Nazareth

During our time in the North, Mom and I stopped by Nazareth. I really appreciate all the interesting juxtapositions that can be found, with no effort at all, while exploring Israel. Being the largest Arab city in Israel and one of the holiest Christian cities in the world, I was very interested to see it for myself. Driving into the town was the worst traffic I have experienced in Israel. There was such a high volume of cars and buses on streets that were clearly not made to accommodate the horde of people.

The main draw in Nazareth as a tourist, is the Church of Annunciation. It is built on top of the cave Mary supposedly lived in when Gabriel came to her and announced she was pregnant with the son of God. It was pretty powerful to stand in such a holy church. It was beautifully decorated with stained glass and gifts of artwork from all over the world. Underneath the church are remnants of the ancient city of Nazareth, including a mikvah (ritual Jewish bath). On our way out we stopped at a bakery for some delicious Arab pastries.

Pictures:

1st: A subtle message, Church of Annunciation on the right.

2nd: Outside of the church

3rd: Mary's cave

4th: Shout out for Celeste

5th: Mmmmmmmm. That's a whole lot of goodness I'll be missing in a couple weeks.