Wed. March 8: We left Chicago for Tel Aviv via Frankfurt. Dinner and overnight en route.

Thu. March 9: Upon our arrival at the Tel Aviv airport we were  met and transferred to our hotel on the shores of the Mediterranean Sea for dinner and overnight.

Fri. March 10: This morning we drove to Joppa, then along the ancient Via Maris, or coastal highway of the Bible, that took us to Caesarea Maritima, the Roman capital of Judea. Where the centurion Cornelius heard the Gospel preaching of Peter and later Paul made his defense before King Agrippa prior to his final journey to Rome. We proceed to Mt. Carmel and Muhraka where Elijah prayed down the fire from Heaven. We continue to Megiddo and view the Valley of Armaggedon. There we view the excavations from the time of Solomon. We drove to Nazareth, boyhood home of Jesus for an overlook and brief visit.  Then to  our hotel on the Sea of Galilee for dinner and overnight.

Sat. March 11: Today we spent, literally, walking in the footsteps of Jesus as we walk the land of Jesus' healing and teaching ministry around the Sea of Galilee. After breakfast we  boarded our wooden sailing boat, fashioned after the ancient fishing vessels, for a boat ride across the Sea of Galilee. We proceed to Capernaum to visit the ancient ruins of the first century synagogue where Jesus preached, then on to the Mt. of Beatitudes where Jesus preached the "Sermon on the Mount." Here we took time to enjoy a breathtaking view of the Sea of Galilee. We ascend the Golan Heights to Caesarea Philippi, one of the sources of the Jordan River at the base of Mt. Hermon. Here Jesus blessed Simon and changed his name to Peter. We stopped at Tel Dan before returning to our hotel in Tiberias for dinner and overnight.

Sun. March 12: After breakfast we said good-bye to the Sea of Galilee and stop at the Jordan River. Then we drove south to Beit She'an, where  King Saul and Jonathan fell fighting the Philistines and were hung from the city gates , we had morning services here. After services we spend some time viewing the extensive excavations. We then head south through the winding Jordan Valley to Jericho, the Canaanite city destroyed by the powers of God and the oldest known inhabited city in the world. Parts of the ancient city walls have been uncovered and waters from the Spring of Elisha can also be seen.  We continued to Jerusalem, the city of God's own choosing, for dinner and overnight.

Mon. March 13: The Bible becomes a three-dimensional book as the life changing experiences of the following days begin to unfold. The remarkable journey back in time began when we viewed the site of the Ascension, the olive trees on the Mt. of Olives that date back to the time of Christ and visited the Garden of Gethsemane. We drove through the Kidron Valley to Mt. Zion and entered the Cenacle or Upper Room (Room of the Last Supper). We visited St. Peter's en Gallicantu, then enter the Old City via the Lion's Gate and visited  the Pool of Bethesda and the Church of St. Ann. We visited the Western Wall and Temple Mount where Solomon built the first temple and Herod the second. We strolled through picturesque bazaars to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. Then returned to our hotel for dinner and overnight.

Tue. March 14: We began our day at the Shrine of the Book, viewing the Dead Sea Scrolls, then proceeded to the Holyland Hotel to view the model of Jerusalem as it was during the Roman occupation, which helped us understand what the city looked like during the life of Jesus. We visited the Church of the Nativity, traditional place of the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem. A visit to the Shepherd's Field reminded us of those who first heard the news of the Savior's birth, then we returned to Jerusalem for dinner and overnight in our hotel.

Wed. March 15: We had an early morning departure from Jerusalem to Allenby where we crossed the border into Jordan and meet our Jordanian guide and driver. We proceed to Mt. Nebo from where Moses overlooked the Promised Land. Standing on the hill overlooking the wilderness, the scenery (I am told) has not changed much over the centuries. We continued to Madaba, a city filled with mosaics, the most famous being the map of the Holy Land with a large, easily recognized depiction of Jerusalem, possibly the oldest existing map of the Holy Land. We followed the Desert Highway into the spectacular wadis of Edom, to our hotel in Petra.

Thu. March 16: Today we visited the "Rose Red City" of Petra. Built by the Nabateans over 2,000 years ago, it is truly one of the wonders of the world. We entered this magnificent city, carved out of rock, through a deep gorge that slowly winds through a massive rock wall.  It was lost to human knowledge until a hundred years ago, it is now available to explore in all its beauty. After our visit, we drove south and cross the border from Aqaba to Eilat on the Red Sea, where we will spend the night.

Fri. March 17: We left for the Egyptian border at Taba this morning, where we meet our Egyptian guide and driver. We enjoyed the desert scenery as we drove to the foot of Jebel Mousa (Mount Sinai), where Moses received the Ten Commandments from God and later early Christians found refuge from the Romans. We stayed overnight in a hotel at the foot of the mountain.

Sat. March 18: Some of our group got up at 2 a.m. for a climb up Mount Sinai (about a 21/2 hour climb), it was an unforgettable sunrise. After a time of contemplation we descended and join the rest of the group for breakfast. We then boarded our coach for a drive through the arid mountains of the Sinai Desert to Cairo for dinner and overnight.

Sun. March 19: Today we viewed the marvelous engineering feats of this ancient civilization as we start with a visit to Memphis, the ancient capital city of Egypt, we explored the world-famous Pyramids and Sphinx of Giza,  we had morning services on the stones of the great Pyramid, after services we went into the Pyramid and viewed the Queen's and King's tombs, then we continued to Sakkara to see the Step Pyramid, before  returning to our hotel for dinner and overnight.

Mon. March 20: This morning we visited the Egyptian Museum to view the tomb of Tut-Ankh-Amon.  We ended the day at the Khan El Khalili Bazaar where we have time for browsing and shopping. We had lunch on the Nile River  before returning to our hotel.  Tonight we had dinner and a 2 hour boat ride on the Nile River, then returned to our hotel, to pre pair to leave for the airport at 3:00A.M. for our return trip home.

Tue. March 21: We had an early morning transfer to the airport ( 3:00 A.M.) for our return flight home via Frankfurt, arriving the same day.