Dan to Magdala

Tour day 2 - 29th March

We lost an hour during the night as Israel changed to daylight savings. We lost the good weather too, and woke in the morning to low cloud over the Sea of Galilee and a light drizzle. It still looked amazing though, as we set off after breakfast, trekking up the eastern shore of the lake, and I found myself wondering where Jesus might have trod the ground............. or where exactly he walked on the water.

Our first leg took us around the eastern and northern shores of the lake, through Rosh Pinna, past Tel Hazor, through the Hula Valley in the Upper Galilee, to Qiryat Shemona. This town suffered tens of thousands of rocket attacks from Lebanon through the 70s and 80s but the people stayed and endured and the town is now thriving and very pretty.

Yakov informed us that Israel is a haven for birds migrating in both directions, and they take a rest stop around the lakes in the Hula Valley. I would too, it’s lush and beautiful. As we travelled we came close to the hills marking the Lebanese border to the west in a few places. The land is rich, fertile, red soil - Arabic “humbra”, meaning “red” - there is a lot of iron from the mountains, but not enough for mining. We passed mango and avocado plantations, and fields of wheat, and in the distance to the north-east we saw Mount Hermon (or “Hermon” to the locals) topped with snow.

The first stop of the day was Tel Dan, just south of the Lebanese border and a little west of Syria. All the way, everything looked green and vibrant, with trees blossoming and the fields a sea of yellow mustard plants - probably weeds, but they look lovely from a distance (the flowers and buds are edible and taste like radish, I know, I tasted them). Spring is definitely making its mark on Israel.

Off the bus, coats on, umbrellas up, and into the light drizzle at Tel Dan. We walked through the wet woods, crossing little bubbling brooks that feed into the Dan stream, one of the tributaries of the Jordan River and the most important. Its springs provide up to 238 million cubic metres of water annually. At the moment it’s no meek little stream, flowing strongly thanks to the wet winter Israel has had.

With so much greenery abounding, it reminded me of walking in the cool temperate rainforests of southern Tasmania. We also saw eucalypts (yes, introduced sometime in the last century) and actually we’ve noticed these in several places, and they are a lovely reminder of home. We walked adventurously across wet rocks alongside the fast-flowing but very beautiful river, and all made it safely to the other end with no mishaps.

At one viewing point we could see to the border with Lebanon, and Yakov informed us that just beyond the Golan Heights is the border with Syria.

The excavations of Tel Dan began in 1966, and their impressive findings included sections of imposing walls and gates, as well as ritual sites that date from the early Canaanite period, around 2700 - 1800 BCE. We walked past “Abraham’s Gate” (the Canaanite gate) and saw the remains of what is thought to be Laish, which was captured by the tribe of Dan.

Leaving Tel Dan, we then drove towards the Golan Heights, climbing to the top. Yellow warning signs along the fences advise that the area is seeded with land mines. Good to know!

Next we arrived at Caesarea Philippi, otherwise known as Baniass. The name is derived from the name of the Greek god “Pan” (half goat, half human). Baniass Springs is another tributary of the Jordan, and was the site of much idol worship. Many shepherds lived around this area and worshipped idols such as Pan and Augustus, and there are remnants of temples to their gods. Later, the city also became strong and important because it was on the Via Maris, the main trade route, and Baniass controlled the particular part of this route to Damascus and to Babylon.

We had continuous drizzle through the morning, which made things a bit wet and cold and we needed to keep our feet dry as much as possible, although the bus was warm and toasty and we were able to dry off a bit in between.

Our next stop was Capernaum, or “village of Nahum”, and on the way we passed by the place of the Beatitudes, where Jesus preached to the crowds (Matthew 5, 6 & 7). Our guide read Matthew 5 as we descended the winding roads past this special place. It was easy to see why this would have been a good place for Jesus to capture the attention of the audience, it’s a natural amphitheatre overlooking the Sea of Galilee.

By lunch time the rain had cleared and we enjoyed a “St Peter’s Fish lunch” at a restaurant overlooking the Sea of Galilee. The fish was presented in a very impressive display on a platter for sharing, and was crispy and lovely. I’m guessing the idea is to cook it as it would have been cooked by Jesus on the shore of the sea for his disciples as they returned from their fishing trip. I suspect the chips are a modern addition however.

After lunch it was time to board a boat for our sail on the Sea. As we cruised away from the wharf, the sea was calm, the day had warmed up, and the colours were muted and beautiful. Eventually the motors were stilled and we sat for a while out on the lake, in the amazing quiet. It was pretty memorable, to be standing on the bow deck of a boat, with only the railing between me and the water where Jesus once sailed, and even walked, across the water. I thought about Peter, stepping out of the boat onto the water at Jesus’ invitation. One of our fellow travellers read that very passage from the gospel of Matthew, and gave a short devotion and prayer. As touristy as the whole deal is, it was still a moving time.

From there we visited the Yigal Allon Museum to see the Ancient Galilee boat, discovered in 1986, buried in the silt of the Sea. The process to retrieve it without destroying it was fascinating and involved large amounts of polyurethane foam, but now here it is on display for all to see, all 2000+ years of it. Amazing to see a boat that dates from the time of Jesus.

Our last stop for the day was the archeological site at Magdala, which was the home of Mary Magdalene. There we viewed the archeological efforts that have unearthed the town, and in particular a 1st century synagogue complete with mosaic floor and wall frescoes. The story goes that a man bought this area of land to build on, but as you would expect in Israel, he was required to complete a preliminary “dig” before permission would be granted to construct on the land. Previously there had only been beach bungalows on the land, with shallow foundations. The new dig went deeper, and revealed amazing treasures, and so the archeological excavations began, and are ongoing. It gives a whole new meaning to “dial before you dig”.

We had a tour with a local guide who has been volunteering at the site for a few months. This is apparently a “thing” in Israel - you can come to Israel as a volunteer at various significant locations - imagine all that you would learn!!

Back at our accommodation at the Sea of Galilee, and dinner over, we spent some time sitting on the shore, where the lights of Tiberias across the water sparkled in the dusk light and everything was quiet and peaceful, with only the sounds of the water and our own thoughts of the day. It was a truly lovely way to end the day.