Our second stop on our road trip from Eilat in Israel was Masada. This ancient fortress sits on an almost 400 metre high mountain in the Negev Desert, not far from the Dead Sea. As well as being an impressive structure, the fortress has a dramatic history that makes your stomach churn.
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Our road trip
We started our road trip with a rented car in Eilat in the south of Israel and the first stop was for a swim in the sea. Dead Sea. The next stretch was much shorter, as we drove from the Dead Sea to Masada.
Masada - an ancient masterpiece
Between 171 and 143 BC, a small fort was built on the rock, and between 37 and 43 BC, the Roman Herod the Great built an entire palace and fortress. He chose to build his masterpiece 400 metres in the air, measuring 700 metres in one direction and 350 metres in the other.
When the Jews rebelled against the Roman Empire, they conquered Masada in 66 AD. But of course the Romans didn't like this! Just six years later, a Roman army of 15 000 men (!) came to lay siege to the fortress, where there were about 1000 Jewish men, women and children.
Collective suicide
Instead of being captured by the Romans, the Jews chose to commit collective suicide by drawing lots to decide who would kill the others. The men lay down next to their women and children, exposing their throats to whoever was chosen to kill. When the Romans took the fortress, they were met with ... silence. The only survivors were two women and five children hiding deep in a cave.
At least that's how it happened according to the traditional narrative, even if it doesn't seem entirely clear. Because of this history, Masada has become a symbol of Jewish resistance to all foreign domination.
Visiting Masada
When you get to Masada, you can choose to walk up the mountain or take the cable car. Even though I (Helena) think cable cars are crazy scary, we chose this option. The climb looked sweaty, and also we had limited time (as we had more adventures ahead of us.) And yes, it went well!
Water cisterns and bathhouses
How can you live in the middle of the desert, next to a dead sea with no fish? Masada contains a number of clever solutions, the most important of which is water. By building lots of water channels down from the mountains, all the rainwater was collected in one place. The water was then hauled up to the fort's huge water cisterns by donkeys.
You'd think that water would be scarce in the desert, but they apparently had enough to both bathe and wash clothes.
Film from Masada
Here are some more pictures from Masada and a film that Peter has put together.
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Lena - good for the soul says:
Fantastic place it seems. I imagine it felt powerful to walk up there, with the grandeur spiced with the history of what was going on!
Hug Lena
05 January 2018 - 6:26
Helena says:
Magnificent is indeed the right word. Then it's dizzying when you try to imagine what happened once upon a time!
05 January 2018 - 13:08
Britt-Marie Lundgren says:
Can only agree with the text under the last picture "wow feeling".
This post brightened up my pitch black train journey to work in the early hours of the morning (but we are moving towards brighter times).
05 January 2018 - 6:35
Helena says:
Great that we could brighten up your train journey Britt-Marie! And the fact that we are moving towards brighter times is promising after all 🙂 .
05 January 2018 - 13:09
Veiken says:
Yes! You went there! One of the most powerful things I have ever experienced. We saw a great film or was it a series about the Masada Rock before we went to Israel. I think the experience was stronger because of that!
05 January 2018 - 7:28
Helena says:
Glad you've seen that film/series! We just read about it, and got a little bit excited to see it 🙂.
05 January 2018 - 14:55
Liniz Travel says:
Wow exciting! Great trip you are doing!!! Hugs
05 January 2018 - 7:34
Helena says:
Very exciting! Have fun!
05 January 2018 - 14:56
Marina says:
What a cool place! Thank you for deciding to do this road trip so we can go to new places! You can certainly marvel at all the old buildings, how on earth they managed to do that.
05 January 2018 - 9:21
Helena says:
Glad you want to "come along" on our road trip Marina! Yes, just imagine transporting people and materials at that height, and building systems to take care of the rainwater ...!
05 January 2018 - 14:58
Matts Torebring says:
When I read the Old Testament, all the wars and beastly executions eventually become almost numbing. This is one of them. To be able to come back to these historical sites must be amazing.
