Jim and Wendy's Travel Bloghttp://wendy-jim.com/feed.xml2023-05-31T15:32:50.795000ZWerkzeugJordan and Israel: Final thoughtshttp://wendy-jim.com/post/jordan-and-israel-final-thoughts2023-05-31T14:14:35.058000Z2023-05-31T11:31:09ZJim and Wendy Damoulakis<div><br/></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/768a3955-4c0f-9eac-9153-935b281a921d/fa3eebaa-27ee-5acf-888b-5dabfe72b570.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:612; --en-naturalHeight:350;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/768a3955-4c0f-9eac-9153-935b281a921d/92a05c17-ce62-aab9-f885-c21e079bbd09.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:612; --en-naturalHeight:408;"/><div>Usually when we visit a country ( or two) we tour the sights, learn some history, and enjoy the people and food. Yes, we did all those important things in Israel and Jordan but this trip was so much more. </div>
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<div>First of all, both guides were stellar, especially Ibrahim who did so much more than required. He dealt with all that bad timing had to give him, and came up with alternatives— wonderful alternatives time and time again. He really enjoys his job ( or this group, perhaps as he told us) and put his heart into every minute.</div>
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<div>Exploring Israel from a religious, cultural and political viewpoint gave us a sense of understanding and belonging that we hadn’t had before. Wendy was a bit envious of the birthright groups we mingled with in Jerusalem— late teens who take an extensive sojourn into the land of their heritage and deepen their connections to Judaism on whatever level they choose to take it. She hopes our grandchildren will take advantage of this incredible program when the time comes. This was our own birthright program, albeit 50 years later with the advantage of time and perspective. </div>
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<div>It was also a pathway to understanding the geography and deep historical conflicts in the Middle East. Jordan is a buffer land in the middle of chaos, surrounded on all sides by nations that hold varying degrees of anger towards Israel. It has to constantly walk on eggshells to protect its borders and deal patiently with its neighbors. We hope it can successfully continue that path.</div>
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<div>The Israeli-Arab conflict, especially In Jerusalem will not be resolved anytime soon, certainly not within our lifetime. We now have to hope that future generations will learn to temper and respect their differences without going to war over them.</div>
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<div>Although we never actually heard this exquisite song by Naomi Shemer sung ( nor Ha Tikvah, the national anthem, for that matter) at anytime during our journey, it represents the fortitude, the yearning for peace and the beauty of Israel:</div>
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<div style="padding-left:40px;"><i>Yerushalayim shel zahav, veshel nechoset veshel ohr,</i></div>
<div style="padding-left:40px;"><i>Halo lechal shirayich ani kinor</i></div>
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<div style="padding-left:40px;"><i>Jerusalem of good, of bronze and light </i></div>
<div style="padding-left:40px;"><i>I am the violin for all your songs</i>,</div>
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<div>Video: <a href="https://youtu.be/JH8gtdDA5x0" rev="en_rl_none">Yerushalayim shel zahav</a></div>
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<div>Shalom!</div>
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<div><a href="https://wendy-jim.com/post/day-19-tel-aviv-anu-museum-farewell-dinner" rev="en_rl_none">Previous </a></div>
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Day 19: Tel Aviv, Anu Museum, farewell dinnerhttp://wendy-jim.com/post/day-19-tel-aviv-anu-museum-farewell-dinner2023-05-31T11:39:52.352000Z2023-05-29T14:53:41ZJim and Wendy Damoulakis<div>Most of what we did in Tel Aviv was in the Jaffa area because major attractions and shops were closed, so it was a somewhat low-key end to our trip. But over the three days we were there, we captured the feel of this vibrant area. It is the second largest gay/ pride city, only next to San Francisco, loves portraying humor on buildings, and, since it is new, has the skyscrapers and architecture to prove it. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/26eaf383-b9c7-b400-f557-2ab2eb4c97b5/6dc35644-5444-4869-9b0c-d427e8402c39.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div><br/></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/26eaf383-b9c7-b400-f557-2ab2eb4c97b5/0ad6545a-31b4-cfed-66b6-263f9828e545.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:4032;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/26eaf383-b9c7-b400-f557-2ab2eb4c97b5/ac3ffff6-9274-2a33-1804-bd9d7ec7b5a5.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/26eaf383-b9c7-b400-f557-2ab2eb4c97b5/f4797101-2097-0e21-19cc-dbbeede46104.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><div>The beaches have wide sidewalks, bike and scooter lanes which are well used ( as are the sidewalks so watch out!).</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/26eaf383-b9c7-b400-f557-2ab2eb4c97b5/816a2648-0972-7dbb-c300-dd1314600d65.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/26eaf383-b9c7-b400-f557-2ab2eb4c97b5/c3720273-0da0-2e82-982a-4063b88ff2ae.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:4032;"/><div>We enjoyed a final spectacular breakfast at our hotel.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/26eaf383-b9c7-b400-f557-2ab2eb4c97b5/dc790ed9-3239-b0aa-3849-4eb5f035c9a0.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:4032;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/26eaf383-b9c7-b400-f557-2ab2eb4c97b5/ea9c0db1-51de-4e1f-10ee-d883a87bf11d.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:4032;"/><div>Then, Ibrahim found a very new museum built on the architecturally diverse campus of Tel Aviv University, an area he knew well. It is called the Anu Museum and (yay!) was open on Shabbat. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/26eaf383-b9c7-b400-f557-2ab2eb4c97b5/aaba31e2-f7ae-3a24-0c4a-626998d63257.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/26eaf383-b9c7-b400-f557-2ab2eb4c97b5/7a2e6fd6-9a6d-2592-7684-5b6f275e319c.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/26eaf383-b9c7-b400-f557-2ab2eb4c97b5/2e264ac3-8a72-7fab-a703-7a222388d899.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div>It portrays Jewish cultural achievements in the performing arts, presents history in a unique way, and used a wide array of media to portray Jewish life around the world. We were most impressed and would highly recommend it.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/26eaf383-b9c7-b400-f557-2ab2eb4c97b5/f63481df-16d0-d0b1-4be8-66c3283ee46b.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:4032; --en-naturalHeight:3024;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/26eaf383-b9c7-b400-f557-2ab2eb4c97b5/c3d3eeb8-2487-5d59-e28d-0360d12f0401.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/26eaf383-b9c7-b400-f557-2ab2eb4c97b5/2695103a-b0b4-17d0-b7a0-76315c7321b2.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/26eaf383-b9c7-b400-f557-2ab2eb4c97b5/9b5729b7-3446-e674-1bcd-36c6264d8e42.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/26eaf383-b9c7-b400-f557-2ab2eb4c97b5/95efc75e-97a0-a8a6-8964-b6537854dfea.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:4032;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/26eaf383-b9c7-b400-f557-2ab2eb4c97b5/9cf3865b-6a1d-04e0-90bd-af9fe720ab7e.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><div>We watched videos and displays of famous comedians, saw 3-D models of synagogues around the world, and were mesmerized by a video and accompanying map that explained the many migrations of the Jewish people over thousands of years. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/26eaf383-b9c7-b400-f557-2ab2eb4c97b5/db93e799-92ad-6461-8c84-917a9c8ab362.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/26eaf383-b9c7-b400-f557-2ab2eb4c97b5/b183b92e-a5cb-55b9-36d2-3ef24a81a9a1.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2754; --en-naturalHeight:2610;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/26eaf383-b9c7-b400-f557-2ab2eb4c97b5/2cf21640-5c2f-5d24-1cbf-ac7047f26de2.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:4032;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/26eaf383-b9c7-b400-f557-2ab2eb4c97b5/c12aa9fe-79d4-95f9-3d33-e64010544d21.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><div><br/></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/26eaf383-b9c7-b400-f557-2ab2eb4c97b5/cff81ee4-bb95-5e08-c59a-279a5d379428.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/26eaf383-b9c7-b400-f557-2ab2eb4c97b5/5690153b-dc24-df31-0779-18c76877815f.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/26eaf383-b9c7-b400-f557-2ab2eb4c97b5/e83ddde1-5096-8e36-fbb4-eb9e78bf442a.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div><br/></div>
<div>We finally found the tiny room where they showed videos of Leonard Cohen in his last concerts in Israel.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/26eaf383-b9c7-b400-f557-2ab2eb4c97b5/fdba8f35-b18a-f563-117f-6a4216cdd486.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><div>It was a gray day ( actually saw a few raindrops, the only time during the entire trip), so we spent the afternoon catching up on the blog, and ( sigh) packing. Took final pictures of our room and the best shower in the world!</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/26eaf383-b9c7-b400-f557-2ab2eb4c97b5/61bc0488-804c-5a59-04ce-384688b3d1c4.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/26eaf383-b9c7-b400-f557-2ab2eb4c97b5/3cbe4555-d570-225b-f1e2-5eda32a15673.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div>A farewell dinner was a good walk away, and after a lovely meal said goodbye to our new friends. Walking into the hotel, we met Ibrahim’s beautiful wife who had joined him for a very short vacation. They are a really cute couple!</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/26eaf383-b9c7-b400-f557-2ab2eb4c97b5/8f808d75-9fbc-b1a3-2d2a-be2e3b92616d.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div>We have at least 23 or so hours of traveling and layovers ahead of us😢😢.</div>
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<div><a href="https://wendy-jim.com/post/day-18-tel-aviv-jaffa-ilana-goor-museum" rev="en_rl_none">Previous </a></div>
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Day 18: Tel Aviv-Jaffa, Ilana Goor Museumhttp://wendy-jim.com/post/day-18-tel-aviv-jaffa-ilana-goor-museum2023-05-29T15:59:59.173000Z2023-05-28T13:28:49ZJim and Wendy Damoulakis<div>Well, it is Shavuot, a " high" holiday here so most things are closed. Not very good planning on OAT’s part since tomorrow is Shabbat and ditto! Ibrahim did not let this faze him however, and found wonderful things for us to do. </div>
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<div>Tel Aviv is a very cosmopolitan city, the beaches are incredibly crowded, but most of the stores and shops were closed. On the other hand, Jaffa, officially part of Tel Aviv, was open. It is an Arab/Israeli area, but very different from Jerusalem. Here there are art galleries, major department stores, and celebration of the secular life of Israelis.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/2ba8d2c5-4cc8-7634-87d7-74b86b54203e/cfa79dd1-6bb1-99aa-2664-db2ac3869fe8.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:4032; --en-naturalHeight:3024;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/2ba8d2c5-4cc8-7634-87d7-74b86b54203e/52753251-e7ce-6b4d-0530-1a2c162b3704.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:4032;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/2ba8d2c5-4cc8-7634-87d7-74b86b54203e/7d982b26-806a-b622-e862-0aed3f126935.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div>Jaffa was built mostly in the 16th century and was once the major port of Israel. It was also the home of Jonah of whale fame. We made our way down alleyways twisting and turning along the old stones.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/2ba8d2c5-4cc8-7634-87d7-74b86b54203e/9c970669-3f59-a452-c8fb-e1ce1a3b8344.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><div>Our destination, the Ilana Goor Museum is one of the most unique we’ve been in anywhere. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/2ba8d2c5-4cc8-7634-87d7-74b86b54203e/14573583-9b1e-c386-8ab5-e583cc08bf22.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:4032;"/><div>The building was built by the Ottoman Turks over 300 years ago with high arches and distinctive ceilings. She bought it and renovated it in 1995. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/2ba8d2c5-4cc8-7634-87d7-74b86b54203e/1b6e15b4-81bc-8aaf-549c-ed2249487f30.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:4032;"/><div>Ilana is now 87 dividing her time between this museum (where has an apartment on the premises along with her husband Lenny) and NYC. She is a completely self taught artist, incorporating welding, leather, agricultural materials and many other objects into her own works. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/2ba8d2c5-4cc8-7634-87d7-74b86b54203e/3e0fa074-6127-35ee-1a3d-a2de05a35c8e.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/2ba8d2c5-4cc8-7634-87d7-74b86b54203e/d5801af3-3bb2-fc35-840e-32303a3c3fba.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/2ba8d2c5-4cc8-7634-87d7-74b86b54203e/4ebb65a8-8361-f667-b797-e6448cdfa638.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/2ba8d2c5-4cc8-7634-87d7-74b86b54203e/2aa3594a-5557-2e27-40b2-ae663e93b813.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/2ba8d2c5-4cc8-7634-87d7-74b86b54203e/c6302f17-5a86-b03f-1cd7-170d19b1f2da.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/2ba8d2c5-4cc8-7634-87d7-74b86b54203e/9055e4ab-87fa-20a4-a7ee-0d6e211945b0.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/2ba8d2c5-4cc8-7634-87d7-74b86b54203e/79c9265c-d404-be16-8f74-9648237b868e.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div>She also has bought hundreds of artistic works from around the world to add to the collection. This lamp was brought from a mosque, has 72 blue bulbs, an important color in Turkish mosques. It, like many pieces had to be lifted into place by an indoor crane.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/2ba8d2c5-4cc8-7634-87d7-74b86b54203e/15fb824e-fbdb-5969-fa15-ac8600c14dba.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:4032;"/><div>The kitchen is still functional holds a multitude of copper pots.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/2ba8d2c5-4cc8-7634-87d7-74b86b54203e/c0df0dae-52ee-1e5d-a344-1cc7e5c6ab00.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:4032; --en-naturalHeight:3024;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/2ba8d2c5-4cc8-7634-87d7-74b86b54203e/bac3460d-664a-53da-2e6f-8c3e52d256dd.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:4032;"/><div>The rooftop has several unique pieces including a pond with a wild fountain.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/2ba8d2c5-4cc8-7634-87d7-74b86b54203e/e344d582-d2de-320c-0ecb-6fe68fddb5c5.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/2ba8d2c5-4cc8-7634-87d7-74b86b54203e/8896f72e-129d-7aa2-98e9-4002f9cb2ce0.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/2ba8d2c5-4cc8-7634-87d7-74b86b54203e/ff885aa1-d3b4-1b91-743b-a25a3424b17c.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:4032; --en-naturalHeight:3024;"/><div>She made all the chandeliers here including this one with animal horns. ( 2 or 3)</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/2ba8d2c5-4cc8-7634-87d7-74b86b54203e/f43b3cac-6628-e2d1-ac62-72c1154a49f2.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/2ba8d2c5-4cc8-7634-87d7-74b86b54203e/1c6de347-07d7-e49f-60ac-4fda9145e326.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div>Someone asked how she finances the museum. We heard the great story about how years ago, she was shopping in Bloomingdale’s in NYC and Lenny was wearing a unique belt she made. A person stopped them asking about the belt. It turned out, he was in charge of the belt department and started commissioning her to make the leather and metal welded belts. She quickly branched out to jewelry, sculptures, etc. Her husband Lenny went onto bring popcorn machines into movie theatres— not too shabby either.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/2ba8d2c5-4cc8-7634-87d7-74b86b54203e/e785fc6b-3000-5532-b917-f91852f24fd9.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:4032;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/2ba8d2c5-4cc8-7634-87d7-74b86b54203e/75078e3c-1188-4ed6-7b5d-5a0a893ebc5d.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:4032;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/2ba8d2c5-4cc8-7634-87d7-74b86b54203e/d6af2968-646e-cdf1-5184-1a2ca30410f2.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:4032;"/><div>We could have stayed all day, everywhere you turned there was more to see. And looking up was important too.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/2ba8d2c5-4cc8-7634-87d7-74b86b54203e/a48d8331-4cea-8130-e49b-d707fc8e31cb.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:4032;"/><div>Reluctantly we left to continue our Jaffa walk down to the old port area, passing an old mosque and an interesting horoscope fountain near the central square.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/2ba8d2c5-4cc8-7634-87d7-74b86b54203e/5aac2fd0-8cf1-a191-2061-aa18f25632fd.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2048;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/2ba8d2c5-4cc8-7634-87d7-74b86b54203e/c0833bf3-7c10-c7ff-2b08-04354bd1ea60.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:4032;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/2ba8d2c5-4cc8-7634-87d7-74b86b54203e/4ca3d739-46c1-3816-ea8d-c72ea067a3f0.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:4032; --en-naturalHeight:3024;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/2ba8d2c5-4cc8-7634-87d7-74b86b54203e/86b5d813-3c80-854b-5b23-c639760d3727.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/2ba8d2c5-4cc8-7634-87d7-74b86b54203e/ccb48adc-b2db-4e8a-1947-c124a07fff86.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:4032;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/2ba8d2c5-4cc8-7634-87d7-74b86b54203e/a23f68d3-c7a7-df78-5a13-08737fb52c6f.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2592; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><div>We stopped for bathroom break at a lovely local hotel that turned out to have an interesting backstory. It was originally a prison built by the Turks. It later became an Israeli prison that notoriously housed Adolph Eichmann!</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/2ba8d2c5-4cc8-7634-87d7-74b86b54203e/aa8ed2e0-d2e2-e31a-5a8f-1f4281346933.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:4032;"/><div><br/></div>
<div>Here we met another guide, a friend of Ibrahim’s who was joining us for a culinary tour of Jaffa. Our first stop was to sample "fadooleh" — a sweet rose water slushy drink with thin noodles in it. </div>
<div> </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/2ba8d2c5-4cc8-7634-87d7-74b86b54203e/2df4c5e1-9b7e-2f27-de64-ffc5034e5802.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div>Some of us opted to "kick it up a notch" by spiking it with "arak", the ubiquitous anise liqueur that seems to be everywhere in Israel. Next, to accompany the drink, a delicious pastry with cheese called "sambusak" from the large bakery next door.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/2ba8d2c5-4cc8-7634-87d7-74b86b54203e/122efa6c-4b71-0597-b4d0-b5258317da62.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div>Along the way she pointed out street art which was very easy to see since most of it was painted on shop doors which were all closed!</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/2ba8d2c5-4cc8-7634-87d7-74b86b54203e/7211b369-c329-5f07-83e8-14fae3d0d527.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div>In honor of Shavuot, we had bread and a few different cheeses to put on it, along with Turkish-style grilled olives and stuffed grape leaves. Most people celebrate Shavuot with various kinds of dairy food</div>
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<div>Our next to last stop was to try two different kinds of fish— ceviche and fried mullet. Followed by some very fresh cherries and apricots.</div>
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<div>And lastly, Golda’s cheesecake ice cream. Ibrahim’s favorite ice cream spot in Tel Aviv, Anita’s, was closed, but this was a worthy substitute.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/2ba8d2c5-4cc8-7634-87d7-74b86b54203e/36c349b3-d99c-c0fe-0e89-b547d898350a.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div>Another 10,000 step day and a late afternoon which included a quick swim in the beautiful hotel pool followed by a windy walk to get dinner— pizza and burger across from the beach. Lilah tov!</div>
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Day 17: Mount of Olives, Yad Vashem, and travel to Tel Aviv (long)http://wendy-jim.com/post/day-17-mount-of-olives-yad-vashem-and-travel-to-tel-aviv-long2023-05-28T21:27:40.833000Z2023-05-27T11:07:46ZJim and Wendy Damoulakis<div>A day we looked forward to, and also dreaded. Emotions ran high, but first much patience was needed.</div>
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<div>The bus this morning brought us to another holy site,the Mount of Olives…or tried to. This, too, is in Arab East Jerusalem, and luck wasn’t with us today. Ibrahim constantly monitors his travel guide group, and found out there were two Arabs on the main Palm Sunday path harassing tourists. So a quick change of plans had us stopping at a gorgeous lookout over the entire old city of Jerusalem. Except we almost couldn’t get there.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/1edaf9f8-f200-bfec-5fa7-932b4befe808/8e6d70f2-d77d-720a-40ad-7ec7d54ad5f9.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div>Traffic was bumper to bumper because of the problem with police cars and the hundreds of tourists heading towards the spot, and for over an hour we inched our up the high hill towards the top. Cars cut off busses, and vice versa, and it was every driver for himself, inching towards the goal.</div>
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<div>While on the bus, we got a history lesson in the real " day in the life" of Arabs and Jews. This is still area C (full Israeli control) but many of the Arab community include criminals and political vigilantes as well as other angry Arabs who refuse citizenship, but still, amazingly get all the rights of citizenship— health, pensions,etc. They can even vote in local elections except voting for prime minister. They also have the highest unemployment rate, but are entitled to unemployment payments. </div>
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<div>Many drop out of school, as well. Officially there is a required Israeli curriculum but schools here follow their own Palestinian one with strong anti-Israel content (although it is believed that this is slowly changing). This area hospital only serves the Palestinian authority, not Israeli people. They will not acknowledge Israel and feel that this is their land,taken illegally from them.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/1edaf9f8-f200-bfec-5fa7-932b4befe808/c9d874ca-820b-16e8-b84d-5507c15f1334.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><div>We finally made it to a scenic overlook. Ibrahim explained about the oldest Jewish cemetery on top of the hill (very expensive and elite- when the messiah comes down, you are closer 🤗). We took some wonderful pictures of the old city and surrounding area, and a group shot, and left with a sigh of relief. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/1edaf9f8-f200-bfec-5fa7-932b4befe808/cc18689c-0a32-cc7a-2b20-36c503b027d5.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><div><br/></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/1edaf9f8-f200-bfec-5fa7-932b4befe808/fffb207f-5518-7234-8691-390ceb807ee6.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:4032; --en-naturalHeight:3024;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/1edaf9f8-f200-bfec-5fa7-932b4befe808/fc56465c-a3ec-b8b7-e27d-932bf487ee8e.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/1edaf9f8-f200-bfec-5fa7-932b4befe808/c7169c05-9d89-8e72-17c1-2ec17c9bbb40.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:4032;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/1edaf9f8-f200-bfec-5fa7-932b4befe808/05d72e45-bd44-ba37-385f-5424b7882ae3.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div> Ibrahim took this opportunity to share some of the controversial aspects of the political and cultural differences here, and although we were not threatened in any way, we were relieved that he also kept us safe.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/1edaf9f8-f200-bfec-5fa7-932b4befe808/8683150d-4163-66c3-8cdc-9292a1567e62.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1600; --en-naturalHeight:1200;"/><div>Our next stop was also difficult, but for an entirely different reason. Yad Vashem means a memorial and a name. This world famous museum is built on Mt. Hertzl where not only Theodore Hertzl is buried, but also all the fallen soldiers from the wars in Israel. It tells the story of the over six million Jews killed in the holocaust and is a memorial and testament of all the suffering and persecution that took place but also to the resilience of the Jewish people.</div>
<div>Pictures are not allowed except outside but here are some from the entranceway and some websites. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/1edaf9f8-f200-bfec-5fa7-932b4befe808/cd0f7348-3157-ba68-e8a1-dc9b4f993648.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/1edaf9f8-f200-bfec-5fa7-932b4befe808/a7b69a34-a7f3-5f44-c193-ce835b9c55b9.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3008; --en-naturalHeight:2688;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/1edaf9f8-f200-bfec-5fa7-932b4befe808/c51d2324-70e4-d86b-9497-3419873e881d.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/1edaf9f8-f200-bfec-5fa7-932b4befe808/b1b67731-c0df-5b22-6625-fccfbe01e5f1.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/1edaf9f8-f200-bfec-5fa7-932b4befe808/fd80a8bf-939b-14a4-7cbe-f3fb0079c9f5.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/1edaf9f8-f200-bfec-5fa7-932b4befe808/c3e4adf3-297d-a97f-57f5-0c8125b7442c.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/1edaf9f8-f200-bfec-5fa7-932b4befe808/94deae20-81b1-3165-fc26-6fd1ea8ba250.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1000; --en-naturalHeight:688;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/1edaf9f8-f200-bfec-5fa7-932b4befe808/457abb0c-a69d-ba9d-e5d0-57ae85fbcaf2.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:778; --en-naturalHeight:534;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/1edaf9f8-f200-bfec-5fa7-932b4befe808/579e6e36-fdfa-4a8c-edf5-9cead35cbaf4.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1200; --en-naturalHeight:763;"/><div>Two hours was not enough to really read and absorb everything. Walking from room to room, we saw the development of the rise of Nazism, the increasing crescendo of anti-Semitism in Germany, followed by incredibly detailed accounts of the ghettos, the resistance, the camps, and the Final Solution. </div>
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<div>The last two rooms inside were the Righteous Among the Nations— non-Jews recognized by the State of Israel who risked their lives to save Jews, and the Hall of Names where pictures dotted the big dome, books of names lined the walls, and spaces were left bare for the many who were unknown. Extremely powerful and moving.</div>
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<div>Back outside, we walked around to the children’s memorial, commemorating the one and a half million Jewish children who died in the holocaust, another incredibly moving room of darkness lit by many flickering candles. Slowly, names, ages and countries of the children were read out loud as we walked through.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/1edaf9f8-f200-bfec-5fa7-932b4befe808/d0d3bdf7-5084-b434-59d6-ebaf99ff2317.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/1edaf9f8-f200-bfec-5fa7-932b4befe808/f21143c0-714c-a136-b841-168a8bddb16f.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/1edaf9f8-f200-bfec-5fa7-932b4befe808/fcffbcf8-cdc9-046a-ef02-ad26938ac9d3.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/1edaf9f8-f200-bfec-5fa7-932b4befe808/dd1cbf21-af84-a305-4cb7-62bcb598ebae.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/1edaf9f8-f200-bfec-5fa7-932b4befe808/400bcc27-6fa2-c502-6491-1bbca5f45882.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:274; --en-naturalHeight:182;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/1edaf9f8-f200-bfec-5fa7-932b4befe808/bfefcb6e-5413-6269-3df2-e5f2ef0af0f3.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/1edaf9f8-f200-bfec-5fa7-932b4befe808/c5e5a3f2-6ae9-2017-1c12-11a8a2525d41.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><div>To say it was heart wrenching and emotional does not due justice to the powerfulness of this story. The entrance and grounds are very expansive, beautiful and peaceful and bring some quiet contemplation and solace when coming out. Although we went to Yad Vashem when we first visited Israel in 1976, this new location and building were built in 2005 and is designed in the shape of a prism dividing the mountain.</div>
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<div>It was hard snapping out of the somber mood when we left, but on the way to Tel Aviv, our guide had a touristy lunch stop to get help do it rather quickly. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/1edaf9f8-f200-bfec-5fa7-932b4befe808/0d58df2e-9cb0-6b4a-82d9-53d969adfc02.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/1edaf9f8-f200-bfec-5fa7-932b4befe808/1229f9be-7ff5-adfe-38f9-c12091fe28e7.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div>It was called Elvis American Diner, a lively shrine to the "king of rock n roll" that had all kinds of Elvis memorabilia inside. The big juicy burgers (an actual CHEESEburger in Israel - OMG!) and tasty fries made a nice change from all of the middle eastern food we’ve been eating. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/1edaf9f8-f200-bfec-5fa7-932b4befe808/c101ee38-4d39-1bb2-d59f-ca33587a81cb.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/1edaf9f8-f200-bfec-5fa7-932b4befe808/212b850e-8540-d4f1-3dc4-08c0d660803e.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/1edaf9f8-f200-bfec-5fa7-932b4befe808/e70a17ec-c5ed-608b-6564-dad54aa1a9e1.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div>We arrived in Tel Aviv to the nicest and most luxurious hotel, the Royal Beach. I guess they saved the best for last! Location, location, right across from the wide expanse of Mediterranean beaches and beach volleyball courts, the area was teeming with activity. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/1edaf9f8-f200-bfec-5fa7-932b4befe808/7b88be6a-78dd-0d76-7ee5-2913741fbe86.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/1edaf9f8-f200-bfec-5fa7-932b4befe808/562502d0-b162-877c-d78d-c9db6f959bcc.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:4032;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/1edaf9f8-f200-bfec-5fa7-932b4befe808/d6975092-c9ca-2a0d-9d50-5df4d8d93726.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1537; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div>It is a 4 day weekend here with Shavuot, a huge holiday preceding Shabbat. Everybody has off and heads for the beach with friends and/ or family. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/1edaf9f8-f200-bfec-5fa7-932b4befe808/c149256c-a963-64c3-1057-f8d1d5788c8c.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/1edaf9f8-f200-bfec-5fa7-932b4befe808/f775d60c-815d-4240-39f5-99f4e09db872.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:4032; --en-naturalHeight:3024;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/1edaf9f8-f200-bfec-5fa7-932b4befe808/68e6cc63-6670-a1ba-fa84-9fce38318cb3.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:4032; --en-naturalHeight:3024;"/><div>We went to a Greek restaurant right along the beach for dinner which was pretty wild, crowded and noisy. But joining in the spirit of the place, and the young vibrancy of the city was really fun. </div>
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<div>More about Tel Aviv tomorrow. </div>
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Day 16: Masada and the Dead Seahttp://wendy-jim.com/post/day-16-masada-and-the-dead-sea2023-05-27T12:27:38.639000Z2023-05-26T15:09:17ZJim and Wendy Damoulakis<div><br/></div>
<div>Within just a few minutes after leaving Jerusalem, you are really in the desert. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/70bef1c4-766d-e077-75b5-b1d938e4fb80/a6d3aa58-83da-49f1-cb33-e0ac61f4bc38.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div>Our destination today is 1411 feet below sea level, the absolutely lowest place on earth. But our first stop was to the great symbol of heroism to the Jewish people: Masada</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/70bef1c4-766d-e077-75b5-b1d938e4fb80/dca74c30-9c19-ca76-f98e-a815171e3747.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:4032;"/><div>Masada is a UNESCO World Heritage site. It was captured by King Herod in 43BCE, and he soon built an elaborate fortress. Situated on a high mountain plateau, it was a perfect vantage point. The view from the top was an ideal lookout upon the entire region, overlooking the Dead Sea, the Judean desert valley, and Jordan (the Dead Sea is the natural boundary between Jordan and Israel). </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/70bef1c4-766d-e077-75b5-b1d938e4fb80/f460c792-99db-28b6-d610-50302ce5abd9.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:4032; --en-naturalHeight:3024;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/70bef1c4-766d-e077-75b5-b1d938e4fb80/6ad34d1d-ae26-e234-e139-a23608091141.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1537;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/70bef1c4-766d-e077-75b5-b1d938e4fb80/1b1d23ac-d024-f00a-a997-2c8b40a56bfa.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1537;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/70bef1c4-766d-e077-75b5-b1d938e4fb80/df8505d1-8456-3f86-1a65-9216122d6617.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/70bef1c4-766d-e077-75b5-b1d938e4fb80/9c2f3ad4-2d69-1c01-1e1f-3cad776944b8.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:4032;"/><div>He built a huge palace here, actually two, one on the north side, filled with frescoes, Roman baths, enormous storerooms, and, of course, a sophisticated water system. He also built a smaller palace on the other western side on top of another earlier palace there. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/70bef1c4-766d-e077-75b5-b1d938e4fb80/6a7a8cc9-7e68-f5fd-8371-625228b7666e.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/70bef1c4-766d-e077-75b5-b1d938e4fb80/dbdb14ca-94f3-7f11-dca8-c58b6962d86c.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/70bef1c4-766d-e077-75b5-b1d938e4fb80/636cb2d8-5c1e-0634-1970-121ea4b198d9.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/70bef1c4-766d-e077-75b5-b1d938e4fb80/c78f0b8e-3111-e89a-bd94-4e20d4c78748.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/70bef1c4-766d-e077-75b5-b1d938e4fb80/fd703f68-ac4d-2c0c-ac1e-738ff2353bfb.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/70bef1c4-766d-e077-75b5-b1d938e4fb80/02f6fb19-a707-6b93-9827-758a90fdc4fc.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div>We took a cable car to get to the top, unlike the first time, many years ago, when we climbed the winding "snake path". This was much shorter!</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/70bef1c4-766d-e077-75b5-b1d938e4fb80/e27b052d-d408-1ad6-3de4-16ccfe3e201b.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3740; --en-naturalHeight:2616;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/70bef1c4-766d-e077-75b5-b1d938e4fb80/3589100f-83ac-14f9-6e2d-93678ed24331.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1537; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div>In AD 70-74 about 1000 Jewish rebels, fleeing Jerusalem after the destruction of the second temple, managed to capture this fortress and establish themselves in the palace. The Romans laid siege to it over many months with a force as larger as 15,000, but the Jews fought valiantly. Finally, when the Romans breached the walls, as the story goes, the Jews committed mass suicide rather than being enslaved.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/70bef1c4-766d-e077-75b5-b1d938e4fb80/cfc189dc-409e-9ac0-3da6-0b5ce3427590.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1537; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/70bef1c4-766d-e077-75b5-b1d938e4fb80/f8ec96c3-5007-8e35-1677-fa847d710e9d.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:4032;"/><div>There are several variations to the story. Two witnesses who survived by hiding, claimed that suicide is against Jewish belief so they drew lots to kill each other so only the last man had to take his own life (here represented by stones). This is also the reason that the story is not mentioned religious Jewish writings.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/70bef1c4-766d-e077-75b5-b1d938e4fb80/498dee9a-1509-03ff-fc56-3f8658e32cd3.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><div>After exploring for several hours, we then moved onto the only place nearby that serves lunch to the thousands visiting Masada every day, (the only one, it seems, because a sinkhole 5 years ago swallowed up the competition 😝😝) and a chance to buy Dead Sea products.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/70bef1c4-766d-e077-75b5-b1d938e4fb80/6b1abd10-95a0-4ee9-d8a3-e693cb3cc7c4.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:4032; --en-naturalHeight:3024;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/70bef1c4-766d-e077-75b5-b1d938e4fb80/5109e699-f379-3ae9-472c-9eb14c3ceb55.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:4032; --en-naturalHeight:3024;"/><div>The Dead Sea, the lowest point on earth, is not usually visited by Israelis as they prefer the beaches of the beautiful Mediterranean ( see tomorrow’s pictures). </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/70bef1c4-766d-e077-75b5-b1d938e4fb80/bffca1bd-1953-599e-5f34-d7c7ec95b64f.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:4032; --en-naturalHeight:3024;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/70bef1c4-766d-e077-75b5-b1d938e4fb80/11cd8b20-0639-bdb0-1d5d-92cd7c07ab6c.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:4032; --en-naturalHeight:3024;"/><div>It is very oily, 30% salt, and mud and other products from it are supposed to be very beneficial to skin. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/70bef1c4-766d-e077-75b5-b1d938e4fb80/8163bdad-5d4b-c986-42f9-e167d6aa0186.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:4032;"/><div>You cover yourself with mud, step in (water or other shoes are a must), scrape yourself on the boulders underneath that you can’t see, and…float! Arm strength is needed to move any other direction but backward.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/70bef1c4-766d-e077-75b5-b1d938e4fb80/26fc8d75-eca8-dd4c-d727-c8cc91cb9051.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:752; --en-naturalHeight:913;"/><div>Lots of fun, but the showers afterwards cleaned us up enough to enjoy the view from our East Jerusalem restaurant a bit later.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/70bef1c4-766d-e077-75b5-b1d938e4fb80/679fcfea-2328-eaa6-b68d-9ecbe7c35198.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:4032; --en-naturalHeight:3024;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/70bef1c4-766d-e077-75b5-b1d938e4fb80/bfddb619-d5a4-a3a7-2022-4eb6c93bd740.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:4032; --en-naturalHeight:3024;"/><div> Our bus had a flat tire so Ibrahim scrambled to find alternate transportation. He has a few friends that he called upon in the area since he lives here! A different bus brought us home again to pack after our 6 day Jerusalem stay.</div>
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<div><a rev="en_rl_none" href="https://wendy-jim.com/post/day-15-chagall-windows-at-hadassah-hospital-bethlehem">Previous</a></div>
<div><a href="https://wendy-jim.com/post/day-17-mount-of-olives-yad-vashem-and-travel-to-tel-aviv-long">Next</a></div>
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Day 15: Chagall windows at Hadassah Hospital, then to Bethlehemhttp://wendy-jim.com/post/day-15-chagall-windows-at-hadassah-hospital-bethlehem2023-05-26T18:26:07.337000Z2023-05-25T14:19:26ZJim and Wendy Damoulakis<div>Although not on the original itinerary, Ibrahim arranged for us to tour the famous Chagall windows. This was a fabulous opportunity as we would not have seen them otherwise. Hadassah Hospital, the most prominent and renowned medical facility in Israel, treats everyone who walks through their doors, from Prime Ministers and Kings to the poorest of the poor. If you are an Israeli citizen, you have excellent health service for less than $100/ month. If not, you pay what you can, sometimes nothing. </div>
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<div>After enjoying some beautiful sculpture in the hall, our guide gave us some history of Hadassah, founded by Henrietta Szold in 1912. After a trip to Jerusalem, she saw a crying need for nurses to help the poor and especially children. Little by little, the Hadassah movement sent nurses,and more money. Her organization "A drop of milk" is still very active around the world today. And, of course they eventually built not one but two huge hospitals in Jerusalem , one on the east of the city and this one, in Ein Karem in the west.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d4d9be28-1898-7674-c408-c6da4be8d4c3/e4477d63-8739-e0fc-ac02-d9d1f49b82d1.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d4d9be28-1898-7674-c408-c6da4be8d4c3/a35ef406-8807-a5f6-8bcd-e84c61e33193.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div>Then to the windows. Chagall was famously asked to make a set of windows for the synagogue in the hospital. His response: "what took you so long to ask"!</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d4d9be28-1898-7674-c408-c6da4be8d4c3/c0fc76e8-f480-5246-d02f-c4383fb7a524.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><div>The twelve windows each represent a son of Jacob, basis for the twelve tribes of Israel. Chagall used Jacob’s blessings for each of his sons as the basis for his design. He only signed one.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d4d9be28-1898-7674-c408-c6da4be8d4c3/6d974d13-2549-94ae-32db-83ee406a62b9.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2349;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d4d9be28-1898-7674-c408-c6da4be8d4c3/7cf1076a-eeba-0e10-d216-c0fdb45dec60.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2166;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d4d9be28-1898-7674-c408-c6da4be8d4c3/235c8053-d901-6ba4-46df-dc37ee344c50.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2747;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d4d9be28-1898-7674-c408-c6da4be8d4c3/eaf8944e-6247-0623-6e28-0c5e01cae468.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2223;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d4d9be28-1898-7674-c408-c6da4be8d4c3/e97d087b-79c4-1372-3508-699ad3f10fdc.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d4d9be28-1898-7674-c408-c6da4be8d4c3/0014a56b-4b27-2e75-11a3-73f553053e71.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2127;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d4d9be28-1898-7674-c408-c6da4be8d4c3/a1acb93c-db84-710b-6749-c95d1761ac05.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1553; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d4d9be28-1898-7674-c408-c6da4be8d4c3/cdda86e6-7ca8-a5c7-91d7-5d9a744115d2.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2099;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d4d9be28-1898-7674-c408-c6da4be8d4c3/05098195-34d3-c87c-e6cd-2a74e8e63fcc.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1630; --en-naturalHeight:2048;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d4d9be28-1898-7674-c408-c6da4be8d4c3/a7e24216-9888-886b-8f2e-7546474afda9.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2108;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d4d9be28-1898-7674-c408-c6da4be8d4c3/7e895395-dda3-4a66-7217-ef9b3b57a91d.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2045; --en-naturalHeight:2048;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d4d9be28-1898-7674-c408-c6da4be8d4c3/3e8f24b6-2d57-2497-f102-908e9683d1b0.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div>In the 1967 war, two of the windows were damaged. Chagall was asked if he would repair them. He left a little piece of clear glass towards the bottom to commentate the destruction.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d4d9be28-1898-7674-c408-c6da4be8d4c3/6216f3d7-8c7e-83c2-5a7a-26f351be0308.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d4d9be28-1898-7674-c408-c6da4be8d4c3/f5303c9b-9f6e-d42d-453d-81d0bdc66deb.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div>Onto another additional site to our itinerary: two churches in Bethlehem, another very holy site for Christianity as it is the birthplace of Jesus. Located in the Palestinian-controlled West Bank, it has unfortunately evolved into a very touristy town, lots of pushy street hawkers to push away, and small shops selling religious knickknacks. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d4d9be28-1898-7674-c408-c6da4be8d4c3/c2e63d9d-1929-bf13-bb68-a6be2637fa7c.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d4d9be28-1898-7674-c408-c6da4be8d4c3/7163d4b5-bac3-7221-12f1-7e9b23073979.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:4032;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d4d9be28-1898-7674-c408-c6da4be8d4c3/e6488f17-b5f6-a76e-9c8c-68451f215d0b.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:4032;"/><div>To get there we have to pass from the"C" zone of Jerusalem (Israeli-controlled) to the "A" zone (Palestinian controlled). We were told to bring passports to get back into Israel, but it turned out they were not needed on this day.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d4d9be28-1898-7674-c408-c6da4be8d4c3/ae48b6dc-d801-739f-6e00-e9e8086e52c5.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><div>The first stop here was the Church of the Shepherd’s Field where it is believed that the angel Gabriel appeared to the shepherds to announce the birth of Jesus ("Hark the Herald Angels Sing"). (According to Ibrahim, shepherds were the Twitterers of the day in terms of spreading news). </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d4d9be28-1898-7674-c408-c6da4be8d4c3/0ae928ee-7a5b-188c-e8fb-5e4565122e7e.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div><br/></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d4d9be28-1898-7674-c408-c6da4be8d4c3/ed920329-56a7-6960-acc3-b8c1a9e4914f.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d4d9be28-1898-7674-c408-c6da4be8d4c3/5f6b5371-5711-8d81-5f86-22a5541f8620.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d4d9be28-1898-7674-c408-c6da4be8d4c3/1b06ea5a-ebc8-10c5-324f-9f01bb2073c0.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d4d9be28-1898-7674-c408-c6da4be8d4c3/2a4e8fe8-b854-3f56-e2e6-38454ff4ee75.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div><br/></div>
<div>The site is also of interest in Judaism as Boaz, of second husband of Ruth fame also had his home and big field here. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d4d9be28-1898-7674-c408-c6da4be8d4c3/5c54bd23-53da-51aa-8575-28c2ecbaf8e3.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:4032;"/><div><br/></div>
<div>There were also caves underneath, usually not open, that had set ups of the birth and shepherds. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d4d9be28-1898-7674-c408-c6da4be8d4c3/f7b8e67a-f286-15f8-97b6-8f237b4af884.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><div>We made a stop at a touristy gift shop. It costs $100 for a bus to park at the Church of the Nativity. But… you can park for free if you bring your tour group into this shop🙃🙃. The bathrooms were nice…</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d4d9be28-1898-7674-c408-c6da4be8d4c3/cf01a2a1-5f75-72d2-f7dd-5151852f6829.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div>Next stop was the Church of the Nativity, built in 324 AD and is the only church that was never destroyed. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d4d9be28-1898-7674-c408-c6da4be8d4c3/567f874b-b14f-661a-1bce-5e2a075d7f9d.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d4d9be28-1898-7674-c408-c6da4be8d4c3/32de6748-0388-a9ba-fc5c-dc3701ad8062.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div>We entered through the "door of humility" to see a beautiful church with throngs of people inside. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d4d9be28-1898-7674-c408-c6da4be8d4c3/03e7e75e-a857-3228-2b91-06334c06f5cd.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d4d9be28-1898-7674-c408-c6da4be8d4c3/b85cbffa-b8bf-4899-d174-b087da83b101.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d4d9be28-1898-7674-c408-c6da4be8d4c3/e773ef5f-a392-43e6-4c7d-02e437655749.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d4d9be28-1898-7674-c408-c6da4be8d4c3/a17ce1b8-81a6-b70a-2b7f-fb1872252386.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><div>Most were waiting in line (for more than two hours we were told) to see the small "cave" where Jesus was born. It was also apparent that, for a small fee, you could pay the church workers and bypass the line. Ah! the tourist business!!</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d4d9be28-1898-7674-c408-c6da4be8d4c3/b45fd9d3-fbce-7c93-3930-b92d023cdbc5.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div>Free time this afternoon found us back in Jerusalem shopping and perusing the area not far from our hotel. It is in a great location! </div>
