Arrivals at Ben Gurion Airport, Tel Aviv
Day 1 Departure flight; Overnight
Fly from home airport to JFK, New York, to meet group. Fly together from JFK to TLV.
Stay 6 nights at Holy Land Hotel, Bethlehem; Dinner and breakfast daily at hotel.
Day 2, Arrive in Tel Aviv late afternoon; travel by bus to Bethlehem. Meet host from Wi’am and check in at Holy Land Hotel. Brief orientation, dinner at the hotel, get some rest!
Day 3, Worship at Christmas Lutheran Church in Bethlehem. Walk to Manger Square and eat lunch there. Tour Church of the Nativity, Shepherd’s Field, and the Herodion. Guest speaker and dinner at our hotel.
Day 4, Orientation at Wi’am Center about Wi’am’s work and the socio-economic-political situation, and learn about the separation wall and settlements. Tour Aida Refugee Camp and visit the Seraj Library and Al Rowwad Center there. Lunch at Wi’am. Visit the Tent of Nations outside Bethlehem; meet with Nassar family, tour the farm, and possibly help with olive tree planting.
Day 5, Travel to Hebron to see the effect of Israeli settlements in the Old City. Visit the Ibrahimi Mosque/Tomb of the Patriarchs. Walk through (and shop in) the souk. See traditional glass-blowing and ceramic factory in Hebron, and/or visit the last remaining kafiyah factory in the West Bank. Lunch at Christian Peacemaker Team office and meet with CPT volunteer. Visit the dramatic canyon of Wadi Qelt with a view of St. George’s Monastery. Descend below sea level, visit Qumran (site of Dead Sea Scrolls discovery), and swim in the Dead Sea.
Day 6, Visit Old City of Jerusalem with Palestinian Christian guide. Visit the Dome of the Rock and Al Aqsa Mosque if possible. Visit St. Anne’s Church and the pools of Bethesda; walk the Via Dolorosa. Stop at the Ecce Homo Convent (2nd Station of the Cross) to see the Roman cistern and street excavations below; visit the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. Enjoy free time in the Old City. Visit the Mt. of Olives, walk the Palm Sunday path to Dominus Flevit, Garden of Gethsemane, and Church of All Nations.
Day 7, Bus into Jerusalem to meet with Fr. Hosam Naoum at St. George’s Cathedral, and the UN Human Rights-watch organization, OCHA. Lunch in the Old City. Cross the Qalandia Checkpoint and enjoy lunch at a local shop. Visit Defense for Children International – Palestine. Return to Jerusalem to meet with Dalia Landau about The Open House.
Leave Bethlehem, Stay 1 night with Palestinian family in Zababdeh. Dinner and breakfast with host family.
Day 8, Check out of Holy Land Hotel. Tour the International Center of Bethlehem and Dar al Kalima Schools and Youth Empowerment Center. Meet with Rev. Mitri Raheb or Rana Khoury from Diyar Consortium, and with members of the girls and women’s soccer teams (sponsored in part by Pilgrims). Lunch at the Lutheran International Center. Say good- bye to Bethlehem and bus to Nablus to visit Jacob’s Well Church. Late afternoon arrive at St. George’s Church in Zababdeh. Meet home-stay families. Dinner, overnight, and breakfast hosted by local families.
Stay four nights in Ibillin. Dinner and Breakfast provided daily at the MEEI Guesthouse.
Meet with Abuna Elias Chacour some time during this stay.
Day 9, Breakfast with host families. Talk and local tour, Abuna Firas Khoury Diab, St. George’s Melkite Church, Zababdeh. Lunch at Sebastia with visit to John the Baptist sites and Roman Ruins. Visit the Church of Ten Lepers in Burqin and the Canaan Organic Olive Collective. Say good-bye to Usama, leave the West Bank at the Jalameh Checkpoint, bus to Ibillin. Settle into the Guesthouse and enjoy a welcome dinner at MEEI.
Day 10, Bus to Bir’am, Abuna Chacour’s childhood village. Worship in the Bir’am Church. Tour the destroyed village with a guide who is a Bir’am native. Lunch on own in Jish or Capernaum. Bus to the holy sites along the Sea of Galilee: Capernaum, Primacy of Peter, Mount of Beatitudes. Enjoy a boat ride on the Sea of Galilee in a small boat reminiscent of 1st century fishing boats. Dinner at MEEI.
Day 11, Visit Mar Elias high school for orientation to MEEI and visit English classes. Bus to Nazareth for lunch and historical programs at International Center for Mary. Visit Basilica of the Annunciation; walk through the souk to visit Al Tufula; meet with Nabila Espanioly, Al Tufula Director and Member of the Knesset. Dinner at MEEI
Day 12, Plant olive trees on Mar Elias grounds. Visit classes in Mariam Bawardi elementary or middle schools. Discussions and lunch with students and teachers. Bus to Sepphoris, site of Herod Antipas’s Galilean capital and likely place where Joseph and Jesus would have worked. Return to Ibillin, tour Mar Elias Campus, including Church of the Sermon on the Mount. Dinner, speaker, discussion, rest!
Day 13, Breakfast at Mar Elias, spend time together reflecting on what this tour has meant to each and how to begin sharing back home. Load the bus, visit Elijah holy site on Mt. Carmel and scenic overlook from Haifa. Lunch at Stella Maris. Drive to Caesarea to explore the Roman ruins and site from which Paul was sent to Rome. Enjoy our Last Supper at Samir’s Restaurant in Ramle. Head to the airport to begin security check-in.
Day 14, Fly from Tel Aviv (leaving just after midnight) to connecting airport and on home.