BOOK OF MORMON 13-DAY TOUR
(Nephi to Zarahemla Tour)
(This tour is wait-list only)
Hosts: TOM & JENNIFER FERGUSON, Paradise, CA
Co Hosts: DRAKE & HOLLY BROWN, Chico, CA
August 3-15, 2019
ITINERARY
On this tour you will cover the Book of Mormon history which
includes the land of Nephi, the East Wilderness, the narrow strip of
wilderness, the land of Helam, valley of Alma, the Land of First Inheritance, the land of Zarahemla, and the land northward. This
all-inclusive deluxe tour is a fantastic mix of archaeology, museums, exciting
places of interest, and is filled throughout with the history of the Book of
Mormon. You will visit four LDS
Temples, ten archaeological sites and museums, and thirteen locations
associated with the Book of Mormon. Call today to book your space on this
deluxe Book of Mormon experience. 1.801.226.5200 or email us at
blake@ldstours.com.
Tour Includes: twelve nights hotel accommodations, two or more
meals daily except on first and last days, first-class bus transportation,
entrance fees and guide service to places listed on the itinerary, taxes and
tips on group items, literature and maps pertaining to your tour, and escorted
by professional tour director Blake Allen.
Day 1: Saturday, August 3, Guatemala City
Our
flights from the USA take us to Guatemala City, the land of eternal
spring. Upon arrival we will transfer to
our hotel. Reading: Moroni chapters 1-10. (No meals included today)
Day 2: Sunday, August 4, Guatemala City
After
attending church with the local saints, we will visit the Guatemala LDS temple. There is no overland travel today. As an option after church, tour members may
visit Guatemala's National Museum of Archaeology where we will analyze
Kaminaljuyu’s stela 10, an altar that dates to 147 BC and may represent a
transfer of kingship from King Noah to his son Limhi at the City Nephi (see
Mosiah 18 & 19). Those that want to go to the Museum will then visit the
large outdoor relief map of Guatemala in order to orient ourselves with the
geographical overview of the country in relation to the Book of Mormon. We are in the same hotel all day so visits to
the Museum and outdoor relief map are optional.
We conclude our day with a delicious Argentine steak dinner. Reading:
Mosiah chapters 9-22. (Breakfast, Dinner)
Day 3: Monday, August 5, Guatemala City
Our
air flight will take us to the awe-inspiring, Maya archaeological zone of
Tikal, occupied from 600 BC to AD 750. This dense rain forest is considered by
most LDS scholars/writers to be the East Wilderness where the Nephites, under
the direction of Captain Moroni, built
many fortified cities during the 1st century BC (see Alma 50:7-15). New
evidence shows a strong relationship between Teotihuacan near Mexico City and
Tikal at the close of Book of Mormon
history, which resulted in the downfall of the Nephite nation. In the early
evening we will take a return flight to Guatemala City. Alma chapters 43-52. (Breakfast, Lunch)
Day 4: Tuesday, August 6, Antigua
This
morning we will explore the archaeological zone of Kaminaljuyu, considered by
most Book of Mormon scholars to be the location where the city of Nephi was
established in the 6th century BC after Nephi left his family's
coastal land of first inheritance along with his followers We will then bus to Antigua, Guatemala's old
Spanish capital. You will enjoy this quaint colonial city with cobble stone
streets and Spanish architecture. We will see several buildings that date to
the 16th and 17th centuries. If possible, we will visit the jade factory
and learn how jade, the most precious stone to the Maya, was found and made
into beautiful jewelry and other items. We spend the night in a 500-year-old
convent, restored to a first-class hotel with an amazing atmosphere of plants
and beauty. Reading: 2 Nephi chapter 5 and Alma chapter 22. (Breakfast, Dinner)
Day 5: Wednesday, August 7, Lake Atitlan
Today
we depart Antigua as we continue by bus to Lake Atitlan. En route, we will pass by the Cakchiquel Maya
village of Patzicia, almost entirely destroyed by a 1976 earthquake. We will
recount the courage and faith of the missionaries and members of the Patzicia
Stake. We will continue on our trek to the village of Panajachel. Flanked by
three dramatic volcanoes, Lake Atitlan has been a scenic retreat for over 2000
years. It has been proposed by most LDS scholars as the site of the Waters of
Mormon where Alma organized the church of Christ in the first century BC after
Abinadi was burned to death by King Noah at the City Nephi (see Mosiah chapters
18 and 19). We cruise on the lake and see the area where a Book of
Mormon-time-period city was covered by water. This, or one of the other cities
now under Lake Atitlan, is a good candidate for the city Jerusalem mentioned in
Alma 21:1. Or, this may be one of the other cities mentioned in 3 Nephi 9:7
describing water coming up on three cities as part of the great destruction at
the time of the Savior's crucifixion. Upon our return, there will be time for
shopping or relaxing. Blake Allen will present a fireside this evening. Reading:
Mosiah chapter 18 & Alma chapters 17-21. (Breakfast, Dinner)
Day 6: Thursday, August 8, Quetzaltenango
After
breakfast, we will depart for the city of Chichicastenango. Today is market day
in the place where the native document called the Popol Vuh was
discovered. Like the Book of Mormon, the
Popol
Vuh was written in a chiastic format and outlines events relating to
the creation of the world, the fall of man, Satan and a Garden of Eden, similar
to the Old Testament’s Genesis account.. We will continue on as we pick up Alma’s
