We began Day 5 (Friday, June 14, three weeks ago today) boarding our bus with all our luggage for a day of sightseeing and a move to Jerusalem. Yardenit Our first stop, a very short one, was at Yardenit, a baptismal site on the Jordan River. No one from our group had requested to be… Continue reading Israel Trip – Day 5 (Galilee, Jordan Valley, Jerusalem)
We left Banias, with the road taking us farther up into the Golan Heights. From the bus window I captured these Golan Heights vistas with terraced olive orchards and other gardens—quite beautiful. Vistas of terraced hillsides in the Golan Heights (Photos © 2019 by V.Nesdoly) We stopped for a late lunch at Alsultan Restaurant where… Continue reading Israel Trip – Day 4 (Golan Heights)
Capernaum Capernaum (“Capharnaum, The Town of Jesus”) was our next stop. It was to Capernaum Jesus went after his native Nazareth rejected Him (Matthew 4:13). Capernaum was the centre of Jesus’ Galilean ministry and the site of many of His miracles. Again, there were many ruins. Remains of Peter’s house, where his mother-in-law was healed… Continue reading Israel Trip -Day 4 (Capernaum, Caesarea Philippi)
Day four (June 13th) saw us on the bus bright and early, leaving our Tiberias hotel to experience the Sea of Galilee. We started our day with a visit to the ancient boat, found preserved some years ago, in the mud of Galilee and now, carefully bolted together, kept in a climate-controlled space at the… Continue reading Israel Trip – Day 4 (Sea of Galilee)
Our last visit of the day was to Magdala. This is the site of an archeological dig which has unearthed an early synagogue as well as more remains of ancient life. It is also famous for being the city that Mary Magdalene was from. A beautiful church (Duc In Altum: “Put out into the deep”)… Continue reading Israel Trip – Day 3 (Magdala)
After Caesarea we left the coast, turning north and ascending Mt. Carmel to Muhraka, the site where Elijah fought the 400 prophets of Baal (1 Kings 18:30). At a quiet spot, Sara Lee read the story from the Bible, then we took in the vista seen from a viewing platform above the church on the… Continue reading Israel Trip – Day 3 (Mt. Carmel & Megiddo)
On day three (June 12) we hit the ground running. After an early breakfast, we boarded the bus with all our luggage and were on the road by 8:00 a.m. Our first stop was Caesarea Maritima (or Caesarea by the Sea—a port built by Herod). As our itinerary explained: “Here Pontius Pilate had his base,… Continue reading Israel Trip – Day 3 (Caesarea Maritima)
A bucket-list trip Earlier this year, I went on a trip of a lifetime. Visiting Israel has been on my bucket list for decades. My husband and I finally got there with a group from our church earlier this month. We left Vancouver June 10, toured June 11-18 and finished with a conference (Jerusalem Encounter)… Continue reading Israel Trip – 1
It’s been really quiet here as I’ve switched my focus from writing to learning to draw. (Somehow the same creative muscles seem to be involved in both, and lately, learning to get things down visually has captured my interest.) However, there is a writing project that I’ve been working on since 2014—a sequel to my… Continue reading An end…and a beginning?
My One Little Word for 2018 is/was FOCUS. I wrote about what I expected my focus on FOCUS to do for me back on January 4th, and did a mid-year evaluation on July 5th. Since then I haven’t actually dwelt on my OLW a whole lot. But reading these two posts and looking back over… Continue reading 2018 in Focus (Spiritual Journey Thursday)
Violet Nesdoly 