W. CARIBBEAN • DECEMBER 20TH – 27TH, 2009
Are you ready to bask in the warmth of the tropics, intellectual stimulation, and kindred spirits? Join us for an exploration of a spectrum of topics — the archaeology of Israel; biblical history; Jewish medical ethics; the Abrahamic religions of Christianity, Islam, & Judaism; Jewish intellectual history in Europe, and more — in a relaxed, low-key setting.
The goal of Cultural Currents is to create a lifelong-learning experience that helps you distill new meaning from old knowledge & experience and to strengthen your capacity to wrestle with life’s questions supported by the wisdom and context of Jewish tradition.
Join us and combine the ease of cruise travel, the pleasure of family, the appeal of a break from routine, and grassroots Jewish education. Questions? Call Neil Bauman at 650-787-5665 and get all the details you need to dive in to Cultural Currents.
Holland America ships provide a wide variety of exciting youth- and teen- friendly activities and facilities for guests ages 3 to 17. With supervised fun for the younger guests, the entire family can have the cruise vacation of their dreams!
You can feel at ease knowing that your child’s onboard experience is safe and well-managed. All Club HAL® activities are supervised by permanent, full-time staff, and are designed to be kid friendly and age appropriate. Youth Staff hold degrees in education, childhood development, recreation, leisure studies, or related fields. Programs available:
Club HAL — Kids: Children, ages 3–7, can participate in such activities as story telling, fabric painting, indoor games, arts and crafts, drawing contests, ice-cream sundae parties, puzzles, bingo, pirate treasure hunts, or a farewell pizza party. Children in the Kid’s age group must be toilet trained. Children in pull-ups or diapers are not allowed in the youth facilities, due to mandates from US Public Health. Exceptions to this rule cannot be made.
Club HAL — Tweens: Tweens, ages 8–12 might learn golf putting, have disco parties and theme parties, compete in on-deck sports events, compete in scavenger hunts, or simply play Ping-Pong with a friend.
The Loft and The Oasis: Teens, ages 13–17 will especially enjoy the teen disco, karaoke sessions, video games, teen sports tournaments, card games, trivia contests, bingo, movies, and videos.
Holland America Line (HAL) is dedicated to making your family’s cruise vacation memorable and happy for each member of your family. HAL serves a wide variety of kid-pleasing food including special sandwiches, tacos, hamburgers, hot dogs, and pizza. Baby food, high chairs, and booster seats may be requested in advance of boarding. Babysitting services are available for a small surcharge. Special kid-friendly birthday parties can also be arranged with advance notice.
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PORT OF EMBARKATION
TAMPA, FL — Sunday, December 20, 2009
A university town at heart, Tampa has a myriad of attractions: the palatial mansion and art museum of the king of the circus, John Ringling; the king of the jungle at Busch Gardens; the antique village of Ybor Square; the enchanting Sunken Gardens and much more.
KEY WEST, FL — Monday, December 21, 2009
An American town that moves to the sensuous rhythms of the Caribbean. Inspiration for Audubon, Hemingway, Harry Truman and Jimmy Buffett. Conch culture, coral reefs and sleek racing catamarans await. How will you mark your time here? Sample shore excursions: Old Town Trolley & Conch Train; Key West Cup Regatta; The Trails of Margaritaville Walking Tour; Pirate Soul & Shipweck Museum.
BELIZE CITY, BELIZE — Wednesday, December 23, 2009
Belize is the outdoors. Offshore, the second longest barrier reef in the world invites you to meet its birds and turtles, swim with the rays, snorkel, windsurf, or just hang out. Onshore, Belize is an eco-tourist’s paradise, with rainforests and caves (exotic tubing!), wildlife and nature reserves. Noteworthy Mayan ruins (see below) await your exploration. Plan an adventure in Belize!
Cahal Pech is a Maya site located near the Town of San Ignacio in the Cayo District of Belize. The site was a palatial home for an elite Maya family, and though most major construction dates to the Classic period, evidence of continuous habitation has been dated to as far back as far as 900 BC, making Cahal Pech one of the oldest recognizably Maya sites in Western Belize. The site rests high near the banks of the Macal River and is a collection of 34 structures, with the tallest being about 25 meters in height. The site was abandoned in the 9th century AD for unknown reasons.
