Its been a little 2 weeks since I returned to the good ol US of A and a week since returning to home sweet home Seattle. Since I got sick as soon as I landed in Seattle, I have had some quality bonding time with my house and some time to contemplate the past 8 months. The first thing I have realized since being home is I have been so, so blessed to have been given this oppurtonity to explore the world. As much as I tried to appreciate every moment and soak in all that we were experiencing, we did, saw, met so many things, people, cultures, foods, challenges, etc...I think it was impossible. Being home, being still, surronded by loved ones, familiarity, I continue to appreciate the experiences more and more each day.
I am so thankful to all the people that befriended us although we were strangers, took us in as family, fed us, gave us directions, made us laugh, or in any other way enriched our trip. God blessed us greatly with the people we encountered along the way and our trip would not have been the same without friends met on the road...John, Sam, Louise, Claudia, Olivia, Mattias, Craig, Nick, Charlotte, Brad, Simon, Eric, Kasin, Michael, Nanda, Chris, Rafi, Tino, Judd, Jess, Katie, Boris and the Solvian group, Louis, Rachels roommates, Ken, Dino, Ben, Carl, Grant, Luke, Susie, Talita, Mel, Rick and friends, John and Brendan, Ben, Jeremy and Jen, Dave and Sam, Sam, Jennifer, G and Sara, the wedding party boys, Ladislas, Janet, Ben and Katie, Medo, the south African group, Mike, Mai, Julian, Ismet, Chris...just to name a few off the top of my head.
Traveling was exciting, rewarding, challenging, frustrating, and amazing! Above all else, I am so grateful for Toriann, her friendship, faithfulness, bravery, sense of direction, ability to laugh, have 'what to do with my life' talks, and most of all, her ability to dance the night away! We literally spent 24/7 together for almost 8 months and are better friends for it. She taught me so much and there is noone else I would rather have as a travel partner. Thank you T for being amazing and inspiring me to leave the norm and have a small adventure!! I love you so much!
The top quesiton I get at home now is 'what was your favorite experience...if you could pick one?' Well, its impossible to pick one, but sorting through my 1000s of photos I have thought of a lot of little favorites...
Favorite...
breakfast...Tofu omelette in Guatemala
food overall...India, everywhere!
hostel....Paradiso in Nelson, NZ and Big Apple in Istanbul, Turkey
hostel group...Big Apple
boat trip...Pirate ship in Galagagos
dive instructor...Vikas in the Andaman Islands
Christmas day experience...talking on skype to friends and family!
hike...Inca trail to Machu Piccu
monkey...Billy in Panama
sloth...Tember in Panama :)
bed...the bed in Tinos house in Peru!!
randomness...frog concert in Ecuador
surprise...meeting Luke!
commute...walking to the Mother Theresa house at 6 am in Kolkata
Random act of kindness...some guy rescuing my shoe from a river bed after stepping in a hole in the bridge
heart check moment...Mother Theresa house volunteering, playing with the kids in Panama City at Rachels work
wine...New Zealand whites!
new skills...scuba diving, driving on the left side of the road, driving mopeds (ok Toriann only really gets that one!)
and of course....
Least Favorite, but often memoriable...
hike...Picaya Volcano in Guatemala
flight...Buenos Aires to Auckland...14 hours, one movie, one meal???
bug spray...'Jungle Juice' from El Valle, Panama...containing over 1000 ingrediants, but really just makes the dead bugs stick to your legs!
bed...cardboard mattresses all over India or having ants in the bed in the Andamans
bathroom...maybe Lukes in London after getting stuck in it for an hour while home alone, or any of the bathrooms on the trains in India
bus ride..."VIP" overnight bus from Vang Vieng to Luang Probang...we so got ripped off!, rode for 14 hours with 1/2 a seat, a box at my feet and a tire next to me.
I could go on, but those are just a few of the highlights I can think of right now...T, you can add to them!!
Thank you to our families and friends that supported us from afar. Thank you for being excited for us, holding in your anxieties, and sharing our stories! We could not have done it without you guys, you are the BEST!
So, as Toriann continues on with her travels (currently with Alison), I am at home, going back to my old job at Harborview, re connecting with friends, learning how to have a long distance relationship from home, getting back into shape, and figuring out what is the next step for me in life. Its more overwhelming and scary than anything we ever encountered traveling, but I know that one day at a time I will find my way.
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Wednesday, April 1, 2009
Cappadoica and Ephesus
After a sad good bye to Heather, Toriann and I were off on our first adventure together to the city of Goreme in the Cappadocia region. This was particularly exciting for me because it meant leaving the Continent of Europe and going to Asia, a Continent I had not yet traveled to! We arrived in Goreme in the morning to be greeted with cold and rainy weather, which neither of us was entirely prepared for. Feeling ambitious and eager to see the sights, we decided to join a tour group right away! We had a very knowledgeable and entertaining tour guy lead us around the Cappadocia region, which was an astonishing sight, and had us continually saying "this is incredible." The Cappadocia region is made up of soft volcanic rock that had been sculpted into pillars, columns and amazing shapes by years of water and erosion. The pliable rock was then further shaped by humans over the years, resulting in stunning caves and underground cities. These underground cities were used first by Greek and Armenian Christians hermits in the 4th century, making it a safe place to hide. Even after the region of Cappadocia was conquered by the Muslims in the 11th century, the Christians were still left mostly undisturbed. One of the remarkable aspects of the underground cities were just how large they were. Even more, they were all built by the inhabitants themselves, not by slaves, which was fairly unheard of for this time period. The underground cities consisted of tunnels, living quarters for humans and animals, wine cellars, bakeries, and ventilation shafts. Not only does the region of Cappadocia have underground cities, but also whole cities were built above ground as well, including the Valley of Ihlara, which was used by the Byzantine monks 1000 years ago. The Valley has dozens of Chapels and Churches carved into the rocks, which the locals call "fairy chimneys," because they look like chimneys. After our all day tour in the cold and rain and rumors of snow the next day we quickly decided we had seen the main sights of the region and it was time to go to Selcuk (Ephesus).
