Tuesday May 6 - Tiberius, Israel

We left Metula and the Golan and went south towards Tiberius. We headed south and east to the Kinneret, the only fresh water lake that's below sea level. The kids needed a break, and we took them for a swim. Thanks to a rainy winter, the Kinneret is many meters above it's normal levels and is very close to flood stage. For Israelis this is great news as it's the source of much of the country's water supply. This also means that there is no beach, and the kids had to swim from the rocks that surround the lake. Tiberius is the major city on the lake and there are of course many ancient ruins. The biggest is that of an ancient synagogue in the middle of the town. A floor mosaic has been uncovered here that shows that the Jewish practice of putting a plaque on something to mark a donation is not new - I get the feeling that there were plaques on the Temple - and this one shows that a donation was made here. We left Tiberius and headed back to Rehovot in the center of the country. Travel time was about 2 hours - it's not a very big place! We got back to the preparations for Yom Ha'atzmaut. Israelis know how to throw a party! Fireworks, bands, dancers, streets blocked for a carnival - and just about everyone comes. Different countries have different customs. In Israel, it's spray snow, the kind of stuff that's used in North America to decorate Christmas dioramas is used on your friends. People randomly spray each other in the street. They also like to hit each other with inflatable hammers. I don't get it, but they do, and that's enough for me. On Wednesday, I'm heading to Jerusalem to spend the day with my nephew Shimon and participate in the celebrations in the capital. A full report will follow.