On Top of Masada.

Whew Zac, that was one heck of a climb. Well done my boy!

There is actually a source of delicious cold water up here too which we drank copious quatities of.

Its quite a large area on the summit & archeological digs are still being carried out. A majestic place & no doubt easy to defend.

But by the time the Jewish zealots took the place over there wasn't much left of Herods comfortable palace ...so the living conditions would have been harsh to say the least.

Then of course those tricky clever Romans constructed a ramp of earth & stone, & this pic shows the incline up which they built it & as you can see a good portion of it is still there. Then they pulled & pushed their siege machines up this slope. Hard to believe huh!!! You are looking stright down the slope from top to bottom,believe it or not!

I thought for a moment that "Ol MO ,' had got lost & ended up there as well.!!

The climb continues & was it worth it?

Whew...are we there yet?

Cables for the cable car that Sue & Deidre travelled in to the top of Masada the next day. Definitely the faster & easier way.

Made it, & the view down the other side was awesome with a straight drop to the bottom so I clung tightly to the rails since I hate heights.

No doubt Herod would have used it as a quick way to rid himself of anyone who annoyed him.

Dead sea area revisted.

A further attempt to climb 1300ft Masada via the 'snake trail,' Not so high nor so difficult but remember this area is 400ft below sea level and the temps were in the 40's centigrade this particular day, but to quote an old New Zealand son, Sir Ed Hillary...."this time we knocked the bugger off!!!"

The 5 entrepid climbers feeling pretty good at 6.30am leaving the kibbutz, but those little hills in the background look pretty bleak & quite high.



Ah... it is already hotting up at the car park, at 7.30am & Masada actually looks quite daunting now at closer range.






Zac, that hill, like the temperatures, is steadily getting higher...& our packs were heavy with a load of water.

Akko / Acre, another ancient port city with a colourful history

The old port city of Akko, one of the oldest port cities in the world. A fascinating place and again very difficult to really do justice with a few pics. About 8 different people groups have conquered & ruled this area , just a little north of modern Haifa since a couple of thou BC

A sweeping view overlooking the old port from the ramparts that Napolean unsuccessfuly tried to take. He was finally repulsed & went off round 1790.

Inside the Crusader period section. the more modern looking structure on top is part of the British jail where the brits, imprisoned and executed a number of Israelis before the 48 war of Independence. Not one of the finer periods of Brit history.

The crusader citadel ( complete with sewrage drains, deep in the earth which we walked through) is still in remarkable shape considering the fact that the Marmluke & Ottoman Turks buried huge areas of it under rubble & sand to construct their own fortifications.

Almost time to leave....with so many blogs still to enter

We leave early morning 20th, having had some wonderful experiences and really enjoying our time with Shell & Matt & their children Mia & Isaac. Also had a lot of laughs and it will be sad saying goodbye to them.


Matt has done a great job making sure we get to the right places both driving us and leading us in their car, and suggesting places of interest to visit. So we feel we have seen and experienced a good representation of Israel.

We have covered many k's in rental cars without any major problems apart from being involved in a 3 car collision and getting hit from behind just outside of Jerusalem which caused Pete some trauma from having to drive into and then back out from the centre of Jerusalem to change hire cars !

Some of you will know that one of Sue's passions is talking to and listening to people share their lifes stories and this has been one of the many highlights of our journey; meeting and talking with so many interesting people from different races, colours and shades of....with such interesting and often sad life stories to share.

We recently had time to chat with an 80 year old survivor of Auschwitz concentration camp, his tatooed number although blurred still on his forearm. Intered as a 10 year old with his Polish family having been captured in France while trying to hide. Lost his entire family. But wow what a character with a zest for life and a capacity to keep going that was astounding. Still operating a successful little business at the Caesarea archeological site. A real ladies man with charm to match along with the experience that comes from having had 6 wives.

We will continue with our blog site when we return home so that you can complete this awesome journey with us......

One last shot of the wall...

Someone is hopeful.

West Bank Jerusalem. Further 'wall,' pics. We are getting way behind with our blogging...so lets move on...

The 'wall,' looks quite ominous from a distance

against the dry stony hillside.

Some of the painted slogans are quite poignant.

Jerusalem. The West Bank, further pics from the other side of the wall

Driving towards the barrier entrance to this area of the West Bank.

Some of the locals aren't particularly happy about this addition to their 'views' & the drop in real estate values.

Its a bit daunting driving right beside & underneath those rather sinsiter walls

Jerusalem. West Bank

Despite the hardships of life on the West Bank an enterprising cafe owner can still cause a few laughs.

A delicious Palestinian meal with enough food to feed 5000, enjoyed with Alex, Lisa & the children.

This area, called the 'shepherds field,' where the shepherds supposedly first saw the star that lead them to the 'stable,' or more likely the nearby cave where the birth of Jesus took place.

Jerusalem. West Bank

Lisa, Tuya, Zac & Alex Snary






You know that story that Jesus told about the lost sheep....well would you believe after all this time, we have found the whole flock wandering through down town Bethlehem. Not too far from where Alex & Lisa live.

Yes we had to try the 'hookah,' but depsite it being more mellow, more fruity and a little cooler than a cigarette....it was still smoke...arhhhh!!!

Jerusalem. The West Bank. The other side of the wall and story.

It was great to be able to stay for a short while with Alex & Lisa Snary & their children Tuya & Zac. Alex is the World Vision Israel & Palestine Country Director. We know Alex & Lisa from Mongolia days. Interestingly our history goes way back to high school days as we were friends with Lisa's mum & dad Julie & Mac Calvert. In fact Julie virtually introduced me to Sue at the Hamilton Girls High School 5th form dance, from where it all started!!!

This blog is not intended to be any sort of policital statement.

However Pete was able to meet with Alex's World Vision National office staff. These are a group of mostly Palestinian, lovely,friendly young people. While the time with them was brief, one could not but be moved when hearing of the indignities and difficult, frustrasting, and often dangerous situations in which the team operates while carrying out their aid and development work amongst the poor.

Another Jerusalem visit before Jane leaves.

Beaut old shrubbed streets

Zeb is an attraction everywhere.

Notice the curly side locks of the little orthodox jewish child.

Even the military on guard in the old city think he's pretty cute.

I think Jane thought they were cute too!!!

Jane managed to get her shot of the orthodox jews praying at the western wall at the beginning of Shabbat. Just a little after sun down about 8-30pm