Well the trip has come to an end.  As I write this we have already flown from Israel (11 hours) to New York for a 6 hr layover and will soon take a 5 hr flight to LA and then make the long drive home.   As you can imagine it has been a long day and both Stanton and I are really looking forward to sleeping in our own beds and seeing our families (click here to see photos from the trip).  To recap,  the past few days have been a lot of fun as the group has really come together and we are all just realizing that this trip is coming to an end.   The other day Matt, Stanton and I got to spend the entire day with our good friend Boaz.   He brought his van and we had the run of the place being able to go wherever we wanted.   Matt had never seen a few sites so we headed to the Shapahla so he could experience Mersesha, Gezer, and the caves of Adulum.  All of these sites are rich with biblical history and it was fun to reread the stories and then climb in the caves that David hid out in.   For lunch Boaz the amazing took us to Modin for the guaranteed best falafel in all of Israel.  I will admit that it was good and we will have to take his word for it as I don’t eat enough Falafel to be an authority on the matter.   We then headed back to Jerusalem and took Matt to the Book of the Scroll museum, which not only houses the Dead Sea scrolls but a giant first century model of the city.  Next was a chance to do something I have always wanted to do which is to go through the rabbinical tunnels.   These tunnels were dug at first century street level and run the length of the western wall.   It’s amazing just how big the stones are that were used for the temple and really makes you wonder how they were moved there.  We finished the night off with a walk around the city walls and then Boaz took us to a fun none touristy restaurant in the new part of Jerusalem.   What a great way to end our trip and a huge blessing to have developed friends over the year with great people in Israel.  

Well that concludes Thursday and Friday would be just a busy as we tried to get the last things in before we flew out.  First we started on the Mount of Olives and worked our way down the valley.  We talked about Jesus and the triumphal entry and tried to place ourselves in the text.   Next the group went to St Anne’s to sing and do some teaching at the pool of Bethesda.  I on the other hand had the privilege of taking a few people in our group on a little walk through the city so we could meet up with everyone at the Holy Sepulchered.   This was great as it gave me some fun hang out time and a chance to get in one more shwarma and fresh squeezed orange juice.   We then raced back to the hotel, showered, and headed to Jaffa for a last dinner together and then to the airport.   I think this catches you up.  As soon as I get home I will upload some fun videos as well from the trip.

Take care (by the way we are posting this from 30,000 ft while flying home)

Rich and as always Stanton

Here are a few more videos from the trip of donkeys as I know Jaron really wanted to see them

western wall at night

So today we headed to the House (which is Jerusalem).  This is one of my all time favorite places and it is so cool on this trip to just be able to people watch and not have to worry about a big group (click here to see some photos from today).   Our day started out by going to the traditional location of the feeding of the 4000.  From there we went to the cities of Chroizan, Bethsida, and Capernaum.  These are the main cites in which Jesus did most of his teaching.   There is just something cool about being in the places that Jesus taught people and for some strange reason it makes you want to read and study your bible.  We arrived at our hotel which is in the old city.  I have always wanted to stay in the old city but it has just never worked out so this is a real treat.   After dinner and getting settled in we all headed to the western wall to see it at night.   With a cup of fresh squeezed orange juice Stanton and I finished off our evening and then headed back to the hotel.  Tomorrow we get to hang out with my good friend Boaz as we break away from the group and go scout some sites for future trips.   Take care and until the next update

Rich and Stanton

Rich and the silent Stanton   

Stanton going for a swim

Hey we made it to Israel.   It’s so good to be back and one of the best things was running into my friends Kent, Boaz and Egal at Qumran today (click here to see some photos from the trip).   Anyway the day started of with a trip across the boarder from Jordan to Israel.  What usually takes an hour turned into a 4 and a half hour cultural experience.  From there we headed to Qumran and to 120 degree heat.   Well that was as high as the thermometer would go so who knows how hot it really was.   All I can tell you is that my skin is not made for such things so I basically bathed in sunscreen throughout the day.  We then headed toward Galilee and made a quick stop on Mt Gilboa.   After a talk about Saul and the witch of Indor we headed to our Kibbutz and went for a swim in the sea of Galilee.  Another fun day and we are looking forward to your time here in the area Jesus did much of his ministry.  Shalom

