Med to Galilee Trek Nov 29th – Nov 30th   In November Amanda ‘volunteered’ Clint to accompany the embassy’s Marine Corps attaché on a ‘Mediterranean to Sea of Galilee’ trek.  It is roughly a 63-km route which starts at Ahziv on the coast and ends at Migdal on the shores of the Galilee.  The route gains and loses several thousand feet, and at one point trekkers can see both the Med and the Sea of Galilee from one of the peaks.  The kicker is that Darren, the marine, wanted to do the trek in two days!  Of course Clint had no choice but to agree—personal and Air Force self-respect were at stake.    We left Tel Aviv for the drive north to Ahziv at ~6:15am two days after Thanksgiving. We parked our vehicle at Ahziv, and our wives kindly picked it up and ferried it to Migdal (near Tiberias).  To make a long story short, we didn’t quite attain our goal but we had an awesome experience.  The first day we traveled mostly uphill, and quickly realized that because of the time of year we were going to run out of daylight before our bodies totally gave out.  The time had come to find a place short of our intended half-way mark to stop for the night.  While looking at the map in the late afternoon, however, I realized that we were very close to the Druze village of a friend I’d made from my classes.  Darren suggested that I give him a call…we ended up having dinner at his house, meeting a lot of people from the village, visiting an olive oil pressing operation, and sleeping at my friend’s house.  All this instead of eating a freeze-dried meal and sleeping in our tent outside!  We covered ~25km miles that day.   The second day we were on the trail before 7:00 am, assisted by a lot of Motrin and a good Druze breakfast.  My heels, though, had been chewed up the day before by my new hiking boots—not simply blisters, but ripped skin down to the tendon/bone—so most steps were an exercise in localized agony.  No doubt I slowed us down, but we still managed to knock out more than 30km in the daylight.  We threw in the towel at the intersection of the Israel Trail and Hwy 85, approximately 8km from our destination, after covering some brutally rough terrain in the afternoon.  We hitch-hiked to Vered ha-Galil, had a burger and a great-tasting ale and then caught a taxi to where our ladies had dropped off our mini-van.  Not too much shame in hammering out 55km in two days with mid-weight packs on our backs, but disappointing nonetheless.  Both of us had to work the next day, so there was little choice in the matter.   I slept like a log that night, but could hardly walk the next day!  It took two weeks for my feet to heal.  Photos below from left to right: beach at Ahziv, sunset view of the Galilee from our 'stopping point', Darren with Mt. Hermon in the hazy distance, our ladies (Amanda and Maggie) after their 'arduous' drive to Tiberias and back to drop off our car.

McDaniels Visit - Whirlwind Touring Oct 17th – Oct 24th   Uncle Larry and Aunt Kathy visited us for a week, and we crammed as much touring as is possible into a 7-day visit!  We visited Caesarea, the Bahai Shrine in Haifa, Nimrod Fortress in the Golan, Banias and Banias Falls, Nazareth, many sites around the Sea of Galilee, Mount Tabor, Ein Gedi, the Dead Sea, Masada, the Old City of Jerusalem, the City of David, Ein Kerem, and the Yad v’Shem Holocaust Museum on Mount Herzl.  They were here during the holiday of Succot (Feast of the Tabernacles), so they were able to see the culture in action!  I think floating in the Dead Sea, the guided tour in the tunnels under the Old City, and the slog through the waters of Hezekiah’s tunnel in the City of David were the highlights of the visit, but maybe Larry and Kathy would disagree!   Below I posted a few photos of places that have not yet appeared on the site because we had not yet visited them.  In short, Larry and Kathy were ground-breakers in a few places!  Clockwise from top left: Banias Falls (an amazingly well hidden waterfall in the Upper Galilee), Hezekiah's Tunnel (near the exit), an evening view of the Church of the Annunciation in Nazareth (taken from our hotel window), and Succot celebration at the Western Wall of the Temple Mount.  Below that is proof that Kathy and I mudded up at the Dead Sea Spa near Ein Gedi (not a new place, but a new experience).

