Day 08 - Jordan: Allenby Bridge Border Crossing , Baptismal Site, Mount Nebo, Dead Sea

We picked up a new traveler today. He was standing there on the sidewalk as we passed by after crossing into Jordan and it looked like he might be a great addition to our group so we opened the door and let in Pastor Wayne. Okay, that was always the plan! Pastor Wayne has joined us in Jordan to teach the Jordanian sites and we are having a blast over here!

We began by going to the Lower Jordan baptismal site and seeing the spot that is probably close to where John baptized his cousin, Jesus. Oh, our bus driver's name in Jordan (at least in English) is Jesus! Couldn't ask for a better driver. And our guide Mohannad is incredibly knowledgable and has done a fantastic job leading us through the sites! Okay, back to the details. The baptismal site was fairly full and not representative of what the Jordan used to look like. However, it is a great place to talk about the purpose of baptism and spend some time considering why we do some of the things we do.

We boarded the bus once again and headed up the mountain. Look, I've driven a lot of mountain passes in my life (I used to live in Colorado and it's what you do) and this road was incredibly reminiscent of a Colorado mountain pass! Steep, curvy, lots of rocks, and the camels. Yep, just like Colorado. We were blessed to see a few groups of Bedouins with their animals and I've never seen a herd of camels quite like that.  It was really fun to see as we climbed the steep mountain to Madaba.

What is Madaba you say? I'm glad you asked. It's a large city (which before today I didn't know existed). St. George's church and one of the oldest surviving maps in the world are in Madaba and what a treat it was to get to see it in person! We ate an authentic lunch in Madaba and certainly did not leave hungry!

Then it was on to Mount Nebo. This is the place God led Moses to before his death. He was allowed to see the promised land, the place he had led the Israelites to on the other side of the Jordan river.  It was here that he would hand the baton of leadership to Joshua. This spot is fascinating because you can see so very much. Today, the skyline of Jerusalem if faintly visible on the horizon, and it is a really really long way away. There is also a 4th century church on the mountaintop with beautiful mosaics embedded in the floor.

With another day of the study tour wrapped up we piled back in the bus and trekked down the mountain to the Dead Sea where we did our best to sink and were all unsuccessful. We certainly had fun trying! All-in-all it was a great day and tomorrow will be one to write home about.

Petra, here we come!!!