Jaffa, Caesarea, Nazareth, Cana, Haifa, River Jordan, Sea of Galilee and Bethlehem

December 13 - 15, 2022

003 - IMG_0057 Jaffa, an ancient port city in Israel, known for its association with the biblical stories of Jonah, Solomon and Saint Peter as well as the mythological story...

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001 - P1190136 The Old Jaffa Port is reputed to be one of the oldest ports in the world, notably being the port from which Jonah set off in the famous Biblical story of Jonah...

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002 - IMG_0055 Na Laga'at Center at Jaffa operates the Na Laga'at theater with ensemble consists of deaf, blind, deafblind and actors who can see and hear; Kapish Events...

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004 - P1190139 Today, the port is used largely by local fishermen who continue the centuries old tradition of the area.

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005 - P1190141 Archaeological digs and ancient papyrus documents reveal that Jaffa existed as a seaport more than 4,000 years ago and as such is said to be the world's oldest...

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006 - IMG_0058 Old Jaffa: the walled city and possibly oldest port in the world, located just south of modern Tel Aviv.

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007 - IMG_0067 The city of Caesarea contained a giant hippodrome, aqueduct and theater; a thousand years later the Crusaders arrived and built a giant fortress, and then came...

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008 - P1190164 Caesarea is 45 minutes drive and north of Tel Aviv, 20 minutes south from Haifa. Built by Rome’s Judean Governor, Herod the Great, two millennia ago, Caesarea...

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012 - IMG_0081 Today, the Roman theatre is a venue for concerts. The Caesarea Amphitheater is built in a semicircle and includes about 4,000 seats.

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009 - IMG_0073 Herod the Great's love of Hellenistic culture and his desire to introduce it to the Jewish nation is illustrated clearly by the theater at Caesarea. Apparently,...

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010 - P1190172 One way to tell it is a Roman built theater is they built round arch instead of pointed arch and it placed evenly distributing force on their stones outward.

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011 - P1190180 Roman structures stand well over years and it was attributed to the lime compound they use and mixed with stones. When they are exposed to water seepage, it...

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013 - P1190209 A giant hippodrome, an oval stadium for horse and chariot races in ancient Greece.

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014 - IMG_0099 The hippodrome was built by Herod the Great for the inauguration of the city in 9/10 BC. It was the venue of the Actian Games instituted by King Herod in honour...

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015 - P1190234 The Temple of Augustus was built by Herod and was covered by an octagonal Byzantine church in the 6th century. Only its huge podium and a series of steps can be...

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016 - IMG_0115 These four long, parallel vaults, opening onto the west through a portico, first served as substructures of the Roman financial procurator's palace. In a later...

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017 - IMG_0131 Caesarea Harbor Visiting Center, opened in May 2019... Caesarea is the country’s most visited national park, with more than 900,000 visitors per year, the...

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021 - IMG_0188 The Church of the Annunciation in Nazareth, sometimes also referred to as the Basilica of the Annunciation. It was established over what Catholic tradition...

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020 - P1190334 The first church was established on this site sometime around 400AD: the precise site of the Annunciation is disputed, with Greek Orthodoxy believing it the...

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018 - IMG_0180 During the Crusades, a second church was constructed over the ruins of the previous Byzantine era church. This was never finished. The basilica today is a 20th...

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