Egypt - Cairo, Aswan, Luxor and the Nile Oct 5th – Oct 15th   Our travels in Egypt were much more complicated than our stay in Turkey.  Early on the 5th we caught a plane from Istanbul to Cairo, and then transferred from the airport to the Le Meridien Hotel in Giza. The hotel is a mere ½ kilometer from the entrance to the site of the Great Pyramids, and to our surprise our room’s windows opened to a panoramic view of the Pharaohs' monuments.  (The photo below left was taken from our room at the Le Meridien, and the one on the right was taken from our room on the 25th floor of the Cairo Hilton World Trade Center.  The air is highly polluted in both, which explains why our noses and throats burned for most of our time in Cairo.)  We pre-arranged almost all of our transfers to/from airports as well as guided tours (this I highly recommend), so a guide associated with the US Embassy met us for a tour of the pyramids on the morning of the 6th. (The photo above was taken during the tour.)         On the evening of the 6th we caught a flight from Cairo to Aswan.  The morning of the 7th we transferred to the Sonesta Sun Goddess cruise ship for the start of our four-day Nile trip.  That evening we set out on a brief trip around Elephant island on one of the small feluca sailboats...Hannah and Ethan were almost as much of an attraction as the sailing!  I think the rest of the cruise patrons thought we were crazy for inviting our little rascals along.  For their part, Hannah and Ethan were on their best behavior for most of the trip (all four days of it!).    The cruise included stops at the temples of Philae, Kom Ombo, Edfu, Karnak, the Valley of the Kings, Hatshepsut's Temple, and a few other interesting sites.  The food was great, the service excellent, and we were not even harassed a whole lot on the boat for buying trinkets or for tips.  I highly recommend the Sonesta line for a cruise of the Nile.  Below are a few photos that document the sites along the cruise route as well as the changing moods of our two children.          On the morning of the 11th we disembarked from the cruise boat, and stayed the night in Luxor.  Amanda and I went to the Karnak Temple sound and light show while Mom and Dad watched the kiddos.  The morning of the 12th we caught another flight back to Cairo and transferred to our hotel at the World Trade Center.  Steve Pirotta, an Olmsted Scholar at American University in Cairo, met us at the hotel and took us back to his place in Maadi for dinner.  If a picture could capture the craziness of traffic I would put it on the site, but the pictures just do no justice.  On the 13th we toured Coptic and Islamic Cairo with a guide, and on the 14th went to the famed Egypt Museum (no cameras allowed).  Below are a couple of photos from our last two days in Cairo.  All of us boarded planes at 2:30am on the 15th for the return home.

Istanbul Sept 30th – Oct 5th   Mom and Dad ZumBrunnen met us in Istanbul for a two-week trek that started in Istanbul Turkey, but also included Cairo, Aswan, Luxor, and a Nile cruise in Egypt.  Our 5-day stay in a vacation-by-owner apartment in Istanbul’s Galata district was our favorite part of the whole trip.  Istanbul was great in part because we felt very comfortable in the old Ottoman capital and in part because it is a beautiful city and Bill Parmentier (an Olmsted scholar studying there) took a day and a half of his time to show us around.  Among other things, we toured Topkapi Palace (the site of the Ottoman government for ~400 years), the Aya Sophia, the Blue Mosque, an impressive underground cistern, the central covered bazaar, and spent an afternoon in the archeological museums.  We took a cruise up the Bosphorus from Istanbul to the mouth of the Black Sea, toured Dolmabache Palace, took in a view of the city from the Galata tower, and even spent an evening out with the Parmentiers (courtesy of Mom and Dad babysitting all of our kids!)     The photo above was taken in the garden in front of the Aya Sophia, and the ones below it are of the Blue Mosque (taken from a window in the upper level of the Aya Sophia), of the Galata Tower (taken from a window in our apartment at night), of Hannah and Ethan with their buddies from the Boshporus cruise, of a crazily ornate sarcophagus from the Archeological Museum, and of the ZumBrunnens and Parmentiers on our night out.  In short, Istanbul is a cosmopolitan city with both a Western and an Eastern feel and one that is definitely well worth visiting!

Boeding Visit - Jerusalem Tour Sept 28th Brian Boeding, a good friend from pilot training and a Continental Airlines 777 FO, bid a flight to Tel Aviv for the end of September.  On his layover we made a quick run over to Jerusalem with a couple of his friends from school who had made the trip out as well.  We were pressed for time, but managed to see a fair amount of the city and squeeze in a tunnel tour under the Old City.

Trip to Poland June 17th – 24th   Poland was our first venture outside Israel aside from three trips to Jordan.  We went primarily to visit our friends and fellow Olmsted scholars the Taylors, but also to visit a few sites connected with the Holocaust and relax a bit in the mountains near Zakopane.   We flew into Warsaw where we rented a car for a drive to Kracow.  The roads in Poland are such that what should be a 2 ½ hour drive takes five hours, but we reached the Taylors uneventfully (thanks to a prearranged meeting with Andy in Kracow’s IKEA).  Andy and Kaycie showed us their city and introduced us to several of their friends at a play put on by Colesie’s school (very cool).  The next morning I made a trip to Auschwitz-Birkenau.  The site is nothing short of shocking.  The Taylors also drove up to the mountains with us where we enjoyed an alpine park together for the afternoon.  We spent the next couple of nights in Zakopane (see the view from our window).  The place is an outdoor enthusiast’s dream.  We then returned to Kracow for one more night and an excursion to the old Jewish quarter of the city.  Our final day/night was spent driving back to and then exploring a bit of Warsaw.    Thanks Taylor family for showing us a great time!  The photos below are of Kracow, the view from our window at the Zacopane guesthouse, and from mountain scenery in the area.  Zakopane is definitely a place worth visiting, as is all of Poland.

