This was a trip of a lifetime, and we honestly didn't know if we were going to be able to pull it off - we even considered cancelling it at the last minute!
But we obviously decided to plow on. Our first flight took us down over the Alps and then across to the Julian Alps, down to Athens.
Not only did Aegean Airlines feed us on BOTH flights, but they gave us rose flavored Turkish delight. It was so good that when the kids asked the flight attendant for more, she came bearing gifts!
Athens, you are SUCH a busy city. The Acropolis is just off screen, to the right.
I kept missing the Acropolis with every shot. It's actually just behind the wing in this picture.
But man, Athens is so pretty from the air!
Time for some spanakopita and a beer while we had a couple of hours to kill in the Athens airport.
Security for flights to Tel Aviv is serious. You go through various layers, including a private boarding room so that you can go through passport check AGAIN at the door.
See ya later, Athens!
We circled around and then took off to the southeast toward Israel. We had some beautiful sunset views of the Greek islands and the Aegean Sea.
On approach in Tel Aviv you get a great view of the city! That stadium in the foreground is Bloomfield Stadium and just to the right of it, on the coast is the port of Jaffa. Although we didn't get to visit Jaffa this time, it's the place where Peter brought Tabitha back to life (one of his miracles.) I visited there back in 2017 if you're interested in reading about it!
Remember how I got the third degree when I went through security/passport control in Tel Aviv a couple of years ago? Yeah... this time, they let us right in! I guess if you have kids, they don't think you're a threat!
We finally reached our apartment - although it wasn't easy getting in, since when we got to the apartment they gave us on Booking.com, it was VERY clearly occupied. But a short wait later, we were in our new apartment. Todd thought it was funny that his Google map put him in Israel. Like he didn't believe it until he saw it on the map! Plus... yummy Israeli beer to cap off a long travel day! But we made it!
In the morning, we boarded a bus on the way to Nazareth, the boyhood home of Jesus. We were a little bummed out because the US government put a block on anyone traveling into Jerusalem or anywhere through the West Bank. Which meant our day trip tours to Jerusalem as well as Masada and the Dead Sea were a NO-GO. It happened a week or so before we were set to leave, and we ALMOST cancelled the trip. Because really... what is going to Israel if you can't go see all the history that is in Jerusalem? But the Bailey's decided to forge ahead. Our plans were to visit Nazareth and the Sea of Galilee (not in the prohibited areas) on Thursday (Thanksgiving.) Then on Friday, we were going to take a public bus down to the southern part of the Dead Sea, which didn't go through the West Bank. We decided just to hang out in Tel Aviv on Saturday. I had researched it for days and found plenty for us to do, so as disappointed as we were, we knew we would still have fun! After all, we ARE the Griswolds! BUT... literally as we sat on the bus at a rest stop on the way to Nazareth, Todd decided to randomly check the State Department website and THE BAN HAD BEEN LIFTED! Now I know many of you are reading this and thinking, "I would have gone anyway! Who would have known?" But when you work for the government and you disobey the rules - if you get in trouble or get caught, you can get fired from your job. It just wasn't worth it. In the end though, we were able to stick to our original itinerary, thankfully!
On the way to Nazareth, you pass close by to a wall that separates Israel from Palestine. EVERY single tour guide we had on this trip said the media made so much of the "hatred" between these two groups, when there really wasn't any hate at all between the Jews and the Muslims. They all said things like, "I am Jewish and my neighbors are all Muslim... I had them over for dinner last night!"
Before you reach Nazareth, there's a rather unassuming mountain on the right. It turns out this is Transfiguration Mountain, also known as Mount Tabor. This is where Jesus brought his disciples Peter, James and John to the top of the mountain to witness his transfiguration, in which he "was transfigured before them; his face shining as the sun, and his garments became white as the light." A bit later, a voice from above in a bright cloud says, "This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him." So in case there was any doubt that he was the Son of God, that was erased at this point for these disciples!
On approach into the city of Nazareth, we spotted this advertisement. Maaaaybe not a good ad campaign for Nazareth, Columbia.
Each of the guides we had on the three days we were in Israel began the day by introducing themselves and telling us what their names meant in Hebrew. "Sivan" is the third month in the Hebrew calendar, and since she was born in this month (also known as the time between the new moon in June and the new moon in July), that is what her parents named her! (Essentially, she said, her name was June!)
We finally reached the Basilica of the Annunciation, built over the site where Mary learned from the Angel Gabriel that she was pregnant with Jesus.
Interestingly, this is the place that ONLY the Roman Catholic church believes the annunciation took place. The Orthodox church believes it happened at a nearby spring, and so they erected a church over that location (also in Nazareth.) For me, and for every place we saw that was connected to the Bible, it was important to know that this might not have been the exact location, but that it certainly was in the vicinity of the exact location. Todd found this disappointing, but it didn't bother me. The front door of the Basilica shows different events in the life of Jesus.
