Yes! That is right! I am going to Israel next week and I am so excited. I’m pretty sure that I’ve never written a post announcing my future travel plans, but I’ve been so excited to share this one and would like to explain why I’m going and what I’m most looking forward to.
In one week I will take a 12-hour flight from Knoxville to Atlanta to Paris then to Tel Aviv and finally set foot in a country that I have only read about in the bible and never thought I would get to visit.
I will be going with my church to walk where Jesus walked and experience the bible in real life.
Our Itinerary
Now for the fun stuff. I will be in Israel over the course of 7 days.
Day 1 – Tel Aviv, Caesarea, Haifa and Tiberias : View the Ruins of the Crusaders Fortress, Visit the museum of the ruins and Solomon’s Stables. See the Carmelite Monastery and Elijah’s Cave as well as the Bahai Temple with its lovely Persian Gardens.
Day 2- Tiberias: Cross the sea of Galilee to Capernaum, Visit the ruins of the Second Century Synagogue. Continue to Tabgha site of the miracle of the loaves and fishes. Then to the Mount of Beatitudes where Jesus preached the famous Sermon on the Mount and choose his 12 Apostles.
Day 3- Tiberias/ Cana / Nazareth / Jerusalem: Visit where Jesus performed his first miracle of water into wine, drive to Nazareth, the boyhood home of Jesus. Visit the church of Annunciation and the winding streets of the old city.
Day 4 – Jerusalem: Walking tour of the Old City of Jerusalem. Enter St. Stephen’s Gate, visit St. Anne’s Church and the pool of Bethesda where Jesus healed the crippled man. Visit the Wailing Wall, Herod’s Gate to the Roman Praetirium, follow the footsteps of Jesus as we walk the Via Dolorosa, the way to the cross. We will be visiting the Garden Tomb believed by many to be Golgotha
Day 5 – Jerusalem/ Bethlehem: Drive to the top of the Mount of Olives for a panoramic view of Jerusalem. Visit the Garden of Gethsemane and walk along the ancient olive trees. Visit Mount Zion to see the upper room where the last supper took place. Drive to Bethlehem. Visit the church of the nativity see the manger where Jesus was born and shepherd’s field.
Day 6 Jerusalem /Bethany/ Jericho: Drive to Bethany to visit Lazarus’ tomb and the village of Mary and Martha. Then to Jericho, believed to be the oldest city in the World. View the Mount of Temptations. Continue to the Dead Sea, 1288 feet below sea level, site of ancient Sodom and Gomorrah, Visit the Dead Sea Scrolls. Visit Moab Mountains and Mt Nebo where Moses viewed the Promised land.
Day 7 – Jerusalem: Leisure day for shopping and exploring the city on our own.
What I hope to gain.
I never thought I would go on a trip like this, but God opened the doors for me and Ryan to go. I am hoping to learn more about the bible and see things in a different way.
The Best Part.
I will be able to experience this with my wonderful Pastor that will be able to explain things and open my eyes.
My mom is going to be able to go and I am so excited to get to share this with her!
I will be taking my Canon 5D Mark iii so I can take AMAZING Photos of our adventure. ( I never travel with my camera except once to do a wedding in the Dominican Republic)
Of course, I also look forward to sharing it all with you.
Please let me know if there is anything you would like
to see in photos or learn more about.