After two nights of overnight buses, and Toriann feeling a bit under the weather, we arrived in Selcuk and spent the morning sleeping. After a good rest we were excited to explore the sunny town. It was a small, but very lively town. The weekend we were there happened to be the weekend of local elections in Turkey. On Saturday there were parades and rallies all throughout the town in support of this event. Through talking with the locals we found out that just about everyone who has an opportunity to vote takes advantage of their right and does so. We found this very admirable, considering it was only local elections, and not even a national election. This is such a contrast to low voter turnout in the US, especially for local elections.
Seeing the ruins of Ephesus were again an incredible sight, it gave us a glimpse of what it would have been like in the Roman times. Ancient Ephesus began being constructed as early as 3BC and continued to expand through the 6th century AD. The ancient town of Ephesus consisted of gymnasiums, churches, libraries, temples, gates, extensive streets, and a great theatre that could hold up to 25,000 people. Ephesus also holds many monuments dedicated to ancient gods and goddess, kings, and the 4 Apostles. We spent an afternoon walking around this eye stricking historical sight and even enjoyed a picnic lunch in the great theater. After our weekend in Selcuk it was time to head back to Istanbul to spend a few more days seeing the city and then off to Greece!
After two nights of overnight buses, and Toriann feeling a bit under the weather, we arrived in Selcuk and spent the morning sleeping. After a good rest we were excited to explore the sunny town. It was a small, but very lively town. The weekend we were there happened to be the weekend of local elections in Turkey. On Saturday there were parades and rallies all throughout the town in support of this event. Through talking with the locals we found out that just about everyone who has an opportunity to vote takes advantage of their right and does so. We found this very admirable, considering it was only local elections, and not even a national election. This is such a contrast to low voter turnout in the US, especially for local elections.
Seeing the ruins of Ephesus were again an incredible sight, it gave us a glimpse of what it would have been like in the Roman times. Ancient Ephesus began being constructed as early as 3BC and continued to expand through the 6th century AD. The ancient town of Ephesus consisted of gymnasiums, churches, libraries, temples, gates, extensive streets, and a great theatre that could hold up to 25,000 people. Ephesus also holds many monuments dedicated to ancient gods and goddess, kings, and the 4 Apostles. We spent an afternoon walking around this eye stricking historical sight and even enjoyed a picnic lunch in the great theater. After our weekend in Selcuk it was time to head back to Istanbul to spend a few more days seeing the city and then off to Greece!
Istanbul
Well the time has come and it is so hard to believe since it feels like it was just two or three months ago when Heather and I were packing our belongings and saying good bye to friends and family. These past eight months have been amazing and it is sad to have to say good bye to Heather because the idea of her leaving is like having one of my limbs cut off. From the moment we left on August 9t to present day we have been by each others side and have witnessed the best and the worst yet still remain each others best traveling partner and friend. For our farewell last week we spent our time exploring Istanbul, Turkey. Heather and I had about five days together before the arrival of our good friend Alison. Instead of our usual quick sightseeing visits and our country hopping we felt it best to settle in to our last continent, Europe, together and just relax. Our last week together turned out to be one of the best weeks of our whole trip; we couldn’t have planned it better. Free from the stress of moving and traveling we settled into our hostel, ended up establishing a great group of friends and simply just hung out as if we were at home. With the aniticpation of Alison's arrivla Heather and I explored the city by foot to get our groundings and then once Alison came we visited Istanbuls monumental sights.
Istanbul is massive and there is a ton to see and do. It happens to be the only city that sits in two continents, Europe and Asia. Most of our time was spent in Sultanhmet which sits on the Europe side and is where most of Istanbul’s major sites are. During our time here we visited Topkapi Palace where the Ottoman sultans lived till the 19th century. Down the cobble stone street from the palace is Istanbul Archaeology Museum which holds a wide collection of Greek and Roman statuary. We marveled at the Aya Sofya for it is one of the world’s greatest architectural achievements. When translated it means "church of holy wisdom" and was originally built to be a church but was later converted to a mosque when the Ottomans concurred the Byzantine empire. Across from the Aya Sofia is the Blue Mosque which ironically is much more striking. It looks like a palace you would see in a Disney movie with its six slender minarets and several domes. Nearby is the Basilica Cistern which was built during the Byzantine to hold water underground. To escape from Europe we took a boat cruise down the Bosphorus river and crossed over the Asia side. The cruise is such a great way to see Istanbul from a panoramic perspective, plus you can see several monumental sights and take pictures of them. With Turkey being Heathers last country before returning home, shopping was a must. We strolled through the grand bazaar as well as the spice market and picked up some scarves, backgammon boards, spices and Turkish delights. With most of the sights visited and shopping completed we had to treat ourselves to a Turkish bath. Turkey is known for their hamams and after eight months of traveling a good scrub was necessary. So the three of us spent an evening at a hamam and had ourselves scrubbed down, massaged and splashed with warm water, it was grand.
Istanbul is massive and there is a ton to see and do. It happens to be the only city that sits in two continents, Europe and Asia. Most of our time was spent in Sultanhmet which sits on the Europe side and is where most of Istanbul’s major sites are. During our time here we visited Topkapi Palace where the Ottoman sultans lived till the 19th century. Down the cobble stone street from the palace is Istanbul Archaeology Museum which holds a wide collection of Greek and Roman statuary. We marveled at the Aya Sofya for it is one of the world’s greatest architectural achievements. When translated it means "church of holy wisdom" and was originally built to be a church but was later converted to a mosque when the Ottomans concurred the Byzantine empire. Across from the Aya Sofia is the Blue Mosque which ironically is much more striking. It looks like a palace you would see in a Disney movie with its six slender minarets and several domes. Nearby is the Basilica Cistern which was built during the Byzantine to hold water underground. To escape from Europe we took a boat cruise down the Bosphorus river and crossed over the Asia side. The cruise is such a great way to see Istanbul from a panoramic perspective, plus you can see several monumental sights and take pictures of them. With Turkey being Heathers last country before returning home, shopping was a must. We strolled through the grand bazaar as well as the spice market and picked up some scarves, backgammon boards, spices and Turkish delights. With most of the sights visited and shopping completed we had to treat ourselves to a Turkish bath. Turkey is known for their hamams and after eight months of traveling a good scrub was necessary. So the three of us spent an evening at a hamam and had ourselves scrubbed down, massaged and splashed with warm water, it was grand.
