Travel Biography Photo Extravaganza - Part 14.

 An Escorted Tour of Masada - Me?

In 1993, I visited Masada twice, on two different days. The first time was with a small group of about ten backpackers in a minibus arranged specifically for the New Swedish Hostel, where I was staying, and another similar hostel within the Old City, Bab el-Silsileh Hostel. Being a light sleeper, nearly every morning around 4:00 a.m., I was awoken by the commotion when about five backpackers got out of their beds, dressed, and left the dormitory. At first, I thought that they had to head for the airport. Then I learned that they were going out on a tour.

At first, I wasn't interested, as I have always been averse to ranger-led tours. But after I was told of the itinerary, the whole experience lasted just half a day, and I felt interest growing in me. The tour was to Masada specifically to watch the sunrise over the Jordanian horizon. The scene is spectacular, and the sunrise is a photographer's delight. This sunrise enhancement was a reward for making a 400-metre ascent on the Snake Path, a hiking trail first cut by the Romans and then modified by the Israel Tourist Board. From the summit, the sun rises above the Jordanian side of the Great Rift Valley and becomes visible to the eye long before the valley floor, where the Dead Sea begins to reflect the faint sunlight.

My second visit to Masada was on my own, and I wanted to explore the site more thoroughly without the call back to the minibus. So one morning, well after daybreak, I boarded an Egged Bus to Masada, passing through Ein Gedi Nature Reserve and Beach, to ride alongside the west bank of the Dead Sea to Masada car and coach park where the bus route terminated before turning around for the return journey to Jerusalem.

Geographically, Masada is a mesa. A mesa is an island plateau which became separated from the main plateau by erosion, forming a valley between the plateaus. It was a phenomenon I became more familiar with when I hiked the Grand Canyon. Masada rises 400 metres or 1,300 feet on the east side and just 90 metres or 300 feet on the west side. This was not surprising, as the mountains on both sides of the Great Rift were formed when the valley floor sunk by 744 metres or 2,440 feet below sea level, with the surface of the salt lake 440 metres below sea level. Thus, the depth of the Dead Sea is approximately 304 meters. Despite the majestic height of the mountain as seen from the surface of the Dead Sea, its summit plateau would still be up to 40 metres below sea level.

Arieal View of Masada. Stock photo.

During the 1st Century BC, Herod the Great had two palaces built on its summit, making Masada an ideal retreat from the day-to-day affairs of the world. Sometime later, the summit was settled by Jews, who had a synagogue built along with a ceremonial cleansing pool. This synagogue is now the oldest of its kind in the world. Across the plateau, a large cavern was hewn out, and its interior was waterproofed to form the cistern that had been able to supply rainwater for the community for up to three years. The remains of a storehouse are also featured, along with a Roman bathhouse. The hypocaust, with its columns under the floor of the Caledarium, or hot room, is still accessible. There are also the remains of a swimming pool or the Natatio. The remains of the Columbarium, or a dovecote, are also featured, perhaps used by the Jews as part of their sacrificial ritual.

Legend has it that the Masada Plateau was the site of the mass suicide of 960 Jewish men, women and children who preferred to die rather than submit to the Roman army during the AD 70 Jewish rebellion. However, the lack of evidence of this massacre has some scholars doubting that this has ever happened, as only six human skeletons were found during excavations. However, on the west side of the mesa, a ramp still exists, which the Roman army used to break onto the plateau. According to geologists, the ramp was originally a natural rock formation that was modified by the Romans before their invasion.

As already mentioned, in 1993, I visited Masada twice. I was first introduced to the area by a mini-tour group, and the idea was to watch the sunrise from a vantage point, but called back to the van a short time later. The second trip from Jerusalem was on my own by public transport, and I was free to spend the whole day for a more thorough exploration of the site. On both occasions included a hike up the Snake Path and back down again. On the first hike up, it was still dark and cool enough not to break out into a sweat during the ascent. On the second trip, I hiked the path in broad daylight, and it was more tiring. Little did I know that the hike up Masada was a prelude to the Grand Canyon hike that was to follow two years later in 1995.

