We're here! And loving it!

Hi boys and girls, you are very lucky indeed that I am able to blog tonight (8.30 pm standard Israel time) - let me explain!!

1. Got to the airport - no worries (told David a much earlier time!! which meant we got there in plenty of time! Although he was still packing in the car to the airport - and in the airport queue! Gotta love him!) See the pic of us in Melbourne Duty Free - of which we did not imbibe!!!
2. Melbourne to Singapore - 9 hrs with Qantas - no worries! Good seats - he was given a seat where he could stretch out, and this meant that the seat next to me was vacant for the whole trip - good for me good for him! I got on famously with the lady next to David's empty seat - Dutch lady from Frankston going to Amsterdam to visit relies! Each passenger had a TV screen to themselves and the choice of movies, tv  whatever. It was fantastic, except they didn't get the message about gluten free - and they kept serving me gluten which I cvouldn't eat, so I was a little hungry, but I didn't mind cos I had my own TV screen.
3. Singapore to Frankfurt with Lufthansa 12hrs! Aghhhhhhhh! My wordy lordy wordy - I was so squashed in the middle of the four middle seats between David and another gentleman who did not speak to me for the whole 12 hours - which is some mean feat!! I was squished I was squashed I was claustrophobic I had wriggly legs, hot feet, I was miserable and this was in the first hour! Plus on Lufthansa (the cheaper German airline) did not have screens for each passenger, rather screens for the whole 20 rows - one on the left and one on the right! Not happy Jan. At one point I had contorted myself into a pretzel and had one leg over David and the other one folded underneath me! All the while being very careful not encroach into the seat next door! It was interminable!

4. Finally the punishment came to an end and we were in Frankfurt. Here we had three hours to kill and here I am in the Frankfurt airport catching up with some much needed sleep!
5. By now we had lost 9 hours, slept 4 - 5 tops in 24 hours! and we were facing another 4 hours in a Lufthansa aeroplane! Aghhhhhhh! Yert ngain no individual TV screens - these were available for those in Business Class! Pooh! But this leg of the trip was the most enjoyable. Frankfurt to Tel Aviv - we were sitting next to a CHristian German girl going to Jerusalem to celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles - this I believe is a meeting of cultures somehow celebrating the Lord and his gifts/love etc. Many people from various cultures are attending worship in Jersulaem for this event. And the other seat was "filled" by a very loud Jewish - American - non-American. Jonathon was a non-practising Jew with all sorts of advice about anything and everything and offered suggestions about what was wrong with Americans but that's okay cos he wasn't one anyway but he intends to live there for ever. Go figure! But he was lotsw of fun and kept us (and everyone else) entertained for the whole trip!

6. Israel - we still can't quite believe that we are actually here in the HOLY LAND! But we are and it has been fascinating from the get go! We left Ben Gaurion Airport and drove through Joppa and Tel Aviv to Tiberias. Exhausted by now after 25 hours in the air, we got to our room at the Ron Beach Hotel and looked out the window (had to use our imagination as it was dark!!) and there is the Sea of  Galilee - yep the one and only Sea of Galilee. Can't wait till the morning to take a real look! What a privilege what a blessing what a joy! We are here and "loving it........" The photo above is the two of us in the back seat of thetour coach! (We are one of the youngest couples on the trip!)
7. So why are you indeed lucky that I can blog tonight??? The website is in Hebrew and I haven't found a way to translate the page - so I had to guess where to login and where my password went (all back to front literally)! But I worked it out! Aren't I clever?
8. Time for bed - I'm pooped. David is snoring in bed as I write! It's been a big, big, big 48 hours!
Love to all. Thinking of you back home doing your thing! Be blessed! Love Chris