Up close, you can see the different scenes from when Mary and Joseph had to travel to Bethlehem where Jesus was born, until he was crowned in heaven.
The church inside is really neat. It has a very different feel - not like a typical church. But it's believed that the spot where the annunciation took place is within the grotto area in front of the people in the above picture. Some believe this is where the childhood home of Mary was, although there really isn't any proof this is true.
The kiddos, kneeling over Mary's Annunciation grotto, saying a prayer.
Panorama of the lower level of the Basilica of the Annunciation.
You can walk around the church and then down into the grotto area, where you can get a close up of the area.
They had very beautiful and colorful stained glass in the lower level of the Basilica.
Upstairs was a more formal church where a mass was going on.
Along the walls were various artistic interpretations of the Annunciation that were donated by different countries from around the world. This is the one from the USA.
Since about 70% of Nazareth is Muslim, they do most of the masses in either Arabic or sometimes Italian.
As you can see, even the stations of the cross are in Arabic. These stations are so beautiful!
After we visited the Basilica of the Annunciation, we walked across the street (literally, the building next door) to the house where they believe Joseph lived (as an adult, but before marrying Mary.) As you know, he was actually from Judea, which is why they had to return there for the Roman mandated census around the time of the birth of Jesus.
One of the most interesting facts that I learned when on this trip is that you can tell whether a Muslim family or a Jewish family lives in a house based on what type of hot water heater they have on their roof. This one is one I spotted literally steps before I walked into the Church of St. Joseph. A white one indicated it was a Jewish house, and a black one meant it was a Muslim house! A lot of them are solar powered nowadays - and they're known as "dud shemesh" but everyone just calls them "dudes." The black ones are usually made of black plastic that the sun warms up naturally.
It's actually unlikely this was really the house and workshop of Joseph, but the grotto beneath the church is a series of caves that they believe might have been where the workshop was located.
It's thought that this big room was full of grain storage caves and water cisterns, such as this one. Notice the mosaic tile work down there.
The Holy Family at the Church of St. Joseph in Nazareth.
We left the Church of St. Joseph and walked back to the bus, getting a nice view of the Basilica of the Annunciation from the side.
Here is a statue of Mary, with her foot stepping on the head of the serpent. Did you know that stepping on a snake's head will kill it? A nod to Mary crushing the devil!
I didn't expect to see a cool manhole cover of Nazareth! Awesome!
We boarded the bus and then sat in Nazarene traffic for what seemed like forever. While we sat there, I noticed the couple having a crazy fight right there on the streets. He was obviously much more animated. I wonder what she did (or didn't do) to fire him up so much! (Probably nothing!)
Our next stop was the Church of the Multiplication of the Loaves and Fishes, which was near the Sea of Galilee. On the way there, you go through the town of Cana (or Kafr Kanna as it's known now,) where the first miracle of Jesus occurred. If you're not familiar with the story, Jesus and his mother were attending a wedding of some friends of the family when the happy couple ran out of wine. Apparently, this is a VERY bad thing to happen - scandalous, even! Ok, I exaggerate a bit. But when his mother asked him to essentially solve the problem, he told her, “Woman, what does that have to do with us? My hour has not yet come.” But his mother looks to the servants and instructs them to do whatever Jesus tells them to do. So they took 6 large stone pots, filled them with water, and Jesus turned it into wine. Typically they would serve the good wine first, and then when everyone was schnockered, they would serve the less than desirable wine. But after tasting the wine Jesus had made, the headwaiter was shocked to find the bridegroom had *saved* the best wine for last. Anyway, this above is the church where they believed this happened.
It's blurry and I'm sorry about that, but does your mind get blown sometimes? Here we are in the town of Magdalena. As in... the town of Magdala, where Mary Magdalene was from. But if you're a modern person, you can just grab yourself some Pizza Hut in the town of Mary Magdalene. I always say that my mind is blown when worlds collide, but this is really something else.
I don't have a very good picture of it, because we could only see it from a bus window, but we were able to get a glimpse of the Church of the Beatitudes on the Mount of Beatitudes where Jesus gave his Sermon on the Mount. It doesn't really feel like a mountain but you can't see to the right where it drops off toward the Sea of Galilee. Incredible to think that the Beatitudes - the blessings of Jesus - were first recited here. Even if you aren't religious, you've probably heard of these. One in particular includes, "Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the Earth" - Matthew 5:5.
Finally we arrived in Tagbha at the Church of the Multiplication of the Loaves and Fishes! Everyone just calls this the Church of the Multiplication for obvious reasons.