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<div>Dinner was at a " western" restaurant, the first one in awhile where the food was wonderful and high quality. </div>
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<div><a rev="en_rl_none" href="https://wendy-jim.com/post/day-14-pantry-packers-machane-yehuda-market-more-friends-of-friends-home-hosted-dinner">Previous </a></div>
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Day 14: Pantry Packers, Machane Yehuda (market), more friends of friends, home-Hosted Dinnerhttp://wendy-jim.com/post/day-14-pantry-packers-machane-yehuda-market-more-friends-of-friends-home-hosted-dinner2023-05-25T15:26:48.758000Z2023-05-24T13:04:57ZJim and Wendy Damoulakis<div>After a more relaxed breakfast, we headed to the bus for our visit to Pantry Packers which is part of Colel Chabad ,an ultra-orthodox Jewish charity founded in 1788(!). They work with municipal governments throughout the country to arrange monthly drop offs of dry goods, fresh vegetables, and a debit card of 500 shekels (about $135) per month to families in need, regardless of gender, religious or ethnic background.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/e7573b94-8f4d-923a-dc13-a90a7402ab77/3461ecad-a942-fbd4-70ac-e17b489e40ea.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div>O.A.T., through Grand Circle, its parent corporation, partners with them to assist in their mission as a way of "giving back" to the host country.</div>
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<div>We spent about two hours there, first hearing about what they do, then helping through an assembly line process, putting dry goods into bags, labeling,sealing and crating them. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/e7573b94-8f4d-923a-dc13-a90a7402ab77/6a5cb5c4-66f0-1427-e487-9d46f65ef8b0.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/e7573b94-8f4d-923a-dc13-a90a7402ab77/12959ac0-14b4-6436-e6da-61e7134d8977.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div>We looked so cute with our aprons and caps!</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/e7573b94-8f4d-923a-dc13-a90a7402ab77/76c8b247-1431-2082-90bc-2f98737aa077.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/e7573b94-8f4d-923a-dc13-a90a7402ab77/941a261b-4974-6c19-1b3f-8f6318cb9359.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:768; --en-naturalHeight:1024;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/e7573b94-8f4d-923a-dc13-a90a7402ab77/05d33c1e-9e4c-f702-1858-16b5a8886d61.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2048; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><div>Stopped for some street food (meh…), some ice cream,( getting better…),and then went into the largest market in Jerusalem, the Machane Yehuda.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/e7573b94-8f4d-923a-dc13-a90a7402ab77/3efb72d2-9860-b3d5-87e1-7873fe476d74.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:4032;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/e7573b94-8f4d-923a-dc13-a90a7402ab77/1909b186-561f-7c1b-fa13-d174bcaf9fe6.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/e7573b94-8f4d-923a-dc13-a90a7402ab77/8397aa75-7fe4-10d4-741d-5906462993b2.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div>Got a couple of things and then met with another friend of Debby’s, Maureen, who lives across the street from the market in the orthodox section.</div>
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<div>We spent a little time with her in a coffee shop, and she asked us what else we were looking for. We mentioned a mezuzah, so she directed us away from the market. Although we had hoped to spend more time with her, our schedule didn’t cooperate. Another time. ( She absolutely refused to let us take a picture, sorry to say).</div>
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<div>Our last trip of the day, really evening, led us to a lovely neighborhood in a residential area of Jerusalem where we met Esther, an orthodox mother of 10, grandmother of 23 who still works running a camp for girls, among other things. Her husband, who was not there, is a rabbi and scholar.</div>
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<div>As she fed us all a lovely traditional meal, she explained many of the traditions of Orthodox Judaism including dress, prayers, Torah, Mishnah and Talmud, and holidays. Even though Wendy knew a lot, we all learned quite a bit. Home for some rest, another early day tomorrow.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/e7573b94-8f4d-923a-dc13-a90a7402ab77/a25b4ef4-dd58-257d-6849-4ca2b55eef55.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1152; --en-naturalHeight:2048;"/><div><br/></div>
<div><a href="https://wendy-jim.com/post/day-13-jerusalem-the-old-city-very-long" rev="en_rl_none">Previous </a></div>
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Day 13: Jerusalem - The Old City (very long)http://wendy-jim.com/post/day-13-jerusalem-the-old-city-very-long2023-05-31T15:32:50.795000Z2023-05-23T13:20:18ZJim and Wendy Damoulakis<div>Finally, it was Sunday, with everything open again, we left very early as we had an early registration at the tunnels and Ibrahim wanted to take us to the Western Wall first.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/c83c4a37-9150-1331-6d7e-3c45ad55f903/4135b45d-4f46-0c0c-d01e-89c471ffeca1.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2043; --en-naturalHeight:1531;"/><div>The security was much heavier than usual everywhere for several important reasons. First, there was a Reform group, led by a woman rabbi praying, singing and even dancing to the side of the women’s section. This created shouting, hissing and spitting by the group of Orthodox men watching them. We saw no other protests, but it can easily (and does) often escalate.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/c83c4a37-9150-1331-6d7e-3c45ad55f903/7cc0d9a2-279a-fba0-919e-0ec0ae8de4f8.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1024; --en-naturalHeight:769;"/><div>Wendy found the experience of praying at the wall extremely emotional. It was very crowded and took awhile to make our way to the front, but once there, she and a few others from our group joined the hundreds of Orthodox women,as well as other tourists in prayer. Then men’s side was also very crowded. Jim and the other men from our group made our way into an inside area at the far end of the wall.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/c83c4a37-9150-1331-6d7e-3c45ad55f903/ceaadde4-9f3c-1288-a555-16e26184fcb6.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1024; --en-naturalHeight:769;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/c83c4a37-9150-1331-6d7e-3c45ad55f903/78b31b9f-fdb0-efce-3520-0a245eb1ece7.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1024; --en-naturalHeight:768;"/><div>From there, we went into the tunnels. They were excavated starting in 1967 and had been hidden for almost 2000 years. They were not open when we were there in 1976.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/c83c4a37-9150-1331-6d7e-3c45ad55f903/b836460f-4382-0e9f-b9df-1ffa945512c0.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:768; --en-naturalHeight:1024;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/c83c4a37-9150-1331-6d7e-3c45ad55f903/a311b9e7-3cb1-17cf-2408-f1f2eb2f2df1.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div>Alert readers will remember the word "several" before reasons for more security. It turns out that the Prime Minister, the President and a delegation from the Knesset were visiting today. Extra cameras were being set up, the guards and security people were clearly stressed, and our tour was slightly delayed. Luckily however, we were let in without further incident or delay. The VIPs did come later in the morning, but we were not aware of them.</div>
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<div>Another history lesson at the beginning of our tour through using a cute model of Mt. Scopus which Herod actually cut down to build the temple.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/c83c4a37-9150-1331-6d7e-3c45ad55f903/277fff5d-a944-cd25-e151-4e439b2f7edd.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/c83c4a37-9150-1331-6d7e-3c45ad55f903/252cabde-6c21-5390-09b9-e1ec052e971a.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2048; --en-naturalHeight:1583;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/c83c4a37-9150-1331-6d7e-3c45ad55f903/7c67c5d5-1c8d-10b5-9abe-dd4ce295d5eb.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div>These tunnels are filled with cisterns, and in several places you can see down into the more than the 230 feet just visible above ground. In several places you can easily see the massive pieces of stone that were used. They are over 100 feet long.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/c83c4a37-9150-1331-6d7e-3c45ad55f903/e5857695-9f82-ebf5-f17b-d0e41b749a71.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div><br/></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/c83c4a37-9150-1331-6d7e-3c45ad55f903/b35ff91f-18a4-de3d-15a7-8a44f5f03499.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/c83c4a37-9150-1331-6d7e-3c45ad55f903/358afcc7-9de4-6d09-d8c4-cec9afb0ffab.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/c83c4a37-9150-1331-6d7e-3c45ad55f903/0795cf29-487b-3d97-698a-fe38a2c85b30.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><div>Coming out of the tunnels, we started walking through the Christian quarter. We think we saw the monastery turned hostel that we stayed at 47 years ago near the Via Dolorosa! Ah, memories😝. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/c83c4a37-9150-1331-6d7e-3c45ad55f903/0576be09-ebaa-076c-310b-1f24fc88c3b5.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/c83c4a37-9150-1331-6d7e-3c45ad55f903/2bf0aab4-64a0-54a2-7598-8677f637643a.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/c83c4a37-9150-1331-6d7e-3c45ad55f903/ac87980a-8535-1f4c-8758-472afc6d209c.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1537;"/><div>At the end of the Christian quarter is the Church of the Holy Sepulchre where Jesus was crucified and buried. All the holy sites are massively crowded, and the key areas like the tomb have lines that circle all the way around and take hours.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/c83c4a37-9150-1331-6d7e-3c45ad55f903/35e343c0-4611-ff49-b521-e1c1ed475d3f.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:768; --en-naturalHeight:1024;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/c83c4a37-9150-1331-6d7e-3c45ad55f903/21156cc3-e74e-3548-83ba-710eff3ca93b.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:769; --en-naturalHeight:1024;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/c83c4a37-9150-1331-6d7e-3c45ad55f903/b5aa6006-3e4d-cc0d-efb0-d700b7b4ed6e.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:769; --en-naturalHeight:1024;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/c83c4a37-9150-1331-6d7e-3c45ad55f903/1a0d4bc4-afff-1d41-ba3f-1f615310fa02.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1024; --en-naturalHeight:768;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/c83c4a37-9150-1331-6d7e-3c45ad55f903/c4b70798-7ac0-6f91-f8b6-ce4542728fc7.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:768; --en-naturalHeight:1024;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/c83c4a37-9150-1331-6d7e-3c45ad55f903/a4af2df3-7810-74a7-ab09-7d5bb2a52454.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:769; --en-naturalHeight:1024;"/><div>A long walk through the Arab and then Jewish Quarters brought us to the cardo and the Hurva synagogue that is open and quite beautiful. The front has a huge menorah that is the meeting spot for many groups.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/c83c4a37-9150-1331-6d7e-3c45ad55f903/67fd8ce3-4529-2e13-f0a0-fbf11991dd6f.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:769; --en-naturalHeight:1024;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/c83c4a37-9150-1331-6d7e-3c45ad55f903/9e66d448-75b4-529b-cd40-7f23704cb387.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:769; --en-naturalHeight:1024;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/c83c4a37-9150-1331-6d7e-3c45ad55f903/5cb2e01b-32ce-03a0-6e15-2f4c58b23918.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:768; --en-naturalHeight:1024;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/c83c4a37-9150-1331-6d7e-3c45ad55f903/c99e648a-a657-3fb4-8594-1e551fae8400.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/c83c4a37-9150-1331-6d7e-3c45ad55f903/37feb455-c81e-46a5-4608-2de18c6a7b61.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/c83c4a37-9150-1331-6d7e-3c45ad55f903/a420384d-1aa0-1b19-e6d3-28f05e4d04a7.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/c83c4a37-9150-1331-6d7e-3c45ad55f903/9ae3d8f4-3940-9c69-d90e-207bc6a7c9ce.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div>From the old city we walked kind of towards our hotel until we found Gabriella’s Weaving, a shop recommended for tallit. We spent a bit of time there looking and asking questions. We were successful in finding just the right tallit for Stella’s Bat Mitzvah next year! </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/c83c4a37-9150-1331-6d7e-3c45ad55f903/cacb50e6-a533-ad7a-2a2a-5a014e7b51ae.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div>The walk home from there was about 10 minutes. We had bought tickets for the King David Tower light show that evening, and after a couple hours rest, and a call to wish Wendy’s mom a happy 96th birthday, we made a quick stop for a pizza dinner, then walked down again to the Jaffa gate for an incredible experience. </div>
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<div>Telling the story of the history of Jerusalem through videos projected on the buildings encompassing three sides of this outdoor theatre, we appreciated the artistry of its creators and loved every minute!</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/c83c4a37-9150-1331-6d7e-3c45ad55f903/d356d8ed-3762-330b-e322-eee5e6f8f3b9.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/c83c4a37-9150-1331-6d7e-3c45ad55f903/c5dd1e28-967d-d36d-9282-5e2ca256a522.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/c83c4a37-9150-1331-6d7e-3c45ad55f903/84ac121d-ca36-0a25-7f74-4b18d40b0835.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/c83c4a37-9150-1331-6d7e-3c45ad55f903/6d3c931e-1b96-e6cc-ed70-fe7b87cecef1.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/c83c4a37-9150-1331-6d7e-3c45ad55f903/b3c60352-0dde-f24e-0aa8-ad554d0c844c.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/c83c4a37-9150-1331-6d7e-3c45ad55f903/dbc761ab-9158-36d0-e3c9-481eb85672a6.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/c83c4a37-9150-1331-6d7e-3c45ad55f903/249a7f72-3fc8-42ec-cc82-8fb30c2ea85a.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/c83c4a37-9150-1331-6d7e-3c45ad55f903/cd0e050d-34c6-e95c-7b03-7444cb7dcd8a.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/c83c4a37-9150-1331-6d7e-3c45ad55f903/8afd63d9-1d3b-6551-9445-297246c16930.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/c83c4a37-9150-1331-6d7e-3c45ad55f903/68dbc1f6-cf08-1679-acaf-a6c91d303ecb.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><div>What a long day— well over 20,000 steps. But we get to sleep in tomorrow ( if you call breakfast at 8:15 sleeping in😆).</div>
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Day 12: “A Day in the Life”, Israel Museumhttp://wendy-jim.com/post/day-12-a-day-in-the-life-israel-museum2023-05-23T14:36:18.747000Z2023-05-22T18:33:02ZJim and Wendy Damoulakis<div>O.A.T. (Overseas Adventure Travel) sponsors a program called a Day in the Life. It gives an overview of the home life and the surrounding area of a person, family or group. Today, we drove to the Arab- Israeli village of Abu Ghosh, in East Jerusalem. Abu Ghosh has about 7000 predominantly Arab residents and has been described as "a model of coexistence". Arabs are about 20% of the population of Israel, about 2 million. During the 1948 war, the village remained neutral throughout the fighting and even lent support to its Israeli neighbors.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bb82f0d1-f6c6-9025-bb18-4ec728451aa5/a0ae7202-4623-7afb-3cd6-b5e36722f56b.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bb82f0d1-f6c6-9025-bb18-4ec728451aa5/7f21201e-b00a-714e-2f57-b32be272a89b.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div>Issa Jabber was our host all morning. A retired high school principal and former mayor of the town, he first met us at the Great Mosque. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bb82f0d1-f6c6-9025-bb18-4ec728451aa5/07225376-8508-b297-938d-8be139470df1.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div>It is pretty unusual for a group to " tour" a mosque, but we took off our shoes, women put on head coverings and we sat around in the nearly empty main area while he gave us a lecture 101 on Islam.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bb82f0d1-f6c6-9025-bb18-4ec728451aa5/82a145ee-306c-992e-c1e6-fca8148354be.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bb82f0d1-f6c6-9025-bb18-4ec728451aa5/9971aed3-9cbd-3803-e702-79a59d0c5ae7.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:4032;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bb82f0d1-f6c6-9025-bb18-4ec728451aa5/d16e1db8-897a-3ac6-373f-825d2f57f2f1.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:4032;"/><div>We learned about the 5 pillars of Islam, about each section of the mosque and got a sense of the pride he has in his role in building what is now the second largest mosque in Israel.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bb82f0d1-f6c6-9025-bb18-4ec728451aa5/a85ad7cf-d1e2-116a-f965-0d4e367f48e2.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:4032;"/><div>Onto the next stop, the very old Benedictine Abby of St. Mary with a below ground cistern, and incredibly resonant main area with portions of old frescoes still on the walls. He asked if someone wanted to try out the acoustics. Well, Jim volunteered Wendy who, after struggling to come up with something appropriate, sang Amazing Grace. It was very well received, and definitely proved the point.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bb82f0d1-f6c6-9025-bb18-4ec728451aa5/c9a0bc1a-a0e9-2f51-3f38-3440b317fdb0.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:4032;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bb82f0d1-f6c6-9025-bb18-4ec728451aa5/5cd876e8-3d5f-f9eb-0f17-445caf0dc641.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:4032;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bb82f0d1-f6c6-9025-bb18-4ec728451aa5/386f200a-2aaf-ee55-d88c-b92db58af549.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:4032;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bb82f0d1-f6c6-9025-bb18-4ec728451aa5/48b4f985-9243-364c-43ba-d540bd54ad66.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:4032;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bb82f0d1-f6c6-9025-bb18-4ec728451aa5/6de2186c-b92d-c9d6-88ad-7987a57a8736.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:4032;"/><div>Next was a major spread of lunch at his home. It was quite a compound, as his sons and their families live in extended sections, and he takes care of his mother.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bb82f0d1-f6c6-9025-bb18-4ec728451aa5/36a32aa0-b1be-d4f3-8b35-7e0b8a0a5027.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bb82f0d1-f6c6-9025-bb18-4ec728451aa5/bd3d01c7-912b-74f1-15b7-d054e4911818.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div>We loved the way he insisted on the complete attention of our group before speaking. A true teacher! His last lesson was on the tradition of serving coffee. Coffee means farewell, if you offer it immediately when people arrive it can be an insult as it means leave, get out of here! The head of the family has to serve coffee to the guests. Sometimes it is a negotiating tool. He talked about marriage customs. When a man wants to marry (and also with arranged marriages), a delegation is sent to the brides home. Discussions follow, when they have come to an agreement to seal the deal, coffee is served. If they don’t, there is no coffee. Both the family and the woman in question get three days to consider the offer. Surprisingly, these marriages have a very high percent of being successful. There were many more questions about this, but we had to leave.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bb82f0d1-f6c6-9025-bb18-4ec728451aa5/4a4c5243-d172-8f88-63e9-52e7c756b44e.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bb82f0d1-f6c6-9025-bb18-4ec728451aa5/793dec8b-e57f-802b-f4d2-72bd2c95f9fd.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div>Our last stop was the Israel Museum. Wendy wished she could be there for a week! Ibrahim gave us a history lesson in front of the model of the entire old city as it looked at the time of the second temple , explaining how each regime built it up or tore it down. It must be the largest model built, probably one- eighth of a mile on each of the four sides. It was brought painstakingly, section by section from another site about 20 years ago.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bb82f0d1-f6c6-9025-bb18-4ec728451aa5/3a874214-2a84-d327-231c-99aee6b5b621.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><div><br/></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bb82f0d1-f6c6-9025-bb18-4ec728451aa5/49c2514a-42c0-15b8-dd77-24546c2cacf6.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:4032; --en-naturalHeight:3024;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bb82f0d1-f6c6-9025-bb18-4ec728451aa5/a8b2fc52-446e-d8c5-f82f-eda43d897e09.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bb82f0d1-f6c6-9025-bb18-4ec728451aa5/1588695d-75df-a789-72bb-86c9f7f187b3.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div>Then to the Dead Sea Scrolls! These were found in the Qumran caves in the 1940s and 50s and contain many biblical texts. Only fragments are actually in the museum, they were found rolled up and took years of patient work to get them preserved to a point when you could actually read them. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bb82f0d1-f6c6-9025-bb18-4ec728451aa5/9f5c2686-5b95-22d1-b2e8-a39b2ce0dcf1.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2868; --en-naturalHeight:3148;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bb82f0d1-f6c6-9025-bb18-4ec728451aa5/5b7c1dea-89c9-6bcd-db07-570906ce2e18.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><div>Unfortunately no photography was allowed in this exhibit. Here’ll a published example:</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bb82f0d1-f6c6-9025-bb18-4ec728451aa5/91654ccb-e6c1-c3e6-8e61-72fcfe0e73d4.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:300; --en-naturalHeight:168;"/><div>The originals are actually stored underground in the vast storerooms of the museum. Only 10% of the museum’s holdings, including the scrolls are actually on display. Ibrahim once worked here and said it would be memorable to stay underground for a week to marvel at all that is there.</div>
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<div>We mostly visited the art section. There is also archeology, Jewish life and art and several temporary exhibits. Each section is vast and could easily take hours to do it justice. Here are about ten pictures of the 50 or so we took.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bb82f0d1-f6c6-9025-bb18-4ec728451aa5/1588fd6d-4878-b49d-2edc-53c9f10fc476.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bb82f0d1-f6c6-9025-bb18-4ec728451aa5/535d8fc2-b986-3a8e-2ee8-b62e8c44ace2.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bb82f0d1-f6c6-9025-bb18-4ec728451aa5/78628cb5-0e05-fea6-6687-f5513d788ac4.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bb82f0d1-f6c6-9025-bb18-4ec728451aa5/d420df5d-2856-06fb-2ed0-1e30cd56b952.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1537; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bb82f0d1-f6c6-9025-bb18-4ec728451aa5/1b8b9c03-5acf-0467-117b-cc55bdcf643f.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1537;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bb82f0d1-f6c6-9025-bb18-4ec728451aa5/62fed154-33f7-f9a3-2f04-e39b03bd45ec.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1537;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bb82f0d1-f6c6-9025-bb18-4ec728451aa5/cb02d653-701b-f639-065f-00f41dee4be1.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bb82f0d1-f6c6-9025-bb18-4ec728451aa5/015bcad4-fbf4-6257-7fa2-017f4153e1b4.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2098; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bb82f0d1-f6c6-9025-bb18-4ec728451aa5/e982201d-a378-3f8f-34ec-0f2b39837095.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bb82f0d1-f6c6-9025-bb18-4ec728451aa5/62ded8fc-9820-75b5-fe0a-628f6fd2f4cf.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bb82f0d1-f6c6-9025-bb18-4ec728451aa5/e46bf0d3-23d1-5784-e27e-a89e0d2605b6.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><div>We returned to our hotel and found a pub place, one of the few open for dinner. We were tired, if we had waited until after sundown, about 7:30 pm, everything would be open again.</div>
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Day 11: Traveling to Jerusalem through Christian Holy Sites, Shabbat dinner with friendshttp://wendy-jim.com/post/day-11-traveling-to-jerusalem2023-05-22T19:36:42.157000Z2023-05-22T05:54:57ZJim and Wendy Damoulakis<div>Our first stop after leaving the Golan Heights and our "basketed" breakfast was to go down, down, down to the Sea of Galilee. This morning was a mini pilgrimage to three holy sites. All were crowded with real pilgrimages of people from all over the world, and a Babel Tower of languages.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bc4bcc63-e5c6-d2bb-96e1-83f64719a4e9/b0ba1860-60c1-9142-e513-9f141038b7f0.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1024; --en-naturalHeight:769;"/><div>The Church of the Beatitudes, built near the site of Jesus’s Sermon of the Mount was beautiful, and grounds were well planted as well. The religious tour groups were gathered in several spots singing and praying.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bc4bcc63-e5c6-d2bb-96e1-83f64719a4e9/b5536652-6414-f9cf-c960-0f22f27f0c32.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bc4bcc63-e5c6-d2bb-96e1-83f64719a4e9/25233186-9e81-f20e-a137-bdb78bf72879.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bc4bcc63-e5c6-d2bb-96e1-83f64719a4e9/e4584c0e-2a44-54a8-e123-49154fbc956f.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:4032; --en-naturalHeight:3024;"/><div>Capernaum is an ancient 2000 year old Roman fishing village was where Jesus spent much of his adult life and gained a following. It is also the site of St. Peter’s home. On top of it is built a beautiful modern church. There is also the ruins of an ancient synagogue from the 4th century built on top on an older one. We also enjoyed views of the Sea of Galilee which lapped the nearby shores.</div>
<div><br/></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bc4bcc63-e5c6-d2bb-96e1-83f64719a4e9/b11b564d-2af1-22ae-e4b2-3ac08f048364.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:4032; --en-naturalHeight:3024;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bc4bcc63-e5c6-d2bb-96e1-83f64719a4e9/7e979588-dafe-a7b5-6e03-f0a68095b264.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:4032; --en-naturalHeight:3024;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bc4bcc63-e5c6-d2bb-96e1-83f64719a4e9/8364c5fd-87ed-16ab-ffac-0bec1dd079ac.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:4032;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bc4bcc63-e5c6-d2bb-96e1-83f64719a4e9/d92977c8-55ff-30ab-fb6d-28a143514b36.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:4032;"/><div><br/></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bc4bcc63-e5c6-d2bb-96e1-83f64719a4e9/9e186b2b-2bdd-9d08-cef8-5f52e8af4394.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1024; --en-naturalHeight:769;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bc4bcc63-e5c6-d2bb-96e1-83f64719a4e9/fb54e3f5-7aef-d20a-2e3c-3e83a6c2c12b.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1024; --en-naturalHeight:769;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bc4bcc63-e5c6-d2bb-96e1-83f64719a4e9/31a4062a-6af4-48b0-0fe3-aeb442d067ac.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1024; --en-naturalHeight:769;"/><div><br/></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bc4bcc63-e5c6-d2bb-96e1-83f64719a4e9/798a01e3-e2f1-49e4-83e3-ae6f48f55a1f.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bc4bcc63-e5c6-d2bb-96e1-83f64719a4e9/1fb4bbcf-76c9-24eb-bdfd-8e03c2e4ca1a.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bc4bcc63-e5c6-d2bb-96e1-83f64719a4e9/033aea63-b139-1bce-edc4-857a15dff684.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:769; --en-naturalHeight:1024;"/><div>Our last stop was in the ancient town of Tiberius, the second most important city in Judaism as it is the place where the Jews went after being banished from Jerusalem by the Romans. An ancient boat, nicknamed "the Jesus boat' was discovered on the shores of Galilee and we watched a fascinating video of how it was discovered in the 1980s, and, more importantly, transported to its present sight and maintained. The wood is so old that if not kept constantly moist and infused with preservatives it will disintegrate. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bc4bcc63-e5c6-d2bb-96e1-83f64719a4e9/18e513fc-07e9-129e-678a-82ce41f5447e.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2912; --en-naturalHeight:1793;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bc4bcc63-e5c6-d2bb-96e1-83f64719a4e9/5f7e14ec-4b0b-86ef-c362-a83d438690fc.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1024; --en-naturalHeight:769;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bc4bcc63-e5c6-d2bb-96e1-83f64719a4e9/c7b4bdc6-1ca8-4728-8748-bb6614aac7fe.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div>Nearby are the only beaches on the Sea of Galilee open for recreation. And overlooking that area was the outdoor restaurant where we had St. Peter’s fish,a form of tilapia. The tens of feral cats enjoyed the remainders, despite the warning to not feed them.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bc4bcc63-e5c6-d2bb-96e1-83f64719a4e9/ba1dac34-d090-53af-f787-7909ce7c23df.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div><br/></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bc4bcc63-e5c6-d2bb-96e1-83f64719a4e9/be989fea-4195-4089-72ba-25ee8376dfed.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div>After a very bumpy long ride, we reached our hotel in Jerusalem, the Leonardo Boutique. It is located close to both the old city and the Machane Yehuda, the huge market nearby. As everything was closing due to Shabbat, Ibrahim took us on a walking tour of the nearby area to get our bearings and for our fellow travelers to choose their dinner plans from limited offerings.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bc4bcc63-e5c6-d2bb-96e1-83f64719a4e9/ef28425d-3078-6e14-f4fd-bddb836ca714.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bc4bcc63-e5c6-d2bb-96e1-83f64719a4e9/a8421ba4-0ab1-bdad-70ed-c19081d8b817.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2257; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bc4bcc63-e5c6-d2bb-96e1-83f64719a4e9/4714a407-ad9a-c345-74f2-750b08727efa.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><div>We didn’t have that problem as tonight was our special Shabbat dinner at the home of Joe Federman and his lovely family. He is the son of friends of ours from Massachusetts and many many thanks to our good friend Rabbi Debby Hachen for arranging this!</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bc4bcc63-e5c6-d2bb-96e1-83f64719a4e9/e7055d1a-2ab2-8b81-28fb-e784b4522eab.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><div>Joe gave us a running commentary from the time he picked us up at our hotel to the time he dropped us off. He has lived in Israel for over twenty years, has an Israeli wife and three children, two of whom live at home and shared a delicious dinner with us. He is the bureau chief of the Associated Press in the Mideast and shared many facets of his fascinating job. His wife Carmit is a social worker at the nearby Hadassah hospital. They were so very kind to open their home to us and share a delicious Shabbat dinner. We learned a lot!</div>
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<div><a rev="en_rl_none" href="https://wendy-jim.com/post/day-10-golan-heights-off-road-jeep-excursion-and-more">Previous</a></div>
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Day 10: Golan Heights - Off Road Jeep Excursion and morehttp://wendy-jim.com/post/day-10-golan-heights-off-road-jeep-excursion-and-more2023-05-22T13:47:50.452000Z2023-05-20T16:34:16ZJim and Wendy Damoulakis<div>Today turned out to be a remarkable day. We set out from our cabins at Kibbutz Kfar Haruv to another kibbutz located 37 miles further north in the Golan Heights right at the cease fire line between Israel and Syria. </div>
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<div> At Kibbutz Merom Golan, we met Elon, a lifelong resident and active reservist in human intelligence in the Israeli army. With him (and three cohorts), we boarded a caravan of off-road vehicles and traveled over rugged terrain, around land-mined(!) fields, through anti-tank gullies to a point very near the border.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ad078a1b-60c3-30d5-c1b3-ba1d6a995cf7/99bd2861-0303-aab1-d1e1-86f7b90d2193.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ad078a1b-60c3-30d5-c1b3-ba1d6a995cf7/6b481a1d-f7ba-e08b-80cb-fce67091c5a0.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div>At that point, we saw several soldiers and a tank. Apparently there had been some alerts received overnight and there was concern of potential hostile activity so the soldier asked us to move further south. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ad078a1b-60c3-30d5-c1b3-ba1d6a995cf7/67613e65-28c9-d9ae-7d61-b5b6f9250254.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div>Elon had information about this but could not share specifics, and we relocated to a bombed out building that was, prior to 1967, the Syrian military command headquarters for the Golan Heights.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ad078a1b-60c3-30d5-c1b3-ba1d6a995cf7/46e3cf30-c75a-df25-2177-94a570678845.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ad078a1b-60c3-30d5-c1b3-ba1d6a995cf7/10d39456-f59d-2c78-9e1c-f31d039df5b0.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ad078a1b-60c3-30d5-c1b3-ba1d6a995cf7/de9477de-0e43-9d8f-511d-6cad3976e3d9.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1024; --en-naturalHeight:769;"/><div>Here, we exited the vehicles, and Elon proceeded to very eloquently enlighten us about almost incomprehensibly complex social political dynamics, both strategically and tactically, regarding the Golan Heights including the many players and interest groups. He systematically discussed both the overlapping and conflicting motivations of these various groups, the history of why and how we have are arrived at this point, and shared his perspective about what can and should be done.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ad078a1b-60c3-30d5-c1b3-ba1d6a995cf7/1ab56dce-f229-9a40-8332-6702ea5e2a00.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:769; --en-naturalHeight:1024;"/><div>We learned about the impact of the 1967 and 1973 wars, the causes and impact of the current chaos in Lebanon and Syria, the insidious machinations of Iran at multiple levels, and more.</div>
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<div>We had a very open discussion and came away with a much deeper understanding of the incredible challenges of finding a solution to an almost unsolvable problem. All of this took place against a backdrop of amazingly beautiful scenery.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ad078a1b-60c3-30d5-c1b3-ba1d6a995cf7/227e5d1f-c01d-66a2-2784-ba33c4675d87.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div>In a striking juxtaposition, we then boarded our bus to head to the nearby Druze village of Majdal Shams, a thriving and growing town in the Golan Heights.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ad078a1b-60c3-30d5-c1b3-ba1d6a995cf7/50e8df4d-e67c-cd9b-f692-2a7d654e3e3f.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><div>The Druze people are historically a breakaway sect from Islam and do not consider themselves Muslim. They have their own customs and religious practices. Their language is Arabic and they inhabit the Golan Heights as well as an area further south near Mount Carmel, as well as in Syria. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ad078a1b-60c3-30d5-c1b3-ba1d6a995cf7/44398fe7-3a48-5643-3512-710b5fe0f637.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:769; --en-naturalHeight:1024;"/><div>The Druze in the area of Majdal Shams are very hardworking and prosperous. They are also among the most well-educated in Israel. However, most Druze do not accept national citizenship of either Israel or Syria.</div>
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<div>We had an incredible lunch at a Druze restaurant, Al Yasmin, and then had yet another fascinating discussion with the son of the woman who owns the restaurant. Mazdi is a college educated young man who is a proud secular Druze. He explained that Druze children when they come of age must commit to either a religious or secular path. He talked about the challenges of non-citizenship, the difficulties of seeing family who live in Syria, and his very positive outlook for the future.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ad078a1b-60c3-30d5-c1b3-ba1d6a995cf7/4e7525ce-3880-1f26-6071-a386d5d36ce8.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ad078a1b-60c3-30d5-c1b3-ba1d6a995cf7/9c7b0821-6e6c-a1a7-c6c7-6e5ec0cdb695.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:769; --en-naturalHeight:1024;"/><div><br/></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ad078a1b-60c3-30d5-c1b3-ba1d6a995cf7/3a481ed4-cc33-3d06-c528-9f6a27f551fc.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div>We then made a stop at a Druze supermarket to pick up some supplies for an evening picnic back at our kibbutz overlooking the fantastic view.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ad078a1b-60c3-30d5-c1b3-ba1d6a995cf7/75e5d490-538b-5021-3531-bb2b08240832.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div>Overall, an amazing day.</div>
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Day 9: Elijah, Nazareth, knafee, Sea of Galilee, the Golan Heights (long)http://wendy-jim.com/post/day-9-elijah-nazareth-knafee-sea-of-galilee-the-golan-heights-long2023-05-20T17:46:05.162000Z2023-05-20T06:02:07ZJim and Wendy Damoulakis<div><br/></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/f9009e63-04be-3e7c-91fb-080427ae396c/f25766db-46fe-f7bc-7f92-6660bdd3d338.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:4032;"/><div>Today we said goodbye to Haifa and drove out of the city to a major biblical site in the town of Muhruqa in the Carmelite Mountains.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/f9009e63-04be-3e7c-91fb-080427ae396c/36460719-38cf-a90c-c676-a45b75cf6956.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:4032;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/f9009e63-04be-3e7c-91fb-080427ae396c/fc1e973b-b625-58e6-e92a-b4203e012b8b.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:4032;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/f9009e63-04be-3e7c-91fb-080427ae396c/4e442fd2-370b-a34a-49a2-5f9bec130cf6.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:4032;"/><div>Here, the Carmelites established a church as a shrine to the prophet Elijah. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/f9009e63-04be-3e7c-91fb-080427ae396c/53d1989b-6a47-061d-1fda-6c673ab96e4a.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><div>On this site, an important story, in the book of kings took place. It tells of the people who worshipped the idols of Baal versus the ones led by Elijah who worshipped the one God. The showdown, according to the story was the challenge by Elijah to see which god would light the fire for the offering. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/f9009e63-04be-3e7c-91fb-080427ae396c/debe5634-b633-f447-cd4c-80a347e7bf76.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><div>Ibrahim asked Wendy to read the story out loud, directly from the Bible.All those years of Sunday school education payed off because she knew how to pronounce all the names. Of course, having sung the oratorio "Elijah" by Mendelssohn didn’t hurt either. It was a beautiful moment.</div>
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<div>Next stop, the town of Nazareth, an Arab town that is considered the unofficial Arab capitol of Israel. It used to be predominantly Christian, but is now 80% Muslim, and is famous as the city from which Mary was told by the angel Gabriel that she would bear the son of God and where Jesus spent his boyhood. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/f9009e63-04be-3e7c-91fb-080427ae396c/335ff1f3-cf20-9d17-d17c-6ec736832a4d.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div>Unlike most tour groups that typically make a stop at the Church of the Annunciation and then head right back to the buses, Ibrahim wanted us to see the real Nazareth, and we walked through residential and market areas where there were no tourists. Nazareth is not a particularly friendly tourist town and is known for its corruption, little or no developmental planning, and crime relating to drugs. Still, we felt safe there and didn’t see any of that. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/f9009e63-04be-3e7c-91fb-080427ae396c/5fcf3bc7-f362-4e05-c1cd-40d5ea8c0a65.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:4032;"/><div>Ibrahim had a couple of good reasons for taking us through. The first, and probably most important one was bringing us to the shop of his friend, Azmi, to watch him make knafee, the same delicious snack we had previously in Jordan, but this one was made a bit differently. Azmi spread ghee in a pan, then added a flour/ water dough mixture tamping it down to make it even. He added cheese which has an Arabic name— a mixture of cow and goat milk. When it was settled evenly in the pan, he put it on a grill that rotated around for maybe 5 minutes. He expertly flipped it over, poured some sugar water over it and let it cook for another minute or two. Sprinkle some pistachios on top, cut it, and voila! Knafee! Deee-licious!</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/f9009e63-04be-3e7c-91fb-080427ae396c/e83e0232-864d-a06b-8ec2-13498d5de83a.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2358; --en-naturalHeight:2465;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/f9009e63-04be-3e7c-91fb-080427ae396c/570d206a-f1da-5e32-97d5-8fd46f7fbe94.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:4032;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/f9009e63-04be-3e7c-91fb-080427ae396c/b7f7b28a-e113-ca07-34a2-09d7a556ca89.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:4032;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/f9009e63-04be-3e7c-91fb-080427ae396c/ce4b7cab-f75a-da5a-63f8-5b52f84462be.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:4032;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/f9009e63-04be-3e7c-91fb-080427ae396c/f8920f37-819f-8fa8-e80d-438f0d92f80c.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:4032;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/f9009e63-04be-3e7c-91fb-080427ae396c/4805767e-fd8a-e23d-d2ec-4e34e2315606.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:4032;"/><div>What was even more engaging however, was his story which he shared with us as he was preparing the dish. Like a fair number of people in Nazareth, he was a drug addict. His parents were not supportive of him. This went on for quite a few years until he finally accepted help from his mother and went to rehab to start the road to recovery. He inherited this shop from his grandfather, and has been sober 7+ years, is now married and has a little girl, and is doing ok. In a break from Arab tradition, he named his shop in honor of his mother, Ali. Evidently, Ibrahim had quite a lot of influence in supporting his road to recovery. It was a very moving story, it was also evident that Ibrahim was very proud of his role.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/f9009e63-04be-3e7c-91fb-080427ae396c/73f05cce-2806-d9c5-519a-4c3389fc7e25.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:4032;"/><div>We walked through the alleyways and the little market on the tiny streets of Nazareth,finally arriving at the church, Basilica of the Annunciation. Many tourists walked through the modern and beautiful church, built upon at least two others churches immediately below it.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/f9009e63-04be-3e7c-91fb-080427ae396c/351a772b-0a18-5305-a782-0205b0de616b.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3814; --en-naturalHeight:2860;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/f9009e63-04be-3e7c-91fb-080427ae396c/84b07235-4656-15ec-5f51-89346465e4b1.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:4032;"/><div>Many countries have a floor to ceiling panel here celebrating Mary. The US panel is pretty unique.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/f9009e63-04be-3e7c-91fb-080427ae396c/6903a6d0-3780-3fd6-693b-1b9d1d046c1e.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:4032;"/><div>Lunch was at a Schwarma place, a real fast food operation.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/f9009e63-04be-3e7c-91fb-080427ae396c/53922441-2bf3-6ab6-e962-8486697a2902.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:4032;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/f9009e63-04be-3e7c-91fb-080427ae396c/cc881447-1213-8d45-e344-f2dfb43c2b58.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div>Then onto our final stop along the Jordan River, now a very small river, in some places, a stream. It was called Yardenit, the Galilee Baptismal site. John the Baptist was supposed to have baptized Jesus in the Jordan River in a different location, but many Christian pilgrims come here. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/f9009e63-04be-3e7c-91fb-080427ae396c/82c2c6cb-4fcf-c305-ce6e-26e7f2197c50.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/f9009e63-04be-3e7c-91fb-080427ae396c/270783eb-c402-36c1-5d07-f6712128f6d1.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:4032;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/f9009e63-04be-3e7c-91fb-080427ae396c/12f32d9d-e02d-d2e5-8388-e36e0f35f7f7.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:4032;"/><div>The entire place is a huge tourist trap, from the $1 fee to use the toilets, to the baptisms themselves. If you are not with a pilgrimage trip that has its own priest, you have to "rent a priest" ahead of time with a per head price for each person in your group. I guess it’s obvious that we were not impressed.</div>
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<div>The Sea of Galilee, also called Lake Kinneret is the largest fresh water lake in Israel, and the first sight of it is beautiful despite the haze.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/f9009e63-04be-3e7c-91fb-080427ae396c/a18024a4-79cb-ba89-309f-a9827b7f98b1.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:4032; --en-naturalHeight:3024;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/f9009e63-04be-3e7c-91fb-080427ae396c/79a34de4-5214-a61c-67f4-afbd573e341b.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:4032; --en-naturalHeight:3024;"/><div>Overlooking the lake is the Kibbutz Kfar Haruv (Haruv means carob). They have built beautiful wood cabins and flowered, peaceful paths to get to them. Inside, it is fairly rustic with a small kitchen area and tight bedroom. Wifi was problematic but the beauty and peacefulness of the place, called "Peace Vista" was welcomed by all.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/f9009e63-04be-3e7c-91fb-080427ae396c/c933f9d1-4cf4-6cda-8959-9ea641872bca.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div>Before dinner in the community dining room, we had a talk by Joel, one of the founding members of this kibbutz who explained how it worked, both when he came in 1973, and the many changes that make it very different today. Kibbutz’s started as pure socialistic agricultural collectives - from each according to his ability, to each according to his needs. </div>
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<div>Today, they have evolved to become somewhat capitalistic. In many ways they resemble corporations owned by the members. The members get salaries which are tied to the quality and kind of work they do but still have communal goals. They now live in individual houses (versus tents in 1973) and a shared system of government with committees, voting, etc. Most votes are a majority-51%, and if you’re not happy…leave! They also have diversified beyond agriculture to industry and hospitality. Members of the kibbutz receive dividends based on the performance of their various investments.</div>
