Old City of Jerusalem

After our Dead Sea excursion, we took the bus back to Jerusalem. We walked back to our hotel to clean up, so we could visit the Old City for the rest of the day. It was about a 10-minute walk from our apartment to the Jaffa Gate. We stopped and visited some tourist shops. One young gentleman asked my mom how many camels she wanted for me, and when mom told him I was already taken, he asked Ryan how much for Elsa! Let's just say it was an awkward conversation, and we ran out of his shop as soon as we purchased our souvenirs!

As we made our way through the stone-paved streets, we followed signs to the Room of the Last Supper and King David's Tomb. Growing up in Sunday school, I learned and read about the upper room where Jesus and his disciples partook of the Passover meal before His crucifixion.  This is the supposed site of the upper room, and I couldn’t help but imagine Leonardo da Vinci's The Last Supper unfolding before my eyes. We then visited David's Tomb, but there were so many people praying that we did not want to disturb anyone, so we left to visit the Western Wall. The Wall is also known as the Kotel and is a very important site to the Jewish people. It is especially important, as it is believed to have been the closest to the Holy of Holies in the temple. People from around the world come to visit, pray, or leave a message to God and place it in the wall. 

We then made our way through the Muslim quarter to get to the Mount of Olives. As it was getting later, we noticed there were fewer tourists. At one point, an Israeli police officer called out to us and asked us who we were and where we were from. Ryan answered that we were visiting from Texas. The officer told us that we could not go any further as the area was closed at that time. So, we turned around and detoured down another street (which happened at least twice) and exited the Old City. 

We had intended on walking up through the Mount of Olives to catch a panoramic view of the Old City, but a taxi driver stopped us before we started and told us it was a long, steep walk. He only charged 5 NIS per person, so we didn’t argue since we had been walking all day. (They may have worn sandals over 2,000 years ago, but a non-slip shoe might have worked out better!) We arrived at the top in time to see the sun setting behind the Dome of the Rock. It was beautiful. 

Exhausted from our day, we let the same taxi driver take us back to our apartment, and ended the evening with dinner at McDonalds and made a few souvenir stops. Ryan reserved a taxi using a service called Gett (similar to Uber) for our transportation to the airport the following afternoon. But our trip wasn’t over yet…we still had the whole morning the next day, and we were not about to pass up the opportunity to do some more sightseeing!

The Dead Sea

{This is a guest post by Elsa Bearden.}

When you don't travel with a tour group, you have to figure out transportation on your own.  After looking at rates online, it looked like we'd spend more than we wanted to for a taxi ride to the Dead Sea. In the end, we decided to take the bus, figuring out the routes via Google Maps (which was pretty accurate) the night before. 

We first had to walk about 20 minutes to the central bus station in Jerusalem. It was pretty clear upon arriving that not many tourists braved the crowded, bustling bus station. As we pulled away, a quick glance around the bus revealed mostly working and religious men and women, going about their day. Maybe four others (besides our little group) were vacationing. 

The city soon disappeared behind us and tall mountains and desert lay before us. About 40 minutes later, we saw water - the Dead Sea! Our bus driver called for our stop, Kalia Beach. (This was the closest beach to our apartment, and we wanted to come back and still have time to visit the Old City in the afternoon.) We looked around, but didn't see any cars or tourists swarming the beach. In fact, there was really nothing around this particular bus stop at all. Hesitantly, I grabbed my bag, preparing to get up when, our bus driver pulled away from the bus stop, never having come to a complete stop! It wasn't until after our bus trips to and from the Dead Sea that we realized you needed to jump up quickly to let the driver know you were getting off; otherwise, he'd keep right on going! 

Unsure of ourselves, we reclined back in our seats thinking that perhaps he meant the next stop was for Kalia Beach. Nope. It came and went with no one getting on or off. A glance to our left out of the bus revealed the Dead Sea, much larger than I thought it was, but with no beaches. Where were all of the crazy tourists floating with their newspapers? We decided to go on to Ein Gedi, a place a friend had recommended to us. 

As we continued travelling, it felt as if we were getting further and further from civilization.  Soon the other tourists on the bus with us were getting anxious as well. Where were the beaches? The bus driver wasn't too helpful which could have been due to the language barrier. Abby finally made an executive decision and said that we were getting off when we got to the Ein Gedi Spa stop. It was a good decision!