McKearins Visit! Tobin and Angie paid us a visit in early June.  We drug the kids along for the whole trip, so the McKearins got to see first hand the reality of traveling with two little kids, but we still managed to see an awful lot!  Caesarea, Haifa, Akko, Nazareth, Capernaum, the Sea of Galilee, Mount Tabor, Jerusalem, the Temple Mount, Ein Gedi, the Dead Sea, Masada and a little bit of Tel Aviv were all crammed into their 6-day stay.  The photo to the right is from the Crusader tunnels at Akko and the one below is from the fortress overlooking the bay.

2nd Trip to Jordan April 16th – 19th   We spent three more days in Jordan under the gracious care of the Jonsson family (Olmsted Class of ’06, Amman).  We drove to the ruins of the ancient city of Jerash to the north of Amman, took a taxi downtown to the citadel at the center of the Jordanian capital, and trekked to the South with the Jonssons to Wadi Rum in a Minivan-SUV formation.  The kids had a great time, the weather was beautiful, and the antiquities and great outdoors were quite enjoyable.  To the left is a picture of Hannah and Ethan getting their clothes filthy dirty in front of the one of the Roman temples at the ancient city of Jerash.  Below are pictures from the desert destination called Wadi Rum as well as a couple of photos from the citadel / amphitheater in downtown Amman.   We intend to hook up with the Jonsson family one more time when they visit our side of the Jordan River in May.  Hannah can’t wait because their 4-year-old daughter (Shea) has become one of her favorite little friends.    For the record, we thoroughly enjoyed our one night stay in a tent at Wadi Rum, even though Ethan didn't really feel like sleeping.  The photo of the camp called "Beit Ali" was taken from atop a rock hill that butts up next to the camp.  The sunset from up there was absolutely stunning, and the 4 x 4 trip and the camel rides were worth the sleep deprivation we (or I should say Amanda and Ethan) endured.  Check out Hannah and Faith on the camel in the Wadi!

Skiing in Israel Feb 12th – 14th   After the Sea of Galilee we headed up further North to stay in the town of Neve Ativ.  This little village was built in the image of a Swiss ski town, and as such it is a unique place to stay in Israel.  Since it is only seven miles from the Ski Resort of Mount Hermon, Amanda and I took advantage of Sue’s presence and went skiing for one day on the mountain while she watched the munchkins.  Then we all did a little sledding.   You will note something in the photo below that you may never see at any other ski resort in the world--a skier equipped with an automatic rifle.  Since the resort is very close to the IDF's strategic outpost at the summit of the mountain, there are a lot of soldiers who decide to get in a little time on the slopes.  In the photo on the right you can even see flakes of snow (or rather hail-like pellets) falling as we struggled with the kids for a family photo.

Vered HaGalil in the Galilee Feb 10th -12th     Grandma Sue arrived from Mississippi on Sunday the 10th, and we drove directly to the Sea of Galilee to stay at a Dude-Ranch style resort called Vered HaGalil (The Rose of the Galilee).  The cabin we stayed in had a panoramic view of the Kinneret (what Israelis call the Sea), more than enough room for three adults plus two children, and an outdoor Jacuzzi bathtub from which to soak up the view.  Hannah was able to ride a horse. Amanda and Grandma Sue toured Capernaum (Kfar Nahum), and drove around the entire lake.          The below left photo is of the remains of the Synagogue at Capernaum, and the one one the right is of a happy Hannah on the horse!                                The photos below are of an amazing cactus located at the entrance to the Ranch Vered Hagalil and the exterior of our quite comfortable cabin.  We also visited a museum that houses the remains of a 2000-year-old boat excavated from the floor of the Sea of Galilee.  Amateur Kibbutz archeologists discovered the artifact in the lake’s silt during the drought year of 1986, and professionals spent 9 years painstakingly completing a process that preserves what remains.

Sde Boker in the Negev Feb 7th – 9th   We drove south of the city of Beer Sheva to participate in the retreat of the Jerusalem congregation we have been attending (Ahavat Yeshua) for the past few weeks.  We stayed at Kibbutz Sde Boker in the Negev Desert, which was the 1950s, 60s, and 70s favorite of David Ben Gurion.  He and his wife are both buried in the gardens there.  The retreat and the desert air were refreshing, and the gathering provided ample opportunity for us to practice our Hebrew as all the music, meetings and even the walking tour of the Valley of Zin were conducted in Hebrew.  Once again we found the accommodations at Kibbutz hotels to be quite comfortable for a small family.   The photos speak for themselves…the desert is desolate yet beautiful.  Ben Gurion loved this Kibbutz because he thought it symbolized the Israeli people’s dedication to renewing the land.  He likened each tree, each produce yielding field to families trying to build a new life in the land.    The Kibbutz’s proximity to the Egyptian border was somewhat worrisome, considering the mess in Gaza at the time.  Despite this potential threat, we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves.