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Aug 24-25:  We left Austin on a direct flight to Frankfurt on a Lufthansa A330 Airbus.  On past trips, we have used a web service (Skylux) which finds excellent rates for traveling Business Class.  Business class on Lufthansa beats all the other airlines we have flown on (British Air, American) regarding service, tasty food, and overall friendliness.  Their seating configuration is slightly different (more space, but sleeping IMHO was just not quite as comfortable).  I knew we had a tight connection to Cairo, and when the airplane pulled into an open ramp with buses waiting, I worried about whether we would make our connection.  So, we took a bus to terminal A, then another bus to terminal B, and then another bus to our airplane on the ramp running up and down stairs the whole time.  Mike carried both carry-on bags as well as his backpack.  I think they held the aircraft for a few other customers and us.  Will be interesting to see if our bags made the flight also.  Several times they explained they were short of staff – just like most American airlines are saying.  Our flight to Cairo was on a Lufthansa A321 Airbus.  On this flight, we were also Business Class, but our seats were essentially economy seats, with an empty seat between Lynne and me.  The flight from Frankfurt to Cairo was a relatively uneventful 4 hours. 

However, as I expected, our bags didn’t make it.  Hopefully, we will get them Friday evening.  I visited Cairo in December 1983, and it has really changed and grown.  The ride from the airport to our hotel (the new Egyptian Museum is in full view of our hotel) was nerve-racking from all the traffic.  The drivers here use their horns when wanting to squeeze in a spot not big enough for them.  I was glad I was not driving.  There are many, many new buildings in Cairo.  We did pass (and saw) the three pyramids on the way to the hotel.  Actually after walking around the hotel after dinner, we realized we can see all 3 pyramids from the hotel. Being very tired, we ate dinner in the hotel and rested.  Since the guide that picked us up at the airport said not to go outside the hotel boundaries, we stayed put – it just isn’t safe to do so. 

Click on the picture for slide show (arrows to move to next picture).

Aug 26: Hurrah; our baggage arrived this morning!  We had the option to take an optional tour today but decided to sleep in, relax, and use the pool instead.  We slept til 9:30, then hurriedly got dressed as breakfast was over at 10.  Our room is on the ground floor, but at breakfast, Mike asked if there was a way to get a lookout spot on the top floor.  They had a bellhop take us to an unoccupied suite on the top floor.  We got pictures of the three pyramids from the balcony with our hotel pool in the foreground.  We'd grabbed an apple each at breakfast, so our lunch was apples, peanuts, and some shortbread cookies I brought from home.  We then went to the pool, which was very cooling then sat on chaises in the shade.  There was a nice breeze, so quite comfortable, but soon the sun moved in, so we returned to the room and cleaned up.  We'll go to dinner here at the hotel, then make it an early night as we have to meet our group at 7:30 in the morning.

Aug 27:  Today was the first real day of our tour.  This morning we met at 7:30 to go to the Pyramids before it got too hot.  The pictures we took don’t do them justice.  Afterward, we went to the Papyrus store.  There they gave a demo on how papyrus is made, followed by a grand sales pitch—we bought nothing.  We then traveled on to the Egyptian Museum.  It is much improved from when Mike visited in September 1983.  Our tour guide is very knowledgeable and connected Egyptian history with the Israelis.  This is one of the reasons we signed up with Pilgrim tours.  While they don’t preach, they connect events and history with the old and new testaments.  Today I was almost overwhelmed with the information the tour guide gave us.  After the museum, we went to a Scent/Oil shop where we were demoed several oils, including fragrances, medical, and spiritual relief. The bad news is that we bought some medicinal oils -- I hope they work!

As mentioned above, Mike was here in Cairo in September 1983.  Because Cairo now has a population of 22 million, it is quite crowded. He was amazed at the growth of Cairo and the surrounding area around the pyramids.  It is so commercialized now that he was somewhat disappointed in the amount of  tourist crowds..

Aug 28: We left early (7:30 am) from the hotel because it was Sunday (which is a workday in Cairo), so we could get thru traffic and headed east to the Sinia peninsula.  At the base (southern end) of the Suez Canal, we took a tunnel under the canal, then headed south along the coast of the Red Sea, which we followed for a while.  Then we headed east again, finally arriving in St Catherine--an 8+ hour trip on the bus and several security checkpoints!  We checked into our hotel and had free time, so we decided to try out the pool.  Mike went in but got out pretty quickly as it was not very clean.  Lynne could see the slime on the bottom of the pool, so she just sat on the side and dangled her legs in the water for a few minutes.  The water was cool so it did cool us down as the desert was very hot!  We rested for a while, then ate dinner at seven and went off to bed as we had an early departure.  The blog was not updated as the hotel supposedly had wifi--but no one could log on!

