Mediterranean Cruise... May news

In making plans to celebrate our 50th anniversary and feeling that we wanted to do something really special, Bob and I talked about tours and cruises. As we read some of the possibilities we were drawn to the Mediterranean Cruise offered by LDS tours and signed up for it. The next few months we paid our dues and made plans for the trip. Our first day out was exhausting as we spent the entire day and night traveling.We arrived in Genoa, Italy on the 26th of March. The first day we were greeted and taken to our hotel where we slept for a time. Then as we were more or less on our own for the evening, we hooked up with another couple who looked as lost as we were and went for a walk. We found a little pizza shop and had dinner there. We loved the Italian waiter who gestured and talked in limited English to help us.

March 27...We spent the day touring Milan, Italy. We had a young lady tour guide who gave us a brief history of the area and took us to some places of interest. One of the places was the Cathedral of Milan. It was huge with ornate carvings and tall spires and could only be described as spectacular. We had our first gelato...Italian ice cream cone....delicious!

March 28...We boarded the Poesia Cruise Ship with 2498 other people. There were 400 who spoke English, the rest we were told were from a variety of European countries. It was great fun to listen to those from other countries as they spoke in their native tongue. We had to figure out the Euro money system which we would be using now. In our group of 200 we had a couple of Canadiens and one man from Australia..
..the rest were from around the U.S. The Poesia was a huge ship...14 stories tall, with a huge theatre, swimming pools, many shops, restaurants, anything you could find in a small city. Bob and I found it a great temptation to eat too much, the food for every meal was prepared so beautifully and there were places where you could get an ice cream or some other treat in between meals. The ship docked at Chivatevecchia, Italy where we spent some time walking around the port. Some of the party had taken a pre tour to Rome and they came aboard then. We attended the theatre that evening where a pianist violinist, soprano and a tenor entertained... great talent.

March 29-30..For these two days we met for seminars with our LDS tour guides who briefed us on what we would see in Israel and gave inspirational talks that we felt were worth the trip by themselves. One was about the Gospel and Abraham, the other about Israel, The Holy Land and the Holy Sites. One seminar was about A Modern Day Prophet. We made friends with some of those we were in meetings with and had good get acquainted visits. It was exciting for us to watch out of our balcony as the ship made its way across the Mediterranean and occasionally see land and try to figure out what country we were passing. The food and entertainment still great.

March 31...Today we arrived in Haifa, Israel. We traveled inland on buses where the day was spent around the Sea of Galilee. We visited the Mt of Beatitudes and the valley where Jesus fed the multitudes with 5 loaves of bread and two fishes. We spent some time in Tabga and Capernaum then boarded a boat and crossed the Sea of Galilee. As we took that ride our guide told us about the many miracles Jesus performed in and around the Sea. On the other side near Gergesa we ate a meal with fish from the Sea of Galilee. We saw orchards of olive, citrus and pomgranite trees, and grape vinyards. The valley was green and fertile while the hills are very rocky.
Bob said now he knows why they stoned people there...rocks are a very handy weapon.
All of the buildings in the towns are constructed with rock walls. The bus came to Gergesa and took us back to Haifa and the Ship Poesia. During the night the ship traveled down to Ashdod, Israel.

April 1...This morning we departed on bus to travel to Jerusalem. From morning to evening we walked and traveled to many sites each pertinent to the days Jesus was there. We went to the walled Old Holy City were we saw the Dome of the Rock. It marks the spot were Solomon's temple was built, where Abraham came to offer Isaac his son as a sacrifice and where the temple was when Jesus established his church. The walls have been rebuilt 18 times around the old city as different invading groups have tried to destroy the Israelites. We saw the wailing wall but were told by the military that we couldn't stay there as the new Prime Minister was to be sworn into office and it was taking place today. We were ushered quickly around the buildings and off the premises. Surrounding the Dome of the Rock is a huge plaza with rock flooring. As we left Mt. Zion we walked through all sorts of little shops. Next we visited Gethsemane...there is a part of the area fenced off where the olive trees date to the time of Jesus. Some of the outer trees aren't so old and we were able to sit there, look into the place where Jesus knelt and think of His great suffering for us. Our group had a short meeting there in the garden and sang the song..."I stand all amazed at the love Jesus offers me. Confused at the grace that so fully he profers me. I tremble to know that for me He was crucified, that for me a sinner He suffered, He bled and died." It was a very spiritual experience!! We then visited Golgotha and walked down a trail to the Garden Tomb. While there we discussed the great day when He was resurrected and spent some time in that area of the gardens. We always had a tour guide from the country we visited and then our own guides who traveled with us who gave us information specific to our religion. One of the things that impressed us was as we visited Golgotha it was pointed out that while there were earthquakes, darkness, and turmoil here on earth at the time the Savior gave up His life for us, there was probably great excitement and jubilation
in the heavens as He completed the atonement. It was a beautiful day in Jerusalem and it was easy to picture it as a day similar to the day of His resurrection.

