You are here: Home / Archives for Dead Sea

Ibex on My Bonnet

August 19, 2010 By 1 Comment

There are some days as a guide that will always be remembered. Today was such a day.
Despite the incredible heat my tour today went to Ein Gedi, Masada and the Dead Sea.

I have been there more times than I can remember. The reason we visit is to walk up through the Nahal David Canyon, to the
fresh water pools and the waterfalls. In the middle of the desert. But for many of us it is also the opportunity to see the wild life, such ad the ibex and the hyrax.

Today was no different, except as we turn in toward the parking lot a great herd of ibex was feeding along side the road. Breathtaking as usual. We of course stopped to admire these exquisite animals, who are shy but not really afraid of people.

After a while we tore ourselves away, and I drove into the parking lot, and I was lucky to find a space under a tree that would give shade to the car. One of my tourists was the first out of the car, but within seconds she jumped back in, saying: What is that? pointing to the front of the car.

There, on the bonnet of my car stood a magnificent male ibex. I never saw him, as I pulled into the parking space, but he must have seen me immediately, and said: “Well, how nice of her to park right there. I can use the car to reach the leaves of that tree much easier”. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Nature and National Parks, Recent Articles, Videos Tagged With: , , ,

Qumran of the Dead Sea Scrolls

August 13, 2010 By Leave a Comment

The site of Qumran is located a little inland on the north western shores of the Dead Sea. It lies on a low plateau at the foot of the mountains of Judea, a plateau made up of lime-rich marlstone.

The name Qumran is clouded in the fog of time. The site has been known to modern scholars since the middle of the 19th century. The rather large cemetary at the foot of the plateau was the main point of interest.

Discovery of Qumran
All of this changed in 1947, when some ancient scrolls came to light, found in caves surrounding the ruins. These were the first of many scrolls and fragments that today make up the Dead Sea Scrolls. Soon afterwards new exploration and surveys were made of the area led by Roland de Vaux, under the auspices of the Jordanian government. This was eventually followed by full scale excavations, again by Roland de Vaux. Since then many further excavations have taken place, each of them revealing new insights. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Dead Sea, Recent Articles Tagged With: , ,

The Jordan River

July 16, 2010 By 1 Comment

For all its fame the Jordan River is not really a river. At least not when compared to the really great rivers of the world, and even the Middle East, such as the Mississippi, the Nile and the Euphrates. And still it is known my more people than most of the great rivers.

Songs have been written, stories are told, traditions and important events are told again and again. And against this there are other aspects to this venerated old river.

No one today will see it in its whole length, but only snatches and bits and pieces. In some places you may see fast flowing waters where modern water fun can be entertained. In other places a slowly meandering old river venerated for its religious importance.

The Upper Jordan River

The Jordan River runs from its sources Dan, Banias and Hazbani at the foot of the Hermon Mountain via the Sea of Galilee and empties out in the Dead Sea, for a total length of 320 km. The first part from the sources to the Sea of Galilee is also known as the Upper Jordan River. This part is some 80 km in length and has a steep drop from app. 343 m above sea level (near Banias) to 214 m below sea level (Sea of Galilee). [Read more...]

Filed Under: Galilee and Golan, Recent Articles, Videos Tagged With: , ,

Dead Sea Flash Flood

March 27, 2010 By 2 Comments

We were on our way back to Jerusalem from touring Masada. What we experienced yesterday is one more reason, why I never get tired of touring to the Dead Sea.

We were lucky, just as we started heading back toward the cable car, we had one of the rare experiences – it started to rain. To begin with just dripping, but before we got to the cable car, it was pouring.

The shelter is built to give shade, not against a desert torrential downpour, so we and all the other people waiting to go down got pretty drenched. Still, an experience, so we took it in our stride. We also knew that within long we would be indoors, and heading toward the car.

It kept raining, but I was not worried. After all it had been dry the better part of the day. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Dead Sea, Nature, Recent Articles Tagged With: , ,

Storm on the Dead Sea

February 4, 2010 By Leave a Comment

0302201015922

As a tour guide I am always on the road. I see the same places again and again. But every so often land and nature give me surprises.That happened yesterday, as I was touring Masada and the Dead Sea.

