip took 2 hours, then we watched a video and rode the cable car to the top of the desert fortress.  King Herod actually built two palaces there with a swimming pool and huge storerooms full of supplies and weapons.  Nearly a century later, when Jewish rebels used it as a hideout they found the food still good, apparently due to the desert conditions.

Ruins of Herod's Northern Palace at Masada

Storeroom at Masada

Then we took a cab to the Ein Gedi park on the Dead Sea.  We floated and Jeff covered himself in the mud that has healing properties.  The water is so salty that one floats quite high.  The signs warn about immersing your head or swallowing the water.  A drop splashed in an eye is painful.  So swimming is backstroke only.  And every tiny scratch or sore on your body is irritated.  The water feels slightly slimey, like when you mix acid with base in chemistry class and create a salt solution.  And it was like warm bath water, so it wasn't even refreshing on this hot day.  We were glad to get out and wash it off.

Venturing into the Warm Dead Sea

Floating Like Corks on the Dead Sea

Jeff with some Healing Dead Sea Mud on Face

On the bus ride home we saw 3 camels, probably just for tourists, and several herds of goats and Bedouin camps.  Bedouins today don't live in fabric tents like in days of yore.  Corregated steel roofs seem more common although their homes are very simple.

Bedouin Village

Back at home we had another nice chat with Omer, our host, about Jewish practices, Israeli policies, traditions, and other topics.  We learned that he is a Levite raised in Reform Judaism, so he has rather liberal ideas.  Most Jews worry more about their own internal conflicts than about the Palestinian issues.  And Bedouin soldiers make great trackers.