As many of you know we had extensive travel plans for most of March and again in April and May. On March 4th we left Panama for Israel. Our journey to Israel was very uneventful with the threat of the pandemic still minimal. Our first sign of any concern was as we were leaving the Tucuman International Airport in Panama City. The government of Panama was in the airport checking the temperatures of arriving passengers. We felt that this was a strong indication that the government here was doing due diligence to keep its citizens safe against the threat of the virus. Our flight took us to Madrid where we connected to Tel Aviv. We saw no other attempt at other airports to do any due diligence in attempt to protect travelers and population.
Once in Tel Aviv we spent a day awaiting the arrival of the others in our tour group. On our free day in Tel Aviv we explored the Museum of the Jewish People and the Ben Gurion home. Ben Gurion is the modern founder of the State of Israel. His home was donated to the State upon his death and it is preserved as it had been during his life. His libraries, awards, memorabilia, and pictures from his life were amazing and it helped us to understand the current Israel. Israel is, in every way imaginable, a first world country with excellent infrastructure, military, medicine, and technology. They are very dependent on tourism. Our day ended with a trip to the Carmel Market where the vendors were very busy and the streets were full of tourists and locals buying fruits, spices, vegetables and just about anything else you can imagine. The following morning the remainder of our tour group arrived from the United States and we set out to explore the awesome country of Israel.
Our tour was an awesome group of individuals put together by Mesu Andrews who is an author of Biblical fiction. Among the group were four authors (including myself), three ministers, a professional photographer, and twenty other people who were the perfect mix of inquiring minds. We felt totally blessed to find ourselves among such an incredible group of people. Our guide was Israeli and she had a wealth of information about every place we visited. As the tour progressed she tweaked the itinerary so that we could see the most of her beautiful country should the tour need to be cut short by travel restrictions imposed by the Corona Virus.
On our first day we went north from Tel Aviv to Caesarea, where King Herod built a magnificent Roman seaport. This is where Peter baptized the Roman centurion Cornelius, the first gentile convert to Christianity. (Acts 10: 1-8) it was from this port that Paul set sail to preach in communities all over the Mediterranean, and where he was later imprisoned for two years and made his powerful speech before Felix, Festus and King Agrippa (Acts 24-26). From Caesarea we continued along the coast north to Mt. Carmel for a breathtaking view of the Jezreel Valley from the spot where Elijah (1 Kings 18: 16-45) challenged the prophets of Baal. We then drove through the lush valley to Megiddo, the strategic city in biblical history and biblical Armageddon (Rev 16:16). Our last stop of the day was at Nazareth Village. This was a recreation of the original village in the center of Nazareth. The original village would have had a population of about 200 people. It is in the center of modern day Nazareth which has a population of about 65,000.
From Nazareth we continued to the Sea of Galilee where we stayed in a magnificent resort on the bank of the Sea. We enjoyed the sunrise and had a nice breakfast with our group. Following breakfast we travelled to the Mount of the Beatitudes (Matthew 5-7) where we worshiped together. This amazing group never once gave up on faith, which is what I attribute to the fact that we all remained healthy for the entire time in Israel. After our time at the Mount of the Beatitudes we travelled to the dock where we boarded “The Ancient Galilee Boat”. We enjoyed a wonderful ride out across the Sea of Galilee with a captain who was inspiring beyond belief. He led us in singing some contemporary Christian songs. The time here was much too short. Once back at the dock we were able to visit a place where a boat was recently excavated from the shore of the Sea of Galilee. This boat is Carbon dated to the 1st century. It could have been used by Christ. We then traveled to Tabgha the site of the stone where Christ performed the miracle multiplication of the loaves and fishes (Matthew 14: 13-21). There is a chapel here built on the foundation of the original church. The Chapel is built over the rock where The risen Jesus fed his disciples after a miraculous catch and gave Peter his commission to “feed my sheep” (John 21: 1-25). After our amazing morning we spent the afternoon at Capharnaum. We visited the Synagogue where Jesus based his 18-month Galilean ministry. We stood within the foundations of the synagogue where he preached and healed. We saw the house of Peter’s family where Jesus stayed. Our day concluded with a traditional Israeli dinner and sunset over the Galilean Sea.
