Before breakfast we placed our luggage outside our units at the kibbutz so the gentleman could load the bus for our departure. By this time our group had bonded quite well and we were all enjoying our new friendships. I knew only 3 people in the tour group before we left Atlanta 5 days ago, but now I was traveling with 25 good friends, including Yuval and Bambi.


Our first tour of the day was Bet She'an, the Greek Scythopolis dating back to the 4th century BC. It was an important stop for caravans and a center of Egyptian rule. Excavations have uncovered impressive remains from the Roman and Byzantine periods including a theater, downtown government buildings and streets lined with shops, and well preserved mosaics.



To visit our next few stops, we had to enter into the West Bank. The fence, checkpoints and military presence, albeit a bit intimidating, was fascinating to witness. It was also very interesting to see the Bedouins along the way with herds of camels and goats.  

It was two young Bedouin shepherds, searching for a lost goat, who accidentally discovered several ancient manuscripts in a cave at Qumran. This discovery (1947) was the most exciting archaeological find of this century.


From Qumran we made our way to Ein Gedi.

"And David went up from thence, and dwelt in the strongholds at Ein Gedi."  Samuel 1:23-29

Ein Gedi means "Spring of the Young Goat", and many ibexes (mountain goats) can be seen here. I also spotted a few Rock Hyraxes, small furry animals I erroneously called "groundhogs".

Ein Gedi is famous for its springs and waterfalls.  The slightly more difficult hike to the "David Waterfall" was well worth it.

Our next stop was Masada, a fascinating mountain where 960 Jewish defenders organized the last resistance to the Roman Conquerors. Herod the Great built and fortified Masada. After eating lunch in the restaurant there, we ascended the mountain by cable car to see the excavated remains of storerooms, cisterns, bathhouses, synagogue, and a part of a beautiful mosaic floor.  I was captivated by the spectacular views of the Dead Sea.  

Before heading to Jerusalem, we stopped off at a spa on the Dead Sea for a float in the salty waters.

We bugged Yuval all day about a camel ride.  He acted like he had no idea what we were talking about and said, "we will see."  On our way to Jerusalem that evening, he just happened to see a couple of guys at a gas station selling rides on their small camel. We cheered as Bambi pulled the bus into the parking lot!  It was dark and we were tired and dirty from the long day or touring and floating in salt and minerals, but we were getting our camel ride after all!!