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2008 EMYR Schedule

Wednesday, June 11th, Ashkelon, Israel
   
Welcome to Israel!  The Israeli Navy puts on quite a welcoming reception.  We had clear instructions not to enter Israeli waters prior to 5:15am, official sun up.  Upon crossing into their territorial waters, we were instructed to hail them on VHF channel 16 stating our vessel name and EMYR rally number.  We continued to hail them at half hour intervals until a response was received. 
 
Once we got our initial introductions out of the way, I went about wiping the morning dew and dirt off the decks.  Glancing up every once in a while to make sure we weren't going to hit anything, my stomach clenches up a little as I realize we are being approached by a big, well armed Navy boat.  We had another chat, mostly about who we are and where we came from.  Unsure of exactly how to answer, I opted with the truth. 
 
"Last port of call and your date and time of departure?" a cool, efficient voice asks.
 
"Ummmmmm.  Beirut, Lebanon?  Yesterday about 5pm."  I reply hesitantly.
 
"And your prior port of call, date and time of departure?"
 
"Let me check my log book."  I buy a little time as I ask my fellow shipmates whether anyone knew if we were supposed to have a story about our whereabouts.  You see, in Lebanon and Syria, we were admonished never to mention the fact that we were going to Israel.  We were to refer to Haifa as "Port Hotel."  We were leaving Lebanon, bound for Port Said, not Israel.  The story is a little different in Israel, we surmise.  No one told us anything about a story for the Israeli Navy and I'm not sure I'd want to be caught in a lie by these guys! 
 
"Our prior port of call was Lattakia, Syria."  I relayed our date and time of departure and much to my relief, the warship was satisfied, and took off to hassle another rally boat. 
 
No wanting or daring to waste any time or opportunity, we boarded the buses for a half day tour of Haifa.
                                     
   
Can you tell who was up most of the night standing watch and who slept peacefully from dusk to dawn?  Larson and Gav claim to like staying up and Joe and I are not one to argue so we also arrived relatively well rested.  (We sure are going to miss these guys when they leave on Sunday!  Can you believe it has already been nearly four weeks since they arrived?)
 
                                    
The beautiful Baha'i Gardens and Shrine are Haifa's most prominent landmark and a beautiful place to wander, providing you are appropriately dressed.  The guard was more strict than most we have encountered, turning away men in shorts and even some of the women with wraps over their shoulders.  At any rate, we managed to enter and enjoy the amazing landscaping although the temple itself was closed. 
 
Unfortunately, our marina (actually, it was more a fishing harbor) was quite far from town so the only glimpse of the city we got was on this half day tour.  We made a few stops at churches and walked through the German Quarter before returning to the boats to get ready for the welcome cocktail.  Although the Carmel Haifa Yacht Club, our gracious hosts there, put on quite a party, we were all exhausted and snuck out as the dancing began.
 
The highlight of our stay was to come the next evening, when the Yacht Club members each hosted six or eight rally members at their homes for dinner.  Danny, our host, had been there to greet us when we arrived and was equally enthusiastic the following evening when he drove us to his home on Mount Carmel.  His daughter Yagit, son Eli, wife Tammi, and four grandchildren received us warmly and generously.
   
The kids, not letting a little language barrier stop them, sat down and played a card game together and Larson and Gav fell deep into conversation with Eli. 
   
Tammi and Yagit must have been cooking all day given the number and variety of dishes they laid out for the Sabbath meal.  The kids didn't last through dessert, but the rest of the group sure did, and enjoyed every bite!
   
We spent much of the evening educating ourselves about the past and present history and politics of Israel.  Joe is amazingly knowledgeable about current affairs and engaged Danny in candid conversations about the culture and popular opinions of today's Israeli's.
   
When asked, Eli confessed that they don't usually sit around talking politics when they are hanging out with their friends.  "It's too boring." 
 
