Samaria

Today we traveled to the northern part of the Western Bank into Samaria. It's about an hour and a half drive from Tantur, near Bethlehem so along the way Kamal pointed out different sights such as the Judean Desert in the distance where Jesus fasted for 40 days. When we got to Samaria we went to a museum where we heard a Samaritan woman talk about their culture and beliefs which includes only reading the first five books of the Bible (Torah) and following the laws. 

We went to Nablus which is part of Samaria as well. Samaria is a region in some essence and there are many cities that lie within that. The people don't call the area Samaria because that's more what it was referred to in Bible times. In Nablus we went to St. Phillips church which is addressed in Acts 8. When the church out from Jerusalem back in the Bible times, this church was founded by St. Phillip. St. Paul and St. John visited as well. One of the priests that we talked to, is also an archaeologist and in 2014 he found two ancient wells around the church. Since these wells are dated back to the time when the saints visited and were most likely used by them, he named them St. Paul and St. John's Wells. 




Then we walked through Nablus and the markets. We got to visit some shops. We tried one of their sweet treats that is made of goat cheese. It was really sweet and delicious. The portion that they gave us was a quarter of what they normally serve Palestinians. We couldn't wrap our heads around that, since after that small piece we were so full! It was such an interesting experience to walk through the shops. People stop what they're doing and stare as we're obviously the minority. Most say hi and wave and are so friendly. I loved smiling and waving to the people that we passed. They always asked where we were from: "America? USA? Go Trump!" We stopped at a perfume shop where they make perfume based off of specific people. We all got to try some, don't ask me whose scent we were wearing haha. Then right after that we walked past another perfume and incense shop where they airpuffed perfume on us as we walked by! They must have known we needed it! (Especially Caleb whose bag was lost and is at the airport waiting to be returned) Then we went to a soap factory where we saw how they make soap. The process is very interesting. They pour the soap solution out on the ground and when it hardens they cut it up into squares. From there they stack it in pyramids to dry, and they hand wrap them all at an incredibly fast rate. One man alone can wrap 1,000 soap bars in one hour. 



 Perfume Shop 
 SOAP! 
Soap Pyramids 

From the streets and shops we went to Jacobs Well. This is the site where Jesus talked to the Samaritan woman at the well. The well is actually in the basement of a church, in this church are relics and beautiful paintings. One of the relics includes the vase that the Samaritan woman used at the well. When we went down to the basement we all stood around the well and Kamal took a cup of water and we listened to it as he poured it down the well. It took a couple seconds before we could hear the splash at the bottom. The well is 120 feet deep! While we stood around the well we read the story out loud. Another powerful moment and one that gave me chills and brought tears to eyes of many. 

Jacob's Well

We went to lunch where we had this "upside down" entre made with rice and vegetables. They put rice at the bottom and rice on top and the middle is covered with vegetables. They fill the pot that they are cooking it in with water. They let it cook for 2-3 hours and when the water is gone they take it out. When they serve it the flip it upside down in front of you and serve it like a cake almost. It was delicious, along with the many other appetizers they gave us. I swear they're trying to fatten us up on this trip with all the good food! ;) 
Erika, Anna, and Whitney

Then a short walk away from the restaurant is Herod the Greats City. The ruins of the city are there and Kamal showed us around. We saw a palace, steps to a Temple Mount, and a church that were all dedicated to Alexander the Great. The church that was there was the place where John the Baptists Head is most likely buried from when he was beheaded. The ruins were absolutely beautiful and a different side to the trip that we haven't experienced all that much yet. 




It's been great bonding with the team and getting to know them better! I'm excited for these relationships to continue to grow throughout our time here! We're headed back to Tantur now, about an hour and a half bus drive so I thought I'd sit and reflect after all we've seen today! Hope you've been enjoying reading and staying up to date! I'm still in awe of the fact that I'm here and it hits me multiple times throughout the day! "Guys guess what??? I'M IN ISRAEL!!!!" 😊

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