trail and make our way through the wilderness to the Valley of Alma. Our
journey will take us to Quetzaltenango, the second largest city in Guatemala
and the location of Guatemala's new, second temple, which we see before
checking into our hotel that overlooks the city square. Reading: Mosiah chapters 19-24. (Breakfast,
Dinner)
Day 7: Friday, August 9, Huehuetenango
After
checking out of our hotel, we will visit the village of Almolonga, renowned for
its pure water and lush year- round vegetable gardens. This is probably the valley of Helam occupied
by Alma and his followers for about 25 years (Mosiah chapters 23 & 24). We
then travel higher into Guatemala's Cuchumatanes Mountains, Book of Mormon's
narrow strip of wilderness that separated the land of Nephi from the land of
Zarahemla. We spend the night in the mountain city of Huehuetenango. Reading: Mosiah chapters 7-9. (Breakfast,
Dinner)
Day 8: Saturday, August 10, Tuxtla Gutierrez
Today
we visit the post-Classic site of Zaculeu which was the capital of the Mam Maya
group and was still occupied when the Spaniards arrived. We will then go "down" from the land of Nephi to the land of Zarahemla
(Omni 1:13) passing through areas proposed as the land of Manti and the valley
of Gideon as we travel to the Chiapas valley, the likely Land of Zarahemla
where the Nephites had their headquarters for 550 years (Omni 1:13-15 and
Mormon 2:28-29). Reading: Omni, Alma chapters
1-5. (Breakfast, Dinner)
Day 9: Sunday, August 11, Tuxtla Gutierrez
After
attending church with the local saints, we will visit the LDS temple in
Tuxtla. There is no overland travel
today, and we are in the same hotel all day.
After church, those who want to will visit the Regional Museum of Tuxtla
Gutierrez. Tuxtla is the capitol of Mexico's Chiapas state, which has many
pre-Classic (Book of Mormon) sites and artifacts, including an engraved stone
that manifests the early long count date, December 9, 36 B.C. If time permits, those
who want to will visit Tuxtla's zoo and see the majestic Quetzal bird,
Guatemala's national bird that became symbolic of the white god Quetzalcoatl.
(See Helaman chapter 4). Reading: Alma chapters 6-10. (Breakfast, Dinner)
Day 10: Monday, August 12, Tapachula
We
begin our day with a visit to the archaeological zone of Chiapa de Corzo, a
good candidate for the Book of Mormon’s City Sidom (See Alma 15:1-8). We will
then take a boat ride through the majestic Sumidero Canyon on the Grijalva
River, with walls towering 3000 feet above us. The Grijalva is proposed as the
Book of Mormon's River Sidon. Afterwards, we will bus along the Pacific coast
passing by the areas of Ammonihah, Melek, and the “day and a half’s journey”
where the Nephites fortified a defensive line to keep the Lamanites from
entering Zarahemla and the land northward.
We arrive in Tapachula for the evening.
Readings: Alma chapters 11-15. (Breakfast, Dinner)
Day 11: Tuesday, August 13, Mexico City
It’s a date! Today is a most exciting day! We will visit
the archaeological zone of Izapa. There we will see Stela 5, the “Tree of Life
Stone.” This 15-ton engraved monument dating back to about 300 BC parallels Lehi’s dream of the tree of life as recorded in
first Nephi. August 13 is the
precise month and day associated with
the beginning of the Maya calendar, whose
birth place is Izapa. This is
highly significant, because only at Izapa is the sun at its zenith on August
13th every year. Imagine standing around
that stone monument at midday when there is no shadow. That, in and of itself,
may have scriptural application as recorded in Alma 7:20.
According
to LDS archaeologist Garth Norman, the base date of the Maya Calendar at Izapa
is 592 BC, the very year Nephi arrived in the new world after having
spent eight years in the wilderness.
If this is correct, and we believe it is, and if Izapa is Lehi’s landing place,
which we believe it is, then Nephi played a major role in the Maya calendar’s
development. In the early evening we
will fly from Tapachula to Mexico City, one of the largest cities in the world. Readings: Alma chapter 63; Helaman chapters
1-4; Mormon 5-8. (Breakfast, Dinner)
Day 12: Wednesday, August 14, Mexico City
Our
final day begins with a visit to the world-famous archaeological site of
Teotihuacan. Occupied from about 200 BC to AD 900, Teotihuacan was one of the
largest populated cities in the world during its peak. The inspiring pyramids
of the Sun and Moon attract millions of visitors to this, Mexico's most popular
archaeological zone, which is an ideal candidate for the great city built by
King Jacob of the Gadianton Robbers (See 3 Nephi 7). After lunch at the pyramids, we will return
to Mexico City to visit the National Museum of Anthropology, one of the most
spectacular archaeological museums in the world. Touring the museum will
provide us with an excellent review of our tour and expose us to many beautiful
exhibits ranging from ancient pottery to gold and jade jewelry. (Breakfast, Lunch)
Day 13: Thursday, August 15, Flights Home
Transferring
to the airport, we will check in for our flights home. Our journey to the Book
of Mormon lands has come to an end, but we will take with us memories that will
last a lifetime. (No meals provided today)
Provided meals are noted at the end of each day. Time will be given for optional third meals
during the day. Prices and itineraries
are subject to change.
Let
the Book of Mormon change your life…..again! ®
Book of Mormon Tours
PO Box 970250
Orem, UT 84097
Telephone: (801) 226-5200
info@ldstours.com
www.bookofmormontours.com
