Visit Masada

“I looked at that huge mountain and said aloud “NO! Not today… it is 45 degrees Celsius outside (112 degrees Fahrenheit)!” Couldn’t I just get the mobile version?? We were now at the Judaean Desert, and I was not trying to get out of that air-conditioned bus to get into 44 degrees Celsius weather! People laughed, I was mostly serious, at the point. [...] I stepped out of the bus and immediately started to SWEAT! Pouring sweating. Everyone was sweating. Uhhh like BAD and I had already drunk half of the water I brought before we even started to make it to the visitor center. It was going to be a LONG day… and you can’t get the bus up to the top? Uhhh Well I was completely relieved when I saw, in the corner, a cable car going up the mountain! A cable car!! Brilliant! We get to the top, I was suddenly NOT sweating. I was thinking I was bugging out or something.”

“Masada is a dry, hot site that lacks fertile soil and an abundant fresh water source so in walking through the ruins, I kept wondering why the zealots wanted the land and why the Romans were intent on taking it back. I realized the reason had nothing to do with resources but had everything to do with power and freedom.”

“I’ve been familiar with the story of the 1,000 Jewish settlers who lived on the mountain and withstood the Roman seige for months before finally taking their own lives to avoid becoming slaves. But as noble and inspiring hearing that story was, being there atop the mountain and seeing the ramp the Romans built across the gorge was even more so. We took the cable car up since by 10AM the morning was already quite warm.”