Betania al di la del Giordano

gennaio 25th, 2013 | Posted by dokk in Giordania - (0 Comments)

Bethany beyond the Jordan
After giving back the rented car in Amman, I decided to go to Bethany. I can not find public transportation so I do the last stretch of road on foot, after hitchhiking. Around there are scattered Bedouin camps.

Bedouin camp

Bedouin camp

Walking I come across a woman who returns to her camp:

Bedouin woman on donkey

Bedouin woman on donkey

She sees me, notes that I took photos to her so approaches and asks for a “tip” for the trouble. You can notice typical beduin tatoos on her face.

Tattooed bedouin woman

Tattooed bedouin woman

After a few kilometers I arrive at destination: the visitor center is well organized and although it is not a peak period there are many tourists.

Mosaic at visit center in Bethany

Mosaic at visit center in Bethany

I’m in one of the holiest sites of Christianity, Bethany beyond the Jordan, called Bethabara in antiquity: according to the Gospels here Jesus was baptized by John the Baptist.

The site of Jesus' baptism

The site of Jesus' baptism

 

The Jordan river

The Jordan river

There is a curiosity about this mystical place: according to the scriptures there is another place with the same name, which was little more than a village near Jerusalem, where Lazarus lived, whom Jesus raised.

And one last touch of color: Israelis believe that Jesus was baptized on the other river-side, that is … in Israeli territory (the Jordan River is the border between Israel and Jordan). On the background of the next picture you can see the flags with the Star of David:

dokk on the Jordan

dokk on the Jordan

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Il Mar Morto

marzo 10th, 2012 | Posted by dokk in Giordania - (1 Comments)

After crossing the Jordanian mountains, the landscape begins to change.

Fields near Dead Sea

Fields near Dead Sea

The feeling I have, immediately, is to be arrived in Jesus’s land. palms, olive trees, camps, all brings my mind to the biblical stories and those of his life.

Dead Sea - cultivated field

Dead Sea - cultivated field

Going on, by car, along the “sea”:

Road along the Dead Sea

Road along the Dead Sea

Technically it is not a sea, but a salty water basin, which is currently shared by Jordan and Israel.

Dead Sea

Dead Sea

It owes its name to the absence of life in its waters, caused by the very high salt concentration, which is nine times in any other sea.

Salt crystals - Dead Sea

Salt crystals - Dead Sea

Another peculiarity is the presence of various minerals, which make the water oily, that’s why it is also visited for its healing abilities.

Deposited salt on Dead Sea shore

Deposited salt on Dead Sea shore

But the real fame of the Dead Sea is another. Due to its high density, due to its composition, in this sea you always remain afloat. The picture-postcards depicte tourists (and not only) reading newspaper while lying comfortably. In any position you stay, you do not go down. I myself lyed on a side and remained floating on the surface.

If you go there, remember to wear a dive mask and still pay a lot of attention to your eyes: a few sea-drops will make you literally cry, I know by experience!

Then you will find that you have small cuttings and minor injuries whom you did not have the slightest idea before diving…

Inlet on Dead Sea

Inlet on Dead Sea

 

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