Mary's Church

A beautiful Church dedicated to Mary is built above the site of the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem. Under the Church is a series of caves that were apparently used to shelter animals -- the equivalent of a stable -- twenty centuries ago. We did have the chance to see that area before leaving Bethlehem as we completed our two days in Israel.

More Faces

The varied nature of the populace in Israel is powerful. A return trip, to stay longer in this ancient Holy Land, is on our definite future trip plan.

Faces of Bethelehem

In much the same way as was the case in Jerusalem, we loved Bethlehem, felt comfortable there, and saw so many wonderfully interesting people out on the streets on a perfect summer's day.

Bethlehem

Leaving Jerusalem, we were bussed from Israeli land into Palestinian areas to see Bethlehem. It was in no way intimidating; we added a Palestinian tour guide and the two guides worked together for the afternoon. We discovered that in the south, it was unlikely that the stable we expect was a structure; in that area it was likely a cave. A large church with a tiny door as seen above is built above the traditional site of the birth of Jesus, and we descended several steps to see the cave area where the birth is considered to have taken place. A wonderful final stop on our tour of Israel.