Day three started with a visit to the village of Mary Magdalene, Magdala. It is a beautiful geologic excavation site. We saw where archaeologists have uncovered the remains of a 1st century synagogue and a Byzantine Monastery. After leaving Magdala we traveled on to Bethsaida which is described in (Mark 8:22-26) as the town where Jesus met a blind man seeking healing. Jesus led the man outside town before healing him and asked him not to return to the town, nor inform the people of the town, after his sight was restored. The next stop was Dan where we explored a couple of unbelievable excavation sites. The first archeological site we saw dates back almost 3000 years to the time of Abraham. It was discovered in the 1980’s (Genesis 14:14). After that we visited the actual excavated gate that Abraham entered as he first journeyed through the Promised Land. We climbed up to the altar where it is believed King Jeroboam placed one of the golden calves to make idol sacrifices (Kings 1:25-28). Our last adventure of the day was Banias Spring, one of the sources of the Jordan River. Caesarea Philippi is a center of Roman might and pagan worship in Jesus’ time where He challenged his disciples then and now, “Who do men and do you say that I am?” The archeological site of Philip’s Castle was the home of Salome and Herodias. Our day took us to the far northern border of Israel near Mt. Hermon and the borders Syria and Lebanon. We had dinner on the journey back to our resort.
After a restful night sleep we enjoyed breakfast and loaded up the bus for our journey south to the Dead Sea. The days are long and every minute is filled with adventure. The ride south gave us a little time to relax and anticipate what the day would bring. Our first stop was along the Jordan river at a site where people go to be baptized. The shop at the site was closed. This was the first place we encountered closed due to the Virus. The shop sells the baptismal gowns worn by those being baptized. Several from our group were baptized by two of the ministers who we travelled with. Jen was in the group baptized and she was truly inspired by the experience. Those who were baptized wore their swim suit in place of the traditional gown. After leaving the bank of the Jordan we headed south toward Qumran. This is where the Dead Sea Scrolls were found about 80 years ago. The terrain on the drive south was more like I expected. It went from lush green to desert. After leaving Qumran we traveled on south to the Ein Gedi oasis. which lies in the middle of the desert. This is the place where David hid in caves and spared the life of King Saul (1 Sam. 23:29 & 1 Sam. 24: 1-22). Following our hike through the oasis we again continued south to the Dead Sea where we checked in for the night at the Dead Sea Spa and Resort.
Day five and we started out by exploring Masada which was one of our most amazing experiences so far. King Herod had it built using excess to all imagination. When you look at my pictures notice the black lines. From the black lines and down is what was excavated in tact. Above the black lines has been reconstructed. After an exhausting tour of Masada we traveled back to our resort where we all took the afternoon to enjoy the Dead Sea. Jen got herself all covered in black Dead Sea mud. We all swam and enjoyed the time. The water has so much salt that you can barely keep your feet grounded.
Day six we headed to Jerusalem. The tour guide was concerned with the future of our tour because the government had closed the borders and the airport to incoming tourists and asked that all travelers prepare to leave as soon as possible. This was almost laughable as our flights had already started being canceled. The tour company was exploring the possibility of still going to Jordan. Our guide’s concern caused us to take an alternate route from The Dead Sea to Jerusalem to avoid the possibility of road blocks. This gave us a look at Israel that few tourist experience. The moment we arrived in Jerusalem our driver took us straight to the Mount of Olives. Soon after that we made the Palm Sunday walk from the Mount of Olives to the Garden of Gethsemane and Church of all Nations (Church of Agony). After that we went by bus to Old Jerusalem. From the Jaffa Gate where our hotel was located we walked to Temple Mount. The beautiful Golden Dome is atop a mosque. It is controlled by the Muslims and we were required to cover arms, legs and shoulders for women and legs for men. We were able to visit the Eastern Gate which is also known as the Golden Gate. This gate has been sealed for many years. Christians believe that it is to be the entrance of Christ upon his return (Ezekiel 44: 1-2). We then were allowed a few minutes at the Western Wall. This is considered the holiest site in the Jewish world. For the first time in my life I put on a yarmulke and spent a few moments at the wall in silent prayer and reflection. We then settled comfortably into our room at the Gloria Hotel inside the wall of Old Town Jerusalem. This was to be our home for 4 nights. Due to travel concerns related to Corona Virus our tour company canceled the Jordan portion of our trip. That moved up the departure date of several people traveling with us. Jen and I were supposed to continue on to Athens, Greece after Jordan then on to a Greek isle cruise. Given the fact that the worst possible place to be during a virus crisis is a cruise, Jen and I cancelled everything after Jerusalem. Everything from that point was dependent on getting flights changed. Nobody on the tour was letting that affect our visit to Jerusalem.
