Tag: Middle East
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Moments & Misadventures :: Camels Don’t Spit, They Sing
Ah, that special time in every traveler’s life when they get to experience a camel ride for the first time. By no means the most comfortable way to travel (I get saddle sore just thinking about it), it is still an experience that everyone should have at least once. Our group had been traversing through…
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The Garden Tomb, Christian Quarter, Israel Museum, & 9/11 Memorial {Israel}
The Garden Tomb Our final day in Israel started early in the morning with breakfast and packing our bags for the trip home. We then met and walked the short distance from our hotel to The Garden Tomb. Originally it was believed that the place of the tomb was in the spot that is now…
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Visiting Ammunition Hill National Memorial, Good Samaritan Mosaic Museum, Genesis Land, & Qumran National Park {Israel}
Ammunition Hill National Memorial We began our day visiting the national memorial of Ammunition Hill. After Israel had declared their independence, the city of Jerusalem was not considered part of the state. It was a divided city with a large wall separating the people. Families were divided across the wall and the space between East…
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Visiting the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Knesset Building, Theodor Herzl Museum, & Holocaust History Museum {Israel}
Southern Steps We began the day with a visit back to the old city of Jerusalem at the Southern Steps. This is the original entrance to Temple Mount dating back to biblical times. The path up the stairs would have been lined with people coming to the entrance to be cleansed before entering the temple…
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A Day in Tel Aviv- Old Tel Aviv, Museum of the Jewish People, Carmel Market, & Bullet Factory Historic Site {Israel}
Old Tel Aviv We left the old, historic city of Jerusalem and headed out on a day trip to the lively metropolitan city of Tel Aviv. We began our tour of this old town on the hill overlooking the downtown area that sits on the shores of the Mediterranean. We walked across the Zodiac Bridge…
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Following the Palm Sunday Path-Mount of Olives, Church of All Nations, Western Wall, City of David National Park {Israel}
Mount of Olives Today we began with seeing Jerusalem from the top of the Mount of Olives and then making our way down what is known as the Palm Sunday Path towards the city. This route commemorates the path that Jesus took into Jerusalem when palm branches were laid down for him before his arrest…
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Around Old Jerusalem- Temple Mount, Muslim Quarter, & Church of the Holy Sepulchre {Israel}
Temple Mount & the Dome of the Rock Today brought us to Temple Mount. We walked through the old city of Jerusalem and made our way up to the top of Temple Mount, passing over the men’s section of the Western Wall on our way. Temple Mount is where three of the world’s greatest religions…
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Visiting Beit She’an National Park & Masada National Park {Israel}
Beit She’an National Park Today’s adventures began at Beit She’an National Park where we toured around the ancient city of Scythopolis. This city was first inhabited in the Bronze Age and remained a cultural center until 749 when it was covered in an earthquake. When archeologists began to uncover the city, they found that most…
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Mount Arbel National Park, Mount of Be Attitudes, Capernaum, Magdala, & Sea of Galilee {Israel}
Mount Arbel National Park Today started out with the hottest, most strenuous activity of the entire trip- a hike on Mount Arbel National Park. The trail started at the top of the mountain, overlooking the Sea of Galilee, then we had to take a number of metal footholds down the cliff face of the mountain.…
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Abraham’s Gate, Temple of Pan, Crusader Castle, & The Valley of Tears {Israel}
The Golden Calf & Abraham’s Gate- Tel Dan Nature Preserve Today started with a short hike in the Tel Dan Nature Preserve. The trail itself was lovely as it went through the trees and over rocks in the river. This river is one of three sources of the Jordan River and is the largest source…