Aug 29:  Another early rising so we could get to St Catherine's monastery before it got too crowded.  Our guide wasn't sure if we would get to go inside, but it turned out we did.  We had been here before in 2017 on a Windstar cruise, but it was nice to see it again.  This time we were allowed to walk closer to the "burning bush."  Our guide claims it is the same bush that Moses saw and has never died. They have tried to cut pieces and tried to have them grow, but they don't, and he claimed they never water it!  It is still interesting to stand where Moses once stood.

From there, we went east to the other side of the Sinai Peninsula, where we saw a different leg of the Red Sea.  As in the previous day, we noticed the Sinai Peninsula is not very hospitable and hot.  We then traveled north to the border of Egypt and Israel.  We had to get all our belongings there, left our bus and guides behind, and walk ourselves and our luggage thru customs to leave Egypt.  Mike "got" to drag the two big suitcases.  Once through the Egypt customs, we then had to walk further to go thru Israeli customs to get where we met an escort and a bus for 7 mile trip through Israel along the Red Sea coast.  He then let us out again with all our luggage where we had to go thru customs to leave Israel and then walk further to go thru customs to enter Jordan.  Mike guessed the heat index was about 115 degrees -- even the ladies were glistening!  Once there, we met a different bus and escort to drive us to Petra.  Much of the walking thru all the customs involved putting our luggage thru x-ray machines each time, showing our passports and papers multiple times, and walking between the different areas in the really hot sun and while inside virtually no A/C!  We were all exhausted! We arrived late at the hotel, so once checked in, we ate dinner they came back to the room to do both days of the blog.

Aug 30:  Tonight we are in Amman, Jordan.  We had an early breakfast and walked over to the Petra entrance.  It has become much more commercialized than when we visited it five years ago.  There were several options (golf cart or horse) to do some or all of the trip down to the actual location Harrison Ford used in one of his Indiana Jones movies.  But Lynne and I walked down (the first 0.8 miles was just a path and fairly hot). 

 

The trip down the gorge is about 1.2 miles but had a fair amount of shade (see pictures).  Both were downhill and relatively easy (but long).  Once we exit the gorge, we revisited some of the other parts of the Wadi (valley), and Mike climbed up to some of the tombs.  We stayed about 2 hours and returned to the entrance for the bus.  It was not as hot as yesterday but was still above 100 degrees.  It was relatively comfortable when you were in the shade, but the sun was brutal.  Mike went through about three water bottles just from the amount of sweat -- especially while in the sun.  Since the walk back is uphill Lynne decided to take a golf cart ride.  Today our group grew from just ten persons to 49 persons for the rest of the trip.  We liked the small size, but with just one tour guide for 49 people, we suspect we will not get as much personal attention.  After another big lunch (in Petra), we had about a 2.5-hour drive to Amman for another big meal (supper).  Internet service is slow, but at least we should get today's blog published.  Looking back on our trip five years ago (In October), we definitely recommend not coming in the summer and only coming during the October timeframe.  Tomorrow we see a couple of sites on the Jordan side, then go through the whole process again of leaving Jordan and entering Israel.  The major problem is that you have to drag all your bags yourself, which involved some fairly long distances in the blazing sun yesterday.

Aug 31: Tonight we are in Netanya, Israel, at the Azimut Hotel -- the best we've stayed in so far!  We had another early morning and visited Madaba and visited the Greek Orthodox Church of St. George.  Then we were off to Mt. Nebo, believed to be the site of the tomb of Moses and where God allowed Moses to see the promised land from the mountaintop but didn't allow him into it.  We then stopped at a Mosaic factory where they demoed and of course, had mosaics for sale.  After a quick lunch, we were then on to the Jordan/Israel border.  Today's excursion through customs was much, much better than what we experienced leaving Egypt.  We then had a long drive to Netanya.  It was amazing to me how clean and green Israel is compared to the rest of the mid-East.  The highways were excellent -- much better than our Interstates in Texas.  We didn't arrive until 7pm.  We wish it had been earlier as we are right on the edge of the Mediterrian and the view/beach front is beautiful.  

