Dead sea, Massada, Eilat

July 19, 2010
I am back, now trying to catch up on this blog. Dixie, Sheila and I headed off for Eilat which is on the extreme south end of Israel, on the Red Sea. We decided to hire Sammi, our van driver to take us there so that we could swim in the Dead Sea and see Massada on the way. We departed at 8:00am amidst hugs and tears as Dixie and Sheila were not returning to Jerusalem but were going to continue their tour on through Egypt.
Sami found us a nice spot on the Dead Sea to stop. Much of the Dead Sea shore is rocky but this beach was sandy. We bobbed around for a while in the water, then covered our entire bodies in mud. It is supposed to be good for the skin, and we were supposed to let it dry in the sun before we washed off but we got bored and washed it off early. After we showered and returned to the van, Sami said we looked 10 years younger.
We then drove south along the Dead sea until we came to Masada. This is a fortress built by Herod on top of a mountain. Herod had used it as a retreat and a place to hide in times of trouble, but when the Jewish people rebelled against the Romans in 70AD, and the temple was destroyed in Jerusalem, the last surviving rebels fled there. They managed to hold off the large contingent of Roman soldiers for years before the siege worked, then all but a few committed suicide when there was no hope, to avoid becoming slaves or gladiators for the Romans. They have excavated many of the ruins up there and it is very impressive. The views from Herod's palace are amazing, as it is perched on the edge of a sheer cliff. Their system of collecting rainwater, and storing it in cisterns, as well as the huge storage compartments for food items made it easier to understand how they could survive so long on a barren mountaintop. We did a lot of walking, but even though it was about 35 C, there was a nice breeze, so it wasn't too bad. We were surprised when we made it down to where Sami was and he told us that he had been waiting for 3 hours. How time flies when you are having fun!
We then made the journey through the sand and rocks to Eliat. We found "The Shelter," where we stayed, met our new roommates and settled in. Dixie and Sheila went snorkeling and I went and found a grocery store so that we would have food for breakfast and lunch tomorrow.