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Visiting With Friends and Family

Our trip to Haverhill, MA was slow going. What was supposed to be a 6 hour drive ended up taking over 8. But we arrived with a warm welcome from our friends, Dawna and Tony. Dawna made a delicious meal of Haddock, which we really can’t get down south. We engaged in lots of goodContinue reading “Visiting With Friends and Family”

Traveling Up The East Coast

I know it’s not Dubai or some tropical island, but our new adventure is a driving trip to visit friends and family and bring two of our grandsons back to Florida. Our first stop was outside Savannah at a Hyatt Place. I’m trying to limit our driving time each travel day to six to eightContinue reading “Traveling Up The East Coast”

Relaxing in Dubai

After a very hectic and fast pace through Israel, we needed a little R&R. I booked three nights at the Waldorf Astoria Dubai Palm Jumeirah. I booked this using my $200 credit for Fine Hotels and Resorts from Amex. I used 40,000 Amex points and the room for 3 nights was $265 total. They upgradedContinue reading “Relaxing in Dubai”

Our Last Day Touring Israel

We began our day at the Garden Tomb where some believe Christ was intombed. It was a lovely place, peaceful and serene, but as our guide said maybe not his tomb. The Garden surrounding the area was lovely. The area by the cave is where they think Jesus was crucified. This was all within theContinue reading “Our Last Day Touring Israel”

The Western Wall and Bethlehem

We began our tour today in the Rabbinical Tunnels which led us through the construction of the Temple Mount and their water system and the inner side of the Western Wall. Our tour guide explained how of the tunnel is in continuation of the Western Wall and is located under buildings of the Muslim QuarterContinue reading “The Western Wall and Bethlehem”

Qumran Caves

After our visit to Masada, we headed to the Qumran Caves where the Dead Sea Scrolls were found. Qumran was established during the Hellenistic Period c.134-104BC and remained inhabited up until c.68BC. The Essenes Jewish sect lived here in isolation as a communal monastery-like community without owning any personal property. The sect is thought toContinue reading “Qumran Caves”

Masada

We woke to another beautiful day in Israel, overlooking the Dead Sea. Our first stop today is Masada, a fortress on top of a mountain used by King Herod. From a distance we could see Masada, majestically against the wispy clouds. As we approached Masada, the plateau and some structures were noticeable. We took aContinue reading “Masada”

Heading towards the Dead Sea

We woke to a beautiful sunrise over the Sea of Galilee. We had a delicious breakfast. The fruit was fresh especially the melon. At the buffet, they had a honeycomb to get fresh honey. Our first stop today is the Jordan River where several of our travelers will be baptized. It was a serene siteContinue reading “Heading towards the Dead Sea”

Beginning Our Journey Back in Time

We woke early this morning to begin our first day exploring Israel with Pilgrim Tours. This is really our first tour where we will be with a large group for 7 days. Our guide, Roman, is insightful but also humorous. There are 46 people on our tour so let’s see how this goes. After breakfastContinue reading “Beginning Our Journey Back in Time”

Our Travels Continue

We woke early for breakfast and we were on the road by 7:45, but I was able to photograph the morning as the sun was rising! We traveled for about an hour to Dan which was up near the northern border. We could see Lebanon from an outlook. It was only about two miles away.Continue reading “Our Travels Continue”