Sivan told us all about how this was thought to be an ancient (perhaps adult) basalt baptismal font.
It's not easy to see here, but when we walked in the courtyard of the church, there was a noticeable buzz. And I don't mean because people were excited about this miracle of Jesus! There were literally hundreds of bees on the lily pads there, which is hard to see in this picture. But it was gross! I'm quite surprised Natalie didn't run screaming from this.
The mosaic tiles on the floor were built in the 5th century and part of the mosaic includes a picture of a breadbasket and a fish, helping to solidify the location as the actual site of the Multiplication. The monastery that was built at the same time was destroyed in the 7th century, but was excavated in the 1980's when they discovered the mosaics, which are beautiful and intricate. The stone that sits beneath the altar is where it is believed that Jesus broke bread and performed this miracle. You can see glass in the floor to the right of the altar, where you can see remnants from the original church which was built in the 4th century.
This is the olive tree that sits in the courtyard of the Church of the Multiplication, and if you look closely, you can see some olives!
The last stop before lunch was the house of Peter in Capernaum, where Jesus spent time during his days preaching around the Sea of Galilee.
I just LOVE this sculpture in the entrance of Capernaum. The sculpture appears to be a homeless man, laying on a park bench. Taking a closer look, you can see the holes in his feet. This sculpture is actually called "Jesus the Homeless" and it's by Timothy Schmalz. It reminds us that we need to treat those who are far less fortunate than we are with the same grace and kindness that we would treat Jesus with.
It's widely believed that this was originally the location of the house where Peter (the fisherman and later disciple of Jesus) had lived in Capernaum. And it's widely believed that when Jesus did his ministry around Galilee, he stayed here at Peter's house. It's believed that there had been a small community here from about the 1st century BC until the 4th century AD. In the late 4th century, beginning in the Byzantine Era, Peter's house was turned into a church for the first time. In the second half of the 5th century, a new, bigger, octagonal church was built over Peter's house. A Persian invasion in the 7th century likely destroyed much of the church that was there at that time, which lasted until the 12th century.
We know that Jesus left Nazareth and came here to Capernaum. It's where he started his ministry. We are pretty certain that he stayed with Peter (after all, he healed Peter's wife's mother from a fever here.) The church that is built over the home of Peter has a glass floor that all can see down below into the remains of his house and the two churches that were built on top of it.
Todd said he really liked this church because he liked the views - and of course, I don't have any pictures of that! This church had a cool vibe though (and cool plants!)
Adjacent to the house of Peter in Capernaum is one of the oldest synagogues in the entire world!
There's also a lot of remnants of a little neighborhood of homes nearby to Peter's house. When they were excavated, the remains of domestic belongings were recovered. However, when they excavated Peter's house, they did not find these things, which meant it was likely not a home at that point, but a meeting place for the locals (like a church!)
These are my babies at the house of Peter. I keep telling them that they need to make sure they're hearing these amazing stories in church every Sunday.
I fully appreciate the non-original load bearing column (stick?) that is placed in a spot where they were worried that the original column would come down. Whatever works, right? This is actually one of the oldest synagogues in the world. The synagogue in Capernaum consisted of four different sections - this one dates back from the 4th and 5th century AD. It was built on top of an earlier basalt synagogue, although this one was built almost entirely of limestone blocks. It's widely believed that Jesus gave a speech on the Bread of Life at the original basalt synagogue (John 6:59.)
Heading back to the bus after our visit at Peter's house in Capernaum, we passed these beautiful flowers! I used to hate getting flowers when I was younger (what a waste!) but I really do love some pretty and unique natural floral arrangements!
Another lady and I made the bus wait as we eagerly waited to see this military plane fly over the Sea of Galilee. I love a good juxtaposition. Old guard, new guard.
For lunch, we stopped at St. Peter's restaurant just north of Capernaum. I bet you didn't know Peter was also a chef! (I kid!)
There was a big salad bar and then you got to pick from a few items on the menu for a main course. It mainly catered to tour groups, but the real treasure was what you got to see AFTER lunch!
I think Natalie was mortified when this showed up as her lunch. But Natalie - albeit my WORST eater - is actually my most adventurous eater. So she tore this thing up! All she wanted to know was "how to eat the eyeballs like Masuka did." (A little throw back to when my friend Masuka ate the eyeballs of a fish in Madrid!) It's funny what kids remember!
Oh but they had the most SPECTACULAR views of the Sea of Galilee. I've never been to a more calm and peaceful place. Honestly. The kids and I went down to the shore while Todd paid, so he got this cute picture of the three of us inspecting the perfectly intact shells on the shoreline, while trying to keep our feet from being torn up.
