Israel: Part 2

Day 2 & 3 in Israel: Jerusalem, Bethlehem, Sea of Galilee, and the River of Jordan

Andy and I pulled off an extraordinary feat at the beginning of the trip...we were the very first people to the bus in the morning (remember the bus rules...we dominated) so we had the luxury of sitting in the front row. We soon added to our bus rules...
ADDENDUM: when all else is successful, and given the opportunity to sit in the front row of the tour bus for a ten hour tour, BYPASS that golden right. Instead choose seats in rows two or three, where the tour guide does not talk directly to you...the entire trip. This will give you the opportunity to sleep, which is not granted to the person in the front row, specifically, aisle seat.

Needless to say, I was in the aisle seat of the front row. Awesome. I should also mention, I was surrounded by people that were clearly fairly religious. There's nothing wrong with that, but when the tour guide keeps asking me questions about Bible stories, none of which I can answer, it makes me wish the woman sitting behind me...with her bible...were sitting there instead.

A good thing happened though, the tour guide put in a CD of music...a break for me to snooze!!! Or...not...all of a sudden a song comes on and he asks me if I know it...really? I politely say no, and at the same moment the man in the seat next to me starts belting out the words..."Jerusalem, Jerusalem.....Jeruuuuuuusalem" and a bunch more Jerusalems....apparently half the bus knew the song and felt the need to sing along, rather enthusiastically. I'm sure it was just the thing Andy wanted to wake up from his little nap to...



"Jeruuuuuuuusalem!!!!!!!!!!" our first picture stop. Moments after this I caused a scene and was angered more than I ever thought I could be in a holy place. Vendors were standing near our bus...."one dolla, one dolla" selling postcards, as I walked between the two men, one of the reached out and grabbed my chest. Yes, that's right, straight up, grabbed my boob...in freaking Jerusalem! I responded by throwing the guy's hand off me and yelling in his face, "Don't touch me". The other vendor responded with, "Yeah don't touch her" probably trying to get me to buy his postcards.....Mind you, I kept my other hand on my purse the whole time, knowing that was probably his target. It made me miss the Egyptian vendors...much more annoying, but they never touched me. I warned Andy, Tom, and Wendy that if another vendor touched me, they may have to bail me out of prison because I was going to be taking a swing at them. Luckily it didn't come to that. Although that would make for an interesting blog...





One of many, many churches...




Walking Via dela Roso (sp?) I was surprised that some of the stations of the cross are located in people's businesses.

We made our way to the Western (Wailing) Wall. Andy and I both wrote notes and stuck them into the wall...individually, men and women have go go to separate sides. It was an emotional stop, even for the non-religious. Pictures were strictly forbidden...unless you were Mitt Romney, who showed up the next day with a full camera crew. Apparently American politicians can break the rules in other countries as well...



In the church of Bethlehem waiting to go down to see the famous manger...



The manger from the Christmas story, I was shocked it is actually in a cave under the church. My image of the manger and baby Jesus in swaddling clothes (think your typically nativity scene...) has forever been changed, but think it will be cool next Christmas to hear O Little Town of Bethlehem, now that we've been there.



The Jordan River



Jordan River



More ancient ruins...



The Sea of Galilee, which is actually a lake...



If you can't tell, this is a fake, exhausted smile...I was 'churched' out. Another one?? Covering your shoulders in crazy heat and being herded through in silence, dodging oblivious tourists taking photos when they shouldn't, is sometimes just annoying. In this picture, I was done for the day. Good thing I didn't know there would actually be one more church.



A view overlooking the port in Israel where we docked overnight. On the right hand side you can see our cruise ship in the distance.

For the record, Israel is not filled with military carrying machine guns everywhere. In fact, it's beautiful, calm, and feels safe everywhere. Once again, American media creating twisted images.

Love and fond memories from Israel,

Jen & Andy (T & W too)

-Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Israel: Part 1

We spent three days in Israel and it was a whirlwind! In three days we saw...Jerusalem, Bethlehem, The Sea of Gallilee, the River of Jordan, Tel Aviv, Cesarea, and Jaffa.




On the beach near Cesarea the ruins of the ancient city.



On these tours, sometimes the guides become long-winded. It was clear from the start today would be one of those days...therefore, as soon as we got to a new location, Wendy and I found the shade. I was usually fighting the Asian tourists for the best shaded areas..



