Notable Places in the Program

During our trips you will visit numerous notable places. Here are some of the places you will encounter.

From the Life of Paul [top]

Mars Hill - Also known as Areopagus. "Then they took him and brought him to a meeting of the Areopagus, where they said to him, "May we know what this new teaching is that you are presenting? You are bringing some strange ideas to our ears, and we want to know what they mean." All the Athenians and the foreigners who lived there spent their time doing nothing but talking about and listening to the latest ideas. Paul then stood up in the meeting of the Areopagus and said: "Men of Athens! I see that in every way you are very religious. For as I walked around and looked carefully at your objects of worship, I even found an altar with this inscription: TO AN UNKNOWN GOD. Now what you worship as something unknown I am going to proclaim to you..." (Acts 17:19-34)

Thessalonica - The recipients of 1st & 2nd Thessalonians. "When they had passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica, where there was a Jewish synagogue. As his custom was, Paul went into the synagogue, and on three Sabbath days he reasoned with them from the Scriptures, explaining and proving that the Christ had to suffer and rise from the dead. "This Jesus I am proclaiming to you is the Christ, " he said. Some of the Jews were persuaded and joined Paul and Silas, as did a large number of God-fearing Greeks and not a few prominent women." (Acts 17:1-4)

Philippi - The recipients of the book of Philippians. "From there we traveled to Philippi, a Roman colony and the leading city of that district of Macedonia. And we stayed there several days. On the Sabbath we went outside the city gate to the river, where we expected to find a place of prayer. We sat down and began to speak to the women who had gathered there. One of those listening was a woman named Lydia, a dealer in purple cloth from the city of Thyatira, who was a worshiper of God. The Lord opened her heart to respond to Paul's message. When she and the members of her household were baptized, she invited us to her home. "If you consider me a believer in the Lord," she said, "come and stay at my house." And she persuaded us." (Acts 16:12-15)

Prison That Crumbled - "About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them. Suddenly there was such a violent earthquake that the foundations of the prison were shaken. At once all the prison doors flew open, and everybody's chains came loose. The jailer woke up, and when he saw the prison doors open, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself because he thought the prisoners had escaped. But Paul shouted, "Don't harm yourself! We are all here!" The jailer called for lights, rushed in and fell trembling before Paul and Silas. He then brought them out and asked, "Sirs, what must I do to be saved?"" (Acts 16:25-29)

Berea - "As soon as it was night, the brothers sent Paul and Silas away to Berea. On arriving there, they went to the Jewish synagogue. Now the Bereans were of more noble character than the Thessalonians, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true." (Acts 17:10-11)

Corinth - The recipients of 1st & 2nd Corinthians. "After this, Paul left Athens and went to Corinth..."(Acts 18:1-17)

Ephesus - The recipients of the book of Ephesians, and lived there for 3 years. (Acts 18:19-Acts 20)

From the Life of Christ [top]

Sea of Galilee - "As Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon called Peter and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen. "Come, follow me," Jesus said, "and I will make you fishers of men."(Matthew 15:29-30); "Jesus left there and went along the Sea of Galilee. Then he went up on a mountainside and sat down. Great crowds came to him, bringing the lame, the blind, the crippled, the mute and many others, and laid them at his feet; and he healed them."(Mark 1:16-17); "As Jesus walked beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen. "Come, follow me," Jesus said, "and I will make you fishers of men."(John 6:1-2); "Some time after this, Jesus crossed to the far shore of the Sea of Galilee (that is, the Sea of Tiberias), and a great crowd of people followed him because they saw the miraculous signs he had performed on the sick." (Matthew 4:18-19)

Caesarea Philippi - "When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, 'Who do people say the Son of Man is?"'(Matthew 16:13); "Jesus and his disciples went on to the villages around Caesarea Philippi. On the way he asked them, 'Who do people say I am?'" (Mark 8:27)

Capernaum - Very central place of Christ's ministry. (Matthew 4:12-14; Matthew 8:5-13; Matthew 11:22-24; Matthew 17:24-27; Mark 1:21-28; Mark 2:1-12; Mark 9:33-37; Luke 4:31-37; Luke 7:1-10)

Tabgha - Site of the feeding of the 5,000. (Matthew 14:13-21)

Mount of Beatitudes - Sermon on the Mount. (Matthew 5)

Mt. Tabor - Site of the Transfiguration. (Matthew 17:1-13)

Nazareth - Childhood hometown of Jesus. (Matthew 2:19-23)

Garden of Gethsemane - Where Jesus was betrayed. (Matthew 26:36-50; Mark 14:32-46; Luke 22:39-49; John 18:1,2)

Upper Room - Location of the Last Supper. (Matthew 26:26-28; Mark 14:12-25; Luke 22:7-20)

Garden Tomb - Where Jesus where buried until the resurrection. (John 19:40-42)

Significant Christian Locations [top]

Ceasarea Philippi - The location of Peter's Confession. "When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, "Who do people say the Son of Man is?" They replied, "Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets." "But what about you?" he asked. "Who do you say I am?" Simon Peter answered, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God." Jesus replied, "Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by man, but by my Father in heaven. And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it." (Matthew 16:13-18); "Jesus and his disciples went on to the villages around Caesarea Philippi. On the way he asked them, 'Who do people say I am?' They replied, 'Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, one of the prophets.' 'But what about you?' he asked. 'Who do you say I am?' Peter answered, 'You are the Christ.'" (Mark 8:27-29)

Patmos - Island of John's Revelation. "John, your brother and companion in the suffering and kingdom and patient endurance that are ours in Jesus, was on the island of Patmos because of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus." (Revelation 1:9)

Meggido - Future Site of the Battle of Armageddon. "Then they gathered the kings together to the place that in Hebrew is called Armageddon. " (Revelation 16:16)

Hierapolis - Where Philip was martyred. "I vouch for him that he is working hard for you and for those at Laodicea and Hierapolis." (Colossians 4:13)

David's Tomb - The Place where David is buried. (2 Chronicles 32:33)

7 Churches of Revelation - "Write on a scroll what you see and send it to the seven churches: to Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia and Laodicea." (Revelation 1:11)

Historical Places [top]

Parthenon - Temple of the Greek goddess Athena.

Temple of Zeus - Zeus Temple at Olympia.

Delphi - site of the Delphic Oracle and worship site for the god Apollo.

Temple of Poseidon - Poseidon's Temple.

Meteora - Literally means "suspended in the air." Here you will find Orthodox Monasteries from the 12th & 13th Century, which were built on huge rocks. From a distance it looks as if they are suspended in the air.

Pella - Capital of Macedonian Empire and birthplace of Alexander the Great.

Mount Olympus - the highest mountain in Greece, and the home of the Twelve Olympians, the principal gods in the Greek pantheon.

Church of the Holy Sepulchre - Christian Church within the walled city of old Jerusalem.

Dead Sea - lowest point on earth and the deepest hypersaline lake in the world.

Thermopylae - Battle site of Leonidas & Xerxes.

Constantinople - Modern-day Istanbul and the former capital of the Roman Empire (330-395), the Byzantine/East Roman Empire (395-1204 and 1261-1453), the Latin Empire (1204-1261), and the Ottoman Empire (1453-1922).

Hagia Sophia - A former patriarchal basilica, later a mosque, now a museum, in Istanbul, Turkey. Famous in particular for its massive dome.

Troy - Is a legendary city and center of the Trojan War, as described in the Iliad.

Tomb of Agamemnon - Agamemnon's Tomb.

Minoan Palace of the Minotaur - Palace of the Minotaur, a creature that was said to be part man and part bull.