Yardenit and An Open-Air Market

On Thursday afternoon, I got my first taste of sightseeing in the Jordan Valley, specifically the Jordan River. You’ve probably heard the old hymn that says something about the Jordan River, deep and wide.  Let me disavow you of that notion. I can’t speak to the depth, but I can tell  you it isn’t wide. The river begins its journey south to the Dead Sea just a few miles from Kibbutz Massada, at a place called Yardenit, which is the Israeli baptismal site. (There is another site, in Jordan, called Bethany beyond the Jordan, which is widely considered to be the actual site where John the Baptist baptized Jesus.)

I’d already heard that the Jordan River wasn’t as

impressive as we’d been led to believe, and it wasn’t, but the surroundings were beautiful. Yardenit is a place where Christians come to be baptized either as individuals or in groups. I found the spot a little too commercial for my tastes, nevertheless it was very beautiful and peaceful.

A bit further down river, we found a place where those so inclined could paddle their way up the Jordan in double kayaks.

We spent a bit of time looking around and then made our way home to make use of the age-old custom of the siesta. In the Jordan Valley midday it’s really too hot and muggy to do elsewise.

There are some habits I could get used to pretty darned quickly.

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I’ve heard for years about Betty’s extended family and finally got to meet them. Yaffa is Doobie’s sister and mother to two daughters, Reut, 16, and Rotem, 14.

Yaffa and I muddled our way through finding a common language. She speaks far more English than I speak Hebrew, and she also speaks Spanish as a result of her Argentinean roots. Among the three languages, we managed somehow to communicate and even have a few philosophical discussions to boot. The girls were more technologically inventive and used their cell phones to translate from Hebrew to English and vice versa.

Reut goes to school locally, while Rotem attends a prestigious high school in Jerusalem and became my guide when I met up with my Road Scholar group after the visit to Kibbutz Massada. They are both such lovely and intelligent young ladies that it was a joy to spend time with them.

That evening all of us ladies made our way to a local open-air market featuring tons of spices, fresh fruits and veggies, live music, clothing and whatever else you can think of. I saw so many spices that I would like to have brought home, but I wasn’t sure they’d get through customs. Since I’ve come back, I’ve gone to my old standby, Amazon, to order two spice blends that are used in Middle Eastern cooking:  Baharat and Za’atar. Middle Eastern, Indian, Thai and Pakistani foods were just about my favorite foods before I left home. That conclusion has been cemented with the visit to Israel and Jordan.

At the open-air market, we treated ourselves to a delicious fresh-squeezed glass of pomegranate juice, which has its historical roots in the Middle East and is known for its healthful properties. We later discovered that pomegranate juice, freshly squeezed, is widely available throughout the area.


















I may not have understood the language, but I felt right at home here, in this place with these people.