Tourism Archives - Page 69 of 96

Israel Tourist Statistics

The latest Caspari Center Media Review includes a brief summary from the Hebrew-language Yerushalayim Shelanu of tourism to Israel in 2012.

56% of the 2.88 million tourists who visited Israel were Christian. Of these, 90% visited Jerusalem, 68% visited the Dead Sea, 62% visited Tiberias and the Sea of Galilee, and 60% visited Bethlehem. Most Christian tourists come from Italy, Spain, Germany, Austria, Poland, Mexico, Russia, Romania, and Nigeria.

A photo of a flock of tourists all wearing floppy orange hats would fit right here.

Tagged Tourism

Weekend Roundup

Excavations in Hebron have already revealed an Iron Age house, artifacts from the 10th century, and Second Temple period items.

Nadav Shragai writes in Israel HaYom on recent Temple Mount discoveries that have not been publicized.

Plans are underway for a new museum at Petra.

The Rapid City Journal recounts how a collection of cuneiform tablets came to be in the collection of Black Hills State University in South Dakota.

National Geographic presents “Indiana Jones and the Adventure of Archaeology,” a new exhibition coming to the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History.

Ferrell Jenkins has posted several entries recently in his Visualizing Isaiah series: a skirt of sackcloth, trusting in horses and chariots, and a booth in a vineyard.

Jerusalem’s Biblical Zoo has welcomed a new male lion to replace the one who died last year.

ASOR has a roundup of stories from around the world.

HT: Joseph Lauer, Charles Savelle, Jack Sasson

Tagged Excavations, Jerusalem, Jordan, Judah, Museums, New Exhibits, Temple Mount, Tourism, Weekend Roundup

Weekend Roundup

The Book and the Spade has a two-part interview with Kenneth Bailey on the biblical account of Jesus’ birth. (Direct links: part 1, part 2)

Of the James ossuary inscription, Gabriel Barkay says, “It is an authentic inscription.”

The Washington Post reports the Christians who are coming to Bethlehem and the Christians who are leaving.

Ferrell Jenkins takes a moment out to describe the blogs he reads and more.

The Israeli State Comptroller’s report on the illegal excavations on the Temple Mount has been kept secret, until now.

A report in a Knesset committee this week described Israel’s failure to protect ancient wooden beams on the Temple Mount.

Fox News suggests six unusual ways to visit the Holy Land.

Scholars are now studying graffiti left by medieval pilgrims at Bethlehem’s Church of the Nativity.

The ASOR Blog has a roundup from the broader world of archaeology.

HT: Joseph Lauer, Charles Savelle

Tagged Forgery, Holidays, Jerusalem, Judah, Temple Mount, Tourism, Weekend Roundup

Notes on Christian Tourist Sites

This week’s edition of the Caspari Center Media Review has several stories of interest.

Of tourist sites in Nazareth:

In anticipation of the Christmas season, Zvika Boreg compiles a list of places to visit in Nazareth, including Mount Precipice, “where the people of Nazareth tried to throw Jesus to his death but he escaped, and – according to the legend – jumped from there to Mount Tabor,” and the Catholic and Greek Orthodox Churches of the Annunciation.

Of trash on the “Jesus Trail”:

Christian pilgrims walking the Jesus Trail are sure to encounter mounds of trash at various points along the way, writes Yair Kraus. The 65-kilometer trail runs from Nazareth to Capernaum and passes through sites that are associated with the life of Jesus. But the lack of supervision has made it possible for people to use the trail as an illegal dumping ground. Says one tour guide: “Christians think we are a third world country.” The Minister for the Protection of the Environment has asked the local municipalities to form a joint council to deal with the issue.

Of the St. John in the Wilderness Monastery that is not in the wilderness:

Dr. Adam Ackerman writes about the St. John in the Wilderness Monastery, located in the village of Ein Kerem on the outskirts of Jerusalem. According to Christian tradition, John the Baptist lived in a cave that is now hidden within the monastery, where he “fed on honey, locusts, and plant roots, and drank from the waters of the spring….” The monastery is located within a pastoral setting, which raises the question of why it is called St. John of the Desert. The monks explain that the name is “spiritual and not geographical, a ‘desert’ in the sense of a place of solitude and detachment for spiritual elevation.” Ackerman goes on to describe how John the Baptist left this place when he was twenty years old and went to the Judean desert where he “joined the cult of the Essenes … and baptized Jesus.”

The full report is here.

Monastery of St. John in the Wilderness
Photo from Judah and the Dead Sea

Tagged Galilee, Judah, Tourism

Satellite Bible Atlas, Hardcover Edition

We announced this in the latest BiblePlaces Newsletter, but if you missed that, you may want to know that a new edition of the Satellite Bible Atlas is available. The hardcover edition is more durable and lays flat, making it ideal for study at home and on the field. For only $28, this is an affordable investment for all who love the Bible. Here are a few reasons why:

1. Every map covers a full page and is in full color. That allows for lots of detail and context.

3. The atlas provides maps of everything from Abraham’s journey from Ur to Paul’s arrival in Rome. Whatever you’re reading or teaching, you will find a map that marks the location and explains the event. You’ll never have to guess where something took place.

7. Purchase includes free access to all of the maps in digital (jpg) format. This makes it easy to use the maps in the classroom and on location.

You can see the full list of why I think this new atlas by Bill Schlegel is a fantastic resource here.

A wall/door map is also available for $7, but if you buy it together with the atlas, the cost is only $4.

If you’re like us, you always wonder what surprise you’ll find when you go to checkout and learn the shipping cost. For those in the U.S., shipping is free. (And for those not in the U.S., the shipping is outrageous, but that’s beyond our control. There is an Israeli distributor who can ship to some countries less expensively.)

We encourage you to consider this as a gift for a parent, child, pastor, teacher, or friend. This is a unique resource at a terrific price.

Tagged Historical Geography, Resources, Tourism

Weekend Roundup

Aren Maier reports that he may have been the last archaeologist to see the excavations of Eshtaol.

But you can see a video of the site before it was buried.

Some are unhappy that the Palestinian Authority is excavating a Hasmonean fortress between Bethlehem and the Herodium.

Barry Britnell saw the Jerusalem movie and he declares it to be “fantastic.” You can see if it is in a theater near you here.

The Kathleen Kenyon collection is now on display at the Ian Potter Museum in Melbourne.

This travel piece may inspire you to do more on your next trip to Israel than ride on a bus.

If you expect to be touring Israel in late May, you should plan now to avoid the pope.

You can save an extra 30% on any print book at Amazon through Dec 1, 11:59pm. Enter “BOOKDEAL” at checkout under the “Gift cards & promotional codes.” Up to $10 off. I recommend this book (for an amazing $21.47 after discount. I’ll say more about this book later, but not before this deal expires. Preview here.)

HT: Charles Savelle, Joseph Lauer

Tagged Jerusalem, Museums, Resources, Shephelah, Tourism, Weekend Roundup