Saturday, March 21, 2009
Rose Stone City of Petra
With just a few days to see Jordan, we had to stop and see the beautiful rose stone city of Petra. Petra was built in the 3rd century BC by the Nabataeans. The Nabataeans are one of the most gifted people in history, who carved palaces, temples, tombs and stables from the sand stone cliffs. The Nabataeans were an ancient Arab tribes who originally came from the Arabian Peninsula and are known to be the most open tribal group to outside cultural influences. During our visit we were able to discern the influences of the Graeco-Roman, Egyptian, Mesopotamian and local styles on each of the carved monuments. Petra, however, was gradually abandoned, and after the 14th century it was completely disserted until a Swiss traveler named Johann Ludwig Burckhardt rediscovered it in 1812. Disguised as a Bedouin nomad, he snuck into the land of Petra to discover the eighth ancient wonder of the world.
It is said that one could spend up to a week walking through Petra, but with our time crunch we only spent two days sightseeing Petra. But we made the most of our two days. We had traveled to Jordan with our friend Mike (North Carolina) whom we had met in Jerusalem. Since he had a flight to catch out if Amman at 2am and ours was at 4am on the same day, we all decided to travel together to Petra and then to Amman.
Our first day we managed to spend almost 12 hours absorbing the sights of Petra. You enter into Petra through a long (1200 mts), narrow gorge of stunningly beautiful cliffs. The gorge is filled with typical Petraen features, as it was once used as the main bazaar of Petra. It is a great introduction of what is to come. At the end of the gorge, you are greeted by the famous Al-Khazheh, the Treasury of Petra. It is dazzling, with such unique architecture, immense size and the natural surrounding beauty. The treasury was used in one of the Indiana Jones film, and standing in front of it, you feel like Indiana is going to jump out of the doorway. From the treasury, we climbed up the cliffs to get a birds eye view and were led by a Bedouin nomad to the high place of sacrifice. We would have never found it on our own, but he led us up a hard, but enjoyable climb. The view was breathtaking-immense desert, the Roman Theater, and the royal tombs sitting in front, carved into the massive sides of the mountains. Descending down the mountain, we stopped at multiple tombs, the colonnaded street, and the temple of the winged lion. These were all great, but they just happened to be on the way to the second most famous site of Petra-the monastery. Up 800 stairs cut into the side of the Ad-Deir Mountain was exhausting after being at Petra all day, but entirely worth it! The monastery, Ad-dier is also huge in size and equally as beautiful as the treasury. The design is a bit simpler, but the architecture and the fact that is built into the cliffs is simply astounding in itself. They are not sure whether it was a tomb or temple, or both, but either way the monastery served as a processional route at the end of the ancient pilgrimage route. During Byzantine times, the monastery was converted and used a church.
Petra had been recommended to us from all over the world, and we are glad that we made the stop in Jordan to see it. It was equally or better than the site in Egypt, and much more off the beaten track. You can make a day trip from Israel or Egypt to see Petra, but it is such a long trip and your time is so limited to see it, so we would definitely recommend if you are that close, take the time to come spend at least a whole day. It is worth it! Our second day, since we had seen the most famous sites already, we took it easy and were able to relax and go back to the places we liked the most.
Our stay in Jordan was short. Other than Petra, we only saw the rest of the country in the car. The desert of Wadi Rum was beautiful though, and the capital city of Amman was very modern and diverse. The Jordanian people were friendly, if not overly anxious about what you thought about them and their business. The men, similar to Egypt and India, seemed to be everywhere and always offering advice and compliments, whether it was wanted or not. I decided a long time ago that I miss being with women. It is so much harder to connect with women, one to find them, and two to get them to open up to a foreigner. The man working at our hotel was constantly telling us to 'smile!, it doesn’t cost anything (a line we have heard often and really annoys us). Its only American women that don’t smile' He was not really interested in having a discussion about the culture differences between Americans and Jordanians, but I would have loved to walk down the street with him and try to find a Jordanian women that was smiling.
It is said that one could spend up to a week walking through Petra, but with our time crunch we only spent two days sightseeing Petra. But we made the most of our two days. We had traveled to Jordan with our friend Mike (North Carolina) whom we had met in Jerusalem. Since he had a flight to catch out if Amman at 2am and ours was at 4am on the same day, we all decided to travel together to Petra and then to Amman.
Our first day we managed to spend almost 12 hours absorbing the sights of Petra. You enter into Petra through a long (1200 mts), narrow gorge of stunningly beautiful cliffs. The gorge is filled with typical Petraen features, as it was once used as the main bazaar of Petra. It is a great introduction of what is to come. At the end of the gorge, you are greeted by the famous Al-Khazheh, the Treasury of Petra. It is dazzling, with such unique architecture, immense size and the natural surrounding beauty. The treasury was used in one of the Indiana Jones film, and standing in front of it, you feel like Indiana is going to jump out of the doorway. From the treasury, we climbed up the cliffs to get a birds eye view and were led by a Bedouin nomad to the high place of sacrifice. We would have never found it on our own, but he led us up a hard, but enjoyable climb. The view was breathtaking-immense desert, the Roman Theater, and the royal tombs sitting in front, carved into the massive sides of the mountains. Descending down the mountain, we stopped at multiple tombs, the colonnaded street, and the temple of the winged lion. These were all great, but they just happened to be on the way to the second most famous site of Petra-the monastery. Up 800 stairs cut into the side of the Ad-Deir Mountain was exhausting after being at Petra all day, but entirely worth it! The monastery, Ad-dier is also huge in size and equally as beautiful as the treasury. The design is a bit simpler, but the architecture and the fact that is built into the cliffs is simply astounding in itself. They are not sure whether it was a tomb or temple, or both, but either way the monastery served as a processional route at the end of the ancient pilgrimage route. During Byzantine times, the monastery was converted and used a church.
Petra had been recommended to us from all over the world, and we are glad that we made the stop in Jordan to see it. It was equally or better than the site in Egypt, and much more off the beaten track. You can make a day trip from Israel or Egypt to see Petra, but it is such a long trip and your time is so limited to see it, so we would definitely recommend if you are that close, take the time to come spend at least a whole day. It is worth it! Our second day, since we had seen the most famous sites already, we took it easy and were able to relax and go back to the places we liked the most.