Xunantunich is located atop a ridge above the Mopan River, within sight of the Guatemala border. Most of the structures date from the Maya Classic Era, about 200 to 900. The core of Xunantunich occupies about one square mile, consisting of a series of six plazas surrounded by more than 26 temples and palaces. One of its structures, the pyramid known as “El Castillo,” the second tallest structure in Belize, at some 130 feet tall. Archeological excavations have revealed a number of fine stucco facades on some of the ancient temples of this site. Evidence of construction suggests the temple was built in three stages in the 600s AD, 700s AD, and 800s AD. The fine stucco or “frieze” are located on the final stage.
SANTO TOMAS DE CASTILLO, GUATEMALA — Thursday, December 24, 2009
“Guatemala” means “land of many trees”. Our port of San Tomas de Castilla provides access to rainforests, a manatee habitat, national parks, and archaeologic sites. Copan, the “Paris of the Mayan world” is a plane ride away. Quirigua, a Mayan ruin known for finely sculpted monuments, lies close to port. Any way you choose, Guatemala offers a quintessential Central American experience.
»» San Tomas de Castillo Details »»
»» San Tomas de Castillo Shore Excursions »»
Tikal is one of the largest archaeological sites and urban centers of the pre-Columbian Maya civilization. It is located in the archaeological region of the Petén Basin in what is now modern-day northern Guatemala. Tthe site is part of Guatemala’s Tikal National Park and in 1979 was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Tikal was one of the major cultural and population centers of the Maya civilization. Though monumental architecture at the site dates to the 4th century BC, Tikal reached its apogee during the Classic Period, ca. 200 to 900 AD, during which time the site dominated the Maya region politically, economically, and militarily.
COSTA MAYA, MEXICO — Friday, December 25, 2009
The quiet side of Mexico. Here, along an unspoiled coastal paradise, archaeology buffs discover Mayan ruins shrouded in magic and mystery; divers find treasure in fantastic coral reefs. Sample shore excursions: Mayan Ruins (see below); Coral Reef Snorkel; 4 x 4 All-terrain Expedition; Fly Fishing Tour.
»» Costa Maya Shore Excursions »»
Kohunlich is a large archaeological site of the pre-Columbian Maya civilization. The Spanish name does not actually derive from Maya but from the English Cohune Ridge. The site covers about 21 acres, surrounded by dense sub-tropical rainforest, and it contains almost 200 mounds, that remain largely unexcavated. The city was elaborately planned and engineered, with raised platforms and pyramids, citadels, courtyards and plazas surrounded with palace platforms, all laid out to channel drainage into a system of cisterns and an enormous reservoir to collect rainwater. The site was settled by 200 BC, but most of the structures were built in the Early Classic period from about 250 to 600 AD. The city appears to have functioned as a regional center and stop along the trade routes through the southern Yucatán. The road approaches the site from the north and leads into an enormous central plaza ringed by pyramids and temple platforms. To the north there is a massive, raised acropolis, or citadel, with a palace complex around a courtyard to the north-west. Further east there is the Pyramid of the Masks, built in honor of the sungod, with 6 gigantic stucco masks flanking its central staircase. And south of the main plaza lies the marvelous, sunken Plaza Mervin, on the west side of the site, and a small ballcourt further to the east.
Experience the secrets of the mysterious and virtually unexcavated
Mayan ruins of Chacchoben, hidden deep in the jungle near the
border with Belize, covering an area of about 10 acres. Settlement by the Maya at the site is estimated at 200 BC, and the structures date from 700 AD. In the 1940s a private farm was established near the site, but the ruins were officially reported to the Mexican government in June 1972 by Dr. Peter Harrison, an American archaeologist. Harrison stumbled upon this site while flying a helicopter over Mexico and noticed numerous hills in predominately flat lands. Harrison realized there were temples beneath these hills, which were naturally covered over a period of 2000 years. In 1994 the Mexican National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH) excavated and restored the site, which was closed to the public until 2002. Visitors to the site today walk a circular path that includes three excavated and restored pyramids, as well as many walls and staircases. Excavation is continuing on several mounds which are known to contain further buildings. Some structures still bear traces of the red paint with which they were originally coated, and INAH has set up shaded areas to prevent further degradation of this pigment by the sun.