During the second trip, I also had an alternate way to get to the summit, by cable car. On the first trip, this facility was still closed for the night. But on the second, the facility was open and fully operational. The majority of visitors arriving at the summit were escorted by tour groups who used the cable car, leaving the Snake Path almost entirely free of the crowds to enjoy the hiking challenge Masada threw at me.

Click here for the Index to the main Biography that covers this trip. They are weeks 48-51.

Sunrise pics of the first trip to Masada.

The sun just peeks above the Jordanian mountains.

A couple of minutes later...

Almost complete.

The Dead Sea shimmers in the morning sun.

The dawn desert takes on a reddish hue.

A look at the Roman Ramp before we were called back.

The Second and Main Trip to Masada.

The Egged Bus approaches Masada.

Directional sign for the Snake Path.

The Path is actually Roman. Modified by I.T.B.

Under the hot sun, the trail is demanding.

Yes, tired. But I was nearing the summit.

One more switchback...

At the entrance info board.

From the entrance, looking across the plateau.

Part of the residences.

Residential remains.

Northern storerooms and bathhouse.

Section of the retaining wall and soldier's Residences.

Columbarium Tower.

Northern Palace

Rebel Dwellings.

Snake Path entrance and exit.

The Bakery.

More Rebel Jewish Residences.

View of a Roman Fort, Car Park, and the Dead Sea.

Desert view from the summit of Masada.

Interior of the East Water Cistern with a Tourist Group.

Il Natatio, swimming pool.

Torah Storage House.

Officer's Quarters, Byzantine Church, Western Palace.

Circular Columbarium.

Resident, Storage and Admin, Western Palace.

Residential Quarters.

Grand Residence, Northern Palace.

Jewish Ritual Bathing Pool.

Steps leading to the Bathing Pool.

The Oldest Jewish Synagogue in the World.

Hypocaust Pillars of a Roman Bathhouse.

North Palace Storerooms.

Roman Ramp, West side.

Some ruins were partially restored.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Next Week: Photos from the 1994 Israel adventure as a Volunteer.

Travel Biography Photo Extravaganza - Part 13.

About This Week's Photo Album - Model Jerusalem, Bethlehem, Ein Gedi, Dead Sea.

During the last couple of weeks, I have focused mainly on Jerusalem, particularly the Old City, in my detailed account of my 1993 trip to Israel. There is one more venue I would like to highlight before leaving Jerusalem, which is on the scaled model of the 1st Century city as it was after the Crucifixion but before its destruction in 70 AD by the Roman General Titus.

The model is located at the Holyland Hotel in West Jerusalem, and the exhibition at the time was open to the public. The stone bricks with which the model was constructed are of the same material as the ancient city was built. In other words, the stones used in its construction are of the same limestone as the blocks making up the Western Wall. Hence, with full archaeological authenticity, Model Jerusalem was constructed with the most accurate research.

The Second Temple, Model Jerusalem.

Golgotha, the site of the Crucifixion, is marked, and before AD 70, it was outside the city wall until close to the time of its demise, when a new wall extended north and west, enclosing the site. Hence, Golgotha has been within the walls ever since, and the first building of the church was to be that of the Holy Sepulchre. Since that particular site is at present within the city wall, doubts have arisen over its genuineness. Consequently, Englishman Charles Gordon popularised in 1883 what is now the Garden Tomb, a separate site north of the city, as the burial site of Jesus. However, archaeologist Gabriel Barkay examined the tomb and concluded that it was hewn around 600 years BC. Therefore, it couldn't be "the tomb no man was ever laid" as recorded in John 19:41 of the Holy Bible.

I visited both the Church of the Holy Sepulchre and then the Garden Tomb a year later in 1994. I left the Garden Tomb unconvinced that this was the site of the Lord's burial. But I have known people in escorted Christian tours visit the Garden Tomb and come away excited that they visited the site they thought was the genuine tomb of Christ.

