What I Saw In The Holy Land 4.3
The oasis of Jericho is likely what Moses saw when he looked at the Promised Land from Mt. Nebo in the East, where he died. The old city has been extensively excavated, and contains the oldest staircase in the world --7000 years, thank you very much-- and evidence of 23 separate civilizations. And in case you're wondering, yes, there is evidence of an ancient mud wall surrounding the first city there that collapsed, and archaeologists found ancient store rooms filled with grain which lead them to believe the city was sacked at harvest time and burned rather than pillaged. All of which corresponds to the Biblical account. Often called "the date city," Jericho calls itself the oldest continuously inhabited city in the world.
It's really two cities, though. The ruins are of the ancient city; the Jericho Christ walked through is slightly further East.
On the site of the excavations is an elaborate tourist trap market --one of the nicest ones we encountered. In the parking lot there's a guy selling camel rides and the most wonderful smell of oranges from the fruit vendor stands. The fruit is all fresh and luscious, and there are fresh dates and exotic peanuts as well. They taste like American peanuts, but they look like dried chick peas and they have a crunchy, but airy texture. You can also buy little tubs of saffron for about three shekels --or 75 cents. That beats the $13 bucks for a single filament you'll find at your average American grocery, doesn't it? I'm kicking myself now that I didn't purchase any, but I didn't know what it was until days later when one of my German companions filled me in. (She & I became buddies because between us we became the communication links between all the language groups. She was the only German who spoke English, and I could translate into Spanish or Italian. So when the Germans, Mexicans or one Italian woman wanted to speak to each other, they looked for the two of us.)
The oasis of Jericho is likely what Moses saw when he looked at the Promised Land from Mt. Nebo in the East, where he died. The old city has been extensively excavated, and contains the oldest staircase in the world --7000 years, thank you very much-- and evidence of 23 separate civilizations. And in case you're wondering, yes, there is evidence of an ancient mud wall surrounding the first city there that collapsed, and archaeologists found ancient store rooms filled with grain which lead them to believe the city was sacked at harvest time and burned rather than pillaged. All of which corresponds to the Biblical account. Often called "the date city," Jericho calls itself the oldest continuously inhabited city in the world.
It's really two cities, though. The ruins are of the ancient city; the Jericho Christ walked through is slightly further East.
On the site of the excavations is an elaborate tourist trap market --one of the nicest ones we encountered. In the parking lot there's a guy selling camel rides and the most wonderful smell of oranges from the fruit vendor stands. The fruit is all fresh and luscious, and there are fresh dates and exotic peanuts as well. They taste like American peanuts, but they look like dried chick peas and they have a crunchy, but airy texture. You can also buy little tubs of saffron for about three shekels --or 75 cents. That beats the $13 bucks for a single filament you'll find at your average American grocery, doesn't it? I'm kicking myself now that I didn't purchase any, but I didn't know what it was until days later when one of my German companions filled me in. (She & I became buddies because between us we became the communication links between all the language groups. She was the only German who spoke English, and I could translate into Spanish or Italian. So when the Germans, Mexicans or one Italian woman wanted to speak to each other, they looked for the two of us.) Inside this stand there's a restaurant and a variety of shops. Your dollars or euros are accepted everywhere (preferred to shekels, often), so you needn't change a lot of money. However, it helps to have a handful of 1-shekel coins to work coin-operated toilets or tip the cleaning people in the W.C. (which are in great condition, by the by. It's not like touring the Roman or Greek antiquities, if you know what I mean. Hey, someone has to tell you these things.) (Photo credit.)
