Day 11 Friday April 26th Holy Land Trip

Friday was a long, extended day.  We packed up and left the hotel with our baggage at 8 am and toured all day.  We got to the airport in time for our 12:30 am (Saturday) flight home.  We left on time, traveled to New York, where we did customs, then Atlanta, and finally arrived in Little Rock at 12:30 pm.  Twelve hours plus the eight hour time difference made for a 20 hour flight.

The following are some of the things we did on our last day.  We visited a memorial cemetery for the military men and women who had been killed in the wars Israel has fought.

                                                   Two flags flying over the cemetery.

We next went to the Yad Vashem Museum (Holocaust History Museum).  It is really an effective museum.  Our guide, Moti, shared with us some personal stories about his family members who were involved during this horrible time.  As the build-up to the Second World War took place, many people had their heads in the sand, ignoring what was taking place. It seems that the same thing is taking place today.  Will we learn from history or repeat it?

We next went to the Shrine of the Book Museum at the Israel Museum. Inside this building (shown below), with its distinctive onion-shaped top, are displays of the Dead Sea Scrolls that were discovered in 1947.  Directly beneath the dome is an imposing showcase (shaped like a wooden Torah rod) containing a replica of the Great Isaiah Scroll (written c. 100 BC).

Not far from the Dead Sea Scroll exhibit is a 50:1 scale model of Jerusalem in 66 AD.  It covers nearly an acre. You can walk all the way around it and take close up pictures of various parts of the city. 

 You can also see the Israeli Parliament building from the Israel Museum grounds.

                                                              Israeli Parliament building

It was less than 6 hours before Shabbat (Sabbath) started, and everyone in the street was hurrying to make last minute preparations, then heading for their synagogue.

 

 We stopped at Elvis' restaurant to take some photos and for a snack break.  

We felt right at home. 

We thought a Segway might be a good way to see Israel, but after reflecting on the terrain we had to navigate in several places we had been, it looked less inviting.

 

 

                                 We had a great view of Tel Aviv from this street in old Joppa.

          This area is another world compared to Jerusalem and many other parts of Israel.

                                  We had our final meal in Israel at this nice restaurant.

As we turned off the freeway at the airport sign and turned east we were greeted with this sunset picture.  A fitting image to end our trip report.

In the very near future we will be posting some follow-up blogs relating to our trip.  On each blog we will be looking at a specific place we visited, with more pictures and a tie-in to the scripture relating to each site.  We will also have a blog posting listing some of the resources we used during our year-long study in preparation for our trip.  Stay in touch.

We all would very highly recommend our guide, Moti.  He can be reached at:
 

Moti Kaufer - Israel Private Tours     www.private-guide.net     +972-(0)52-4448048

We will leave you with this question that has mystified many during the past ...  Where's Doris ???