Dear Family --

We made it back safe and sound from Israel. We certainly had an interesting experience and enjoyed ourselves thoroughly. I've wondered how I can describe all the places we saw and visited, and all I could figure out was to do it day by day.

Sunday, March 30, 2008
We went to church in Mumbai and then went to our friends house and changed our clothes, repacked our bags and set off for the airport. Our flight left about 8:15 p.m. and arrived in Tel Aviv, Israel at 1:30 a.m. Our friends -- the Nabrotzky family, Jonathan, Michelle, Sarah (9), Austin (7), Jacob (5), and Zachary (2) -- had been in Israel before and they were our tour guides. We loaded into our 9 passenger van at the airport and headed for Jerusalem about 2:30 a.m. It was dark and nothing was open and we were all tired, so we went to the parking lot of their old apartment building and parked the car and slept for a couple of hours. (Or at least we pretended to!) We got up in time to head over to the Mount of Olives for a breathtaking picture of the sun rising on the Old City.

Monday, March 31, 2008
We drove to Ben Yehuda to find some shops open for breakfast. Unfortunately, we were still too early. We did find a shop with fresh breads and spreads. I had a great bagel with cream cheese and onion, cucumber, and tomato. Hannah had a sandwich with an avocado and hard boiled egg spread. We drove up to the BYU Jerusalem Center, but they were closed because the students were away on a field trip to Galilee area. We then went to the Old City and parked at the Jaffa Gate and went in. This is a really fun part of the city. The streets are small and the walls and buildings are all the light sandstone of the area. We walked and walked around and just enjoyed ourselves. We had fresh pitas and circle bread with sesame seeds and burgers and kebabs for lunch. We also visited the Church of the Holy Sepulchre -- where Helena (mother of emperor Constantine) decided that this was Golgotha, where Jesus was nailed to the cross, died, and rose from the dead. The various Christians of the early years liked to declare a place sacred, then build a big church on the spot, and then leave a hole in the floor so a person could touch (or look through a glass window) at the actual ground. This was really hard to visualize in these huge, ornate, pagan churches.

We also saw the Western Wailing Wall -- the western wall of the temple old temple. The Jewish people feel this is a sacred and holy place and have a synagogue right next to it. The men and the women are separated at the Wailing Wall. There are lots of little slips of paper shoved into the nooks and crannys of the wall that are prayers people have left. It is very interesting to see and experience. There were having a Bar Mitzva there with a number of candidates (on the men's side). The moms and other female family members would stand on chairs and look over the wall to watch their sons go through this right of passage. They also had boxes of food for after the ceremony for family and friends.

We then began our drive up to Galilee. We had reservations at a kibbutz (a Jewish cooperative community) called Afikim Kibbutz. They had milk cows, banana groves, a large school for kids of all ages, a grocery store, a fish market, etc. etc. To get around the kibbutz, everyone rode bicycles and they had bicycles for us too. We had a great time exploring and riding around and around on the sidewalks and seeing everything. Probably the most unusual thing we saw was a military tank painted pink next to the school gym track. I think they keep those around as reminders of what they have had to go through to obtain their country. This kibbutz also had great double hammocks. We were able to relax and enjoy the peacefulness of the kibbutz. We had pizza at the restaurant/snack bar.

Tuesday, April 1, 2008
The kibbutz had a complimentary breakfast -- which was fantastic! We had traditional Israeli food and plenty of it -- salad, olives, bread, hummus, scrambled eggs, tomatoes, cheeses, hot cocoa, pudding for the kids, and cold cereal even. There is a picture of the buffet spread in the pictures. The kids really spent a lot of time riding the bikes and loving it, so we got a later start. We drove north and went through Tiberius and up into the hills. We had a great view of the Sea of Galilee.

We first went to the Church of the Multiplication of the Loaves and Fishes. This was an old church with great mosaics and a famous mosaic of the fish and loaves. It was a beautiful place and there was the original rock peaking through the floor for us to see. We then went to the Mount of Beatitudes -- another beautiful church built right on the hill. They graciously had a beautiful garden with large rocks in it so we could sit and read the scriptures of the Beatitudes in a lovely setting. We also went to Capernaum where Jesus was said to give the "Bread of Life" sermon in the synagogue. That was a very old and peaceful place. There is also a ruin there that is said to be Peter's house.

