Karak Castle and Petra

Steve's Dad (Bill) is a military historian who encouraged us to stop at Karak Castle on the way to Petra. Karak Castle lies at the top of a mountain 1000 feet up from the valley and was a massive fortress used during the Crusades. Bill was blown away by the extensiveness and enormity of the site. We enjoyed a lunch at the top of the citadel before continuing our drive to Petra.

By this time, Steve had to head back to Dubai for work, but the girls, grandma, grandpa and I ventured on to see Petra. The walk down the 'siq' (1 km crack in the mountains) to the view of the 'Treasury' is breath-taking. We continued on for another kilometer past the royal tombs, amphitheater, and main city center. The girls took a donkey ride on the way back to rest their weary legs for the climb back up the 'siq'.

This place has a magical quality about it.

Jerusalem

After an interesting arrival at the Israeli boarder where people were quickly exiting the building, we had to explain to the girls that even boarder crossings have 'fire drills'. Relief was ours when we met our guide who took us to many well known sites outside and inside the old city walls.

Our first stop was the Mount of Olives where the Church of Gethsemane is located. This is where Jesus foretold the destruction of Jerusalem. And, right next door is a beautiful garden where Jesus was captured by the Romans. The Olive trees in this garden are thought to be over 900 years old.

We visited the Wailing Wall (Western Wall) of the city built by King Herod the Great in 19 BC. This is a holy site for Jewish people-- believed to be the place where their temples once stood. It is also important to Muslims because it is believed that Mohammad ascended to heaven from the Dome of the Rock right next door. Though closed because it was a holy day, we walked around the 'City of David' where he is memorialized. This site is also said to be the location of the Last Supper.

The next morning we had a walking tour inside the city walls. It is a labyrinth of streets jam-packed with shops and restaurants, and people of different faiths. The old city is divided into four quarters: Muslim Quarter, Christian Quarter, Jewish Quarter, and Armenia Quarter. We spent most of our time walking the stations of the cross ending in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre where we saw the rock where Jesus was crucified and the tomb where he was buried. Our short visit here was barely enough time to see the highlights. Truly a city like no other, it is well worth another visit.

Bethlehem 2010

Ever since Steve saw Jerusalem and Jericho from the banks of the Dead Sea in 2008 he's wanted to visit these famous cities. Following travel advice from friends in Dubai, we made the trip across the the Jordan River for a fun filled couple of days. We started with a stop outside the walls of the Old City section of Jerusalem by visiting Gethsemane and the Church of Agony on the slopes of the Mount of Olives and traditionally known as the location where Judas betrayed Jesus. Some of the olive tress are over 2000 years old. From there we headed to Bethlehem. Modern Bethlehem is under control of the Palestinian Authority and required going through a check-point and 25 ft tall concrete walls that surround the city. We visited the Church of the Nativity which is built on the birthplace of Jesus. A star marks the actual birthplace; just a few feet away is the location of the manger. Our driver Eyad organized a tour with Needa, who was fantastic and knew his Biblical traditions.

Jordan 2010

We had a terrific time in Jordan in 2008. The Said family made the trip so nice that we wanted to go back. We were a bit concerned that we wouldn't like it as much the second time around, but found the warmth of the people, the scenery, the wealth of historical sites, and relaxation on the banks of the Dead Sea were great the second time too. It was a jam-packed trip, starting with Dead Sea. Despite snow falling in Amman the week before, the weather was warm and the skies were blue. It was nice to breath in the fresh air.

Christmas 2009

We love the holidays. This year we really wanted to get into the spirit, and we successful. We purchased a tree, decorated it, and played Christmas carols continuously through December. We had a pre-Christmas bash with the Trowbridge clan, and went to see Santa at Wafi mall. By mid-December we were primed for a fantastic holiday.

We departed Dubai at 1 a.m. on December 22 and headed to Brussels via Amsterdam. We had a wonderful time at Pamela and Henry's and kept many of the traditions from 2008 alive and well. My expanding waist line is living tribute to the eating, drinking and being merry.

We had plenty of opportunities to get delayed by weather and other events, but we managed to have very few delays. Waiting lines at security for our flight to Minneapolis was a bit longer due to the troubles aboard a NWA flight to Detroit two days earlier.

We celebrated New Years with both sets of grandparents and our neighborhood friends. Anna and Kate stayed-up as long as they could with the grandparents and Steve and Maria joined 8 neighborhood friends for their annual trip to La Belle Vie - fantastic.

Getting Ready for Christmas

The weather is still warm, so we have to force ourselves into Christmas mode. Thankfully, there are malls decked-out for Christmas - Dubai style. Of course Santa has to be seen and Christmas concerts and parties at school are naturally a big deal. And when it's dark outside, if you play Christmas music, it almost feels like the holidays.

Here is our visit to Wafi Center Mall to visit Santa. While Maria waited in line, Steve and the girls completed a 'Charlie and the Chocolate Factory' scavenger hunt. Wafi is a beautiful mall; note the elegant stained glass ceiling from the section called "The Eye of Horace" - styled after an ancient Egyptian god. We'll let you know if we win the elevator full of Godiva Chocolate!

And Christmas wouldn't be the same without a trip to the Trowbridge house for a festive Christmas dinner and holiday cheer with Bruce, Michelle, Avery (Kates BFF), Jacob and Jillian.

Cool Istanbul

There are so many places we want to see and living in Dubai has brought us much closer to so many places. We decided to head to Istanbul for a long weekend to see one of the world's great cities. We truly enjoyed our stay. Like so many people we've met during our travels, the Turks are wonderfully hospitable people. We felt welcome our entire stay... so welcome that people were falling over themselves to try to sell us carpets and spend our money.

We spent our few days being tourists and seeing as many of the sites as possible. It was an amazing feeling to be in a city that was once called Byzantium and Constantinople, and was once the capital of the eastern Roman and Ottoman empires – an amazing history. We visited the grand mosques including Hagia Sofia, the 4th largest church/mosque in the world. We walked the halls and viewed the treasures of the great Ottoman Sultans at Topkapi Palace and cruised the Bosphorus Strait, watching the ships travel the “Sultan’s Highway”.

Istanbul and its people are as remarkable as the city’s history. We had a terrific time.