Day seven was spent exploring Jerusalem. Our first adventure of the day was a walk under the Temple Mount through the Western Wall Tunnels giving us a close-up glimpse into the past. The next place we visited was Yad Vashem. It was difficult to understand the extreme brutality that was inflicted on the Jewish People during the Holocaust. There is no room in this world for antisemitism. This visit was a sad and somber moment in our time in Jerusalem. Over 1.5 million of the 6 million Jews exterminated during the Holocaust were children. The most moving exhibit and the most visited place in Israel is the Children’s Memorial at Yad Vashem. Out of respect no photography was allowed inside the museum. Later in the afternoon we visited the High Priest Caiaphas’s House where Jesus was taken before crucifixion. For dinner we enjoyed an invitation from a Jewish family for an authentic Shabbat celebration in their home.
Our first stop on morning eight we found a sign on the Cathedral of St. James indicating it was closed due to the Corona Virus. The people in Israel are really fearful of the virus. The government was continuing to ask that all visitors leave the country. We had flights scheduled but the airlines kept changing things. All the people in our tour group were in the same boat. We were committed to continue seeing the sights until the airlines can get us home. After we left the monastery at the Church of St. James we enjoyed a nice walk that took us through the Zion Gate and led to David’s Tomb and on to the Upper Room. The location of the Upper Room is believed to be constructed on the site where Jesus held the Last Supper. A little further we found the church that was built on the site where it is believed Jesus went to visit His grandmother. We wandered through the Via Dolorosa and the streets of Shuk on our way to the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. From there our group visited the Church of the Holy Sepulcher and The Golgotha And The Empty Garden Tomb. Our eighth night dinner was at the Jerusalem YMCA. Built in the early 1900’s the place was nothing short of amazing. The tourists were starting to leave at an alarming rate which improved our enjoyment of this Holy City. The bad news of the day was that one leg of our trip home has been canceled again. The hotels and stores in Israel were preparing to close their doors the following week with no new tourists arriving. We were all praying for the people there and others worldwide who would lose their jobs and income from the Corona Virus. The good news was that we were assured that we would be accommodated should we find ourselves trapped there.
On the morning of day nine we met to discuss the future of our tour. The State of Israel Ministry of Tourism closed all tourist sites in Israel, limited people gathering to less than 10, closed most of the restaurants, and asked that we stay in our hotel rooms. Our hotel told us that they would be closing the following morning. Our tour operator made arrangements for accommodations for us in Tel Aviv until we could get flights out. We were working on getting flights home. The God we serve is able to deliver (Daniel 3:37). We were advised to take the last day in Jerusalem to explore in small groups and perhaps do some shopping. Jen and I walked the ramparts on top of the wall of the Old City in both directions from the Jaffa Gate that morning. We got some amazing pictures and had an awesome experience. The streets and market are almost void of tourists. We did do a little shopping and the vendors appreciated the opportunity to make a little money before closing down.
On our last day in Jerusalem five people from our group decided to take an opportunity to climb to the hotel roof for some sunrise pictures. The sunrise was amazing and we were all a little choked up about having to leave this incredible place. After breakfast we started back by bus to Tel Aviv. The tour guide was with us but we were asked to put as much distance between us on the bus as possible. They also asked that we discontinue wearing our name tags in a effort to look less like a tour group. The tour operator made arrangements for all of us to stay in a hotel in Tel Aviv until we could leave Israel. The Corona Virus had caused all of the rest of our adventures to be cancelled. We had to say good bye to our wonderful tour guide Hedva and our driver Akmed when we were delivered to our hotel just a block from the beach of the Mediterranean Sea. Some emotional moments were shared when we parted ways. Thank you, Hedva for sharing your unbelievable knowledge and wisdom with us over those two weeks. Our group all remained very healthy and we spent three nights at the hotel where they tried to get us to stay in our rooms and served us breakfast and dinner at the hotel to keep us close. Most of us did go out exploring a little each day in small groups. Our tour operator was very responsive to our needs. We all felt blessed to have had this awesome adventure. No one can deny that the memories and friendships are lifelong. By Thursday all 27 of us had confirmed reservations out of Israel.