We then headed north and got a little too far -- we went to Metula, the northern most city in Israel before the Lebanese boarder. We turned around and headed back. We were surprised by all the "Danger -- Mines" signs. The area is hilly and rough and the land mines are still there. That's a much better reason to stay on the path than just poison ivy! A couple more places we were going to visit were closed by the time we got there. So we headed back south on the eastern side of the Sea of Galilee and stopped at Ein Gev for sunset pictures on the Sea of Galilee. We also got to pick up some nice, smooth, round, and pink rocks for Hannah's seminary friends.

Wednesday, April 2, 2008
Again, we were up and riding bikes and eating that wonderful breakfast early. We first went to Yardinite -- the Jordan River spot that is the "traditional" place where Jesus was baptized. This was a beautiful green and lush spot, with lots of tour buses and people standing in the water. We did stick our feet in and thought it a very pleasant place. I saw in my scriptures today that it's the same place pictured in the bible pictures. Next we went to Mt. Tabor (or Mount of Transfiguration). One of the modern prophets said that this was the site. It was beautiful and the view of the Armageddon was fabulous.

Our next drive was to the city of Nazareth. We had a traditional Israeli lunch of falafel -- pita bread with fried garbanzo bean balls, cucumbers, tomatoes, and hummus sauce. They were very good -- or we were very hungry! We went to the Church of the Annunciation where "traditionally" Angel Gabriel appeared to Mary. We walked through and looked at the small cave and well they left uncovered for us to look at.

We drove back north to see the places that were closed the day before. We went to Ceasaria Phillipi -- a beautiful waterfall and park (Hermon Stream Nature Reserve, Banias). We didn't have enough time to do the long hike, so we just did the short one and then took the kids to the largest play ground I've ever seen. They had a blast on that. We learned from the Israelis that you sit on a squished plastic pop bottle to go REALLY fast down the slide -- so fast your dad needs to catch you or you land 10 feet past the end of the slide!
That night we went to the grocery store and bought hot dogs and chips and cookies and cooked out by our kibbutz houses. There were nice picnic tables and the hammocks and it was just a nice evening.

Thursday, April 3, 2008
This is the day we left the Kibbutz and headed back toward Jerusalem. Our first stop was at the Dead Sea. Hannah and Doug were all for a float and a soak and a mud pack. The mud from the Dead Sea is supposed to have healing and rejuvenating properties. Everyone there just looked like they had stepped out of a giant mud bath.

We were heading west toward Jerusalem and looking for a place for lunch. We stopped at a tourist trap and were asking if there was a place for lunch. We met a nice Palestinian man named Hanna (John in Arabic) and he said for us to follow him into Jericho. We weren't planning to go into Jericho because it is a Palestinian held city and we weren't really comfortable about going there on our own. However, Hanna got us across the boarder, hopped into our car, and took us to a really great local restaurant where King Hussain used to eat. We ordered salads, kabobs, and all the trimmings. It was a wonderful meal -- at an expensive price (about $130 for 10 of us). However, the meal was the greatest, and talking with Hanna and understanding his point of view was priceless. He told us of his brother who had no children. Hanna had a daughter and 2 sons, and his wife offered to have a child for them. So she had another son and they gave him to Hanna's brother to raise. He calls that boy his brother's son (even though it is his own son). Hanna's wife lives in the US and he lives in Jericho because he enjoys the sense of community and family there that doesn't exist in the US.

We finished driving into Jerusalem and found our apartment. It had 3 bedrooms, 2 baths, kitchen, living area, and a washer and drier. We took the kids to the park where they played with the Jewish kids and we went to the co-op to get some groceries. That night for dinner we heated up the leftovers from lunch and enjoyed that great (and expensive) meal a second time.

