THE BEAUTY OF THE  HOLY LAND

            

We traveled to the sites of Masada and En Gedi.  Masada was the place where King Herod built a palatial fortress.  It was supposed to serve as a sort of impenetrable spot where Herod could hold out if things became too bad.  While we used the cable cars to ascend to the summit, you could look down and see just how difficult it would be to climb this mountain.  One of the neat things about Masada is that the top is a plateau that is not connected to anything.  This gave us one of the most incredible views that many of us have probably ever seen.  From the top one could look out on one side and see the glimmer of the Dead Sea, while on the other you could see the rolling hills and steep mountains that cover this part of the region.

     After leaving Masada we traveled to En Gedi.  This was the site where David dwelt as mentioned in the first book of Samuel.  After spending many hours traversing the hot desert around Masada many of us were exhausted and very tired.  The long steep hike through En Gedi leading towards David's Falls didn't help matters.  However, the farther in we traveled the greener it became and the cooler the air was, you just knew there was going to be something special at the end.  The hike towards David's Falls was breathtaking in itself, but I don't think that anything could have prepared us for what happened next.  After hiking up a very steep, often times slick and dangerous, terrain we emerged very suddenly into the grotto that held David's Falls.  We were told it was an oasis in the desert, however that was a huge understatement. To have traveled through such grueling and hot terrain at Masada, and again to get up to the falls, we were all taken aback by the grand beauty of this place.  Lush green fauna, large cascading waterfalls, and the cool breeze left all of us there speechless.  Upon entering this small Eden we were all exhausted, however it seemed as we left that each of us had been renewed and rejuvenated.  While we are only a few days into our pilgrimage it would seem that for many of us this has been a major highlight thus far.  At the end of the day we all returned safe and sound.  We closed our day with Mass during which all of you were in our prayers.  God Bless.