Goodbye Galilee, Hello Jerusalem

I let my mom sleep in a little on Monday morning, knowing she was quite tired from her traveling. We started the day by going up into the Golan Heights a little and checking out Katsrin, with remains from a Beduin village and an ancient city. We were also able to learn about the Talmudic time as well. We paired it with the Golan Archaeological Museum. While small, the museum was quite interesting. We watched a video on Gamla, so my mom was able to learn about that. We made our way back to the Galilee to visit one of the two churches of the Tabgha, the German Benedictine Church of the Multiplication of the Loaves and Fishes. The modern church stands where there was once a Byzantine church and incorporates its mosaic floor, including the part near the alter of two fish on either side of a basket with five loaves. Then I showed mom the Greek Orthodox Church at Capernaum and Capernaum.

After breakfast on Tuesday, we went to see the Ancient Galilean boat and to the observation tour. After checking out of the hotel, we went to Bethsaida so I could show mom where I had been working. I also bid a final farewell to the site and my supervisor. We drove up to the Mount of the Beatitudes, but unfortunately timing wise did not work out because they had just closed for their break in the middle of the day. I bid the Sea of Galilee, and my view of Mount Arbel and Tiberias goodbye.

Mount Arbel

Tiberias

We made our way to Nazareth to visit the Basilica of the Annunciation. However, mom decided not to stop. Why? The traffic. There is no parking lot for the church from what we could tell. The streets do not have signs, and if they do they might not be in English. The traffic is a mess. Driving here makes driving in Chicago look like a piece of cake. At least in Chicago there are stop signs and organization, here not so much. So she settled for just driving by. Then we had the challenge of finding our hotel in Jerusalem. We had some challenges along the way due to traffic and one way roads but we eventually made it to the hotel.