On purpose we had chosen yesterday to go to Masada and the Dead Sea. Weather forecast was for rain and storm, and the previous days had been just glorious. It’s always good to get out of Jerusalem, when there is that kind of forecast. At least down at the Dead Sea there is less chance of rain. After all, it only rains 5-10 days a year in the southern part and a little more in the northern part.

Despite the extraordinary strong wind we were able to see Masada in all its glory. And this time the starlings played along, and I was able to get a lot of good shots. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Dead Sea, Nature Tagged With: , , ,

The Dead Sea Scrolls Go Digital

August 31, 2009 By Leave a Comment
JERUSALEM, ISRAEL - AUGUST 27: A combination...

Image by Getty Images via Daylife

The Dead Sea Scrolls have been called the greatest biblical archeological find of the 20th century.

The scrolls were placed in caves at Qumran on the northwest shores of the Dead Sea, where they lay hidden in the hot, dry air for almost 2000 years, until they were accidentally discovered by a Bedouin.

Since the first scroll came to light in 1947, a total of 11 complete scrolls and some 15.000 fragments have come to light. Almost all of them are under the protection of the Israel Museum in Jerusalem and the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA).

Despite their age and the climate of where they were hidden, it is amazing that we even have this much. But they are fragile, and are kept in special vaults of the Israel Museum. This makes the reading and interpretation extremely difficult. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Jerusalem, Recent Articles Tagged With: , , ,

New Museum of Mosaics in the Inn of the Good Samaritan

July 10, 2009 By Leave a Comment

portrait-2For many months as I have been passing the old Turkish Inn on the road from Jerusalem to the Dead Sea, I have been wondering

Gaza Synagogue Mosaic

Gaza Synagogue Mosaic

what was being built. I am curious by nature, but I had no way to stop in and ask. But the cat is out of the bag.

In years gone by we used to stop at this place, as it had become known as the Inn of the Good Samaritan. The name is based on the parable by Jesus about the man that was robbed by highway robbers on his travel between Jericho and Jerusalem, and the treatment he received by various people passing by (Luke 10: 34-35). [Read more...]

Filed Under: Dead Sea, Jerusalem, Recent Articles Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

18th Maccabiah Games – Special Offer

July 9, 2009 By 3 Comments

We here at Your Guide to Israel want to honor all the athletes participating in the 18th Maccabiah Games here in Israel, as well as their families and friends.

Many of you come from far away. Many of you are here for the first time, many of you may have visited Israel before. But to all of you, being here is always exciting, and for athletes and their families it must be double exciting.

One – how well will he or she do in the field?
Two – how much of Israel will we have time to see?
[Read more...]

Filed Under: July, Sports Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

A Contender for New 7 Wonders – The Dead Sea

July 3, 2009 By 10 Comments

For more than 25 years I have been taking visitors to what many consider a natural wonder – The Dead Sea.

It truly is a wonder. The Dead Sea is but a small part of the Syrian-East African Rift Valley, but extremely unique within that unique natural phenomena. It lies some 420 m (app. 1300 feet) below sea level, and its shores are thus the lowest dry point on earth.

As if that is not enough the Dead Sea is also the saltiest body of water on earth with a salt (actually mineral) content of app. 33%, some 8.5 times saltier than any oceans. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Dead Sea, Videos Tagged With: , , , , ,

Masada

June 19, 2009 By 8 Comments

Situated toward the south end of the Dead Sea, but actually part of the Judean Mountains, Masada is a compelling story of Jews and Romans in the first century CE.

The English name Masada comes from the Hebrew Metzada, which simply means “Fortress”. And that’s exactly what it is. Rising to a height of app. 450 m above Dead Sea (app. 50 m above sea level) with steep slopes on all sides, Masada is almost impossible to attack and conquer.

It was for this reason that Herod the Great chose it for the magnificent palaces he built there. The northern palace was intened to be the family palace. Herod chose the most spectacular locations and building plan, hanging the palace on three terraces on and below the nothern point. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Dead Sea, Nature and National Parks, Recent Articles Tagged With: , , , ,