Our stay in Jordan was short. Other than Petra, we only saw the rest of the country in the car. The desert of Wadi Rum was beautiful though, and the capital city of Amman was very modern and diverse. The Jordanian people were friendly, if not overly anxious about what you thought about them and their business. The men, similar to Egypt and India, seemed to be everywhere and always offering advice and compliments, whether it was wanted or not. I decided a long time ago that I miss being with women. It is so much harder to connect with women, one to find them, and two to get them to open up to a foreigner. The man working at our hotel was constantly telling us to 'smile!, it doesn’t cost anything (a line we have heard often and really annoys us). Its only American women that don’t smile' He was not really interested in having a discussion about the culture differences between Americans and Jordanians, but I would have loved to walk down the street with him and try to find a Jordanian women that was smiling.
Thursday, March 19, 2009
Come as a guest, leave as a friend!
Toriann and I have learned over and over again that, even if we plan out our next move, it rarely plays out how we plan. We had planned to skip Israel for lack of time, but after learning more about the border crossings and the ferry to Jordan (which is notoriously unreliable), we decided a stop in Jerusalem was definitely doable. And although it was a short stop, we are so glad that we went.
Jerusalem is an amazing city, filled with the history, holiness, beauty and contradictions. Considered to be full of the most holy places for Jews, Muslims and Christians, Jerusalem holds so much to see and experience. The walls of old Jerusalem surround the old city, which is divided into the Armenian, Jewish, Christian, and Muslim quarters. We stayed in the Armenian quarter at Petra hostel. The hostel was average, but our stay there was awesome due to the 50 or so South Africans camping on the roof. The group is starting out a year of traveling in which they volunteer and work wherever they are needed all over the world. The people were some of the kindest we have met on the road and they took us in as one of their own, inviting us to singing sessions on the street, ice cream and coffee runs, and hanging out on the roof. We were so blessed by them and wish them the best on their year long adventure!
Our first day in Jerusalem, we left the old city and ventured into Bethlehem. Gong to Bethlehem requires crossing through the security fence that divides Israel and the Palestinian territory. The wall was originally built to stop Palestinian weapons smugglers and suicide bombers but has cut through farm lands and neighborhoods and drastically changed life for those that live in the vicinity. The mood of the people in Bethlehem was felt immediately after crossing the fence. Our cab driver shared a bit about the constraints of living as a Palestine in Bethlehem and asked desperately to take us to the Dead Sea because the only way he could go was to bring tourists in his cab. He otherwise was not allowed and could not afford to leave the West Bank.
Anyway, while in Bethlehem we visited the Shepherd’s fields where the Shepherd’s were the first to receive the good news. We then went to where Jesus was raised for the first two years of his life before finishing at the Church of the Nativity, where it is believed that Jesus was born. After crossing back over the ´fence´ we headed across town to the immense Holocaust museum Yad Vashem in the New City. The museum was so well down and full of the heart breaking stories of the Holocaust. I was so struck with how long things were turning bad before the world started noticing and acting to stop it. The history, both ancient and recent of Israel is so complicated, full of hurt, conflict, and turmoil. It was a lot to take in, but the museum was well worth the 3 hours we spent there.
Our next day in Jerusalem we did a walking tour through the walls of the Old City. The Old City has 4 quarters, Armenian, Christian, Jewish and Muslim. Within the walls are the Haram ash-Sharıff (the Temple Mount where the Arc of the Covenant was supposedly kept), the Western ´wailing´ wall- the only remnants of Judaism’s holiest shrine, Via Dolorosa (the way of the cross), the Church of the Holy Sepulcre (where Catholics, Greek Orthodox and Coptic Christians believe Jesus was crucified) and so many other religious and historical sites. It is impossible to name them all, even to see them all.
We saw the Old City on Friday, which is the beginning of the Jewish Sabbath. In the evening we headed down to the Western Wall to see the Hasidic Jews do their prayers. It was an amazing sight, like nothing I have ever seen before. The people gather around the wall, chanting their prayers, leaning towards the wall-men on one side and women on the other. The Jewish day of rest, called Shabbat, is from Friday afternoon until sunset on Saturday. The city, other than the Christian and Muslim quarters of the Old City, shuts down-no restaurants, public transportation, shops, etc. So although we were planning to leave Saturday, the Shabbat made that impossible and we stayed for another day in Jerusalem.
Saturday we walked up to the Mount of Olives, where Jesus took on the sin of the world in the Garden of Gethsemane, and the Church of All Nations stands. The Mount of Olives is just outside the walls of the Old City and if you walk up the mountain side, the view of the city is stunning. The next stop was the Garden Tomb, also just outside the Old City. The Garden tomb is the place where Protestants believe the crucifixion and resurrection occurred. After seeing those last two spots, we embraced the day of rest and had a nap before heading to a Messianic Jewish church service. The service was very contemporary, not at all what we were expecting, but all the same it was amazing. There was a definite spirit of freedom that seemed to be present and I loved worshipping in Hebrew. The congregation was so mixed and filled with people from all over the world that had come to Israel for some reason or another.
Our time in Israel was fascinating, challenging-spiritually, politically, emotionally, and also rewarding. I think we met some of the best people in Jerusalem that we have met on the road so far as well as seeing some of the significant sites of Christianity. We have traveled through the lands of the origins of Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam, and now Christianity.
Jerusalem is an amazing city, filled with the history, holiness, beauty and contradictions. Considered to be full of the most holy places for Jews, Muslims and Christians, Jerusalem holds so much to see and experience. The walls of old Jerusalem surround the old city, which is divided into the Armenian, Jewish, Christian, and Muslim quarters. We stayed in the Armenian quarter at Petra hostel. The hostel was average, but our stay there was awesome due to the 50 or so South Africans camping on the roof. The group is starting out a year of traveling in which they volunteer and work wherever they are needed all over the world. The people were some of the kindest we have met on the road and they took us in as one of their own, inviting us to singing sessions on the street, ice cream and coffee runs, and hanging out on the roof. We were so blessed by them and wish them the best on their year long adventure!