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Never cruised with Holland America? Watch this! |
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Peruse Holland America’s (HAL’s) interactive Caribbean brochure |
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Download the m.s. Ryndam’s deckplan |
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Peruse HAL's interactive deckplan of the m.s. Ryndam |
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Download HAL's Shore Excursion booklet |
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For the kids |
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Download a flyer of the cabins |
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Download a flyer about the Suites |
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Visit HAL’s interactive map |
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Visit HAL’s collection of videos |
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Egyptian Influences and the Exodus Account
In Search of (Most) Ancient Israel
How To Read the Bible: The Story of David and Bathsheba
The Book of Leviticus: Structure and Meaning in the Least Read Book of the Torah
The Modern Middle East
The “Abrahamic” Religions
The Jews of the Caribbean
Jewish Medical Ethics
Understanding the Heavens
A Tale of Four Cities (Cordova, Prague, Venice, and Amsterdam)
Our 18-hour seminar program is offered when we’re at sea. This program is subject to change, though these web pages will be kept up to date.
Cruise prices vary from $999 for an Inside Stateroom to $3,999 for a Full Suite, per person. (Cruise pricing is subject to change.) For those attending our PROGRAM, there is a $695 fee. Government taxes and fees are $60.01 per person. Gratuities are $11 per person per day. All prices and fees are detailed on the BOOK NOW page.
For a detailed listing of the cruise itinerary please review our ITINERARY page. Use our PRICING CALCULATOR for a quick price quote!
For questions, please don’t hestitate in calling Neil Bauman or Theresa Mazich at InSightCruises.com (650-787-5665) or emailing Neil.
Kosher meals are prepared off the ship in a Kosher kitchen, frozen and brought to the table sealed in their original containers. There is neither a Kosher kitchen on board nor Kosher dishes, utensils, or pots and pans.
Peter Haas, Ph.D.
Gary Rendsburg, Ph.D.
David Ruderman, Ph.D.
Speakers have confirmed their intent to participate; however, scheduling conflicts may arise.
The Belize Barrier Reef is a series of coral reefs straddling the coast of Belize. This reef structure is the largest coral reef in the Western Hemisphere and the second largest coral reef in the world after the Great Barrier Reef in Australia, making it very popular for scuba diving and snorkeling. It is Belize’s top tourist destination, attracting almost half of its 260,000 visitors, and vital to its fishing industry.
The Great Blue Hole is a large underwater sinkhole off of the coast of Belize. It lies near the center of Lighthouse Reef, a small atoll 62 miles from the mainland and Belize City. The hole is circular in shape, 1,000 feet across and 400 feet deep. It was formed as a limestone cave system during the last glacial period when sea levels were much lower. As the ocean began to rise again, the caves flooded, and the roof collapsed.
This site was made famous by Jacques-Yves Cousteau who declared it one of the top ten scuba diving sites in the world. In 1971, he brought his ship, the Calypso, to the hole to chart its depths. Investigations by this expedition confirmed the hole’s origin as typical karst limestone formations. Stalactites were retrieved from submerged caves, confirming their previous formation above sea level.
This is a popular spot amongst scuba divers, who are lured by the opportunity to dive in crystal clear water and meet several species of fish, including giant groupers, nurse sharks and several types of reef sharks such as the Caribbean reef shark and the Blacktip shark. Usually, dive trips to the Great Blue Hole are full-day trips, which include one dive in the Blue Hole and two further dives in nearby reefs.
264 S. Meridith Ave., Pasadena, CA 91106 • 650-787-5665 • Copyright 2009 © InSight Cruises
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