Crossing Jordan

Crossing the Jordan
[June 11th, 2006] The first full day of our Holy Land trip began with a tour of Mount Nebo, the holy site commemorating where Moses looked out across the promised land as he led the Israelites into the land of milk and honey. It is said to be the last place that Moses saw before he died and also where he was buried. The perfect weather allowed us to see across the Jordan Valley into Israel and Palestine, including views of the Dead Sea and Jericho with Jerusalem and Bethlehem in the distance. Our excellent tour guide, Ra'ed, a Jordanian Christian, gave us in depth and personal stories, legends, and facts about Mount Nebo and the church built there and covered with mosaics that date from the Byzantine era.

Leaving Mount Nebo, the VIM team headed to the King Hussein/Allenby bridge that crosses into Israel and Palestine. The process took over four hours complete with Israeli soldiers' confusion and questioning regarding a bag of homestyle southern grits I brought as a gift for a Palestinian family, a few hours of waiting on buses, and the interrogation of Susan because her checked luggage somehow "ignited" concern.

Finally, after the long and exhausting border process, we headed towards Ibillin in the Galilee of northern Israel, taking a stop at the Temptation Restaurant at Jericho where several team members experienced their first camel ride. Paul and Geoff sported the Palestinian kaffiya, Katie gave the camel a sweet kiss that made him blush, and Karen earned the new nickname "Mama" by the camel driver.

We continued our drive north, out of the Palestinian West Bank and into the lush Galilee. We arrived at the Mar Elias Education Center in Ibillin, a suburb of Haifa. Arriving at sunset, we unpacked while listening to the evening Sunday service at the Greek Melkite church and smelling its sweet incense and then enjoyed another delicious Arabic meal. In the distance is the city of Haifa and the Mediteranean Sea, which we will be visiting tomorrow after a morning of service gardening and painting at the Center. -- Lindsey