The Journeys of PAUL in TURKEY - May 1-16, 2008
A tour for Christian Scientists and their
friends.
Join Olene and Nancy as they
follow
the same Roman roads, cross the same
mountain passes, and explore sites
where
the
Apostle Paul and others who followed him
spread
and established the powerful message
of the Christ throughout
ancient Asia Minor.
Outstanding Turkish guide, Tulu
Ciftci is a
delightful and knowledgable young woman.
Your Journey Includes: Roundtrip Airfare · Superior First Class Hotels · Deluxe Motorcoaches ·
Breakfast Buffet & Dinner Nightly · Bible Talks by Olene & Nancy · Guided Sightseeing with Tulu Cifti
... Price ~ $3,699 cash discount....$3,847 credit card
ITINERARY
MAY 1 – Your journey begins as you depart from
Newark
on your international flight.
MAY 2 – You will arrive in
Istanbul
and continue to
Adana
by plane. You will check into your hotel for dinner and overnight.
MAY 3 – After breakfast you will drive to
Antioch
, the place where the followers of Jesus were first called Christians. Here you
will visit the Church of St. Peter, a grotto discovered by the Crusaders
and reputed to be the cave church where early Christians met in secret. At the
Mosaic
Museum
in
Antioch
you will see an unusually rich collection of mosaics from this area.
Following your visit at the museum, you will go to the Seleucia Pieria,
the ancient port town of
Antioch
from which Paul and Barnabas set out on their first journey and where Paul
returned afterwards. Finally, you will check into the hotel in
Antioch
for dinner and overnight.
MAY 4 – After breakfast you will have an early
departure from
Antioch
as you drive to
Tarsus
, the city where the Apostle Paul was born. You will visit the Church
of
St. Paul
as well as the recently excavated remains of the Roman Tarsus in the
town center. You will take a short
walk to the site known as the Well of
St. Paul
. In the afternoon you will continue with a drive to
Cappadocia
, for dinner and overnight.
MAY 5 – After breakfast you will have a full day
of sightseeing in
Cappadocia
. You will visit Göreme where you will see remains of several hundred
early churches, with rooms hollowed out of the cones of volcanic ash. Some of
them are decorated with scratched frescoes depicting scenes from the Bible.
You will drive through the Zelve valley on your way to Kaymaklý,
an underground city which was an early Christian center that extended downward
in the earth for at least eight floors and housed several thousand people in the
eighth and ninth centuries. You’ll continue to Uçhisar, another of
these early Christian communities, before returning to your hotel for dinner and
overnight.
MAY 6 – After breakfast you will have an early
departure to drive to Iconium where Paul and Barnabas used the synagogue
as their forum to address the local people. They angered the authorities there
and were warned in time to escape being attacked. You will continue to Derbe where
Paul visited twice. The Bible states that Paul and Barnabas spoke in Derbe and
won many converts. You will then
visit the area of ancient Lystra also twice visted by Paul. It was
here Paul healed a lame man and later was raised after being battered with
stones. Here also Paul met Timothy
who later accompanied him on some of his travels. You will visit the Shrine
of Mevlana before going to the hotel in
Konya
(ancient Iconium) for dinner and overnight.
MAY 7 –After breakfast you will depart and drive
to Yalvac, ancient Antioch of Pisidia. Paul visited this town on
his first missionary journey and it is here that he addressed the congregation
in the synagogue on the Sabbath with his first recorded sermon. You will visit
the excavations here and then continue to Antalya
with a very scenic drive through the lakes and the rocky mountains. Dinner
and overnight will be at the hotel in
Antalya
.
MAY 8 – After breakfast you will begin with a
visit to Perga, an ancient city even when Paul visited there. He and
Barnabas went through Perga on their way from and to
Antioch
on their first journey. You will visit the Perga Theater, the Agora
Stadium, and the columned streets. You will also visit Aspendos, one
of the best preserved theaters in the world, and Side where you will
see
the museum, theater, and temple. Dinner and overnight will be in the port city
of
Antalya
.
May 9 – After breakfast you will drive to Colosse
(Paul’s letter to the Colossians) on the foothills of Mount
Honaz. You will continue to
Laodicea
, one of the Seven Churches of Revelation, and
Hierapolis
where you will visit the monuments, thermal baths and the theater with its
well preserved stage and Temple of Apollo. Dinner and overnight will be
in Pamukkale.
MAY 10 – After breakfast you will travel to Philadelphia
, now called Alasehir. We’ll see remains of a Byzantine basilica as
well as some eleventh century frescoes.
Philadelphia
and
Smyrna
were the only two churches among the Seven about which nothing bad was said by
John. From there we’ll travel to
Sardis
, one of the most picturesque areas of any of the Seven Churches. You’ll
see the remains of the
Temple
of
Artemis
as well as a small Byzantine church. Finally, you will proceed to Izmir
(ancient
Smyrna
), one of the Seven Churches and one of the oldest continuously inhabited
cities of the world. You’ll check in to the hotel for dinner and overnight.
MAY 11 –After breakfast you will leave Pamukkale
and drive to
Ephesus
, the first of the Seven Churches, for a visit. You will see the amazing
ruins of this great city: the theater, the library, the
Temple
of
Hadrian
and the newly excavated Roman Terrace Houses. You will also visit
the Crisler Library. After your visit in
Ephesus
you will return to
Izmir
for dinner and overnight.
MAY 12 – After breakfast today you will leave
for Bergama
which is the site of ancient Pergamos, one of the Seven Churches of
Revelation. You will visit the acropolis there and see the impressive theater,
the Temple of Athena, and other ruins of former civilizations.
You will continue to Odun Iskelesi to visit the site and the
port
of
Alexandria-Troas
where Paul raised the boy, Eutychus. Paul visited this area at least twice.
You will then go to Canakkale for dinner and overnight.
MAY 13 – After breakfast
today you will drive to Iznik. On the way you will pass through
Bursa
, the first capital of the Ottoman Sultans. Iznik is the site of ancient Nicea
which is famous for the two ecumenical church councils held there to
establish points of Christian orthodoxy. After your visit you will continue to
Istanbul
for dinner and overnight.
MAY 14 –After breakfast
today you will have a full day of sightseeing in
Istanbul
. You will visit the Topkapi Palace, built as a summer palace by Mehmet
II and enlarged by Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent to be used as his primary
residence. Topkapi was also the site of the 1964 film of the same name
with Melina Mercouri and Maximilian Schell. You will continue to the impressive structure known as Hagia
(Saint) Sophia. It was built as a church, converted to the principal mosque
in
Istanbul
, and now a museum. From there you will go to the Blue Mosque, the
primary mosque of
Istanbul
today and one of the finest creations of Turkish architecture.
You will finish the day at the Grand Bazaar where you will have
time for shopping. You will return to your hotel for dinner and overnight in
Istanbul.
MAY 15 –After breakfast
you will visit Suleiman’s Mosque, built by the Sultan in memory of his
father. You’ll stop by the
Church
of
Chora
before continuing with a boat tour on the
Bosporus
where you’ll get a completely different perspective of
Istanbul
. You will return to the hotel for
a Farewell Dinner, pack and get ready for your return trip home.
MAY 16 –You will depart on
your flight to the
USA
, filled with new insights and understandings of the land where so much of early
Christian history unfolded.
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and select "Tours", "Christian Science Tours", and the tour you are interested
in.
For further information and
a free brochure,
email us today
or call us at (972) 396-1167...
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