Israel’s Dead Sea & Masada

This is the second blog about our trip to Israel. In case you missed it, here it is: Jerusalem with a history of thousands of years.

After some exciting days in Jerusalem, we rented a car and drove North through Palestine. As a matter of fact, Israel doesn’t want you driving through this area. Our GPS was blank all through the Palestine drive with only one message indicating that we are in “an authorized area”.

Our first visit was Zefat on the northern end of the Sea of Galilee. Zefat, at an altitude of 900m (2950 ft), is the highest city in Israel and one of the four holiest cities in Israel. It is also the center of Kabbalah, which is also known as Jewish mysticism.

The following day we took Route 90, again through parts of Palestine, and arrived at the Dead Sea. Soon we saw a sign “You are at Sea-level,” which meant we reached 0 meters (0 ft). We continued our drive “below” sea level and reached the shore of the Dead Sea. The lowest point is -390m (-1050ft).

The landscape around the Dead Sea is not colorful. The only color patches are some palm trees and slow-moving camels. This doesn’t mean that it has no charm. It is interesting in its monchromatisism. Certainly the stony mountains on the Israeli side and the Jordanian side have many centuries of stories to tell.

We stayed overnight at Neve Zohar, a small resort famous for hot springs at The Dead Sea. Eager to experience what everyone says about the Dead Sea, we jumped into our bathing suits and discovered it’s true. You can’t sink. Even if you try.  (This is the wrong place for somebody with suicidal ideas). You lay in the water with your legs crossed and read a book. It is an incredible feeling and makes you happy at the same time.

The following morning I set the alarm for 4:30 ready to climb Masada and witness the sunrise over the Dead Sea. After a short car drive, we arrived at the empty parking lot. We tightened our hiking shoes, put enough water in our Rucksack, and started to hike the steep snake path. We were almost on top when I got ready to take a picture of the first sunbeams crossing the horizon. It was quiet except the sound of the wind and the chirp of the mountain birds. For those precious moments, you feel alive within the world and glad to be awake, when others are still asleep.

Masada was built around 150 BC. It was the last bastion of Jewish freedom fighters against the Romans. Its fall signaled the violent destruction of the kingdom of Judea, at the end of the Second Temple period. The tragic events of the last days of the rebels at Masada transformed it into both a Jewish cultural icon and a symbol of humanity’s continuous struggle for freedom from oppression. Eleazar Ben Yair gave two speeches here in which he convinced the leaders of the 960 members of the community to take their lives and the lives of their families. He urged them to consider that it is better to die like this than to live in shame and humiliation as Roman slaves. And so they took their own lives.

Masada is very impressive. The realization that war and brutality are as old as humanity. The realization that in this desert more than 2000 years ago Jews were pushed away and were “murdered” leaves an obvious question. Why do people hate Jews? I researched exactly this question, and I got some answers: Jews were blamed for killing Jesus. Jews denied Mohamed’s Prophethood. Jews are in many aspects successful business people. Are these the reasons? I don’t have the answer. Neither does Bob Dylan,  in his song “With God On Our Side”.

Through many dark hour
I’ve been thinkin’ about this
That Jesus Christ
Was betrayed by a kiss
But I can’t think for you
You’ll have to decide
Whether Judas Iscariot
Had God on his side   

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