A Day on the Dead Sea

Shabbat Shalom! This morning as we drove to Masada, Chris gave a devotional on our bus. He gave an overview of the book of Romans then landed on Romans 9-11 where Paul focuses on Israel. Something that struck me was when he talked about the wild olive trees being grafted into the cultivated olive trees. Being in Israel and seeing olive trees all around, this part of Scripture really came to life.

The road we were on went through the desert then we turned right and rode along the Dead Sea. I loved the view along that road. Our first stop was the AHAVA factory where they make Dead Sea beauty products. Because it was Shabbat, the factory was closed. But the store was open which was great news for the women but not so much for the men!

As we continued on our drive our guide pointed out En Gedi, where David came upon Saul in a cave and did not kill him. This is one of my favorite places in all of Israel. There are beautiful waterfalls and a spectacular view of the Dead Sea. Unfortunately, we weren’t able to stop. Tito also points out ibex, a small goat-looking animal that is just plain adorable if you ask me! The last thing he pointed out was a hotel set very far back from the sea. There were umbrellas set up and he said the hotel used to be along the shore of the Dead Sea. It just shows how the Dead Sea is evaporating.

We arrived at Masada and took a cable car up to the top. I was especially thankful for this because the last time I was here we hiked to the top! The trip took about an hour to hike and the cable car took about 2 minutes. Tito tells us everything we know about Masada is because of the Jewish historian Josephus. When looking out you can see the Dead Sea on one side and desert wilderness on the other side.

As we toured the top, Tito described how Herod’s palace looked. He then explained how the Romans built a ramp to get to the Jewish rebels that were barricaded in the palace. It is a truly incredible and sad story.

On our way back down, about 10 of us hiked down instead of taking the cable car. It was much easier to go down than up however, the descent was steep but the views were worth it!

We had lunch at the bottom of Masada in the cafeteria.

Our next stop was the Qumran Caves where the Dead Sea Scrolls have been found. We watched a short video on the Yahad community that lived there. These were the scribes who wrote the scrolls. We took time to look around at the ruins. There is a beautiful view of the sea.

Our final refreshing stop was the Dead Sea! Only a third of us took the plunge and floated! The water was a little chilly but refreshing after being in the hot desert sun all day. It was fun to float in the water. The minerals in the sea make your skin feel oily. Some people covered themselves in the mud. After we rinsed off and changed we headed back to the hotel for dinner. After dinner some of us did a little shopping. Can’t believe tomorrow is our last full day here!