Our first day in Jerusalem, we left the old city and ventured into Bethlehem. Gong to Bethlehem requires crossing through the security fence that divides Israel and the Palestinian territory. The wall was originally built to stop Palestinian weapons smugglers and suicide bombers but has cut through farm lands and neighborhoods and drastically changed life for those that live in the vicinity. The mood of the people in Bethlehem was felt immediately after crossing the fence. Our cab driver shared a bit about the constraints of living as a Palestine in Bethlehem and asked desperately to take us to the Dead Sea because the only way he could go was to bring tourists in his cab. He otherwise was not allowed and could not afford to leave the West Bank.
Anyway, while in Bethlehem we visited the Shepherd’s fields where the Shepherd’s were the first to receive the good news. We then went to where Jesus was raised for the first two years of his life before finishing at the Church of the Nativity, where it is believed that Jesus was born. After crossing back over the ´fence´ we headed across town to the immense Holocaust museum Yad Vashem in the New City. The museum was so well down and full of the heart breaking stories of the Holocaust. I was so struck with how long things were turning bad before the world started noticing and acting to stop it. The history, both ancient and recent of Israel is so complicated, full of hurt, conflict, and turmoil. It was a lot to take in, but the museum was well worth the 3 hours we spent there.
Our next day in Jerusalem we did a walking tour through the walls of the Old City. The Old City has 4 quarters, Armenian, Christian, Jewish and Muslim. Within the walls are the Haram ash-Sharıff (the Temple Mount where the Arc of the Covenant was supposedly kept), the Western ´wailing´ wall- the only remnants of Judaism’s holiest shrine, Via Dolorosa (the way of the cross), the Church of the Holy Sepulcre (where Catholics, Greek Orthodox and Coptic Christians believe Jesus was crucified) and so many other religious and historical sites. It is impossible to name them all, even to see them all.
We saw the Old City on Friday, which is the beginning of the Jewish Sabbath. In the evening we headed down to the Western Wall to see the Hasidic Jews do their prayers. It was an amazing sight, like nothing I have ever seen before. The people gather around the wall, chanting their prayers, leaning towards the wall-men on one side and women on the other. The Jewish day of rest, called Shabbat, is from Friday afternoon until sunset on Saturday. The city, other than the Christian and Muslim quarters of the Old City, shuts down-no restaurants, public transportation, shops, etc. So although we were planning to leave Saturday, the Shabbat made that impossible and we stayed for another day in Jerusalem.
Saturday we walked up to the Mount of Olives, where Jesus took on the sin of the world in the Garden of Gethsemane, and the Church of All Nations stands. The Mount of Olives is just outside the walls of the Old City and if you walk up the mountain side, the view of the city is stunning. The next stop was the Garden Tomb, also just outside the Old City. The Garden tomb is the place where Protestants believe the crucifixion and resurrection occurred. After seeing those last two spots, we embraced the day of rest and had a nap before heading to a Messianic Jewish church service. The service was very contemporary, not at all what we were expecting, but all the same it was amazing. There was a definite spirit of freedom that seemed to be present and I loved worshipping in Hebrew. The congregation was so mixed and filled with people from all over the world that had come to Israel for some reason or another.
Our time in Israel was fascinating, challenging-spiritually, politically, emotionally, and also rewarding. I think we met some of the best people in Jerusalem that we have met on the road so far as well as seeing some of the significant sites of Christianity. We have traveled through the lands of the origins of Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam, and now Christianity.
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Dahab and the Red Sea
A brake was much needed after all the temples and street hassling. We were told by many people how great Dahab is for its diving and calm atmosphere, so we had long decided to end our Egypt travels in Dahab(located on the Sınaı pennısula). Expecting to only stay 2 or 3 days max we have ended up staying about 5 days. Since being here we have spent our days diving, relaxing at the restaurant lawn chairs, and hanging out with friends.
We did three diving trips-lighthouse, canyon and blue hole. Lighthouse is a site super close to our hostel and to be honest was pretty average for coral and fish. We were told to dive there because it’s a good and easy site to visit plus it’s a way for the dive masters to check our weights since there is so much salt in the red sea your buoyancy is higher. Although we were pretty unimpressed, it was still a fun dive and were lookıng foward to dıvıng at the other, more famous dıve sıtes.
The next day we drove about 15 minutes along the coast to canyon and blue hole. In the morning we dived at canyon which is a long narrow canyon ranging in depth from 18-50m. Most of the coral is dead because of all the tourism, but at the end of the dive we went down into this crack where we saw schools of fish. The canyon was impressive but would have been amazing to see it filled with coral, what a site that would have been. After a lunch break we suited up and walked into blue hole. This dive site is one of Dahab most famous site because of how incredibly blue the water is and how deep it goes, 160m. We started at the blue hole and continued along the cliff to the bells. Again, most of the coral is dead but the site and layout of the cliff is different then other dives.
Just before leaving Egypt, we spent our second to last night hiking up Mt. Sinai which stands 2285m above sea level. We left our hostel at about 10pm and drove two hours to the bottom of Mt. Sinai where we were greeted by a local guide. There are two paths which you can choose from to walk up Mt. Sinai. Our guide took us up Camels Path which is the longer route but much easier to walk in the night time. Although it is night time and very dark we were just two days short of the full moon so it was surprisingly bright out. The hike up takes about 2 hours but with several hours to kill before the sun rises we stopped at the little tea shops along the way and warmed our body’s in the warm huts. Just before arriving to the top, the camel’s path joined up with the Steps of Repentance and we had to walk up about 700 steps before arriving to the top. Once we made it to the top, Heather and I pulled out our sleeping bags and rented a wool blanket to keep ourselves warm. Cuddling trying to keep ourselves warm and out of the wind we rested for about at an hour and half till the sunrise. This hour and half was miserable, we were freezing and our toes were so cold they hurt to move. We started to ask ourselves why we choose to hike Mt. Sinai in the middle of the night, but once the sun started to rise we were so thankful we did. The sky was clear and the sunrise was brilliant, one of the best ones we have seen so far. It was awesome to ımagıne Moses receıvıng the 10 commandments at the top of thıs beautıful mountaın. After we greeted the sun, we gathered with the rest of the group and decided to take the Steps of Repentance down. This path is a bit shorter but tougher on the legs because there are 3750 steps down. These steps were built by a single monk in order to fulfill his pledge of penitence.
