Ein Gedi

Yes, one of the further places we had to drive to. think the journey lasted slightly more than an hour. but very worth it! :)

Here, we met our two friends that Ziyi was telling us about - the Hybax and the Coney, or Rock Badger. very cute animals.


Hybax - Looks more like a deer



Coney - Looks like cute little furry beavers. i lovee!!! =D so tempted to pick them up and cuddle them!



one coney up there on the tree, actually, there were many



so many of them!!




Ein Gedi also had heaps of Acacia trees, which are believed to be where the Romans got their Crown of Thorns from.


the branch of an acacia tree



a crown of thorns, pierced through your temple.. and there i am smiling. =X



uncle sidney took one of the twigs, used the thorn to wham it agaist a rock, and Gosh!! the thorn REFUSED to break or be dented! it was still SUPER SHARP!!! can you imagine then how painful it must have been for Jesus. such strong thorns that pierced through his head. ouch..

Acacia is also the wood used to build the Ark of Covenant. Strong wood really!



So what's so significant about Ein Gedi?

1 Samuel 24:1 - David in the wilderness of Ein Gedi, when Saul was chasing after him for his life..

also, 2 Chron 20:1

we (or most of us) climbed up the mountain. think the walk took easily 45 minutes? helped some of the aunties along the way. was quite scarey, the climb. very very slippery, and not all places had railings for you to grab onto. there were little brooks and streams crossing our paths, and sometimes the water trails down the pathway, which makes it muddy and REALLY slippery. i myself almost slipped quite a number of times. and you've only got grub and shrubs to hold onto. quite an experience.

scenery, on the other hand, was fabulous..




that's dad, piggie and me up there, with mom in foreground. don't even think you can see us right!! hahaha..



from mom's POV



from our POV



mom with all the cute aunties! :)



scene photos



of me, since it's my blog after all hehe..



of our climb



and we reached the top, our destination!



the beautiful waterfall :)



when we reached the top, we were all hot and sweaty, though the temperature was rather cool, especially up on the mountains. but execise sure kicked in! and good also lah, helps balance the severe over-eating.

had worship there, just at the waterfall.. breath-taking.

apparently, if you wanna get to where King David hid from Saul in the cave, it's like a 4 hour climb. WOW!!! actually, i wouldn't mind. but maybe not with such a huge group lah.. hahaha.. :)

another 45 minutes down. had a chat with Chong Ern. another media dude. and more qara moments.. right place right time. nice to hear his take on the singaporean media landscape, and his dreams and ambitions. i always love to listen to people's passions.. :)