We were served a meal at the only Kibutz that serves meals to visitors and enjoyed the atmosphere of the city of Jerusalem. Nearly all of the buildings are constructed of this white stone and are uniquely beautiful. We learned the population of Israel is almost equally divided between Muslim and Jewish. The construction of the Jewish buildings are with pitched roofs and those of the Muslims are flat on top. That was an interesting little side note that our guide pointed out. She told us in the Jewish communities they still rely on a matchmaker when someone decides they want to marry. There are no activities or chances for the opposite sex to intermingle with each other, so they depend on a matchmaker to find someone complatible for them. Then they meet and discuss whether or not they have common interests. Their dates consist of them asking each other...Where do you want to live? How many children do you want to have?, etc. All of the discussion is pointed at whether or not they want to marry. If they decide they don't want to marry each other, they go back to the matchmaker again who tries to find someone else. The weddings are huge celebrations that carry a lot of tradition.

As we left the Kibutz, we traveled on the south side of the city and our guide pointed out Bethlehem over on a close by hill. We didn't get to visit there, but it looked much like many other villages we saw as we traveled from Ashdod to Jerusalem and then at night back to the ship.

We had some interesting encounters there in Jerusalem. Bob had a boy come up and push a small olive branch at him and want $1. for it. Bob bought it then wondered what he could possibly do with that little olive twig..just couldn't turn that cute little boy with the wistful expression away. We got a kick out of one man selling his wares crying..."Two for $5. or three for $10." One of our friends made the comment that she couldn't buy anything more...She said, "My husband says we are hemorraging money on this trip."

April 2...We traveled all day on the Mediterranean. We had seminars: Bruce Porter talked about the Beatitudes and the Higher Law, Alan McKay about scripture tools, and an overview of Ehpesus and Athens. We had classes from Richard and Kathy Hinckley Walker earlier. Each meeting was exceptional.

April 3...The ship docked at Ismir, Turkey. We spent the day at Ephesus where Paul taught the people there. That part of Turkey is very fertile and we saw many orchards of different varieties of fruit. We had a wonderful visit there. The ruins of Ephesus were amazing.

April 4...Today we toured Athens. We visited the first Olympic Stadium. We saw the statue of Harry S. Truman...they honor him because he was instrumental in helping them rebuild after the war. We visited their parliament building and watched the changing of the guard, much like our ceremony in Washington D.C. at the tomb of the unknown soldier. We visited the Acropolis and walked around the Parthenon. The hill there was completely marble and was very slippery to walk on, so they have covered the paths with some kind of asphalt to make the climb possible. We saw Mars Hill where Paul tried to tell the people of Athens about the "Unknown God." We were told that they didn't listen to Paul so he left Athens and went north to Corinth. Our guide said that is why there are two letters to the Corinthians and none in the Bible to the Athenians.

April 5...We were at sea again today so our group of 200 held a Sunday meeting. Our speakers talked about the symbols of ancient temples and the joy of temple service. We were updated on general conference taking place in Salt Lake City and told that we have a new member of the twelve...Neil L. Anderson.

April 6...We spent the day in Dubrovnik, Croatia. We visited the old walled city. We were impressed with the small islands and the inlets around the area. It is a beautiful city with an interesting history. Tonight on the ships top deck we saw a group singing and having a great time...We wished we could join in...but alas, we didn't know the language or the song. We have so enjoyed this trip. We felt each day that it was worth it if we just had the one day here. The cathedrals are impressive and every country has its beauty. Tonight we had a disembarking meeting...our trip is coming to an end.

April 7...This morning we checked out of the ship and into a Marriott hotel in Venice, Italy. Along with some friends, the Jacobsens, we toured Venice taking a water taxi up the main canal through town. We saw boats anchored up just as we would have our cars lined down the street parking on the side of their homes and businesses. It was a delight to be here and see this beautiful city.

April 8...We were at the Venice airport at 5am for our flight home. We flew from there to Frankfurt, Germany, to Philadelphia, PA, to Denver, CO then on to Salt Lake City, UT where we had parked our car. The next day we slept and tried to get back on schedule with our time zone. On April 10th we drove home to Toppenish, WA.

I never felt I had to walk where Jesus walked...or visit the Holy Land to know that He came to earth. I know now that I will never read the scriptures nor sing the hymns without a special feeling for having been there. It is indeed a sacred place. I'm so grateful that we had this opportunity and blessing. We loved the trip and wish each of you an opportunity to visit the Holy Land one day too. There were many other things I wanted to include in this newsletter...but it was becoming way to long, so I'll just hope that you have the same experience one day. Thanks for letting me share. With love, Maurine