It was literally magical.
This is what you get when Long Arms Bailey puts his phone directly in front of the sun and we take a family selfie in the Sea of Galilee.
Maybe we should focus on those Bailey feet instead. You wouldn't even know we were standing in water because it is SO clear. Only you can see the water line on our ankles. Otherwise you would think we were just standing on rocks on dry land.
Maybe short armed Mommy should attempt a family selfie at the Sea of Galilee where we AREN'T all squinting!
I can't explain how quiet this place was along the north shore of the Sea of Galilee. Not a noise to be heard, save for our own voices. Grant was letting his feet dry on the banks of the sea.
This is a similar picture to one I took above, but is a slightly wider view. The main source of the sea is the River Jordan (and a few springs), and it's known for being the place that Jesus walked on water, among many other miracles and teachings that he did which we had already seen - see above!
None of us could walk on water, but we could take a family picture on the shores of the Sea of Galilee. I see this picture and think we are the LUCKIEST family ever.
Because we were on the north end of the Sea of Galilee, we had to drive around it to get back down to the pseudo baptismal site of Jesus (by John the Baptist) - also known as Yardenit. Instead of driving back down the Israeli side, they drove us around the side which is in the Golan Heights. The Golan Heights were taken from Syria and have belonged to Israel since 1967, after the Six Day War. It's said that they really don't want Syria to have control of this coast again because the Sea of Galilee is the only source of fresh water for all of Israel. Plus, because they are the "heights" - they are physically elevated, so Israel can keep a watchful eye on Syria. Weirdly, the only country to recognize that the Golan Heights belong to Israel (other than Israel) is the US, and that only happened in 2019 when the Trump administration decided to recognize it. It's been one of those things where America never recognized it, but they also didn't reprimand Israel for taking it, trying to remain neutral in the past. You shouldn't go hiking around the Golan Heights at random... there's plenty of unexploded land mines in the area.
Finally we reached the other side of the Sea of Galilee and the River Jordan.
We were able to visit Yardenit, where many people get baptized in the River Jordan just like Jesus did. My boys were looking super cute before we went inside.
I don't know about y'all but this guy had the sickest hair I've ever seen. Bravo, honey badger, BRAVO! (He was on the tour with us!)
Welcome to Yardenit, the Baptismal Site on the Jordan River. I'm happy to be here.
People wearing white were preparing to be baptized in the Jordan River.
Obviously it's super touristy, but everyone enjoys watching people get baptized in the river.
The Light of God Biblical Health Bar serves Fresh Juice and Smoothies. Queue my eye roll right now. You can't go anywhere in the world without being exploited in some way.
While we were there, what appeared to be a husband and wife were escorted down into the baptismal area in their white gowns with the assistance of two people who were to perform the baptisms.
There was some prayer, and some song, and some dunking and some cheering.
Congratulations!
While we watched the newly baptized emerge from the River Jordan, we noticed a family (?) of cats who wanted to peek in on all of the excitement.
This part of the River Jordan really was very beautiful.
In certain moments, you weren't even sure there were other people around you. Although there are several places that claim to be the "official" baptismal site of Jesus, it's actually thought that Qasr al-Yahud (just north of the Dead Sea) is the real location of the baptism. However, that location was closed after the Six Day War in 1967 and didn't reopen until 2011 - so Yardenit is where the baptisms have taken place since 1967, even though it's probably not the real location.
There were some of the biggest fish I've ever seen! Someone give them a snack!
Around 400,000 visitors come here each year - many of those being baptized in the Jordan.
"In those days, Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. And when he came up out of the water, immediately he saw the heavens open and the Spirit descending upon him like a dove, and a voice came from the heaven; 'Thou art my beloved Son; with thee I am well pleased.'" They had this sign in many languages as you entered and exited Yardenit.
It was a long drive home from the southern part of the Sea of Galilee back to Tel Aviv where most of us dozed off before reaching the street where our apartment resided.
We decided that none of us were very hungry since we ate a SUPER late lunch in Capernaum. Instead, we grabbed some snackies (or pickies as Grammi and the kids call them) and ate them back in our apartment while watching MTV (with REAL music videos, including several by *gasp* K-Pop groups!) When we travel, we always have to translate the ingredients of what we eat because of Grant's peanut allergy. Obviously, we didn't buy this product for the several times it mentions the word "peanut." But the best part is the beginning: "Fragrance in baguette (87%) Death and baking the oven and dolls." Mmmmm, delicious!
I am fully aware these two will probably only remember bits and pieces of this amazing day. It's very likely they will only remember what they see on this blog post. But I hope they always remember to be kind and to do unto others as they would have done unto themselves.
Until next time, Nazareth and the Sea of Galilee!