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<div>Joel took us over to the dining room which we had to ourselves. On this kibbutz, the residents get one meal each day—lunch, and also Shabbat dinner.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/f9009e63-04be-3e7c-91fb-080427ae396c/6d170410-2e5a-88ca-0bea-0cb9165c77f6.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div>Before going into dinner he showed us two large Eucalyptus trees. Before 1967, this was all Syrian land. One of the most famous Israeli spies who penetrated deep into Syria was named Eli Cohen, aka "our man in Damascus". He suggested to the Syrian army that they needed shade in the dessert. So they planted some eucalyptus trees on top of all their underground bunkers. Well, duh! That made it very easy for the Israelis to find the army camps. The dining room is actually built on top of one and is used as a protective bunker if necessary. There are several other " protected areas" scattered across the kibbutz.</div>
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Day 8: Akko and Rosh HaNikrahttp://wendy-jim.com/post/day-8-akko-and-rosh-hanikra2023-05-20T14:40:57.619000Z2023-05-18T17:31:00ZJim and Wendy Damoulakis<div>Another UNESCO World Heritage site visited today, the crusader city of Akko. It is spelled three different ways ( including Acre). Ibrahim is a deep lover of all things historical and could go on for hours making history come alive. But he also knows when to stop ( usually when our eyes glaze over 😜😜) and today combined a lot of important history with the beauty of nature.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/0c277c77-449d-b35b-6244-f649b5b0400d/fb3e95d1-5fee-6732-8a21-2850cf8763eb.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/0c277c77-449d-b35b-6244-f649b5b0400d/806ab49b-7e30-05f2-24e0-e142370086de.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><div>A huge section of the old city is the Citadel—the ruins of a complex of buildings built for the Crusaders in about 1099. We walked through the Church, and Knights’ Halls, a series of vaulted halls below street level where they lived, had a marketplace, and worshipped. (The Crusaders were mostly monks who were dissatisfied with their lives and were promised wealth and land to join the cause).</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/0c277c77-449d-b35b-6244-f649b5b0400d/9ab1e1a0-6d23-b292-d1d5-300303e07149.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div><br/></div>
<div>We saw the courtyard, discovered when an early 20th century attempted Ottoman prison escape went south literally (ha ha), and they dug right into the ruins of the Crusaders Citadel.</div>
<div>These civilizations were built right on top of one another as we also know from archeological digs in other countries.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/0c277c77-449d-b35b-6244-f649b5b0400d/a7f1eed7-322d-ae12-9a1a-dc13d3454f52.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/0c277c77-449d-b35b-6244-f649b5b0400d/042a60c2-8789-128c-52a3-678e13df8be0.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><div>Another room was the Refectory, or dining room. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/0c277c77-449d-b35b-6244-f649b5b0400d/87cc368a-1c54-cce3-c65f-678af4eb1f7d.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><div>Leaving the Citadel, we began our walk through the town. We immediately ran into a roadblock. They were filming a movie on the street and wouldn’t let us through! Ibrahim pushed his way through, otherwise we would have had to walk an extra mile or so around.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/0c277c77-449d-b35b-6244-f649b5b0400d/96581dc6-fe97-6dfa-0fee-6a0fcdf86564.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div>Now on track, we visited a former Turkish Bathhouse. The Ottomans brought this custom to the Mideast and greatly improved the hygiene of those times. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/0c277c77-449d-b35b-6244-f649b5b0400d/b221a908-b858-883b-5f2d-783ade65c4e4.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><div><br/></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/0c277c77-449d-b35b-6244-f649b5b0400d/9b4ca0f6-1673-0de7-734b-71e2869d8e9e.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><div>Walking towards the market, we passed Arab homes. Arabs are required to make a "hadj" and this home was proudly displaying the banner they received when doing so. It is also a status symbol.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/0c277c77-449d-b35b-6244-f649b5b0400d/298c53cc-0bde-df2a-c69f-3b5f491a3be7.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div>In Haifa, we mentioned earlier, most Jews and Arabs coexist in harmony. This was true here at one time. In recent years, unfortunately, this has not been the case.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/0c277c77-449d-b35b-6244-f649b5b0400d/63c0877a-bd44-d3d9-06c5-33c3d50b2b19.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div>A 40 minute drive north left history behind and brought us literally to the border of Lebanon and the town of Rosh HaNikra, a scenic spot on the Mediterranean. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/0c277c77-449d-b35b-6244-f649b5b0400d/09f2e4d6-fc5d-69f1-2333-54e5886de73b.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:4032;"/><div>Taking a cable car down a steep incline we followed a path into a cave to view about four or five little grottos hidden in niches in the rocks. Blue Grotto aside, these were gorgeous and a nice reminder of how beautiful nature can be.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/0c277c77-449d-b35b-6244-f649b5b0400d/18f11077-8928-f3a9-0811-9e668feb8eb2.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:4032;"/><div><br/></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/0c277c77-449d-b35b-6244-f649b5b0400d/1eb72c5a-eea5-5b40-f937-3fbebbc2207b.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/0c277c77-449d-b35b-6244-f649b5b0400d/e8e9786a-b1ca-3dce-a6ed-656c30d0529d.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:4032;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/0c277c77-449d-b35b-6244-f649b5b0400d/6bb5002d-88b0-773f-5135-843363b126ea.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div>We relaxed on the hour trip back to Haifa where we took a walk and stopped for some pizza for dinner— kind of a nice change of pace from mid eastern food. </div>
<div><a href="https://wendy-jim.com/post/day-7-caesarea-national-park-best-falafel-in-wadi-nisnas-bahai-gardens" rev="en_rl_none">Previous </a></div>
<div><a href="https://wendy-jim.com/post/day-9-elijah-nazareth-knafee-sea-of-galilee-the-golan-heights-long" rev="en_rl_none">Next</a></div>
Day 7: Caesarea National Park, best falafel in Wadi Nisnas, Baha’i Gardenshttp://wendy-jim.com/post/day-7-caesarea-national-park-best-falafel-in-wadi-nisnas-bahai-gardens2023-05-18T18:34:39.055000Z2023-05-17T17:33:36ZJim and Wendy Damoulakis<div><br/></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/71aa0dc3-e2fa-73e6-c05e-d8f37e48f32a/5cb1d3c8-2e69-865b-cf5e-fef839f05ce8.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><div>Today’s overview of Haifa took us first to Caesarea National Park, a major Roman ruin area on the coast between Tel Aviv and Haifa that is still being excavated. Originally an ancient Phoenician port, it was rebuilt as a Roman city by King Herod in 22-10 BCE and dedicated by him to Caesar Augustus</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/71aa0dc3-e2fa-73e6-c05e-d8f37e48f32a/bfe76c64-f269-3b79-9778-adbbe9ae1903.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/71aa0dc3-e2fa-73e6-c05e-d8f37e48f32a/044863f2-c6e0-1ee8-a12b-e5446592410b.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:4032;"/><div>A restored amphitheater, a hippodrome,, a Medusa sarcophagus, and the palace area were set against the beautiful backdrop of the Mediterranean Sea. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/71aa0dc3-e2fa-73e6-c05e-d8f37e48f32a/db175433-0ac9-687a-5eed-28ed47d1281f.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:4032; --en-naturalHeight:3024;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/71aa0dc3-e2fa-73e6-c05e-d8f37e48f32a/15344233-4f44-a949-c2e5-440e9bf490f4.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:4032;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/71aa0dc3-e2fa-73e6-c05e-d8f37e48f32a/7cc42711-cd12-b625-0f76-c8abbbd301d6.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:4032; --en-naturalHeight:3024;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/71aa0dc3-e2fa-73e6-c05e-d8f37e48f32a/e66d7fe9-bdb1-3d79-40fb-517606e0da8e.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/71aa0dc3-e2fa-73e6-c05e-d8f37e48f32a/e9ed6636-bcc8-8c02-d14e-cdd9b44ee4f3.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:4032; --en-naturalHeight:3024;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/71aa0dc3-e2fa-73e6-c05e-d8f37e48f32a/0e00064e-87dd-dc18-4178-dab35478b60c.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/71aa0dc3-e2fa-73e6-c05e-d8f37e48f32a/05da6364-f7a3-797d-52f7-aede9300ad24.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div><br/></div>
<div>We finished the tour with a quick trip about a mile away where the ruins of the aqueduct system was right next to the beach. A few swimmers dotted the coastline, but we used it as a photo op.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/71aa0dc3-e2fa-73e6-c05e-d8f37e48f32a/fae30a57-d613-dc05-d578-c790e6468c69.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/71aa0dc3-e2fa-73e6-c05e-d8f37e48f32a/e5e76361-9ec9-80dc-2d80-76c55a82040f.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1791;"/><div>Driving about 35 minutes to Wadi Nisnas, a mixed Jewish and Arab neighborhood, we had the best falafel of the trip so far. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/71aa0dc3-e2fa-73e6-c05e-d8f37e48f32a/59233d8d-1af4-a76b-c504-0f6805924fb7.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><div>Ibrahim explained that the two main reasons that Jews and Arabs get along so well in Haifa is that they often work side by side in the huge industry of refining oil from other parts of the world that come thru Israel, and, secondly, there are no holy sites in Haifa to cause arguments!</div>
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<div>Our last stop of the day followed a long drive up to the Hadar area at the top of Haifa. It offered beautiful views of the famous Baha’i Gardens. Sadly, you could enter the gardens but only see two levels of outside plants, mostly geraniums and are not allowed anywhere else.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/71aa0dc3-e2fa-73e6-c05e-d8f37e48f32a/239206be-e4a8-e949-1eb7-564a76587526.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/71aa0dc3-e2fa-73e6-c05e-d8f37e48f32a/4deaa2d5-7e86-5110-7c06-846941cfaea5.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div>Although looking down ( and up the huge hill from the front in this picture taken at night from a fellow traveler) is quite beautiful, it was finished by the fact that the rest of the gardens were inaccessible. Ibrahim blamed this on tourist littering and disrespectful behavior in the past.</div>
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<div>Dinner tonight was our official " Welcome Dinner". Dining at a restaurant named "Shtroudl" whose name reflects its location in the German colony area However, the food was a mix of good middle eastern/ Israeli food, and a few Italian dishes designed to please the tourists.</div>
<div>We opted for stuffed zucchini.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/71aa0dc3-e2fa-73e6-c05e-d8f37e48f32a/ed228f2c-f25f-dbf7-d80f-8d1bbb9b48d7.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div><a href="https://wendy-jim.com/post/day-6-goodbye-jordan-hello-israel" rev="en_rl_none">Previous</a></div>
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Day 6: Goodbye Jordan, Hello Israelhttp://wendy-jim.com/post/day-6-goodbye-jordan-hello-israel2023-05-18T03:31:48.772000Z2023-05-16T14:52:04ZJim and Wendy Damoulakis<div>Another 7 AM departure, and time to say goodbye to the amazing city of <a href="https://wendy-jim.com/post/day-5-petra" rev="en_rl_none">Petra</a> -- and to Jordan. Traveling through the other side of the Al Sharah mountains, we passed through the tribal housing area, and then wound our way up and down the scenic mountains, complete with switchbacks and hairpin turns, following the scenic rock formations and flora and fauna. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/debe54ea-c049-e5db-44f8-d946c8b49151/5fe79062-0f7f-e397-7e50-50f6b7edf1c6.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:768; --en-naturalHeight:1024;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/debe54ea-c049-e5db-44f8-d946c8b49151/9571a722-b0e4-8945-930f-64a14a11af5e.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/debe54ea-c049-e5db-44f8-d946c8b49151/89ec412a-3af7-9f1a-2fd6-e481352387b5.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div>Our first rest stop was looking across the Jordan River Valley, posing on a homemade swing. The very primitive facilities were across the street. (Speaking of which, there are mostly western toilets here, but most with no tp except your own which never goes into the toilet but into a side wastebasket. Hand drying, if there is enough water to wash is not unusual. Hotels are much better with good quality, and if you’re lucky, enough tp.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/debe54ea-c049-e5db-44f8-d946c8b49151/0ea99748-3d07-1efb-df5b-5310c96666e7.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div>Along the King’s Highway, we passed camel caravans, trucks carrying fresh produce and saw small farms, settlements and the salt drying from the Dead Sea to make potash. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/debe54ea-c049-e5db-44f8-d946c8b49151/d98239ea-9935-4c01-f8c8-bac5ef4670d5.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/debe54ea-c049-e5db-44f8-d946c8b49151/8595183b-6ce3-c5a4-b1fa-c179c63b172f.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/debe54ea-c049-e5db-44f8-d946c8b49151/4d1b5061-bdec-da87-e8ef-758f0a17af60.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/debe54ea-c049-e5db-44f8-d946c8b49151/1e1fdb81-9c83-a9fa-dcf7-ad8e2b50fe2d.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1537; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/debe54ea-c049-e5db-44f8-d946c8b49151/72f658f5-a715-8b4c-015f-ddca2a47ccdc.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:768; --en-naturalHeight:1024;"/><div>Patience was the word of the day. We arrived at the Jordanian/Israeli border at the King Hussein bridge at about 11:15. In some ways, it reminded me of being in China where there were some kind of formalities many times over,with each government official or entity having its moment in the sun. Passports were collected three times.</div>
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<div>At 12:00 we said goodbye to Mohamed and our bus driver. You need a separate driver to drive across the bridge into Israel, passing through two checkpoints. Our driver finally arrived at about 12:45. The first checkpoint took another 40 minutes, then second one about ten. The King Hussein bridge finally becomes the Allenby bridge and at that point, we were officially in Israel! Mohamed had good connections because we somehow avoided the long security and luggage search in Israel. At about 1:45 we finally met our new guide, Ibrahim and started our two hour plus drive to Haifa.</div>
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<div>60% of Israel is arid desert which leaves 40% as cultivated farmland and cities or small towns. The entire size of Israel is about the size of New Jersey. Leading industries of Israel include 1) military technology, 2)agricultural products 3) software 4)diamonds. It is interesting to note that tourism doesn't even rank in the top ten.</div>
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<div>We passed beautiful green areas of palm date plantations (a huge crop here - and very delicious!), bananas, tomatoes and watermelons as well as some wheat fields and a coal-based electric power plant. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/debe54ea-c049-e5db-44f8-d946c8b49151/ed64d98d-cd66-5828-358a-e40d8f8905d6.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1537; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/debe54ea-c049-e5db-44f8-d946c8b49151/d54c773c-7357-7421-74d5-0c48218926e4.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/debe54ea-c049-e5db-44f8-d946c8b49151/b7e0613d-61c3-71b5-d234-7bfed58d7f89.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/debe54ea-c049-e5db-44f8-d946c8b49151/fd60b2fd-a012-89da-988f-db09a5234003.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div>Ibrahim, a native Arab Christian Israeli, has an intense style, very direct and concise and is not afraid to tackle any subject. He has already shared with us his thoughts on the political situation and the current attacks from Gaza into Israel. The media, on all sides, has been hyping this, but the rockets have all been destroyed by Israeli forces and a cease fire was declared two days ago. But evidently it did scare away some tour groups who cancelled , so he thanked us for coming.</div>
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<div>Our day ended with checking into our modern boutique hotel, the Schumacher, in an area known as the German colony in Haifa. We had a wonderful conversation with Ibrahim who joined us halfway through our dinner at a local restaurant.</div>
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Day 5: Petra!!http://wendy-jim.com/post/day-5-petra2023-05-16T17:49:23.516000Z2023-05-15T12:18:59ZJim and Wendy Damoulakis<div>Petra is considered to be one of the new seven wonders of the world, and we eagerly anticipated coming here. To put it simply, it is something that must not be missed. It was the highlight of our trip thus far.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ba01dbc6-eb18-2efc-5964-4ea4d3f82b8f/e0766aab-8d62-e367-272b-98cdc7273a94.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:769; --en-naturalHeight:1024;"/><div>The ancient archeological city of Petra is located in southern Jordan about 300 kilometers south of Amman in the Al Sharah mountains. We left our hotel at 7 am and walked the 50 yards to the entrance— very nice! </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ba01dbc6-eb18-2efc-5964-4ea4d3f82b8f/c241dc01-d5f2-54ad-6858-35c8370d1c1f.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div>The first of hundreds of things that our guide Mohammad pointed out to us was way up— Aaron’s grave at the top of a huge hill. It is white. So, after seeing Moses’s last known place yesterday, Aaron’s today, my question to Mohammed was " and where is Miriam buried?" Inquiring minds want to know. He did not.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ba01dbc6-eb18-2efc-5964-4ea4d3f82b8f/10bbf99b-4f1b-6dd9-5c1e-4b57a0eb2a71.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><div>Petra (meaning "rock") was the Greek name. The modern Arabic name derives from the name of the river that flows down the valley—the Wadi Musa (River of Moses). It was the capital city of the Nabataeans, a nomadic tribe descended from the Maccabees who literally carved the city into the sandstone mountains. The prosperity of the Nabataean kingdom reached its peak between 9 BC and 40 AD but different groups kept carving and adding facades into the sandstone cliffs for several hundred years.</div>
<div><br/></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ba01dbc6-eb18-2efc-5964-4ea4d3f82b8f/f308432d-cea8-6c14-7772-9dadb333a137.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1024; --en-naturalHeight:769;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ba01dbc6-eb18-2efc-5964-4ea4d3f82b8f/e286e9f4-ac3c-e2a3-ff29-6d965ea9ef21.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1024; --en-naturalHeight:769;"/><div>As we started our 6 mile walk through Petra, we passed hundreds of rock formations made more interesting by the streaks of morning sun hitting different sections.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ba01dbc6-eb18-2efc-5964-4ea4d3f82b8f/ac9ff165-8e45-9cc9-bbc9-9b47cd0a9204.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ba01dbc6-eb18-2efc-5964-4ea4d3f82b8f/5d0a2440-c488-9e04-46d3-d17f8a0b5f24.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><div>About ⅓ of a mile in, we reached a dam. A sophisticated system of aqueducts and pipes channeled water along the sides and sometimes above to deliver water to the city, but the dam was built to protect the valley from flash floods.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ba01dbc6-eb18-2efc-5964-4ea4d3f82b8f/22ef0889-4562-8077-e644-fa22bd2e40a9.png" style="--en-naturalWidth:480; --en-naturalHeight:640;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ba01dbc6-eb18-2efc-5964-4ea4d3f82b8f/5233ce4f-d711-7e5b-3399-1d83541c54f4.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div>A narrow gorge called the Siq is 1.2 km long and presents a dramatic entry into the Treasury. It reminded us of Antelope Canyon in Arizona.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ba01dbc6-eb18-2efc-5964-4ea4d3f82b8f/9c4184c2-5f3f-1d8a-1dbe-6bdd5baef76e.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div><br/></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ba01dbc6-eb18-2efc-5964-4ea4d3f82b8f/2bab91a6-f9fd-4896-9b6e-5d9daf8e1632.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:4032;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ba01dbc6-eb18-2efc-5964-4ea4d3f82b8f/5b3a33c7-ebc5-42fb-afae-5c4e05a4c87e.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:4032;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ba01dbc6-eb18-2efc-5964-4ea4d3f82b8f/01f62709-1de4-9d13-f24c-a8b7bb2dc9f6.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div>The Siq opens up into Petra’s most famous and magnificent structure called The Treasury, so named from a legend says that an Egyptian Pharaoh built it to house his treasure. It is almost 40 meters high and crowned by a funerary urn on top of the Corinthian columns. Even this early in the morning, it was packed with tourists, as well as donkeys, camels and golf carts to aid the weary travelers in getting to the other parts of the site. You might remember seeing it in "Indiana Jones and The Last Crusade".</div>
<div><br/></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ba01dbc6-eb18-2efc-5964-4ea4d3f82b8f/89e42c8e-7e29-3c46-6623-d9e16c14d8a5.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div><br/></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ba01dbc6-eb18-2efc-5964-4ea4d3f82b8f/75daba42-c6be-71d4-2c26-ae0c169fec75.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div><br/></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ba01dbc6-eb18-2efc-5964-4ea4d3f82b8f/cfdf14db-b540-a634-8b7a-fb58fdbd6042.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1024; --en-naturalHeight:769;"/><div>We kept walking on the mostly resurrected stone path, sometimes walking over the original larger stones. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ba01dbc6-eb18-2efc-5964-4ea4d3f82b8f/f58fc037-45f3-2853-28e4-986faf1099f0.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1024; --en-naturalHeight:769;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ba01dbc6-eb18-2efc-5964-4ea4d3f82b8f/d3ce5260-6b30-f93c-5312-622b9764e670.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1024; --en-naturalHeight:769;"/><div>We passed the Theatre, the only theatre in the world carved into the side of the mountain, and after a long stretch, passed the Royal Tombs. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ba01dbc6-eb18-2efc-5964-4ea4d3f82b8f/e23639c5-a279-cc68-dc96-35708f4c2af7.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ba01dbc6-eb18-2efc-5964-4ea4d3f82b8f/8b730e61-7270-afaf-202b-300b33771f20.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ba01dbc6-eb18-2efc-5964-4ea4d3f82b8f/2da2cb45-1a05-a42b-1928-1f364809fa19.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1024; --en-naturalHeight:769;"/><div> At this point we were about three miles in and pretty exhausted. We walked down the Colonnaded street just in time to arrive at our lunch destination, a huge restaurant that accommodated the hundreds of tourists.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ba01dbc6-eb18-2efc-5964-4ea4d3f82b8f/6600936e-3103-5161-ca3c-da54fee70f73.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1024; --en-naturalHeight:769;"/><div>From this point, there are many trails (mostly unmarked) that meander through various sights. The most famous is the one that takes you straight up about 1.6 miles and over 850 steps to the Monastery, one of the largest buildings at Petra. Some of our hiking friends would try this in a heartbeat, but as we had 3-plus miles to walk for our return trip, we passed 😢😢. </div>
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<div>We opted instead to go back on an alternate trail that led us upwards to The Church, a Byzantine church probably built in the 5th century, and mostly destroyed by fire or earthquake in the following century. It does have a famously preserved mosaic floor.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ba01dbc6-eb18-2efc-5964-4ea4d3f82b8f/e0b3baf5-431a-b96c-b4a4-2539a194cabe.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1024; --en-naturalHeight:769;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ba01dbc6-eb18-2efc-5964-4ea4d3f82b8f/e3692718-3fc3-5961-d9b1-fff923a636dc.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ba01dbc6-eb18-2efc-5964-4ea4d3f82b8f/95b9211d-d2ac-f1f7-0985-4bbac0dea892.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div>This path led us up close and personal to the four Royal Tombs (actually caves in the side of the mountain). We only went into the first one. Huge and empty, it was smelly with mold over the walls and ceiling. A fellow traveler reported a family of tribe members (who run the many stalls along the streets as well as providing the animals used for transportation) living inside one of other caves. Although illegal, some resist moving to the village built for them in the heights above Petra and prefer their ancient ways.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ba01dbc6-eb18-2efc-5964-4ea4d3f82b8f/fac21017-f25a-605b-c439-f0c68c20ab23.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ba01dbc6-eb18-2efc-5964-4ea4d3f82b8f/1a93f794-0acd-5073-e2d0-1fbd49856447.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ba01dbc6-eb18-2efc-5964-4ea4d3f82b8f/8e6ed615-f0a6-edc1-d7b2-53b73983d935.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ba01dbc6-eb18-2efc-5964-4ea4d3f82b8f/9c00cf6e-d225-0a84-4eae-213292dd79cb.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1024; --en-naturalHeight:769;"/><div>The rest of the trip back was very slow. Wendy was so exhausted that she broke down and took a golf cart back. Although the weather was not too hot, the last two miles were all uphill and mostly in the mid-afternoon sun. Jim braved the trek and actually arrived back at the hotel before Wendy who had to wait 40 minutes for the golf cart!</div>
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<div>These amazingly preserved structures of the Nabateans are truly one of a kind. Petra is a UNESCO world heritage site since 1975. Although getting more touristy with stalls, camel and donkey rides and, of course, hoards of people, the majesty of these remarkable structures is a testament to this fascinating civilization.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ba01dbc6-eb18-2efc-5964-4ea4d3f82b8f/fd5fd7b6-ec54-0f68-7a21-d3564c2cb4e9.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1024; --en-naturalHeight:769;"/><div><a href="https://wendy-jim.com/post/day-4-travel-to-petra-via-mt-nebo-and-madaba" rev="en_rl_none">Previous</a></div>
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Day 4: Travel to Petra via Mt. Nebo and Madabahttp://wendy-jim.com/post/day-4-travel-to-petra-via-mt-nebo-and-madaba2023-05-16T18:31:54.235000Z2023-05-14T05:25:02ZJim and Wendy Damoulakis<div>It is approximately 143 miles from Amman to Petra and we travelled down the Desert Highway, one of three main north/ south highways in Jordan. As soon as we got out of the city, the landscape changed dramatically and we saw few towns, a lot of desert and evidence of the mining of potash. Some Bedouin tents were spotted here and there as well as herds of sheep and goats.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/644b939e-43bd-bd68-f9d8-bff36aa44490/953d56f2-bce9-a56f-d515-9203b8da11a6.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1537;"/><div>Our first stop was very biblical— Mt. Nebo where Moses, as an old man is supposed to have looked down on the Jordan Valley of Canaan which God had given to the Jews, knowing he was refused admittance. He reportedly may have been buried there too, but others claim many other sites. It is the known spot where he was seen alive. It was somewhat hazy but you could make out the Dead Sea way in the distance.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/644b939e-43bd-bd68-f9d8-bff36aa44490/a77553d9-d22c-423c-8f0e-067fdcebb948.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/644b939e-43bd-bd68-f9d8-bff36aa44490/6a0a3988-c4d1-166e-30aa-7cd4034183cd.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1537; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/644b939e-43bd-bd68-f9d8-bff36aa44490/7935bcd1-d55b-468e-7110-ad410b35b06c.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1537;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/644b939e-43bd-bd68-f9d8-bff36aa44490/6931867c-8f5b-a4e3-d16a-41fc8edbd4ae.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/644b939e-43bd-bd68-f9d8-bff36aa44490/fd30fc9d-865e-8d0a-5ca6-9ebd2ace9442.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1480; --en-naturalHeight:1975;"/><div>The Franciscans built a church there and run the site. We saw a nicely preserved mosaic floor, one of several in our travels. The whole place was beautiful and very peaceful and contemplative especially as the Franciscan monks enforced a rule of silence in the church.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/644b939e-43bd-bd68-f9d8-bff36aa44490/f344893a-e407-6909-8bb9-b47431a41ecc.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:4032; --en-naturalHeight:3024;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/644b939e-43bd-bd68-f9d8-bff36aa44490/10396ddb-dc6c-7efd-353b-3bd39debbd1b.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:4032; --en-naturalHeight:3024;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/644b939e-43bd-bd68-f9d8-bff36aa44490/b14952b3-a9e5-ae0d-4a95-f52899de7f7a.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1537; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div>Next up was the town of Madaba. St. George’s Greek Orthodox Church was pretty traditional with lots of icons, statues, lamps, and a very famous Byzantine mosaic floor.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/644b939e-43bd-bd68-f9d8-bff36aa44490/0c0a0d34-0571-2af9-cb80-079c2cb23dcf.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/644b939e-43bd-bd68-f9d8-bff36aa44490/f18456e7-0fb1-c0f6-ea6c-614193ff56c1.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div> It is a map of Palestine with each of the kingdoms labeled. The picture in the courtyard was helpful in identifying each section."</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/644b939e-43bd-bd68-f9d8-bff36aa44490/4dea1449-dfc5-2a8d-a44e-63e94b5420c9.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/644b939e-43bd-bd68-f9d8-bff36aa44490/0ead44f7-c49b-382c-62d6-3b59679c96a8.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:4032; --en-naturalHeight:3024;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/644b939e-43bd-bd68-f9d8-bff36aa44490/2924be9e-ef32-e209-1bc0-d35bc1bb49b2.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:4032; --en-naturalHeight:3024;"/><div>Down the street was lunch, then an informative trip to a Mosaic factory. It was very tourist oriented of course, but was part of a collaborative established by Queen Noor, the widow of King Husain who died around 1990. It insures that local residents, including a mix of special needs people be trained and have jobs in this coop. They make elegant mosaics, most of which are hundreds and thousands of dollars, exquisite rugs, and lesser priced tourist items. We supported the local economy by buying a dish cleverly meant to look like a mosaic. The small mosaic table that Wendy eyed would have cost about $1500 so we declined.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/644b939e-43bd-bd68-f9d8-bff36aa44490/3d5f6c90-0a59-1797-9392-ed6a17842b67.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/644b939e-43bd-bd68-f9d8-bff36aa44490/ebdf0291-ec98-e5c9-16c9-ddf1f02be403.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/644b939e-43bd-bd68-f9d8-bff36aa44490/38e3a5b9-5a3f-2fde-e4e0-b54db42e942e.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/644b939e-43bd-bd68-f9d8-bff36aa44490/cfa71d5e-5932-229a-602e-ce02a37be1cf.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div>Finally, we arrived at our hotel, the Petra Guest House which is literally next door to the entrance of Petra. It has a cool "Cave Bar" where enjoyed a glass of wine/ beer. This was the first alcohol of the trip. O.A.T ( so far) does not include it, and, since Jordan is a Muslim country, alcohol is not often available and is very expensive when it is. Looking forward to an intense and wonderful visit to Petra tomorrow.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/644b939e-43bd-bd68-f9d8-bff36aa44490/81402893-fbf3-a268-e0a0-44b392070a9e.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1024; --en-naturalHeight:769;"/><div><a rev="en_rl_none" href="https://wendy-jim.com/post/day-3-jerash-ajloun-castle-and-a-home-hosted-dinner">Previous</a></div>
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Day 3: Jerash, Ajloun Castle, and a home hosted dinnerhttp://wendy-jim.com/post/day-3-jerash-ajloun-castle-and-a-home-hosted-dinner2023-05-14T18:18:23.680000Z2023-05-13T14:00:26ZJim and Wendy Damoulakis<div>Thursday, Day 3. Jerash and Ajloun Castle, home hosted dinner</div>
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<div>The day started early with an hour long trip north to Jerash, an ancient 6500 year old city about 27 miles from the Syrian border. Jerash is said to have the best preserved expanse of Roman ruins outside of Rome. About 25% of it has been excavated over the past 70 years. We entered through the impressive Hadrian Arch and started to realize how immense Jerash is. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/024ba5b1-fb42-0401-0579-534aeefc3fc4/b217e711-be5d-6201-1a13-6cf645ddfde0.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/024ba5b1-fb42-0401-0579-534aeefc3fc4/669898e5-474b-20fd-18b7-c64e8fca55e3.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><div>The gigantic hippodrome originally seated 15,000 and was home to chariot racing and other events, Much more recently it offered chariot racing re-enactments, but sadly, COVID shut that down. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/024ba5b1-fb42-0401-0579-534aeefc3fc4/0b215898-24a3-b9bc-5d4a-3b521595fed0.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:768; --en-naturalHeight:1024;"/><div>We wandered through the Zeus temple amphitheater where hoards of school groups had gathered. (Field trips near the end of school, just like the states). It was so lively with students spontaneously dancing to a bass drum and bagpipes. The bagpiper saw us Americans and broke into a rendition of Amazing Grace that somehow morphed into Yankee Doodle and was a real crowd pleaser. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/024ba5b1-fb42-0401-0579-534aeefc3fc4/036c58a8-29b2-49d3-d435-d7f5c5068790.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/024ba5b1-fb42-0401-0579-534aeefc3fc4/665ea272-b74d-59dc-cc3d-5381ff6aae93.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/024ba5b1-fb42-0401-0579-534aeefc3fc4/fb7877f2-d570-b039-d4a1-d3001331139a.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:769; --en-naturalHeight:1024;"/><div>We walked miles through many sections of the ruins, through the forum, a large oval plaza, and the long Cardo main road that had huge diagonal original stones. They were placed diagonally so that chariot wheels did not get caught in the ruts. In a few places you can see the outline of wheel ruts right in the limestone.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/024ba5b1-fb42-0401-0579-534aeefc3fc4/a9857d17-657e-10ff-1e6d-f5e31215b474.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1024; --en-naturalHeight:769;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/024ba5b1-fb42-0401-0579-534aeefc3fc4/2c2a2714-d84d-eb94-3365-7f4f76e5723a.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div>There was also the ruins of a Byzantine era Greek Orthodox church with a largely intact mosaic floor. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/024ba5b1-fb42-0401-0579-534aeefc3fc4/2b3d86a6-d668-bae2-1dcb-784cf342147b.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1024; --en-naturalHeight:769;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/024ba5b1-fb42-0401-0579-534aeefc3fc4/c88326c4-619c-2a9a-159e-adcaa6fb8083.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1537;"/><div>A very large temple dedicated to the goddess Artemis, protector of the city, was the tallest structure in the city.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/024ba5b1-fb42-0401-0579-534aeefc3fc4/de0a05d3-dc86-040d-9f6e-8fa4bd493ab0.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1537; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><div>We had a pleasant lunch at the nearby Green Valley Restaurant.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/024ba5b1-fb42-0401-0579-534aeefc3fc4/f68ad2c7-d9a6-12e8-248f-b0df489124eb.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/024ba5b1-fb42-0401-0579-534aeefc3fc4/c1baee74-fe25-1b5b-388b-c30acf56ca99.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;"/><div>We then headed west to the town of Ajloun, transitioning in time from the ancient Greek and Roman period to the middle ages. Here we visited a medieval fort known as Ajloun Castle. It was built in 1184 by Saladin to defend northern Jordan from the invading European Crusaders. Our guide Mohammed told us that while the crusades were fought for control of the Holy Land, it was not really a religious (Christian versus Muslim) fight, but rather a political (European versus Arab) fight. To support this he points out that a large percentage of Saladin’s army included Christians (Eastern Orthodox and Arab Christians). </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/024ba5b1-fb42-0401-0579-534aeefc3fc4/595a9ab7-75e5-537f-61a9-2265ef19fa53.png" style="--en-naturalWidth:600; --en-naturalHeight:338;"/><div>It is said that from the top of the castle on a clear day one can see the skyline of Jerusalem and into the Golan Heights. Unfortunately, it was hazy out so our view, while very nice, was not did not expand that far.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/024ba5b1-fb42-0401-0579-534aeefc3fc4/1df6947c-f186-4b38-5329-ace3ad2e9949.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1024; --en-naturalHeight:769;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/024ba5b1-fb42-0401-0579-534aeefc3fc4/e2ce1326-f646-fdfc-1364-bd7006c7ba05.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1024; --en-naturalHeight:769;"/><div>It was an exhausting and jam packed day, but after only an hour to clean up, we were brought to the home of a lovely widow. OAT includes at least one home-hosted dinner on each trip and this one was really quite lovely. Our host was joined by her daughter, a very funny and outspoken young woman who had just two weeks ago, given birth to her second child. One by one, the entire family joined her- her daughters’s husband, a sous chef at a local restaurant, her other son, a renowned executive chef, and finally her mother and aunt who lived nearby. The chicken with basmati rice dish was delicious, and after dessert, some of us got to hold the newborn and play with her 2 year old as well. We enjoyed this tremendously and think it is one of the nicest ways to meet the locals.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/024ba5b1-fb42-0401-0579-534aeefc3fc4/97809e85-26ff-aa59-a04a-496455b4fddf.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/024ba5b1-fb42-0401-0579-534aeefc3fc4/f01dd884-17fc-a7d3-b99f-cf8eb1d82967.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/024ba5b1-fb42-0401-0579-534aeefc3fc4/455a1ea5-57f6-77c5-6aef-3a2264c1ace4.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/024ba5b1-fb42-0401-0579-534aeefc3fc4/0fcddf24-8274-1139-e843-93cc03ea4a1e.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/024ba5b1-fb42-0401-0579-534aeefc3fc4/63edabbf-08c3-a364-b157-1515fcc6cb47.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:4032;"/><div><a rev="en_rl_none" href="https://wendy-jim.com/post/day-2-discovering-amman">Previous </a></div>
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Day 2: Discovering Ammanhttp://wendy-jim.com/post/day-2-discovering-amman2023-05-16T18:26:34.644000Z2023-05-12T18:06:47ZJim and Wendy Damoulakis<div><span style="font-size: 16px;"><span style="--en-markholder:true;"><br/></span></span></div>
<div><span style="font-size: 16px;"><span style="--en-markholder:true;"><br/></span></span></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bbb6ac0a-b8db-4956-bec5-8b4ee2656bec/d7c928d8-c273-4fca-ab6a-1821502f0da5.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:1695;" alt="IMG_5256.heic"/><div><span style="font-size: 16px;">We started getting a feel for the Jordanian culture on our morning bus tour around the capital city of Amman. It is home to more than 4 million of the 12 million people living in all of Jordan. In 2000, the total population of the country was half of that, but it has grown in large part due to refugees from Iraq during the two Gulf Wars and more recently Syrians escaping their civil war. In the past, they also had large influxes of Palestinians, primarily in 1948 and 1967. Many have been assimilated but there are still several Syrian refugee camps near the northern border which is actually pretty close to here.</span></div>
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<div><span style="font-size: 16px;">Compared to its mid-Eastern neighbors of Syria and Egypt, the people here are fairly well off, but as it has no oil (or chooses not to look for it, as our guide explained), their three biggest industries are the mining of phosphate and potash, along with tourism. </span></div>
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<div><span style="font-size: 16px;">Much of the available land and real estate is being bought by wealthy Arabs from Kuwait, Iraq and Saudi Arabia driving up prices greatly. As a result, there are sections that look very modern and upscale while others that have houses piled on top of one another. A major attraction for these investors is Jordan’s political stability. It is viewed as a safe haven in a volatile region.</span></div>
<div><span style="font-size: 16px;"><span style="--en-markholder:true;"><br/></span></span></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bbb6ac0a-b8db-4956-bec5-8b4ee2656bec/b740897a-a777-4251-be16-92d4e00c8c93.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:480; --en-naturalHeight:640;" alt="IMG_6002.jpeg"/><div><span style="font-size: 16px;"><span style="--en-markholder:true;"><br/></span></span></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bbb6ac0a-b8db-4956-bec5-8b4ee2656bec/4c1228c3-e09a-4d43-b4cf-e5c2b7773c36.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:4032;" alt="IMG_5268.heic"/><div><span style="font-size: 16px;">Our first stop was to the Citadel. It is one of Amman’s oldest known sites, perched high on one of the city’s 27 hills. Archeological excavations reveal that this summit has been used as a settlement and fortress dating back 7000 years. </span></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bbb6ac0a-b8db-4956-bec5-8b4ee2656bec/a057bf0d-ab8d-4d3a-a5e2-eefc508d50cd.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:640; --en-naturalHeight:480;" alt="IMG_6026.jpeg"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bbb6ac0a-b8db-4956-bec5-8b4ee2656bec/e7f82e02-58bf-48bb-8bd4-a0269deb55f7.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:480; --en-naturalHeight:640;" alt="IMG_6028.jpeg"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bbb6ac0a-b8db-4956-bec5-8b4ee2656bec/cc35c2af-8d11-4f52-b618-adc814c00a87.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:480; --en-naturalHeight:640;" alt="IMG_6027.jpeg"/><div><span style="font-size: 16px;">Our outstanding guide, Mohammed, had an encyclopedic knowledge of the antiquities and culture of Jordan. He also encouraged us to ask questions and that no topic is off the table. When he introduced himself, he explained that given the commonality of the name Mohammed, his full name consists of his name, his father’s name, his grandfather’s name, he s great grandfather’s name and his tribe’s name!</span></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bbb6ac0a-b8db-4956-bec5-8b4ee2656bec/5951945f-bac6-4368-a5c3-fc2eb588731a.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:480; --en-naturalHeight:640;" alt="IMG_6023.jpeg"/><div><span style="font-size: 16px;"><span style="--en-markholder:true;"><br/></span></span></div>
<div><span style="font-size: 16px;">In both the wide-open excavated area as well as the excellent museum on site, we saw examples of the Persian, Greek, Roman, Byzantine, and Arab Muslim periods. The city actually had different names under these realms. The Persians called it Rebbath-Ammon. In 321 BC, when Alexander defeated them, it became Philadelphia(!), a name that stuck for nearly 1000 years through the Greek and Roman eras. Finally it became Amman in 661 AD under Muslim rule.</span></div>
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<div><span style="font-size: 16px;">Looking down on the well-preserved Roman amphitheater area nearby from various vantage points, we were told that it is still used today for concerts and shows. Pavarotti, Botticelli and many others have performed there.</span></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bbb6ac0a-b8db-4956-bec5-8b4ee2656bec/904a8e76-66a7-4ac0-b6d7-9bb5d0211e31.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:3024; --en-naturalHeight:3342;" alt="IMG_5260.heic"/><div><span style="font-size: 16px;"><span style="--en-markholder:true;"><br/></span></span></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bbb6ac0a-b8db-4956-bec5-8b4ee2656bec/004cee6e-3967-4ab8-a54d-77c9e2ded5d0.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:640; --en-naturalHeight:480;" alt="IMG_6007.jpeg"/><div><span style="font-size: 16px;"><span style="--en-markholder:true;"><br/></span></span></div>
<div><span style="font-size: 16px;">A short bus ride downhill brought us into the heart of downtown Amman. We strolled along the Main Street where Mohammad stopped many times to explain about food, dress, and a sampling of the variety of stores on the busy streets. </span></div>
<div><span style="font-size: 16px;"><span style="--en-markholder:true;"><br/></span></span></div>
<div><span style="font-size: 16px;">We stopped for a tasty treat—Kunafa- a layered all in one snack made out of Seminole wheat, soft sheep cheese, sugar water and pistachios. All the food groups rolled into one delicious treat! This shop had plenty of other great looking desserts as well.</span></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bbb6ac0a-b8db-4956-bec5-8b4ee2656bec/4580a032-48ce-4141-a1d2-9b6e70ace825.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:480; --en-naturalHeight:640;" alt="IMG_5278.heic"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bbb6ac0a-b8db-4956-bec5-8b4ee2656bec/66bfdf6e-54bd-4013-bd13-30a988a6b699.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:480; --en-naturalHeight:640;" alt="IMG_5280.heic"/><div><span style="font-size: 16px;">A quick stop at an art gallery that was a collaborative for local artists, and further walking through town led us to our last two destinations. </span></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bbb6ac0a-b8db-4956-bec5-8b4ee2656bec/88800177-0feb-442d-a7c0-6c8f26936222.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:480; --en-naturalHeight:640;" alt="IMG_6050.jpeg"/><div><span style="font-size: 16px;"><span style="--en-markholder:true;"><br/></span></span></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bbb6ac0a-b8db-4956-bec5-8b4ee2656bec/ee13d64e-80be-4517-a844-7ef6fafe47f1.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:640; --en-naturalHeight:480;" alt="IMG_6053.jpeg"/><div><span style="font-size: 16px;"><span style="--en-markholder:true;"><br/></span></span></div>
<div><span style="font-size: 16px;">The local market filled with tons of stalls with beautiful fresh local produce, spices, olives, nuts,etc. </span></div>
