SEPTEMBER 16— SUNDAY

Departure from the US.                        Day One

Starting: DFW American Airlines #38 @ 3:30 PM

Terminating: Zurich @ 8:00 AM

SEPTEMBER 17 — MONDAY         Day Two

ARRIVAL — ZURICH—LUCERNE—GISWIL

Starting: Zurich International Airport

Terminating: Giswil

Overnight: Landhaus Swiss hotel in Giswil http://www.landhaus-giswil.ch

This morning we arrived in Zurich. Switzerland’s center of banking and commerce and home to well-known Reformation leader Ulrich Zwingli. We visited the Grossmunster, Zwingli’s church and the Frauminster, a nunnery, where art lovers enjoyed seeing the stunning Chagall windows. We visited the Zwingli statue near the Rhine River.  Our journey will then took us through some of Switzerland's lush farmland to Lucerne. Medieval heritage every step of the way, we walked through the center of the city to see the impressive city walls, the famous covered wooden bridge, and well-known lion statue. We spent the first night in the quaint lakeside village of Giswil, located in the foothills of the Alps.  It was a warm night and leaving the windows opened invited the buzzing and biting creatures into our rooms.  The view of the town from the hotel was spectacular.  We enjoyed an evening meal with live entertainment from three Jewish boys playing and singing typical German folk music with concertina and base fiddle accompaniment.

SEPTEMBER 18 — TUESDAY         Day Three

GRUYERE—GENEVA-—CRUISE—NYON

Starting: Giswil

Terminating: Nyon

Overnight: La Barcarolle Hotel in Nyon http://www.labarcarolle.ch

This morning we enjoyed a most majestic drive through the Swiss Alps before arriving in the town of Gruyere. We visited the castle of Gruyeres, built in 1555.  We also visited the local cheese factory where we had lunch.  In the afternoon we traveled on by way of Interlaken  and Lausanne where we entered John Calvin’s city of Geneva. We walked through historical Reformation sites including Calvin’s church and home and the great Reformation Monument. Calvin was influenced to stay in Geneva by Ferel, only to be run out of the town after two years for his "radical" position on church reformation.  Our day will end with a quiet forty-five minute cruise across Lake Geneva took us to Nyon.  The lovely La Barcarolle hotel was very nice where we had a wonderful meal of duck and a good night’s sleep.

SEPTEMBER 19 — WEDNESDAY               Day Four

NYON—NEUCHATEL—BASEL

Starting: Nyon

Terminating: Basel

Overnight: Radisson hotel in Basel http://www.radissonsas.com

A picture-book drive along the French-Swiss border took us to Neuchatel where we visited a Reformation church where Guillaume Ferel preached.  We continued to experience Switzerland’s natural beauty as we drove to Basel, a unique city on the Rhine where Switzerland, Germany and France touch noses.  We were guided by Dr. Carl Fleish, a retired pharmacist friend of Ed Blum.  Ed lived in Basel for three years while studying at the university.  We visited the church where Karl Barth preached, and the picturesque streets and city hall area.  We watched a boat ferry people across the Rhine using a cable and water current for propulsion.  Basel is home to many chemical and drug manufacturing companies.  Some walked by the university and plaza area while others returned to our hotel, getting slightly lost on the way.  We had a nice dinner at the hotel. 

SEPTEMBER 20 — THURSDAY                  Day Five

BASEL—STRASBOURG—WORMS—HEIDELBERG

Starting: Basel

Terminating: Heidelberg

Overnight: Hotel Crown Plaza in Heidelberg

http://www.ichotelsgroup.com/h/d/cp/1/en/hotel/HDBGE?&cm_mmc=Yahoo-PS-CrownePlaza-_-Y+B-INDIVIDUAL+HOTELS-_-Heidelberg-_-crowne+plaza+heidelberg%7C-%7C100000000000000383994

We crossed into France and enjoyed a leisurely day in Strasbourg, home of the Guttenberg Bible.  Toured a glorious cathedral where John Calvin preached after he left Geneva, and strolled the city, shopped in French boutiques and had a leisurely lunch in the sun.

We traveled then on to Heidelberg, known for its charm and stunning view of the country side. We toured Heidelberg Castle and viewed this fascinating city overlooking the Rhine River. Then on to the climax of the Reformation. . . Worms, where Martin Luther defended his faith and stood before the German Emperor and declared. “Hear I stand, so help me God!”

