10 days/9 nights
Most of the world knows the story of the flight of the Holy
Family but very few have been able to follow their path to
safety in Egypt. Here is a tour that will entertain, educate
and inspire you.
Friday: Depart New York
at 11PM on your non-stop flight to Egypt.
Saturday: Arrive Cairo,
be met by our staff who will assist you with clearing
immigration and customs and transfer you to the Cairo
Sonesta (or similar) for the evening.
Sunday: Today depart Cairo by
air-conditioned vehicle and travel to
Pelusium. An ancient Egyptian city on the easternmost mouth
of the Nile River (long silted up). One of the first
resting places of the Holy Family, the city has long been
destroyed however today it is an active archeological dig
with a First Century church being restored. Pelusium is also
famous as the spot that Pompey was hanged and during the
crusades King Baldwin died of ptomaine poisoning.
From Pelusium you will follow the trek
of the Holy Family to Tel Basta (or Basta), about 60 miles
north-east of Cairo. Here, Jesus caused a water spring to
well up from the ground, and His presence caused the idols
to crumble, as foretold by the prophets of old.
("Behold the Lord rides on a swift cloud, and will come
into Egypt and the idols of Egypt will totter at His
Presence and the heart of Egypt will melt in the midst of
it". Isaiah 19:1) You
will visit the site of Belbeis (ancient Philippos) where
they rested in the shade of a tree which came to be called,
"The Virgin Mary's Tree'.
Then you will follow their route to
Mostorod (which came to be called, in those days, 'Al
Mahamma') only about 6 miles away from Cairo. 'Al Mahamma'
means 'the Bathing Place', a name given to the town because
the Virgin Mary bathed the Christ Child. Overnight at Cairo.
(B)
Monday: Having left their mark
on Belbeis, the Holy Family set off in a
north-westerly direction and, reaching the small township of
Meniet
Samannoud (known also as Meniet Genah), they crossed the
Nile to the
city of Samanoud (or Jemnoty) in the Delta, where the local
population
received them with a kindness and hospitality that earned
them deserved
blessing. There is in Samannoud, to this day, a large
granite trough which, according to local belief, was used by
the Virgin for kneading dough, and a water-well which the
Christ Child Himself hallowed.
On to Sakha Town, the Coptic name of
the town, 'Pekha-Issous', (vernacularized to Lysous) means,
'the foot of Jesus'; for the Holy Child's foot-print was
marked, here, in bas-relief on a rock. The rock was
preserved, but hidden for centuries for fear of robbery, and
only unearthed again 13 years ago.
Then on to Wadi el-Natroun (Natroun
Valley). In the earliest decades of Christianity the
desert expanses of Wadi el-Natroun became the site of
anchoritic settlement and later of many monasteries in
spiritual commemoration of the Holy Family's passage through
the Valley. Return
to Cairo to overnight. (B)
Tuesday/Wednesday:
Eventually, they left the desert behind them and made their
way southwards, crossing the Nile to its eastern bank, and
heading for Matariyah and Ain Shams (ancient Heliopolis, the
site of the oldest 'university' in history called since
earliest Pharaonic times, 'On'). Both these adjacent
districts are outlying suburbs of present day Cairo, only 6
miles or so from the city center.
At the time of the Holy Family's
arrival there, Ain Shams was home to a large Jewish
community, who had erected a temple, the Synagogue of Unias,
for their worship. In Matariyah, a tree still stands to this
day, still regularly visited, called "Mary's
Tree", for the Family is believed to have rested in its
shade. Here, too, the Infant Jesus caused water to flow from
a spring, from which He drank and blessed, and in which the
Virgin washed His clothes. She poured the washing water on
to the ground, and from that spot, the fragrant balsam plant
blossomed:
besides the healing and pain-soothing properties of this
balm, its essence is used in the preparation of the scents
and perfumes of which the holy Chrism is composed.
Setting out next towards Cairo
proceeding along a course which
traverses what are now crowded, bustling quarters of Cairo,
within which the serene landmarks of an earlier Coptic
heritage still stand, marking the paths the Holy Family
followed.
