• Day 01/Oct 05 MANILA/CAIRO
• Day 02/Oct 06 ARRIVE CAIRO, Egypt
Arrive in Cairo. Start sightseeing to Old Cairo. Visit the Church of the Holy Virgin Mary or the “Hanging Church” built in the 4th BC. There were apparitions of the Virgin Mary here. Proceed to hotel for dinner and accommodation. (L,D)
• Day 03/Oct 07 CAIRO
Start the day with a visit to a Wonder of the World, the Pyramids of Giza and the nearby Sphinx. Then to the Egyptian Museum housing the gold treasures of Tutankhamen, an exciting first encounter with the splendor of three millennia of Egyptian civilization. This is one of the richest and remarkable museums in the world. In between you will visit a Papyrus Museum and a perfumery. End the day with a visit to the huge El Khalili Bazaars to shop for souvenirs. Feel the time of Cleopatra as you take on a Nile River cruise with a folkloric dinner show (B,L,D)
• Day 04/Oct 08 CAIRO/ST. CATHERINE
Drive to Sinai Desert passing by the Suez Canal and Moses’ Spring. Overnight in St. Catherine. (B,L,D)
• Day 05/ Oct 09 ST. CATHERINE/JERUSALEM, Israel
You may join an early dawn excursion to Mount Sinai, where the Ten Commandments were given to Moses. It will be an ethereal feeling. Enjoy the breathtaking view of sunrise from the peak. Visit the Monastery to see the Burning Bush. Leave Taba border and get into Israel. Drive through the Arava Desert with their rocks and mountains in red, gray, yellow and white, and the next minute you are at the Gulf of Eilat on the shores of the Red Sea. This was where the Queen of Sheba arrived on her historic visit to King Solomon. Continue to Jericho, a flourishing oasis in the Judean Desert at the northern end of the Dead Sea. Archaeological research has confirmed Jericho as being the oldest city in the world. Jericho was the first city conquered by Joshua in the Promised Land and it appears as the background for many incidents in the New Testament. View the Mount of Temptation. Drive to the Holy City of Jerusalem for accommodation. (B,L,D)
• Day 06/Oct 10 JERUSALEM
Depart for Lourdes via the TGV fast train. Check in to hotel in Lourdes for 2nights. After dinner, you may join the candle light procession. (B/D) Then to the Church of All Nations, the Rock of Agony and the Garden of Gethsemane. Remember the Agony in the Garden? To Mount Zion, to visit the Room of the Last Supper where also the Holy Spirit descended upon the apostles. Nearby is the Dormition Abbey from where the Blessed Mary went up to heaven. Visit St. Peter in Gallicantu (Caiphas House), the Apostle’s Jail, the Sacred Stairway and view the Potter’s Field. On to Mount Moriah to visit the Western Wall (Wailing Wall). This is the holiest place of the Jewish faith. Continue to BETHLEHEM, birthplace of Jesus. Meditate on the glory of the Birth of Our Savior at the Church of the Nativity. Sing Christmas hymns! Celebrate! What a glorious feeling! Drive to the Shepherd’s Field and Cave Chapel, a recent Byzantine excavation and past Ruth the Moabite’s Fields to the Judean Wilderness. (B,L,D)
• Day 07/ Oct 11 JERUSALEM
Pray the Stations of the Cross along the Via Dolorosa. You’ll feel how much you’ve contributed to Christ’s sufferings, with this unforgettable experience. The way ends at the most venerated Church of the Holy Sepulchre, site of the Calvary. Visit the scale model of Jerusalem of the Second Temple period in the days of Christ. Drive through the Jordan Valley , down to the Dead Sea, the lowest point on earth. Swim or test its healing waters. Available are many products good for skin ailments. Continue to Qumran. Learn about the Dead Sea Scrolls (part foundation of the Holy Bible) which were discovered in the Qumran caves. (B,L,D)
• Day 08/Oct 12 JERUSALEM/TIBERIAS
Drive to Ein Kerem, birthplace of John the Baptist. Walk through the picturesque old village to visit the Basilica of Visitation and the Church of St. John the Baptist. Continue to Caesaria, built by Herod the Great , meant to be a Roman bastion of might. Here is where Peter baptized the centurion Cornelius. See the Ampitheater, a reminder of the Roman, Herodian and Crusader periods. Up to Haifa , Israel’s third largest city, to visit Mount Carmel of the prophet Elijah. Pray at the Church, the biggest of the Carmelite Order. See the breathtaking view of the city and take photos of the world center of the Bahai faith. Renew baptismal vows in Yardenit, site of the baptism of Jesus by St. John the Baptist. Up to Mount Tabor to visit the Church of Transfiguration. Spend the night in Tiberias. (B,L,D)
• Day 09/Oct 13 TIBERIAS
Begin at the Mount of Beatitudes where Jesus proclaimed the Eight Beatitudes. Remember, “Blessed are the pure in spirit for they will see God”. Meditation here. Pray at the St. Peter’s Primacy Church on the Sea of Galilee shore. Follow Jesus’ path to Tabgha, where he fed the multitudes with five loaves and two fishes. Walk along the shores of Capernaum; visit St. Peter’s house, where Jesus preached and healed Peter’s mother-in-law. Take an exhilarating ferry boat ride across the Sea of Galilee. It’s a time for celebration. Remember when Jesus calmed its stormy waters? Drive to Cana to the Church of the Wedding, where the first miracle happened. Eucharistic Celebration and renewal of marriage vows. Here’s where the first miracle happened. (B,L,D)
• Day 10/Oct 14 TIBERIAS/AMMAN, Jordan
On to Nazareth, city chosen by God for the annunciation of the birth of His Son. Here Jesus grew to manhood. Visit the Basilica of Annunciation and St. Joseph’s workshop. Continue to the border to Jordan. Arrival Amman. Check in and dinner at the hotel. (B,L,D))
• Day 11/Oct 15 AMMAN/PETRA/AMMAN
Ride by horse to the Siq, a half mile long unforgettable gorge. Experience the “Indiana Jones” film. At last you stand in awe in front of the Treasury, a Wonder of the World now declared the new “7th Wonder of the World”, a rose colored monumental building artfully carved out of sheer rock. Continue on to see the other temples and tombs carved into the mountainside. This used to be the capital of the Nabatean civilization. Travel to Amman for the night. (B,L,D)
• Day 12/Oct 16 AMMAN/MANILA
Stand at Mt. Nebo marked by a simple chapel. It is here where Moses viewed Canaan of Israel. God did not allow him to enter and live out his life together with Joshua and the masses he led out of Egypt. Rest of the day is at leisure until transfer to the airport for your flight back home. (B,L)
• Day 13/Oct 17 ARRIVE MANILA

DUBAI EXTENSION