Friday, April 4, 2008
This day we were looking at ruins. We went to the Ophel Archaeological Gardens, and the temple mount excavations. This was very interesting because they are still excavating the site and uncovering new things. The kids liked to climb in and out of all the old places and climb all the steps and "discover" everything for themselves.

We went to the BYU Jerusalem Center to meet Jonathan's sister and have lunch. She is on semester abroad there and I'm sure it was fun for her to have family come and visit. The Jerusalem Center is a beautiful place and very peaceful.

We then went to the money changer to cash a check. I'm not exactly sure how this works, but there are money changers all over the city of Jerusalem. I think this is a very old trade for Jerusalem! We then went to Omar's Souvenir shop. We saw lots of olive wood carvings of all kinds of Bible and Book of Mormon stories. Omar is a great friend to the Mormons in Jerusalem. All the Mormon tour groups come to visit him and purchase their souvenirs. He gave us a "good deal," even the "student rate" because of Jonathan's sister.

We then went to the Suk -- the main Jewish market place. The prices were better here and it reminded me of the Indian market -- only cleaner and more choices that were better looking. Doug bought some olives. I bought strawberries and bananas. We really enjoyed the great fresh breads and pastries too.

Our next trip was to the Old City to get "Jesus" sandals and other trinkets. Hannah and I each got a pair of leather sandals and Doug got a leather belt. I'm sure we didn't get the best price, but the shopkeeper is now our friend for life. We had dinner in the Old City again -- falafels, but they weren't as good as the ones in Nazareth!

We called the bus station to make our reservation to Eilat for Monday morning. It was fairly easy -- what day, time, name, passport number, phone number, credit card number, and we were set.

Saturday, April 5, 2008
Saturday is the Sabbath in Israel for Jews and Mormons. Friday is the holy day of the Muslims. This was hard to get my head around! We left early for church so we could stop at the Orson Hyde Park on the Mount of Olives where he dedicated Israel for the return of the Jews. The sign explaining the park has been removed several times because the Palestinians don't want to know about it or anyone else to know about it.

We went to Church at the Jerusalem Center. It was General Conference Sunday, but they had a 1 hour sacrament meeting because conference wasn't broadcast until later that night. It was a wonderful experience to look out over the city of Jerusalem and partake of the sacrament and think of the Savior. We went to the Mount of Olives and read scriptures under an olive tree in an olive grove. We went to the Garden Tomb and read scriptures there too. Pres. Hinckley says this place is close to a very sacred spot. Golgotha (the place of the skull) is near the tomb and so is the Damascus Gate of the Old City. There have been no churches built on this site and it is just a beautiful, peaceful garden run and maintained by a British association.

We headed back to the Old City to see the Upper Room where the last supper was "traditionally" thought to be held. The original upper room is gone, but the new one is said to be on the site. Under, in the same church, is King David's Tomb. He is conveniently buried in a Jewish Synagogue.

Our next stop was Caiphas' Palace (Church of St. Peter in Gallicantu). There is a cave under this church where Jesus was said to be incarcerated. We were allowed to go down there and see how it was.

Dinner was in Ben Yehuda -- McDonald's no less! They even have real hamburgers!

Sunday, April 6, 2008
This day we got up early and went to see the Dome of the Rock. This is a Muslim mosque and only Muslims are allowed inside, but we were able to walk around the Temple Mount of the Old City. There was a long line and lots of waiting. There was a small altercation at the front of the line while we were there -- there was a group of Czech people who were going to push into the front of the line, but the people right behind said they couldn't. The Czechs wouldn't leave so they had to call someone from in the mosque to calm everyone down. The Muslim person said that no one was better than anyone else and that all people are the same and that everyone had to wait their turn in line. This is a very holy place in the Old City and it was very peaceful. Jews are not allowed to be up there because they don't know where the Holy of Holies was on the Temple Mount and they wouldn't be allowed in there (only the Priests were allowed in the Holy of Holies when there was a temple in Jerusalem and it would break the law if they wandered into that by mistake). We went and spent some time looking at the Golden Gate where Jesus will re-enter the city.