Sep 1: Up again at 6 am for an 8 am departure.  We traveled along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea to Caesarea, where Pontius Pilate lived while in Isreal and also where the Gentiles first heard the Good News from Peter and were baptized.  We saw the Roman Amphitheater, hippodrome, and Roman aqueduct.  We left there to travel to Mt. Carmel, where Elijah challenged King Ahab and the prophets of Baal.  Then on to Megiddo, the Armageddon Battlefield, where archaeologists have unearthed 30 levels of civilization.  We then traveled to Nazareth, where we visited the Narazeth Village -- and maybe we walked the same path as Jesus did when he was a young boy.  Then on to the Ron Beach Hotel in Tiberias.  Wow!  Right on the sea of Galilee, able to swim in the hotel pool and in the Galilee See.  This was the first time Mike finally got an American whiskey on this trip.  The weather has been extremely hot and humid.  It is worth noting that almost all of the possible land to be farmed is under cultivation.  Another interesting observation:  Nazareth is 30% Christian and 70% Muslim; the streets seemed to have more trash than the more Jewish areas.  Also, the Arab settlements tend to cut down all the trees around their houses leaving a very harsh outside environment.  I'm not trying be racist here, just saying what I heard the guide say and what I observed.

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Sep 2:  Following breakfast, our morning travels takes us to two valuable northern sights.  First to Caesarea Philippi, sight of early Pagan temples and later where Jesus and disciples went before going to Jerusalem.  Here they spent time contemplating and Peter answered the question of "Who do you say I am". You could see how peaceful it was/is--a tributary of the Jordan runs thru it and there are lots of large trees/shade and the whole feeling is very peaceful. The next sight was Dan--where the children of Isreal fell to the depths of alternative sacrifice.  The river Jordan ran thru here and at one place that was calm, we were able to wade in.  It was so cool, it felt really good since the weather is so hot.  Driving back to Tiberius for lunch we passed the possible location for the fishes and loaves sermon and also the Mount of the Beatitudes.  After lunch we went for a short ride of the Sea of Galilee in a replica ancient boat.  Lastly we visited Capernaum where Peter is supposed to have lived and then to Magdala where Mary Magdalene was from.  Magdala has had a huge excavation finding the synagogue and part of the town.  Our guide was excited--this is his favorite place as it is an actual synagogue from the time of Jesus and quite possible he was in this synagogue and maybe even spoke.  At the hotel, Mike went swimming in the Sea of Galilee before dinner.

Sep 3:  We left the hotel and went to the Jordan river for those who wanted to be baptized. We went to an area of the river further north from where John the Baptist baptized Jesus, as the water is cleaner. Our guide said that further south, the water isn't so clean.  We both were baptized--Mike by immersion and Lynne with water on the forehead.  She has had a head cold and didn't want to get water in her nose and ears.  From there, we went to Beth Shean, the most magnificent archeological site in Israel.  Much of the city has been dug out and restored even though, at one point, there had been an earthquake.  We saw the amphitheater and the bathhouse.  We next visited the Qumran Caves area where the Dead Sea scrolls were found.  The museum showed how a group of devout Jews over 2000 years ago wrote the scrolls.  They lived a very pious life in the desert.  When the Romans were burning the temple in Jerusalem in 70 AD, they received word and decided to hide the scrolls in the large amphoras (clay jars) and hide them in the many caves in the area. 

 

From there, we went to the Dead Sea and checked into our rooms.  We right away got our swimsuits on and headed to the beach.  The first thing you notice as you walk in, the water is hot (almost as hot as our hot tub).  You walk a few feet on the sand, and it turns to salt pellets up to an inch in diameter.  Once we were about waist deep, we laid back and floated--that was the easy part.  We found getting back upright hard.  Once upright, Lynne was actually sitting in the water.  We only stayed for about 5 minutes, then got out, showered the salt off, and returned to the hotel.

Sep 4:  We left the Dead Sea and drove to Masada.  King Herod built Masada on the top of a mountain in the desert as a palace but also for safety.  We luckily rode a cable car to the top--otherwise, the only way up is a windy snaky path on rocky terrain.  Herod had figured out how to channel water when the few heavy showers of rain fell and stored them in huge cisterns--they had no lack of water.  It was interesting and you could see the Dead Sea in the far background for a long distance.  They had huge storehouses to house all the supplies: olive oil, wine, food, etc.  We had seen the movie Masada long ago starring Peter O'Toole but plan to try to watch it again when we get home.  We went on then to Ein Gedi, "Spring of the Goat." It is an oasis on the Dead Sea's west shore, with a warm climate and abundant water supply.  This is where David hid from Saul and also where God defeated the enemies of the Israelites by praise and worship by King Jehoshaphat.  There is a waterfall there, and we hiked back to it.

