Israel trip(episode12〜Epilogue)

Thursday.15th. February. 2018

Continuation from episode 11

Riding camels

After visiting Ein Avdat national park, we went to the Bedouin lodging facility “Sfinat Midbar” for lunch. It is nearby Beersheba.
Lunch was very good.
The facility also provided camel ride service. So we were able to ride camels. It was really a fun and great experience.

Jaffa (Joppa)

In the evening we went to Jaffa, an ancient port city.

918 — Cityscape of Jaffa (I took this photo from the bus)

921 — The bell tower of St. Peter’s Church

This is the House of Simon the Tanner. At this place Peter saw heaven open up and the large sheet in a vision.

9 The next day as Cornelius’s messengers were nearing the town, Peter went up on the flat roof to pray. It was about noon, 10 and he was hungry. But while a meal was being prepared, he fell into a trance. 11 He saw the sky open, and something like a large sheet was let down by its four corners. 12 In the sheet were all sorts of animals, reptiles, and birds. 13 Then a voice said to him, “Get up, Peter; kill and eat them.”

14 “No, Lord,” Peter declared. “I have never eaten anything that our Jewish laws have declared impure and unclean.”

15 But the voice spoke again: “Do not call something unclean if God has made it clean.” 16 The same vision was repeated three times. Then the sheet was suddenly pulled up to heaven. (Acts10:9~16 NLT)

Heading home

After visiting Jaffa(Joppa), we had to head home.
One week went by so quickly.

We stayed at 4 hotels (2 overnight flights). I really enjoyed this trip. And I believe this experience will be my food for my soul in the future.

I walk slowly, but I never walk backward

It’s been 7 months since I started studying English again.

But I still can not use English well.

Well…, I guess that’s natural.

Actually I haven’t been studying English for about 24 years.

Don’t be in a hurry. Take it easy.And keep on learning Englsh.

And I have to say this.

My Singaporean girlfriend has been teaching me English everyday for about 6 months. It’s practically everyday! I really appreciate her.

By the way, the title is quote from Abraham Lincoln.

Israel trip(episode11)

Thursday.15th. February. 2018

Masada

In the morning we went to Masada.

Masada is the ancient fortification that was originally built by Jewish people when they were occupied by the Greek around 120 B.C.

Herod the Great defeated the Greeks and made it a refuge for himself.

Masada had been an unknown and legendary place until a German archaeologist found it in 1838.

This fort is well known as the place where the Jewish–Roman War was broken out.(around 66–73 CE.)

As a result, Jewish people were defeated by the Roman empire.

But anyway, they barricaded themselves in the fort for many years. It’s said that there’s palace, Synagogue, large public bath, big warehouses, water supply facilities and so on. It’s incredible.

789_1 — This view of nature is really wonderful.

771 — You can see the dead sea from this fort.

DSCN2059

When we were there, A group of Jewish students group came on a school trip.And they began to dance and sing loudly.

Then someone of us said “Oh this reminds me of David dancing in the Bible”. I thought it was an interesting expression.

14 Wearing a linen ephod, David was dancing before the Lord with all his might, 15 while he and all Israel were bringing up the ark of the Lord with shouts and the sound of trumpets.

16 As the ark of the Lord was entering the City of David, Michal daughter of Saul watched from a window. And when she saw King David leaping and dancing before the Lord, she despised him in her heart. (2 Samuel 6:14-16)

797 — We met a Rabbi by chance. He was transcribing the Bible by hand.

809 — The Jewish set many traps in the fort. This passage come to a dead end.

814

En Avedat national park

821

This is a canyon in the Negev Desert of Israel. It’s also an oasis.

What a wonderful scene!

It is also sculpture which was created by God. Anyway we can feel God when we felt the breath of the nature. It’s very important.

Israel trip(episode10)

I haven’t been writing the blog about the Israel trip. Well…it’s because it takes long time to organize the photos. And it also takes long time to write in English.

Anyway, I wrote somehow today. (But it’s just a point of the trip.)

Wednesday.14th. February. 2018

On the way to Jericho

On this day, we headed to Jericho by bus.

676 — The date palm trees at the resting place.
There are a lot of date palm trees in Israel (in Arab area).

678 — The tank which became the object.
The deep scars of the Arab–Israeli conflict…

Mount of Temptation

691 — Mount of Temptation. Jesus wrestled with temptation of the devil for 40 days here.

692 — The skyline from the Mount of Temptation

695 — The ancient ruin of Jericho, which is told as the oldest city.

Tree of Zacchaeus

702 — Tree of Zacchaeus (A fig tree. Near by the city of Jericho)

Of course It’s not the real Tree of Zacchaeus, I think. But there must have been his tree around here.

1 Jesus entered Jericho and made his way through the town. 2 There was a man there named Zacchaeus. He was the chief tax collector in the region, and he had become very rich. 3 He tried to get a look at Jesus, but he was too short to see over the crowd. 4 So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore-fig tree beside the road, for Jesus was going to pass that way.
5 When Jesus came by, he looked up at Zacchaeus and called him by name. “Zacchaeus!” he said. “Quick, come down! I must be a guest in your home today.”
6 Zacchaeus quickly climbed down and took Jesus to his house in great excitement and joy. 7 But the people were displeased. “He has gone to be the guest of a notorious sinner,” they grumbled.
8 Meanwhile, Zacchaeus stood before the Lord and said, “I will give half my wealth to the poor, Lord, and if I have cheated people on their taxes, I will give them back four times as much!”
9 Jesus responded, “Salvation has come to this home today, for this man has shown himself to be a true son of Abraham. 10 For the Son of Man came to seek and save those who are lost.”

http://bible.com/111/luk.19.1-10.niv