Jerusalem - First Day Masada & Dead Sea



Looking to the Dead Sea from the top of Masada

 Our first of 2 days in Jerusalem took us to Masada and the Dead Sea. Oh My! What a Day! The Masada Hill sits on the Dead Sea. One thousand Jews lived there till troops of the Roman Empire tried to conquer it. For three years the soldiers kept coming. Finally the little community of Masada knew they couldn't win and made a pact with each other to commit suicide rather than be made slaves of the Roman Empire. To this day there is a famous saying in Israel "Masada will never fall again." We were taken to the top in a cable car and walked the circumference of the place. This community, though situated on a hill in the desert, had plenty of water and food. They were living well. We saw the storage rooms and the synagogue etc. As is told the remains of a woman and two children were found in a cave. 

The storage area in Masada


  It's believed that she was left to tell the story of the suicide. Before committing suicide they burnt everything down except for the storage bins to show that they were not suffering for want of food or water. The ruins were found in 1967.
Herod the Great built his summer palace here before the Jewish community moved in.

Resort at the Dead Sea

 Back on the bus to transport us to the Dead Sea for a little float. I say float because you're not allowed to swim there or even put your head in the water. It's extremely salty. The Dead Sea is 1300 feet below sea level. It's the lowest point on earth. Needless to say nothing lives in it. After a nice lunch at this reort on the Dead Sea we changed into our bathing suits and walked in. Wow!! What a unique and other wordly experieice. The water is turquoise like the Carribean and you can see clearly to the bottom. We can see Jordan on the other side. I believe the Dead Sea is 15 miles long.  Anyway, there is no way anyone could drown here. You float. Even when you walk in over your head 



Floating on the Dead Sea

you can be in a standing position and the water

 is at your chest level. Also the Dead Sea has a

slimy feel, but when the water evaporates your skin feels so soft. The rules stated not to stay in the water for more than 15 minutes at a time. There were showers on the beach to rinse off. I had a slight cut on my foot and it hurt while in the water, but no harm done.