<div><span style="font-size: 16px;"><span style="--en-markholder:true;"><br/></span></span></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bbb6ac0a-b8db-4956-bec5-8b4ee2656bec/ed6e29da-630d-4e22-a3dc-c32b3a5f3f37.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:480; --en-naturalHeight:640;" alt="IMG_6074.jpeg"/><div><span style="font-size: 16px;"><span style="--en-markholder:true;"><br/></span></span></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bbb6ac0a-b8db-4956-bec5-8b4ee2656bec/010324e1-3c09-41b6-b457-8d8611664869.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:480; --en-naturalHeight:640;" alt="IMG_6078.jpeg"/><div><span style="font-size: 16px;"><span style="--en-markholder:true;"><br/></span></span></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bbb6ac0a-b8db-4956-bec5-8b4ee2656bec/eb90de35-1d4a-45fb-b46a-156dd9ef61c1.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:480; --en-naturalHeight:640;" alt="IMG_6080.jpeg"/><div><span style="font-size: 16px;"><span style="--en-markholder:true;"><br/></span></span></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bbb6ac0a-b8db-4956-bec5-8b4ee2656bec/3b46adca-a011-44dd-b14f-5a5309c3f4fc.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:480; --en-naturalHeight:640;" alt="IMG_6081.jpeg"/><div><span style="font-size: 16px;"><span style="--en-markholder:true;"><br/></span></span></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bbb6ac0a-b8db-4956-bec5-8b4ee2656bec/56178878-bbd9-4510-b6fb-18e908a1f18f.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:480; --en-naturalHeight:640;" alt="IMG_6083.jpeg"/><div><span style="font-size: 16px;"><span style="--en-markholder:true;"><br/></span></span></div>
<div><span style="font-size: 16px;">And finally, our lunch destination was Hashem Restaurant, open 24 hours a day, very famous and extremely popular. Here you buy only 3 things— falafel, hummus and fool (a common mid-Eastern fava bean dish}. Very informal with Saran Wrap covering the tables, and no plates, you dip chunks of fresh pita into the dishes making small sandwiches. Served with very hot tea in an even hotter glass, we got better at sponging up the hummus. The falafel was so much better than the first one the night before and the whole experience was really fun, and cheap! The entire meal for 12 people cost less than $25.</span></div>
<div><span style="font-size: 16px;"><span style="--en-markholder:true;"><br/></span></span></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bbb6ac0a-b8db-4956-bec5-8b4ee2656bec/5011d71d-e93e-4a70-af6b-7dc7e8cade27.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:640; --en-naturalHeight:480;" alt="IMG_6088.jpeg"/><div><span style="font-size: 16px;"><span style="--en-markholder:true;"><br/></span></span></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bbb6ac0a-b8db-4956-bec5-8b4ee2656bec/18193f8c-08e1-4e81-8418-dd4542c4a742.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:480; --en-naturalHeight:640;" alt="IMG_6090.jpeg"/><div><span style="font-size: 16px;"><span style="--en-markholder:true;"><br/></span></span></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bbb6ac0a-b8db-4956-bec5-8b4ee2656bec/a16be60d-6887-48d3-b883-f180e71ca1c9.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:640; --en-naturalHeight:480;" alt="IMG_6092.jpeg"/><div><br/></div>
<div><span style="font-size: 16px;">After a small respite for r & r which was much needed, we went to a spectacular restaurant for dinner— The Windmill restaurant, as in Don Quixote. Iconic, delicious Jordanian food served family style. The mixed grill as well as the mezze platters were spectacular! We haven’t had a bad meal yet.</span></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bbb6ac0a-b8db-4956-bec5-8b4ee2656bec/0dfa2176-a6d3-909b-1b50-854e57e324ed.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:4032; --en-naturalHeight:3024;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/bbb6ac0a-b8db-4956-bec5-8b4ee2656bec/cc773f82-91fc-ac7a-85f3-5ce74e87ae15.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:4032; --en-naturalHeight:3024;"/><div><br/></div>
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<div><span style="font-size: 16px;"><a href="https://wendy-jim.com/post/days-0-and-1-amman-travel-and-arrival" rev="en_rl_none">Previous</a></span></div>
<div><span style="font-size: 16px;"><a href="https://wendy-jim.com/post/day-3-jerash-ajloun-castle-and-a-home-hosted-dinner" rev="en_rl_none">Next</a></span></div>
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Days 0 and 1 - Amman: Travel and Arrivalhttp://wendy-jim.com/post/days-0-and-1-amman-travel-and-arrival2023-05-12T18:15:41.002000Z2023-05-11T04:36:54ZJim and Wendy Damoulakis<div><span style="font-size: 16px;"><span style="--en-markholder:true;"><br/></span></span></div>
<div><span style="font-size: 16px;">Sunday into Monday was a travel day- a very long one. We were happily surprised that it went pretty easily. A couple of blips: first, a major NY bike race that made leaving Manhattan to get to JFK rather difficult, and much later, some challenges at Cairo airport (not impressed). On the plus side, we were pleasantly surprised by Egypt Air, especially the food. We had used points to be in business class, and even though it wasn’t the Dreamliner that originally appeared on the itinerary, it was comfortable and nice. The second flight to Jordan was quick and easy. We followed Trip Advisor’s directions to go to the taxi stand instead of Uber or locals aggressively trying to get our business. Standard fare and no hassle there. Taxis seem to be relatively cheap, but we also found out that bargaining is the word of the day. Wendy was delighted to have the opportunity to show off her skills! </span></div>
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<div><span style="font-size: 16px;">Our hotel, the Grand Hyatt, Amman is lovely and spacious. Our room is not huge, but comfortable, and they got us into it at our arrival time of 10:45 am (rather than the official 2pm check in) which was great as we were cranky and tired. We rested, got cleaned up, and Wendy explored while Jim was resting his foot (last stages of a gout flare up). Two pools, a gorgeous spa, and lots of outside spaces but in an area that is tricky and a bit far to walk to places.</span></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/3bcaba72-a1e2-46e4-ab0f-8ae97745bb11/82137257-3d73-42d6-a62e-8542d1826053.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1322; --en-naturalHeight:1764;" alt="IMG_5986.jpeg"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/3bcaba72-a1e2-46e4-ab0f-8ae97745bb11/a9933184-46cf-43d3-bb3c-db4f458a5331.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;" alt="IMG_5987.jpeg"/><div><span style="font-size: 16px;"><span style="--en-markholder:true;"><br/></span></span></div>
<div><span style="font-size: 16px;">We took a taxi to an area called Rainbow Street, a popular area according to tour books, but it was a bit underwhelming. </span></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/3bcaba72-a1e2-46e4-ab0f-8ae97745bb11/25ec9d40-0e6d-4852-bea4-c7541a515811.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1537;" alt="IMG_5991.jpeg"/><div><span style="font-size: 16px;">We bought our first falafel sandwich for dinner from a much written-about little stand called Al Quds. Not bad for 1JD (Jordanian Dinar, about $1.40], but I think we’ll get better ones in Israel. </span></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/3bcaba72-a1e2-46e4-ab0f-8ae97745bb11/92f9f693-921d-47d6-b7d8-955df2b4b30d.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;" alt="IMG_5993.jpeg"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/3bcaba72-a1e2-46e4-ab0f-8ae97745bb11/705b1afb-855e-4ca0-a421-97038b07d859.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;" alt="IMG_5994.jpeg"/><div><span style="font-size: 16px;">The street is cute, little lanterns and other decorations, a few tourists and more locals. Jim enjoyed his first really good cup of coffee at another cafe before we bargained (again) with a sweet taxi driver to get back to our hotel. </span></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/3bcaba72-a1e2-46e4-ab0f-8ae97745bb11/b59c3d4a-8187-48f0-b54a-3ee34459930b.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;" alt="IMG_5989.jpeg"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/3bcaba72-a1e2-46e4-ab0f-8ae97745bb11/ad6cc7dd-d14e-4ae6-a5d7-38c7b7068b1d.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2049;" alt="IMG_5990.jpeg"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/3bcaba72-a1e2-46e4-ab0f-8ae97745bb11/ac565740-e57e-46d5-80ad-a2ff5c2eeda5.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;" alt="IMG_5995.jpeg"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/3bcaba72-a1e2-46e4-ab0f-8ae97745bb11/1a5e3c50-eb3e-4170-b048-7aaedbf00472.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2049; --en-naturalHeight:1536;" alt="IMG_5996.jpeg"/><div><span style="font-size: 16px;"><span style="--en-markholder:true;"><br/></span></span></div>
<div><span style="font-size: 16px;">There are a several museums in Amman (pronounced ah—MEN) but the one that appealed to us— the Royal Automobile museum was closed on Tuesday so after getting a delicious breakfast (which we almost missed after falling back asleep) we opted for a low key but wonderful spa day. We splurged on massages (fantastic), sauna, hot tub and swimming. </span></div>
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<div><span style="font-size: 16px;">In the evening , we met out tour leader,Mohammed who has six names (more on that later), the other 9 members of our Jordan tour group, and got a brief overview of our time in Jordan. We ate a bountiful buffet dinner at the hotel trying quite a few Jordanian foods and enjoyed almost all.</span></div>
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<div><span style="font-size: 16px;">Our real tour starts tomorrow.</span></div>
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<div><span style="font-size: 16px;"><a href="https://wendy-jim.com/post/trip-prelude-nyc-leopoldstadt-and-moma" rev="en_rl_none">Previous </a></span></div>
<div><span style="font-size: 16px;"><a href="https://wendy-jim.com/post/day-2-discovering-amman" rev="en_rl_none">Next</a></span></div>
Trip Prelude: NYC -“Leopoldstadt” and MOMAhttp://wendy-jim.com/post/trip-prelude-nyc-leopoldstadt-and-moma2023-05-11T04:41:48.165000Z2023-05-09T09:11:38ZJim and Wendy Damoulakis<div><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><span style="font-size: 18.9px;">We started our 24 hour NewYork visit with a pre-dawn departure to Newark with- wait for it- everything travel perfect! Spent about three hours at MoMa and happily enjoyed iconic art works we haven’t seen in years, as well as a Georgia O’Keefe special exhibit on her later charcoal and abstract works.</span></span></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/19d82864-4479-4164-abfe-83337dba4ae7/dbdbee03-e121-42cc-a45e-87bb57ef5ce1.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2048; --en-naturalHeight:1536;" alt="IMG_5954.jpeg"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/19d82864-4479-4164-abfe-83337dba4ae7/fe4a6c3b-b497-45dd-bc12-ad2143efc59b.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2048; --en-naturalHeight:1536;" alt="IMG_5956.jpeg"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/19d82864-4479-4164-abfe-83337dba4ae7/91b5a88a-6774-4e0b-80f9-0fb3805ebb11.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2048; --en-naturalHeight:1536;" alt="IMG_5958.jpeg"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/19d82864-4479-4164-abfe-83337dba4ae7/c1a1352b-762e-4d01-902f-41ae30b68fd5.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2048;" alt="IMG_5959.jpeg"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/19d82864-4479-4164-abfe-83337dba4ae7/cdd276fc-68e1-4b17-a283-d74e0d317181.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2048; --en-naturalHeight:1536;" alt="IMG_5966.jpeg"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/19d82864-4479-4164-abfe-83337dba4ae7/c37ffb55-1e90-491e-aa53-60ad14c94046.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2048;" alt="IMG_5969.jpeg"/><div><br/></div>
<div><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><span style="font-size: 18.9px;"> A huge AI screen in the main lobby showed fascinating juxtapositions of unrecognizable art works constantly morphing into shapes and colors.</span></span></div>
<div><br/></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/19d82864-4479-4164-abfe-83337dba4ae7/0bf32410-9d55-4d8e-9aad-b52da8b2e794.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2048;" alt="IMG_5970.jpeg"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/19d82864-4479-4164-abfe-83337dba4ae7/37c59c11-2724-4421-87b8-10bf4f6c936f.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1536; --en-naturalHeight:2048;" alt="IMG_5972.jpeg"/><div><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><span style="font-size: 18.9px;"> Although our heads wanted to stay all day, our feet and bodies protested so we walked back to our hotel (Hampton Inn, Central Times Square—really great!) to check in and rest up.</span></span></div>
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<div><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><span style="font-size: 18.9px;">Dinner was at a pretty nice pub right next door to the Longacre Theatre where we saw Leopoldstadt.</span></span></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/19d82864-4479-4164-abfe-83337dba4ae7/ebae0c78-01a3-42ef-9c9d-f8ba9f0eaa2f.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:2823; --en-naturalHeight:3764;" alt="image0.jpeg"/><div><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><span style="font-size: 18.9px;"> It is a magnificently intense drama about three generations of a Jewish family in Vienna from 1899-1955. Luckily, we had read the Tom Stoppard play beforehand which helped us immensely in figuring out characters and the overlapping stage conversations. It is up for many Tonys and certainly deserves to win some. </span></span></div>
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<div><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><span style="font-size: 18.9px;">The theatre was not far from our hotel, but we made the mistake of walking home down Broadway through Saturday night throngs of people, street entertainment and crazy people in and around Times Square. Very wild and crazy, but fun as well. It was fun to see NYC. Haven’t been here in at least five years, probably more.</span></span></div>
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<div><a href="https://wendy-jim.com/post/days-0-and-1-amman-travel-and-arrival">Next</a></div>
Israel-Jordan Itinerary - 2023http://wendy-jim.com/post/israel-jordan-itinerary-20232023-04-11T18:35:26.484000Z2023-04-11T18:30:00ZJim and Wendy Damoulakis<div><b><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/f53bb6fe-e242-49f1-bd4a-cea6b78653bb/876a08eb-ae3b-401e-b87f-4bd923d5bf02.jpg" width="575"/></b></div>
<div><div><b><br /></b></div><table style="border-collapse: collapse; min-width: 100%;"><colgroup><col style="width: 130px;" /><col style="width: 130px;" /><col style="width: 210px;" /><col style="width: 130px;" /></colgroup><tbody><tr><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Date</b></div></td><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Location</b></div></td><td style="width: 210px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Activity</b></div></td><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Hotel</b></div></td></tr><tr><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Sun, May 7-</b></div>
<div><b>Mon, May 8</b></div></td><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>NY->Amman</b></div></td><td style="width: 210px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Fly from JFK to Amman, Jordan</b></div></td><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Grand Hyatt Amman</b></div></td></tr><tr><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Tue, May 9</b></div></td><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Amman</b></div></td><td style="width: 210px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Explore on our own</b></div></td><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Grand Hyatt Amman</b></div></td></tr><tr><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Wed, May 10</b></div></td><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Amman</b></div></td><td style="width: 210px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Visit the Citadel and Roman Theater</b></div></td><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Grand Hyatt Amman</b></div></td></tr><tr><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Thu, May 11</b></div></td><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Amman</b></div></td><td style="width: 210px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Discover Jerash and Ajlun • Home-Hosted Dinner</b></div></td><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Grand Hyatt Amman</b></div></td></tr><tr><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Fri, May 12</b></div></td><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Amman—> Petra</b></div></td><td style="width: 210px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Travel to Petra via the King’s Highway • Visit Mount Nebo & Madaba</b></div></td><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Petra Guest House</b></div></td></tr><tr><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Sat, May 13</b></div></td><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Petra</b></div></td><td style="width: 210px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Full-day walking tour</b></div></td><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Petra Guest House</b></div></td></tr><tr><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Sun, May 14</b></div></td><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Petra —> Haifa</b></div></td><td style="width: 210px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Travel to Haifa</b></div></td><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Schumacher Hotel</b></div></td></tr><tr><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Mon, May 15</b></div></td><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Haifa</b></div></td><td style="width: 210px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Explore Caesarea National Park • Wadi Nisnas • Explore Baha’i Gardens</b></div></td><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Schumacher Hotel</b></div></td></tr><tr><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Tue, May 16</b></div></td><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Haifa</b></div></td><td style="width: 210px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Explore Akko & Rosh HaNikra Cave</b></div></td><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Schumacher Hotel</b></div></td></tr><tr><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Wed, May 17</b></div></td><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Golan Heights</b></div></td><td style="width: 210px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Explore Nazareth • Overland to Golan Heights</b></div></td><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Peace Vista</b></div></td></tr><tr><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Thu, May 18</b></div></td><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Golan Heights</b></div></td><td style="width: 210px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Off-road jeep excursion in Golan Heights & the Valley of Tears</b></div></td><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Peace Vista</b></div></td></tr><tr><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Fri, May 19</b></div></td><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Jerusalem</b></div></td><td style="width: 210px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Overland to Jerusalem • The Sea of Galilee</b></div></td><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Leonardo Boutique</b></div></td></tr><tr><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Sat, May 20</b></div></td><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Jerusalem</b></div></td><td style="width: 210px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Western Wall tunnels • Old Jerusalem walking tour • Mount Zion and Mount of Olives</b></div></td><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Leonardo Boutique</b></div></td></tr><tr><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Sun, May 21</b></div></td><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Jerusalem</b></div></td><td style="width: 210px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>A Day in the Life of the Abu Ghosh community</b></div></td><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Leonardo Boutique</b></div></td></tr><tr><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Mon, May 22</b></div></td><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Jerusalem</b></div></td><td style="width: 210px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial • Machane Yehuda market • Home-Hosted Dinner</b></div></td><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Leonardo Boutique</b></div></td></tr><tr><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Tue, May 23</b></div></td><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Jerusalem</b></div></td><td style="width: 210px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Free Day</b></div></td><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Leonardo Boutique</b></div></td></tr><tr><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Wed, May 24</b></div></td><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Jerusalem</b></div></td><td style="width: 210px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Masada • Dead Sea</b></div></td><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Leonardo Boutique</b></div></td></tr><tr><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Thu, May 25</b></div></td><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Tel Aviv</b></div></td><td style="width: 210px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Israel Museum • Overland to Tel Aviv</b></div></td><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Royal Beach Tel Aviv</b></div></td></tr><tr><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Fri, May 26</b></div></td><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Tel Aviv</b></div></td><td style="width: 210px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Explore Old Jaffa & Tel Aviv</b></div></td><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Royal Beach Tel Aviv</b></div></td></tr><tr><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Sat, May 27</b></div></td><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Tel Aviv</b></div></td><td style="width: 210px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Explore Tel Aviv • Visit UNESCO designated "White City"</b></div></td><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Royal Beach Tel Aviv</b></div></td></tr><tr><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Sun, May 28</b></div></td><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Tel Aviv —> Sarasota</b></div></td><td style="width: 210px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b>Travel to Home</b></div></td><td style="width: 130px; padding: 8px; border: 1px solid;"><div><b><br /></b></div></td></tr></tbody></table><div><b><br /></b></div></div><div><br /></div>
London and Scotland Day 17http://wendy-jim.com/post/london-and-scotland-day-172023-04-11T16:02:14.032000Z2022-09-30T20:18:02ZJim and Wendy Damoulakis<div><b>Horrendous travel home, final thoughts</b></div>
<div><br /></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/13e679d1-9d7f-484b-8c4a-56e3e6a207ec/58ecc68c-a536-4eb8-8ac8-f48c41f93992.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><div>With all the wonderful places we had been and people we met, we were not prepared for the inadequacies of airports to the extent we experienced them. We knew it would be a long travel day on three different flights, but it took over 26 hours instead of 17, a delayed flight ( the first one in Glasgow) which made us miss our Heathrow connection, standing in endless lines, shuttling like ping pong balls between BA and AA who evidently don’t really talk to each other, and going through 4 ( four!) security lines. God help us if we ever have to go through Heathrow to make connections again!</div>
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<div>I won’t go on, we were extremely lucky to land in Sarasota and get home before midnight. The one-in-a- hundred- years hurricane (Ian- a Scottish name!!) is due here in two days, and we have no downtime but have to get ready.</div>
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<div>*Note: we are writing the note below this a couple of days after hurricane Ian devastated many parts of Florida. I don’t know how, but we escaped with no major damage to our community and no loss of electricity. We are truly blessed and hope that the millions who were not so fortunate are able to recover soon.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/13e679d1-9d7f-484b-8c4a-56e3e6a207ec/055d3f09-e657-426b-831a-9b81dd017b97.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:845;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/13e679d1-9d7f-484b-8c4a-56e3e6a207ec/a0999ef6-fecc-40e5-aca1-befdd007dfe8.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><div><br /></div>
<div><b>Final Thoughts</b></div>
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<div>Despite the many challenges, we really loved this trip. Being bookended by major events, albeit of a completely different nature, we all rose to the occasion and learned how to be more flexible than we even thought possible to make plans work. It was also somewhat cool to witness English history in the making — to be right next door to what was happening, to see the preparations and even see all the Crown Jewels and relics that will actually be used in the near future for King Charles’ coronation.</div>
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<div>We enjoyed the Brits and Scotts- their sense of humor, their signs, food, brogues, and, most importantly, the history and the beauty of these countries. Not to mention the whisky! </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/13e679d1-9d7f-484b-8c4a-56e3e6a207ec/29f46c13-0d69-4752-8c9c-f8d482acce8d.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:911;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/13e679d1-9d7f-484b-8c4a-56e3e6a207ec/b60f613f-dead-4aa5-8d2d-2121f62a5ad5.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/13e679d1-9d7f-484b-8c4a-56e3e6a207ec/d0a353d5-fee0-40c4-ab3e-ecfb317fb6f1.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1608;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/13e679d1-9d7f-484b-8c4a-56e3e6a207ec/539b9571-9237-4a6c-a4fa-bee6508b9bef.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1343;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/13e679d1-9d7f-484b-8c4a-56e3e6a207ec/ecebb653-dd5b-4ad6-a766-092fce03c033.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:761;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/13e679d1-9d7f-484b-8c4a-56e3e6a207ec/92857728-dbec-4508-948e-788ee14dcf0a.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1249;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/13e679d1-9d7f-484b-8c4a-56e3e6a207ec/0c85e9ce-8ddc-4c31-90eb-ce98b01309d7.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:996;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/13e679d1-9d7f-484b-8c4a-56e3e6a207ec/c4c400f5-54e2-48b3-92c3-d1a1ba3c82d6.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:981;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/13e679d1-9d7f-484b-8c4a-56e3e6a207ec/8dbd2232-6694-4ab6-9a73-cb2a9d3fbcdc.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:976;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/13e679d1-9d7f-484b-8c4a-56e3e6a207ec/dcd38737-df91-4fc5-a21c-362649df905b.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:857;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/13e679d1-9d7f-484b-8c4a-56e3e6a207ec/f57f45db-21d1-4f71-abc0-4b85123501dd.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><div>The weather cooperated too- a rare feat, I’m told, in countries that are predominantly rainy. Our tour guides, Linda and Steve (<a href="https://travelingprofessor.com">The Traveling Professor</a>) were wonderful and used all their connections to make things work out schedule-wise. We are in awe of their patience and expertise.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/13e679d1-9d7f-484b-8c4a-56e3e6a207ec/700828d4-e037-4703-850f-84a38940081b.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><div>Travel has definitely returned. Everyone seems to be going somewhere and planning their next trip. We’ll touch base when we’re ready to write about our next adventure.</div>
London and Scotland Day 16http://wendy-jim.com/post/london-and-scotland-day-162023-04-05T01:38:45.162000Z2022-09-29T20:18:01ZJim and Wendy Damoulakis<div><b>HOHO bus, Kelvingrove Museum, Meat Joint dinner</b></div>
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<div>A handful of us had extended our stay by one night in Glasgow, and used the day, once again to travel around the city on the Hop On Hop Off bus. Our only destination today was arguably the number one tourist sight in Glasgow, the beautiful Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/90afdd2f-8c5b-4024-a8fc-76ded08fa0c5/7904fe81-201e-4a06-824d-29e3f4f18537.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><div>A beautiful old building made of red sandstone, the inside is interestingly arranged into two sides— "living" and "expression". </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/90afdd2f-8c5b-4024-a8fc-76ded08fa0c5/a5373716-cc58-46e9-975f-984f53b9fb0a.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><div>The living side is an eclectic variety of exhibits including stuffed animals, fossils, clothes, weapons and more. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/90afdd2f-8c5b-4024-a8fc-76ded08fa0c5/3742299e-c6a9-4486-a2f7-0e1d6ed3c6d2.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/90afdd2f-8c5b-4024-a8fc-76ded08fa0c5/2bfbe6ab-e8ff-4f0c-99e3-b07563a418d0.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/90afdd2f-8c5b-4024-a8fc-76ded08fa0c5/0327d890-c714-4b74-9f23-d5260b2456cb.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/90afdd2f-8c5b-4024-a8fc-76ded08fa0c5/e1740d60-9724-43d6-8d4d-385f1b9939d2.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/90afdd2f-8c5b-4024-a8fc-76ded08fa0c5/59307082-8b25-46f4-813b-0784ae421dee.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1707;"/><div>The expression side included a huge exhibit on Glasgow artists, architecture and history, French Impressionists and others. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/90afdd2f-8c5b-4024-a8fc-76ded08fa0c5/07e6d84f-31e6-4d82-8541-2efeb691a31a.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/90afdd2f-8c5b-4024-a8fc-76ded08fa0c5/4cc6a980-8e3b-4450-912e-86f0db360b0e.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/90afdd2f-8c5b-4024-a8fc-76ded08fa0c5/681b356e-7ff2-4b10-9873-0a3bb30df640.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/90afdd2f-8c5b-4024-a8fc-76ded08fa0c5/7c3420a0-d9a5-4dfa-81b7-e89e37df7119.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/90afdd2f-8c5b-4024-a8fc-76ded08fa0c5/17f8141a-a516-4d79-aaf9-11e668ddfc01.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/90afdd2f-8c5b-4024-a8fc-76ded08fa0c5/36315aab-5394-41e6-b210-09415462b3b5.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/90afdd2f-8c5b-4024-a8fc-76ded08fa0c5/41adb685-4bf0-461c-86fe-1af8a8dc75d5.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/90afdd2f-8c5b-4024-a8fc-76ded08fa0c5/6032af9c-729e-425f-a6bf-529003b07466.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><div>A unique room about the effects of war which had Viking implements, armor and a section about the holocaust all in a row.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/90afdd2f-8c5b-4024-a8fc-76ded08fa0c5/ccfdcab3-2ed4-4002-92a1-c342bcf4242c.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1707;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/90afdd2f-8c5b-4024-a8fc-76ded08fa0c5/8b269a81-2c8b-4f48-9a53-2e1444f1fbf2.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1707;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/90afdd2f-8c5b-4024-a8fc-76ded08fa0c5/d6277dbd-2df3-484d-a573-cabb759587fb.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/90afdd2f-8c5b-4024-a8fc-76ded08fa0c5/015a8cfe-8ebc-4c61-9229-83d8666f8c62.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/90afdd2f-8c5b-4024-a8fc-76ded08fa0c5/ab7f766f-c457-41a0-b11a-92c4ceb96281.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:858;"/><div>The only disappointment was that the most famous painting, Dali’s Christ of St. John of the Cross, was out on loan.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/90afdd2f-8c5b-4024-a8fc-76ded08fa0c5/0aad739f-2d27-438e-beaf-03fecdb0137a.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><div>Found a little lunch restaurant across the street that was open ( it was Sunday, early afternoon) and had our soup and sandwich combo again. They DO know how to make good soup in Scotland!</div>
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<div>We meandered home on the bus, did some final shopping ( yes,Wendy DID find her Halloween costume!) and reluctantly went home to finish packing.</div>
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<div>We had made our final meal at the Meat Joint— it sounds like a barbecue place, but it is quite a nice elegant but extremely small restaurant. Ate with Cindy and Dale, fellow travelers and had steak and lamb. Farewell to Glasgow.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/90afdd2f-8c5b-4024-a8fc-76ded08fa0c5/7986f9a8-9109-4683-8515-c4557800091f.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/90afdd2f-8c5b-4024-a8fc-76ded08fa0c5/6a2e2dcf-050b-408b-bb5e-233625db64c3.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><div><br /></div>
London and Scotland Day15http://wendy-jim.com/post/london-and-scotland-day152023-04-11T16:25:02.167000Z2022-09-28T20:18:02ZJim and Wendy Damoulakis<div><b>HOHO bus, Riverside Museum of Transportation, Cathedral of Glasgow, Scones!, Game Night</b></div>
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<div>After a delicious breakfast with attentive staff at our hotel (the Grand Central), we caught the Hop On Hop Off bus to start a grand tour of Glasgow. We listened to the ongoing commentary that’s keyed to GPS, so points of interest were pointed out. There is only one route and it goes in one direction, so the trip can take awhile, and you have to plan carefully. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/754315c3-0ea7-40fd-adb7-4b4e7213032d/d809ad29-8468-492d-ac27-d2ac4f168f80.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/754315c3-0ea7-40fd-adb7-4b4e7213032d/c28a1c02-8d63-461d-8f80-15348e50ad6b.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/754315c3-0ea7-40fd-adb7-4b4e7213032d/737a6faa-8646-402a-9940-9bd38319caa6.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><div>Our first stop today was about 15 minutes into the ride at the Riverside Transportation Museum. Like all Glasgow museums, as the announcer says, this one is free!</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/754315c3-0ea7-40fd-adb7-4b4e7213032d/7a3767ec-840d-4023-9bd6-d5b9a6648e31.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:760;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/754315c3-0ea7-40fd-adb7-4b4e7213032d/906a0d2b-2c3c-46a2-8d2b-1db263fde88c.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><div>While we were waiting for it to open, we were entertained by the local bungee jumping club ready to show us their skills. Yikes! We try a lot of things, but that’s not one of them.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/754315c3-0ea7-40fd-adb7-4b4e7213032d/2970a80e-379c-487b-baa5-c2d8186fbf56.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1707;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/754315c3-0ea7-40fd-adb7-4b4e7213032d/0513c04d-7ebb-4fc1-a1c9-655f919df078.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1707;"/><div>This is one of the best museums we have seen, given the subject matter. And it’s really a twofer. More on that in a minute. Trains, buses, bikes, cycles, cars from many different decades, even centuries were on display. We took over 60 pictures, but will share just the best.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/754315c3-0ea7-40fd-adb7-4b4e7213032d/d30bb086-3bcc-4e7f-9f8f-b9f3676f18ae.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1707;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/754315c3-0ea7-40fd-adb7-4b4e7213032d/d3ff6a44-399b-4645-b74b-c820f2608d42.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/754315c3-0ea7-40fd-adb7-4b4e7213032d/5dc5c3b0-6440-45c7-9bf9-5b2f057cbfc3.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/754315c3-0ea7-40fd-adb7-4b4e7213032d/f38e2b6d-1da4-4edc-a932-225537a5883d.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/754315c3-0ea7-40fd-adb7-4b4e7213032d/e3970346-e47f-43e4-9259-5d19c7022a1e.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/754315c3-0ea7-40fd-adb7-4b4e7213032d/b6f92754-4bef-4923-ab7e-fb7ea09dcb7b.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/754315c3-0ea7-40fd-adb7-4b4e7213032d/56c54f09-e7ce-4e06-b9b7-54ad5a33f072.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1707;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/754315c3-0ea7-40fd-adb7-4b4e7213032d/0f75e62f-1592-4125-b861-37049df15ff1.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1707;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/754315c3-0ea7-40fd-adb7-4b4e7213032d/2b66af98-820f-43d7-bb78-c43b8a0e5608.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1707;"/><div>Now to the second part— there was a real "Tall Ship"— the Glenlee, moored to the dock behind the museum. We explored it up and down for almost an hour. Those sailors had a rough life!</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/754315c3-0ea7-40fd-adb7-4b4e7213032d/d9896792-8325-41be-aca5-4ecdb61638ee.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/754315c3-0ea7-40fd-adb7-4b4e7213032d/be2fd0db-f1ba-49f7-9e78-f4009c30d854.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/754315c3-0ea7-40fd-adb7-4b4e7213032d/69d7f7bb-0924-4788-9e10-b07e459736fd.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1707;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/754315c3-0ea7-40fd-adb7-4b4e7213032d/13e949bf-7ce2-47e9-8b08-edae42a63074.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1707;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/754315c3-0ea7-40fd-adb7-4b4e7213032d/29484ab2-37a0-447c-90cf-fe2114540604.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1707;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/754315c3-0ea7-40fd-adb7-4b4e7213032d/d585788e-cf3b-435c-a394-61e16f04a981.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1707;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/754315c3-0ea7-40fd-adb7-4b4e7213032d/6d7aa3df-5daa-4907-af2d-2a2c735a9d7a.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/754315c3-0ea7-40fd-adb7-4b4e7213032d/e867f77b-eda0-463e-ba7f-16cfaf080468.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:959;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/754315c3-0ea7-40fd-adb7-4b4e7213032d/972a5235-7130-4e9c-9644-332540f15494.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><div>We reluctantly returned to the bus stop ( bungee jumpers were still going) and traveled through the route. Since we also have it for tomorrow, we skipped the #1 museum since we wanted to get to the famous Glasgow Cathedral. ( Tomorrow is Sunday, and they will be holding services). We had hoped to find a bite to eat before going there so we got off a stop early. Not a good decision. It was a nice walk, but through the huge campus of the University of Strathclyde, miles and miles - or so it seemed, without a restaurant in sight. Hungry and tired, we got to the Cathedral to find it closed for lunch! So we dug in our bags for every bit of cheese, nuts and biscuits we had pilfered from breakfasts and used the time to eat. After all that, even with the extraordinary stained glass windows, we were not as impressed as we were with the likes of St. Giles in Edinburgh. Maybe we’ve become a bit spoiled — it was beautiful nonetheless.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/754315c3-0ea7-40fd-adb7-4b4e7213032d/300b2095-7b06-4e58-8350-e72d1a90420e.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/754315c3-0ea7-40fd-adb7-4b4e7213032d/a49695ce-79a5-477d-8fdb-72364c71faa6.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/754315c3-0ea7-40fd-adb7-4b4e7213032d/0ab53392-ba60-430d-83f8-6af94239391b.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1707;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/754315c3-0ea7-40fd-adb7-4b4e7213032d/e624da5b-09cb-4c97-89c9-1bcebd73a89d.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/754315c3-0ea7-40fd-adb7-4b4e7213032d/8031450e-66ad-4874-88f7-160f2d844761.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1707;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/754315c3-0ea7-40fd-adb7-4b4e7213032d/936b1ccf-483f-45ab-9ffc-ce9e3b656303.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1707;"/><div>The HOHO bus took us back to Buchanan street, the very popular pedestrian shopping area, where Wendy finally fulfilled the last item on her food bucket list. Jim googled "scones near me" and found The Wild Olive Tree, a restaurant located inside the sanctuary of a church. Soup and scones finished our afternoon off nicely, and this restaurant uses the profits to fund soup kitchens for several areas. If that food is anywhere near as good, people who use their services are lucky indeed!</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/754315c3-0ea7-40fd-adb7-4b4e7213032d/ea8c1baf-c514-4899-b8cd-7a9745f5c71e.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/754315c3-0ea7-40fd-adb7-4b4e7213032d/0fab3fca-d5d0-4741-84f7-16f58cb76b15.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><div>Our final dinner was arranged at a nearby hotel tonight so the whole group could be together. It was a festive occasion made the more interesting by the excited ( and rowdy - read drunk) fans of the Scottish football team who was playing Ireland, their arch rival. A real rivalry that insured that every local pub was overflowing with fans starting mid afternoon.</div>
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<div>We had a lovely dinner, talked about our future travel plans, and thanked Steve and Linda for all the hard work they put into this trip, constantly dealing with the fallout from the Queen’s passing.</div>
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<div>Our walk home demonstrated the intensity of the rivalry with the streets now teeming with young people overflowing the pubs. Scotland ultimately won, and the noise didn’t stop until the very wee hours of the morning!</div>
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London and Scotland Day 14http://wendy-jim.com/post/london-and-scotland-day-142023-04-05T01:38:05.690000Z2022-09-25T20:18:03ZJim and Wendy Damoulakis<div><b>Travel, intro to Glasgow, pizza</b></div>
<div><br /></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/156e1939-7e4f-47b0-9760-01773b025cad/093ff4ca-3d9b-461f-a090-c9535f46ac3e.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><div>Friday was our travel day from Inverness to Glasgow on the (local) train which took over three hours. It was pleasant, and we had a fun conversation with two sisters from Hope, Arkansas who were traveling all over Scotland for over a month. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/156e1939-7e4f-47b0-9760-01773b025cad/f9a4f398-cfef-4c9f-9059-b6c77c9c5e77.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><div>A very crammed (5 of us plus lots of luggage), but thankfully, short cab ride to our hotel, the Voco Grand Central Hotel. Although it is right next to a huge train station, it was the second train station, not the one we arrived at, hence the cab ride. It is another lovely, very old hotel, but the amenities and service are much better than the Inverness one. It has the same pipe glub- glubing noises in the bathrooms though!</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/156e1939-7e4f-47b0-9760-01773b025cad/ed10da72-284c-456d-9bb7-de37712aea7e.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1707;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/156e1939-7e4f-47b0-9760-01773b025cad/932322d1-aa40-4a5c-a2a3-5ec91f76e43f.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1707;"/><div>A short walk to check out this busy town brought us down to the River Clyde, and back along one of the very lively tourist pedestrian streets, Buchanan street.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/156e1939-7e4f-47b0-9760-01773b025cad/708ef0cf-11c4-436d-8abd-3c0356a13d77.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/156e1939-7e4f-47b0-9760-01773b025cad/6fb29ede-bacd-4298-b71c-b055c4ae21d1.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/156e1939-7e4f-47b0-9760-01773b025cad/6be94f94-71c6-4113-b07a-52d5cecff98c.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><div>We had a fantastic Neapolitan style pizza at a place nearby. Walking home, the Friday night crowds were starting to get very noisy and a little wild. This is a young, vibrant city.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/156e1939-7e4f-47b0-9760-01773b025cad/4089dd00-fd43-43f5-9de9-bc2106b054ad.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1707;"/><div><br /></div>
London and Scotland Day 13http://wendy-jim.com/post/london-and-scotland-day-132023-04-05T01:37:24.392000Z2022-09-24T20:18:03ZJim and Wendy Damoulakis<div><b>Shopping, and bike riding In Inverness</b></div>
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<div>Today was our "free" day in Inverness. It was wonderful to have a relatively late breakfast, get caught up on clothes organization, and have time to write our blog.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d794f917-4327-4030-b4f2-910d2d03fc84/199687c7-c391-434a-b978-6a58a923644d.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><div>Late morning into early afternoon was spent mostly shopping, particularly for a small suitcase to add to our collection to have enough room to bring back heavy and larger things…whisky for example! Mission accomplished!</div>
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<div>We stopped at the iconic Leakey bookstore, famously ensconced in back of one of the unused churches in the area. Books, some common, some extremely rare, almost all used,in every nook and cranny, plus some antique art prints, and other paraphernalia. Prices were high, but it is quite a sight. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d794f917-4327-4030-b4f2-910d2d03fc84/3731a993-6967-4bb8-8dfd-157c773cf038.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d794f917-4327-4030-b4f2-910d2d03fc84/17f0c429-5419-4b4c-a0b4-3407ab4d745d.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1707;"/><div>Lunch today was a bit unusual, at a small restaurant called "Wild Pancakes". You got it! Breakfast for lunch. A bit decadent too, but you only live once.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d794f917-4327-4030-b4f2-910d2d03fc84/d20acb6d-620f-4d8d-929c-2b78afd017f2.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d794f917-4327-4030-b4f2-910d2d03fc84/ab5c4544-45af-45c8-a05b-96b6d596f14a.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1263; --en-naturalHeight:1276;"/><div>Much of the later afternoon was spent on a six mile bike tour (Inverness Bike Tours) which we had booked a while back.</div>
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<div>After getting adjusted to the bikes, ( there were only four of us plus our guide Allison), we rode along the Ness Bridge and the River Ness away from town.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d794f917-4327-4030-b4f2-910d2d03fc84/21003c46-b174-4e6e-bba9-b6911a0c6cf8.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1707;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d794f917-4327-4030-b4f2-910d2d03fc84/d3ba73ea-7ecc-41c3-83cc-650c395dc8d1.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1059; --en-naturalHeight:1413;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d794f917-4327-4030-b4f2-910d2d03fc84/01e4932d-6bfe-49bc-8e29-7d5067f3d3a3.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><div>We drove mostly on bike paths that led us through " the islands", a series of small islets where various species of trees and plants were transplanted from all over the world mainly to see if they would thrive here. They even had a few redwoods!</div>