Once we arrived at the bottom we all piled back in the van and headed back to Dahab were I gather most everyone like us spent the day sleeping and recovering from our night hike. Although we only had a day or so left we simply relaxed, packed and prepared ourselves for our long travel day to Jerusalem, Israel.
We did three diving trips-lighthouse, canyon and blue hole. Lighthouse is a site super close to our hostel and to be honest was pretty average for coral and fish. We were told to dive there because it’s a good and easy site to visit plus it’s a way for the dive masters to check our weights since there is so much salt in the red sea your buoyancy is higher. Although we were pretty unimpressed, it was still a fun dive and were lookıng foward to dıvıng at the other, more famous dıve sıtes.
The next day we drove about 15 minutes along the coast to canyon and blue hole. In the morning we dived at canyon which is a long narrow canyon ranging in depth from 18-50m. Most of the coral is dead because of all the tourism, but at the end of the dive we went down into this crack where we saw schools of fish. The canyon was impressive but would have been amazing to see it filled with coral, what a site that would have been. After a lunch break we suited up and walked into blue hole. This dive site is one of Dahab most famous site because of how incredibly blue the water is and how deep it goes, 160m. We started at the blue hole and continued along the cliff to the bells. Again, most of the coral is dead but the site and layout of the cliff is different then other dives.
Just before leaving Egypt, we spent our second to last night hiking up Mt. Sinai which stands 2285m above sea level. We left our hostel at about 10pm and drove two hours to the bottom of Mt. Sinai where we were greeted by a local guide. There are two paths which you can choose from to walk up Mt. Sinai. Our guide took us up Camels Path which is the longer route but much easier to walk in the night time. Although it is night time and very dark we were just two days short of the full moon so it was surprisingly bright out. The hike up takes about 2 hours but with several hours to kill before the sun rises we stopped at the little tea shops along the way and warmed our body’s in the warm huts. Just before arriving to the top, the camel’s path joined up with the Steps of Repentance and we had to walk up about 700 steps before arriving to the top. Once we made it to the top, Heather and I pulled out our sleeping bags and rented a wool blanket to keep ourselves warm. Cuddling trying to keep ourselves warm and out of the wind we rested for about at an hour and half till the sunrise. This hour and half was miserable, we were freezing and our toes were so cold they hurt to move. We started to ask ourselves why we choose to hike Mt. Sinai in the middle of the night, but once the sun started to rise we were so thankful we did. The sky was clear and the sunrise was brilliant, one of the best ones we have seen so far. It was awesome to ımagıne Moses receıvıng the 10 commandments at the top of thıs beautıful mountaın. After we greeted the sun, we gathered with the rest of the group and decided to take the Steps of Repentance down. This path is a bit shorter but tougher on the legs because there are 3750 steps down. These steps were built by a single monk in order to fulfill his pledge of penitence.
Once we arrived at the bottom we all piled back in the van and headed back to Dahab were I gather most everyone like us spent the day sleeping and recovering from our night hike. Although we only had a day or so left we simply relaxed, packed and prepared ourselves for our long travel day to Jerusalem, Israel.
Monday, March 9, 2009
Temples, Temples and more Temples
Before leaving Cairo on our overnight train to Aswan we booked a 5 nights 6 days package tour which would take us to several temples, ride on the Felucca up the Nile and end in Luxor. Excited from just seeing the pyramids and the Egyptian Museum we were super pumped to visit all the famous temples down in the Nile valley.
Our first stop was to Aswan's famous High Dam, which was completed in 1971. The construction of the Dam created Lake Nasser which is the world's largest artificial lake. The construction of the Dam was not cheep or easy since during the building process they noticed the water level rising which then forced the Egyptian government to send out an international plea for financial help to move the surrounding temples to higher ground. The UN and individual governments responded to this plea by funding the $36 million relocation effort. The method which was used to relocate the temples was by simply cutting the temples into pieces and then moves them to higher ground. After learning this I don't know how beneficial it was to create the dam in the first place.
The fist temple we visited was Temple of Isis which was originally built on Philae Island but is now located on Agilkia Island. Isis is a goddess of healer of children and wife of Osiris. It is said that Isis found her husbands heart on Philae after he was dismembered. This thus makes it the most sacred of Isis' homes.
After our afternoon sight visits we joined our Italian friends Omar and Stephano to dinner where we indulged in some falafels, shish kebabs and Egyptian sweets (baklava my favorite). It was early to bed since we had to be up at 3:30 to head out to Abu Simbel which is 297km outside of Aswan and 50 km from the Sudanese boarder.
The great Temple of Abu Simbel is dedicated to the god Ra-Hurakhti and built by Ramses II. However by looking at it you would never guess because four 22m tall statues of Ramses II sit at the entrance of the temple and eight more stands inside. Ramses II also had a temple built for his wife Nefertari which is called Temple of Hathor. The temple is dedicated to Hathor the young goddess of fertility and sky. This temple is one of the only temples in Egypt dedicated to a woman.
With two nights down and three more to go we spent two of the three nights on a felucca. Our felucca ride did not go according to plan which was very disappointing and frustrating but on the upside though the people on the felucca were great. We had so much fun hanging out with Katie, Ben and Simon from England and Veronica from France. Our trip on the Felucca was supposed to take us to Elephant and Kithneer Island which is across the Nile from Aswan. From there we were supposed to sail down to Kom Ombo and have dinner and visit it in the morning. The next day we were expected to sail from Kom Ombo to Edfu and visit Edfu in the morning. Well lets just say we never made it to Kom Ombo by felucca but instead drove to Kom Ombo and then to Edfu and finally to Luxor.
Day one we sailed across the Nile and just sat and watched the sun go down while we asked ourselves why we were not moving. Oh that's because the wind was to strong and the Nile police would come and tell us to dock. B...S....!!!! Right as the sun was setting we sailed for about an hour and then docked till morning. For day two we sailed most of the day but not all the way to Kom Ombo because it's better for our sleep to dock a few km outside where it's quite. Annoyed and frustrated we were left with little to do but enjoy each others company. I however felt myself getting sick with chills and high fever just wanting to be off the felucca. Still feeling sick by day three on the felucca we packed our bags hailed a min bus and all crammed in with other frustrated felucca passengers and visited Kom Ombo and Edfu.
