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Holy Hotness, Batman! Happy happy today was a "No Modesty Day". Really. Yesterday there were several sites that would not allow uncovered shoulders and legs. That's where the wraparound came in very handy. I put it on just for certain places. Tomorrow is also a "Modesty Day" so the wraparound will come along.

We started off at Kursi, the place where Jesus removed the demons from the demon-possessed man and they ran into the swine. I had never associated them with running into the Sea of Galilee before. This must have been Roman territory, because no Jewish people would have had a herd of pigs! This area is 500 ft below sea level.

Then to Qasrin, a restored talmudic (Jewish) village. Well, excavated, anyways. Stone houses. Brush for roofs which would be replaced every winter. BTW, the average winter temperature here is 20C. We watched a video that showed how seriously Jewish people can disagree (ie what is clean and unclean).

It's fun at the lunch stops to find out what food you ordered. I've had salad for lunch 2 days in a row and Anton had pizza today, topped with cheese, pineapple, and corn. You wouldn't find meat on a pizza here because that would be mixing dairy and meat, which is not kosher.

We then drove threw fields and fields of active mines, I don't think we've ever seen a real mine field before. At the lookout point we could see Israel, Lebanon, and Syria. It was interesting to hear the military history from Shmuel, our local guide. Much different than what we're told back home.

In Israel military service is mandatory for every young person between high school and post secondary, 3 years for young men and 2 for young women. After your term, you are part of Israel's reserve army for 25 years, each year serving 3 weeks minimum. Israel has one of the strongest armies in the world.

Our last stop was the archeological site of Bethsaida, which was likely a fishing village because fishing hooks were found there. Several of Jesus' disciples came from Bethsaida.

When we got back to the hotel we immediately headed to the pool for a much needed cool down. Splash.