We went down from the Temple Mount into the Muslim quarter of the Old City. I found some Muslim prayer beads for my driver made of olive wood as a souvenir for him. We found a great little restaurant in this quarter that looked like it was carved from a cave. It was very fun and we had falafels again.

We went back to the apartment and picked up the Michelle and the kids to go to Bethlehem. We drove by many typical shepherd fields with the real flocks and shepherds tending them. In Bethlehem we went to the Church of the Nativity where it is the "traditional" site for the birth of Jesus. We went down the steps into a cave and saw a rock that is supposed to be the site. To the left of the rock is a carved manger from the rock cave. There were plenty of people kneeling down and kissing and passing candles and other items over the rock for blessings. This was a really difficult visit for me. We had been waiting in line at least 1/2 hour and then a bus load of Indians showed up. Indians do not believe in waiting in a queue (line), so they pushed right up to the front to go in front of all of us. It was a really sad, contentious feeling that I had and thought they didn't show their Christian side very well. So then I wondered, how do I show my Christian side? All good questions that I'm still dealing with. I have decided I need to learn to love these Indian people like the missionaries love them. I understand the best way is to serve them and pray for them, and not say bad things about them. I'll keep working on that!

We did some shopping at a local olive wood art dealer, headed back through the Separation Wall toward Jerusalem. The Jews are building a wall around some cities to keep the Palestinians in (or out as the case may be). Jericho has a wall, Bethlehem has a wall, and the West Bank has a wall. It is very formidable and apparently has stemmed a lot of terrorist suicide attacks. It is sad to see though.

We stopped for dinner at the King of Falafel and had schwarma -- lamb wraps with tomato, cucumber, and hummus. They were very good and we enjoyed the meat. We returned to the apartment and watched the movie "Enchanted."

Monday, April 7, 2008
We were up early Monday to catch the bus to Eilat, at the very southern tip of Israel. We had called in to get bus tickets and so Jonathan dropped us off at the station and we were on our own. We found the bus, they had tickets and reservations waiting for us right there and we were on our way. It was a 4 hour trip from Jerusalem to Eilat. We drove close to the Dead Sea and all the desert area. That would be a tough place to live -- let alone wander around in for 40 years. We got a taxi from the bus station in Eilat to our Hotel. Our hotel was on the outside of the city in a quiet part of town.

Doug and Hannah decided they wanted to snorkel in the Read Sea, so we went down to the beach and got them all fixed up. Hannah had never snorkeled before, but she finally got the hang of it. They saw lots of interesting and colorful fish and wildlife. There is a wonderful coral beach and 650 species of fish in the nature reserve right there.

We had an early dinner of sandwiches and salad and bakery treats. We had a nice walk along the beach enjoying the fresh air. We also had to stop and get a backpack to take to Petra the next day. I thought we needed both hands to ride our horses like Indiana Jones into the city!

Tuesday, April 8, 2008
We had a nice buffet breakfast at the hotel. The chocolate milk was the BEST! We caught a cab at 7:30 a.m. to take us to the Arava Boarder crossing into Jordan. We had a tour representative to meet us there to help with the boarder crossing. Unfortunately, we got there behind 4-5 tour buses with 50-60 people in them. Lots more waiting in line. We paid a tax to exit Israel, but we didn't have to pay for a visa into Jordan. We met our driver, Sami, and we started on our way. It's about 1 1/2 hours to drive from the boarder to Petra. He was a good driver and a good source of information. He took us to the Petra Visitors Center and got us into the park. Then he left us with a guide (who has studied and passed an exam) to take us into the city. We chose to ride horses a short way to the beginning of the Siq (the narrow canyon before entering Petra). We didn't have much any Jordanian change, so Doug paid a premium for those horse rides! We walked the Siq narrows and it was very interesting to think about the camel caravans that would have had to pass through there with all their goods. We saw where the Indiana Jones movie was shot. We got pictures through the crack of the treasury building, but they didn't turn out very well. The city of Petra is absolutely beautiful and extremely well done and what is left is being well preserved. We wanted to visit the larger carved "building" called the Monestary. It's up 800+ steps after a 2 km hike through Petra. Doug decided we could take a donkey ride up. So up we went, passing all the old people from the tour buses that were walking up. The donkeys have no control and just go up as fast as they can on the edge of the cliff (typical!). It was fun and scary and exciting! Hannah loved it! Inside the Monestary there were probably 30 Jordanian Boy Scouts making the most racket I have ever heard in my life. Of course it echoed and was deafening, but they were having a good time. They leaders just let them carry on. We asked them how they got into the Monastery, and they signed to us that they would pull us up into the big room. I wasn't interested in spending much time with those howling boy scouts in a large stone room, but they really wanted Hannah to come up with them. They followed us a long ways trying to get Hannah to change her mind.

