Beyond Jerusalem

It was impossible not to go the Dead Sea. As a matter of fact, I was there twice within 10 days. To my surprise, there was such a big difference between two beaches. I really liked hot sulfur spring, the water was at least 30° C /86° F. 

One of the tours to the Dead Sea was combined with a visit to Masada, the site of the zealot's rebellion against the Romans in the 1st century. Interestingly enough, Talmud does not mention Masada and the story of Masada was not present in Jewish history until late 19th century. Moshe Dayan  initiated the practice of holding the swearing-in ceremony of soldiers who have completed their IDF basic training on top of Masada. The ceremony ends with the declaration: "Masada shall not fall again." (Sorry, this whole piece is borrowed...). 

I wanted to go Bethlehem, but decided against it at the end. The place is under Palestinian control and trips there are a logistical nightmare (Israelis are not allowed inside Palestinian Territories). On top of this I did not feel very safe going there. I guess I felt like Dima in Damascus 5 years ago:)

Nazareth and Sea of Galilee were left for the next trip - stay tuned.