Day 2 in Israel

I am running slightly behind here but hopefully I will be able to catch up after dinner in the Old City of Jerusalem tonight, though we did befriend some young Israelis who want to party with some Americans...

Regardless, on Thursday, our second day in Israel, we took a Biblical tour around the Sea of Galilee. We drove through Tiberias on our way to Capernaum, the ancient residence of Peter and Jesus as well. Apparently after the failure of the Crusades to take the Holy Land by force, the Pope order the Franciscans to secure holy sites throughout Israel and the surrounding area to preserve the sites for pilgrimage through more subtle means. The Franciscans began buying up sites like Capernaum and the area of the Sermon on the Mount. Hence, there is a monastery and a Catholic Church at Capernaum.

After observing Peter's home we ascended the hill adjacent to Capernaum where the Sermon on the Mount took place. The Church of the beatitudes stands here now with a convent and a monastery.

We then returned to our Kibbutz and swam in the Sea of Galilee. It was surreal to imagine Christ calling his Apostles here, calming the sea, and walking on water. Disclaimer: The Sea of Galilee is not a "sea." It is more like the Great Lakes but much warmer.

Following our swim we ascended into the Golan Heights near our hotel. The Golan was held by Syria until the 1967 War when Syria was bombarding Israeli towns and shooting people in the Galilee from the Heights. From a mountain in the Golan we were able to observe the Syrian-Israeli border. Interesting note: Knowledge of the border is not needed to see the border. the cultivated land is Israel; the non-cultivated land is Syria.

After the Golan we went to dinner on the Galilee and learned from an IDF reservist who wrote the Israeli infantry and paratrooper training handbook. He also appears on TV, teaches, and speaks in the US and around the world on the Middle East and the War on Terrorism.

We then returned to our Kibbutz for some much needed sleep before heading in to Jerusalem.

Note: We appear to be in the midst of a heat wave here in Israel. Temperatures are expect to break 100 with over 50% humidity. It is very hot!