Galilee, Capernaum, Dead Sea - Day 5

After breakfast, we took a boat ride on Lake Galilee to Ginosar. It was really nice and people danced. First, they played the US National Anthem, then the Canadian one, and then the Israeli one (Hatikva). After the anthems, they played Hava Nagila and other songs so people danced. Even our tour guide got into it with one of the members of the group.

As we drive on our way to Church of Multiplication, we see lots of bananas being grown. The interesting thing to note is that most of the actual bananas are inside blue plastic bags. This is to protect them from birds as well as to make sure they all ripen at the same time.

The church had some incredible mosaics. However, we were not able to go to the altar to see the mosaic that's become synonymous with this church. It's two fish with bread (I think) in the middle. But the mosaics we did see were pretty neat. One was pretty cute, it had a bird (a stork maybe) that was trying to eat a little animal. The guide said the animal was a frog, but it looks more like a little rabbit or a field mouse to me. You don't expect a mosaic with a sense of humor in an ancient church.

After the Church of Multiplication, we were on our way to Capernaum. There, we saw lots of interesting things like an ancient Sephardic synagogue, the new church that seems to be hanging in mid-air over the ruins of an ancient church, and the ancient implements of daily life (the olive oil press, wine press, and wheat grinder). The ancient white synagogue was built atop an even older one which was built in black stone (basalt?)

This new church is built in a style of a Sephardic synagogue, where all are in a circle.
It is amazing how this one was built. I couldn't see any way that it was supported, but it obviously is. But you can see in the picture that it's floating above the ancient ruins. The floor around this area inside is made of glass so you can see the ruins below.


Then, we were on our way to take a peak at the River Jordan, site of many a baptism. Where people get baptized, it looks like a really wide ditch, maybe 20 feet across. In other places, it looks like you can quite easily step over this “river” if you take a regular stride. (Can you see the actual river in the first photo? You might need to click on the image to see it larger.) Aside from being rather tiny in most places we saw it, it’s also incredibly dirty looking. Mostly shades of brown, but in the baptismal area, it’s a strange shade of milky green. Ewww. Oh, and it’s really cold.

Our tour guide indicated that this is the only place we can try (and purchase) date honey. Normally, I detest honey. Nothing wrong with it, it’s just too sweet for me. But this, it wasn’t bad. But it’s not actual honey, since no bees are involved (and maybe why I liked it). It’s really a syrup made from squeezing dates. It’s really yummy so I got a jar of that as well as this date honey mixed with other things.
At this stop, we also saw some Russians purchasing baptismal gowns. The cold water must be OK for them, but we’re all in fleeces or jackets, and some in the group even had heavy sweaters and/or warm jackets on. These Russians were also quite loud and argumentative.

After the Baptismal site, we drove to Beit Shean in the Jordan Valley to see excavations and a Roman amphitheater. The one we saw in Caesarea technically wasn't an amphitheater, but just an open air theater. It was interesting to see the ancient public bathroom, the ancient road with appropriate grating to prevent flooding (the road sloaps gently away from the center, but you can see the "spine" in the road).
We also had lunch here. We actually had lunch before we went exploring. I had a schnitzel.

After the Beit Shean, we drove through the West Bank to the Dead Sea. Absolutely gorgeous scenery in the desert. Saw many wadis and were able to see the Jordan border past the barbed wire of the DMZ. The mountains in the picture are on the Jordan side. We stopped at a gas station to user restrooms and saw a guy selling camel rides. Ewww. Smelly scary animal.

We finally get to the hotel and we’re all exhausted. It’s been a long day and I’m ready to relax. But no. Once I got my room assignment, I went to the room and the electronic key didn’t work. So I went to the front desk to ask them to fix it. They said they did, but when I got back up to the room, there was someone else in it. Crap. Back downstairs. Now realize that each time up and down takes about 10 minutes because of the elevator (a long wait, pushy people, largest hotel in the area, etc.). So while I’m at the reception desk, and I’m royally pissed off now, I inquire about my luggage which I didn’t see. They looked at me rather funny and said “Did you load it on the bus?” to which I answered “yes” with a raised eyebrow and a very irritated manner. Hey, after 12 hours on my feet, I was in no mood for nicey-nice. While the receptionist is trying to find me a room she calls the bell-boy to help me with the luggage issue. This guy was so rude! “Did you load it on the bus?” was his question also, but with much more attitude. I gave it right back. Then, he informs me there are still suitcases outside and I should check there. I did and found the luggage. “Why wasn’t it brought in?” was my question to this obnoxious punk and he started telling me about putting on some sticker on my suitcase. I told him that I didn’t know what he was talking about and he was still giving me lip about “how did I know where to take all the other suitcases?” and didn’t my tour guide tell us about stickers. No, she didn’t.
So after finally having gotten a room, I went outside and slapped the sticker on the luggage. I had to call the front desk and ask twice if he was actually bringing it up, since he wasn’t quick enough to my liking. But he finally brought it in.

Actually, I found many members of staff to be rude at this hotel. Other members of our tour group had the same sentiment.
Not only was the staff rude, but so were the other guests. There were Russians staying there. Oy! Need I say more? (they were loud, obnoxious, rude, and pushy, just to name a few behaviors.)

Dinner was OK. They had great selection, but it wasn’t as tasty as at other hotels. I found some beef tongue that was stewed and some other things. Desert was OK, but the yellow thing wasn’t good. Salads were OK too. Nothing special.

The room itself was very big, a suite really. A large bathroom, a nice bedroom, and a sitting room. The view sucked.