Kom Ombo still standing in its original spot unlike the other two is a series of temples. The temple dates back to the Middle Kingdom and several rulers such as Ptolemy VI, Ptolemy XIII and Caesar Augustus have contributed something to this temple. Various parts of the temple are dedicated to different gods or goddess.
In Edfu we visited the Temple of Horus, whom is the son of Isis and Osiris and is recognized for his hawk head and is known for the guard against evil. This temple took almost 200 years to construct and is one of the last great Egyptian monuments. Several religious festivals were healed in honor of Horus at this temple.
With Kom Ombo and Edfu down we had a fully packed day of temples and valleys in Luxor waiting for us the next day. Exhausted and still getting the chills and fevers we decided to spend two days in Luxor instead of one which ended up breaking up the long sight seeing day. Needing to rest and sleep we took it easy for the night and morning. By the afternoon I managed to get enough strength to visit Karnak Temple and Luxor Temple.
Karnak Temple is amazing with its intricacy and proportions of pillars. Every major period of Egypt's ancient history is represented in this temple. The temple holds several shrines which are dedicated to the sun god Amun and his family. Another interesting think about Karnak Temple is it still has ancient mud brick scaffoldings which were used to erect the massive walls.
Luxor Temple which is located about five blocks from our wonderful hostel called Oasis, the temple was built around 1380 BCE by Amenhotep III. Other significant pharaohs such as Ramses II to Tutankhamun made there mark as well. Luxor Temple was meant to serve as a love nest for the gods and many couples would spend 24 days and nights in the sanctuary. Currently a Muslim temple is being built inside Luxor Temple.
While visiting these temples we spent our time walking around with our friend Kate whom just finished volunteering with Peace Core in Namibia. Discussing how I was feeling she suggested I get tested for malaria to be on the safe side. Heather and I decided to stop by some pharmacies on the way home to pick up a malaria test kit but since malaria is not common here we were sent to the hospital. Luckily our travel agent friends had plans to meet us for coffee and instead volunteered to take us to the hospital. Our visit was short, brief and interesting, come to find out they don't have the test and sent us to a lab doctor. With Mindu and Ramez by our sides they knew where to go and settled it out for us. I had my blood drawn tested and was expected to return at 10:30pm for my results. Well come to find out I don't have malaria but instead have Pharaohs revenge (travelers diarrhea) from the food on the felucca. Mindu says it happens all the time and laughed at me for not telling him I had diarrhea. But since I had just come from India where malaria is very prominent I thought I had malaria because no one else was sick off the boat. Oh well, it made for a fun adventure and Heather was such a trooper and good care taker.
With east bank down we were left visiting the west bank where the Valley of Kings and Queens are plus the Temple of Hatchebsot and Clossi of Memonon. First stop Valley of Kings has roughly 64 known tombs which were buried in the valley. We visited three of the 64 tombs. First we saw Ramses IV tomb which was used as a Byzantine church. Inside the tomb we saw lots of Coptic graffiti plus paintings which come from the Book of the Dead and the Book of the Gates. Next we visited Ramses IX tomb which features gold figures against a deep blue background. Inside the tomb they found Ramses IX's sarcophagus in a pit beyond the corridor. Finally we ended with Ramses I and his tomb has one of the shortest corridors in the valley which is said to be a reflection of his short rule. Inside his tomb the walls were painted with scenes of Ramses playing with the gods.
Form the valley of Kings we went to the Temple of Hatshepsut which is built in a three tiered form and stands tall against the sheer limestone cliffs in the background. Hatshepsut is the only female ruler to obtain the title of pharaoh after the death of her husband Thutmose II. She is said to have dressed up as a drag at times, which we thought was interesting.
Next to follow was the Valley of Queens which holds the burial place for the wives of the pharaohs and there children. It holds roughly 30 tombs and we visited two, Tomb of Titi and Tomb of Amonherkhepeshef. Inside the Tomb of Amonherkhepeshef laid a desiccated fetus which was displayed in a small case. It was impressive to see it in its perfect fetus form and has been well preserved. Both tombs were similar to the kings yet a bit smaller.
Before returning home after a very long hot morning we stopped to take pictures of the two statues known as Colossi of Memnon. These two magnificently tall statues are the only two things which remain of the largest temple dedicated to Amenhotep III.
Feeling better yet exhausted from all the sites we sat and had lunch before we headed out into the bazaar to do a quick shopping trip. Our shopping trip was short and brief because our bus to Dahab a waited. These past six days have flown by, its amazing to think of all the temples we visited but they have all been unique and one of a kind. However our time in Dahab will be a good break from the ancient Egyptian ruins. Red Sea here we come!!!
Our first stop was to Aswan's famous High Dam, which was completed in 1971. The construction of the Dam created Lake Nasser which is the world's largest artificial lake. The construction of the Dam was not cheep or easy since during the building process they noticed the water level rising which then forced the Egyptian government to send out an international plea for financial help to move the surrounding temples to higher ground. The UN and individual governments responded to this plea by funding the $36 million relocation effort. The method which was used to relocate the temples was by simply cutting the temples into pieces and then moves them to higher ground. After learning this I don't know how beneficial it was to create the dam in the first place.
The fist temple we visited was Temple of Isis which was originally built on Philae Island but is now located on Agilkia Island. Isis is a goddess of healer of children and wife of Osiris. It is said that Isis found her husbands heart on Philae after he was dismembered. This thus makes it the most sacred of Isis' homes.
After our afternoon sight visits we joined our Italian friends Omar and Stephano to dinner where we indulged in some falafels, shish kebabs and Egyptian sweets (baklava my favorite). It was early to bed since we had to be up at 3:30 to head out to Abu Simbel which is 297km outside of Aswan and 50 km from the Sudanese boarder.