05 January 2018 - 9:37
Helena says:
Human beings have always been at war, unfortunately. That we never learn!!!? History is exciting and it is amazing how skilful people were in the past despite the lack of resources we have today!
05 January 2018 - 15:00
ontrip.com says:
It looks very exciting and what a view - WOW. Keep travelling in Israel, it is exciting to follow you.
/Annette
05 January 2018 - 9:46
Helena says:
Thank you very much! Glad you are following our journey Annette!
05 January 2018 - 15:01
Anette says:
What a powerful place with a terrible history.
I understand that it must be an amazing experience.
05 January 2018 - 11:42
Helena says:
Truly a powerful place with history all around!!!
05 January 2018 - 15:02
Mr Nils-Åke Hansson says:
Great trip! What you will discover
05 January 2018 - 12:30
Helena says:
Travelling around like this on your own discovery is the best thing, we think 🙂 .
05 January 2018 - 15:02
Ditte says:
Massada is indeed mighty! I still remember the visit here today and it is many years since I was in Israel on a tour for a week. More rewarding with a tour as you are now doing than staying in Eilat. Thank you for the visit. Recognised a lot. Very nice pictures. Looking forward to your film material eventually.
Hope you have time to stay a couple of days in Jerusalem because there is also a lot of history and a lot to see and experience.
Keep up the good work.
05 January 2018 - 12:31
Helena says:
I agree that it is more interesting to do a round trip! There is really a lot to see and experience!
05 January 2018 - 15:04
JoY says:
It brings back many memories from when I was there. But travelled in the opposite direction by local bus starting in Tel Aviv, stopping in Jerusalem and then Eilat.
Masada rock is amazing, we also chose the cable car.
Hugs
05 January 2018 - 13:32
Helena says:
Glad that you also travelled around here and visited Masada! We also considered a trip by local bus, but finally chose a car to be able to make a few more smaller stops.
05 January 2018 - 15:05
Across the board says:
It's an amazing landscape and the history is palpable.
05 January 2018 - 14:52
Helena says:
Can only agree!
05 January 2018 - 15:05
BP says:
Many thanks for the visit to Masada and all the interesting info. Talk about a building that is absolutely incredible and has an equally incredible history. The fort is more than 2,000 years old and is still standing. Today's buildings probably won't do that - get that old. Absolutely incredible! The view is magnificent:-)
05 January 2018 - 16:04
Helena says:
Isn't that cool? I'm also fascinated that they came up with such crazy ideas! No one would build a fort on a high cliff in the middle of the desert today 😉.
05 January 2018 - 22:44
Henny says:
How lucky you were to get away for a short holiday, now you've had a chance to recharge your batteries to get through the rest of the winter. I holidayed in Eilat many years ago so it is extra fun to follow your adventures. I went on a two day trip to Cairo and the pyramids. Interesting in many ways. But one of the things that also stuck in my mind was when a busload of young orthodox guys came to the hotel. The rest of us were not allowed in the pool area and they "took over" almost the entire hotel. When they left the next morning, a lot of machine guns and other weapons were loaded into the luggage compartment. Then we felt that we were in a country where war could be a near reality.
05 January 2018 - 17:57
Helena says:
How nice that you have also been in Eilat Henny! But wow, interesting story with the guys and the guns ...! Yes, there are conflicts in these areas!
05 January 2018 - 22:46
Goatfish says:
As I have written before, I have not been to Israel. But since I grew up in a liberal religion, I know that many have made pilgrimages there and been blessed.
Nowadays I'm a church warden and read texts from the Bible, which includes horrific experiences. So it's not all horrors today!
But I have been to the desert, to the Bedouins when we were in Egypt.
Hugs
05 January 2018 - 20:04
Helena says:
Israel is really a destination with religious overtones! Soon there will be a post from Jerusalem, and then there will be more of this! And yes, people have had a tendency to do terrible things, both in the past and now, unfortunately ...
05 January 2018 - 22:47