Israel Day 11 2010

Last day in Israel had us finishing up at the Garden Tomb, Western Wall, and the Church of the Holy Sepulcher.
We said goodbye to our friends tonight but we hope to keep them in our memories for years to come. God is Good!

Israel Day 10 2010

Walked around the Shrine of the Book today and took some images of the model city of Jerusalem. Then we drove to the Holocaust Museum. That is a tough place to hang for a few hours.
We then went around the Jewish Quarter to shop with friends.

Israel Day 9 2010

Traveled to the Dead Sea area today to view Masada, the Dead Sea Scroll area, En Gedi, and to swim in the sea. It was oily and saltly... but it was NOT hot. The desert was only 75 degrees today. Awesome.
We walked up to the highest spring and saw where David and his men hid from Saul. Great place.
We also saw where almost 1,000 Jews killed themselves to keep from death or slavery from the Romans almost 2,000 years ago.

Israel Day 8 2010

Had another great day in the Holy City today. We walked through the 2,500+ water tunnel under the city. We also walked through the old city and the City of David.

Tomorrow we travel to the Dead Sea!

Israel Day 7 2010

In Jerusalem today seeing the Temple Mount and the Mount of Olives. Great day, but of course..

Israel Day 6 2010

What an amazing day today. Started out of the Sea of Galilee on a boat, headed to the ancient city of Beth Shan (City that hung King Saul's body on its wall), drove by Jericho, stopped at a military zone to visit the site of Israelites entering the Promise Land and Jesus' baptism... then entered the Holy City of Jerusalem at sundown.

Right after a quick dinner, we walked through the Western Wall tunnels then now... to bed! What a LONG day!

Israel Day 5 2010

Still on the Sea of Galilee today driving to some amazing places nearby. Went to Jesus hometown and the the Jordan River.
Here is our GBF group on our last night at dinner by the sea. Headed to Jerusalem in the morning.

Israel Day 4 2010

In Nazareth today.... Here is a picture on the cliffs over looking the Jezreel valley.
Went to the Galilee area today. Stayed at a hotel on the shores of the sea of Galilee. We ate outside with friends after visiting Jesus' hometowns. Here is Mandy studying early morning by the sea.

Israel Day 3 2010

Awesome day today. Went to Caesarea by the Sea, Mt Carmel, and then over to the awesome city of Megiddo. Had a great time with our Bus number 4 (Green) bus. Had dinner by the Sea of Galilee and heard some great Jewish Music.

Israel Day 2 2010

Been a great day at the Dan Panorama Hotel. Early morning breakfast and then a mid morning meeting for IFL staff. A large group of us headed over to Joffa for a quick tour of the Biblical port city, then we came back to the hotel to greet guest arriving from the airport.

A smaller group of friends went with us to walk the market streets and see the sights of the local neighborhoods.

Tel Aviv is an exciting city.

We will not have internet access until Wednesday evening, so this is the only post I will make for 26-28 hours. All is well, having a blast.

Israel Day1 2010

Most of this day was on a plane over the Atlantic. Our 11 hour plane ride was short and sweet. Security check in was painless, we had exit row seating (plenty of leg room), and best of all...both Mandy and I slept the entire flight thanks to Xanax (sleeping pill) and exhaustion from a day of touring New York!

The weather here is much warmer than we anticipated which means we may have some sink washing to do a few times, since neither Mandy and I brought too many pairs of shorts. IFL was predicting more rainy days and cooler days than our last trip two years ago (May 2008).

Well we are now going to shower up after being in the same clothes for almost 48hrs and perhaps try to get ourselves on Israel time.... which is 9 hours ahead!!!!

I remember the food now. Lots of stuff, looks good, smells good, but I just can't eat it. I stick with the same three things each time. Going to be a long week. Maybe I can drop a few pounds.

New York was great. Climbed the Statue of Liberty and got to see out of the crown of her head. 300+ steps in a tight spiral staircase almost killed me but it was a great day. Walked around Central Park for a while too.


We had a 7 hour layover and got to see the city a little. You can see the pictures we took of New York on our Picasa Album.

Israel Day 0 2010

Packing today and leaving at 3am for the airport. A 8+ hour layover in New York with the Stiles and then a 10 1/2 hour flight to Tel Aviv. As of now, we plan to visit Ellis Island, Rockerfeller Center, Times Square, and some of Central Park. Then off to security and my awesome exit row seats!!

The Holyland, here we come. (Southern Steps of the Temple Mount. Jesus entered the temple from these steps. )