During one of our bonus days in Tel Aviv Jen and I walked down to the port of Jaffa. This is where Simon the Tanner lived and story of Jonah and the whale. There are some other sites from Jesus time but we were at a disadvantage without a guide. We got some great pictures along the beach promenade during our walk but found that really nothing was open. We made it back to the hotel before the rain started. On another day we walked to the Carmel Market. When we arrived in Israel 2 weeks earlier we could hardly navigate through the place. It was a beautiful, colorful and vibrant market. When we returned we were the only tourists. It is becoming more and more apparent that the locals for the most part want us to leave. We would be gone already if we could have gotten flights. Our flights were still scheduled to depart the following day. Every person was praying that there would be no further delays or complications. The hotel was awesome with us. They were frustrated that we wanted to congregate because the Ministry of Tourism was making surprise visits and giving fines to businesses that did not close and allowed customers to be closer than two meters apart. They served us breakfast and dinner every day and made us sit two to a table.
On Thursday our shuttle picked us up and delivered us to the airport. Those of us traveling back to Panama left before the others. The others were on two different flights to the United States and they traveled home without any problems. We however flew to London where we were to overnight and continue to Miami the following day with a connection into Panama City. We had an early flight from London to Miami. The 10 hour flight to Miami went fine except while we were on the plane our flight to Panama was cancelled. We learned of the cancellation when we checked the departure board at Miami. We went to the Copa ticket counter to learn that there were 300 people waiting for 160 seats on the only flight left for the day. We found a hotel and made a reservation for the next day. They gave us little hope that the flight the next day was going to go. When we settled into our hotel we ordered dinner for delivery and made a back-up plan for travel the next day. It was our back-up plan that ended up getting us home with only a day to spare before the International Airport at Panama closed to all international travelers.
As residents of Panama we were allowed to travel home, but all others were refused entry to the country. When we exited the plane we were screened and our temperature was taken. Those travelling on connecting flights were sent on their way and once we were screened we were advised that we would be required to stay in our home for 14 days quarantine. The only reason we would be allowed out was to go for groceries, and only one of us would be allowed to do that. The airport was nearly empty and customs and immigration took a very short time. Our driver picked us up and we took off for Coronado. The driver advised us that we would need to produce utility bills or something to show we lived in Coronado to pass through the check points. We all get our bills by email here so that was not a problem. The trip normally takes about 90 minutes, but even with nobody on the road it took us almost 4 hours to get home. There were 2 check points where they took all of our temperatures and verified that we had reason to travel into the interior of Panama (home). After a quick stop for some fruit along the road and a McDonalds drive-thru we got safely home before dark. We have learned that breaking quarantine could result in a fine between $50,000 and $100,000 so we will be home for the next several days. I made our grocery store run and some friends and neighbors have dropped by with some goodies. Other than that the only thing to do now is order delivery if we decide not to cook.
Life here in quarantine is not a whole lot different than what others are facing. Earlier this week, Panama’s president ordered a 22 hour per day curfew. Everyone is allowed to go out during a 2 hour widow of time only for essential needs, like groceries and pharmacy. The time a person is allowed out is based on the number on their Cedula, with foreign residents allowed out based on their passport number. We feel fortunate to be here where the incidence of the virus is much lower than the rest of the world. If the world wants to beat this virus, everyone should just stay home and order takeout!
I have wrote one of the longest posts to date and have had a very difficult time with the pictures. I have to think that the internet is partly to blame. With everybody home taxing the internet capacity, my band width is definitely affected. I am spending hours putting more than 800 pictures into a presentation. With any luck I may be able to share it in the near future. Let me know if that may be something that is of interest.
Blessings from quarantine in Panama,
Greg and Jen
P.S. I felt really disappointed with my ability to share our awesome pictures in this blog post so I put together a U-Tube video to chronicle our adventure for those interested. The video runs for a bit over 30 minutes and is best viewed full screen. Just click the link below.