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<div>A local carver used fallen logs to make benches and other fanciful creatures.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d794f917-4327-4030-b4f2-910d2d03fc84/1d49c9ba-9176-4d35-9a07-4d66d91d03e6.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d794f917-4327-4030-b4f2-910d2d03fc84/6421dd9d-6fcf-4b7e-a869-84f7fba65427.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><div>Our next stop was at the Royal Botanic Gardens, a small area, but nicely laid out with tropical and local flowers as well as cacti and exotic bushes and trees. It made a nice rest stop and was the halfway point.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d794f917-4327-4030-b4f2-910d2d03fc84/3de122e0-6e84-4244-abb9-41a976087bee.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1707;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d794f917-4327-4030-b4f2-910d2d03fc84/b7415850-5286-44fb-ad71-f2e384703714.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d794f917-4327-4030-b4f2-910d2d03fc84/97863355-d38b-436d-abf6-cc85d0030bf6.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d794f917-4327-4030-b4f2-910d2d03fc84/79c3fc65-4aca-45ff-9be4-e3959ab4e845.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><div>The return trip led us beside a section of the Caledonian Canal. The 60 mile long Canal connects the Scottish east coast at Inverness with the west coast at Corpach near Fort William in Scotland. The canal was constructed in the early nineteenth century by Scottish engineer Thomas Telford and cut the time by days that it took to get between the coasts. It also brought tourism and leisurely boating to this area. There are many locks on the canal, the last four ( out of about 20) are in Inverness.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d794f917-4327-4030-b4f2-910d2d03fc84/70d15741-f2db-4684-b90a-639e45c4782f.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1030; --en-naturalHeight:1374;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d794f917-4327-4030-b4f2-910d2d03fc84/b3668f91-c41a-45ae-98a9-882a626fd7b9.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1108; --en-naturalHeight:1479;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d794f917-4327-4030-b4f2-910d2d03fc84/2fb3c079-4390-4fdb-b73a-5679eef46591.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1015; --en-naturalHeight:1355;"/><div>We arrived at the end of the canal which led to the bay, and ultimately the North Sea. In this area were large nesting gray herons as well as many other birds who thrive on fishing in this protected area. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d794f917-4327-4030-b4f2-910d2d03fc84/946c3faf-4f12-4303-b626-6e707db1352c.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><div>The weather changed quickly, bringing in wind,rain and chilly, dare I say cold air. The rest of the ride home was faster out of necessity with some very tricky maneuvers through red and white stakes. We passed many churches as we neared the river again. At one time there were 14 in a very short stretch. Today, many have been repurposed into apartments, meeting halls and performance centers. There are only six left.</div>
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<div>After a long hot shower and rest, our final dinner in Inverness was at"The Fig and Thistle". We had a shared goat tart,( delicious), and adventurous Wendy enjoyed a venison and haggis burger while Jim played it safe with steak.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d794f917-4327-4030-b4f2-910d2d03fc84/c5c9df26-f967-463b-b850-ef874163e29c.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1707;"/><div><br /></div>
London and Scotland Day 12http://wendy-jim.com/post/london-and-scotland-day-122023-04-05T01:36:45.098000Z2022-09-23T20:18:03ZJim and Wendy Damoulakis<div><b>Dunrobin Castle, Falconry, and a wee Scotch tasting</b></div>
<div><br /></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/e2c663df-cad5-4c08-b3fa-21b0c708a5a9/fa6a4aac-407f-42d8-a1a7-2730eec7eb77.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><div>We started our ride early at 8:45 out to the famous ( and intact!) castle of Dunrobin, passing some decommissioned oil rigs on the way along the Moray Firth. Scotland has done pretty well in oil drilling.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/e2c663df-cad5-4c08-b3fa-21b0c708a5a9/a2d04ebd-6a51-4966-80dc-7d6afd460586.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><div>Dunrobin Castle is the historic home of the Dukes and Earls of Sutherland. Although the earliest parts of the building date from 1275, most of it is later extensions added between 1835 and 1850. It has been remarkably well preserved and kept up, and contains most of the original furnishings, decoration, and intact paraphernalia used at the time this very wealthy family lived here.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/e2c663df-cad5-4c08-b3fa-21b0c708a5a9/f1ae8b4b-876b-4aaf-8736-d9c754ea0850.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><div><br /></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/e2c663df-cad5-4c08-b3fa-21b0c708a5a9/8461f101-5dd0-4ddb-a975-5457364bc62a.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><div>The Earls and Dukes of Sutherland are part of the Highland clan of Sutherland, and as such, have quite a lineage that continues today. You can find prolific examples of portraits on the walls of each and every room. The artists made a good livelihood!</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/e2c663df-cad5-4c08-b3fa-21b0c708a5a9/967b3a2c-2b30-47ec-b141-e20dd04f6023.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1707;"/><div>We went through a fair number of it’s 189 rooms including the billiard , dining, music, breakfast and drawing rooms, nursery area and many more too numerous to mention. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/e2c663df-cad5-4c08-b3fa-21b0c708a5a9/71f63ee8-1ebe-4901-a60c-7edb3c7c8800.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:904;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/e2c663df-cad5-4c08-b3fa-21b0c708a5a9/018ffdd6-7ca6-4499-87af-58183cd0df34.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1707;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/e2c663df-cad5-4c08-b3fa-21b0c708a5a9/f6cb17b7-d456-45ce-83dd-4fec713b59a4.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/e2c663df-cad5-4c08-b3fa-21b0c708a5a9/21702df3-8c86-4348-93bf-1c92a4bfd19e.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1707;"/><div><br /></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/e2c663df-cad5-4c08-b3fa-21b0c708a5a9/3879dcbd-b592-4f6b-902d-6b0fb7c6a532.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/e2c663df-cad5-4c08-b3fa-21b0c708a5a9/4de5a9ca-2790-4b23-afca-e18ad58193a8.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><div>Many of them look out on the exquisite gardens below which we saw close up on our way out to the end area where we experienced a falconry exhibition.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/e2c663df-cad5-4c08-b3fa-21b0c708a5a9/db086ac2-02c9-4d37-be17-bba62b2781bb.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/e2c663df-cad5-4c08-b3fa-21b0c708a5a9/3d347141-40e0-476e-88c8-5d95202a1ff6.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><div>The falconer, Alan, planned an adventure with a young lady in the audience. We were lucky enough to get front row seats and got up close and personal with the birds.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/e2c663df-cad5-4c08-b3fa-21b0c708a5a9/3d312b5e-0473-45ca-974c-459057cb4c56.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><div>First up was a Harris hawk who went through its paces " catching" a rabbit that was pulled by the girl, and flying to eat the chicken meat left on the perches by Alan. All the while he was teaching us about the birds.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/e2c663df-cad5-4c08-b3fa-21b0c708a5a9/dcd70f27-df49-4a6d-ba5f-94f941e05ce9.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1707;"/><div>Then, we met the Saker falcon, hooded at the start to allow it to get acclimated to the audience and surroundings. It moves three times as fast as the hawk, and can catch larger animals. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/e2c663df-cad5-4c08-b3fa-21b0c708a5a9/826dc289-312a-45b2-b391-00099bd03c74.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><div>Birds of prey were used not only for sport hunting, but to bring meat to the clansman’s homes. It took a bit of luck and skill to capture one and then train it.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/e2c663df-cad5-4c08-b3fa-21b0c708a5a9/aee5bc25-9afd-42f0-b56b-b73ee497f0db.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/e2c663df-cad5-4c08-b3fa-21b0c708a5a9/bea1f9d7-711a-4521-9a06-29eaeb345a54.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/e2c663df-cad5-4c08-b3fa-21b0c708a5a9/3004929a-a1b5-40b0-820a-d26ca066fa76.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><div>This was a unique and wonderful presentation and we got to get up close and personal with the birds. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/e2c663df-cad5-4c08-b3fa-21b0c708a5a9/3efc0690-2ea3-4211-9a7a-c6d27df973f8.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:671;"/><div>We returned home with a stop at the distillery Glenmorangie. Although a full tasting is usually included in the tour, because of the totally changed schedule, we got a short one with two tastings. Plenty enough! The giraffe is their logo because it is as tall as their stills!</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/e2c663df-cad5-4c08-b3fa-21b0c708a5a9/25e004fa-d937-4ddc-aa72-be56892df14d.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:768; --en-naturalHeight:1025;"/><div><br /></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/e2c663df-cad5-4c08-b3fa-21b0c708a5a9/d6ac3b49-a926-4725-8137-786364c49470.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/e2c663df-cad5-4c08-b3fa-21b0c708a5a9/3032a253-af5f-4fbb-9431-d994af826bd6.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><div><br /></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/e2c663df-cad5-4c08-b3fa-21b0c708a5a9/24d06ca8-7d67-4879-961f-e46b999eaa47.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:768; --en-naturalHeight:1025;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/e2c663df-cad5-4c08-b3fa-21b0c708a5a9/3a69abc3-8f4b-42e0-b5c3-3e92e21e473b.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:768; --en-naturalHeight:1025;"/><div>Dinner was at a local restaurant, good Cullen Skink, fish and chips, and Wendy had a yen for Mac ‘n cheese.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/e2c663df-cad5-4c08-b3fa-21b0c708a5a9/7f632ab2-5408-408f-89be-c6e6888eabc7.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><div>Here is a map of our adventures in the Scottish Highlands.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/e2c663df-cad5-4c08-b3fa-21b0c708a5a9/620c6331-c4e8-4cd0-add4-3ff9a009e2cc.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1707;"/><div><br /></div>
London and Scotland Day 11http://wendy-jim.com/post/london-and-scotland-day-112023-04-11T16:32:37.098000Z2022-09-22T20:18:00ZJim and Wendy Damoulakis<div><b>Culloden National Historic Sight, Loch Ness boat, Urquhart Castle</b></div>
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<div>We were most impressed with the museum, tour and story of Culloden. We even bought the book! Here is the short version: The Battle of Culloden was the final confrontation of the Jacobite rising of 1745. On 16 April 1746, the Jacobite (after the Latin name for James) army of Charles Edward Stuart (also know as Bonnie Prince Charlie and grandson of James II) was decisively defeated by a British government force under Prince William Augustus, Duke of Cumberland (the son of King George II) on Drummossie Moor near Inverness in the Scottish Highlands. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d4152a87-333c-4deb-a1bb-9a4e482a829e/ce1eede2-b1ff-4853-9fb7-3933105e5de9.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d4152a87-333c-4deb-a1bb-9a4e482a829e/5db2b94c-9ebb-4196-8de8-29a337e547f1.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><div><br /></div>
<div>Our guided tour was all on the actual battlefield, and told the story with a fair perspective on both sides. This conflict is represents a large part of the national identity of Scotland, and many Highlanders have ancestors who took part on one side or the other. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d4152a87-333c-4deb-a1bb-9a4e482a829e/991b8163-90d1-4e78-b599-d63ca37e56ef.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1707;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d4152a87-333c-4deb-a1bb-9a4e482a829e/faebd0a0-a71a-49b8-81c6-d78731bb455a.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d4152a87-333c-4deb-a1bb-9a4e482a829e/852f6f17-bd10-44b8-82ac-4cfe7b672303.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><div><br /></div>
<div>A little more detail: It is somewhat on the level of what the Battle of Gettysburg means to us. It was the climax of a civil war over who should rule the UK and is closely linked to the pains and frustration of Scottish nationalists. In this decisive battle that actually lasted less than an hour, the government army obliterated the Jacobite forces. The government forces lost 50 soldiers during the actual fight while the rebels lost 1500! The government showed no mercy for wounded enemy soldiers, and Charles fled under hot pursuit. It was an resounding defeat.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d4152a87-333c-4deb-a1bb-9a4e482a829e/16d311a1-3425-4091-b36c-8ed3dbe190df.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1037;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d4152a87-333c-4deb-a1bb-9a4e482a829e/1cd0bb22-7c00-4fdd-b3a3-24fcde900d05.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1707;"/><div>We then continued on to nearby Loch Ness. <span style="color:rgb(17, 0, 0);">One interesting fact: it holds an estimated 263 billion cubic feet of water which is more than all the water in all the lakes, rivers and reservoirs in the whole of England and Wales combined! </span>In our itinerary, we were promised a sighting of "Nessie". The large blue statue in front of the gift shop wasn’t worth a picture! The boat ride was freezing and very windy on this somewhat cloudy morning, but again with the beautiful scenery of the area. The boat dropped us off at our next destination, Urquhart Castle.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d4152a87-333c-4deb-a1bb-9a4e482a829e/8f872c91-e8b9-4be9-826b-55900811acc3.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:970;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d4152a87-333c-4deb-a1bb-9a4e482a829e/5978e765-db6c-4757-af48-adc4477d3b32.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d4152a87-333c-4deb-a1bb-9a4e482a829e/f50efbdd-0e06-4e76-8fd6-f507143eaa6f.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d4152a87-333c-4deb-a1bb-9a4e482a829e/8f69e51e-0599-4a25-9e3d-434e1bd3e320.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1707;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d4152a87-333c-4deb-a1bb-9a4e482a829e/f800a626-d1ba-480a-8c3b-88394800fa5a.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><div><br /></div>
<div>The ruins of Urquhart Castle sit on the banks of Loch Ness. It was a large medieval castle built from the the 13th to the 16th centuries on land that previously was a hill fort of the Picts, the early inhabitants of Scotland. It played an important role in the various wars for Scottish independence as well as inter-Clan battles among Scottish tribes. As a result, it changed hands many times until 1690, when rather than ceding the castle to the the attacking Jacobites, the escaping government loyalists blew up the gatehouse and damaged a good portion of the castle. It was never repaired and remains a ruin today.</div>
<div><br /></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d4152a87-333c-4deb-a1bb-9a4e482a829e/89e02bcf-5021-4cad-9837-5a36aaedc0c9.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1707;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d4152a87-333c-4deb-a1bb-9a4e482a829e/d2e73db5-a801-41ca-ad2c-055b9940c876.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:639;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d4152a87-333c-4deb-a1bb-9a4e482a829e/4438c793-79bd-4944-b156-5678f9247aec.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d4152a87-333c-4deb-a1bb-9a4e482a829e/3539e93e-57ab-4127-9699-7b992a283e83.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d4152a87-333c-4deb-a1bb-9a4e482a829e/d4058b47-130f-42bc-84f4-f23cf60f7444.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1707;"/><div><br /></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d4152a87-333c-4deb-a1bb-9a4e482a829e/c9a0e217-c7f4-4097-81f7-43c4f945ba3d.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1707;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d4152a87-333c-4deb-a1bb-9a4e482a829e/ac769ba7-31ef-4005-92ae-b3257351923f.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1707;"/><div><br /></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d4152a87-333c-4deb-a1bb-9a4e482a829e/de6535f8-a73f-4745-866b-02a761df81ad.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><div><br /></div>
<div>After climbing up and down exploring all afternoon, we slept on the way back to the hotel and had a couple hours off. Finished the day with a delicious meal at McBain’s restaurant tonight where one of our Canadian friends couldn’t get enough of sticky toffee pudding and licked the plate clean! </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d4152a87-333c-4deb-a1bb-9a4e482a829e/f3d4bc08-64cf-4558-a9cf-17e3e10ec607.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><div>Tomorrow, another full day at Dunrobin Castle.</div>
London and Scotland Day 10http://wendy-jim.com/post/london-and-scotland-day-102023-04-05T01:35:24.707000Z2022-09-21T20:18:02ZJim and Wendy Damoulakis<div><b>The Isle of Skye</b></div>
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<div>(Note: to set the time perspective, this trip occurred on the day of Queen Elizabeth’s funeral.)</div>
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<div>After a somewhat unexciting breakfast - although we did sample another Scottish tradition black (AKA blood) pudding…and not again, we left for a day-long bus trip to the Isle of Skye. It is due west of Inverness in the inner Hebrides. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/dd2bf50c-8264-49e9-ad4d-fb812a4311d2/da5803a8-07aa-4645-bef9-6093993564d2.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:959;"/><div>Everything we saw today, a good portion of which was from bus windows, is the incredible scenery, flora and fauna of this area, as well as learning a wealth of information for this blog. Since we were in a seat, listening to our wonderful guide, I even took notes! So just skip to the pictures if it is TMI. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/dd2bf50c-8264-49e9-ad4d-fb812a4311d2/e7d62dd7-805e-47fd-b77a-e9faf96ec3c2.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/dd2bf50c-8264-49e9-ad4d-fb812a4311d2/88718cd5-1466-450c-b627-02b58b781680.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/dd2bf50c-8264-49e9-ad4d-fb812a4311d2/2f2ce372-704f-43e5-af1b-51c16efa74fb.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/dd2bf50c-8264-49e9-ad4d-fb812a4311d2/fa0ff5e7-a6d0-466a-bc63-1b09987dd9e9.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><div>Skye originally was south of the equator and migrated north over a period of 3 million years. It is now on the same latitude as Kodiak island in Alaska but with much mellower temperatures due to the air currents. It has, give or take about 11,000 people gradually recovering after a steep decline over the years.</div>
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<div>Skye means " misty", or " cloudy" in Gaelic (here pronounced GAL-ic, unlike in Ireland where it is GAY-lic) which is still used a lot here. Every sign is in both English and Gaelic. And if that isn’t hard enough, comprehending accents range from straining to understand the words to totally incomprehensible!</div>
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<div>We stopped at some beautiful falls and were lucky to have a wee bit of fall foliage in our picture. Also admired some Highland cows, here called " hee-lind coos".</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/dd2bf50c-8264-49e9-ad4d-fb812a4311d2/fc993398-50e7-44f1-b2e2-7f1a985502db.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/dd2bf50c-8264-49e9-ad4d-fb812a4311d2/386bbbb2-dd34-44c5-8a99-89f5d86ce426.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/dd2bf50c-8264-49e9-ad4d-fb812a4311d2/98ac3baf-a8fd-4575-aefa-629c11565bec.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/dd2bf50c-8264-49e9-ad4d-fb812a4311d2/0d74746c-2bdc-4eb9-9b4d-b54e7ccc53b5.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1707;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/dd2bf50c-8264-49e9-ad4d-fb812a4311d2/8b58d1d8-c499-4ed6-99f4-4234ef50320a.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1707;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/dd2bf50c-8264-49e9-ad4d-fb812a4311d2/e9cf1fa5-466a-450b-a441-99e733ab409c.heic" style="--en-naturalWidth:4032; --en-naturalHeight:3024;"/><div>After a long beautiful ride and going over the bridge to Skye we picked up our guide Cullen MacDaniel, a true Scot. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/dd2bf50c-8264-49e9-ad4d-fb812a4311d2/5c3fe1c7-67a8-4816-bbdd-92c95bf6c6ef.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><div>Next stop was the picturesque fishing town of Portree. Hardly anything was open, and after using the pay toilets ( first time we experienced this on our trip), ate our boxed lunches and walked around. Sooo quiet, only a few small bus loads of tourists like us enjoying the sites with only one small fish and chips stand open near the water. The Scots in the Highlands don’t seem to think too highly of the Royals, although we did see a few flower tributes in places. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/dd2bf50c-8264-49e9-ad4d-fb812a4311d2/f2877015-2127-4b28-a3c3-f0808f28f905.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1160;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/dd2bf50c-8264-49e9-ad4d-fb812a4311d2/bbd631e8-d3a6-443e-85cc-169362fbc947.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/dd2bf50c-8264-49e9-ad4d-fb812a4311d2/718a970c-1207-4da9-9d0f-fd418234009f.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1707;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/dd2bf50c-8264-49e9-ad4d-fb812a4311d2/5c8aa2c5-27f0-4599-af10-25b0d266e6b9.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1266;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/dd2bf50c-8264-49e9-ad4d-fb812a4311d2/7bcc1422-544e-4b89-b995-95ed3d71de4a.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/dd2bf50c-8264-49e9-ad4d-fb812a4311d2/aad90cab-036c-4d42-ae6a-e6ea59565ed2.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/dd2bf50c-8264-49e9-ad4d-fb812a4311d2/7efd75b2-e3bf-4bec-a2e2-67c8c2115b1d.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><div>Then a ride up a steep narrow road that reminded us a bit of the Amalfi coast (but with saner drivers). That brought us to a little town with a small cemetery, housing among others, Flora MacDonald, a legendary Scottish heroine who helped Bonnie Prince Charlie escape from English pursuit after the tragic Battle of Culloden.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/dd2bf50c-8264-49e9-ad4d-fb812a4311d2/874fd170-a95b-43e8-b194-a7c6e817c46c.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/dd2bf50c-8264-49e9-ad4d-fb812a4311d2/7ef724ed-f1f1-41ee-8825-453ba13fb871.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1707;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/dd2bf50c-8264-49e9-ad4d-fb812a4311d2/5d125b36-a531-4aa3-aeaa-f0f471ee9995.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:959;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/dd2bf50c-8264-49e9-ad4d-fb812a4311d2/9cc49e98-61dd-4819-954d-cb4ffa1c661b.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/dd2bf50c-8264-49e9-ad4d-fb812a4311d2/9aa0c31c-9825-4e0a-b30e-6996843e6447.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1681;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/dd2bf50c-8264-49e9-ad4d-fb812a4311d2/1a74ec27-e89e-45ec-b439-add10be61694.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1693;"/><div>Our last stop in Skye before going homeward was at Kilt Rock. This is a outcropping that is supposed to look like a kilt. It was a picturesque photo opp, along with the local mountains nearby that showed evidence of the "peat mining" in the area. Most people use oil now, but some still strip large swathes of earth,keep turning it over to accelerate the drying process before using it as fuel ( or making whisky).</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/dd2bf50c-8264-49e9-ad4d-fb812a4311d2/ddf779e2-4859-4d80-8a58-9dddef0c8a78.png" style="--en-naturalWidth:768; --en-naturalHeight:978;"/><div><br /></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/dd2bf50c-8264-49e9-ad4d-fb812a4311d2/be0c40f4-fb95-403d-9147-e5c79aaf5352.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/dd2bf50c-8264-49e9-ad4d-fb812a4311d2/be9d1073-f90d-4925-a079-c7e68a7365a7.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1707;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/dd2bf50c-8264-49e9-ad4d-fb812a4311d2/d080b5bc-e1ab-4beb-a81a-025b5b2d845d.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1707;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/dd2bf50c-8264-49e9-ad4d-fb812a4311d2/a611e34a-cff2-4fec-a7c2-03924db59a4e.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:768; --en-naturalHeight:576;"/><div>Back on the mainland we made one last photo-op stop in Kyle at Elena Donan Castle (yet another Scottish castle).</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/dd2bf50c-8264-49e9-ad4d-fb812a4311d2/e47a6a10-ba64-42e2-8ffc-a02fa245e264.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><div>This was a great day and also the longest one we’ve had, getting back to Inverness around 8 pm and eating dinner in the restaurant downstairs. Although the food was pretty good, the manager of the restaurant was extremely rude. Maybe he had a long day too.</div>
London and Scotland Day 9http://wendy-jim.com/post/london-and-scotland-day-92023-04-05T01:34:32.473000Z2022-09-20T20:18:02ZJim and Wendy Damoulakis<div><b>Problematic travel, Inverness, schedule changes</b></div>
<div><br /></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/de667c3f-76d8-4b0b-8418-cc55c9e541e1/bc79c609-f964-4717-a5fb-68d6c6f6ed0a.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:996;"/><div>After an early start, we got to the Waverly train station in Edinburgh to find out that our train to Inverness was cancelled! We took another local one towards Glasgow, switched at Stirling and got to Inverness around 2:30, about 1 1/2 hours later than planned. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/de667c3f-76d8-4b0b-8418-cc55c9e541e1/74093c8f-5975-4b0e-93bc-10d3460c3503.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><div>How lucky that our hotel, The Royal Highland is literally 25 steps from the train station. It was opened in 1856, has all the old staircases, elevators, and bathroom fittings, and lots of character, including old keys to the door.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/de667c3f-76d8-4b0b-8418-cc55c9e541e1/04f0dc39-0170-4f21-a50f-ee069ac26827.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1707;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/de667c3f-76d8-4b0b-8418-cc55c9e541e1/dfbbd475-53b1-49d5-bb23-49d72c2c4350.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><div>Our tour of the city was led by Dan in full Scottish dress. He was a nice person, but very long winded. We were tired, but tried to learn about falcons and unicorns, (the unicorn is the symbol of Scotland and is usually next to the lion) and why they are together?- the unicorn is the only animal that can defeat the lion, a sly reference to Scotland and England. The town hall was recently renovated and is the THIRD spot where they announced Charles the new King of England. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/de667c3f-76d8-4b0b-8418-cc55c9e541e1/482c98fc-c9be-47dd-81ee-29c0b8bba0fd.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/de667c3f-76d8-4b0b-8418-cc55c9e541e1/37cc13ec-9cf3-4a2d-a810-2ff971c13dde.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/de667c3f-76d8-4b0b-8418-cc55c9e541e1/fd86a569-8676-4667-a311-cc0094fda191.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/de667c3f-76d8-4b0b-8418-cc55c9e541e1/90a3a105-399b-4d00-9ae7-f5ec13b5c93f.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/de667c3f-76d8-4b0b-8418-cc55c9e541e1/ae7a78fa-fa7c-47ba-8008-cb9061430556.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/de667c3f-76d8-4b0b-8418-cc55c9e541e1/ec1fd45e-6ab7-4607-bd9b-88d410cb7d27.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:2042;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/de667c3f-76d8-4b0b-8418-cc55c9e541e1/0af55cb4-9443-47f0-ba21-3b0d2f4de0e3.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><div>We walked across to the River Ness, a waterway connecting Loch Ness with the Moray Firth which then leads to the North Sea. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/de667c3f-76d8-4b0b-8418-cc55c9e541e1/5c6bee49-c1fe-42e4-96f8-a6517de3abaf.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1706;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/de667c3f-76d8-4b0b-8418-cc55c9e541e1/5e2e314f-3455-444b-8283-5efbee9dd578.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/de667c3f-76d8-4b0b-8418-cc55c9e541e1/7c9dc055-e339-416a-b6f2-0ff9dc71af89.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1707;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/de667c3f-76d8-4b0b-8418-cc55c9e541e1/e98b376d-4e5c-4a14-8b13-79fcc88d7edb.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/de667c3f-76d8-4b0b-8418-cc55c9e541e1/52de92e3-5ef4-486f-b69e-2f3864132168.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/de667c3f-76d8-4b0b-8418-cc55c9e541e1/392922a2-a512-4e59-9a24-e0530336485e.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:959;"/><div><br /></div>
<div>Saw a old cemetery from the High Street Church, no longer in use, but we did see some local teens getting " high" there!! </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/de667c3f-76d8-4b0b-8418-cc55c9e541e1/005cacfa-7e93-4961-acc6-f3b42b1dac8f.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/de667c3f-76d8-4b0b-8418-cc55c9e541e1/96f7450b-d4e9-4aef-a6b0-ef1e63a37613.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/de667c3f-76d8-4b0b-8418-cc55c9e541e1/e031e5a5-b85c-4e14-9a61-bd254fa8f5e9.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1587;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/de667c3f-76d8-4b0b-8418-cc55c9e541e1/6ad30f04-0eda-49c8-a0ac-fb4ae0f8afe3.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><div>Our next three days are all mixed up and somewhat changed from the original itinerary. Tomorrow, Monday, September 19 is the funeral and burial of QEII, and as such, almost everything is closed. Many tour groups are either traveling or took the day off. Steve and Linda have been working all week to find creative ways to stick to the plan, although there are many changes. For example, we were supposed to take a very scenic train to The isle of Skye in the Hebrides in a few days. Instead, we are traveling there tomorrow by bus.</div>
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<div>Wearily, we ended the day at a local American- like restaurant called Scotch and Rye where we had burgers. Our room is lovely, very old. Wendy took a long soaking bath in the long tub!</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/de667c3f-76d8-4b0b-8418-cc55c9e541e1/7bbb84e0-4297-4cd4-81a8-51553197fc0d.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/de667c3f-76d8-4b0b-8418-cc55c9e541e1/b3558687-a796-4ea4-b09d-cad2a4282b10.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><div><br /></div>
London and Scotland Day 8http://wendy-jim.com/post/london-and-scotland-day-82023-04-05T01:33:45.802000Z2022-09-18T20:18:01ZJim and Wendy Damoulakis<div><b>Grassmarket Market, HOHO, and Whisky!</b></div>
<div><br /></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/7771f213-2f0c-4b6d-bae4-7ea5661b4720/e365a613-ebd3-4f74-9136-b9c26ee6d8ff.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1707;"/><div>On Saturdays, there is a small market that pops up across the street from our hotel next to all the restaurants we’ve been eating at. We had fun meeting some locals, trying some great food, and doing a bit of shopping!</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/7771f213-2f0c-4b6d-bae4-7ea5661b4720/cc63299e-0a78-4253-9b18-9a9585ab2466.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/7771f213-2f0c-4b6d-bae4-7ea5661b4720/33d01a62-7737-4b1f-bef8-1fd7147404e9.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><div>Today was our " free" and last day in Edinburgh. We were given tickets to the Hop On, Hop Off bus which goes to many different places. Our first two choices,the Royal Yacht Britannia and the Holyrood Palace were both closed. So we started our touring at St. Giles church which was where Queen Elizabeth II had just finished lying in state. It was finally open to the general public.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/7771f213-2f0c-4b6d-bae4-7ea5661b4720/1d228abd-706f-4fd3-8069-3b1c4e51611c.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><div>Quite beautiful, and truly awe inspiring, especially the nave, we admired the artwork, organ, small side chapels and the beautiful interior. The tours were all booked up, and we left after about ½ hour, after admiring the Thistle Chapel, the main alter where the Queens casket was positioned just a few days ago, and the statue of John Knox, leader of the first Protestant uprising.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/7771f213-2f0c-4b6d-bae4-7ea5661b4720/c9eaa0aa-a4be-4c4c-b4ed-d4b938ee3741.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/7771f213-2f0c-4b6d-bae4-7ea5661b4720/8eceb5f4-980a-4ca8-a47f-6fcc895e46fe.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/7771f213-2f0c-4b6d-bae4-7ea5661b4720/17bd8d6f-6190-43e0-80ac-3015f6e95b74.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/7771f213-2f0c-4b6d-bae4-7ea5661b4720/be19a554-9de4-4a6d-b0df-b316eacfc286.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/7771f213-2f0c-4b6d-bae4-7ea5661b4720/29331257-d15e-4897-a074-1d7ae803d674.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/7771f213-2f0c-4b6d-bae4-7ea5661b4720/862afed5-e95a-4f2b-8e49-2d32dd10e27f.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><div>Took the HOHO bus through New Town, Old Town, and out to St. Andrews Square. Although a nice area, nothing seemed compelling to make us get off the bus, so we took it all the way back to Grassmarket and our hotel,stopping at the market for some street food.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/7771f213-2f0c-4b6d-bae4-7ea5661b4720/ecc6f07e-d378-4f0e-8580-cfc1cfc14ebd.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/7771f213-2f0c-4b6d-bae4-7ea5661b4720/2567535b-47d9-40ca-aaad-32c142efd1e5.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/7771f213-2f0c-4b6d-bae4-7ea5661b4720/561e34e2-a111-40b5-bbe9-02f94b95986d.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/7771f213-2f0c-4b6d-bae4-7ea5661b4720/42d26a40-5e7b-41ef-98fb-aca7aadac56c.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><div>We walked over to New Town for our afternoon experience- a whisky tasting at Johnny Walker’s showroom and tasting center. We booked a Whisky Explorer experience featuring a tasting of five whiskies from different regions of Scotland. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/7771f213-2f0c-4b6d-bae4-7ea5661b4720/dfe56360-9287-417f-929b-4a371c0cdd83.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/7771f213-2f0c-4b6d-bae4-7ea5661b4720/1652472e-6b0c-463e-8692-14f0de294071.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:991; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><div>To be classified as Scotch, a whisky must consist of three ingredients: water, barley, and yeast; it must be aged at least three years in aged oak barrels (most typically old bourbon barrels from America are used); it must be made in Scotland. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/7771f213-2f0c-4b6d-bae4-7ea5661b4720/6719aaa2-198b-4733-a812-2070af2b2575.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/7771f213-2f0c-4b6d-bae4-7ea5661b4720/fe0400cc-eb7b-4910-aeca-afdb22af9de1.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><div>We sampled three single malts: Caol Ila 12 from Islay, Clynelish 14 from the Highlands, and Cardhu 12 from Speyside. We then tried an unusual "single grain" whisky Port Dundas 2009 from the Lowlands - a single grain seems to be a misnomer as it contains other grains (in this case corn and wheat) in addition to barley. Finally we finished with a blended whisky, the iconic Johnnie Walker Black.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/7771f213-2f0c-4b6d-bae4-7ea5661b4720/b7980df4-feac-4b31-b44f-22ca051000e7.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><div>The flavor profiles were very different among the samples. The Caol ILa (on of Jim’s favorites) had the smoky (peaty) taste typical of Islay scotches, the Cardhu (Wendy’s favorite) was very smooth. We both chose the blended JW Black as our second favorite. We finished with a purchase of Cardhu in the show room. </div>
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<div>Our dinner tonight was one we planned ahead— The Devil’s Advocate in the old town. We walked with Cindy and Dale, new friends, down the steep stairs of a close—a small alleyway between buildings. Food and drink was delicious (including this crispy black haggis with mango cherry chutney)!</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/7771f213-2f0c-4b6d-bae4-7ea5661b4720/35ea6b35-eade-4ae4-b5e3-a5b067c65163.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><div>On the way home, we enjoyed an impromptu rock concert on the Grassmarket Square. Many students, and young and old alike were dancing, singing and just enjoying a wonderful Saturday night. Home to pack, we leave tomorrow for Inverness on the train. Good night and goodbye Edinburgh. What a wonderful town!</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/7771f213-2f0c-4b6d-bae4-7ea5661b4720/297ed7a5-5781-419d-b877-67bb3726667a.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/7771f213-2f0c-4b6d-bae4-7ea5661b4720/9e909e83-215e-407b-91d2-3e80c3be2208.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/7771f213-2f0c-4b6d-bae4-7ea5661b4720/81431cd1-50da-4280-bd27-6728c36c0da7.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><div><br /></div>
London and Scotland Day 7http://wendy-jim.com/post/london-and-scotland-day-72023-04-05T01:32:58.309000Z2022-09-17T20:18:01ZJim and Wendy Damoulakis<div><b>St. Andrews, town, golf, Cathedral and School</b></div>
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<div>The town of St. Andrews is about 55 miles from Edinburgh and took us under 2 hours to get there. With more history, sights to see, etc. it was an enjoyable trip, out of town into the countryside and another constant narrative by Dave, our driver. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/958a2270-a3a4-48ca-8181-06dd58b5e153/a90de508-3749-4a6b-9114-10739a35aa20.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><div>We crossed the Firth of Forth, an inlet from the North Sea over one of its three beautiful bridges. A firth is an estuary, like a fiord. The river is named the Forth. I can’t seem to keep it straight!</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/958a2270-a3a4-48ca-8181-06dd58b5e153/6bfa54c2-e93b-4aa4-b4a6-6bdeff8cf68e.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><div>Upon arrival at the town of St.Andrews, we immediately saw the Old Course golf hole # 1, the one at which, famously, all the rules of golf were made. There was a small tournament going on. There are actually 5 golf courses but this one is the most famous ( and most expensive). </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/958a2270-a3a4-48ca-8181-06dd58b5e153/c0b09647-da9f-4afa-8b18-8e6a53008ebf.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/958a2270-a3a4-48ca-8181-06dd58b5e153/04ac09f4-c007-49ef-903a-960304fa1810.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/958a2270-a3a4-48ca-8181-06dd58b5e153/55754fa7-7f46-4d9c-9986-a7dc870f0318.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/958a2270-a3a4-48ca-8181-06dd58b5e153/89c50479-767a-4e42-915b-3f219c444df0.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><div>The other famous feature is the beach along the North Sea where " Chariots of Fire’s" famous running scene was filmed. It was very windy and cold ( in the high 40’s but probably less with wind chill) so we didn’t go down to walk the beach.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/958a2270-a3a4-48ca-8181-06dd58b5e153/6f6b7be0-1b81-473d-ba33-ecb5d83ca567.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/958a2270-a3a4-48ca-8181-06dd58b5e153/e8377417-a6a4-41e7-9f25-e8e804d404c8.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1707;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/958a2270-a3a4-48ca-8181-06dd58b5e153/94237f60-3d4b-495b-a98f-00a9f8af3cca.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/958a2270-a3a4-48ca-8181-06dd58b5e153/dd906423-9290-4274-967f-8bc35ea2fa7e.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1221;"/><div>Our guide, Shena took us on a grand tour of St.Andrews. Stories of witches cropped up yet again, how they were dropped from a precipice and if they didn’t drown, were burnt at the stake. Enough already!</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/958a2270-a3a4-48ca-8181-06dd58b5e153/f7a8ec8b-df57-4706-9ccc-f9c0814d5583.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><div>We followed the road to St. Andrews university- the first or second (depending on the article) rated university in all of the UK,kind of like Harvard. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/958a2270-a3a4-48ca-8181-06dd58b5e153/fc3f8a11-9db7-42ac-96ea-6a51284bf276.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/958a2270-a3a4-48ca-8181-06dd58b5e153/ed063faa-e0a1-45b6-9b89-c95bd8a94a7e.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/958a2270-a3a4-48ca-8181-06dd58b5e153/daf98407-2570-4b81-800b-fa39134fa956.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1416;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/958a2270-a3a4-48ca-8181-06dd58b5e153/c1fedda8-c824-4480-a82c-929dd8d6e80e.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/958a2270-a3a4-48ca-8181-06dd58b5e153/2176c67d-44fa-4a07-8954-0a0b6cb597e2.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><div>We visited the beautiful chapel,the inner courtyard, went through and into hidden courtyards where students were meeting in lunchtime study groups, and saw the now famous spots were Prince William met and courted Kate (Middleton). </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/958a2270-a3a4-48ca-8181-06dd58b5e153/5acf1f62-a414-48b2-a6bb-1a72c6246b46.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/958a2270-a3a4-48ca-8181-06dd58b5e153/b792fa40-de9f-42a2-bb43-a4ee4e895371.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><div>They even had to put adhesive around the sewer grates in the area as a safety precaution when the Queen visited for special occasions like graduation.Those stories of the royals seem to have taken on an even bigger significance now.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/958a2270-a3a4-48ca-8181-06dd58b5e153/b36fa8a2-04dc-43a2-924e-9330c25e0abf.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><div>Next was St. Andrew’s Cathedral- the ruins of what was once the largest church in Scotland. It was most impressive for it’s massive size, but also for famously storing the various body parts of St.Andrew after he was canonized. We heard many stories about how they got there, were stolen, where they ended up( many far away places,supposedly), and other minutiae. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/958a2270-a3a4-48ca-8181-06dd58b5e153/04c1ac49-c6d5-48d9-a886-bf3378be66cf.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/958a2270-a3a4-48ca-8181-06dd58b5e153/0e7a6baf-bf15-40b2-9350-7345dffb8c54.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><div>The graves around the cathedral included some famous golfers as well as hundreds of clergy, congregants, and some empty stone coffins. The sandstone’s deterioration made interesting patterns in the ruins.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/958a2270-a3a4-48ca-8181-06dd58b5e153/0e774566-6973-43fb-a816-86e5d442d174.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/958a2270-a3a4-48ca-8181-06dd58b5e153/ac6a3679-14c9-4088-8701-79eaba15f8ce.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1707;"/><div>The last major stop was to the ruins of St.Andrews Castle. High ranking clergymen, Bishops mostly, used this as not only a residence, but as a political base on which to control the church population. During the period leading up to the reformation, there were several takeovers, prisoner uprisings and mutinies giving history professors a vast wealth of material for their textbooks.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/958a2270-a3a4-48ca-8181-06dd58b5e153/d5368982-017c-43c8-8255-01abf76adba6.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/958a2270-a3a4-48ca-8181-06dd58b5e153/335e02ac-f142-45b1-bb89-080efedb5c43.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/958a2270-a3a4-48ca-8181-06dd58b5e153/dc4bdfa7-12f2-4e0c-ab5e-d4e820912d67.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><div>Our walk back to town over old cobblestone streets led us to an afternoon of exploring restaurants and shops. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/958a2270-a3a4-48ca-8181-06dd58b5e153/8a4655eb-e529-4eda-9bf8-6a5dd04cf1b2.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/958a2270-a3a4-48ca-8181-06dd58b5e153/7616ad06-6e8d-485b-9f7c-a50785370426.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/958a2270-a3a4-48ca-8181-06dd58b5e153/95d704de-d215-41d9-84ff-89a28fd92c7e.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/958a2270-a3a4-48ca-8181-06dd58b5e153/69e2fbb5-7973-4fc6-a536-08e8968eb648.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><div>The ride home, following a different route mostly along the beachfront of the Firth of Forth was enjoyable but very long. It was broken up by rest stops at a small beach with a marina and lovely views from the outskirts of Edinburgh. These were major vacation destinations for UK residents in the days before cheap air travel to places like Spain, and they still attract summer crowds today.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/958a2270-a3a4-48ca-8181-06dd58b5e153/f9e133a6-a965-432c-9efa-aa7bc5ef53ff.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/958a2270-a3a4-48ca-8181-06dd58b5e153/a2ea9939-e14d-4bd1-85cb-7209608f0497.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><div>\</div>
<div>\</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/958a2270-a3a4-48ca-8181-06dd58b5e153/608bdde0-c4f5-4919-9dbc-cafdb387c07a.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><div>Dinner was the best meal so far, at a place in the Grassmarket called the Mussel and Steak Bar. Wendy had Linguini with seafood, Jim had mussels, and we shared an absolutely delicious fish chowder soup with the unappetizing name of "Cullen Skink".</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/958a2270-a3a4-48ca-8181-06dd58b5e153/11b24b87-be7d-417b-80b9-081c76d7800a.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/958a2270-a3a4-48ca-8181-06dd58b5e153/176d8ebf-6172-45f8-8c1b-7c53b3a3e5e3.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/958a2270-a3a4-48ca-8181-06dd58b5e153/24651a7f-d0e3-4d38-828a-5f3ee232a504.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><div><br /></div>
London and Scotland Day 6http://wendy-jim.com/post/london-and-scotland-day-62023-04-05T01:32:15.661000Z2022-09-16T20:18:00ZJim and Wendy Damoulakis<div><b>Abbotsford, Rosslyn Chapel, touring odds and ends</b></div>
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<div>Today, we did not go to St. Andrews, as earlier reported, (that is tomorrow), but our bus tour today took us to two remarkable places south of Edinburgh — Abbotsford, home of Sir Walter Scott and Rosslyn Chapel which has become world famous courtesy of Dan Brown and "The DaVinci Code". Dave, our driver, kept up marvelous patter about local history, highlights of the area, stories and had quite a witty and self-deprecating sense of humor.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/94f5c314-0783-458e-b143-a53113aaadab/5919747d-9c03-42a3-82bd-04596d7498ac.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><div><br /></div>
<div>We travelled through the countryside to the "borders" region, so called because it is on the way to the border with Great Britain. We travelled to within 30 miles of the English border, passing rolling green hills, volcanic mounds, and many cows and even more sheep. Supposedly, there are 2 sheep to each resident of Scotland.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/94f5c314-0783-458e-b143-a53113aaadab/86e9e169-fec8-4479-b9cf-bff8260c2519.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/94f5c314-0783-458e-b143-a53113aaadab/17ee3c49-e59f-43db-900b-36747cd7fe61.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/94f5c314-0783-458e-b143-a53113aaadab/841c9c55-bfc7-4836-bbc8-941f8bbf0c6b.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><div>Our first stop was at "Scott’s View", a bucolic lookout not too far from his home. It set the stage for the scenic opportunities the rest of the day. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/94f5c314-0783-458e-b143-a53113aaadab/6087d046-370a-439d-91f6-00c9143b1667.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/94f5c314-0783-458e-b143-a53113aaadab/7cf4a922-253e-49bc-8206-0b0ef68121ee.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/94f5c314-0783-458e-b143-a53113aaadab/4440127e-e6e9-4868-84ad-06044e5e52d8.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><div>Abbotsford, Scott’s estate was built between 1817 and 1825 and sits near the River Tweed. It paid homage to the newer architectural styles of the day, but was decorated inside to look like a medieval manor house with arrays of weaponry and hunting trophies. It’s influence was felt in domestic architecture all over Scotland and beyond.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/94f5c314-0783-458e-b143-a53113aaadab/e553044f-d405-4f8e-bc0f-29626e73ea90.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/94f5c314-0783-458e-b143-a53113aaadab/2073ccb0-5fd9-49fe-b962-7b2b03cf760d.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/94f5c314-0783-458e-b143-a53113aaadab/4ecc408b-7b60-4df1-a675-e53ea5373f1c.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:845;"/><div>The entranceway into the Grand Hall was filled with his "gabions "-an old Scotch word used to describe his collections of old weapons, armor and other curiosities. My even better word is tchotchkes.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/94f5c314-0783-458e-b143-a53113aaadab/a416d8c0-e13c-42d1-8709-8896aaa7d33d.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/94f5c314-0783-458e-b143-a53113aaadab/20e7a309-fa63-4857-9c03-0b1c01688115.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/94f5c314-0783-458e-b143-a53113aaadab/ba7c9bf3-4074-484d-b537-20847f0a740b.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><div>We went through the study, then the wonderful library with a bust of Scott by Francis Chantry, the finest sculptor in Britain at the time. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/94f5c314-0783-458e-b143-a53113aaadab/2c8f4983-11e4-457c-b1f1-5458f27d02e5.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/94f5c314-0783-458e-b143-a53113aaadab/7268f5be-aa2a-4581-a173-5c78df5f1e73.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/94f5c314-0783-458e-b143-a53113aaadab/f6959ee5-0706-4a90-954b-b79a5d54a507.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/94f5c314-0783-458e-b143-a53113aaadab/d69d02c7-7e02-4271-bbbf-8a1619296465.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><div>One of the many fascinating bits of information was about the tableware in the dining room. It was specially designed in 2013 for a visit by Queen Elizabeth II, but took its inspiration from the original early 19th century dinner service used by Scott.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/94f5c314-0783-458e-b143-a53113aaadab/807b12f6-773a-4f89-8fae-4065e9bbeafb.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><div>His life was rich in rewards but also fraught with angst. Scott called this house his "conundrum castle". He was constantly going into debt to fill it with the things he wanted, then catching up with his writing to pay for them. He actually died in debt which his family eventually paid off.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/94f5c314-0783-458e-b143-a53113aaadab/7bead422-0b06-453e-a1bf-b7778807c0a1.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:687;"/><div><br /></div>
