Morocco

Our adventure ended with a week-long tour of the four Imperial Cities of Morocco. We were not quite sure what to expect, but it turned out to be a fitting end to a great trip. It was much more relaxing being alone and we had more control of where we went and how much time we spent out and about each day.

1)  Mike poking around for squid and octopi in Casablanca - Atlantic Ocean, 2-3) KR being a tourist in Rabat at the Mausoleum of Mohammed V, 4) wandering the streets of the Oudayas Kasbah in Rabat, 5-6) between Rabat and Meknes is a fantastic Roman site - Volubilis, the southernmost outpost of the Roman Empire and still very, very cool, 7-8) walking the streets of Fez, 9) a first-century tannery in the 21st-century city of Fez, 10) chicken and spices to order in the Fez Medina, 11) a yummy Moroccan dinner, 12) fancy elevator in Marrakech, 13-14) snakes and medicinal herbs in the Marrakech bazaar.

Egypt

What an exotic place! We entered Egypt on the Red Seat at Taba and then flew to Aswan to take our cruise down the Nile to Luxor. They use smaller ships on the Nile - they are shaped like an old Mississippi steamboat without the paddle wheels. Ours had around 120 people on it and was very nice.

1) Taba, 2-4)  as we went downstream, we visited various temples and tombs, as most of the best ones are close to the banks of the Nile, 5) the Colossi of Memnon, near the Valley of the Kings, 6) the shopping prices in Egypt were the most reasonable of the whole trip, 7) there actually are Whirling Dervishes - they are not just something we call our grandchildren, 8) and we got to see Cleopatra, 9) KR at the Karnak Temple, Luxor, 10) the spread on the Nile ship - you can see they starved us, 11) Cairo, the City of Minarets, 12) KR at the Alabaster Mosque, Cairo Citadel, 13) Pharoah Ramses the Ornery, 14-18) naturally we had to do all the tourist poses at the Pyramids - I told KR that to kiss at the Pyramids is good luck (I made that up), 19) our hotel lobby in Cairo - a very beautiful place, and 20) no, these are not Yoda disciples - the girls had to put these on to conceal their bare arms, etc. when we entered a mosque in Coptic Cairo.

Israel

Ever since I can remember, when I have asked KR where she would like to go next, her answer has always been the Holy Land - she would say I want to walk where the Savior walked. Well she finally got her chance and what a great experience we had - the days were long and exhausting, but so worth the time and expense. We went to every corner of Israel and got to see and hear about so many interesting things. Places that when I read about them now, I will have a clear image in my mind for reference.


As I previously mentioned, we took thousands of digital images, but I have chosen just a few to post. It was a trip of images and symbols: 1) Nazareth, the city of Jesus' childhood, is considered the Arab capital of Israel, as it is predominantly populated by Arab citizens, many of them Christians, 2) the Andertons & Gundersens enjoy an evening cruise on the Sea of Galilee, 3) as we were still not totally adapted to the time change, I kept waking up early in the morning and I took advantage to enjoy the sunrises over the Golan Heights and the Sea of Galilee - Syria is over the distant hills, 4) the Sea of Galilee at Capernaum, the town of Peter, 5) over the centuries, churches have fought (sometimes literally) for control of the holy sites and built shrines or churches on the premises for pilgrims - here is KR at the Roman Catholic center on the Mount of Beatitudes, 6) KR at the ruins of Caesarea Phillipi, 7) the Israeli flag overlooking the road to Damascus - the border of Syria is just a few miles to the left, 8) KR on the banks of the Jordan River at dusk, 9) a late night swim in the Sea of Galilee, 10) on the steps that Paul perhaps used exiting from a ship in Caesarea Maritima, 11) Garden of Gethsemane, 12) KR in the Orson Hyde Memorial Garden, with the Temple Mount in the background, 13) attending services at the BYU Jerusalem Center - what a great location, 14) stairs dating back to the time of Jesus that adjoin the site where He was taken after being arrested - truly where Jesus walked, 15) KR inside the walls of Old Jerusalem, having entered the Lions' Gate, 16) the Garden Tomb, 17) KR on the Temple Mount - the Dome of the Rock is in the background, 18) KR and Barb Gundersen on the narrow streets of the Old City, 19) the famous Western Wall of the Temple Mount, 20) we walked in water to our knees several kilometers though Hezekiah's Tunnel - it got very narrow in places, 21) floating in the Dead Sea - it was so salty you floated like a cork, and 22) Mike keeping the sun off on the top of the plateau at Masada. Awesome, just ..... awesome.