February 8, 2006
Jacki and Kristi Visit Tiffany
Tiffany was thrilled when her wonderful friends, Jacki Archiabald and Kristi Child, said they were coming to visit. It all started when Kristi's husband, Kym, came to Israel on an Intel business trip in December. Tiffany had hoped that her friends could have come with him, but the timing didn't work out. Instead, they planned a trip for early February. In the meantime, Jacki's husband, Rob, was asked to come on an Intel business trip at the same time. After hoping for this trip for two years, Tiffany was so excited to meet them at the airport. We sent Rob on his way to Tel Aviv for his week of work, and took Kristi and Jacki home with us.
We let them sleep in the first day to recover from jet lag and also because Jacki is pregnant. When they woke up later that morning, Kristi announced her pregnancy; so it was good we let them both sleep. That afternoon, we saw some sights in Haifa. We walked along the Louis Promenande which overlooks the Baha'i Gardens and the German Colony. We also went to Stella Maris which is the Catholic church built on top of one of the supposed sights of Elijah's cave.
The next day we were ready to do some shopping. Tiffany's Hebrew teacher, Dvora, took us to her friend's house to see her hand-crafted jewelry. We all bought necklaces and earrings. Then we went to the mall to look around and do a little more shopping. We also ate ice cream and crepes at Dr. Lek's, a popular ice cream chain in Israel.
Doctor Lek's Ice CreamAfter we picked Tyler up from preschool, we went to the beach. The kids played in the sand while we admired the sunset.
Sunset over the MediterraneanOn Tuesday morning we headed for the Dead Sea. Scott worked from home and took care of Tyler and Brooke for a few days so we could have a girls trip. We stopped at Tiffany's favorite road side stand for lunch on the way down. Kristi was brave enough to try some bedouin pita with lebane cheese, olive oil and spices. Jacki was kind enough to take our picture.
Yummy olive oil and pitaWe stopped at a scenic overlook on our drive down to the Dead Sea. We enjoyed passing the elevation markers as we descended hundreds of meters below sea level.
Dead Sea OverlookOur first stop was Masada, Herod's hilltop palace overlooking the Dead Sea.
We took a cable car to the top, explored the ruins, admired the mosaic floors and walked through the ancient bath house complex.
Masada with cable carsWe stayed in the Crowne Plaza Hotel on the shore of the Dead Sea. We enjoyed floating in the salty water. It was very relaxing. That night we had fun with Dead Sea mud masks.
Floating in the Dead SeaWe felt very refreshed from our time at the Dead Sea. We wished we could have stayed longer.
Hotel BeachAs we left the Dead Sea, we stopped at Qumran, the caves where the Dead Sea scrolls were found. Then we drove through the Judean hills on our way to Jerusalem. We spent most of our first afternoon in Jerusalem shopping. There were long lists of souvenirs to be purchased. Once we got going, we got pretty good at bargaining and buying.
Shopping in the Old CityWe left the Old City and met Rob, who drove to Jerusalem after work, and went to the Garden Tomb. It is a very special place. It is beautiful and peaceful and easy to feel the spirit there.
The next morning we went on the Ramparts walk on the walls of the Old City. It was neat to be up on the walls and see the amazing view of the city. Afterwards, we visited David's tomb. We tried to visit the Upper Room, but it was closed for restoration.
Jerusalem ramparts walkTyler-isms:
"brooming" - sweeping
"I need more string." - Tyler needed more cord while helping Tiffany vacuum.
Brooke-isms:
"Tonter" - monster. Brooke and Tyler like to pretend they are hiding from monsters.
"Up" - as in stay up and don't go to bed.