The area now called Old Cairo is among
the most important locations
visited by the Holy Family where the spiritual impact of
their presence is most felt still; though their stay was
brief, for the Governor of what was then Fustat, enraged by
the tumbling down of idols at Jesus' approach sought
to kill the Child. But they took shelter from his wrath in a
cave above which, in later years, the Church of Abu Serga
(St Sergious) was built. This, and the whole area of the
Fort of Babylon, is a destination of pilgrimage not only for
the Egyptians but for
Christians from around the world. An air of piety and
devotion pervades the whole district. Overnight Cairo. (B)
Thursday: Today depart Cairo
and follow their path south. Reaching the
modern Cairo suburb of Maadi which, in earliest Pharaonic
times, was an
outlying district of Memphis, then the capital of Egypt. At
Maadi they boarded a sailing boat which carried them up the
Nile towards southern
Egypt. A historic church is built upon the spot from which
they embarked, also dedicated to the Virgin. The stone
steps leading down to the River's bank, and believed to have
been used by the Holy Family, are accessible to pilgrims
through the Church courtyard. The sailboat docked at the
village of Deir Al-Garnous (the later site of the Monastery
of Arganos) 6 miles west of Ashnein el Nassara (a small
village near the town of Maghagha). Outside the western wall
of the Church of the Virgin there, a deep well is believed
to have provided the Holy Family with the
water they needed.
On towards the south they went and
crossed the Nile again to the spot on the east bank of the
River where the Monastery of the Virgin now stands upon
Gabal El-Tair ('Bird Mountain'). The Holy Family rested in
the cave which is now located inside the ancient church
there.
Gabal El-Tair is also called Gabal El-Kaf
('Palm Mountain'). Coptic
tradition maintains that, as the Holy Family rested in the
shade of the
Mountain, Jesus stretched His little hand to hold back a
rock which was
about to detach itself from the mountain-side and fall upon
them. The
imprint of His palm is still visible. Overnight at
Mercure Minya. (B,L,D)
Friday: Once more crossing the
Nile, back to its west bank, the Holy Family traveled
southwards leaving behind them the rubble of fallen idols,
and thence to Qussqam, the place where there would be
"an altar to the Lord in the midst of the land of
Egypt".
Gabal (Mount) Qussqam, which takes its
name from the town nearby that was laid waste, is 200 miles
south of Cairo. The Monastery of Al-Muharraq nestles against
the western foothills of the Mountain. It was built around
the area where the Holy Family remained just over six
months. Their time was spent mainly in a cave which became,
in the Coptic era, the altar of the Church of Virgin Mary,
built at the western end of the Monastery compound. The
altar stone was the resting place of the Child Jesus during
the months He dwelt there.
The whole area, the Monastery and its
surroundings is called the Second Bethlehem. It was here, at
the very spot where Al-Muharraq Monastery stands, that the
Angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream, and said
"Arise, and take the young Child and His mother, and go
into the land of Israel; for they are dead which sought the
young Child's life" (Matthew 2:20&21). Overnight
Mercure Minya. (B,L,D)
Saturday: Today we return to
Cairo and overnight at the Cairo Sonesta. (B)
Sunday: Staff will
transfer you to the airport, assist with exit formalities
and checking in for your 9AM international departure. (B)
GROUP TOURS INCLUDE:
Round trip air from JFK (ADD ON AIR AVAILABLE FROM OTHER
U.S. CITIES). All transfers by air-conditioned vehicle
relating to the tour program starting with arrival to Cairo.
Baggage handling of no more than 2 pieces of luggage per
person however baggage and personal effects are at the
owner's risk at all times during the tour. Hotels (based on
double occupancy). Meals as outlined by B for Breakfast, L
for lunch and D for dinner. Fees for visiting antiquity
sites and museums. Services of an English speaking licensed
Egyptologist. Service charges and taxes. Tips for ground
personnel except guide. Travel Insurance for those departing
from the USA or Canada.
Not included are: items of a personal nature such as tips
for guide, entry visa (available at the airport on entry for
USA and Canadian citizens. Other nationalities should
check with the nearest Egyptian consulate), phone calls,
laundry, bar bills, beverages during meals, any items not
specifically covered in the included items.
The Holy Family TEC-107
Groups: $2095 p.p. (dbl. occ)
Single supplement: $379
Group Departures: 2001: Oct. 19, Dec. 14
2002: Jan. 11, Feb. 01, Apr. 12, May 10, Jun.
07