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We then went on to Qumran Caves, where the Dead Sea Scrolls were discovered.  This area was lived in by the Essenes, a sect of Second Temple period Judaism.  They lived very pious lives, working and writing scrolls.  When the Romans burned the Temple in 70  AD, they headed to other areas too.  So the Essenes put the scrolls in pottery jars and hid them in caves to keep them from being found and destroyed.  After leaving Qumran, we went to Genesis Village for lunch.

 

When the bus let us out, we waited until time to go to the tents where lunch was to be served.  We had 3 choices to go down the hill:  walk, ride a golf cart, or ride a camel.  We opted to walk.  At lunch, we had the choice of sitting on pillows around a low table or at a regular table and chairs.  Mike opted for the floor but found it uncomfortable!  The owner and his wife are from America, but being Jewish, they felt drawn to come to Israel and work.  His degree is in Jewish studies/education, and he passed on information about the biblical things that happened in that area, in particular Abraham, Lott, etc.  They served lunch in three stages, and it was a typical Israeli meal.  Finally, we drove into Jerusalem and checked into our hotel--and we stay here for four days, so no having the suitcases out first thing in the morning!

Sep 5: We left the hotel at eight and headed to the Palestinian sector.  Once there our guide is not allowed to lead us so we picked up a Palestinian Christian guide to show us Bethlehem.  We first went to the Shepherd's Field.  It is located pretty close to where they believe the shepherds were gathered the night Jesus was born.  A church has been built there and we went inside.  We all sang "Oh Come all ye Faithful"--the acoustics in the church were beautiful (even with Mike singing)!  We also went into a cave right near the field and the church.  Our guide said there are many caves in that area and it is likely the shepherds stayed in a cave such as we saw rather than tents.  From there he took us to Church of the Nativity which houses the birthplace of Jesus.  We were lucky we had gotten there early enough there was not a long line.  You first enter a very small door and go into the church.  You line up to move forward to the steps that take you down into the birthplace.  Once you head down it is a very small cramped area so lingering is not possible.  Once one side of the room is the birthplace and on the other side is where the manger was.  Then you exited back up to the church.  Our guide gave us some info about the church and then we were back to the bus and also saying farewell to this guide.  We crossed back out of the Palestinian sector and went to a restaurant for lunch.  After lunch we went to the Israel Museum.  This had a large scale 3D map of Jerusalem 2000 years ago.  Our guide pointed out many area and particularly where Jesus was judged, the route he took on the Via Dolorosa, etc.  Also housed at this museum are the Dead Sea scrolls which we also saw.  As we had finished a little early, he took us to a market place which was mostly food, but it was interesting to see how they shop.  Mike found a bar to have a beer in the market.  Back at the hotel, Mike quickly went swimming before the pool closed at 6.  We then ate dinner and Lynne went to a talk by the other bus guide on how he became a Messianic Jew--he was very interesting!

Sep 6: We left the hotel at 7:30 and were dropped off at the Western Gate at 8 am.  For the rest of the day until the bus picked us up at 5 pm, we walked the old city of Jerusalem!  A very exhausting day but the only way to see all that we saw.  After entering the West Gate, we headed to the Temple Mount, where the temple used to be before the Romans burned it down in 70AD.  Now the Moslem Dome of the Rock with its gold dome sits in the middle of this area.  From there, we walked to the Baths of Bethesda.  If you have watched The Chosen (Lynne and I highly recommend it -- Seasons 1 and 2 are on YouTube)--this is where the scene took place of the man who tried to get into the bath to be healed, and everyone scrambled ahead of him so he couldn't get in--then Jesus came and healed him, told him to pick up his bed and walk!  We also went into the church there dedicated to St Ann, Mary's mother.

 

We next went to the area where Jesus started his walk on the Via Dolorosa with the cross.  We walked his path, passing the different stations of the cross.  Along the way, we ate at a small restaurant and then continued to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre--purportedly the spot Jesus was crucified and the spot of the tomb.  Next, we went to the Wailing Wall.  Women went to the women's separate area, while the men went to their area.  They could go inside a room, but to do so, they had to wear a yarmulke to be allowed in.  We then walked down a level where stones from the burning temple had fallen and have never been moved or cleaned up.  We also walked to the steps leading up to the gates where Jesus and others would have entered to make sacrifices.  Our last excursion for the day was to go in the underground tunnels (under the Wailing Wall) to see some of the original walls that are now below ground and a pool back in ancient times.  Though it is now underground, it still has water in it.  Finally, back on the bus (about 5 pm), we were all exhausted!  One person who had a Fitbit on said we had walked over 12,000 steps!

