Jesus Didn't Take The Bus!

What would Jesus do if he lived here?

Well, as the brochure of the Jesus Trail states “Jesus didn’t take the bus.” So we do the same - we walk the Galilee while we are here.

We booked this hike through the JesusTrail Tours, which means we still hike just with the two of us, but they arranged our overnight accommodations along the trail, the meals AND they transport our luggage. A perfect arrangement. 

Fauzi Azar Inn: Kees zit bij de pakken neer.

Leaving Nazareth this morning, we followed the orange trail markers, through the alleys of the old city, up 350 steps and out of the city. The trail took us through old olive groves and yellow fields of mustard seed.

Whenever we pass through a town, children and adults alike called out ‘hello’ and ‘Shalom’! These are Arab children and ‘shalom’ is a foreign word so they yell it at foreign visitors. Everyone is very welcoming and kind.

We had a snack of nuts and fruit outside the gates of Zippori, a historic national park including Roman ruins dating back to 700 BC.

Then we headed down into the city of Cana where Jesus reportedly performed his very first miracle: turning water into wine at a Cana wedding feast. Now, Cana proudly displays jars of clay (as in the famous music group Jars of Clay) and sells mineral water as Cana wine... or perhaps they bottle real wine.

There are two churches, a Catholic one and an Oxthodox church right next to each other, each claiming to be the original site. Our guest house in Cana is immediately next to the churches. The very welcoming Arab Israeli hosts served us fresh lemonade, made from the lemons in the backyard, before showing us a room.

It is interesting to note that Arabs and Jews still live in very separate areas of town, if they even share a town. Cana has a Christian side and a Muslim side. Some towns only have one or the other but not both. Apparently they get on well enough on the surface, but many nuances play a role in the deeper understanding of how both cultures mix or don’t mix.

Our host just came and served us Turkish coffee. Tonight they will serve us a traditional dinner. 

Stay tuned for tomorrow's adventure as we spend the night at an orthodox kibbutz. Not sure if there will be wifi.

350 steps up and out of Nazareth

Yellow fields of mustard seed outside the city.

Wild cyclamen

Enormous cacti everywhere.

Cana, the city of the first miracle.