Nazareth I

I can imagine Jesus growing up here. There are caves and hills - but no more sheep. About 70,000 people live here now - in the 1st century, it was just a tiny village. The population is 30% Christian - many related to the holy sites. 70% muslim. On the other side of the hill is a new Jewish section of town. The Church of the Annunciation is the largest in the Middle East - and it is a conglomeration of images and styles, incorporating the grotto where tradition says the Gabriels visited Mary to announce Jesus' pending birth. I toured and later went to a service with so much incense, you wouldn't believe! I stayed here two nights in a fine room - sharing the dinner tables with a French-speaking group from Belgium. The Convent has rooms for guests, teaches students with disabilities, and is caretaker for a 1st C. Herodian tomb excavation - one of the best examples of a typical tomb from that time anywhere! So I toured it with the French group - probably missed the finer points, but did see where the sign of the fish was etched in the rock.
Back to Mary - there is a lot of attention to her in this town - and a St. Joseph Church too at the traditional site of his carpenter shop - but nothing original remains except dirt and rock - the edifaces are 19th-20th century when Europeans got interested in the Holy Land. Still fun to be up on the roof at night, feel the breeze, see the moon, think about Jesus growing up here - and the Greek town Sepporis was just over the hill.