Beijing Ag: A Week Away

Well, I'm back in Beijing! Sorry to those of you who never knew that I left! I meant to mention (before the fact) that I was taking a two week vacation. I did not go home, but met with my family in an entirely different part of the world. We traveled to Israel, and then to Greece.

How was the trip? This is a question I could spend months answering. Israel is an amazing country. Barely the size of the state of Delaware, this place has a richer history and culture, and a more beautiful and diverse people and landscape than most anywhere in the world. The weather was nice too, 40 - 75 degrees the whole time I was there, and clear skies except for a small shower as we drove trough the Jordan river valley.

What did I do for ten days in Israel? Well, I flew to Tel-Aviv, toured Roman and Crusader ruins along the Mediterranean Sea, stood on Mt. Carmel, walked through the Valley of Armageddon, sailed the Sea of Galilee, drove through the Golan Heights and the West Bank, was dunked in the Jordan River, heard a sermon on a mount, floated in the Dead Sea, drifted through the Holocaust Museum, prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane, cried out at the wailing wall, photographed the Dome of the Rock, visited a hill shaped like a skull, and saw the empty tomb... I could go on.

Having been there I now have a better understanding of the stories of the Bible. All of those places are real. The history of Christianity, and the history of the world takes on a whole new light in this context. This visit also gave me a much better insight into the conflicts of our time in the Middle East. I could write on and on, but I will let these pictures speak volumes instead.