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DAY 01: BEGINNING OUR PILGRIMAGE Depart North America via jet service. Dinner and breakfast will be served in flight.
DAY 02: INTO THE LAND OF THE BIBLE Upon arrival in the afternoon, you will be met by our representative who will assist you with formalities. A luxury motorcoach will transfer you to your hotel in Jerusalem.
DAY 03: JERUSALEM AND BETHLEHEM Drive to Bethlehem. Visit the Basilica of the Nativity, built over the site of the birthplace of Christ. Visit the Cave where Christ was born and it is the occasion to sing the traditional Christmas Hymns. A visit is made to the Chapel of St. Jerome, who lived here for many years and translated the Bible into Latin. The nearby Church of St. Catherine is the venue for the midnight Mass which is broadcast all over the world from Bethlehem on Christmas Eve. Continue to Shepherds Field, recalling the "great throng of the heavenly hosts" who appeared to the shepherds and told them of the birth of the Saviour. Proceed to Mount Zion visiting the Room of the Last Supper, Church of the Dormition, and then visit the Church of St. Peter in Gallicantu built on the site of the house of Caiaphas which encloses the dungeon where Christ was kept on Holy Thursday night and where Peter denied Christ thrice.
DAY 04: JERUSALEM This morning visit the Church of St. Ann, built on the site of the birthplace of Our Lady. Continue to the Pool of Bethesda where Christ healed the paralytic. Visit the Temple area, the spot where the original temple was built and which was the scene of many episodes from the life of Christ, such as the expulsion of the money changers. Here now stands the Dome of the Rock, the third holiest spot in the world for the Moslem faith. Visit the El Aqsa Mosque and then the Wailing Wall which is the most sacred spot in the world for the Jews. This afternoon tour the Old City of Jerusalem, visiting the Chapel of Flagellation, the Chapel of Condemnation and the Lithostrotos, the site of the Antonia Fortress where Julius Caesar resided at the time of Christ and where Christ was tried and condemned to death. Beginning the Way of the Cross here, walk along the Via Dolorosa - ending at the Basilica of the Holy Sepulchre, built over the site of the Crucifixion and the Tomb. Visit Calvary and the Tomb of Our Lord followed by a short tour of the Basilica.
DAY 05: MOUNTAINS OF JERUSALEM Drive to the Mount of Olives and visit the Church of the Ascension, the spot where Christ ascended into Heaven; the Pater Noster Church commemorating Christ's teaching of the Our Father to the Disciples; Dominus Flevit, the spot where Christ wept over Jerusalem . Continue onwards to Gethsemane to view the ancient olive trees in the Garden of Gethsemane and to visit the Church of All Nations which houses the Rock of the Agony of Christ on Holy Thursday. In this church is a beautiful mosaic donated by the United States. Visit the Cave of the Betrayal of Jesus and the Tomb of Our Lady. Continue to Beitphage, a village on the Mount of Olives to which Jesus sent two of his disciples to take the donkey which he was to use for the triumphal entry into the city. This is where the Palm Sunday Procession began, as it does today. Return to your hotel.
DAY 06: THE WILDERNESS OF JUDEA Proceed through the Judean Wilderness to Bethany and visit the new church built on the site of the house of Mary and Martha. Visit the Tomb of Lazarus. Stop at the Inn of the Good Samaritan. View the Greek Orthodox Monastery of St. George Koziba and continue to Qumran where the Dead Sea Scrolls were discovered in 1947. Continue to Masada where you will ascend by cable car to visit the remarkable ruins of the Fortress, built by Herod the Great, and where from 70 to 73 A.D.,
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Jewish Zealots made their last stand in the Judean Revolt against the Roman Legions. See the remains of Herod's Palace; the Apartments, Baths, Storehouses and cisterns - all used by the Jewish Defenders who took refuge here. Drive to the Israeli - Jordanian border at Arava and cross into Jordan. Proceed to Petra for dinner and overnight.
DAY 07: PETRA, THE RED ROCK CITY This morning tour Petra, the Red Rock City. It is considered the eighth wonder of the world. A complete city carved in colored sandstone, rediscovered in 1812. An unforgettable experience, passing through a narrow canyon, you will enter the Nabatean city of Petra to visit the Treasury, the theater, the Palace of Justice and other marvels. Refresh yourself at the Fountain of Moses from the fatigue of exploring. Proceed to Amman for dinner and overnight.
DAY 08: AMMAN / TIBERIAS Depart Amman this morning and drive to the Allenby Bridge and re-cross into Israel. Continue to visit the ancient city of Jericho from which you can view the Mount of Temptation, where Jesus fasted for forty days and forty nights. Visit Elisha's Fountain and proceed along the Jordan Valley to the lovely city of Tiberias and your hotel on the shores of the Sea of Galilee for overnight.
DAY 09: THE SEA OF GALILEE AND UPPER GALILEE In the morning, cross the Sea of Galilee by boat from Tiberias to Capernaum, now in ruins but once a thriving town where Peter lived and where much of the public ministry of Christ took place. See the Church of the Primacy of Peter, where Christ confirmed Peter as the Head of the Church and we visit the Mount of Beatitudes where Christ taught the Eight Beatitudes to his disciples. Proceed to Tabgha, the place of the Multiplication of Loaves and Fish. Continue to the ruins of Magdala where Mary Magdalen lived. In the afternoon, drive to the Golan Heights in Upper Galilee. Visit the Sources of the Jordan, view Tel Dan, and visit the exit of the River Jordan from the Sea of Galilee. Return to your hotel.
DAY 10: GALILEE This morning drive to the top of Mount Tabor, the site of the Transfiguration. Continue to Megiddo, Armageddon, a very important strategic point on the Via Maris connecting Egypt and Damascus. It is a city that has witnessed many wars and suffered many destructions through the different wars and periods of time. Proceed to Nazareth where you will visit the Basilica of the Annunciation enclosing the remains of the house of Joachim and Ann and the site where the Angel Gabriel appeared to the Virgin Mary to announce that she was to become the Mother of God. Visit the home of the Holy Family, St. Joseph's workshop, Mary's Well and the Synagogue where Jesus preached. Drive to Cana where Christ performed his first miracle and where any married couples can renew their marriage vows. Return to your hotel in Tiberias.
DAY 11: ALL THE PAST YEARS WITH HISTORY Morning departure from Tiberias to Acre with its romantic minarets and palm trees framed against the sea. It was a leading Phonecian port, Crusaders made Acre the principal port of the Holyland. Continue to Haifa, visiting Mount Carmel and the Shrine of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel, and the Cave of the Prophet, Elijah. Proceed along the shores of the Mediterranean to Caesarea Martima on the Plains of Sharon to visit the ruins of the Crusader's City, surrounded by a moat and a city wall enclosing the ruins of this Roman city. Visit the Roman Theater. Proceed to Tel Aviv for dinner and overnight.
DAY 12: TEL AVIV / NORTH AMERICA Transfer to the airport for your return flight to North America.
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