<div>Lastly, we walked through his beautiful gardens where workers, mostly volunteers, keep it up. They have a fascinating way of pruning apple trees which obviously works. The gardener currently working there offered us a sample!</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/94f5c314-0783-458e-b143-a53113aaadab/8f55aade-724c-4305-9f9e-dc1ea4968803.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/94f5c314-0783-458e-b143-a53113aaadab/d4faadb1-5ced-4765-b744-6064d2e29d55.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/94f5c314-0783-458e-b143-a53113aaadab/25038772-dd2b-4dfd-8a6a-85d95411ac04.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><div>Our next stop is the famous (or infamous) Rosslyn Chapel. But the scenery on the way to get there was the show stopper. (Sorry, pictures taken from bus window).</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/94f5c314-0783-458e-b143-a53113aaadab/823342a0-d872-48dc-bc0c-1713c65a93ab.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/94f5c314-0783-458e-b143-a53113aaadab/a8002ad0-48db-4ca6-845b-e4b24dea96bc.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/94f5c314-0783-458e-b143-a53113aaadab/a2e4f604-4981-4c04-8aef-7ec7268c52cf.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/94f5c314-0783-458e-b143-a53113aaadab/a7ab012c-9a4a-4550-9fe8-7779fed3e942.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><div>Also got a little lesson on the mining industry as we went through a mining town where the workers houses had red paint above the windows. This identified the fact that the mining company owned the house, hence the workers owed their livelihood ( and debt as well) to the company. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/94f5c314-0783-458e-b143-a53113aaadab/e85db2f6-8f4b-4ae5-bcce-3c0fa4319d7a.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/94f5c314-0783-458e-b143-a53113aaadab/945e1a83-5730-4763-b620-640588fd544b.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><div>Founded in 1446 by Sir William St. Clair, the Rosslyn Chapel took 40 years to build. St. Clair originally wanted a cathedral which he said should represent all the good and evil things that were in the Bible, old and new testaments. Unfortunately, he died and only the chapel was completed, but the beauty of it’s setting and the mysterious symbolism of it’s stonework have intrigued visitors ever since. We could only take pictures from the outside, but I used the pamphlet and other exhibit pictures to fill in. It would take a very long book to even try to explain a fraction of what we saw.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/94f5c314-0783-458e-b143-a53113aaadab/c37090ba-f3c2-4fd2-9ad9-ff802e553caf.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/94f5c314-0783-458e-b143-a53113aaadab/a8ab83c3-534d-4dac-b2c7-e8f5f845f512.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/94f5c314-0783-458e-b143-a53113aaadab/fe14c061-2894-4f98-9932-e9110e74c488.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/94f5c314-0783-458e-b143-a53113aaadab/9ce9e719-d509-468a-a201-a71c2d572e86.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/94f5c314-0783-458e-b143-a53113aaadab/d9c06675-b595-42c4-8606-b034dc4d8eae.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><div>It was very difficult to make out where the stones were, and what they represented. Not only are they very, very old, but in the early 1900’s they tried to restore the intricate stonework and did even more damage to the soft sandstone. But we still had fun trying to identify many of the mysterious figures and objects.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/94f5c314-0783-458e-b143-a53113aaadab/67b43c91-d823-4c2c-809c-a8d4811d21fa.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/94f5c314-0783-458e-b143-a53113aaadab/a4c5725d-e759-40a8-806a-eed031e69ba7.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><div>When Dan Brown wrote the "DaVinci Code" with the chapel as the main focus at the climax of the story, it created a sensation that became even greater when it was made into a movie in 2006, and parts of it were filmed here. The Vestry, not the main room of the Sacristy was mainly used for the filming. But more importantly, Brown had opened up the world to the chapel, and tourists came by the hordes. It had been closed at that point for lack of funds to keep it up and with this newfound windfall, they were able to restore the chapel. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/94f5c314-0783-458e-b143-a53113aaadab/1a3087fc-4a2d-4277-ad4e-f69d548aee9d.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/94f5c314-0783-458e-b143-a53113aaadab/91ed6c33-5899-4fc6-a574-5fa474e97b43.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><div>A quick trip along yet another very scenic route brought us home to the heart of Edinburgh. We found another old tavern where Jim enjoyed very traditional fish and chips ( as well as a wee dram), and Wendy had a steak and ale pie,somewhat less enjoyed. </div>
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London and Scotland Days 4 and 5 (long)http://wendy-jim.com/post/london-and-scotland-days-4-and-5-long2023-04-05T01:31:37.341000Z2022-09-15T20:18:02ZJim and Wendy Damoulakis<div>Monday was a travel day, and although we had originally planned to get to the Tate Modern for a short time in the morning,it didn’t work out. The London City Airport is small with just a few people, gates, and smaller planes. It is much easier than Heathrow which we wanted to avoid. Although, we had to carry bags up and down stairs more than a few times, yech! Upon arrival at Edinburgh, the biggest problem was finding a cab. Only one came at a time, every 3-4 minutes which did not appease the 20 parties or so ahead of us in line. We were lucky enough to get an Uber which 40 minutes later got us to our hotel. Some of the roads were blocked, but, all in all, except for the cab problem, we seemed to avoid the Queen’s cavalcade through the city. </div>
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<div>Met our tour mates in a quick meeting with Linda, one half of our guide team. (Steve,the other half is in Iceland, and will meet us in a few days). We had a lovely dinner across the street at a Parisian bistro and started getting to know some of the other 14 people taking this tour.</div>
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<div><b>Day 5, Edinburgh Walking Tour, Edinburgh Castle, Tablet Candy and Haggis</b></div>
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<div>Edinburgh is over 1000 years old, and, a little like Rome, lies on seven—not hills- but extinct volcanoes. Our tour guide, Fran, a soft- spoken women in Scottish dress led us through the main areas of this town including the Grassmarket, where our hotel, the Apex Grassmarket, is located, New Town, and the Old Town including the "Royal Mile". Grassmarket used to be the only sunny and open area as well as the market area for food and livestock. Today, it is very European looking with lots of restaurants, shops and pubs right across the street from our hotel. </div>
<div><br /></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ad81953b-afd3-49e7-acf7-e8a8a9c98e7c/6bdb1640-ce42-4755-ac74-faf3fdb8d5e2.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:791;"/><div>The New Town (not new, but built between 1767 and 1850) was an effort to get some of the masses into what was then, a planned neighborhood. Edinburgh was steeped in poverty and the unwanted effects of that: dirt, disease and overcrowding. So they ran a contest to find a planner, and started this section of somewhat bigger, and certainly newer housing. Now, Princess street is lined with many galleries, shops, gardens and beautiful views of Edinburgh </div>
<div><br /></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ad81953b-afd3-49e7-acf7-e8a8a9c98e7c/f81b1bc8-412b-4cad-be73-e258ece3ed0d.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><div><br /></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ad81953b-afd3-49e7-acf7-e8a8a9c98e7c/db1906bd-a5d8-41bb-9d55-18ded917b9eb.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:750; --en-naturalHeight:562;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ad81953b-afd3-49e7-acf7-e8a8a9c98e7c/ac93295e-c1be-4777-8d53-291e2511736e.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:750; --en-naturalHeight:562;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ad81953b-afd3-49e7-acf7-e8a8a9c98e7c/4c4f62b4-ad56-46de-8a7e-6e0ce7b181ee.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:750; --en-naturalHeight:562;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ad81953b-afd3-49e7-acf7-e8a8a9c98e7c/0366dee4-db9f-40fe-85b1-4ff91548bc30.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ad81953b-afd3-49e7-acf7-e8a8a9c98e7c/0962bae7-b86c-408b-9f21-732e64427ddc.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ad81953b-afd3-49e7-acf7-e8a8a9c98e7c/87fa2dfa-dc45-4f5a-9099-e9148a739a06.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><div><br /></div>
<div>We stopped at a very famous monument of Sir Walter Scott, alongside his beloved dog. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ad81953b-afd3-49e7-acf7-e8a8a9c98e7c/a6a738cd-3088-4a60-802b-5d1c2f2cbb6c.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1445;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ad81953b-afd3-49e7-acf7-e8a8a9c98e7c/7b0b7f4d-8680-4e14-9a04-a2e092d7b860.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><div>The Royal Mile is in the old town , a processional route for royalty for the last hundred years, which was last used for royalty as of……yesterday! More on that in a bit. </div>
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<div>It officially goes between the Palace of Holyroodhouse to St. Giles’ Cathedral and is very touristy with tiny shops selling scarves, woolen clothing, whisky, and, of course, all manner of restaurants. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ad81953b-afd3-49e7-acf7-e8a8a9c98e7c/af870a75-f45a-4944-a0f4-d4c366073d96.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ad81953b-afd3-49e7-acf7-e8a8a9c98e7c/0a8aa955-1c34-438f-babc-56ab95133e04.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1869;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ad81953b-afd3-49e7-acf7-e8a8a9c98e7c/8f77d06b-39f4-4324-b7c0-662898cb4254.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ad81953b-afd3-49e7-acf7-e8a8a9c98e7c/5b90bbe3-9311-45d2-9945-573d9cacdf7d.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><div>We spent a bit of time outside of St. Giles where, less than 24 hours earlier, Queen Elizabeth II laid at rest so more than 20,000 people in Edinburgh could pay their respects. After a service of remembrance, her coffin was then brought through the streets, eventually to the airport, and, as of today, is in Buckingham Palace in London. So that is the timeline of what has been happening as we have made our way from London to Scotland, parrying around these activities of the Royal family. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ad81953b-afd3-49e7-acf7-e8a8a9c98e7c/e3c2daef-ce94-484f-9b2c-fefdb159c76d.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:850;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ad81953b-afd3-49e7-acf7-e8a8a9c98e7c/fb346088-c137-46a5-bbfd-4a67eb7d64fe.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1576;"/><div>There were still many barriers along the sides of the road, TV cameras, news people and BBC broadcast trucks around the church, and we were not allowed inside, but life was returning to normal. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ad81953b-afd3-49e7-acf7-e8a8a9c98e7c/08f41f75-f05b-4858-b135-4702148402c8.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ad81953b-afd3-49e7-acf7-e8a8a9c98e7c/70a31990-e686-47fb-9084-3403ec032926.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><div>In front of St. Giles, there is an interesting landmark called the Mercet (Market) Cross. From the top of this, announcements were made to the public. When James 3rd of Scotland became King of all of England, it is said that a horseman rode non-stop from London to this spot to announce to the Scots that their King was now the King of England. True to tradition, although the official "Ascension" announcement of the now King Charles III was made in London, it was also made atop this famous spot, following a 21 gun salute,while the Royal family was here in Edinburgh.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ad81953b-afd3-49e7-acf7-e8a8a9c98e7c/d5678850-6553-4fa9-b62c-887337e0fa60.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ad81953b-afd3-49e7-acf7-e8a8a9c98e7c/247ff99b-c6c2-42a9-8917-ebc542746207.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><div>After St. Giles, we explored the Royal Mile on our own and found some lunch before heading up,…and up the long hill to Edinburgh Castle.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ad81953b-afd3-49e7-acf7-e8a8a9c98e7c/a459485b-ddcd-4263-9e72-a9bc2d049b6a.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1487;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ad81953b-afd3-49e7-acf7-e8a8a9c98e7c/fe936561-0a20-4902-852b-64840114e6a1.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><div><br /></div>
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<div>Edinburgh castle is steeped in history, although we were a little underwhelmed by the audio tour’s dry and endless take on it. But it is very impressive. High atop a huge rock of volcanic material, it is the highest spot in Edinburgh and has beautiful views. It was an impregnable fortress, housed ( and still does occasionally) hundreds of troops and an armory as well as the Scottish royal jewels. It has an impressive hall of remembrance for all the Scots who have died in battle from WWI through the Afghanistan conflict. St. Margaret’s Chapel, dating from the 1100’s is the oldest building in Edinburgh and is used occasionally for very small life cycle events, and the Great Hall is used occasionally for special events as well as movies.</div>
<div><br /></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ad81953b-afd3-49e7-acf7-e8a8a9c98e7c/26472eb8-9398-4286-a53f-45cf2ad8167d.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ad81953b-afd3-49e7-acf7-e8a8a9c98e7c/d012ee9c-2516-48c6-94ec-12c5ba5c8d2f.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ad81953b-afd3-49e7-acf7-e8a8a9c98e7c/1b4557b4-156c-480c-9c40-74c34e6169d4.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:905;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ad81953b-afd3-49e7-acf7-e8a8a9c98e7c/8ec6932d-9c2d-4f38-aa16-a16b98440651.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ad81953b-afd3-49e7-acf7-e8a8a9c98e7c/8fdc9574-d238-41ee-bbed-8de44b983d03.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ad81953b-afd3-49e7-acf7-e8a8a9c98e7c/858262a4-76fa-4294-84c6-3e3ff2c40cc2.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ad81953b-afd3-49e7-acf7-e8a8a9c98e7c/9dd8239f-5cdf-453e-9797-185b89d6c45a.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ad81953b-afd3-49e7-acf7-e8a8a9c98e7c/7e65abec-2a39-46ad-a1dd-cd2bfe57e964.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ad81953b-afd3-49e7-acf7-e8a8a9c98e7c/e429a8ef-d0c5-4438-bbda-f2b33047fb94.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ad81953b-afd3-49e7-acf7-e8a8a9c98e7c/37414014-f348-42a0-95d3-65ab2023f51a.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1129;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ad81953b-afd3-49e7-acf7-e8a8a9c98e7c/81e42fc9-a526-4b4d-a0e0-83c0b4f9568d.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ad81953b-afd3-49e7-acf7-e8a8a9c98e7c/ef60f266-cd12-4090-af81-95957f95b021.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ad81953b-afd3-49e7-acf7-e8a8a9c98e7c/20f4d01f-e099-4f23-96d3-6eb68bf4b8b8.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:830;"/><div>Exhausted, we walked down about 10 flights of steps to work our way back to our hotel. Dying for an ice cream, we saw a local candy/ ice cream store on the far side of our hotel. The friendly proprietor thrives on chatting with customers and explains both his very old fashioned candies (think Scottish penny candy in glass jars, 2 ft licorice,or bubble gum, not sure), and the Scottish treat of "tablet"-a strangely named candy made of carmel, condensed milk, a little butter and maybe a couple of other things. After he gave us a taste, we had to get some along with ice cream. But he wasn’t done. He bent our ear about how he loved doing this, how his wife makes the tablet (recipe is online), and especially his travels. He is leaving on holiday tomorrow. A lovely and unusual way to end the afternoon.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ad81953b-afd3-49e7-acf7-e8a8a9c98e7c/04c55815-a3fb-410d-8ab3-a670166b8252.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ad81953b-afd3-49e7-acf7-e8a8a9c98e7c/41ab04e7-3054-4d57-8645-87389b8f07c3.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ad81953b-afd3-49e7-acf7-e8a8a9c98e7c/881e8e83-5e2f-474c-ba1e-6de8667536df.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:959;"/><div>After a nap, we went across the street to the supposedly haunted White Hart Inn. It is one of the oldest pubs in Edinburgh dating back to 1516 and frequented by renowned Scotsmen like Robbie Burns. We each had an ale and shared…wait for it….haggis, neeps and tatties. It was actually pretty good! ( Neeps are turnips, tatties are potatoes, and if you don’t know what haggis is, you might want to look it up.) Wendy took advantage of the hotel’s pool before bedtime. Tomorrow is a trip to St. Andrews.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ad81953b-afd3-49e7-acf7-e8a8a9c98e7c/564f3d14-055f-4a70-8a3b-c35736926e88.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:960;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ad81953b-afd3-49e7-acf7-e8a8a9c98e7c/a4a701b8-cae4-4616-9aaa-276efc9ba1c8.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/ad81953b-afd3-49e7-acf7-e8a8a9c98e7c/43353dc2-b82d-4a78-9a26-d489a7af16ae.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:1280; --en-naturalHeight:1708;"/><div><br /></div>
London and Scotland Day 3http://wendy-jim.com/post/london-and-scotland-day-32023-04-05T01:30:58.647000Z2022-09-13T20:18:00ZJim and Wendy Damoulakis<div><b>Churchill War Rooms,iconic tourist sites, London Eye and Borough Market</b></div>
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<div>Our first- thing in the morning visit to Westminster Abbey was cancelled immediately after the Queen’s passing as it is solely being used for meditation, etc. Also, most likely, to keep out the public as they get it ready for the funeral next week. Although, interesting enough, when we walked by, there a funeral ( not the Queens obviously) taking place there. But I digress…</div>
<div><br /></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/a0a200be-6cde-47d0-8450-98bede262d86/e65985cc-7272-4d39-a1b7-656a6f7af590.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:562; --en-naturalHeight:750;"/><div>On our good friends Patti and Bob’s recommendation, we went to the Churchill War Rooms, right around the corner from 10 Downing, and Westminster. These were reinforced underground bunkers, prepared right before the beginning of WW2 as a somewhat safe planning area for Churchill, his generals, advisors and staff. Many of them worked endless days and nights, some living underground for days at a time to plan strategy, map every event of the war effort, and communicate with troops as well as the British government and people. Some of Churchill’s famous speeches were written and given from there over the BBC outpost underground. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/a0a200be-6cde-47d0-8450-98bede262d86/5dfc2157-eb95-47ca-8a1c-cd5917c7d410.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:750; --en-naturalHeight:305;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/a0a200be-6cde-47d0-8450-98bede262d86/7db53941-9c25-4597-ac1a-61c3cf14a6a2.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:750; --en-naturalHeight:404;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/a0a200be-6cde-47d0-8450-98bede262d86/e756df97-891b-4fe9-b5e8-727b3db16223.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:750; --en-naturalHeight:562;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/a0a200be-6cde-47d0-8450-98bede262d86/041038ab-d685-4189-991f-d336ee51a843.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:750; --en-naturalHeight:562;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/a0a200be-6cde-47d0-8450-98bede262d86/6ecee42f-7f2d-4c87-8638-7815a44f11f5.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:562; --en-naturalHeight:750;"/><div>Much of the space, besides the working planning rooms, is devoted to the Churchill museum, with appropriate artifacts, letters, media promotions and posters, as well as unabashedly honest commentary about the strengths and weaknesses of the man himself. It was fascinating and well worth our while. It was made abundantly clear that his hard work and attitude was critical to Britain’s survival during the war.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/a0a200be-6cde-47d0-8450-98bede262d86/d1238899-4b15-45b6-a50f-bcf8e6aa4881.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:750; --en-naturalHeight:562;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/a0a200be-6cde-47d0-8450-98bede262d86/151a22f2-f696-4628-8827-bbdf7945f9d0.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:750; --en-naturalHeight:562;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/a0a200be-6cde-47d0-8450-98bede262d86/28e6d15f-49f3-4af5-b127-3a08f308aeec.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:562; --en-naturalHeight:750;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/a0a200be-6cde-47d0-8450-98bede262d86/786e03f4-ea44-4ae7-bb1b-59e07307c9c4.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:562; --en-naturalHeight:750;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/a0a200be-6cde-47d0-8450-98bede262d86/995dcb46-d1a2-40c4-83d1-5c0d56a9494c.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:562; --en-naturalHeight:750;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/a0a200be-6cde-47d0-8450-98bede262d86/21a00075-fae6-4374-a518-215c277a7138.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:562; --en-naturalHeight:750;"/><div>There was a very clear police presence all around this area of London, along with hundreds of barricades all ready for use. But no attempt was made to stop any tourists or residents to travel…yet. Since the Queen arrives late tomorrow (she is being transferred from Edinburgh soon after we arrive there tomorrow), I imagine things will change quickly. So our timing, we hope, works out well for us. More to come on that with future updates.</div>
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<div>We saw plenty of the iconic sights: Westminster Abbey, Parliament and Big Ben ( mostly refurbished with some scaffolding left), etc. Wendy took a picture of the Ministry of Mechanical Engineers to honor her Dad (and his mother as well). </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/a0a200be-6cde-47d0-8450-98bede262d86/464f096a-26ca-4dc0-9ffe-0aaede6a3f13.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:562; --en-naturalHeight:750;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/a0a200be-6cde-47d0-8450-98bede262d86/1cb0a803-589b-49f4-b990-a1775f532527.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:750; --en-naturalHeight:562;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/a0a200be-6cde-47d0-8450-98bede262d86/de053e9b-a3bc-4e06-bb15-8440e64eb340.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:564; --en-naturalHeight:750;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/a0a200be-6cde-47d0-8450-98bede262d86/867e8488-b664-4cb1-9266-6beeb3af7627.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:750; --en-naturalHeight:562;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/a0a200be-6cde-47d0-8450-98bede262d86/0f4f90bc-b848-4fd7-b729-56a8aa61c8ea.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:430; --en-naturalHeight:750;"/><div>Although it is a kitschy tourist thing, we took a ride on the London Eye, and enjoyed the views above the city, especially seeing Buckingham Palace, where in the distance you can see lines of people leaving flowers and paying respects. In future days, there will be thousands there. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/a0a200be-6cde-47d0-8450-98bede262d86/dfa982b3-49de-4605-9406-1ff2b199a2f8.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:562; --en-naturalHeight:750;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/a0a200be-6cde-47d0-8450-98bede262d86/30cf1fde-ee96-4f1a-9ac7-86cc7e852e12.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:562; --en-naturalHeight:750;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/a0a200be-6cde-47d0-8450-98bede262d86/b60a42aa-491b-47e5-a37f-954a491b7c33.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:750; --en-naturalHeight:562;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/a0a200be-6cde-47d0-8450-98bede262d86/3d2687d8-352e-4484-86ab-d6d8f2d9d14a.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:616; --en-naturalHeight:750;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/a0a200be-6cde-47d0-8450-98bede262d86/cf668297-e96a-4bed-87b4-00d1868fa7e3.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:750; --en-naturalHeight:562;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/a0a200be-6cde-47d0-8450-98bede262d86/5dbd8e91-9404-47f9-93cc-0bd809b05e47.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:520; --en-naturalHeight:618;"/><div>We took the tube home by way of Boroughs Market, one of the larger market areas. Although there were many food stalls and choices, there were very few places to sit.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/a0a200be-6cde-47d0-8450-98bede262d86/a6e1ef68-a808-4f04-a0a4-a365fa604cf4.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:562; --en-naturalHeight:750;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/a0a200be-6cde-47d0-8450-98bede262d86/5f9d202d-a404-4228-bedb-d00d38aba291.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:562; --en-naturalHeight:750;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/a0a200be-6cde-47d0-8450-98bede262d86/180e8ff1-95f2-45ca-a1d0-e64f6bd87599.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:562; --en-naturalHeight:750;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/a0a200be-6cde-47d0-8450-98bede262d86/c93aab3a-5dc6-4198-8819-0673e5cb327a.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:750; --en-naturalHeight:562;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/a0a200be-6cde-47d0-8450-98bede262d86/eaeb25c4-a3fd-4aa8-89cc-bf2be1f80a4e.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:562; --en-naturalHeight:750;"/><div>So we opted to have "linner" at a place across the street from our hotel called the Flat Iron. A small delicious steak and some sides made for an enjoyable dinner made all the sweeter for their cute idea of a free ice cream after you paid your bill.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/a0a200be-6cde-47d0-8450-98bede262d86/5e25f2e3-d274-4e26-b303-815cfa782a50.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:750; --en-naturalHeight:562;"/><div>We returned to pack, catch up on this blog, and take advantage of the hotel’s free (but rather late) Happy Hour to finish off the day.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/a0a200be-6cde-47d0-8450-98bede262d86/9f1681df-969d-4f4f-b5ea-68b6675b55fd.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:705; --en-naturalHeight:750;"/><div><br /></div>
London and Scotland Day 2http://wendy-jim.com/post/london-and-scotland-day22023-04-05T01:30:16.207000Z2022-09-12T20:18:02ZJim and Wendy Damoulakis<div><b>British museum, Royal Opera House, Convent Garden, and "Six"</b></div>
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<div>Our whirlwind tour of London started today with a traditional English breakfast here at the hotel, including eggs, baked beans, "back" bacon ( a huge hefty but coarse bacon), sausage-also huge, cooked tomatoes and mushrooms, selection of cheeses and fruits, and several kinds of croissants which had just come out of the oven. We’re in breakfast heaven!</div>
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<div>The tube stop is about 4 minutes away, and we navigated pretty easily to the British museum. We arrived just a few minutes before it’s opening at 10 and had to walk around the building to find the end of the queue. But it moved fast ( it’s free, no tickets involved) and we were soon inside at the " Great Court East". </div>
<div><br /></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/b1dd0a84-48fc-4e83-bbc2-e43e5c4adbc7/372d490d-d417-4179-bf09-79c0f9e1be07.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:750; --en-naturalHeight:562;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/b1dd0a84-48fc-4e83-bbc2-e43e5c4adbc7/f6f6a606-3ca7-4b7f-8ae7-37cc01fa9ff2.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:750; --en-naturalHeight:562;"/><div>We followed Rick Steve’s audio guide which started at the famous Rosetta Stone, went through the Egyptians, Assyrians and ended at the Greeks. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/b1dd0a84-48fc-4e83-bbc2-e43e5c4adbc7/4e1c871b-628e-4801-b55d-d3dbff4cf9e7.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:562; --en-naturalHeight:750;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/b1dd0a84-48fc-4e83-bbc2-e43e5c4adbc7/d68373d4-f6b3-4ea6-b266-8db09a4253db.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:562; --en-naturalHeight:750;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/b1dd0a84-48fc-4e83-bbc2-e43e5c4adbc7/3090498b-fd68-4916-9b06-58e150973fc8.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:750; --en-naturalHeight:562;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/b1dd0a84-48fc-4e83-bbc2-e43e5c4adbc7/489c6c3b-c0c1-4227-8189-8169d6ccd531.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:562; --en-naturalHeight:750;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/b1dd0a84-48fc-4e83-bbc2-e43e5c4adbc7/92504389-b350-49c0-aad5-efa2c0326fb2.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:562; --en-naturalHeight:750;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/b1dd0a84-48fc-4e83-bbc2-e43e5c4adbc7/66b565a1-e030-4556-912c-066d79e3e690.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:562; --en-naturalHeight:750;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/b1dd0a84-48fc-4e83-bbc2-e43e5c4adbc7/6ed90e92-b454-413d-8260-40fb392917ad.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:562; --en-naturalHeight:750;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/b1dd0a84-48fc-4e83-bbc2-e43e5c4adbc7/af6e1da2-5794-434b-87b9-bedfaa06f5d5.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:750; --en-naturalHeight:562;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/b1dd0a84-48fc-4e83-bbc2-e43e5c4adbc7/cb58c043-3ab3-4c96-ac03-f04775946d1e.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:750; --en-naturalHeight:562;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/b1dd0a84-48fc-4e83-bbc2-e43e5c4adbc7/ea57c3ca-f47a-45da-951e-7176a58e48db.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:562; --en-naturalHeight:750;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/b1dd0a84-48fc-4e83-bbc2-e43e5c4adbc7/e8b85302-eb59-4bef-83a7-a881dfc6bbb0.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:750; --en-naturalHeight:562;"/><div> Jim was enthralled with all the Greek antiquities, Wendy loved all the mummy stuff, and we were both disappointed to learn that the famous music manuscripts formally housed in the museum were turned over to the British Library a number of years ago. We remembered them from our last trip, over 40 years ago. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/b1dd0a84-48fc-4e83-bbc2-e43e5c4adbc7/e7c4ed64-9bd9-4a55-a273-d0bfeb32981a.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:562; --en-naturalHeight:750;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/b1dd0a84-48fc-4e83-bbc2-e43e5c4adbc7/a4d89519-e1fa-4571-b4dd-92aba32e1f70.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:562; --en-naturalHeight:750;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/b1dd0a84-48fc-4e83-bbc2-e43e5c4adbc7/b814e705-f029-4457-8d04-948eee8eed1d.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:562; --en-naturalHeight:750;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/b1dd0a84-48fc-4e83-bbc2-e43e5c4adbc7/27b32556-d6ef-4952-bbb2-2c7d602f749b.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:750; --en-naturalHeight:562;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/b1dd0a84-48fc-4e83-bbc2-e43e5c4adbc7/90721b06-a402-488c-8dcd-49094f792518.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:750; --en-naturalHeight:562;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/b1dd0a84-48fc-4e83-bbc2-e43e5c4adbc7/81ae5665-a707-41b7-a429-2e9bb832e1c2.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:750; --en-naturalHeight:614;"/><div>Following our itinerary, we started walking over to Convent Garden. Wendy knew the Royal Opera House was close by, but we literally walked right by it. And, lo and behold, a free tour was starting in 5 minutes which we squeezed into without previous reservations. What a treat! The Opera, Ballet and Ballet School all use the facility and perform there. And it’s history is both charming and fascinating. It burnt down once in the early 1800s, was rebuilt, burnt down again in the 1870s, and then was closed for over a year in 2018 for a complete renovation. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/b1dd0a84-48fc-4e83-bbc2-e43e5c4adbc7/9b6822cd-88b1-423e-a8d4-6575ea38c617.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:562; --en-naturalHeight:750;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/b1dd0a84-48fc-4e83-bbc2-e43e5c4adbc7/37328f02-57f6-49e5-83f3-3658ea488740.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:750; --en-naturalHeight:562;"/><div>There are now extra rehearsal spaces, a huge gathering and eating spot, and a lovely 400 seat theatre as well as the main hall. Alas, the main hall was not included in this tour (you have to buy a " backstage" tour to see that), but all the facts and figures about costumes, wigs, scenery, and the gallery of pictures and busts of musicians,dancers and singers made up for it. And you can easily find a picture of it if it interests you.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/b1dd0a84-48fc-4e83-bbc2-e43e5c4adbc7/8478689b-99d9-4dbd-a315-6ddd4d2d8435.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:562; --en-naturalHeight:750;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/b1dd0a84-48fc-4e83-bbc2-e43e5c4adbc7/a31e1d46-b06d-48b0-921c-c90b0792f3a1.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:562; --en-naturalHeight:750;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/b1dd0a84-48fc-4e83-bbc2-e43e5c4adbc7/2951f7b5-7e33-4ff5-bb9a-7f5e6f533fba.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:562; --en-naturalHeight:750;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/b1dd0a84-48fc-4e83-bbc2-e43e5c4adbc7/b8f48476-2dd0-4d38-8982-09dac3fae8ae.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:562; --en-naturalHeight:750;"/><div>The ROH leads right into Convent Garden- a 6 block area of outdoor and enclosed area of shops, carts, restaurants,outdoor entertainers and excitement. Since it was Sunday and not raining, it was crowded and full of London residents and tourists alike looking for a relaxing time. We had a chocolate lunch of hot cocoa and gelato, people watched, shopped a little, and were entertained by both highbrow and lowbrow street groups. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/b1dd0a84-48fc-4e83-bbc2-e43e5c4adbc7/fa5952af-4b95-4210-af04-c3f80e15e84c.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:750; --en-naturalHeight:563;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/b1dd0a84-48fc-4e83-bbc2-e43e5c4adbc7/b202df56-a074-4bca-bcb0-8190aea8fd9c.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:750; --en-naturalHeight:562;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/b1dd0a84-48fc-4e83-bbc2-e43e5c4adbc7/e70f8f26-b054-41a3-8120-ea4b279a81a0.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:562; --en-naturalHeight:750;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/b1dd0a84-48fc-4e83-bbc2-e43e5c4adbc7/32706dc5-3b59-48c8-b37a-0b1e457729fe.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:562; --en-naturalHeight:750;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/b1dd0a84-48fc-4e83-bbc2-e43e5c4adbc7/2d2fdcf8-a1d2-4830-94a5-324c3ba108c8.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:562; --en-naturalHeight:750;"/><div>On the way home, we had a bit of trouble finding the right tube station, but happened to pass the theatre showing the play we have tickets for tonight. So far, serendipity has been a companion today ( as well as very sore feet!)</div>
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<div>After a fairly quick Greek dinner practically next door to the theatre, we saw "Six", the new hit show about the six wives of Henry the Eighth. A totally female cast including 4 rock musicians on stage, it was well presented,sung and acted. It is a musical for the under 40 crowd ( maybe even thirty) which was most of the audience. We appreciated it, but didn’t really like it too much. The good news is that the second time of doing the exact same tube ride there and home, we got it down pat! </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/b1dd0a84-48fc-4e83-bbc2-e43e5c4adbc7/4b33f2e8-a2b4-4354-8b07-6640d2941021.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:562; --en-naturalHeight:750;"/><div><br /></div>
<div>Oh, and by the way, an English hip hip hooray if you remember who lives here?</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/b1dd0a84-48fc-4e83-bbc2-e43e5c4adbc7/245a8dfd-70b6-4788-a0f0-24902bd45769.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:562; --en-naturalHeight:483;"/><div><br /></div>
London and Scotland Day 1http://wendy-jim.com/post/london-and-scotland-day-12023-04-05T01:28:44.831000Z2022-09-11T20:18:02ZJim and Wendy Damoulakis<div>The Queen is dead, long live the king!! An unexpected and shocking beginning to our trip, this life changing event changes so much for the UK,and,as such, already has,and most likely, will continue to affect our trip. But, challenges aside, our first day in London was a good one.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/e15e3002-a413-4736-947b-a0cfc93f2aad/2f72e6a5-b47c-4acc-8225-638799bab0d9.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:750; --en-naturalHeight:563;"/><div>Traveling always presents challenges, but the trip over went smoothly except for a small hitch trying to get into a restaurant in our somewhat long layover in Charlotte. Not enough help and a seemingly insouciant attitude towards customers did not make our layover easy. But the flight to London was somewhat hassle free.</div>
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<div>Our Uber driver was listening to BBC commentary on the radio. It is nonstop here— the funeral plans, King Charles’ every word dissected, the tributes and outpourings of the commoners as well as the messages from every dignitary on earth. But mostly, everyday life is going on. A few cancellations— sports teams mostly, but other than daily moments of silence, gun salutes, and the like, people are going about their business.</div>
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<div>So, upon arriving at our hotel,(Hilton Tower Bridge), we cleaned up as best as we could since our room was not ready, and found our way down the block crossing the magnificent Tower Bridge on our way to the Tower of London. This bridge is so iconic, took pictures from every possible angle. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/e15e3002-a413-4736-947b-a0cfc93f2aad/d91809d8-6552-4b47-85f7-288e44e2f8fe.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:562; --en-naturalHeight:750;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/e15e3002-a413-4736-947b-a0cfc93f2aad/c77dd8f0-b747-4c8a-abcc-e6861470ada7.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:563; --en-naturalHeight:750;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/e15e3002-a413-4736-947b-a0cfc93f2aad/d4cdd004-e7af-4751-9856-ee4597d1a68c.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:562; --en-naturalHeight:750;"/><div>The Tower of London is actually many different buildings - a palace, fortress, armory, prison and vault - all steeped in rich history and you could spend a day here.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/e15e3002-a413-4736-947b-a0cfc93f2aad/c13c6dda-9778-4dad-b6c0-b3c3730527dd.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:562; --en-naturalHeight:750;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/e15e3002-a413-4736-947b-a0cfc93f2aad/ec004697-69f3-4250-8036-e9626b6f72e7.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:750; --en-naturalHeight:562;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/e15e3002-a413-4736-947b-a0cfc93f2aad/9d41922c-1ff6-43d4-b242-8e0f7d1d21fc.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:563; --en-naturalHeight:750;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/e15e3002-a413-4736-947b-a0cfc93f2aad/3cce3b32-2aa8-4a52-bd09-7f79cf398a14.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:562; --en-naturalHeight:750;"/><div>We started with the Crown Jewels, as recommended ( the line was huge an hour later). Unfortunately no pictures were allowed. What made it even more interesting is that almost all of them are used in the coronation ceremony which now will happen sometime very soon. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/e15e3002-a413-4736-947b-a0cfc93f2aad/21e6f64f-c4b9-456e-bd4b-bcb0b18ae400.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:750; --en-naturalHeight:562;"/><div>We saw the famous Beefeaters, the White Tower which contained armor from Henry the Eighth and artillery of all types, as well as Traitor’s Gate and the Bloody Tower which portrayed the more gruesome side. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/e15e3002-a413-4736-947b-a0cfc93f2aad/40ab0596-7cd6-48b4-a835-6ba74094d08c.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:604; --en-naturalHeight:750;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/e15e3002-a413-4736-947b-a0cfc93f2aad/2a1539d4-1f85-4bf3-b8e8-1436a30e7dc3.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:750; --en-naturalHeight:562;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/e15e3002-a413-4736-947b-a0cfc93f2aad/14e78b96-a8ee-400f-a231-0c877a7144a2.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:562; --en-naturalHeight:750;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/e15e3002-a413-4736-947b-a0cfc93f2aad/47f47b2a-52ea-48b3-9be2-c0e1c9a1eb86.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:562; --en-naturalHeight:750;"/><div>The audio guide was filled with stories about royalty, prisoners, and history. If we hadn’t hit a wall, based on a 15 hour travel day with little sleep, we would have stayed longer. </div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/e15e3002-a413-4736-947b-a0cfc93f2aad/06c59d2b-c9cd-4604-8830-e3b2c4d80b25.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:750; --en-naturalHeight:563;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/e15e3002-a413-4736-947b-a0cfc93f2aad/068188e1-81f5-4485-83e9-615197870c18.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:750; --en-naturalHeight:562;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/e15e3002-a413-4736-947b-a0cfc93f2aad/fbd0853d-719c-40a9-a8e4-f4cc9ec12e64.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:750; --en-naturalHeight:562;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/e15e3002-a413-4736-947b-a0cfc93f2aad/c4e64c4b-1b7e-4f86-a6c4-4317f103ccf9.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:750; --en-naturalHeight:562;"/><div>Followed the " river walk" after crossing back on the bridge, and saw Londoners enjoying the day, beautiful modern buildings along the River, and some rather unusually dressed locals posing away.</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/e15e3002-a413-4736-947b-a0cfc93f2aad/3e6ee51a-0f72-4b75-aa91-7946eed81d0b.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:750; --en-naturalHeight:562;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/e15e3002-a413-4736-947b-a0cfc93f2aad/3f5d2f3e-5ae7-45d2-8290-f9d75a244af5.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:750; --en-naturalHeight:562;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/e15e3002-a413-4736-947b-a0cfc93f2aad/ba2e4a43-6668-4ef3-8b37-d6ec0e4c0ff5.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:750; --en-naturalHeight:562;"/><div>After a well deserved afternoon rest and getting settled in,we ended up at an incredible Indian restaurant called Gunpowder. They were celebrating the Southern Indian province of Goa with a special menu. Highly unusual and creative food included fish like soft shelled crab, and a " doughnut" of ground venison, delicious spices,rolled in vermicelli. A great find!</div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/e15e3002-a413-4736-947b-a0cfc93f2aad/5e126610-a926-4618-a3fc-0da82fa59ee8.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:562; --en-naturalHeight:750;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/e15e3002-a413-4736-947b-a0cfc93f2aad/a12f5566-b2ea-4f58-a448-172ccba0a212.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:562; --en-naturalHeight:750;"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/e15e3002-a413-4736-947b-a0cfc93f2aad/4ab458f6-257c-4422-9238-eeffa5228b8e.jpg" style="--en-naturalWidth:562; --en-naturalHeight:750;"/><div><br /></div>
London-Scotland Itineraryhttp://wendy-jim.com/post/london-scotland-itinerary2023-04-05T01:27:13.083000Z2022-08-23T20:18:02ZJim and Wendy Damoulakis<div><a href="https://www.google.com/maps/d/viewer?mid=1zOJBtT0fR_XoCJtqhaxKgnh98soKuFA&usp=sharing" rev="en_rl_none">London-Scotland Trip Map</a></div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/4f738b62-9e30-4bf5-bcbf-fbeb5d48e2d1/a819dd29-4079-4923-b136-987d00f157e8.png" style="--en-naturalWidth:1164; --en-naturalHeight:1286;"/><div><b><span style="--en-markholder:true;"><br /></span></b></div><table width="376px" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" style="border-collapse:collapse;width:376px;"><colgroup><col style="width: 188px;" /><col style="width: 188px;" /></colgroup><tbody><tr><td style="border-color:#ccc;border-width:1px;border-style:solid;padding:10px;"><div><b>Sep 9</b></div></td><td style="border-color:#ccc;border-width:1px;border-style:solid;padding:10px;"><div><b>Depart Sarasota for London</b></div></td></tr><tr><td style="border-color:#ccc;border-width:1px;border-style:solid;padding:10px;"><div><b>Sep 10-12</b></div></td><td style="border-color:#ccc;border-width:1px;border-style:solid;padding:10px;"><div><b>London</b></div></td></tr><tr><td style="border-color:#ccc;border-width:1px;border-style:solid;padding:10px;"><div><b>Sep 13</b></div></td><td style="border-color:#ccc;border-width:1px;border-style:solid;padding:10px;"><div><b>London-Edinburgh</b></div></td></tr><tr><td style="border-color:#ccc;border-width:1px;border-style:solid;padding:10px;"><div><b>Sep 14</b></div></td><td style="border-color:#ccc;border-width:1px;border-style:solid;padding:10px;"><div><b>Edinburgh</b></div></td></tr><tr><td style="border-color:#ccc;border-width:1px;border-style:solid;padding:10px;"><div><b>Sep 15</b></div></td><td style="border-color:#ccc;border-width:1px;border-style:solid;padding:10px;"><div><b>St. Andrews</b></div></td></tr><tr><td style="border-color:#ccc;border-width:1px;border-style:solid;padding:10px;"><div><b>Sep 16</b></div></td><td style="border-color:#ccc;border-width:1px;border-style:solid;padding:10px;"><div><b>Melrose Abbey and Roslyn Chapel</b></div></td></tr><tr><td style="border-color:#ccc;border-width:1px;border-style:solid;padding:10px;"><div><b>Sep 17</b></div></td><td style="border-color:#ccc;border-width:1px;border-style:solid;padding:10px;"><div><b>Edinburgh</b></div></td></tr><tr><td style="border-color:#ccc;border-width:1px;border-style:solid;padding:10px;"><div><b>Sep 18</b></div></td><td style="border-color:#ccc;border-width:1px;border-style:solid;padding:10px;"><div><b>Train to Inverness</b></div></td></tr><tr><td style="border-color:#ccc;border-width:1px;border-style:solid;padding:10px;"><div><b>Sep 19</b></div></td><td style="border-color:#ccc;border-width:1px;border-style:solid;padding:10px;"><div><b>Loch Ness, Urquart Castle, Culloden Battlefield</b></div></td></tr><tr><td style="border-color:#ccc;border-width:1px;border-style:solid;padding:10px;"><div><b>Sep 20</b></div></td><td style="border-color:#ccc;border-width:1px;border-style:solid;padding:10px;"><div><b>Kyle of Lochalsh and Isle of Skye</b></div></td></tr><tr><td style="border-color:#ccc;border-width:1px;border-style:solid;padding:10px;"><div><b>Sep 21</b></div></td><td style="border-color:#ccc;border-width:1px;border-style:solid;padding:10px;"><div><b>Dunrobin Castle</b></div></td></tr><tr><td style="border-color:#ccc;border-width:1px;border-style:solid;padding:10px;"><div><b>Sep 22</b></div></td><td style="border-color:#ccc;border-width:1px;border-style:solid;padding:10px;"><div><b>Inverness</b></div></td></tr><tr><td style="border-color:#ccc;border-width:1px;border-style:solid;padding:10px;"><div><b>Sep 23</b></div></td><td style="border-color:#ccc;border-width:1px;border-style:solid;padding:10px;"><div><b>Train to Glasgow</b></div></td></tr><tr><td style="border-color:#ccc;border-width:1px;border-style:solid;padding:10px;"><div><b>Sep 24-25</b></div></td><td style="border-color:#ccc;border-width:1px;border-style:solid;padding:10px;"><div><b>Glasgow</b></div></td></tr><tr><td style="border-color:#ccc;border-width:1px;border-style:solid;padding:10px;"><div><b>Sep 26</b></div></td><td style="border-color:#ccc;border-width:1px;border-style:solid;padding:10px;"><div><b>Depart Glasgow to Sarasota</b></div></td></tr></tbody></table><div><b><span style="--en-markholder:true;"><br /></span></b></div>