The ancient ruins, along the shore. It wasn't as amazing as Pompeii, but it was pretty cool. (not the temp, that's for sure...)




Tel Aviv is a cosmopolitan area mixed with European charm. Little bistros line the boulevard and people gather to eat or grab coffee. I could move to this city in a heartbeat. Clean, trendy, and a blend of new and old.



The intersection where the newer part of Tel Aviv meets old, Jaffa.




The Tel Aviv skyline from the hills of Jaffa. Another line-up shot, nailed it.



The picture doesn't do this hill justice...but I was slightly winded at the top. Gotta hit the gym more..my calves hurt the next day. Plus, I carry our lives in that bag...water, sunscreen, snacks, sunglasses with cases, passports, wallets....Andy calls me the pack mule....I'm sure in the most loving way possible!



Cute little restaurant we stopped at for lunch. Wendy ordered a fish and it came...full fish form, including the eyeball...yum.



An alleyway in Jaffa...lined with homes and little shops.

Okay, more stories and pictures to come, including what I was most disgusted by on the entire trip....it occurred in Jerusalem. Time to get ready for BINGO and dinner.

Love & memories from Israel,
Jen and Andy

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Egypt expanded on

My blog entry on Egypt definitely needs to be added to...Egypt was pretty mind blowing in many regards. We spent time in Alexandria and Cairo. The first thing I was shocked by (even though I was forewarned) was the amount of trash and garbage everywhere. On our bus ride through Alexandria we saw a horse eating out of a trash bin that was overflowing with garbage. Thank goodness we were in the bus, I can't even imagine what the smell was like. (keep in mind the temperature was 100 degrees plus...)



Apparently Andy got a picture of it through the bus window...sorry Michay, I'm sure you don't like this picture...doesn't make horse racing look too bad eh?



Everyone on the streets of Alexandria was waving to us as our bus drove through. Imagine the coach bus making its way through these crowded streets...No, this guy is not mad, he was waving.




Tomb of the unknown soldier. Beautiful and clean, heading towards the newer part of town. Locals refer to people that live in the new (and slightly cleaner) part of town as Phonies.



A little resort area on the coast.



Representing the Twins...on a very questionable bench...In a somewhat clean area though. I wonder why he chose this bench rather than the other....I'm sure the bench says "one dolla, one dolla" the national saying of Egypt.



The view of Alexandria from the top deck of the ship.


Our drive to Cairo and the pyramids was about three hours. I'm not going to lie, I slept for a lot of it. Our buses all rode in a caravan with police escorts (sometimes) in order to bypass traffic lights which would have made the trip much longer. I didn't feel unsafe at any point during our time in Egypt. The locals were all very happy that tourists were still visiting. The Pyramid area and Cairo are not the areas where tourists need to be constantly worried about being kidnapped....now harassed by vendors, yes.

If that sort of thing bothers you, you would hate Egypt. I had no problem with it. All you do is put your head down, write F-Off on your forehead and plow on through. When that fails, I threw out, "lo siento, no hablo ingles" that always works too, the vendors do not speak spanish. It made it easier that all the old people on out cruise stop and become targets for the vendors. One dolla, one dolla!!!




Driving near the pyramids....within one block we saw kids swimming and a man fishing...note the donkey on the right..... As he was trying to sell donkey rides, the funniest vendor all day said "Egyptian Mercedes....one dolla".









The temperature during our time at the pyramids was 115 degrees. Between the heat, the dust, the garbage, six hours on a bus, and all the camel poop, I was more ready for than I have ever been in my life. I sanitized my hands about a hundred times throughout the day, and after one shower on the ship, wanted to shower again. Puts yoga class sweat into a whole new perspective...


On the drive to Cairo we passed housing developments that would easily rival areas of Orange County...absolutely gorgeous mansions in impeccable neighborhoods...most stood empty, but they are there. Not all areas are filled with camels and garbage....or vendors.

All things considered, I am so glad we came to Egypt. The pyramids and Sphinx were truly amazing. I have never been so mesmerized by a landscape as I was staying in front of the pyramids.

