16DAYS GREECE & TURKEY PILGRIMAGE (JOURNEY OF ST PAUL) Itinerary: - KUALA LUMPUR – ISTANBUL • 2300hrs (approx. time) - Assemble at KLIA AIRPORT (Emirates Airline counter for flight check in) DAY 01: ISTANBUL (D) • 0210hrs, depart KLIA for Istanbul (transit in Dubai 5hrs 10mins) • 1340hrs, arrive Istanbul and proceed for immigration and customs clearance. • Start the day with Mass at the Church of St Peter and St Paul • Visit the Church of St Anthony of Padua, the biggest active Catholic Church in Turkey. It is under the custody of the OFM Conventuals. • Dinner and overnight stay in Istanbul. DAY 02: ISTANBUL / PERGAMUM (B/L/D ) • Breakfast at hotel and check out. • Visit the Hagia Sophia, the former See of Constantinople during the Byzantine era which was seized during the Ottoman Empire and converted into a mosque, and which now stands as a museum. • Walk along the Hippodrome Square, a horse racing track that was the sporting and social centre of Constantinople • Visit the Topkapi Palace, the imperial residence and administrative centre of the Ottoman Sultans for more than 400 years. • After lunch drive to Pergamum. • Check in, dinner and overnight stay. DAY 03: PERGAMUM / IZMIR / KUSADASI (B/L/D) • Breakfast at hotel and check out. • Visit Pergamum (one of the Seven Churches of Revelation). See the Red Basilica and the archaeological site of the Egyptian Gods Serapis, Isis and Harpocrates. After that, visit the church of Revelation inside the Acropolis were, where the Altar of Zeus and the Temple of Trojan also were. • Visit ancient Smyrna (Izmir - one of the Seven Churches of Revelation), where Mass is celebrated at St Polycarp Church • Back to Kusadasi, dinner and overnight stay. 1 DAY 04: FULL DAY TRIP TO PATMOS (B/L/D) • After breakfast at hotel, proceed by FAST ferry to Patmos Island. • Arrive and visit the Holy Grotto of Revelation. • Mass will be celebrated in the vicinity. • Visit the monastery of St John, a fortified orthodox monastery • Lunch at local restaurant in Patmos • Depart for the port to board ferry back to Kusadasi. • Arrive Kusadasi, transfer to hotel. • Dinner and overnight stay in Hotel. DAY 05: KUSADASI / EPHESUS / PAMUKKALE (B/L/D) • Breakfast at hotel • Visit the house of Mother Mary where she stayed until she was assumed into heaven. Mass is celebrated at a chapel there. • Proceed to Ephesus (one of the Seven Churches of Revelation). Visit the Ephesus Archaeological Site where you see the splendid façade of the Library of Celcus, the conspicuous Amphitheatre, the commercial agora, the Brothel, and the Temple of Hadrian, among other structures • After Lunch drive to Pamukkale • Visit the Travetine (Cotton Castle) in Pamukkale, famous for the healing properties of the thermal sacred pool and beautiful cascading snow white terraced cliff side basins and waterfalls • Visit the ruins of Hierapolis where St Philip the Apostle was martyred in 1AD. The city also had a significant Jewish community and was mentioned by St Paul in his letter to the Colossians. • Dinner and overnight at Pamukkale DAY 06: PAMUKKALE / LAODICEA / COLOSSAE / ANTIOCH / KONYA (B/L/D) • Breakfast at Hotel. • Depart for Laodicea. Visit the ruins, old Roman Road & Roman Amphitheatre. • Continue to Colossae, ruins near Honaz Dag (Mt Cadmus) • Pisidian Antioch – St Paul’s Basilica: Paul preached in a synagogue now buried underneath the basilica. Parts of the city wall, a temple of the God Men, A theatre, collapsed arches of a Roman aqueduct on a barren hill and ruins of the monumental Triple City Gate. • After lunch drive to Konya. Dinner and overnight stay in Konya. DAY 07: KONYA / DERBE / CAPPADOCIA (B/L/D) • Breakfast in the Hotel. • Visit, KONYA (ICONIUM)-Museums and Ruins (Reach Konya Mevlana Museum before 5.00pm to enter) • The Archaeological Museum which includes the Sidemara Sarcophagus • After lunch depart for DERBE (Karaman). • Derbe, was where Paul preached the gospel and gained many converts, among whom was Gaius (Acts 14:6, 20; 20:4), is some 24 km south-east of Lystra. Group will spend around 20 mins to climb the mountain. • Dinner and overnight in Cappadocia DAY 08: CAPPADOCIA (B/L/D) • After breakfast in the Hotel, drive to Goreme early in the morning. • Full day CAPPODOCIA Visit the underground city of Kaymaklı, early Christian settlements with chapels, monasteries, tombs and shelters.Uchisar Rock Fortress and Pigeon valley. This is an amazing fortress built into solid rock with amazing views of ancient dwellings of Christians and churches. Continue visit to Ucguzeller Valley, Three beauties. Land of the Hittites, which are a tribe mentioned in Genesis 23. Goreme Valley, National park and rock churches. Avanos, with its fascinating pottery and carpets which can only be found in this part of the world. Here you will visit a carpet and pottery factory to see how these are traditionally made. Be treated to an exciting lifetime experience to have a exotic meal in an actual cave. • Visit a Cappodocian fairy