TANKS Travel Tales - a travelogue.......

Israel, Galilee, Capernaum, 4th Century Synagogue This article was originally published in this blog in November 2018. This was my only visit to Capernaum and for convenience, I succumbed to the touristy-thing and booked a guided day-trip which not only brought me to Capernaum but also to other biblical sites around the Galilee region. ****************** Traveling to places of historical significance has always been a favourite travel itinerary for me. These trips allow me to visit in person the locations of places I read about in the history books. Amongst the many historical places I had visited, one of my favourite and also an item on my travel bucket list is Capernaum. Frequently cited in the Gospels, Capernaum is located on the shores to the north of the Sea of Galilee in Israel. Reportedly inhabited since the 2nd century BCE, the town was abandoned in the 11th century. Capernaum was originally a small fishing village, probably because of its close geographical proximity to the Se

Tiberias and Galille, Israel Growing up in a Catholic family, I had been schooled and taught the bible since young. Thus, while the lands of Tiberias and Galilee were foreign to me, the names definitely were familiar ones. Having an inquisitive mind and a streak of wanderlust in me since my childhood days, I had told myself I shall visit these regions when I am a grown up. This bucket list travel item was fulfilled in 2002 when I visited the region for the first time as part of a packaged tour group.    Statue of St Peter in Capernaum, Nahums Village, Galilee, Israel (2002)   The Tiberias of today is a city on the western shores of the Sea of Galilee with a population of about 45,000. The region and the Sea of Galilee were mentioned many times in the Bible. The Sea of Galilee was where Jesus walked on the water and the surrounding regions were where Jesus spent much time with his disciples.    Sea of Galilee with the view of the Golan Heights in the background, Tiberias, Galilee, Israe