Love and memories of Egypt,
J&A


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Crete, Greece

So of course, I had a great post typed up about Greece...which we stopped at before Egypt, But it got deleted during an Internet blip. I have five minutes to get in the shower and get ready for dinner, so here's the quick version:

I have a love-hate relationship with Greece (sorry Michay, I know how badly you want to study abroad there, if you do, I promise to visit and only love it!) LOVE---our luggage came to Crete!! Six days late, but it got there! Yay!! I hugged Javier, our concierge, because I was so happy to see our bags!

HATE---we took a bus ride up a mountain. The road was narrow, winding, and bumpy, and we were the last people to get on the bus....so we were in the back. Andy knew it was bad when he saw me frantically dumping all of the contents from my pink reusable shopping bag I was borrowing from Wendy.....I'm not gonna lie, at that point I was glad I didn't have my own purse, it was painful enough preparing to be sick in public, but it would have been even worse thinking about being sick in my cute bag! (luckily it didn't
come to that point, we had a break and I moved to the front of the bus.) the heat, motion, and rapid increase in altitude got to me. Now I've learned from that experience....

BUS RULES: hide near the back of the room when waiting to be dismissed for excursions, then run (remember, most people are 60 plus on this cruise...) when they call my bus number, and never look back. It's landed me front of the bus seats each time since then. I haven't had to throw any elbows....so it hasn't gotten too ugly =)



Crete from the ship deck.



My love, the BINGO rockstar.



Halfway up the horrid mountain.


Shower, then dinner...yum! more updates to come---Mom and Michay I've tried face timing but the Internet must not be strong enough....love you.

Love from Isreal,

Jen and Andy

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Egypt: pyramids, vendors, and a whole bunch of camels

"One dolla, one dolla! No charge to look! One dolla, one dolla!" As I slept last night after our twelve hour long excursion to Cairo, those phrases continued to infiltrate my brain. Egypt was truly amazing. It is unlike any other place we've been. Obviously, we were most excited for the pyramids. For me, the pyramids were the thing I was most looking forward to on the entire cruise. Let me tell you, they did not disappoint (and I had high expectations).

The day was exhausting, but unforgettable. Everywhere we went, we were harassed by vendors trying to sell: little pyramid statues, "lovely" tshirts, paintings on papyrus, sketchy looking nokia cell phones, purses, hats, bottled beverages....you name it, they sold it, and probably for one dolla! It was like I was living in a Dollar Tree where the employees were making crazy commission on all the sales.




We found the camel unattended and quickly tried to snap a pic before its owner was back. As soon as Andy snapped the pic, I heard "HEY that's my camel!!!!" and saw a man running at us, I did what I do best; I put my head down and walked away, leaving Andy to deal with the angry Egyptian. He tried to get Andy to pay for taking the picture, if you know Andy at all, you know that didn't happen.




"Hey lady! Hey lady! Hold my rope! Here! Lady!" ---2 seconds before we snapped this picture, the little boy actually placed the rope...which was leading his camel...on Wendy's shoulder...You can see how happy that made her. Holding the rope is pretty much equivalent to signing your life away and agreeing to pay for the photo. The little kids would continue jumping in your photo to try and get you to pay them to stop. As the dirty rope touched Wendy's arm, I could actually see her skin start to crawl. She bathed in sanitizer as soon as she went back to the bus.


















Yes, I was that tourist. Good job lining it up babe.

I'm having Internet issues, so I will update with more Egypt stories later...

Love from Egypt, one dolla, one dolla---
Jen and Andy

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Malta and Days at Sea...attempt #2

I wrote a detailed entry a few days ago and just realized it never actually posted.....attempt 2 begins now.....

Still no luggage.



Welcome to Malta, the view from our balcony while we arrived.



Working phone booth...just making some calls. "Hello, Delta? Why the hell did you send my bags to France?!!!"



Valetta, Malta....with many bridges over narrow streets, it reminds me of Venice, minus the canals.



Wandering the streets of Valetta.



Exploring an ancient walled in city. 96 degrees today....we took a double decker bus ride of the island. It was so windy on the top deck that Andy said to me..."I feel like I'm being punched in the face! I'm gonna have a black eye tomorrow." =)



Views from the top of the bus on our tour.


LIFE AT SEA WITH OCEANIA:


Amazing food, presented beautifully (yes, pumpkin soup, served from a pumpkin) note: new dress I purchased in Malta to try and hold me over until our bags get here.



