Tourist THE HOLY LAND Pilgrim

—By Wynford Vaughan Thomas
THE Holy Land is the one place on earth where you. arrive as a tourist and end as a pilgrim. No matter what motive takes you therebusiness, holidays or casual travel—sooner or later the country casts a spell over you.
You stand on your hotel balcony in Bethlehem and look down on the crowds swarming in the narrow streets. Their dress has not changed since the days of Herod the Great. You walk under the honey-coloured walls of Jerusalem and you know that
you are looking at the very stones that met the eyes of the disciples as they came with the Master to the Passover.
The words of the Bible come unbidden to your mind when you see the sheep, with the shepherd walking before them, blocking the road in front of your bus at Nazareth. No matter how much they try to modernise the country, the splendidly moving heritage of the Past dominates all.
Of course there are shocks in store for the visitor who goes for the first time to the Holy Land. He will find that the old Palestine is no more. It has been ruthlessly divided between Israel and Jordan.
It is not an easy task to move freely around all the Holy Places and on occasions the tourist may find that he can only cross front Jordan into Israel through the narrow passage of the Mendelbaum Gate in Jerusalem. Barbed wire defences and strong points
stand very close to the walls of the city.
The two sides of the border can offer violent contrasts. In general Israel is fast-moving, modern and restlessly changing while you watch. In 40 years Tel Aviv has leapt from its foundations of sand dunes into a city of over 300,000 people.
The country has exciting developments to show, including the Negev. that savage land of hot mountains and arid plains which is being tamed by the courage and ingenuity of the Israeli pioneers.
In the north you look out over the Sea of Galilee towards the snow-capped summit of Mount
Hermon. There is plenty of country still unchanged but you feel that the Israelis are moulding the old Palestine of the past into a new pattern.
If you want to retain the traditional picture of the Holy Land you must approach it from the East. I have vivid memories of my drive from Damascus to Amman over the vast plains of Northern Jordan. The sky was a stainless blue and the whole countryside was carpeted with the delicate flowers that lend a brief glory to this land in Spring and early Summer.
We came to the ruined Roman city of Jerash where the lizards scuttled over the hot stones of the elegant colonnades and only the
frail sound of a shepherd's pipe broke the silence. I know of no other ruin that can give you such an impression of the strength and power of Rome in her heyday.
So we came down into the vast trench of the Jordan Valley. The waters of the Dead Sea glittered before us, far more sinsiter and dead than you could ever have imagined. This is the Wilderness of the Bible where the trees are stunted and no cool streams run to delight the traveller.
But suddenly you are confronted with the vast bastion of Lawny-coloured mountains 'that guard Jerusalem. The green oasis of Jericho lies at their feet. Your road twists up the hills for 2,000 feet in a series of cork-screw bends. Far away to the south you can see the black dots on the cliff facts that mark the caves of the Dead Sea Scrolls. At last you turn the final corner and the City lies before you.
No one could possibly he dis'appointed with the view of Jerusalem from the East. This is exactly as you pictured it, with the strong walls guarding the Holy Places and the glittering bubble of the Dome of the Rock rising over the complex pattern of flat roofs. That firstheart-lifting vision will survive all your later disappoint. menus.
You will forget the guides that swarm around the Holy Sepulchre and the souvenir-sellers at the gates. You will remember the narrow arcades and the white walls. the patient donkeys and the lights glittering as dusk falls from the labyrinth of the bazaars, and the strange peace that lies hidden amid the dark cypresses in the tiny gardens on the Mount of Olives. You will murmur with the prophet, "If 1 forget thee, Oh Jerusalem, let my right hand forget its cunning.' But I must not forget a few words of practical advice about how to get there. You can fly out by jet and have a five days tour around all the main centres for less than £80.
Middle East Airlines can give you a round trip which will include Baalbek and Petra as well as the Holy Land for just over £100.
El Al Israel Airlines, who run a Boeing jet service to Israel, offer 14-day tours covering the most important tourist centres from 95 guineas. The wise modern pilgrim goes to a reputable travel agent before setting off. You will be surprised how much value you can obtain for so little an outlay.