There are many things to look at on the walk out to the actual baptism site and much of the way is covered, however, even in October it was hot. You can see my red face in my picture in front of the River Jordan! There are several beautiful mosaics along the way and many of these are modern additions to the site. Then you get to the actual site, which isn’t on the River Jordan anymore because the river has been reduced to a small creek from the water being diverted for farming. There are several ruins of churches on the site. In the pictures below you see a set of stairs leading down to a lower area and that is the baptism site of Jesus Christ. If you go to the website, you can see it filled with water. You can then head down to the river and actual be baptized in the River Jordan. I think you have to get permission and bring your own clergy though. The river looked a bit gross though as I could see mosquitoes in the water. I did put my hand in it though and it was cold! The river flows down from the mountains and is still cold at this point. Several denominations of Christians have built churches at the site. The one I went into was the Greek Orthodox church and there is a picture below of the outside. It was beautiful both outside and in. There was beautiful mosaic tile work on the floor.
The next day, I met up with the next tour guide and headed to Madaba, Mt. Nebo and the Dead Sea. In Madaba, I went to see the oldest known map of the Holy Land. Not only is it the oldest, it is also a mosaic! The map is the floor of a church built in the 6th century. It was rediscovered in 1884. The mosaic is impressive as it is large and very detailed. They are doing their best to preserve what is left of the map. It is located in the Greek Orthodox Church of St. George.
2 Comments
I am now interested about Jordan, thanks for your post.
Hubby was there a few months ago on business as usual.
It was beautiful. You would like it.