Wonderful day in Galilee

What a perfect way to begin our day!  We began our tour on an ancient boat tour of the Sea of Galilee.  It was a wonderful experience listening to gospel music as we sailed on the Sea of Galilee.  We also had Peter the fisherman on the boat throwing out his net to see what he would be able to catch for lunch.  He didn't catch anything today, oh well maybe tomorrow.  Then Peter and his crew had us up dancing a traditional Israeli dance and singing a gospel song in Hebrew.

Peter the fisherman

The Sea of Galilee is 208 m below sea level and is the most important source of fresh water in Galilee.

The area around Tiberias and the southern coast have been developed with modern buildings and is a great place for people to spend the weekends at the beach.  The northern shores are where Jesus did his preaching and remains today as the fishing and agricultural area.

The Church of Beatitudes is where Jesus came ashore when he saw a large gathering of people up on Mount of Beatitudes and delivered the Sermon on the Mount.  The eight Beatitudes of Jesus are pictured in stained glass around the dome in the church.  The alter in the church is in the middle depicting the setting of Jesus delivering his sermon with the people gathered around him.

The alter in the middle so people can gather around.

The Church of Multiplication of Loaves and Fishes also called the Heptapagon is believed to be the rock where Jesu laid the five loaves and two fishes that multiplied to feed 5000 faithful listeners.

Stepping into the Sea of Galilee!

The Church of the Primacy of St Peter is where Jesus and his followers ate fish from a table - like flat rock.

Capernaum was home to Jesus during most of his teaching and ministering time and was also where he recruited some of his apostles.  An octagonal church stands over the ruins of the house where Jesus lived.

Peter's House and the Synagogue 

The house of Jesus as an adult

Tabgha is a very beautiful and serene Christian Holy Place with a wonderful lakeside walkway which links the Church of Beatitudes and Capernum.

The Jordan River was and still is today a spot where Christian pilgrims can immerse themselves in the water of the Jordan.  The baptismal spot is called Yardenit.  We were witness to 3 of our group members  being baptized by a minister.  These arrangements were all prearranged.  Great to experience this.

Yardenit the Baptismal spot.

Jordan River

Kim from our group being Baptized.

Joan and Judy (sisters) being baptized.

Our Galilean Evening was a step back into Biblical times at a Galilean village in Kfar Kedem.  When we arrived we were given a scarf and robe, shown how to put them on and we were ready to begin that step back in time.  We set off for the field to begin growing the wheat which we would harvest and then grind into flour in order to make into a pita.  We pressed the small balls of dough out and put them on a round dome where they baked.  Once baked we enjoyed the with olive oil and sesame seeds.  After that we gather for our meal, sitting on stools with a low table on which a large tray of pita bread, hummus, tahini, and salad (tomatoes, cucumbers and cilantro) .  After that came a tray of yellow rice, BBQ chicken and lamb kabobs.the meal was plentiful and very tasty.  Once our meal was over it was donkey time, time to ride a donkey.  There were a few successful donkey riders and a couple not very successful when they fell off.  All in all it was a great evening and day ending it with tea and dessert (baklava and fresh dates).