Avdat in Israel used to be station number 62 on the trade route known as the Incense Road. The long camel caravans travelled from Oman and Yemen, through Petra in Jordan, and then on to Gaza. We came by car from Jerusalem instead, and we hardly thought we would make it before dark...
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Road trip in Israel
We started our road trip in Eilat and stayed at the Dead Sea, in Masada and in the Qumran on the way to Jerusalem. When we returned to Eilat the next day, we took a different route, stopping in Ein Avdat and Avdat, two places that are right next to each other.
An Avdat
If you think we always plan our trips perfectly, we can assure you that we do. not. We had a hard time leaving Jerusalem in the morning, so we arrived at Ein Avdat National Park at 16:15, fifteen minutes after they closed ...
We could walk around the area around David Ben-Gurion's cemetery, the tomb of Israel's first prime minister, but what we did not want to do was to walk around the cemetery. really we would have liked to see, we missed out. If you want, you can look at images from Google. Then you also understand why we felt a bit disappointed ... Would we now also miss the desert city?
The desert city of Avdat
When we pulled into the entrance to Avdat, we almost expected it to be closed, but it wasn't! Euphorically happy, we paid our ticket and drove the car all the way up the mountain. There was the desert city!
Avdat was founded by the Nabataean people 300 years before Christ, as station number 62 on the Incense Route. This was actually the most important city on this route, second only to Petra in Jordan.
Incense road
The 240-mile-long Incense Road ran from Oman and Yemen to Gaza on the Mediterranean Sea. Each camel caravan consisted of 10-20 camels carrying 150-200kg each of precious goods such as frankincense, myrrh, spices and precious metals. Each day's journey was 3.5 miles, after which the caravan needed protection from robbers and bandits.
Avdat was number 62 of these nocturnal shelters, while this was a desert town with palaces, an ancient wine press and later a church. Over time, the Incense Road lost its importance for trade, but the hilltop town remains as a reminder of a bygone era.
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Steve says:
Rökelsevägen and Avdat, now I learnt something new again. The roads look nice and well maintained. I really like your films.
09 January 2018 - 8:50
Helena says:
Glad you like the films Steve! The roads were very nice, just about everywhere we drove.
09 January 2018 - 9:58
Nils-Åke Hansson says:
Here you got to see something you didn't know existed. The national park looked exciting.
09 January 2018 - 9:29
Helena says:
There's a lot to see in the world, we didn't know this before either... 😉.
09 January 2018 - 9:58
Rolle o Carina says:
Exciting journey you are on!
Take care....
09 January 2018 - 9:53
Helena says:
Israel is an exciting country! 🙂
09 January 2018 - 9:58
Annika i Spanien says:
What an amazing trip! Thanks for letting me come along. Great fun with the films. Love the post about the dead sea!
When I hear the music from your films, Jocelyn Pook's score for Caótica Ana comes to mind. The songs are in Persian, I think. But, well, that music comes to mind. Incredibly beautiful.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8i-cWHljzLQ&list=PL90D952D2C7590AD1&index=1
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZPjR8_6dc8o&index=3&list=PL90D952D2C7590AD1
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v8euKpNNQUE&list=PL90D952D2C7590AD1&index=2
09 January 2018 - 13:10
Helena says:
Glad you like the posts and films Annika! Your comment first ended up in the trash (because there were several links I think) but now I have found and approved! Will listen when I get home and can have the sound on! 🙂
10 January 2018 - 12:50
Britt-Marie Lundgren says:
Avdat and Rökelsevägen are two completely new concepts to me but no less fascinating for that and I hope to learn as long as I live. Great pictures and great films!!!
09 January 2018 - 15:33
Helena says:
It was new to us too. You learn a lot when you travel (and when you read blogs ;)).
09 January 2018 - 17:40
Ruth i Virginia says:
Excuse me - but what is the music for the film?
Sounds like Swedish rap, or is it something on the Internet?