Our tour to Nazareth, the Sea of Galilee and the Golan Heights the next day added more perspective to our impressions of Israel.  The churches of Tabgha where Jesus multiplied the loaves and fishes to feed 5000, and those of Capernaum, where Jesus romped as a youth, and the location where the Virgin Mary was visited by the Angel Gabriel who surprised her with news of her "delicate condition", contrasted sharply with the visions of  windsurfers screaming across the Sea of Galilee in the afternoon thermals.  The steep mountains of the Golan Heights, captured from Syria in the 1967 "Six Day War" provided dramatic views of the Sea of Galilee and the deep valley behind which marks the current border with Syria and Jordan.   It was easy to understand why they are such strategic territory in the ongoing conflict between Syria and Israel.  It would be difficult to escape the sharp eyes of a sniper perched atop the hills or the trajectory of a rocket fired from on high. 
                                     
                                     
                                     
                                     
The Sea of Galilee also provides Israel with most of its fresh water supply and relinquishing the Golan Heights would mean giving up 100% control of that crucial resource.  It is one of the many complex issues that stand in the way of a lasting piece in this complicated region.
 
                                         
The ancient city of Acco was on the agenda for our final half day tour from Haifa.  Haifa is actually a relatively modern city, built up within the last few hundred years.  Acco was where all the ancient happenings in the region took place.  The city consists of two layers of ruins.  The ancient Roman city lies buried, perfectly preserved, beneath the newer Ottoman city.   New tunnels and buildings are constantly being discovered, like this one.
   
Unable to locate the source of a persistent leak into her basement, an intuitive friend suggested they break through the walls and discovered parallel tunnels leading from the harbor into the Roman castle.  It is assumed that they were used to smuggle goods past the customs officials to avoid paying taxes to the local authorities.
 
About fifteen minutes north of Acco lies the border with Lebanon.  As early as 2006, there was an active war
   
taking place here, sparked by the Hezbollah capture of two Israeli soldiers.  It is amazing how quickly normal life resumes after the chaos of war.
 
Our trip to Ashkelon afforded a nice evening of sailing before the motors took over around 1:30am.  Joe took the first watch, waking the boys after rolling up the sails.  I needed no prompting to hop out of bed at 5:15, well rested and eager to help reel in the two tuna that we had hooked a mere fifteen minutes after Larson and Gav had set the lines.
                                      
We have studied up on our fish processing techniques and employed our new knowledge to properly bleed and process our new catch.  We could all taste the difference in the seared tuna meal that night.
 
Our welcome at Ashkelon started with a beautiful waterworks display and included a keg of cold beer at 10:30 in the morning! 
                                         
It was a holiday in Israel on Monday, but we managed to rent a car before they closed up shop at 2pm on Sunday.  We had already decided to forego the group tour to Masada and the Dead Sea in favor of doing our own thing.  It was wonderful to go to sleep Sunday night without the prospect of an early morning wake up call looming in front of us.  We managed to load up the car and set out towards the Dead Sea by 10:45am.
   
 
Traveling through the West Bank, we arrived at Kalia Beach, the northernmost point on the Dead Sea.  The sensation of floating effortlessly in the 33% mineral content water was amazing. 
   
The therapeutic qualities of the mud and water are world famous and we helped ourselves to a liberal dosing.
                                    
 
Departing from Kalia, we decided to venture into Jericho, just a few kilometers to the north.  This is one of the few areas of the West Bank that has been mostly turned over to the Palestinian Authority.  We weren't really sure what we were in for, but we all felt a little quiver of anticipation and excitement as we approached the Palestinian check point.
                              
   
The PA soldiers seemed genuinely surprised when we replied "U.S." to their question "Where are you from?"
 
"U.S.?  No one is Jewish?"  he inquired.
 
We assured him that we were all non-Jews, and they waved us through.  This was clearly well off the beaten track. 
 
It really was like entering a different country.  The buildings were run down, trash lined the streets and the traffic lights were non-functional.  The appalling lack of resources that plagues this displaced population is painfully apparent. 
   
In stark contrast were the Israeli settlements, well protected and clearly well funded, that dot the barren landscape of the West Bank.  We drove by a few and marveled at their fortress-like construction high atop the hills.
   
