Day 4 - East side of Sea of Galilee, Jordan border crossing, Jerash, River Jabbok, Amman
0:00 Leave Nof Gonosar, head north around lake
2:10 Site of ancient city of Chinnereth, modern power station. Facilities buried underground to protect them from Syrian artillery on Golan Heights prior to 1967.
2:30 Tabgha - Traditional site of the feeding of 5,000
4:55 Inlet of Jordan River into Sea of Galilee
5:35- 8:20 Bethsaida/Julius? This is the best candidate for the New Testament site but it is not without its problems. There may have been two Bethsaidas ("House of the Fishermen") in close proximity, the other being a fishing village on the shore. Note the wild areas to the northeast of the city. Some consider this the "remote place" where Jesus fed the 4,000.
9:10- 19:00 Sidetrip: Gamla. At the end of this deep canyon cut into the basalt of the Golan Heights was the city of Gamla ("camel") - "the Masada of the North." The city was taken by the Romans in the Jewish Revolt of A.D. 66 at great loss of life for both sides.
21:50 Gergesa / Kursi - Site of town linked to the miracle of the demoniacs being delivered and their tormentors being cast into the herd of pigs here on the gentile side of the lake.
22:20- 25:35 Slope where pigs ran into the sea? The slope here is the closest steep one to the shore on Galilee's east side and best fits the topographic details of the story.
26:40 En Gev - Kibbutz that broke away from Kibbutz Nof Ginosar in the 1930s. Site was constantly under artillery assault by the Syrians on the Golan Heights directly above prior to 1967.
27:10- 30:00 Hippus or Hippos. A city of the Decapolis sitting above the lake across from the Mount of Beatitudes. My opinion - this is the "city on a hill" that all eyes turned to as Jesus taught. With its bright marble buildings and temples, it would have been a constant in-your-face reminder of the paganism of Roman and Hellenistic culture so close to them. Later, site was a Byzantine city called Susita.
33:55 We're back at the south end of the Sea of Galilee where the Jordan River leaves the lake and near the baptismal site we visited on Day 2 of our tour. We'll be backtracking until we reach the outskirts of Bethshan.
37:30- 39:20 Sidetrip: Let's leave the road and climb the hills of Lower Galilee on the western side to see the crusader fort of Belvoir Castle. Note its position and command of the surrounding territory.
45:25 Border crossing into Jordan - get out your passports and meet our new guide - Sami Twal. FYI - Sami's uncle is the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem.
48:50- 106:20 For most of the rest of our day, until we reach the outskirts of the city of Amman, we will be climbing and crossing the Biblical region of Gilead
49:10 Pahel/Pella - City of the Decapolis. Traditional site where Jerusalem church fled in advance of the city's destruction in A.D. 70.
54:15- 57:20 Jabesh Gilead
59:20 Note the forests of Gilead. They were a source of healing balm, but they proved deadly for Absalom.
64:20- 66:25 Ajlun Castle - the headquarters of Saladin
73:20- 79:10 Jerash / Gerasa - City of the Decapolis
81:40 Jabbok River
82:25- 101:00 Sidetrip: We're going to fly down the Jabbok all the way to the Jordan Valley to see some sites associated with Jacob and his return from Haran. We'll see Penuel, Succoth and two possible sites for Mahanaim. It's a bit of a diversion so, if you're bored, fast forward.
104:30 The Jordanian telecommunications site (see satellite dishes) and Baqa'a Palestinian refugee camp pointed out by Sami.
107:55 University of Jordan. Approximate site of Jogbehah, near where Gideon captured the Midianite kings, Zebah and Zalmunah.
111:30- 116:05 Rabbath Ammon / Philadelphia / Modern Amman
116:35 Toledo Hotel, Amman