Days 14 and 15: Travel and Quitohttp://wendy-jim.com/post/days-14-and-15-travel-and-quito2023-04-07T22:11:11.479000Z2019-06-10T20:18:01ZJim and Wendy Damoulakis<div><br /></div>
<div><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;"><span style="font-size: 14px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">We enjoyed the regular time wake-up of this long travel day—at least we didn’t have to get up at 4:00 am! We reversed our trip of a few days ago: bus, boat, bus, plane, and finally a long bus ride back to our Swissotel from the Quito airport —even got the same room. We enjoyed our reunion with Maria and Conel who had stayed in Quito to take care of a serious medical issue. Our farewell dinner that evening was on the gourmet side and delicious. It will be hard to say goodbye to new friends tomorrow.</span></span></div>
<div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/94b3784a-8db1-4ed3-8ca2-a68f8c98e540/7b26d735-a419-4af7-b883-3129dd7d18cf.jpg" /><br /></div>
<div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/94b3784a-8db1-4ed3-8ca2-a68f8c98e540/3b57a1af-99f7-4abb-bf53-d1822d7c8443.jpg" /><br /></div>
<div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/94b3784a-8db1-4ed3-8ca2-a68f8c98e540/b3954f04-565c-498d-a8b1-52f2eec6712d.jpg" /><br /></div>
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<div><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;"><span style="font-size: 14px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">Our last day was an enjoyable mix of small activities and leisure. Odysseys booked everyone on red eyes to go back home but we had the use of our hotel room the entire day.</span></span></div>
<div><font face="Helvetica Neue" style="font-size: 14px;"><br style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration: none;" /></font></div>
<div><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;"><span style="font-size: 14px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">First, a trip to the local botanical gardens. There was some overlap with what we see at Selby Gardens in Sarasota, but these were expansive, very well kept, and contained beautiful orchids, carnivorous plants, a desert area with unusual cacti, and a bonsai exhibit which contained exquisitely pruned trees of many kinds.</span></span></div>
<div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/94b3784a-8db1-4ed3-8ca2-a68f8c98e540/4a3bb1c8-5176-40cd-b46f-31196e308a51.jpg" /><br /></div>
<div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/94b3784a-8db1-4ed3-8ca2-a68f8c98e540/250a42a4-7256-405b-b131-073faeb53e31.jpg" /><br /></div>
<div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/94b3784a-8db1-4ed3-8ca2-a68f8c98e540/40c27ef1-2f28-450a-9de2-ce1529551e58.jpg" /><br /></div>
<div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/94b3784a-8db1-4ed3-8ca2-a68f8c98e540/ad3c4e64-6942-4120-9ef7-8ad5cf19f682.jpg" /><br /></div>
<div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/94b3784a-8db1-4ed3-8ca2-a68f8c98e540/7f715df8-d565-437f-87b5-ac46dcf40bb5.jpg" /><br /></div>
<div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/94b3784a-8db1-4ed3-8ca2-a68f8c98e540/33eb0dfd-ef40-47a6-a24e-86ad33e0950d.jpg" /><br /></div>
<div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/94b3784a-8db1-4ed3-8ca2-a68f8c98e540/a1fa8bd6-7ce2-4819-a74b-3deb0199c476.jpg" /><br /></div>
<div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/94b3784a-8db1-4ed3-8ca2-a68f8c98e540/8585816c-41ad-4de3-af52-c7df228d15f3.jpg" /><br /></div>
<div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/94b3784a-8db1-4ed3-8ca2-a68f8c98e540/acf00195-1c8a-40d4-ab22-14b513fd464c.jpg" /><br /></div>
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<div><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;"><span style="font-size: 14px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">While waiting around for the rest of the group, our "monkeys" had some fun!</span></span></div>
<div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/94b3784a-8db1-4ed3-8ca2-a68f8c98e540/dba5e741-7fe8-4a90-ada1-7f7fc39940a3.jpg" /><br /></div>
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<div><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;"><span style="font-size: 14px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">Onto a local market—one which Tomas was very familiar having been there many times. We were probably the only tourists there as the locals bargained and chose their fruits, meats and lunch—pork from the whole hog with sides of salad and rice.</span></span></div>
<div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/94b3784a-8db1-4ed3-8ca2-a68f8c98e540/c12fa8a3-2f8a-42b4-8be6-adf32fa53c8d.jpg" /><br /></div>
<div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/94b3784a-8db1-4ed3-8ca2-a68f8c98e540/989d47ea-0cd8-4811-823c-033a09bd5e83.jpg" /><br /></div>
<div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/94b3784a-8db1-4ed3-8ca2-a68f8c98e540/b9e22aed-634a-41c6-b9fc-0a4a69ecc6a2.jpg" /><br /></div>
<div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/94b3784a-8db1-4ed3-8ca2-a68f8c98e540/5707f0f9-b391-44a9-b2ed-110d55e844e1.jpg" /><br /></div>
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<div><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;"><span style="font-size: 14px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">The bus dropped off a few of us at a local handicraft area where we made our last purchases of the trip. Elise and Wendy decided to walk back to the hotel, which, supposedly was not too far. An hour later, having asked at least six different groups of people (including a local fireman, delivery man, and some police cadets), we arrived rather weary but in good shape. Getting lost in cities is fun, and stressful at the same time. Being with a friend makes it more of the former.</span></span></div>
<div><font face="Helvetica Neue" style="font-size: 14px;"><br style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration: none;" /></font></div>
<div><span style="font-size: 14px; font-family: "Helvetica Neue";">After organizing and packing, we ended our trip at Miskay, a highly rated Ecuadorian restaurant that Eileen had researched. Triple ceviche, and salads ended our food experiences with gusto.</span></div>
<div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/94b3784a-8db1-4ed3-8ca2-a68f8c98e540/d2ed5db7-124c-487e-a752-3f042c82ba44.jpg" /><br /></div>
<div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/94b3784a-8db1-4ed3-8ca2-a68f8c98e540/93d20200-e394-4b68-8b52-9a1f488a87f3.jpg" /><br /></div>
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<div><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;"><span style="font-size: 14px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">Getting home on the red-eye was long, but arriving in Miami at 5 AM made picking up our car from a nearby hotel easy. Despite the 4 ½ hours it took to drive home due to a major accident on the highway (w</span></span><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; font-size: 14px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">elcome to Florida) </span><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;"><span style="font-size: 14px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">, it was good to be home after a wonderful and truly memorable trip. </span></span></div>
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<div><a href="https://jwd.postach.io/post/day-13-galapagos-part-3">Previous Post</a></div>
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Day 13 - Galapagos, Part 3http://wendy-jim.com/post/day-13-galapagos-part-32023-04-07T22:11:15.684000Z2019-06-07T20:18:01ZJim and Wendy Damoulakis<div><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;"><span style="font-size: 14px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">Lava Tubes, Tortoises, and Moonshine, CDRC (long!)</span></span></div>
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<div><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;"><span style="font-size: 14px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">What an amazing day. Jose and Xavi wanted to show us the diversity of Santa Cruz Island—from the lava tubes right on the property of the hotel, to tortoises in the wild, and a brief foray into the wide array of agricultural opportunities. Couldn’t have been better!</span></span></div>
<div><font style="font-size: 14px;" face="Helvetica Neue"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/506e490a-161f-43a1-9081-7bfccc8444cb/0317bc48-ead5-45d5-90c0-20c5e7c0ad6f.jpg" title="Tap to Download"/><br /></font></div>
<div><span style="font-size: 14px; font-family: "Helvetica Neue";">Lava tubes are also found in Hawaii, particularly the big island which has very long tubes. These are about two million years old, and not quite as long, but still stretched a couple of miles. We explored about a half mile entering through a sky light (a hole where the crust of the tube had collapsed). The path inside was uneven but there were some man-made lights along the way as well as our flashlights to see. There were a few small stalactites, but no stalagmites or columns due to the lack of time for them to grow. We thought it would be cool inside, but it was very humid and got hotter as we progressed through tunnel.</span></div>
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<div><span style="text-indent: 0px;"><span style="font-size: 14px; font-family: "Helvetica Neue";">We met up the rest of our group at the end, and travelled about two miles to the Rancho El Manzanillo farm—about 250 acres of land abundantly rich in all things agricultural, plus, it abuts the Galapagos National Park and was the prime visiting spot for wild tortoises, (who don’t seem to recognize boundaries of where the park ends and private property begins - lucky for us!). We spent almost an hour watching these huge creatures who lumbered about, eating whenever and wherever they stopped, or soaking in mud, or just watching us back. Pictures are abundant, and so much fun getting the perfect shot. You are not allowed to sit on them, of course, and need to stay the required six feet away, but still lots of opportunities to get up close and personal.</span></span></div>
<div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/506e490a-161f-43a1-9081-7bfccc8444cb/11d727d9-ba5f-4f0d-9cd2-e0d6d18770b4.jpg" title="Tap to Download"/><br /></div>
<div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/506e490a-161f-43a1-9081-7bfccc8444cb/fdc5c8be-3fb1-46a3-9c00-e6b56737206f.jpg" title="Tap to Download"/><br /></div>
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<div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/506e490a-161f-43a1-9081-7bfccc8444cb/b38018d4-5bee-4ac9-a013-9cee18472f34.jpg" title="Tap to Download"/><br /></div>
<div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/506e490a-161f-43a1-9081-7bfccc8444cb/2726e6b2-d8cf-4174-a2d7-535007355957.jpg" title="Tap to Download"/><br /></div>
<div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/506e490a-161f-43a1-9081-7bfccc8444cb/25f0787d-1da1-4d02-a082-53b857b990c6.jpg" /><br /></div>
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<div><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;"><span style="font-size: 14px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">From there, we walked to another part of the ranch where we got a lesson in sugar cane and juice harvesting. Wendy and fellow traveller Curtis served as donkeys, turning the manual juicer. ( It was Sunday—we were told the regular donkey had the day off:) The ultimate objective here was to make moonshine!</span></span></div>
<div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/506e490a-161f-43a1-9081-7bfccc8444cb/eeeb0137-9223-4b70-a5a7-cfe9e3c7b9b4.jpg" title="Tap to Download"/><br /></div>
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<div><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;"><span style="font-size: 14px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">We sampled first a refreshing pure sugar cane juice, then with added bitter orange, and finally spiked with distilled sugar cane alcohol. Yum!</span></span></div>
<div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/506e490a-161f-43a1-9081-7bfccc8444cb/d18e63d7-3b16-492c-8b2b-e4548a7037c4.jpg" title="Tap to Download"/><br /></div>
<div><span style="font-size: 14px; font-family: "Helvetica Neue";">The owner was very proud of his new electric still, demonstrating the process, and then selling us the moonshine alcohol. - $5/pint!</span></div>
<div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/506e490a-161f-43a1-9081-7bfccc8444cb/69a9d195-4cd6-4b13-b1a7-bc1e14434433.jpg" title="Tap to Download"/><br /></div>
<div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/506e490a-161f-43a1-9081-7bfccc8444cb/50871e48-d041-42f2-b01d-7c6b3740b520.jpg" title="Tap to Download"/><br /></div>
<div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/506e490a-161f-43a1-9081-7bfccc8444cb/5ff9e867-b494-4329-b89f-120d99bf4ceb.jpg" title="Tap to Download"/><br /></div>
<div><span style="font-size: 14px; font-family: "Helvetica Neue";">Nearby were pineapple, coffee, papaya and other fruit plants that are all harvested on the farm.</span></div>
<div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/506e490a-161f-43a1-9081-7bfccc8444cb/c7b881a9-7cc9-4dbc-9b8e-267d8aafe26e.jpg" title="Tap to Download"/><br /></div>
<div><span style="font-size: 14px; font-family: "Helvetica Neue";">Since Wendy had been trying for 3 days to photo the elusive yellow warbler, she finally saw a great opportunity. </span></div>
<div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/506e490a-161f-43a1-9081-7bfccc8444cb/7817a928-e67c-4827-882e-fe2dba65f952.jpg" title="Tap to Download"/><br /></div>
<div><span style="font-size: 14px; font-family: "Helvetica Neue";">Oh well, she’ll keep trying for the real thing - not the best picture, but they move incredibly fast. They’re not as accommodating as some of the other birds who actually posed, or at least stood still long enough to get a picture.</span></div>
<div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/506e490a-161f-43a1-9081-7bfccc8444cb/bb4384d4-9387-40a1-9828-91fbfdd5bb0e.jpg" title="Tap to Download"/><br /></div>
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<div><span style="font-size: 14px; font-family: "Helvetica Neue";">We then headed back to the hotel for a fish lunch of a variety of Grouper, cooked whole on the grill. We also got a lesson in preparing ceviche the Ecuadorian way— using ketchup and mustard along with more traditional ingredients.</span></div>
<div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/506e490a-161f-43a1-9081-7bfccc8444cb/16718168-c5f6-4217-b7e7-2c36b5e5740a.jpg" title="Tap to Download"/><br /></div>
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<div><span style="font-size: 14px; font-family: "Helvetica Neue";">After a short rest, we got back on the bus to travel into town for some shopping opportunities. But first, a stop at the important Charles Darwin Research Center (CDRC). On the way we first passed some marine iguanas sunning by the side of the road.</span></div>
<div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/506e490a-161f-43a1-9081-7bfccc8444cb/85f8842c-61f5-45cd-92a5-837553ee1189.jpg" title="Tap to Download"/><br /></div>
<div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/506e490a-161f-43a1-9081-7bfccc8444cb/b997dfe6-7762-4016-acd1-1e445ccf0823.jpg" title="Tap to Download"/><br /></div>
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<div><span style="font-size: 14px; font-family: "Helvetica Neue";">At CDRC, they have a breeding center to try to repopulate the tortoise population. It is mostly outside, and for us a little bit anticlimactic since we had just seen about 30 wild tortoises earlier in the morning. There were three standouts: baby tortoise, which are numbered, researched and eventually let go into the wild but tracked; the stud tortoise Diego who has fathered over 800 offspring and was hanging out nearby, but couldn’t be found; and lastly, a tribute to Lonesome George. This was a fascinating story—George was evidently the only surviving tortoise of his kind from the island of Pinta after a devastating fire there. He was brought back to the CDRC in the hopes that he would mate and produce offspring, even though they would be "half-breeds". Sadly, only one female laid impregnated eggs which did not hatch. This was close to the end of George’s long life (about 120 years, give or take). He died in 2012. They did an autopsy and discovered he was sterile, having a blockage in his private parts. But then, they actually had him stuffed! We went into the freezing cold room after being "conditioned" into the cold for about two minutes. After viewing, we had to repeat the process. A rather strange way to honor George.</span></div>
<div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/506e490a-161f-43a1-9081-7bfccc8444cb/f4daab5b-ba1e-467e-9cfa-29debf78fbb5.jpg" title="Tap to Download"/><br /></div>
<div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/506e490a-161f-43a1-9081-7bfccc8444cb/3baddca7-bffd-45e2-b2c9-55730ab44898.jpg" title="Tap to Download"/><br /></div>
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<div><span style="font-size: 14px; font-family: "Helvetica Neue";">The town of Punta Astrada is very cute, providing us with plenty of venues to spend our tourist dollars. While walking to the bus, we passed a huge playground area. It was supposed to be for children, but a few interlopers were hanging out too.</span></div>
<div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/506e490a-161f-43a1-9081-7bfccc8444cb/c1cf06c4-3eee-4097-8e46-1f0a6091fdfe.jpg" title="Tap to Download"/><br /></div>
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<div><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;"><span style="font-size: 14px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">Our last dinner on the Galapagos was a barbecue, inside due to the only rain we had on this trip. Now to pack—again—for our flight back to Quito tomorrow.</span></span></div>
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Day 11 - Galapagos, Part 1http://wendy-jim.com/post/day-11-galapagos-part-12023-04-07T22:11:19.036000Z2019-06-04T20:18:03ZJim and Wendy Damoulakis<div><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 17px; letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">Boobies, Frigates and Land Iguanas, oh my!</span></div>
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<div><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d3ac98c2-3eeb-41c0-b9f3-bc2995d4afde/96990452-b356-4d6f-b450-66f0c2d44bdc.jpg" width="1280" title="Attachment"/><br /></span></div>
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<div><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 17px; letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">We left the hotel for our first full day adventure and headed down to the sea once more. The highlands, home to our hotel is often misty and grey in the morning. Heading down to the water, we passed land that looked overtaken by the trees, plants and cacti, and it soon was bright and sunny.</span></div>
<div><br style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-size: 17px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.301961); -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration: none;" /></div>
<div><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 17px; letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">The process of getting to an island, while not tedious, can be a bit time consuming. From bus, to zodiac to our boat took about 10 to fifteen minutes and we went in two groups.</span></div>
<div><br style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-size: 17px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.301961); -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration: none;" /></div>
<div><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 17px; letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">Once upon our little ship, named the Santa Fe, we were brought to our first stop, North Seymour Island. A small, uninhabited island,divided into two parts by a little bay, it is rich in wildlife. As soon as we disembarked we saw a few sea lions on the rocks. </span></div>
<div><span style="font-size: 17px; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d3ac98c2-3eeb-41c0-b9f3-bc2995d4afde/1ecf49db-0b2a-4327-a880-894ed99ae5e7.jpg" width="1280" title="Attachment"/><br /></span></div>
<div><span style="font-size: 17px; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d3ac98c2-3eeb-41c0-b9f3-bc2995d4afde/992f9820-a679-4231-8983-595fd4edfb41.jpg" width="1280" title="Attachment"/><br /></span></div>
<div><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 17px; letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.301961); -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;"><br /></span></div>
<div><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 17px; letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">We jointly shot over 300 pictures from this 1 ½ hour walk so suffice it to say that this post will contain a few pics. </span><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 17px; letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">Our outstanding guides, Xavier and Jose, both Galapagos natives, each took one group and headed in opposite directions, passing in the middle. </span></div>
<div><span style="font-size: 17px; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody;">Xavi taught us along the way how each island’s habitat is unique, as is its animals and birds. This is a truly unique environment and the natural park service goes to great lengths to protect it from invasive species of plants and animals. </span></div>
<div><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d3ac98c2-3eeb-41c0-b9f3-bc2995d4afde/59ae245d-8f71-4f42-b982-aac480499882.jpg" width="1280" title="Attachment"/><br /></span></div>
<div><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 17px; letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">Land iguanas eat mostly cactus, and the amount they eat affect their color which is varying shades of brown and yellow. Iguanas are usually found around the cactus,and as our eyes adjusted to looking for them, we saw many. The iguanas in North Seymour appeared to be pretty healthy, and many large ones were noticed. </span></div>
<div><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d3ac98c2-3eeb-41c0-b9f3-bc2995d4afde/e0ee8038-98fb-4ace-bb97-a3981548de23.jpg" width="1280" title="Attachment"/><br /></span></div>
<div><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d3ac98c2-3eeb-41c0-b9f3-bc2995d4afde/16c4a0b2-efef-4cf1-a2d1-298c5288975e.jpg" width="1280" title="Attachment"/><br /></span></div>
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<div><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 17px; letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">We were extremely happy to find out that this time of year is both mating and nesting season. The infamous, adorable blue-footed boobies were soon noticed all over, many with the mama or dad, and occasionally both, guarding the nests of the newborn chicks. In one case, the nest was so close to our path, we could see the mama both sitting on a remaining unhatched egg, while preening her other chick, probably less than a week old. There were lots of families, and we couldn’t stop photographing them.</span></div>
<div><span style="font-size: 17px; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d3ac98c2-3eeb-41c0-b9f3-bc2995d4afde/39a2bf06-130b-4558-a52f-8f0c9f8ca5b0.jpg" width="1280" title="Attachment"/><br /></span></div>
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<div><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d3ac98c2-3eeb-41c0-b9f3-bc2995d4afde/855cb316-6818-4d37-8b24-7730a35fcadb.jpg" width="1280" title="Attachment"/><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d3ac98c2-3eeb-41c0-b9f3-bc2995d4afde/c5344aed-3d9b-4c8b-b509-bb9f64058ad8.jpg" width="1280" title="Attachment"/><br /></span></div>
<div><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d3ac98c2-3eeb-41c0-b9f3-bc2995d4afde/0b842380-f4d7-4c96-9cc0-95c0c71ce072.jpg" width="1280" title="Attachment"/><br /></span></div>
<div><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d3ac98c2-3eeb-41c0-b9f3-bc2995d4afde/d8f0048c-04c9-45d0-801f-57a8455be16e.jpg" width="1280" title="Attachment"/><br /></span></div>
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<div><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 17px; letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">Frigate birds are another awesome sight. They are large and black, constantly flying around near cliffs, and over land and water. </span></div>
<div><span style="font-size: 17px; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d3ac98c2-3eeb-41c0-b9f3-bc2995d4afde/1167fe52-f053-43b9-a2ec-c91f5bc29993.jpg" width="1280" title="Attachment"/><br /></span></div>
<div><span style="font-size: 17px; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d3ac98c2-3eeb-41c0-b9f3-bc2995d4afde/3cbae166-5179-42ef-a521-d5996916c373.jpg" width="1280" title="Attachment"/><br /></span></div>
<div><span style="font-size: 17px; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d3ac98c2-3eeb-41c0-b9f3-bc2995d4afde/23408bf7-9af7-42b7-a161-efc684b47342.jpg" width="1280" title="Attachment"/><br /></span></div>
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<div><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 17px; letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">We had seen them yesterday, but today’s sightings brought a surprise. The males have a red little balloon like pouch on their neck. When they want to attract a female, the blow up this pouch with air quite large and keep it that way for up to 45 minutes. We even saw a couple through bushes where only the heart-shaped pouch was visible and not the bird.</span></div>
<div><span style="font-size: 17px; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d3ac98c2-3eeb-41c0-b9f3-bc2995d4afde/5fd862ba-ec57-4540-8290-662299efc6c6.jpg" width="1280" title="Attachment"/><br /></span></div>
<div><span style="font-size: 17px; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d3ac98c2-3eeb-41c0-b9f3-bc2995d4afde/f2e57195-3fea-4a1a-a995-8a0c1dc36d3e.jpg" width="1280" title="Attachment"/><br /></span></div>
<div><span style="font-size: 17px; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d3ac98c2-3eeb-41c0-b9f3-bc2995d4afde/d1e983f9-d91e-45d2-8e4e-446de62b976d.jpg" width="1280" title="Attachment"/><br /></span></div>
<div><span style="font-size: 17px; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d3ac98c2-3eeb-41c0-b9f3-bc2995d4afde/c7e6e608-d1d2-4833-8982-670f66c2cf2a.jpg" width="1280" title="Attachment"/><br /></span></div>
<div><br style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-size: 17px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.301961); -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration: none;" /></div>
<div><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 17px; letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">Lava lizards, and some Sally-light foot crabs rounded out our animal sightings, as well as some cute sea lions. </span></div>
<div><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d3ac98c2-3eeb-41c0-b9f3-bc2995d4afde/fc101e8a-937b-43b9-8053-ee1c218bc894.jpg" width="1280" title="Attachment"/><br /></span></div>
<div><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 17px; letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">We headed back to the boat for a nice fish lunch on board and got ready for our afternoon activity, snorkeling! For this activity, our boat took us to Bachas beach, a beautiful spot with blue-green water and trails for non snorkelers to also enjoy. </span></div>
<div><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d3ac98c2-3eeb-41c0-b9f3-bc2995d4afde/66b55198-955d-4ea9-8851-0d2c3d5121a6.jpg" width="1280" title="Attachment"/><br /></span></div>
<div><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 17px; letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">To get us to the snorkeling site, we had a "wet landing", that is, landing in water that was about a foot deep. It’s been quite a while since we have been snorkeling. Although it isn’t hard, we both had a few problems adjusting. Jim’s mask didn’t fit well (moustache problems) and he kept inhaling water. He eventually just swam with just the mask and no snorkel and looked, picking up his head to breathe. But the water was wonderful and it was fun to swim and explore. </span></div>
<div><br style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-size: 17px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.301961); -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration: none;" /></div>
<div><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 17px; letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">It wasn’t deep, but we saw a variety of fish near rocks. Someone saw a small sea turtle, and Wendy saw a small 2-foot shark. They don’t harm people though, and like to find little wells under rocks to hide in. We did not bring an underwater camera with us, so unfortunately, no pictures.<img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/d3ac98c2-3eeb-41c0-b9f3-bc2995d4afde/6365c709-b1d8-48ab-aa7a-2d6233ee9314.jpg" width="1280" title="Attachment"/><br /></span></div>
<div><br style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-size: 17px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.301961); -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration: none;" /></div>
<div><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 17px; letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">We repeated the boat to zodiac to bus experience on the way back. Most of us slept as it was a wonderfully exhausting day. That evening we had our daily briefing, enjoyed a delicious dinner at our hotel, and headed to bed to get ready to do it all again tomorrow!</span></div>
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<div><span style="font-size: 17px;"><a href="https://jwd.postach.io/post/day-10-quito-to-galapagos">Previous Post</a></span></div>
<div><a href="https://jwd.postach.io/post/day-12-galapagos-part-2">Next Post</a></div>
<div><font face="UICTFontTextStyleTallBody"><a href="https://jwd.postach.io/page/machu-picchu-and-galapagos-2019-toc">Table of Contents</a></font></div>
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Day 12, Galapagos, Part 2http://wendy-jim.com/post/day-12-galapagos-part-22023-04-07T22:14:39.801000Z2019-06-04T20:18:00ZJim and Wendy Damoulakis<div>Our excursion today began with a trip to South Plaza Island. Like yesterday, we left our hotel <span style="-en-paragraph:true;">in the morning </span>with Tomas, our tour director, and our guides, Xavier and Jose, heading to the coast where we boarded the Santa Fe for the one hour ten minute journey. A friendly sea lion was there to meet us.</div>
<div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/6605106d-5b13-48c9-a724-28dc57af0a0b/b19bbef2-92e9-4877-b599-b06cd06c4706.jpg" width="1280" title="Attachment"/><br /></div>
<div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/6605106d-5b13-48c9-a724-28dc57af0a0b/465c62ee-4bf8-434e-84bb-1ce3913d9eed.jpg" width="1280" title="Attachment"/><br /></div>
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<div>When we arrived at South Plaza Island, we were "greeted" by many more sea lions playing in the water along the rocky shore and sunning themselves on the rocks. There were a fair number of pups swimming together, and the alpha male appeared to be keeping watch in the water moving back and forth along the shore. In fact, our guide spotted a shark nearby and this was clearly what had the alpha male concerned. Apparently young sea lions are a favorite treat for sharks.</div>
<div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/6605106d-5b13-48c9-a724-28dc57af0a0b/61ebde85-fb34-4b50-974f-eb395b52ee39.jpg" width="1280" title="Attachment"/><br /></div>
<div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/6605106d-5b13-48c9-a724-28dc57af0a0b/28d45457-714f-4c73-9e50-9dfb79f2b9cc.jpg" width="1280" title="Attachment"/><br /></div>
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<div>South Plaza is tiny island with volcanic rock along the shore and a dry desert climate. Almost immediately we spotted a land iguana, and then another, and another. It became apparent that there were dozens of them around despite the vegetation being relatively sparse. There favorite food is the prickly pear which also provides them with water. However most of the prickly pear here are tree-like and too high to reach. They will also eat other vegetation and some iguanas have figured out ways to scale the trees to some extent. </div>
<div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/6605106d-5b13-48c9-a724-28dc57af0a0b/6083edec-3b08-4196-93d2-4e43b7ef8ef2.jpg" width="1280" title="Attachment"/><br /></div>
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<div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/6605106d-5b13-48c9-a724-28dc57af0a0b/28a5631f-aa34-4289-8eb1-64622820f57a.jpg" width="976" title="Attachment"/><br /></div>
<div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/6605106d-5b13-48c9-a724-28dc57af0a0b/c5db9ff3-d8fe-4f1f-b12b-4a4c80db8c12.jpg" width="1280" title="Attachment"/><br /></div>
<div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/6605106d-5b13-48c9-a724-28dc57af0a0b/a80068ea-c54d-458b-b142-27fa242e39b2.jpg" width="1280" title="Attachment"/><br /></div>
<div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/6605106d-5b13-48c9-a724-28dc57af0a0b/06b4fe68-eb28-4748-adf3-3b7e23c28623.jpg" width="1280" title="Attachment"/><br /></div>
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<div>However, these animals have also been threatened by an invasive species - rats. Among other things the rats eat the prickly pear roots causing the to fall over and die. Fortunately the National Park Service has worked very hard to eradicate these invaders, and plant some young, protected cactus, but it is a continuous effort. The iguanas are not afraid of humans. As you can see, one of them get very up close and personal with one member of our group. </div>
<div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/6605106d-5b13-48c9-a724-28dc57af0a0b/04a80385-48f2-475a-9b84-fb8b1c5c9a9b.jpg" width="1280" title="Attachment"/><br /></div>
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<div>On the north side of the island, there are cliffs that are home to large flocks of puffins. Our vantage point from the top of the cliff did not allow us to see their nests easily, They fly around very quickly along the windswept cliffside making them difficult photographic subjects, but we did try.</div>
<div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/6605106d-5b13-48c9-a724-28dc57af0a0b/9b121a8a-c646-4ea0-bd2c-d4f5580869ab.jpg" width="1280" title="Attachment"/><br /></div>
<div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/6605106d-5b13-48c9-a724-28dc57af0a0b/a78393df-22cf-4721-b17b-b7a5bd49b84b.jpg" width="1280" title="Attachment"/><br /></div>
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<div>Heading back to our docking spot, we found more sea lions and some crabs sunning themselves on the dock. Moving around them, we got back aboard for lunch and then cruised to Punta Carrion for some more snorkeling along the coast and in a beautiful cove. </div>
<div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/6605106d-5b13-48c9-a724-28dc57af0a0b/0bba19d0-8e06-41cc-8901-104f7ebb180e.jpg" width="1280" title="Attachment"/><br /></div>
<div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/6605106d-5b13-48c9-a724-28dc57af0a0b/fbde7fdf-5063-47b7-893b-02fabda4c9f1.jpg" width="1280" title="Attachment"/><br /></div>
<div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/6605106d-5b13-48c9-a724-28dc57af0a0b/973e1c51-ad72-48be-a2fb-066e17822cdb.jpg" width="1280" title="Attachment"/><br /></div>
<div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/6605106d-5b13-48c9-a724-28dc57af0a0b/9a49c4cd-bf68-449e-bbb8-d373905603e4.jpg" width="1280" title="Attachment"/><br /></div>
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<div>This time we dove directly off the boat and swam the area between the rocks and an inner cove following the path of the rocks along the shore. It was mesmerizing and Xavi showed us underground (well, underwater) caves where we saw a couple of large sharks. Confusing along we spotted shrimp, gorgeous puffer and parrotfish as well as oysters and other mollusks clinging to the side. Right near the end, he dove down and showed us a sea cucumber. The water was a few degrees colder than yesterday so it was time to come out and get warm. Wish we were snorkeling more, but, alas, that was the end.</div>
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<div>Back to the hotel to get clean and warm and then onto another delicious dinner.</div>
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<div><a href="https://jwd.postach.io/post/day-11-galapagos-part-1">Previous Post</a></div>
<div><a href="https://jwd.postach.io/post/day-13-galapagos-part-3">Next Post</a></div>
<div><font face="UICTFontTextStyleTallBody"><a href="https://jwd.postach.io/page/machu-picchu-and-galapagos-2019-toc">Table of Contents</a></font></div>
Day 10: Quito to Galapagoshttp://wendy-jim.com/post/day-10-quito-to-galapagos2023-04-07T22:17:36.582000Z2019-06-03T20:18:00ZJim and Wendy Damoulakis<div><span style="font-size: 17px;"><br /></span></div>
<div><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 17px; letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">Today’s Quito airport trip was another early morning wake-up call. We were sorry to be leaving the lovely Swissotel but very excited about starting the Galapagos portion of our adventure. If you are going to the Galapagos, there are strict protocols to be followed so as to not to bring in any foreign substance that will disturb the endemic balance of the islands. Luggage is checked, declarations are made and verified, luggage compartments on the plane are sprayed, and last but not least, sniffing dogs are used at the airport.</span></div>
<div><br style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-size: 17px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.301961); -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration: none;" /></div>
<div><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 17px; letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">An interesting side story—Wendy was sitting next to and in back of an indigenous family with a mother, young infant, about a 4 year old daughter and father/grandfather. The little girl and papa had obviously never been on a plane before, examining everything, needing help with seatbelts, etc. The plane stopped in Guayaguil, the largest city in Ecuador, and these people could not figure out whether or not to leave. Wendy tried to help,the flight attendants and another man tried as well. It would have fit a sitcom episode except it was so sad. Finally, about 5 minutes before the plane was reboarded with new passengers (who took their seats), they were escorted off.</span></div>
<div><br style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-size: 17px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.301961); -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration: none;" /></div>
<div><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 17px; letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">Arriving at the small Galapagos airport at Baltra, which is an uninhabited island (except for the airport), we took a bus to a ferry to another bus to arrive at the Royal Palm Hotel, a multi acre property in the highlands of Santa Cruz Island, the second largest of the 13 prominent islands of the Galapagos archipelago. There are actually over 200 islands, but many are just rocks that appear and disappear with the tide. </span></div>
<div><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/b512b74f-73ca-4e96-a5f0-353806fdf532/fc68a9d8-c753-433d-9b89-6e4565e75967.jpg" width="1280" title="Attachment"/><br /></span></div>
<div><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/b512b74f-73ca-4e96-a5f0-353806fdf532/2491df5c-1e33-4df3-a654-cc4b36fb9c3f.jpg" width="1280" title="Attachment"/><br /></span></div>
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<div><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 17px; letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">We stayed in a "casita", a large room. As with many of the places we’ve stayed, it is lovingly landscaped, very clean and spacious, and the staff is impeccable. The large, handmade key used for our entry has to be left on a key rack when leaving.</span></div>
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<div><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/b512b74f-73ca-4e96-a5f0-353806fdf532/518488d4-361f-41a5-9993-f7b05d05febb.jpg" width="960" title="Attachment"/><br /></span></div>
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<div><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 17px; letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">Finally, almost totally unpacked our suitcases for our four day visit here. Nice to finally find those elusive socks I was looking for! Then we got changed for our first outing</span><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 17px; letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">, a beach called Playa El Grrapatero about 45 minutes away.</span></div>
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<div><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/b512b74f-73ca-4e96-a5f0-353806fdf532/2601f2e3-3600-4112-a13d-b4bd4b9ae1ca.jpg" width="1280" title="Attachment"/><br /></span></div>
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<div><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/b512b74f-73ca-4e96-a5f0-353806fdf532/2707b4c2-0acc-4bcd-95b1-3e395739389f.jpg" width="1280" title="Attachment"/><br /></span></div>
<div><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/b512b74f-73ca-4e96-a5f0-353806fdf532/084a4248-40e5-4c6c-b189-b1b14c5b477b.jpg" width="1280" title="Attachment"/><br /></span></div>
<div><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 17px; letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">We saw many broccoli-like trees called scalesia, our first marine iguana, lava lizards, many bright orange Sally Light-foot crabs, and tons of crabs of varying sizes, black, brown, and even a blue one.</span></div>
<div><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/b512b74f-73ca-4e96-a5f0-353806fdf532/50e922de-27d5-4f12-b17a-627fc72e1672.jpg" width="1280" title="Attachment"/><br /></span></div>
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<div><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/b512b74f-73ca-4e96-a5f0-353806fdf532/eb365587-1d6f-4e18-8d9c-f12b8b2b5bb3.jpg" width="1280" title="Attachment"/><br /></span></div>
<div><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/b512b74f-73ca-4e96-a5f0-353806fdf532/bb9c81ee-0093-43d9-9f99-2aa41f9af4c1.jpg" width="1280" title="Attachment"/><br /></span></div>
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<div><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 17px; letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">Identifying everything we see has us all scrambling for our Galapagos Wildlife books. As we learned in the following days, each island has its own unique flora and fauna. There are overlaps (like the crabs which seem to be everywhere) but even a cactus plant on one island may be of a different variety and height range than the previous one. And that has a potent effect on the kind of animals, birds, and even fish in a particular place.</span></div>
<div><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 17px; letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.301961); -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;"><br /></span></div>
<div><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 17px; letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">Birds are plentiful, but sometimes elusive. This mockingbird and his friend were kind enough to pose for us.</span></div>
<div><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/b512b74f-73ca-4e96-a5f0-353806fdf532/c708e424-ba34-4a28-8590-2e00f8de9da8.jpg" width="1280" title="Attachment"/><br /></span></div>
<div><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/b512b74f-73ca-4e96-a5f0-353806fdf532/55d0dfbd-ae39-4c14-8eef-d7d617e37991.jpg" width="1280" title="Attachment"/><br /></span></div>
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<div><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 17px; letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">We returned to our hotel for a group recap of the day and a planning session for tomorrow just before dinner. This will get to be a pattern. Enjoyed a delicious dinner and then fell into bed looking forward to tomorrow’s boat trip to explore more of the Galapagos.</span></div>
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<div><span style="font-size: 17px;"><a href="https://jwd.postach.io/post/day-9-quito">Previous Post</a></span></div>
<div><a href="https://jwd.postach.io/post/day-11-galapagos-part-1">Next Post</a></div>
<div><font face="UICTFontTextStyleTallBody"><a href="https://jwd.postach.io/page/machu-picchu-and-galapagos-2019-toc">Table of Contents</a></font></div>
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Day 9 - Quitohttp://wendy-jim.com/post/day-9-quito2023-04-07T22:17:39.501000Z2019-06-02T20:18:03ZJim and Wendy Damoulakis<div>Quito is the capital of Ecuador and is situated at 9350 feet on a plateau surrounded by volcanoes. Almost immediately we sensed a difference from Peru. To begin with, Ecuador is a much smaller country than Peru - it is about the size of Nevada, making it one of the smaller (but not smallest) South American countries. Also, whereas the Incan influence in Peru was pervasive, in Ecuador, it is much less of a factor. This is not really surprising since for the Ecuadorians, the Incas were conquering invaders little different from the Spanish. Add to that contentious land disputes with Peru that lasted to as recently as 1995, and it is clear that Ecuador is not an extension of Peru. </div>
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<div><span style="-en-paragraph:true;">Falling within the so-called Pacific Ring of Fire, </span>Quito is an area with lots of seismic activity. In fact, after we arrived at our hotel and went to bed, we felt a tremor as the bed and floor shook at around 10pm. The next morning this was confirmed as a tremor, and we were told that such events happen hundreds of times per year - interesting place to build a city.</div>
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<div>We began the day by riding from our hotel to Ichimba Park and its Crystal Palace located high above the city to walk around and gain some perspective. </div>
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<div>We then headed down into the old city to walk some more and explore the sights. The old city is a charming, well maintained area dominated by government buildings, boutique hotels, churches, and museums. </div>
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<div>In the center is the lovely Plaza de la Independencia, the central town square surrounded by the Presidential Palace, City Hall, and other buildings. As we approached we heard music playing and were excited to see the presidential band giving a concert on the steps of the cathedral. There was a good crowd enjoying the music and lots of street vendors. The music was not at all typical marches but instead brass band Latin American style. Latin percussion and syncopation, lots of Spanish tunes, and lots of fun. </div>
