FOOTSTEPS

OFFERING THE BEST DAY WALKS IN 20 REGIONS OF NEW ZEALAND!

Each region has a week-long package (for 6-10 people), including transport and accommodation.

We welcome your enquiry: footstepsanz@gmail.com or phone 021 172 3244 www.footstepswalkingclub.com

In the footsteps of Patriarchs, Prophets, Priests and Kings

one of the seven modern wonders of the world.

Petra is one of many fabulous places included in a 25-day walking tour sponsored by Footsteps Walking and Travel Club 4-29 September, 2023. This is the most comprehensive and best value tour of its kind available in Australasia.

It is, however, a special-interest tour with a particular focus: to walk where a plethora of notable people mentioned in the Old and New Testaments placed their feet, to recall their experiences, and to encounter the same eternal realities that were so much part of their lives.

In particular, we place our feet where Christ placed his, even the very same steps and stones! These are perambulations full of meaning.

My friends are often surprised when I mention that I might go walking in the Middle East. To them it seems like a region fraught with dangers and of little value for ramblers. How wrong they are! “A place like no other” was a description so often on our lips as I have ambled its trails with friends. Every walk is fraught with historical, cultural and spiritual significance. the Arnon), peerless deserts (e.g. the Negev), towering summits (e.g. Hermon), languorous littorals (e.g. Med Sea, Red Sea, Dead Sea) and lush green valleys (e.g. the Hula).

The 2023 excursion explores the kingdom of Jordan, the Palestinian Territories and the modern state of Israel. The cities read like a roll-call of historical heavyweights: Tel Aviv, Tiberius, Nablus, Beer Sheba, Amman, Aqaba, Eilat, Jerusalem.

These ancient-modern metropolises are places to take the pulse of the region, but beyond the city limits, we discovered exceptional scenery: canyon-bound rivers (e.g.

The Palestinian Territories beckon us to Bethlehem, Bethany, Shiloh, Samaria-Sebaste, Bethel, Jericho, and Jacob’s Well.

In Jordan, apart from two full days at Petra, we venture to Lot’s Cave, Mount Nebo (where Moses views the Promised Land), Bethabara (where Jesus was baptized), and the fine Roman ruins of Jerash.

In the incomparable Wadi Rum, a World Heritage site, you will be fascinated by the sculptured rocks and dunes which T.E. Lawrence wrote so evocatively about in the 1920s.

Above left: Camel riding at Petra.

Above middle: Walking along Wadi Zen en Avedat National Park

Below left: At the Wailling Wall.

Above right: The Forum, Jerash.

Below middle: Palace of Omri and Ahab Samaria Sebaste.

Below right: Swimming in the Dead Sea.

In Israel, Caesarea Maritima will usher you into the world of Herod the Great and the apostle Paul. Mount Carmel calls to mind Elijah as strongly as the Spring of Harod recalls Gideon and Nazareth highlights the Annunciation.

In the Valley of Elah David fought Goliath. You will be awestruck by panoramic views of the Sea of Galilee from Mount Arbel, prior to visiting Tabgha, Magdala, and the Mount of Beatitudes.

In the Golan Heights you will peer into Syria from Mount Bental. At Ein Gedi you will discover a verdant oasis tucked away in the arid cliffs above the lowest point on earth, the Dead Sea, where a swim is an uncanny experience!

Who can forget the majesty and drama of Masada? In the Negev, you can explore the multi-coloured sandstone of Maktesh Ramon and the limestone gorges of En Avdat.

For many, walking in Jerusalem is the highlight. The reward for effort is superlative as short walks take you down the Mount of Olives to Geth- semane, through the Kidron Valley, and along the Via Dolorossa.

The City of David, Temple Mount, Mount Zion, and Garden Tomb inspire many. The walk through Hezekiah’s water tunnel will live long in your memory.

Two lasting impressions of my Middle East trips loom large. The first is that this is where history comes alive. In this region, history is not something you read about in books.

Here, it is a daily experience, a story written in rocks that litter the region, from the flagstones of old Roman roads (as at Beit Shean), to the huge building blocks of ancient structures (as at the Wailing Wall), to delicately crafted tombs and shrines (as at The Monastery). This is where the past always impinges on the present. History is the heart and soul of the Middle East.

Second, the Middle East is the home of hospitality. Nick, our Arab waiter in Jerusalem, insisted that we accompany him to his humble home in the Old City. Similarly, at some point on your visit something will happen to challenge every stereotype you’ve ever heard about the region’s people.

You’ll be sitting in a coffee house when someone greets you and strikes up a conversation. These spontaneous, disarming and utterly genuine encounters can occur anywhere, and it is through them that you gain a real and balanced perspective on the situation.

The message is simple. Forget the clichés that masquerade as Middle Eastern truth. A visit here is one of the most varied and soulful experiences on earth. It has a wealth of natural beauty and a warmth of welcome rare in this day and age.

If you enjoy experiences that are very different, places unlike any other, and people who love to interact, put the Footsteps Bible Lands Pilgrimage 2023 on your bucket list. It incorporates far more than has been mentioned above!

For more information go to footstepsanz@gmail.com , 021 172 3244, www. footstepswalkingclub.com.

By Frank Goldingham