Day 13 Biblelands trip

Day 13
Left the Dead sea today and drove through the Negev Desert, past many Bedouin encampments (there are 250,000 Bedouin living in Israel today) and more herds of wild ibex.
Visited Avdat established in the 3rd century BCE as a stop over for Nabatean tribesmen transportng spices and perfumes.. it became known as the Incense Route.. and Avdat was taken over by the Romans and then the Byzantines..abandoned after an earthquake in the 7th century .
More driving through the desert past massive solar farms, the Israeli Defence Force Academy in the middle of the desert, the top secret nuclear plant that our guide assured us wasn't for weapons but was a"biscuit factory"🤔
Wilderness of Paran where the children of Israel were wandering.. such a dry arid area we could understand their murmurings about wanting to be back in Egypt where at least they had food.
Timna Park...the site of King Solomon's copper mines, in the territory of Edom, with stunning natural rock formations known as Solomon's pillars. We visited a life sized model of the Tabernacle here.
Eilat, the southernmost City in Israel.. We can see Jordan, Saudi Arabia and Egypt from here.. Everything is so close 😲 Ended the day with a delicious refreshing swim in the Red Sea with awesome colourful fish on the reef!Read more