SEPTEMBER 21 — FRIDAY                         Day Six

HEIDELBERG—EISENACH—ERFURT

Wartburg Castle in Eisenach

Starting: Heidelberg

Terminating: Erfurt

Overnight: Victor Hotel in Erfurt http://www.victors.de

The day begins with a delightful drive to Eisenach, which Luther called “my dear town.” Located in Eisenach is the great medieval castle, The Wartburg, where Luther secretly lived and translated the original Greek text of the New Testament into German. On to Erfurt, the town that may he considered Luther’s spiritual home. It was in Erfurt that Luther earned his doctorate and also made the life-changing decision to enter the Augustinian Monastery. We will overnight in this quaint German town where we had the opportunity to stroll along its cobblestone streets.

SEPTEMBER 22 — SATURDAY                  Day Seven

ERFURT—WITTENBERG

Starting: Erfurt

Terminating: Wittenberg

Overnight: Luther Hotel in Wittenberg www.luther-hotel-wittenberg.de

This morning we traveled on to Wittenberg, made famous when Luther nailed the 95 Theses on the door of Castle Church. In the famous church we will see the pulpits of both Martin Luther and his friend Philip Melanchthon. We enjoyed a devotional from Ed and Carl from Luther's pulpit.  From Castle Church we walked across the town square to the City Church where Luther most often preached and where he was married.  I here we saw the famous Reformation altar designed by Lucas Cranach. We enjoyed a traditional German meal in a grotto and wandered the beautiful cobblestone streets.  The night was quite noisy, due to a band playing a short distance up the street.  We found few hotels have air conditioning and had to leave the windows open at night.

SEPTEMBER 23— SUNDAY                        Day Eight

WITTENBERG—BERLIN

Starting: Wittenberg

Terminating: Berlin

Overnight: Hilton Hotel in Berlin  http://www.hilton.co.uk/berlin

This morning we toured Luther's home in Wittenberg where we traced the entire history of this man who changed the course of church history. Then our journey takes us to Berlin, the capital of Germany and one of the great cities of the world. It is an amazing combination of the old and the new. We will be introduced to Berlin both a boat and bus tour of the city.  Our hotel is right in the heart of the city near the Museum Island, several cathedrals, and walking distance to the famous Unter den Linden.  We enjoyed a wonderful concert in the Berlin Philharmonica listening to the German Symphony Orchestra.  We had dinned in the nearby Sony Center.

SEPTEMBER 24 — MONDAY                     Day Nine

BERLIN

Starting: Berlin

Terminating: Berlin

Overnight: Hilton Hotel Berlin http://www.hilton.co.uk/berlin

This morning we visit one of the great museums of the world: the Pergamon museum on Museum Island. Here we will see some of the great archaeological remains from the lands of the Bible, including the famous Ishtar Gate from Babylon. In the afternoon one can choose to explore this famous city or to travel north of the city, past the Zionskirk (Zion Church) where Dietrich Bonheoffer served before WW II and on to the infamous Sachsenhausen Concentration Camp where over 50,000 political prisoners were exterminated.  We had a final dinner early and off to bed for a very early morning departure for home.

SEPTEMBER 25-- TUESDAY                       Day Ten

DEPARTURE

Starting: Berlin to Zurich

Terminating: Dallas

With heart changing memories of our journey we hoard a homebound flight to the United States.  We were up at 3:00 AM in order to be ready and have our luggage ready by 4:00 AM.  We boarded the bus for a twenty minute ride through old East Berlin to the Tegel airport to catch our 6:20 AM flight to Zurich.  There are three airports in Berlin.  The others are Tempelhof and Schoenefeld.  There is a plan to build a big International airport and close Tempelhof.  We had to wait for a while at the gate, as for some reason, Air Berlin’s computer had us only going to Zurich, not to Dallas.  That error was corrected and we made the short flight to Zurich where we had a two hour layover until our American Airlines flight left for Dallas.  After eleven hours in the air, we arrived in Dallas a little after 3:00 PM.  It was a very long day and we were glad to be home.

It was a wonderful trip.  We covered a lot of territory and tried to absorb much from our teachers about early church history and the places we visited.  Our teachers, Dr. Carl Anderson and Dr. Ed Blum performed their tasks wonderfully.  Our local guide Anke and our bus driver Hico did excellent jobs.  We will remember this experience with pleasure for the rest of our lives.