Dead Sea and Masada

Amid the beautiful landscape of the Jordan Valley, a historical landmark for thousands of years, drapes the lowest point on earth:  The Dead Sea.  It is about 1,375 feet below sea level and is one of the saltiest bodies of water in the world.  As we drove along the moonscape Judean desert, we could observe how it is receding about 1 meter/year due to a combination of less rainfall in the region and human interaction.

The Dead Sea Canal looking North

It is called the Dead Sea because virtually nothing can live in it – with a salt concentration of about 32%.  It is salty because water flows in from the Jordan River and other sources, but has no way of flowing out.  Evaporation leaves a massive amount of salt behind.

We first visited the Qumran Caves where the Dead Sea Scrolls were discovered.  Scholars believe a community devoted to the study and teaching of the Bible may have lived here in Second Temple times. 

Cumran (site of Dead Sea Scrolls)

Further south at Masada an amazing story developed. Jewish extremists revolting during the 67 BC Jewish uprising killed themselves rather than surrendering to the Roman army.  No one really knows what happened and Masada continues to inspire debate.  We accessed the top of the mountain by cable car.  It is a fantastic complex of palaces, storehouses, a synagogue, a church and water systems.  There were eight Roman military camps surrounding the base of Masada during the roman siege.  Today these camps are marked with lines of rock.

Masada plateau with Roman assault ramp

Roman Camps during assault on Masada

Our guide owns a small airplane field at the base of Masada.  Evidently, he had

promised a couple of guys a ride on his single engine plane.   Meanwhile, Mike and I enjoyed an Israeli lunch (chopped tomato, cucumber and onion salad with fresh hummus and pita, and accompanied by several other vegetable dishes) while he soared away with them.  When they returned he insisted on taking us up to see Masada from the air. For description of the mountain fortress, see our photos.  It’s indescribable.  We could also see the myriad of large sinkholes all across the hostile landscape picking out specimens generic to the area e.g. the asphalt that oozes through the brittle crust that covers the area. 

Sinkholes

Back in the jeep, imagine our joy when we spotted five gazelles leaping across the hostile landscape.  Leopards live here as well.

Bedu, the Arabic word from which the name Bedouin derives, simly means inhabitant of the desert.  Some 160,000 Bedouins, semi-nomadic Arab tribesmen and full citizens of Israel, live in the Negev.  Their population is growing

and they pitch camp on any vacant land they can find, largely in the desert areas.

Since Israel gained independence in 1948, the Bedouin’s urbanization and integration into Israeli society has been difficult.  Starting in the late 1960’s, the Israeli government built several Bedouin towns and encouraged resettlement.  Their simple, nomadic way of life becomes more difficult to maintain each year as they resist these polices (similar to the story we heard that the Tibetan nomads are experiencing).