"Everything is So Close!"

Leaving Jerusalem - ah, seems so soon. How can one get a handle on this ancient city in such a short time? At least I was blessed o be here at all. I have had deep and meaningful experiences - this trip is so rich I hope I can process most of it. This morning we leave the hotel and head east. Going through a tunnel under Mount Scopus, we emerge in the desert, only six minutes from the hotel! The watershed runs smack through Jerusalem.

First we see the ancient inhabitants of this desert, people whose ways have changed little for millenia, the Bedouins. Roaming the desert, these nomads have adapted to whatever culture and nature have thrown at them. Today they use corrugated tin to roof their supply sheds and 'portable' horse stalls. They use wooden pallets to fence in their sheep and goats. Beyond the Bedouin we see farms - some are Israeli settlements, some are Palestinian. Today there is a peaceful co-existence those of us from the West might not expect from the way this land is portrayed in the news. Yet where farmer and shepherd meet reminds me of the story of Cain (the farmer) and Abel (the shepherd) and the timeless conflicts between them.

These sandy hills remind me of the desert Southwest - Nevada, Arizona, Utah - yet less colorful. We quickly pass by Jericho, and as we approach the Jordan River we turn South on route 90, the longest road in Israel (only 300 miles), stretching from Egypt to Lebanon. Route 90 provides astounding views of the great fault that stretches East/West from Jordan to Israel, North/South from Lebanon to Zimbabwe. This fault produces the valley in which the Jordan River. (http://www.eyeonisrael.com/)

We are in Palestinian Authority territory as soon as we leave Jerusalem. Our first stop is a kibbutz that makes Ahava cosmetics, products made using the curative properties of the Dead Sea. From there we go to the sight of one of history's most poignant battles - the Masada (http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/Judaism/masada.html) The Masada is a 3000 foot high plateau above the Dead Sea where partisans from the rebellion against Rome fled in 68 CE.

The Masada was a mighty fortress built by Herod in 10 BCE, complete with 16 huge cisterns and dozens of storehouses - one needn't leave the mount for a year at a time if it was properly stocked with food, water and weapons. The nearly 1000 Jews who fled Jerusalem to the Masada in 68 CE hoped to keep a Jewish presence near Jerusalem, praying the Romans would become occupied with other matters. Their prayers were not answered. In 70 CE, 8000 Roman troops came and laid siege to it, and on the eve of the Romans taking the fort, the Jews committed mass suicide instad of being taken into Roman slavery. The modern Israeli secret service is called the Mossad after this battle; their motto is "The Masada shall never fall again."

Anya and I wanted to walk up the mountain, but our tour was so tightly scheduled we didn't have the extra 90 minutes it would take. Boo-hoo (wah!)

Next we went to our hotel for the night, a humble little inn on the Dead Sea (not! see it: http://www.tamareshotels.co.il/e/daniel_dead_sea/). This world class resort is the fanciest place I've ever stayed in. Plush white robes, stunning views of the Dead Sea, a seeming never-ending supply of food, massages, spas, black-mud facials, very large Russians in very tiny bathing suits .... This place was packed mostly with Europeans; the Europeans health care systems pay to send folks to the Dead Sea for medicinal holidays. And they wonder why we cry for Health Care on the USA!

Swimming - well, floating - in the Dead Sea is an experience everyone should have. The high mineral content makes people float no matter their size, shape or weight. It is a truly magical experience. I was "standing" in the water with no effort to keep my head above the surface, the bottom ten meters below. Because of the mineral content, nothing can live there; and don't get the water in your eyes (they'll burn) or drink it (it's awful). When one gets out of the water one feels a film over one's body, and one's skin gets so soft. It even alleviates acne and athletes' foot!

Afterwards we had a much too large dinner, shared a glass of wine with some of our tour-mates, and went to bed early after another full day. It turns out one of our tour-mates runs programs for at-risk teens on Long Island. He has even received grants from the Unitarian Universalist Funding Committee through our VEATCH program, funds provided by mineral rights left as an endowment to the UU Congregation at Shelter Rock, but that tale is for another day.

Shalom,

Rev Scott