As it turns out, the private beach at the spa couldn't be seen from the road; we had to ride a tractor train (for what could have been a 10 minute walk) to actually get to the water. We think this is why we didn't see anything at our Kalia Beach stop. There was a fee for the spa, but we were just happy that we found a place where we could float! And that's exactly what we did. 

Dead Sea Tip: 

Take water shoes or sandals you can wear in the water as the ground (salt) is extremely rough!

Have you ever been to the Dead Sea? Tell us about your experience!

Getting to Israel

Zach didn't go with us on our short trip to Israel, but we had breakfast together that morning. We had plenty of time because our flight didn't leave until 4:15 p.m. Normally getting our tickets and going through security at the airport in Larnaca takes us less than 30 minutes. Not so going to Israel, and I should have known better.

 The whole process felt like complete chaos! After standing in line for a while, an employee told us that check in closed in 10 minutes, and that we had to go to a kiosk to print out our tickets. Elsa and I had trouble printing our tickets and I was starting to panic just a little. Leaving mom in line to watch our bags, Ryan tried to print our tickets while I asked an employee what else I could do. Fortunately, they were able to print them out and we waited in line for a while longer before we were questioned by security...before we got to the actual airport security. They asked us numerous questions about our trip. After giving us the OK, they let us go through airport security and customs. We made it to our plane and within an hour, we arrived at the Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv. 

 Before entering Israel, we were again asked several questions by customs officials. Afterwards, we were given a temporary visa to enter into the Holy Land. The currency is the New Israel Shekel (NIS). At that time, the exchange rate came to about .26 US dollars. We pulled out some money from the ATM before finding a shared taxi to take us to our residence. 

A taxi ride from Ben Gurion Airport to Jerusalem is about 275 NIS. We decided to take a shared taxi, which came out to 65 NIS per person. While this was slightly cheaper than a taxi, you can wait up to 45 minutes for a shared taxi to fill up with passengers which was, unfortunately, what we had to do. We were lucky to be dropped off first! 

We got to the apartment Elsa booked on TripAdvisor a little after 10 p.m. It was a two-bedroom apartment with one bathroom and kitchen area. There were double beds in each room and a full size sleeper couch. It was perfect for our short, two-night stay. There was a burger joint next door called Burgers Bar and several convenience stores nearby. It's not a far walk to McDonalds or other little places to eat (which are all still open, even at 10 p.m.). We ate our dinner that evening at the burger joint, and I don't know if I was just really hungry, but it was delicious! Mom and I shared a burger because they were just so big. 

We planned on visiting the Dead Sea the next day and tried to figure out the best way to get there. Our two options were to take a bus or taxi. We opted for the bus, ensuring quite a fun story to tell! 

Family Arrives

{This blog post was co-written with Elsa's words in Italics.}

If you read my previous post you would have known that my mom, sister, and brother-in-law came out to visit us. I had been tracking their flights from Texas to make sure there were no delays and arrived at the Larnaca airport at 3:30...in the morning! Do they think I don't sleep? But I was so, so excited to see them I really didn't care what time they flew in! We arrived at my house around 5:30 a.m. I told them they couldn't sleep for too long, or they would waste the whole day away and mess up their entire sleep schedule! Once they were refreshed and ready to start their adventure, we spent the next three days visiting some of the same places mentioned in my previous post Cyprus with Friends.

On Saturday we drove the scenic route to Pissouri Bay and took a dip in the cool, clear waters. It was such a refreshing way to spend the hot summer day! Afterwards we had lunch on the beach at a restaurant called Captain's Bay where Ryan and Elsa tried the swordfish. It tasted like tuna! 

Our evenings were the most memorable, when we all got to hang out together at the house. We played card games and video games, swam in the pool, and watched I Love Lucy episodes. Okay, we didn't get to do that too much, thanks to Zach and Ryan, but we did enjoy watching all the Indiana Jones movies. 

Elsa and mom wanted to visit the Kissing Fish Spa, so before our flight to Israel on Monday, we drove to Limassol for them to dip their feet in with the little fishes. We laughed so hard at first; I'm so ticklish! After a while, it just felt like our feet were vibrating. To top off the experience, we received a short massage with warm candle wax. Our feet felt so clean and smooth when we were finished. 

Because recognizable brands are always a welcomed pleasantry to the traveler abroad, we went to TGI Fridays for lunch at the marina. Then, we drove to the airport for our next adventure to...Israel.

