Holyland Travelogue - Part Seven

by Jose Kurian Puliyeril

In Tiberius City.

Tiberius is one of the modern and well-planned cities of Israel, located on the shores of the Tiberius Sea or the so called Galilee Sea. The Government of Israel brought many of the inhabitants of modern Tiberius from foreign lands officially and the facilities of their settlement have been granted. Majority of the settlers belong to the Jewish tribe. The Galilee Sea or the Tiberius Sea remains 400 meters below the sea level. The present Tiberius city was erected while King Herod Agrippa's was in power. We reached Tiberius on a Friday, which is the holy day of Muslims. The next day we spent at Tiberius was the Sabbath, the holy day of the Jews.

Our stay at Tiberius enabled us to have a close watch on the rituals and life style of the Jews. We utilized the chance while we walked after our dinner through the streets near and around the Hotel where we stayed. By the time we reached there itself the rituals of the Sabbath day had started. They will not cook food at home on the Sabbath day. They will not drive the car or any other vehicle. So also they will not undertake any sort of job on the Sabbath day. In this modern era, most of the Jews are eating from the Restaurants. They try to follow the western especially the American culture and life style. So most of the Jews maintain a very high standard of life. We could see many gents of all ages, who had spent a lot of time in the Synagogues, in prayer and meditation till late evening, when they all were going back to their residences. We got a chance to watch their dressing styles with long over coats, mostly in western imitation. The houses seemed to be very modern, convenient and attractive. The roads and surroundings are very clean and neat. We have seen so many gardens with attractive flowering plants. The city seemed very calm and quite from outside.

We have noticed some of the inhabitants blocking the pocket roads and even public paths passing near their residences in the evening itself, to block the entry of vehicles. It might be to avoid the disturbance of the calmness due to the sound of the vehicles. We could see a number of faithful who are so particular in observing the traditions, rituals and the culture without dilution/alteration.

The people of Israel are able to produce from the toys to most modern warheads, from their own resources and efforts. Israel posses a high standard of industrial capability among world countries. They import the undeveloped Jewels and pearls from western countries like Belgium etc and re-export them after polishing and other similar jobs. This is one of the rich industries of Israel. Due to this business itself, they earn millions of US dollars every month. There is no wonder in their wise employment of the resources due to their closeness to the Mediterranean Sea.