The great Temple of Abu Simbel is dedicated to the god Ra-Hurakhti and built by Ramses II. However by looking at it you would never guess because four 22m tall statues of Ramses II sit at the entrance of the temple and eight more stands inside. Ramses II also had a temple built for his wife Nefertari which is called Temple of Hathor. The temple is dedicated to Hathor the young goddess of fertility and sky. This temple is one of the only temples in Egypt dedicated to a woman.
With two nights down and three more to go we spent two of the three nights on a felucca. Our felucca ride did not go according to plan which was very disappointing and frustrating but on the upside though the people on the felucca were great. We had so much fun hanging out with Katie, Ben and Simon from England and Veronica from France. Our trip on the Felucca was supposed to take us to Elephant and Kithneer Island which is across the Nile from Aswan. From there we were supposed to sail down to Kom Ombo and have dinner and visit it in the morning. The next day we were expected to sail from Kom Ombo to Edfu and visit Edfu in the morning. Well lets just say we never made it to Kom Ombo by felucca but instead drove to Kom Ombo and then to Edfu and finally to Luxor.
Day one we sailed across the Nile and just sat and watched the sun go down while we asked ourselves why we were not moving. Oh that's because the wind was to strong and the Nile police would come and tell us to dock. B...S....!!!! Right as the sun was setting we sailed for about an hour and then docked till morning. For day two we sailed most of the day but not all the way to Kom Ombo because it's better for our sleep to dock a few km outside where it's quite. Annoyed and frustrated we were left with little to do but enjoy each others company. I however felt myself getting sick with chills and high fever just wanting to be off the felucca. Still feeling sick by day three on the felucca we packed our bags hailed a min bus and all crammed in with other frustrated felucca passengers and visited Kom Ombo and Edfu.
Kom Ombo still standing in its original spot unlike the other two is a series of temples. The temple dates back to the Middle Kingdom and several rulers such as Ptolemy VI, Ptolemy XIII and Caesar Augustus have contributed something to this temple. Various parts of the temple are dedicated to different gods or goddess.
In Edfu we visited the Temple of Horus, whom is the son of Isis and Osiris and is recognized for his hawk head and is known for the guard against evil. This temple took almost 200 years to construct and is one of the last great Egyptian monuments. Several religious festivals were healed in honor of Horus at this temple.
With Kom Ombo and Edfu down we had a fully packed day of temples and valleys in Luxor waiting for us the next day. Exhausted and still getting the chills and fevers we decided to spend two days in Luxor instead of one which ended up breaking up the long sight seeing day. Needing to rest and sleep we took it easy for the night and morning. By the afternoon I managed to get enough strength to visit Karnak Temple and Luxor Temple.
Karnak Temple is amazing with its intricacy and proportions of pillars. Every major period of Egypt's ancient history is represented in this temple. The temple holds several shrines which are dedicated to the sun god Amun and his family. Another interesting think about Karnak Temple is it still has ancient mud brick scaffoldings which were used to erect the massive walls.
Luxor Temple which is located about five blocks from our wonderful hostel called Oasis, the temple was built around 1380 BCE by Amenhotep III. Other significant pharaohs such as Ramses II to Tutankhamun made there mark as well. Luxor Temple was meant to serve as a love nest for the gods and many couples would spend 24 days and nights in the sanctuary. Currently a Muslim temple is being built inside Luxor Temple.
While visiting these temples we spent our time walking around with our friend Kate whom just finished volunteering with Peace Core in Namibia. Discussing how I was feeling she suggested I get tested for malaria to be on the safe side. Heather and I decided to stop by some pharmacies on the way home to pick up a malaria test kit but since malaria is not common here we were sent to the hospital. Luckily our travel agent friends had plans to meet us for coffee and instead volunteered to take us to the hospital. Our visit was short, brief and interesting, come to find out they don't have the test and sent us to a lab doctor. With Mindu and Ramez by our sides they knew where to go and settled it out for us. I had my blood drawn tested and was expected to return at 10:30pm for my results. Well come to find out I don't have malaria but instead have Pharaohs revenge (travelers diarrhea) from the food on the felucca. Mindu says it happens all the time and laughed at me for not telling him I had diarrhea. But since I had just come from India where malaria is very prominent I thought I had malaria because no one else was sick off the boat. Oh well, it made for a fun adventure and Heather was such a trooper and good care taker.
With east bank down we were left visiting the west bank where the Valley of Kings and Queens are plus the Temple of Hatchebsot and Clossi of Memonon. First stop Valley of Kings has roughly 64 known tombs which were buried in the valley. We visited three of the 64 tombs. First we saw Ramses IV tomb which was used as a Byzantine church. Inside the tomb we saw lots of Coptic graffiti plus paintings which come from the Book of the Dead and the Book of the Gates. Next we visited Ramses IX tomb which features gold figures against a deep blue background. Inside the tomb they found Ramses IX's sarcophagus in a pit beyond the corridor. Finally we ended with Ramses I and his tomb has one of the shortest corridors in the valley which is said to be a reflection of his short rule. Inside his tomb the walls were painted with scenes of Ramses playing with the gods.
Form the valley of Kings we went to the Temple of Hatshepsut which is built in a three tiered form and stands tall against the sheer limestone cliffs in the background. Hatshepsut is the only female ruler to obtain the title of pharaoh after the death of her husband Thutmose II. She is said to have dressed up as a drag at times, which we thought was interesting.
Next to follow was the Valley of Queens which holds the burial place for the wives of the pharaohs and there children. It holds roughly 30 tombs and we visited two, Tomb of Titi and Tomb of Amonherkhepeshef. Inside the Tomb of Amonherkhepeshef laid a desiccated fetus which was displayed in a small case. It was impressive to see it in its perfect fetus form and has been well preserved. Both tombs were similar to the kings yet a bit smaller.
Before returning home after a very long hot morning we stopped to take pictures of the two statues known as Colossi of Memnon. These two magnificently tall statues are the only two things which remain of the largest temple dedicated to Amenhotep III.
Feeling better yet exhausted from all the sites we sat and had lunch before we headed out into the bazaar to do a quick shopping trip. Our shopping trip was short and brief because our bus to Dahab a waited. These past six days have flown by, its amazing to think of all the temples we visited but they have all been unique and one of a kind. However our time in Dahab will be a good break from the ancient Egyptian ruins. Red Sea here we come!!!
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