[{"title":"Day 1: Jerusalem Old and New","name":"Jerusalem","description":"As we stand above the Jewish cemetery on the Mount of Olives we see the Old City and the Temple Mount where once stood Solomon’s Temple, destroyed by the Babylonians in 586 BCE, and the Second Temple, destroyed by the Romans in 70 CE. \r\nBelow us we see the Garden of Gethsemane; the Church of All Nations and the Kidron Valley with its ancient Jewish burial tombs.\r\nEntering the Old City via the Zion Gate we pass through the Armenian Quarter on route to the Jewish Quarter and the 1500-year-old Byzantine Cardo. Partially destroyed and unused during the Moslem conquest it had a brief new lease of life during the Crusader period. The excavated Crusader shops are now modern stores. \r\nWe stop at the Kotel; the Western Wall where Jews have prayed since the destruction of the Temple in 70 CE. Built by King Herod it was a supporting wall enclosing the Temple Mount area.\r\n","lat":"31.768319","lng":"35.21371"},{"title":"Day 2: Bethlehem Street & Jericho Avenue","name":"Bethlehem Street & Jericho Avenue","description":"We drive south from Jerusalem in the direction of the Dead Sea on the way we pass the Inn of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:29-37) and continue on through the Biblical wilderness of the Judean Desert. We pass Wadi Kelt and can see the 5th century Monastery of Saint George.\r\nthe 10th where Jesus was stripped of his clothes; The Chapel of the Nailing on the Cross (11th station); The Rock of Calvary (12th station); the 13th station where Jesus' body was removed from the cross and the place where Jesus was laid to rest in his tomb (14th station).\r\nOn our way out of the Old City we pass through the Christian Quarter and Muslim Quarter markets where you can buy souvenirs, bargain over your purchase and taste delicious freshly squeezed orange juice. We leave Jerusalem and head south towards the Judean Desert.\r\nOur journey takes us passed the Biblical city of Jericho and further south to the Dead Sea. On the way through the desert we pass the mark which indicates that we are now going beneath sea level; the Dead Sea is the lowest point on Earth at about 400 meters below sea level. After an exciting day of sightseeing we can relax with a swim in the famous sea. The Dead Sea is 9.6 times saltier than the ocean and the high saline content will keep you afloat so you can pose for a classic shot reading a newspaper. Give yourself a natural spa treatment by covering your skin with the black Dead Sea mud, then plunge back into the water for a rejuvenating swim.\r\n\r\n","lat":"27.056524","lng":"-82.100185"},{"title":"Day 3: In the Footsteps of Jesus ","name":"Jerusalem","description":"Our tour starts on the Mount of Olives where we visit the Church of the Ascension. The church marks the spot where Jesus ascended to heaven and there is a rock with an imprinted footprint thought to be where Jesus stood before his ascension (Luke 24:50 – 51). The original church built here was in 390 but most of the chapel building we see today is from the Crusader period (1150).\r\nNearby is the Church of the Pater Nostre (Sanctuary of the Eleona), on this spot Jesus taught the Lord's Prayer. There are plaques on the walls with the Lord's Prayer written in more than a hundred languages. We see a Crusader cloister and the grotto where Jesus would have taught. This is also where Jesus told his disciples of the eminent destruction of Jerusalem and the 2nd coming.\r\nFrom the Mount of Olives we look out over the City of Gold across the ancient Jewish cemetery and to the Old City and Temple Mount beyond. We begin to descend the mount pausing at the Dominus Flevit (the Lord Wept). It was here that Christ cried as he envisioned the destruction of Jerusalem. The Dominus Flevit was designed by architect Antonio Barluzzi to resemble a teardrop. Through the window above the altar we can see the Old City where the Second Temple once stood.\r\nA little further along we get to the Church of All Nations and the Garden of Gethsemane. It was here that Jesus prayed before his arrest (Mark 14:32-46). The church was funded by a number of nations which each have their coat of arms displayed in decorative glass on the ceiling. The entrance is through tall columns which support a mosaic showing Jesus as the connection between God and man. \r\nWe cross the Kidron Valley and arrive at the Lion's Gate of Jerusalem's Old City. We see the pools of Bethesda as mentioned in the Gospel of John. We visit the Crusader Church of Saint Anne constructed above a grotto thought to be where Jesus' mother Mary was born.\r\nIn the Convent of the Sisters of Zion we enter the cellars to see the water cistern dating back to the Second Temple era. We see the Lithostratos, engraved Roman flagstones, which are part of extensive archaeological findings beneath the convent. It is believed that here Pontius Pilate stood in judgment of Jesus in the courtyard of Praetorium. From here we set out along the Via Dolorosa retracing the route Jesus took as he carried his cross towards his crucifixion. \r\n\r\n\r\n","lat":"31.768319","lng":"35.21371"}]
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