Day 2

Day two, was just as busy as the first day. We started out our day by going down to the Sea of Galilee and viewing a 2,000 year old ancient Galileen boat which is exactly like the boats that Jesus and his disciples sailed on! The boat was discovered in 1986 and it took 11 days of excavation to dig the boat out.

Ancient Galileen Boat

Once we were done viewing the ancient boat, we boarded a boat of our own and sailed the Sea of Galilee just as Jesus and his disciples did. Sailing on the Sea of Galilee was an amazing experience as it was very calm and peaceful. Hardly any other boats were on the water and the water was filled with lots of fish that were constantly jumping!

Our view from the water

Mom and I sailing the Sea of Galilee

Me on the boat!

After our Sea of Galilee boat tour, we headed to Yardenit. Yardenit is affiliated with a kibbutz in the area and it is a famous baptismal site on the Jordan River. The specific baptismal site at Yardenit is believed to be the exact spot where John the Baptist baptised Jesus. Although no one if our group was baptised, standing ankle deep in the Jordan River did make for a great photo op!


Bible Verse outside of Yardenit. They have this written in over 20 languages!



Mom and I in the Jordan River



Cooling down from the hot Isreali sun with a coke zero


Following Yardenit we traveled to the base of Mt. Tabor in the Jezreel Valley, which is believed to be the site of the transformation of Jesus. This is when Jesus spoke to both Moses and Elijah and it is one of his miracles in the Bible. Currently at the top of Mt. Tabor is an orthodox monastery, which you can faintly see at the top of the mountain.



monastery at the top of Mt. Tabor



Mt. Tabor


Our last stop of today was in the City of Nazareth, where Jesus was from. The main site we visited was the Chuch of Annunciation which was constructed over a Byzantine Era and Crusader Era church. Under the church their are Byzantine era ruins, which are still being excavated.

The Church of Annunciation



Front door of the church depicting major events from Jesus' Life




The cave in the background is supposed to be like the one Jesus was born in.



The crypt under the church



Byzantine era mosaics




Byzantine ruins under the Church



 Following our trip to Nazareth, we headed back to our hotel in Tiberius for dinner and to relax before another busy day!