We walked back down from the Monastery and chatted with all the trinket sellers who would say, "I've been waiting for you!" We got some great camel bone necklaces for the girls! I know that is something you have always wanted and never even known it! I just think of it as helping the Jordanian economy move along. We walked back to the Treasury and got a few more pictures -- of Hannah and I actually touching Petra! We walked all the way back through the Siq and back to the Visitors Center. We were tired! We met our driver and he took us back to the boarder. We paid another tax to get out of Jordan and made it back into Israel. We took a cab back to our hotel, had a nice dinner (steak, hamburger, and kebab) and went to bed. We were very tired!

Wednesday, April 9, 2008
We were able to sleep in a bit this morning. Our bus didn't leave until 10 a.m. I went into the bathroom to shower and I turned on the water to warm it up, but it came out the shower head that happened to be pointed right at me and soaked me good. Me and the bathroom were totally wet. I made a noise and Doug came running, thinking I had cut my hand off or something. Nope, just soaking wet! I just laughed and felt better! Breakfast was good again -- especially the chocolate milk!

We took a cab to the bus station and caught our bus back north to Jerusalem. The bus system is very good and reliable and safe. There were many young people riding, alone or with others, without any problems. Our friends picked us up from the bus station in Jerusalem without problems.

Doug wanted to go to the Holocaust Museum in Jerusalem, so we dropped him off. That is a very graphic and difficult topic. They have an age limit at the museum -- no one under 10 or even babies are allowed in there. I think that is a good policy.

The rest of us went to the Shuk to do a little more shopping and get some fun things. The breads and the bakery items are out of this world -- chocolate croissants, eclairs, potato filled puff pastry, sweet bread, etc. The candy shops are so appealing -- we took pictures for Michelle, but everyone can enjoy them. How many types of gummy-anythings are there in the world anyway??? We picked up some special chocolate for Ryan -- something that will make his mouth VERY happy!

We picked up Doug and went to the Damascus Gate of the Old City. This is in the Muslim quarter and we saw all their tables and stalls and shops set up. It reminds me a little of India, but it's different. Even the dirt in Israel isn't as dirty as the dirt in India. How do you explain that?

We had dinner at King of Falafel again -- schwarma -- yum! We also had some great ice cream as we wandered around Ben Yahuda Street. We went back to the apartment to get packed and ready to return to Tel Aviv the next morning.

Thursday, April 10, 2008
We had to leave at 6 a.m. to get to the airport from Jerusalem and return the rental car and get checked in and catch our flight by 9 a.m. We did fine, even though I worried a bit too much. At the airport there was a bit of a snag -- our Indian visas expire 16 April 2008 and they weren't ready to let us back in the country with so little time left on the visa. We assured them that 6 days was "plenty of time" in India and "no worries" and we could go back. John Deere is working on finishing up these visas this week. Maybe we will be legal soon for the next 9 months!

Our flight was good and we landed in Mumbai about 7:30 p.m. We were nearly last to go through passport control because all the Indians pushed to the front of the line ahead of us. It's great to be back! Feroz met us out front and we were on our way home. It was 3 1/4 hours to our house from the airport. That's a long drive and we got home at 12:14 a.m.

We really had a wonderful trip and we're glad we did it. I don't think this is anything I would have done if we had been in the US. This is one of the great blessings of being in India.

We hope you are all well and healthy and happy!
Love, Lucinda