During the second week, I boarded an Egged Bus for the Dead Sea, Ein Gedi on the west side of the salty lake, and the Fortress of Masada on the southern tip of the Dead Sea. An Arab bus from the East Jerusalem bus station, near the Garden Tomb, took me to Bethlehem in the West Bank, where I visited both the Church of the Nativity and the lesser-known Catholic Chapel or Grotto of the Milk, where tradition says that a drop of milk dripped from Mary's breast while she and Joseph fled to Egypt in haste with the baby to escape Herod's slaughter of the Innocents. The drop of milk turned the ground on which it fell white, and a natural white band of limestone authenticates the tale.

The story of Mary's Milk may seem a fantastic tale to the observer, but I also found the story too fascinating to accept as historic. But as I sat alone amidst gentle Marian music filling the church, this was a good spot for meditation, the love the mother has for her child, and how a mother's love influences the success of her offspring as he grows up. It was also an ideal location for someone who is burdened by the world's troubles to pour out his heart in prayer and meditation.

On the other hand, Ein Gedi was a very different environment to Bethlehem. Designated as a National Park, it has two freshwater streams flowing through it towards the Dead Sea. From one of the caves, possibly the one where David hid with his men from King Saul, a waterfall gushes out. I was wearing swimming trunks hidden under a shirt as I stood under the waterfall as it cascaded over me. Such bliss when under the hot Middle East summer sunshine. A hiking trail led out of the oasis and ran along the mountainous desert parallel with the Dead Sea. Along the trail, I came across a group of backpackers who sat around a spring, and for a short while, I joined them. When they decided to move on, I was left alone to continue the walk to the Chalcolithic Temple, a 4,000-year-old ruin.

Finally, a swim, or rather floating on the briny waters of the Dead Sea concludes this week's photo album. But the trip isn't over. Next week, I'll be concentrating on a day out to the Masada site, including a hike up the Snake Path, and the early morning sunrise over the mountains of Jordan across the Dead Sea.

For a link for the Index to the appropriate Biography - Weeks 48-51, click here.

Photos of the Jerusalem Model.

Detail of the new northern city extension.

All these buildings are of real stone bricks.

Facing east towards the Temple.

The Golden Gate entrance to Temple Mount.

Roman Administration Fort.

Looking east towards the Fort.

Herod's Palace near Jaffa Gate.

The Citadel.

Looking southeast towards the Temple.

City of David.

Roman Circo Maxima (Horses and Chariots).

City Residential Area.

Looking South towards the Temple.

The 2nd Temple complex.

Bethlehem.

General view of Bethlehem town.

Lutheran Church, Bethlehem

Town Centre, Bethlehem.

More Town Centre Views.

Entrance of the Church of the Nativity.

Eastern Orthodox Chapel

Close-up of the Eastern Orthodox Altar.

I arrived at the Crypt where a service was held.

After the service ended, I stayed behind...

I was alone at the Star of Bethlehem, the site of the birth.

This is the Manger, where the baby was laid.

The Grotto of the Milk - Interior.

The Grotto of the Milk, the Altar.

Rachel's Tomb is just north of Bethlehem.

Ein Gedi and the Dead Sea.

Ein Gedi, an Oasis near the Dead Sea.

The stream cutting the canyon is the Nahal David.

Oasis views.

A hike along Nahal David takes me to a waterfall.

Wearing swimming trunks and a shirt, I'm cooled off!

 I continue with the hike.

This cave was David's hideaway.

The trail leads into the desert.

These mountains make up the Rift Valley.

I head south.

I arrived at a Spring. There's a group of backpackers.

I thought I had another shot.

The Spring I sat by.

Further on, I approach the Chalcolithic Temple.

The structure is around 4,000 years old.

Temple detail with the Dead Sea in the background.

Palm Tree Plantation, Ein Gedi.

View of the Dead Sea from the hiking trail.

Approaching Ein Gedi Beach.

Watching others bathe in the brine.

Finally, I too had a dip/float.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Next Week: The Fortress of Masada.