It’s another day of rain and cool weather which again is not
a normal event in Israel. However the periods of rain and then breaks in the
weather with even some sunshine worked very well each time we stepped outside!
Today we’ll be exploring the area around the northern portion of the Sea of
Galilee and the many places that Jesus spent much of his time and ministry.
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| view of our hotel from the Sea of Galilee |
(boat we used to go out on the Sea of Galilee)
The day started at 8am with a boat ride on the Sea of
Galilee. Our hotel in Tiberius is right
on the shore line and it was a very brief walk to the dock. Today the Sea of
Galilee is referred to as Kinneret. It
is 23 km long and 8 km wide and to me it appears to be about the size of lake
Simcoe in Ontario. It’s about 38 meters
deep and sits 122 meters below sea level which makes it the lowest fresh water
lake in the world. It is fed by warm
underwater springs but mainly by the Jordan River. It is the warm springs that brought feeding fish
and thereby the fisherman to this area of the lake.
Now the weather was very stormy and the water choppy with white caps. For me this was a great experience as it reminded me of the disciples out on the water with Jesus in the storm as recorded in Matthew chapter 8.
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| view across the Sea of Galilee with the Golan Heights in the background |
The Valley of Gennesaret is the route Jesus would have
travelled from Nazareth to come to Galilee. The valley itself is mentioned in the New
Testament as the place where Jesus landed following the storm at sea, and
where he healed the sick (Mk 6:53-54).
Today it is also called Ginosar.
Here in Ginosar we are visiting a communal settlement
referred to in Israel as a Kibbutz. This
Kibbutz usually focuses on agriculture but this one focuses on tourism. They
operate a hotel and museum that provides their income and it is the location
that displays a boat discovered in 1986 dating back to the time of Jesus.
(Jesus Boat Museum in Ginosar)
(Jesus Boat)
Day is not over yet! Look for Part 2.