If you're ever in Cyprus, try the seaside restaurant Chris Blue Beach. Not only does it offer spectacular views of Curium Beach, but the waffles are pretty yummy as well! Another great place was Cava, where the five of us feasted on the meze, a meal of 10 or so various sides and dishes! 

How to Visit London on a Layover

{This is a guest post by Elsa Bearden, Abby's one and only adorable sister.} 

I was ecstatic to visit my sister Abby, the beautiful author of this blog, in Cyprus, and overjoyed when I found out we'd have an eight hour layover in London. So we prepped for our London adventure, and busted out of Heathrow to visit the city. Read below for some tips on planning your layover in London! 

Plan ahead of time. Know what sights you want to see first, and be realistic about how many things you will be able to see. See how far apart the attractions are from each other, and know where they are in the city! Also, make sure you know the entrance fees for the places you choose to visit. We chose Big Ben/London Eye (photo shoot only), the British Museum, and Platform 9 3/4 at King's Cross Railway Station. We chose only 3 or 4 exhibitions at the museum to save on time (don't worry, we saw the Rosetta Stone) and didn't stand in line for the picture at the platform. Hogwarts was going to have to wait until next time! 

Decide on transportation. The Heathrow Express is a train that takes you from the airport to Paddington Station in London in 15 to 20 minutes. This is a major time saver. You can reserve a round trip ticket online ahead of time for a slightly reduced fee. We bought our tickets at the airport once we cleared customs, and paid 35 pounds each. Also, a day pass for the tube (subway) was 12 pounds and can be purchased there at Paddington Station. With your day pass, you can take the tube anywhere in London. 

Grab that city map the nice airport employee is trying to hand you after you've landed at Heathrow. This was of great use in figuring out which lines we should take on the tube as well as to give us an idea of where we were going on foot!

Store your luggage. You don't want to be bogged down by your carry-on while trying to snap that perfect picture of Big Ben!  Instead, leave it at the Excess Baggage Company. For 10 pounds per bag you can store your luggage here while you're out lunching on fish and chips. Yum! 

Keep an eye on the time. Know how long it will take to get from your last London attraction back to the tube, back to the Heathrow Express, and (finally) back through security at the airport. Or, if you decide on different transportation, be sure to plan accordingly. 

Budget. Even though we only spent a few hours in the city, this turned out to be a pricey adventure, and we didn’t budget as much as we should have. Check the conversion rates before you go, and know how much you want to spend ahead of time.

Most importantly, have fun and don't be afraid to look like a tourist...snap those pictures! (Just not with a selfie stick!) We had a great time, even if it was only for a few hours. Do you have any tips for those long London layovers? Leave a comment below and let us know! 

By the way, stay tuned to Abby’s Roses to hear about the rest of our trip to Cyprus and Israel!

Last Day in the UK

In high school I liked reading what little works of Shakespeare I had read. It wasn't until college that I loved reading his plays even more. My professor was so passionate about Shakespeare it rubbed off on me. To this day, I love reading and learning more about anything related to Shakespeare.

So I knew today was going to be an exciting day.

We first stopped at the cottage of William Shakespeare's wife, Anne Hathaway, and took a photo with our group. We then visited the birth place of William Shakespeare himself. We walked inside the cottage and saw the room he was born in along with the kitchen and other bedrooms. We also wandered along the grounds and saw the beautiful gardens. And how can you not purchase books from the gift shop? We certainly had to. I bought a book of Mr. Shakespeare's sonnets, and Zach bought Star Wars books written in play form.

After touring the cottage we had a bite to eat. Suddenly it started to pour, and we ran back to the bus soaking wet and drove back to London. We said our goodbyes to Anne Marie, the best tour guide ever, and Steve, our awesome bus driver, and checked in to our hotel. Since it was our last night, we decided to have dinner and see a show. We tried to get tickets to War Horse but it was sold out on that night. We decided to see Wicked instead. Zach had seen it when he was younger and enjoyed it. I was so excited that we had excellent seats. The actors and actresses were amazing. The musical score was beautiful. I can't believe I hadn't seen this sooner! I purchased a t-shirt, CD, and program before the show started...good thing I loved it. After the show we took a taxi back to our hotel and crashed for the night.

We were sad leaving the UK the next day. We both had such an amazing time and wished we could have stayed longer. We have talked about going back to the little villages we stopped at along our way to stay at a bed and breakfast. I have absolutely no objections to that!