401 Letter

There are few practical things that I wanted to pass on to you so that they could be relayed through Dr. Smith or whoever to those coming on the trip.

The first thing is that I strongly reccomend that they use ATM/Debit cards in order to access money here. They will get a good exchange rate that way and due to our schedule we will not be in Jerusalem until their fourth day here. Any money changers that we encounter on the first three days of the tour will be at hotels or tourist sites where the rates are bad. Cash can be changed in Jerusalem at very good rates, but not in the tourist areas where we will be the first few days, however there are ATM's everywhere.

Second thing...It will probably be hot, but even so there will be some days when we cannot wear shorts because of where we are going. I've seen girls wear shorts and have a skirt that they put over that when we are at church sites. That seems to work. For the boys, it's not as big a deal. The long cargo/khaki shorts that most American boys wear are considered pretty modest here, but even for them there will be a day or two when they need to wear pants. Also, on the clothing front, we will be walking extensively often on rocks rough ground. The students mush bring and wear a good pair of walking/hiking shoes. Lastly, provided that it is acceptable to your school, there will be three or four chances for the kids to get wet. They should plan for that too.

Lastly, I will be waiting for the group at the exit to customs. I will have a sign with either the school's name or Dr. Smith's name on it.

Thanks for everything,

Jamison