Sunday, May 27, 2007

We visit Bet She'an National Park












Today we were invited to go on a trip with our friends, Allan and Muna Waters. As we had not been to visit Bet She'an for some time, that site was at the top of our list. It is known as Israel's Pompeii. The area has a long and dramatic history that includes the Egyptians, the Canaanites, the Philistines, King David, King Solomon, Alexander the Great, the Romans and the Jews.

There are the remains of a large theatre, two bath houses, colonnades, temples, markets and fountains as well as many other public buildings and streets. There are some beautiful mosaics as well as a large Tel that we climbed. There are excavations currently in progress on the Tel. We also had amazing views of the site and surrounding countryside from the top of the Tel. We had a very clear view of the Gilad mountains of Jordan.

We spent more than 3 hours at the site as it covers a large area. We then drove over to the Herb Farm Restaurant that is situated on Mt Gilboa where we ate a delicious lunch as we looked out across some of the beautiful farmlands and hills of Israel.

1 comment:

Vaughan said...

Our 2005/6 plan not halted, just delayed....though we two can just watch from a Tel (Mt Coot-tha) far, far way...