Hebrew? A bit disturbing to my ears,
but very good and interesting film (without audio)
09 January 2018 - 15:53
Helena says:
I don't really know what kind of music it is but it's not Swedish. Can't suit everyone every time maybe 😉
09 January 2018 - 17:41
Kors och Tvärs says:
Interesting places and nice film. Thank you.
09 January 2018 - 15:58
Helena says:
History is exciting and I'm glad you liked the film!
09 January 2018 - 17:41
BP says:
Just like the others who commented on the post, I have also polished up my general knowledge. Had never heard of either Rökelsevägen or Avdat. Imagine what you learn. Avdat is a cool place, but I understand your disappointment when I looked at the pictures in Google. What views!
Who told you about these places, because they don't seem to be well known (judging by the comments).
09 January 2018 - 17:07
Helena says:
We also didn't know about Räkelsevägen or Avdat before. We had some contact with the tourist office in Sweden before, but mainly we were in the tourist office in Eilat. They helped us to make suggestions for a road trip 🙂.
09 January 2018 - 17:43
Lena & Jan says:
Liked your video good overview of the road trip, but so sad that the ruins were not rebuilt ... would have been magnificent. Continue the exciting journey!
(Almeria castle nearby has been well preserved, all EU citizens have free entry, a completely different story).
09 January 2018 - 17:22
Helena says:
We also say that it would be fun if the places were rebuilt for real. You should of course save the ruins, but you could build next to them. It would be fun to see what it looked like in real life! I don't think we saw Almeria Castle.
09 January 2018 - 18:00
Ditte says:
Welcome home! Glad you got to see some of Israel, but a lot of time is needed to see even more - I think you worked very well. But a little short on time it was probably in Jerusalem. We were there for three days and with excursions around and in the city and it felt short too - Takes time to take in and digest everything.
09 January 2018 - 17:24
Helena says:
Thank you! We would have loved to see more of Jerusalem and we felt we had too little time there. Once we decided to rent a car, there was simply no more time left (plus it was expensive with double hotel rooms). But I would also recommend a little more time in Jerusalem!
09 January 2018 - 20:16
Matts Torebring says:
I have read the Old Testament many times in my life. This is one place that I can't remember reading or hearing about before. You are really good at seeking out and documenting the history behind the various sites.
09 January 2018 - 18:50
Helena says:
We got help from the tourist office to find this place! Great to be able to ask those who have local knowledge 🙂 It seems to be an unknown place for most people here at home, but still it feels like the place filled a very important function once upon a time!
09 January 2018 - 20:19
Susanne Goren says:
Thank you for a lovely blog and nice and interesting story about your trip to Israel. You really managed to see a lot in these days!
Haha, the music of the film is in Hebrew and the text is very appropriate :). Good choice! There are two guys called Static and Ben el. Very popular among young people. As I said, tastes are different ? Here is a translation in English: https://youtu.be/94BIxqTYJzU
The sign points to something exciting! It says "viewing path over the river Tzin". The Tzin, like many other rivers and wadis in southern Israel, is dry most of the year but can flood during short periods of rain. Many Israelis "hunt" these occasions because it is exciting (and dangerous) to see. If you want to see it, check the link: https://youtu.be/WK9H5HNgg6o
Susanne Goren
09 January 2018 - 19:45
Ruth i Virginia says:
Thanks for the info on the music. It sounded "different"
in some way. Of course, I have no idea what the text meant.
but now I have to check, of course. 🙂
Wonder how Peter came up with it? - Genius (like Trump)
09 January 2018 - 20:18
Helena says:
Ruth, Peter has been looking for the music online. I think he was searching for Israeli pop music or something like that, but I wasn't quite sure what it ended up being... but now we have the answer! 🙂
09 January 2018 - 20:24
Helena says:
But oh Susanne, thank you so much for your comment!!! Absolutely perfect to get the translation of the song, we have watched the video together now! Felt like a good choice 🙂 Interesting also with the translation of the sign and this with the floods. What incredible amounts of water! Thanks again for the comment and explanations! 🙂
09 January 2018 - 20:23