Our next excursion was to Herodian, the mountain that Herod the Great moved. He built it by chopping away at a nearby hill, looking like a volcano with its flat top. Visible from the Mount of Olives, it stands as a testament to the drive of Herod. Who builds a mountain?
Because of difficulties of driving a rental car into the West Bank (our rental car company, like most, only cover driving on 2 main highways in the West Bank), we decided it would be easiest to get there via bus. The Egged bus system covers the country. We took the Jerusalem light rail to the Central Bus Station. We walked from stop to stop looking for our desired bus number. We finally realized that all the stops along the road were for the Jerusalem area. To go to farther away places, we went inside the bus station and upstairs, barely reaching the bus on time.
Getting dropped off at the base of the artificial mountain, we hiked up to the park entrance and then to the top. Herod had a palace constructed on top. Even on a hot day, the cool Mediterranean breezes could normally be felt. This was also were Herod was buried. His tomb was found a few years ago.
After exploring the palace-fortress we hiked back down, stopping at the palace area visible from up top. Herod had a massive swimming pool constructed with an island in the center.
Modern Bethlehem is visible from the Herodian, reminding us how Jesus was born not far from there. Herod’s paranoia led him to attempt to kill the baby Jesus. One could imagination his parents seeing his mountain in the distance, hoping that visiting shepherds wouldn’t attract his attention. That was our next stop: the traditional place of his birth. We hailed a taxi to take us there before heading back to Jerusalem.