Rich and Stanton

Petra

What a long past few days.    Sorry we haven’t updated but the past three days we have been in the Sinai and have not had the luxury of internet.   So since the last post we have been following the Exodus of the children of Israel (click here to see pictures from the trip).  We left our hotel in Cairo and drove under the Suez cannel and into the Sinai.  We spent some time near the traditional crossing point of the red sea and then made our way into the heart of the story to the part where God gives the Ten Commandments.  We spent the night at a small hotel near the base of Mount Sinai  (which if you can believe it had a nice cold pool) and then awoke early the next morning to start our hike up mount Saint Catherine.  This hike was intense as the mountain was 8,600 ft tall and took us 12 hours to get up and back.  You add to that the 100 degree heat and you have for a long day.   When we returned we all jumped in the pool and then headed to dinner with some of the local Bedouin.  Dinner was amazing as they gave us tea and we reclined and rested why they cook us a goat they had just killed.  Goat, Bedouin bread and a cold coke makes for a great end to a long day but one we will always remember.  

The next day we woke up early again and headed out to follow the path out of Sinai that the Hebrews would have used.  This started by getting aboard a bunch of Toyota land cruisers and making our way deeper into the hot desert.  Many lessons were taught along the way and as you can see in some of the pictures we had to hike through some sand duns to make our way out.  From here we drove to the boarder of Israel and made the hour long trek to pass security and then drive toi a replica of the tabernacle that is located in the area of Elyat.   The day wasn’t over as we had to cross another boarder into Jordan and then began a 3 hour drive to the area near Petra were we ate dinner around 9:30 pm and then headed to bed.

The next day (which is today) was an amazing journey and hike to see all the sites of Petra.   So much that I could tell you about this place but it would take way to much time.  It’s a must see and Indiana Jones doesn’t do it justice in the movie.  Our way out was an experience as we all rented some donkeys (all 40 of us) and cruised our way out in style.

We then headed to Mt Nebo which in the text is where Moses dies and is buried by God.  We climbed part of this big mountain like Mosses would have done and spent some time talking about the idea of finishing strong.  For me this was one of the most impactful places and teachings so far on this trip and was cool as Becky and her Bible study just concluded a week or so ago with this story.

Finally we arrived here at the Dead Sea and Stanton and I are looking forward to doing some wash and getting a good night sleep.  We have one more full day here in Jordan and then we head over to Israel to finish the trip off.   Can’t wait to see everyone and fill you in more on the stories and things we have seen.  Until the next post

Rich and Stanton

PS these thoughts are more Rich’s then Stanton’s as he sleeps through all the updates.  In his defense he is getting older and needs his beauty sleep

Egypt is cool

 Traveling (from Hume toEgypt)

Well the journey for Stanton and I began Thursday with a 5 hour drive from Hume to LA where we dropped off the car and stayed overnight in a hotel near the airport. Early Friday morning we headed to LAX and took a five hour flight to New York where we met up with the rest of the crew.  From there we all boarded an 11 hour Delta flight that took us all the way to Cairo Egypt.  A side note is that the direct out of LAX is well worth the extra money.  It’s crazy to have traveled all day and then all of a sudden see the pyramids.  As a matter of fact they are just across the street from our hotel and Stanton and I are looking forward to checking them out tomorrow when the sun comes up.    For me this trip is crazy as I am not responsible for anything and I just get to enjoy the biblical story.  To my Joshua friends don’t take that the wrong way as when it comes down to it I really miss having you guys here but you know what I mean.   For Stanton he just found out that he was coming Tuesday night so the whole experience is still sinking in.  Well keep following us as we will try to post when we have internet.  To Becky, Ellie and Jaron I miss you and love you lots  

            Rich

The first full day

Today we woke up early as most of us were jet lagged and couldn’t stay asleep.  Lucky for us the restaurant opened at 3 am so we all had somewhere to go.  First stop were the pyramids and they were amazing (click here to see some photos from the trip).  I have seen them on TV but being there in person really puts things into perspective and just how powerful Egypt was.  We spent a good amount of time just trying to understand Egypt and not only the role that it played in the biblical narrative but how it shaped God’s people.  After that we went to one of the places that has been on my must see list; “the Cairo archeology museum”.  I can’t even explain how cool it was to be standing and looking at things that were 1000 years older then Abraham.  Really this was something out of Indiana Jones and we could have spent an entire day in there.  After a great lunch on the Nile we headed for the airport and flew to Aswan.  Night came but not before a boat ride on the Nile to our hotel.  All in all an amazing day and we cant wait to see what’s next.

Take care

Rich and Stanton

Take care

Rich