We drove by some Bedouin camps and back through an Israeli checkpoint to re-enter Israel from the Occupied Territories.  The scrutiny was much tougher coming into than leaving Israel.
 
For our overnight in Jerusalem, our fearless leaders, Dave and Kath on Mashona, recommended the Christ Church Guest House, just inside the Jaffa Gate.  It had a parking space for our car and a six bed room that accommodated the whole Zia family. 
   
We really do feel like one big family, as I am often accused of being Larson and Gav's mother.  I should be so lucky to have two such wonderful people as sons!  On the other hand, I'm trying to get over the psychological impact of the fact that I look old enough to be the mother of a couple of 21 year olds.  Nothing like the cold mackerel of reality slapping you in the face!
 
A quick change of clothing and we started rambling through the streets of the old city.  Quite unexpectedly, we stumbled upon the Church of the Holy Sepulcher.  Luckily, a non-rally neighbor had loaned us their guide book and I quickly discovered that we were standing in the place where Jesus was said to have been crucified. 
                                     
We were lucky to have entered this holiest of Christian churches in a very quiet time and got into the inner sanctum, where the cross stood, without a wait.  I was surprised to find myself moved to tears by the significance of it all.  The space is only big enough for four or five people, and a woman entered with us, knelt and kissed the stone and began to pray.  I realized how important this place was for so many people in the world and how very privileged I was to be standing there.
 
Jerusalem is a fantastic city, but we had only a limited time.  We walked as much of the walls of the old city as we were able.  The section by the Temple Mount, where the Dome of the Rock, the Wailing Wall, and the Al-Aqsa Mosque are located, is closed off for security reasons.
   
 
The girls and I joined the crowd of women on the smaller, women's section of the Western or Wailing Wall, to add our scraps of paper expressing our wishes and prayers in the tiny crevices already packed full of other's hopes and dreams.  The faithful read the Torah and rock to and fro with the book pressed to their faces in front of the Wall. 
   
The Western Wall was originally a retaining wall for the big Temple Mount complex.  This is where, according to orthodox Judaism, God gathered the dust from which he created Adam.  Consequently, two consecutive temples were built on this site.  When the Second Temple of the Jews was destroyed by the Romans in 70 AD, the Jews were sent into exile.  The exact location of the Second Temple was lost.  Since the inner sanctum of Solomon's Temple was forbidden to all but the high priests of the Jewish faith, no orthodox Jew would risk treading on this sacred ground on the Temple Mount itself.  The practice of praying at this retaining wall became common place and it is now known as the holiest of sites in Judaism.
 
The Muslims believe that the Temple Mount was the destination of Mohammed on his famous isra or "night journey" from whence he ascended to heaven.  We were sorry, as tourists, to only be able to view the beautiful Dome of the Rock from the outside. 
   
 
We passed through the heavy security gates out of the Tempe Mount complex and back into the streets of Old Jerusalem.  A much needed stop for tea and fresh squeezed orange juice provided a good group photo op.
   
 
We wondered, shopped and took in the sights of the city for the rest of the afternoon, before climbing back into the rental car for the ride back home.  Joe and I felt like Mom and Dad with our kids all falling asleep in the back seat!  It was too funny.
                                     
                                      
 
We arrived back to the marina in Ashkelon in time to chill for a few hours before the rally party that night.  It proved to be one of the better parties of the rally.  Late in the afternoon we all learned that we had been blessed with a reprieve from our vigorous schedule.  The seas were too rough to make the 124 mile passage to Port Said the next morning.  We could look forward to a whole day of chilling in Ashkelon the next morning.  Obviously, everyone was much relieved by the decision and expressed their relief on the dance floor.
   
   
   
   
 
With a clean boat, a well fed and rested crew, and high hopes for Egypt, we are lobbying for a very early morning departure, hoping for an early dawn fishing success to clinch the Rally fishing trophy. 
 
 
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Many thanks to our friend Craig Homenko for his assistance in setting up the website.
We also would like to thank our buddy Scott Brunner who has been kind enough to host the website on his server.
 

 
   

 
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