chimney house and experience what it was like for a Christian living in those times. • Zelve Valley. Here the fairy chimneys are unique to the region and the hiking through the valley’s numerous cave dwellings will be an amazing experience. • Visit of a pottery factory in Avanos to see how traditional pottery are being made. • Dinner and overnight in Cappodocia DAY 09: CAPPADOCIA / ANTAKYA (ANTIOCH) (B/L/D) • Breakfast in the Hotel. • Drive to Antakya. • Visit the Grotto of Peter the Apostle: Paul and Barnabas were sent on their first missionary journey from this cave church. They sailed from Selucia Peria (Cevlik) Portions of the high walls that girded the city Catacombs and aqueducts. An archaeological museum housing a superbly preserved collection of mosaics dating from the 2nd and 3rd centuries left by the Romans. It is the second largest museum of mosaics in the world. • Dinner and overnight in Antakya DAY 10: ANTAKYA / ISTANBUL (B/L/D) • Early in the morning, drive to Tarsus, the birthplace of Paul. During St. Paul’s time Tarsus was a university city surpassing Athens and Alexandria. Cicero was a governor here in 51-50 B.C. and the romantic meeting between Cleopatra and Mark Anthony took place in Tarsus. TARSUS The stone arch, which was probably the Sea Gate to the old walled city. It is popularly known as Cleopatra's Gate; some call it St. Paul's Gate. St Paul's well, situated at the house where the Apostle Paul lived. The city of Tarsus put up a plaque by the well in 1980 commemorating the work of Paul. Some excavations in the city revealing a mosaic floor, a basalt street and columns along one side of the street, apparently from the Roman period. • East of the city is the River Cydnus, which had once brought Cleopatra to Tarsus to meet Mark Antony. • The stone-arched bridge built during the time of the Emperor Justinian (6th century). • Evening flight to Istanbul. • Arrive, dinner and overnight stay in Istanbul. DAY 11: ISTANBUL / KAVALA (B/L/D) • After breakfast, check out. • Drive to Turkey border crossing – Ipsala (Turkey)/ Kipi – Greece • Alexandroupolis for lunch • Drive to Philippi for sightseeing • Kavala Short Panoramic city tour. • Overnıght Kavala DAY 12: KAVALA / THESSALONIKI / KALAMBAKA (B/L/D) • Breakfast at hotel. • Thessalonıkı short panoramic tours • Veria – ST Paul’s Church • Visit 02 Monasteries & lunch at local restuarant . • Overnight Kalambaka DAY 13: KALAMBAKA / DELPHI (B/L/D) • Breakfast at hotel • Mass at the hotel • Visit two monasteries standing amid striking scenery, perched on top of huge rock, which seems to be suspended in midair. • Lunch in Kalambaka • Drive to Delphi, the centre of the ancient world • Dinner and overnight a Delphi DAY 14: DELPHI / ATHENS (B/L/D) • Breakfast at hotel • Depart for Hosios Lukas Monastery, where the main shrine of the monastery is the tomb of St Luke, placed at the juncture of the two churches (Church of the Theotokos, the oldest in the monastery built in the 10th century, and the Katholikon located adjacent to the Church of the Theotokos) Mass in the vicinity of Hosios Lukas Monastery • Drive to Athens for lunch • Visit the Acropolis of Athens, an ancient citadel located on a high rocky outcrop outside the city of Athens which contains the Parthenon, Erechtheion, and ancient Greek temple, and Propylea which serves as an entrance to the Acropolis. It is also there that we see the Areios Pagos, the supreme civil and criminal court of ancient Greece where Paul stood to address the people of Athens. • Dinner and overnight at Athens DAY 15: ATHENS / CORINTH / ATHENS (B/L) • Breakfast at hotel and check out. • Mass at the Catholic Cathedral. • Drive to Corinth, the ancient city where St Paul Worked with Aquila and Priscilla. Visit the archaeological site to see the Bema of St Paul. • See the Corinth Canal • Back to Athens for lunch. • Free time shopping (if time permits) • Transfer to airport for fight check in. • 1805hrs – Flight departs Athens to Kuala Lumpur via Dubai. (transit 3hrs 35mins) DAY 16: KUALA LUMPUR (MEALS ON BOARD) • Arrive Kuala Lumpur at 1425hrs with fond memories of Turkey & Greece pilgrimage. ~~~~~~~ End of Pilgrimage ~~~~~~~ PROPOSED AIRLINE & SCHEDULE: EMIRATES AIRLINES AIRLINES SECTOR DEPART ARRIVE EK 343 KUL - DUBAI 0210 0500 EK 119 DUBAI – ISTANBUL 1005 1340 EK 210 ATHENS – DUBAI 1705 2340 EK 346 DUBAI – KUL 0330 1435 PACKAGE COST (All Inclusive) 16 Days 14 Nights TURKEY & GREECE TWIN/TRIPLE SINGLE EX- Kuala Lumpur RM 12,900.00 RM 15,300.00 EX- Borneo RM 13,400.00 RM 15,900.00 PRICE INCLUDES: 1) Return international economy class air ticket Ex Borneo or Ex KLIA + ALL airport taxes based on current rate. 2) Hotel Accommodation (4 star) with daily breakfast 3) ALL meals as mentioned in itinerary 4) All transfers in air-conditioned car/van/coach 5) Experienced English-speaking accompanying guide 6) ALL sightseeing as mentioned in itinerary including Entrance fees ALL INCLUSIVE! 7) Border taxes between Turkey and Greece.