Down to Jericho

Jericho is only a thirty minute bus-ride from Jerusalem, but it looks and feels like an entirely different country. We dropped over 2000 ft which took us below sea-level and into a barren desert land that felt about 20 degrees hotter and 20% more humid than Jerusalem. One thing I don't understand is how the place can be so humid, but look like it hasn't received a drop of rain in years. Anyhow, the highlight of Jericho actually wasn't the heat and the humidity. The history there is incredible!

Our first stop was Tell Es Sultan--a huge mound that contains the remains of the biblical city of Jericho. Interestingly enough the excavators happened to find evidence of a fallen wall all the way around the city. They say the wall dates back farther than the "walls came tumbling down" story, but I still think that's a pretty cool coincidence. In the middle of is a neolithic tower that is thought to be the oldest structure in the world! Seeing this gave me a whole new respect for the durability of rocks. I guess I haven't thought about it much before, but 7000 years is a long time to stay in tact. Standing on top of the excavation site was really interesting. If you looked to the east you see a valley filled with green palm trees. When you look to the west all you see are brown dusty mountains without a wick of green.

On the Jericho trip we also stopped at Herod's Winter Palace. The foundations of it including some pillars, walls, and even a bath are still in tact. In the U.S. anything over a 200 years is pretty much off limits. The fact that we could walk all over the 2000 year old site hints at just how much history this country is filled with.