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<div>We continued through the old town to La Compañia, an extremely ornate and opulent Jesuit church, gilded in as much as seven tons of gold and silver (no photos allowed). We also worked our way across another large plaza to San Francisco Monastery, the oldest church in Ecuador.</div>
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<div>From here, we boarded our bus and traveled an hour south of Quito first stopping for lunch at a restaurant called El Crater, built on the rim of a volcano and then heading to the middle world, 0° 00’ 00", otherwise known as the equator. </div>
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<div>At this exact coordinate is the Intiñan Solar Museum, where we learned about some interesting peculiarities regarding the equator, as well as learning about cacao and chocolate production and processing (a major Ecuadorian industry), and even a demonstration of how the rain forest tribes shrunk heads! Did you know that at the equator water does not circle the drain. It goes straight down, whereas a few feet north it circles clockwise and a few feet south counter clockwise, as demonstrated to us. </div>
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<div>After spending an hour or so at the museum, we boarded our bus for the trip back to our hotel, had a simple dinner, and went to bed early to awaken at 4am to fly to the next major stop on our trip, the Galápagos Islands.</div>
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<div><a href="https://jwd.postach.io/post/day-8-travel-day-and-peruvian-thoughts">Previous Post</a></div>
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Day 8 – Travel Day and Peruvian Thoughtshttp://wendy-jim.com/post/day-8-travel-day-and-peruvian-thoughts2023-04-07T22:18:54.672000Z2019-06-01T20:18:02ZJim and Wendy Damoulakis<div><span style="font-size: 17px; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody;">(Note: this was a travel day, so no pictures.)</span></div>
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<div><span style="font-size: 17px; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody;">We usually wait until the end of a trip to write an overview, but this trip is almost like two separate and distinct trips. While there might be comparisons between the two countries, Peru is pretty unique.</span></div>
<div><br style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-size: 17px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.301961); -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration: none;" /></div>
<div><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 17px; letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">First a bit about travel. All modes of transportation seem to be on Peruvian time. Some are on time, some are not, and "hurry up and wait" is the mantra of the day. Today, our earliest wake-up call yet,</span><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 17px; letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;"> </span><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 17px; letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.301961); -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;"><span style="font-size: 17px;"><span style="font-size: 17px; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">4:00 am</span></span></span><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 17px; letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">, got us to the airport in time to make our connection back to Lima. Arriving in Lima, we had a four hour layover (extended by another hour because of delay) to fly to Quito, capital of Ecuador. Thank goodness for Priority Pass which allowed us to spend most of this time in a nice lounge and get caught up on our blog!</span></div>
<div><br style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-size: 17px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.301961); -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration: none;" /></div>
<div><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 17px; letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">The difference in airports is night and day. Lima’s is old, dirty, no women’s bathroom had more than two or three stalls, (can’t really speak for the mens, but similar from reports), and in general, not great. Customs took a long time, etc. Cuzco is similar but a little more updated. It is much smaller so easier to navigate.</span></div>
<div><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 17px; letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.301961); -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;"><br /></span></div>
<div><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 17px; letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">Quito has a brand new airport built about five years ago, beautiful, clean (bathrooms big and nice), and customs a breeze. It is 45 minutes outside of town, as the old one, inside the city was getting way too small. It is now a nice park.</span></div>
<div><br style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-size: 17px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.301961); -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration: none;" /></div>
<div><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 17px; letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">Food: Andean food is based on the plants they grow—many varieties and colors of corn, over 300 varieties of potatoes, most vegetables we recognize (and a few we don’t), many fruits including guava, passion fruit, watermelon, pineapple, cantaloupe,papaya, etc. as well as their juices. Meats include alpaca steak, beef stew, pork, and the infamous cuy mentioned previously. It tends to be a very starchy diet, often getting rice, a few varieties of potatoes, beans and corn in the same meal. Fish is wide and varied and their primary source of protein. Ceviche is easy to find in restaurants, but not usually eaten by the indigenous people.</span></div>
<div><br style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-size: 17px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.301961); -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration: none;" /></div>
<div><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 17px; letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">People: very proud of their cultural heritage, especially in Cuzco and surroundings where most are Incan. People who work in shops and stalls dress in pants and dresses, and regular style shirts, but the colorful costumes,hats and skirts worn by women and children are not for the benefit of the tourists (although some may argue that point), but their national costume. They are, for the most part, polite, honest and extremely hard working, just trying to get by. We really enjoyed our experiences interacting with them, mostly in stores, but also in the streets.</span></div>
<div><br style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-size: 17px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.301961); -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration: none;" /></div>
<div><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 17px; letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">Altitude: probably the single most influential factor in how much you enjoy this part of the trip. We brought altitude pills that made a tiny difference, but Jim was lightheaded the first day, Wendy had two days of minor headaches, and both huffed and puffed walking uphill, and on long hikes. Although the guides stopped often, a few people had a hard time keeping up. The up and down, (and up and down) changes didn’t help, but by the time we left Cuzco, we noticed breathing was easier. Several in our group had more severe symptoms and took advantage of oxygen available at the hotels.</span></div>
<div><br style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-size: 17px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.301961); -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration: none;" /></div>
<div><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 17px; letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">Andes: as we said before, these are spectacular mountains. They are beautiful everywhere, and watching the scenery change with the altitude was impressive—from high snow-capped peaks, to glaciers, to the lower deciduous</span><span style="font-size: 17px; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody;"> covered mountains, and finding little houses and buildings tucked away in the middle of a 14000 ft. mountain was an awesome sight.</span></div>
<div><br style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-size: 17px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.301961); -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration: none;" /></div>
<div><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 17px; letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">All in all, the splendor of Peru and its people will not be forgotten.</span></div>
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<div><span style="font-size: 17px;"><font face="UICTFontTextStyleTallBody"><a href="https://jwd.postach.io/post/day-6-evening-and-day-7-cusco">Previous Post</a></font></span></div>
<div><font face="UICTFontTextStyleTallBody"><a href="https://jwd.postach.io/post/day-9-quito">Next Post</a></font></div>
<div><font face="UICTFontTextStyleTallBody"><a href="https://jwd.postach.io/page/machu-picchu-and-galapagos-2019-toc">Table of Contents</a></font></div>
Day 6 (evening) and Day 7 - Cuscohttp://wendy-jim.com/post/day-6-evening-and-day-7-cusco2023-04-07T22:20:38.918000Z2019-05-30T20:18:02ZJim and Wendy Damoulakis<div><span style="font-size: 17px;"><br /></span></div>
<div><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 17px; letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">Cuzco (or Cusco) was the capital of the enormous Incan empire which included modern day Peru, Ecuador, Bolivia, and northern Chile. Its population now about 500,000. It was the Peruvian capital until 1533 when it was conquered by the Spanish. It is at the same time, a modern city, complete with Starbucks, KFC, Patagonia and other upscale stores and restaurants, yet has a rich Incan influence and most of its population is Incan. This creates some dichotomies, especially religious ones. Most residents are Catholic, going to Church in the early</span><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 17px; letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;"> </span><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 17px; letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.301961); -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;"><span style="font-size: 17px;"><span style="font-size: 17px;"><span style="font-size: 17px;"><span style="font-size: 17px;"><span style="font-size: 17px;"><span style="font-size: 17px;"><span style="font-size: 17px; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">morning on Sunday</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 17px; letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">, then going up the mountain to worship the Incan gods of Mother Earth, etc. in the afternoon.</span></div>
<div><br style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-size: 17px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.301961); -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration: none;" /></div>
<div><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 17px; letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">We arrived in Cusco after a long, bumpy drive after a long train ride <span style="font-size: 17px;"><span style="font-size: 17px;"><span style="font-size: 17px;"><span style="font-size: 17px;"><span style="font-size: 17px;"><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-size: 17px; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">at about</span></span></span></span></span></span></span><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 17px; letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;"> </span><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 17px; letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.301961); -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;"><span style="font-size: 17px;"><span style="font-size: 17px;"><span style="font-size: 17px;"><span style="font-size: 17px;"><span style="font-size: 17px;"><span style="font-size: 17px;"><span style="font-size: 17px; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">6:00 pm</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 17px; letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;"> </span><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 17px; letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">and checked into the Belmond Monasterio Hotel, sister of the one we stayed at in Machu Picchu. We were greeted with warm wash-cloths, and a continuous recording of Gregorian chants. It was indeed a former Monastery with gorgeous landscaped courtyards, religious pictures in every room, many old mirrors on the walls, great food and impeccable service. It also located on a tiny narrow street (two-way, but couldn’t accommodate two cars side by side) so we had to transfer from our bus to two smaller vans to get there. A sister convent used to be next door, but both have been converted into more money making luxury tourist accommodations.</span></div>
<div><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/620e3353-94d9-4a02-8ba7-678c018e73e0/8f1a6cba-4bbb-40b8-b739-d5a7126e611f.jpg" width="1280" title="Attachment"/><br /></span></div>
<div><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/620e3353-94d9-4a02-8ba7-678c018e73e0/8420b355-53c2-40d5-9206-949036763f3c.jpg" width="1280" title="Attachment"/><br /></span></div>
<div><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 17px; letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">We walked down to the center square a few blocks away to the large square in the center of town where we found a nice place for dinner with our friends Larry and Eileen and enjoyed some Peruvian food. Back at the hotel, we re-organized all luggage (we had only been allowed to take carry-ons to Machu Picchu) and did some laundry.</span></div>
<div><br style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-size: 17px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.301961); -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration: none;" /></div>
<div><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 17px; letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">A very full day on Tuesday, but thankfully, more laid back with some free time. We went on a walking tour of the center square area, called "Plaza de Armas" now seeing it in the daylight. It is filled with many stores, lovely houses,some with ornate balconies, and five churches. We explored two of them (no photos allowed inside unfortunately) - a 16th century cathedral with silver and gold alters, and many paintings of religious figures. The most famous, by the Cuscoan painter Zapata, is of the Last Supper. Here, Judas is Incan, and actually a disguised self-portrait of the painter. Traditional Incan foods are represented, and in the middle of the table is a cuy—a guinia pig which is a traditional Incan delicacy. (More on that later!). Trying to " put one over on the Spanish" who were clueless about most Incan customs and beliefs was, in large part, a perpetual goal of all of the Incans. The Spanish used paintings, statues, and other representations to "teach" the Incas who had no written language, about the beliefs of the church.</span></div>
<div><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 17px; letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.301961); -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;"><br /></span></div>
<div><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-size: 17px; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal; caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;">Wondering the square we also happened upon a group of schoolchildren practicing for a big local festival honoring the winter solstice </span><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-size: 17px; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">on June 24.</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-size: 17px; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal; caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;"> They were having fun dancing and re-enacting mock battles.</span></div>
<div><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/620e3353-94d9-4a02-8ba7-678c018e73e0/93ee828c-f289-4ffb-b45e-0a8a545a6994.jpg" width="1280" title="Attachment"/><br /></span></div>
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<div><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/620e3353-94d9-4a02-8ba7-678c018e73e0/5430b36d-5f81-40b8-94b6-6ab405e7ea4f.jpg" width="1280" title="Attachment"/><br /></span></div>
<div><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/620e3353-94d9-4a02-8ba7-678c018e73e0/9ff7f4ad-66d3-4cef-a1b4-5480535e1113.jpg" width="1280" title="Attachment"/><br /></span></div>
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<div><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/620e3353-94d9-4a02-8ba7-678c018e73e0/dd122d4c-0025-4abd-a97c-27f5baedc9fd.jpg" width="1280" title="Attachment"/><br /></span></div>
<div><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/620e3353-94d9-4a02-8ba7-678c018e73e0/50d2c94f-c248-4e34-a068-d0ea7632ffef.jpg" width="1280" title="Attachment"/><br /></span></div>
<div><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/620e3353-94d9-4a02-8ba7-678c018e73e0/d6ea33d4-d0ed-42d9-9302-cce305d7b044.jpg" width="905" title="Attachment"/><br /></span></div>
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<div><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 17px; letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">The second church, Santo Domingo was built upon the foundations of Koricancha, the Inca Temple of the sun. This site showcases remnants of the Incan’s ashlar masonry technique. Similar to what we had seen in Machu Picchu and elsewhere, they cleverly fitted similarly sized cuboid stones together to create strong walls and foundations without the benefit of sophisticated tools. We were constantly seeing examples of these walls in all the Incan ruins, and old walls of houses and stores. There were also numerous examples of the trapezoidal window openings and doors that are common to all Incan buildings.</span></div>
<div><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/620e3353-94d9-4a02-8ba7-678c018e73e0/2d3f9082-9d10-4d0d-ab33-8d25e95a0dca.jpg" width="1280" title="Attachment"/><br /></span></div>
<div><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 17px; letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">Now a very interesting and entertaining part of our trip—lunch with a local family. Ours had 6 children and their father works for a subsidiary of Odysseys in Cusco. Food was presented beautifully with very typical Peruvian foods of corn, purple corn juice, potatoes, vegetable soup, meat stew,and, oh yes, guinia pig! This is a fairly expensive dish, saved for special occasions. Jim tried it and said it tasted like roasted pork. Wendy, who had many different guinia pigs as pets in her youth, declined.</span></div>
<div><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 17px; letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.301961); -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;"><br /></span></div>
<div><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/620e3353-94d9-4a02-8ba7-678c018e73e0/c4d99bd8-29be-47dd-b60a-9f804a468cde.jpg" width="1280" title="Attachment"/><br /></span></div>
<div><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 17px; letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">Dinner came to a close, and we presented gifts that we were instructed to bring. I had bought candy and some Sarasota honey, but lucked out with the two Hot Wheel cars I had brought, hoping there would be kids. The families two youngest boys, who had just joined us after school were delighted!</span></div>
<div><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/620e3353-94d9-4a02-8ba7-678c018e73e0/bf60d06d-3042-4c7d-ad3f-9ff23f94ae25.jpg" width="1132" title="Attachment"/><br /></span></div>
<div><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 17px; letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">The rest of the afternoon was on our own. Our guide Ernesto brought us to a local supermarket to buy salt, chocolate and, perhaps coffee. We got the first two, but the options for coffee was not to Jim’s liking. Wendy, hoping for an Incan style bracelet found one in a </span><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 17px; letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">nice </span><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 17px; letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">local jewelry store. After some light haggling, it is now a permanent reminder of our trip.</span></div>
<div><br style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-size: 17px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.301961); -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration: none;" /></div>
<div><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 17px; letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal;">Dinner was at a local restaurant in the square where 12 out of the 20 of us descended (we had made reservations earlier). Lots of</span><span style="font-size: 17px; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody;"> fun. Back to our room to pack and organize for our</span><span style="font-size: 17px; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody;"> </span><span style="font-size: 17px; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.301961); -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span style="font-size: 17px;"><span style="font-size: 17px;"><span style="font-size: 17px;"><span style="font-size: 17px;"><span style="font-size: 17px;"><span style="font-size: 17px;"><span style="font-size: 17px; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody;">4 am</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><span style="font-size: 17px; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody;"> </span><span style="font-size: 17px; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody;">!!! wake-up call for a long day of traveling to Quito, Ecuador tomorrow.</span></div>
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<div><span style="font-size: 17px;"><a href="https://jwd.postach.io/post/day-6-machu-picchu-part-2">Previous Post</a></span></div>
<div><a href="https://jwd.postach.io/post/day-8-travel-day-and-peruvian-thoughts">Next Post</a></div>
<div><font face="UICTFontTextStyleTallBody"><a href="https://jwd.postach.io/page/machu-picchu-and-galapagos-2019-toc">Table of Contents</a></font></div>
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Day 6 - Machu Picchu, Part 2http://wendy-jim.com/post/day-6-machu-picchu-part-22023-04-05T00:56:06.557000Z2019-05-28T20:18:03ZJim and Wendy Damoulakis<div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/89b63044-6ce5-417c-8d69-7a97ae65cf7b/b52a525d-e32c-46e0-9ce1-dcfaf67da810.jpg" title="Attachment" width="1280"/><br/></div>
<div>One of the not-so-guilty pleasures afforded to us on this tour was the opportunity to stay at the Belmond Sanctuary Hotel, immediately adjacent to Machu Picchu. This not only saved us time, it also allowed us to get an early start on our second day before the large crowds developed.</div>
<div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/89b63044-6ce5-417c-8d69-7a97ae65cf7b/99158a16-3da8-46e3-885b-40813db4781e.jpg" title="Attachment" width="1280"/><br/></div>
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<div>For the second day we remained in the lower part of the grounds and began by heading toward the urban section to a pyramid-like structure that served as a temple to the upper world. The Inca had multiple representations for the world including animals - the condor symbolizing the heavens, the puma the middle world, and the snake the lower world. At the top of the temple of the upper world is a protruding rock on an altar originally thought to be a sun dial but actually points to the magnetic North Pole, with corners facing north, south, east, and west.</div>
<div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/89b63044-6ce5-417c-8d69-7a97ae65cf7b/eefeb9c3-0b6c-4602-ab13-c66e3b4ae5ba.jpg" title="Attachment" width="1280"/><br/></div>
<div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/89b63044-6ce5-417c-8d69-7a97ae65cf7b/3f50ae13-cc4d-407a-a571-ed65c1a5f3f1.jpg" title="Attachment" width="960"/><br/></div>
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<div>We then worked our way to the residential section and explored a number of buildings here. We also saw several "echo" stones, rocks placed in such a way that they roughly silhouette a mountain behind them. </div>
<div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/89b63044-6ce5-417c-8d69-7a97ae65cf7b/57632814-d1ba-4fc2-89a1-ea1b39f2d187.jpg" title="Attachment" width="1280"/><br/></div>
<div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/89b63044-6ce5-417c-8d69-7a97ae65cf7b/1e8b9e91-b185-471c-93c3-1d79e7396882.jpg" title="Attachment" width="960"/><br/></div>
<div><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/89b63044-6ce5-417c-8d69-7a97ae65cf7b/bdba7137-2c30-40bc-922d-8981a5ea240d.jpg" title="Attachment" width="1707"/><br/></div>
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<div>Our guide Julian pointed out a crease between the nearby mountains where advanced technology has indicated that there are more Inca ruins overgrown by plant life. Currently there are no plans to reclaim these structures, however. </div>
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<div>After a morning of exploring, we headed back to our hotel to check out and have lunch. We then bused down to Machu Picchu Pueblo to do a little shopping and begin the 4 hour trek back to Cuzco.</div>
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<div>Overall, this experience is truly bucket list worthy assuming that you are healthy enough to handle all of the climbing and walking over uneven terrain and that you have the resources to handle the transportation, lodging, and entrance fees. </div>
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<div><a href="http://jwd.twinspruces.com/post/day-5-machu-picchu-part-1">Previous Post</a></div>
<div><a href="http://jwd.twinspruces.com/post/day-6-evening-and-day-7-cusco">Next Post</a></div>
<div><a href="http://jwd.twinspruces.com/page/machu-picchu-and-galapagos-2019-toc">Table of Contents</a></div>
Day 5 - Machu Picchu, Part 1http://wendy-jim.com/post/day-5-machu-picchu-part-12023-04-05T00:54:59.518000Z2019-05-27T20:18:03ZJim and Wendy Damoulakis<div><div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"><span style="-en-paragraph:true;">This has been an amazing trip, so far, and it was about to get even better. Today, we finally achieved the primary goal of the Peru portion of our trip and made the journey to Machu Picchu.</span><span style="-en-paragraph:true;"> </span><span style="-en-paragraph:true;">For those who prefer the short version, it was awesome - it exceeded our expectations and is a miraculous place.</span><span style="-en-paragraph:true;"> </span><span style="-en-paragraph:true;">Please scroll down and enjoy our pictures.</span><span style="-en-paragraph:true;"> </span></div></div>
<div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"/><div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"><span style="-en-paragraph:true;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/8cef2f75-9409-42b6-ae89-299be0a99a9b/f9cb940c-eeef-4043-9469-c9cbdda3fe61.jpg" title="Attachment" width="1280"/><br/></span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"><span style="-en-paragraph:true;">For those wanting more detail, here goes.</span><span style="-en-paragraph:true;"> </span><span style="-en-paragraph:true;">In the morning, we left the beautiful Aranwa Sacred Valley Hotel and made the one hour bus ride to return to the town of Ollantaytambo (see day 4), the starting point for the train to Machu Picchu.</span><span style="-en-paragraph:true;"> </span><span style="-en-paragraph:true;">After we arrived, we made our way to the waiting area to wait for our train - and wait, and wait, and wait.</span><span style="-en-paragraph:true;"> </span><span style="-en-paragraph:true;">Our guide was continually told the train will be here "in 10 minutes ".</span><span style="-en-paragraph:true;"> </span><span style="-en-paragraph:true;">Finally an hour later, the train finally appeared, and we were on our way.</span></div>
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<div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"><span style="-en-paragraph:true;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/8cef2f75-9409-42b6-ae89-299be0a99a9b/1b9c4436-de5a-4ca6-82ad-8a110da266b7.jpg" title="Attachment" width="1280"/><br/></span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"/><div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"><span style="-en-paragraph:true;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/8cef2f75-9409-42b6-ae89-299be0a99a9b/70d26800-2776-456c-96ed-55d1f68c610a.jpg" title="Attachment" width="1280"/><br/></span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"/><div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"><span style="-en-paragraph:true;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/8cef2f75-9409-42b6-ae89-299be0a99a9b/c4be92dc-7d12-4515-b213-5736d649b9b5.jpg" title="Attachment" width="1280"/><br/></span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%;-en-paragraph:true;">We enjoyed the scenic Andean countryside as the train made the 1.5 hour journey downhill (yes, Machu Picchu, at 7710 feet and surrounded by mountains is almost 2,000 feet lower than Sacred Valley) to the town formerly known Aguas Calientes, now called simply Machu Picchu Pueblo. Here we left the train and got into line for the public bus to the entrance to Machu Picchu (the only way to get there other than by foot). Finally, 45 minutes later, we disembarked, quickly dropped off our luggage, and headed into the grounds of Machu Picchu.</span><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%;-en-paragraph:true;"> </span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%;-en-paragraph:true;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/8cef2f75-9409-42b6-ae89-299be0a99a9b/27ff6b85-d4ae-493f-a961-c70b90ccc291.jpg" title="Attachment" width="1280"/><br/></span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"><span style="-en-paragraph:true;">Machu Picchu, named an adjacent mountain, was unknown to the Spanish conquistadors. It was discovered in the early 1900s by scholar and explorer, Hiram Bingham, who was searching for the lost city of the Incas, and who died believing that he had found it.</span><span style="-en-paragraph:true;"> </span><span style="-en-paragraph:true;">Modern scholars now think it was a country hacienda built in the 1400s for the Incan emperor, Patchakuti.</span><span style="-en-paragraph:true;"> </span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"><span style="-en-paragraph:true;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/8cef2f75-9409-42b6-ae89-299be0a99a9b/5e881a78-c680-4a86-b0f2-c59f03a47adb.jpg" title="Attachment" width="1280"/><br/></span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"><span style="-en-paragraph:true;">Regardless of its purpose, it is an amazing place and is amazingly well preserved. It is a UNESCO World Heritage site and in 2007, it was named one of the New Seven Wonders of the World. Despite the difficulty getting there and the walking and climbing needed to see it, it has become the most popular tourist attraction in South America.</span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"><span style="-en-paragraph:true;">After we entered the gate (passport and timed ticket required), we started by heading upward to be able to view the entire complex and the incredible mountains surrounding it.</span><span style="-en-paragraph:true;"> </span><span style="-en-paragraph:true;">Following a combination of stone paths, flights of rock steps and terraces built into the mountainside,</span><span style="-en-paragraph:true;"> </span><span style="-en-paragraph:true;">we reached the area around the ancient Incan Guard House. </span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"/><div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"><span style="-en-paragraph:true;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/8cef2f75-9409-42b6-ae89-299be0a99a9b/a77a21a1-785d-4d6b-b22d-a29207922276.jpg" title="Attachment" width="1280"/><br/></span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"><span style="-en-paragraph:true;">This provided many vistas and viewing angles from which to marvel at the grandeur of this place and to study the various sections of the citadel.</span><span style="-en-paragraph:true;"> </span><span style="-en-paragraph:true;">It is mind-boggling to imagine not only how the Incans designed this structure, but also how they mined rocks from the surrounding mountains, brought them up to this site from the river far below, and managed to place them so perfectly. Keep in mind that the Incans had no large beasts of burden and only stone tools to work with.</span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"/><div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/8cef2f75-9409-42b6-ae89-299be0a99a9b/923f053d-d10a-434f-bcca-563f2b97e852.jpg" title="Attachment" width="1280"/><br/></div>
<div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"><span style="-en-paragraph:true;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/8cef2f75-9409-42b6-ae89-299be0a99a9b/03f4a1cd-7625-426a-bba7-d84a47b1fa3d.jpg" title="Attachment" width="1280"/><br/></span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"/><div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"><span style="-en-paragraph:true;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/8cef2f75-9409-42b6-ae89-299be0a99a9b/03a5c962-1b51-4645-b91b-a07362447256.jpg" title="Attachment" width="1280"/><br/></span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"/><div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"><span style="-en-paragraph:true;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/8cef2f75-9409-42b6-ae89-299be0a99a9b/6bcc7822-bd09-49c2-88c3-f3758ede25eb.jpg" title="Attachment" width="1280"/><br/></span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"/><div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"><span style="-en-paragraph:true;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/8cef2f75-9409-42b6-ae89-299be0a99a9b/867f51eb-b474-40eb-8da4-9ae43f0d8960.jpg" title="Attachment" width="1280"/><br/></span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"><span style="-en-paragraph:true;"> </span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"><span style="-en-paragraph:true;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/8cef2f75-9409-42b6-ae89-299be0a99a9b/04b92e79-5b4f-4688-8b8f-f9b6ca00bc5e.jpg" title="Attachment" width="1280"/><br/></span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"><span style="-en-paragraph:true;">After lots of pictures and contemplation, we made our way down the mountain and entered the citadel through what is known as the Urban Gate (there are two major sections, the urban area where most social activities took place and the residential/agricultural section).</span><span style="-en-paragraph:true;"> </span><span style="-en-paragraph:true;">We headed toward the Plaza Principal and the worked our way to the residential area where the emperor and most of the other population lived.</span><span style="-en-paragraph:true;"> </span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"/><div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"><span style="-en-paragraph:true;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/8cef2f75-9409-42b6-ae89-299be0a99a9b/1b302600-9045-4741-a293-ee6cbf4ad6f5.jpg" title="Attachment" width="1280"/><br/></span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"/><div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"><span style="-en-paragraph:true;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/8cef2f75-9409-42b6-ae89-299be0a99a9b/b1e66f0f-8ed6-41dd-8a66-1d56aec20381.jpg" title="Attachment" width="1280"/><br/></span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"/><div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"><span style="-en-paragraph:true;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/8cef2f75-9409-42b6-ae89-299be0a99a9b/10a70bce-f5b3-4c34-86d1-38b51c25941b.jpg" title="Attachment" width="1280"/><br/></span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"><span style="-en-paragraph:true;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/8cef2f75-9409-42b6-ae89-299be0a99a9b/d3dff3e1-b87f-48c1-b13f-8f01bacdfc16.jpg" title="Attachment" width="1280"/><br/></span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"><span style="-en-paragraph:true;">Here we saw the Temple of the Sun (the sun and the earth were the two most important of the many Incan deities).</span><span style="-en-paragraph:true;"> </span><span style="-en-paragraph:true;">There was also a complex system of 16 fountains fed by an aqueduct that coul</span><span style="-en-paragraph:true;">d supply residents with water at a rate of up to 80 gallons per minute.</span><span style="-en-paragraph:true;"> </span><span style="-en-paragraph:true;">Also, there is a window aligned in such a way as to provide a method of identifying the winter solstice (and another for the summer solstice).</span><span style="-en-paragraph:true;"> </span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"><span style="-en-paragraph:true;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/8cef2f75-9409-42b6-ae89-299be0a99a9b/7a92a088-0cc6-4779-b9db-aa8bad647e21.jpg" title="Attachment" width="1280"/><br/></span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"/><div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"><span style="-en-paragraph:true;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/8cef2f75-9409-42b6-ae89-299be0a99a9b/0cf80a65-1432-49a2-9c75-4049ee9ebc5f.jpg" title="Attachment" width="1280"/><br/></span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"><span style="-en-paragraph:true;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/8cef2f75-9409-42b6-ae89-299be0a99a9b/3bdd4072-a7df-465d-9f8d-e7edfb4db78a.jpg" title="Attachment" width="1280"/><br/></span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"><span style="-en-paragraph:true;">At the end of the day we exited and took the few steps to our hotel, the Belmond Sanctuary, the only hotel right at Machu Picchu, where w</span><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%;-en-paragraph:true;">e had a wonderful meal and got ready for day 2 of exploring the site.</span><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%;-en-paragraph:true;"> </span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"/><div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%;-en-paragraph:true;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/8cef2f75-9409-42b6-ae89-299be0a99a9b/afe322ab-9ec0-4ee9-be6c-b7315ea524ac.jpg" title="Attachment" width="960"/><br/></span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"/><div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%;-en-paragraph:true;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/8cef2f75-9409-42b6-ae89-299be0a99a9b/a205636f-a210-4e2f-9b6d-e6ec2df802a9.jpg" title="Attachment" width="1280"/><br/></span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%;-en-paragraph:true;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/8cef2f75-9409-42b6-ae89-299be0a99a9b/b323a46c-3bce-4b31-a05f-2291e6723c30.jpg" title="Attachment" width="1280"/><br/></span></div>
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Day 3 - Lima to Cuzco and Sacred Valleyhttp://wendy-jim.com/post/day-3-lima-to-cuzco-and-sacred-valley2023-04-05T00:53:04.476000Z2019-05-25T20:18:03ZJim and Wendy Damoulakis<div><div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"><span style="-en-paragraph:true;">This morning, we awoke bright and early (i.e.4:30 am) to make our way once again to Lima Airport for our flight to Cuzco.</span><span style="-en-paragraph:true;"> </span></div></div>
<div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"><span style="-en-paragraph:true;">Cuzco was the capital city of the Incan empire and is nestled in a valley but its elevation is over 11,000 feet making it the highest location of our trip so far, but nowhere near the highest points in the Andes, which reach as high as 23,000 feet.</span><span style="-en-paragraph:true;"> </span><span style="-en-paragraph:true;">Nonetheless we could feel the effects of the thinner air almost immediately as we walked around.</span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"/><div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"><span style="-en-paragraph:true;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/c95e0cc0-a9a7-4ce4-8d4d-d5f4c3263d44/067c532a-e230-4acd-9e51-02b782b759f8.jpg" title="Attachment" width="1280"/><br/></span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"><span style="-en-paragraph:true;">From the airport, we drove through the city (we’ll be exploring it in more detail 4 days from now) and headed 1,000 feet higher up one of the mountains around the city to the site of some very impressive Incan ruins called Saqsaywama (sounds like "sexy woman" - sort of).</span><span style="-en-paragraph:true;"> </span><span style="-en-paragraph:true;">Towering above the city, this UNESCO World Heritage site was a defensive fortress constructed with huge boulders that were cut and positioned in place without mortar.</span><span style="-en-paragraph:true;"> </span><span style="-en-paragraph:true;">How this was accomplished — hauling up the rocks, cutting them, and positioning 10-ton rocks in place — is still a mystery.</span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"/><div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"><span style="-en-paragraph:true;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/c95e0cc0-a9a7-4ce4-8d4d-d5f4c3263d44/f39eb545-3e0d-402d-b4ac-892c71c25374.jpg" title="Attachment" width="1280"/><br/></span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"/><div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"><span style="-en-paragraph:true;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/c95e0cc0-a9a7-4ce4-8d4d-d5f4c3263d44/7b44cec0-c52b-4c69-be28-2292fc5107db.jpg" title="Attachment" width="1280"/><br/></span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"/><div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"><span style="-en-paragraph:true;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/c95e0cc0-a9a7-4ce4-8d4d-d5f4c3263d44/e832400b-68e8-400f-83c3-46b494226721.jpg" title="Attachment" width="1280"/><br/></span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"><span style="-en-paragraph:true;">Saqsaywama was a place where the residents of Cuzco could flee to if the city were under attack.</span><span style="-en-paragraph:true;"> </span><span style="-en-paragraph:true;">It actually has 3 concentric walls in a zigzag pattern like a lightning bolt, and represents a first sample of the Incan genius in designing and building that we will be seeing in the next few days of our trip. In recent years past, many churches and other construction sites were actually allowed to haul away some stones and use for there own purposes.</span><span style="-en-paragraph:true;"> </span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"/><div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"><span style="-en-paragraph:true;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/c95e0cc0-a9a7-4ce4-8d4d-d5f4c3263d44/f2a27560-cbb7-4fc4-a974-7778867c47b3.jpg" title="Attachment" width="1280"/><br/></span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"/><div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"><span style="-en-paragraph:true;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/c95e0cc0-a9a7-4ce4-8d4d-d5f4c3263d44/a0b4752a-0242-47a5-b71d-d0f148da3225.jpg" title="Attachment" width="1280"/><br/></span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"><span style="-en-paragraph:true;">We stopped for lunch at a restaurant in a quaint hacienda nearby where among other things we were able to sample local drinks (non-alcoholic), such as the very popular coca tea and juices made from prickly pear and pepper corn (a deep purple corn). The last supposedly helps with high blood pressure.</span><span style="-en-paragraph:true;"> </span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"/><div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"><span style="-en-paragraph:true;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/c95e0cc0-a9a7-4ce4-8d4d-d5f4c3263d44/0e296838-15c0-4826-a041-2cb466dc102f.jpg" title="Attachment" width="1280"/><br/></span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"><span style="-en-paragraph:true;">After lunch, we briefly enjoyed watching the llamas outside of the hacienda, and then boarded our bus to travel through the Andes to the area known as the Sacred Valley of the Incas. This is an area a few thousand feet lower than Cuzco where Incan royalty had homes, and was also a center of agriculture for the area. Since the royalty were regarded as demi-gods, the area was considered sacred.</span><span style="-en-paragraph:true;"> </span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"/><div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"><span style="-en-paragraph:true;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/c95e0cc0-a9a7-4ce4-8d4d-d5f4c3263d44/69475f06-ee6f-4d8a-bd0f-e5abf24162b7.jpg" title="Attachment" width="960"/><br/></span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"/><div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"><span style="-en-paragraph:true;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/c95e0cc0-a9a7-4ce4-8d4d-d5f4c3263d44/815553b6-75d9-4e72-a159-c1edee7ffa22.jpg" title="Attachment" width="1280"/><br/></span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"/><div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"><span style="-en-paragraph:true;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/c95e0cc0-a9a7-4ce4-8d4d-d5f4c3263d44/8648602c-746b-4d31-b6b7-4a09e3585456.jpg" title="Attachment" width="1280"/><br/></span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"/><div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"><span style="-en-paragraph:true;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/c95e0cc0-a9a7-4ce4-8d4d-d5f4c3263d44/5477b19f-dd1b-456b-8132-9cfd928d22e7.jpg" title="Attachment" width="960"/><br/></span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"><span style="-en-paragraph:true;">In this area the people primarily speak Quechua, and as we learned, it is extremely rich in tradition and culture. Our first stop was in the town of Pisac where we visited a large open air market where locals offered handicrafts such as paintings, jewelry, and clothing ("guaranteed" to be 100% Alpaca, of course). Bargaining is a way of life here, and Wendy had lots of fun.</span><span style="-en-paragraph:true;"> </span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"/><div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"><span style="-en-paragraph:true;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/c95e0cc0-a9a7-4ce4-8d4d-d5f4c3263d44/37849129-4492-4539-bfde-4808f09f5fa3.jpg" title="Attachment" width="853"/><br/></span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"><span style="-en-paragraph:true;"><img src="https://cdn-images.postach.io/198a82d0-63ee-4347-af9d-1fd01d35f67f/c95e0cc0-a9a7-4ce4-8d4d-d5f4c3263d44/874016c0-22c8-4acd-b347-885172920638.jpg" title="Attachment" width="853"/><br/></span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"><span style="-en-paragraph:true;">Next stop was to Huchuicuzco, a tiny local community of about 70 people. The indigenous people of this area tend to live communally - everyone helps with everything from raising children, farming the land, building their adobe houses and more.</span><span style="-en-paragraph:true;"> </span><span style="-en-paragraph:true;">Reciprocity is the way of life. We heard a brief presentation from members of the community about their lifestyle and how much they enjoyed it. They showed us crops that they grow, cloth that they produce, and performed some music, as well. This was particularly interesting because surprisingly it was not a tourist come-on. After the military dictatorship fell in Peru in the 1970s, the redistributed land in the area to people who showed they could farm and develop it. With the rise and f tourism in the area, they do earn some extra money, but are also genuinely proud to share their culture.</span></div>
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<div style="margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;"><span style="-en-paragraph:true;">After this, we finally headed to our hotel, Aranwa Sacred Valley, a gorgeous resort set on the grounds of a colonial hacienda. From the long, bumpy dirt road, you would never expect to find a resort, but it is gorgeous—spread out over 400 acres with beautiful landscaping, and facilities. We had dinner and prepared for our next day exploring the sacred valley.</span><span style="-en-paragraph:true;"> </span></div>
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