Sep 7:  Today's itinerary began at 7:45 am but was a much more relaxed day.  We first went to the believed location of the upper room where the Last Supper was held.  From there, we walked a few blocks to what used to be Caiafas' house, where Jesus was taken first for questioning by the priest after he was arrested in the Garden of Gethsemane.  There is now a church and convent there.  This is also where Peter denied knowing Jesus 3 times before the rooster crowed.  After viewing the church, we went down two floors to where the dungeon was.  This is where Jesus was kept overnight before being sent on to Pontius Pilate for questioning.  

For our next destination, we drove to the Holocaust Museum.  The World Holocaust Remembrance Center is a 45-acre campus comprised of indoor museums, outdoor monuments, gardens, and sculptures.  It is an unusual shape building and looks austere from the exterior.  Inside you can look to the end, but you are led into rooms in a snaking pattern to see each room.  It started with the history of Hitler becoming Chancellor and the unfolding actions he took against the Jews.  Some of it we had seen before from museums in Germany and other sources, but there were also many horrible things we had not known before!  It is so hard to imagine man's inhumanity to man and how it could happen!  They had a nice cafeteria on site where we ate lunch and relaxed a bit after touring the museum.  

From there, we drove to the Garden Tomb, located in the Old City outside Jerusalem walls and near the Damascus Gate. The garden tomb was discovered in 1867 by Charles Gordon and, since then, believed by many protestants to be the site of the burial and resurrection of Jesus. It is located near a rock also called Skull Hill and is believed to be the Golgotha. The area at the time was owned by a wealthy merchant, and there is a tomb that had not been used before that he had built for his family.  The positioning makes it possible that this could have been the actual location.

Back to the hotel by 4--our earliest return!  Gave us time to catch up on the blog and to rest before dinner.  At 7, a group of our tour people met to discuss what they felt after all we had seen this past week and exchange information and feelings about it.  Lynne stayed in the room to continue working on the blog.  Tomorrow we have a short excursion, and then we drive to Tel Aviv to catch a plane from Tel Aviv to Munich.  

Sep 8:  Our flight to Munich didn't take off from Tel Aviv until mid-afternoon, so there was time to do one more short tour in Jerusalem.  The tour was to the old city of David ending at the pool of Siloam.  Mike went, and Lynne stayed on the bus as there was a lot of climbing back up to where the bus would meet the group.  He took pictures on his phone.  However, on the flight back to the US from Munich, he dropped his phone in the seat, and when the seat was moved to locate the phone, it cracked the phone.  So, no pictures for the last two days of the trip.  We arrived in Munich about 7 then drove to a restaurant for dinner and on to the hotel.  Other than the tour in the morning, we had no other pictures that day.

Sep 9:  We left the hotel about 10 am and drove to Oberammergau.  This gave us some free time to shop and walk around Oberammergau as well as get lunch.  We went to a restaurant and were seated.  There was a place for 2 more people at our table, and as they were crowded, they asked if it was OK to seat a German couple with us.  We agreed and ended up having a nice conversation with them--luckily, the wife spoke good English! The play started at 2, so we had to go in line and get seated.  We had good seats in the center section on the 19th row.  You aren't allowed to take pictures during the play though Mike took one before the play started of the stage. However, that picture bit the dust too.  The first half of the play lasted until 4:30, then we met the bus and went back to the hotel for dinner.  The second half of the play started at 7--so back on the bus to go back.  The play finished at 9:30 pm then back to the hotel.

Don't click to expand for these particular video slides; the picture size is too small (just use the arrows to navigate between pictures).

Sep10:  We left the hotel at 4:15 am as we had to be driven back to Munich to the airport.  Our flight took off at 9:45 am for the trip to Chicago.  We had an eight-hour layover in Chicago, but the first thing we did after clearing customs was to find a sports bar.  We got there in time to watch most of the second half of the UT-Alabama game, then had to go to our gate and wait for a couple more hours.  We finally arrived in Austin about 10:30 pm, collected our bags, and headed home.  By the time we got home and got to bed it was after 1 am.  Somehow we got up and went to church Sunday morning, after which we had to go to Marble Falls to the AT&T store to get Mike a new phone.  By that evening, we crashed and slept over 10 hours!

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