After a long day we had a somewhat later and more leisurely start. Waking up in Madaba, after breakfast we visited the Ancient Greek Orthodox Church of St George where a 6th c. Byzantine floor mosaic has survived portraying a map of the Holy Land. Madaba is known as the "Mosaic city" and there are lots [...]
We had another early start on Wednesday as we had a lot of ground to cover--literally. We left Petra after breakfast and Yusef drove us North to visit an archeological site I had been fascinated with ever since doing the research for The Mystery of the Magi. Khirbet et Tannur (Khirbet means "ruins") The Ruins of Tannur are [...]
We got an early start on Tuesday with a cab from Ecole Biblique to one of three border crossings into Jordan--the Allenby Bridge crossing near Jericho. The drive takes you down the steep, winding road from the heights of Jerusalem to the Jordan River valley which is below sea level. Along the way there is a [...]
On Monday Elias drove our little rental car all the way from Nazareth to Jerusalem to return it by 10:00. Israeli roads are very congested. Too many cars for a comparatively small nation. Therefore we were grateful also for a dinky little car as we took up less space, found parking places easily and managed to [...]
This morning we crossed the street to the Basilica of the Annunciation and explored for a short time before we were scheduled to say Mass. A Franciscan sacristan from Africa showed me the chapel they had designated for us and Elias represented the whole church--reading the lessons, making the responses and serving the altar for me [...]
This morning we visited the Galilee Boat Museum. In 1986, during a drought, some fishermen on the Sea of Galilee discovered in the mud what turned out to be a first century fishing boat. The story of its recovery from the mud and the preservation of the boat is an amazing tale of ingenuity and dedication. [...]
Elias and I rose early and tried the breakfast buffet at the hotel. Needless to say there was no bacon on the menu, but the array of options was truly odd to our palate: yoghurt and fruit, plenty of Middle Eastern vegetables, eggs, fish, cheese and salad. Outside of Denmark I don't know where I've ever [...]
On Wednesday Elias and I took a day to catch up on necessities. I did a load of laundry and we went shopping in New Jerusalem town for some clothes and a few other odds and ends. We rested in the afternoon and finished planning out trips to Galilee and Jordan. A word of warning. Two [...]
A woman named Penelope, who attended one of my online courses during the pandemic is here in Israel to participate in one of Steve Ray's pilgrimages. She contacted me asking to meet, so she came over from Tel Aviv to have lunch. I have been taking all my meals at the monastery so did not know [...]
First I couldn't get to sleep now I wake up very early. Like three a.m. early. So I said some prayers, read for a bit, then at six got up and had some breakfast with some of the scholars who were headed out for the annual Easter Monday walk to Emmaus. Despite my new walking stick, [...]