Snails anyone?? Wendy's amazing escargot. Yummmm.


Highlights of our days as sea:

-Learning that Andy is secretly a BINGO master....he has won three times. Tom won once.....I'm waiting for my turn to win...jackpot time would be perfect....or Wendy could win, since we are following our BINGO rules tradition and splitting all winnings.

-Laying by the pool...lots of great people watching....this boat could keep all the plastic surgeons in Miami in business.

-Roulette when 17 hits....which has happened a few times. Yay!

-The following (one sided) conversation Andy had while looking at the agenda of events for the following day...

WARNING: if you are easily offended, I apologize ahead of time on behalf of my husband. He really does like older people and has mad respect for Asians and their sneaky table tennis skills...

"Table tennis tournament?! Jenny we need to get in on that and dominate all these old farts. (short pause) We're getting up early and practicing! (Long pause) You gotta watch out for the Asians though....they are sneaky good. (Long pause) There's so much to do tomorrow, I'm going to be busy all day. I totally belong on this old person cruise!" -Andy Moe




Andy, dominating in the table tennis tournament. NOTE: the winner was an Asian man...who 'sneakily' was a late entrant.....

Update on Greece coming tonight....this afternoon we have our first day in Egypt.


-Love from Alexandria, Egypt (technically where I'm retyping this entry)

Jen and the BINGO master Andy Moe =)



Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

What Happens in Ibiza Stays in Ibiza...

Or at least that's what they say...as author of this blog, I fully intend to break that rule today.

First stop: Ibiza, Spain...a wonderful little island off the coast of the mainland. It's widely known for it's nightlife and club scene and many a celebrity, including Paris Hilton, have been known to frequent the quaint 25 mile island. As tempting as that sounds...our plan was not to hit up the clubs, rather, we pre-arranged scooters to leisurely tour the island on our own.

The scooter rental that we arranged ahead of time told us they would meet us at the port. We spent an hour attempting to find the scooter people and finally gave up. Luckily (haha) there was another place right across the street. I was a little surprised to see that the "scooters" were not mopeds and instead looked like small motorcycles. The woman asked if we had ever driven one before and everyone said yes (Wendy and I were lying...).



We each were given our scooter as I wobbily pulled out of the scooter parking area, I got nervous. Now I guess I should have told you, that this scooter shop was located right in the middle of city and at a very busy intersection. I did not like it. I practiced at the dead end of the street and struggled to turn around....okay, okay yes, I was within three inches of the car, but I didn't hit it. I followed Andy, and Wendy and Tom were behind me as we prepared to head for the countryside.

Getting out of town required a right hand turn onto the main street of the city. A large van was driving between me and Tom and Wendy as Andy prepared to merge into the traffic. Seeing a gap in the cars, Andy took off, as I looked up and started to turn the corner as well, Andy and his scooter flew full speed straight ahead...into the driver's door of a taxi cab...in traffic. It all happened so fast, I didn't know what to do. Within 15 seconds a guy ran into the street, ripped the scooter from Andy and drove it back to the shop. Still not knowing what to do, I stayed on the scooter on the side of the road trying not to get hit by cars that just continued on about their business.

As I looked back at Andy, I saw the woman from the rental place running at him screaming. She...was...pissed. But, she had customers, so she left us outside for about 20 minutes. Andy was calculating how much money he thought he would have to pay, Wendy was relieved we didn't have to go on the scooters, and I was glad I wasn't the one who crashed and just trying to hide from the angry Spanish woman.



All in all, the woman calmed down, she actually refunded our 400 Euro we paid for the day and just kept our cash deposit; their insurance covered the taxi, which from the thud, was definitely dented. So basically it went a little something like this...

3 minutes of scooter time=

200 Euro deposit money

A scrape for Andy...



And a reason to purchase this awesome new shirt...




The rest of the day was much more relaxing....and in fact, Wendy and I were happy we were not on the scooters. We just wandered around town, shopped a bit, had some drinks, and got back to the safety of the ship.






By the way, you will see these outfits alot.....day three.....still no luggage. They say it will arrive tomorrow.....I'll believe it when it happens.

Here we are in Tom and Wendy's clothing so we could go eat the amazing food for dinner on the ship. =)



Love (and hate for Scooters) from the open water between Ibiza and Malta--J&A

Posted using BlogPress from my iPad