What a Summer!

With the beginning of school in focus, summer travel is officially over. For my family, this summer will long be remembered. Both of my daughters were involved in archeological digs in Eretz Israel with their schools. Sarah went to Tel Gezer in May (see her blog here), and Chelsea dug at Tel Dan in July (see her blog here). Both digs had significant findings.

Joppa - Andromeda Rocks behind us

I traveled to Israel with Chelsea to meet Sarah at the end of her dig. We toured Tel-Aviv, Jerusalem and areas in-between for a week and a half before joining Chelsea’s Hebrew Union archeology introduction. Four days into the lessons taught by Dr. David Ilan (which we thoroughly enjoyed), Sarah and I flew back to the United States.

Eiffel Tower in Paris

Along the way, we visited the Eiffel Tower in Paris and Sarah visited with friends in New York City.

Our time together and apart in Israel allowed each of us to experience life and see sights beyond the scope of a normal tour group. The sights, sounds, smells as well as the people we met will long be remembered.

Modi'in from Ayalon Canada Park, Israel

What were my favorite places? I can not relate them all (see my blogs from June and July), but one of my personal favorites was Canada Park.

The park was so named because Jewish communities in Canada planted trees through the area creating an attraction for outdoor enthusiasts. I talked to bikers and hikers who shared their enthusiasm for the area. The weather is often idea for outdoor recreation. The scenery is beautiful and history is to be found throughout the area.

I was drawn to the park because it is close to Modi’in, home of the Maccabees of Chanukah. I had previously looked up an ancient synagogue, which I hoped to find. Before our arrival I had learned the ruins were covered over to protect them, but I could not learn of their location.

I asked one group of bicyclists if they knew of the ruins. They pointed me to Emmaus, which is at the entrance to the park. Emmaus (which means warm spring) was identified by Eusebius as the site where Jesus broke bread with Cleopas. Emmaus is also recorded in 1 Maccabees 3:55-4:22 as the place Judas Maccabeus claimed a victory over the Seleucids. This was not the site of the Synagogue, so we went further.

Another group of bikers pointed us up a ridge to more ruins. The view from the ridge was beautiful, looking down on the modern city of Modi’in. We took several pictures from an overlook, and more bikers too a picture of the three of us together. Then they told us of some more ruins which were on the other side of the ridge.

Hasmonean Fortress Ayalon Canada Park, Israel

We crossed over and hiked higher up the ridge. There appeared before us a long wall of large stone. Inside the wall we found ruins of buildings along with olive presses. From the ruins we could look across Ayalon Valley to Latrun Hill (where Sarah stayed during her dig) and Gezer. [for more photography from this area see background photos on Sarah’s website … excellent job Sarah!!]

Looking across Ayalon Valley toward Gezer

The ruins are called Eked Antiquities, and is a fortress built by the Hasmoneans (Maccabeaus) in about 167 BC. Soldiers of Simon Bar Kochba also used this fortress and dug “get-away” tunnels through the cisterns of the fortress. We later saw more information on these tunnels and a note written by Simon Bar Kochba at the Eretz Israel Museum in Tel Aviv.

Sign in Eretz Israel Museum

Do you like adventure? If so, I want to invite you to go with my family to Israel in June 2018. We will walk and explore the land. (Yes, we will have busses, if you do not want to walk, but something is missed unless we journey at least part of the way on foot, as the people of Jesus’ day walked the land.) I promise that on the trip we will explore new places, learning more about the land and the people of the Bible. If you are interested in this trip, please let me know. The trip is limited to about 50 people, which is one bus load.

No deposit is needed at this time, only a group of people who say, “I’m interested.”