Sunday, November 27, 2011

"Duggars Last Stop" Recap


On tonight's episode of 19 Kids and Counting: World Tour, "Duggars Last Stop"...
  • After visiting Scotland, Ireland, and London, the Duggars fly to Israel, the last stop on their overseas adventure. Visiting the Holy Land has been Grandma Duggar’s lifelong dream.
  • Their first activity is a boat ride on the Sea of Galilee. (To prevent motion sickness, Michelle brings Sea-Bands.)
  • The Duggars then head to the Jordan River, where Jim Bob, Grandma, and eight of the kids are re-baptized. Amy is baptized for the first time and is thrilled to have her Uncle Jim Bob do the honors.
  • “I really love Amy,” says the dad of 19. “She’s a lot of fun, and I’m so glad she was able to go on this trip with us.”
  • At a restaurant in Golan Heights, the crew enjoys homemade felafel and fresh bread. “It was fascinating watching the woman sitting on the floor and making the bread,” marvels Michelle.
  • At Genesis Land in the Judean desert, all of the Duggars—except Michelle, who is expecting—experience a camel ride.
  • “This is actually really fun,” says Anna, a bit nervous. “It’s the ride of a lifetime, and it might be the last ride of my lifetime!”
  • After braving the camels, the Duggars grab their Wholesome Wear swimsuits and head to the Dead Sea (Did you know that the Dead Sea is the lowest point on the face of the Earth?)
  • While Jill and Jessa are floating in the salty water, they inadvertently attract the attention of a male swimmer. “As my girls have gotten older, they have also gotten more beautiful, and they have started attracting a lot of guys that are interested in them," says Jim Bob.
  • To prevent the situation from becoming uncomfortable, the father of 19 intervenes. “I’m Daddy,” he introduces himself.
  • The ladies take advantage of the health and beauty benefits of the Dead Sea by giving each other mud facials. Grandma even bags up the miracle mud to take home. (Surprisingly, the gooey sludge makes it through Customs!)
  • Next, the crew heads to the market in the old city of Jerusalem to shop. They even pick up some Israeli-style pickles! (The Duggars love pickles so much that they consume over 200 jars each year!)
  • “I love to wheel and deal and negotiate,” says Jim Bob. In contrast, Michelle is not a bargainer. "I just want to know what it costs and the best price," she says.
  • On the family’s last day in Israel, Josie wakes up congested and is examined at a local clinic. “For anyone else, a cold would just be a cold,” explains Michelle. “But for Josie it’s a different thing because of her little lungs.” 
  • Meanwhile, everyone else heads to the Garden Tomb, the site where it is believed that Jesus rose from the dead. 
  • Josie is discharged, but the doctor does not recommend that she fly home until she has recovered from her fever. Mama and Jill stay behind with the preemie, while the rest of the family departs for the airport.
  • “My mother’s heart was just really struggling with all of my kiddos and Dad headed off,” says Michelle, in tears as she says goodbye.
  • After an extra week in Jerusalem, Michelle, Jill, and Josie return home. To err on the side of caution, a doctor accompanies the trio on the airplane. 
  • "Overall, the experience was great," says Michelle of the entire trip. "Most definitely one of the memories of a lifetime for our whole family." 
Have you been to Israel? If so, how was it? If not, would you like to?

    20 comments:

    1. Do you know when the next season will start?

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    2. I thought it was interesting that not only did JimBob come over when the young man in the Jordan River was talking with the girls but so did a couple of the boys. Jer or Jed maybe, came over and stood between his sisters and the young man and Joseph crossed over and stood directly behind their shoulders. Neither brother interrupted the conversation, but it was clear that they were now part of the group. It reminded me of the episode when four of the younger brothers talked about looking out for their sisters if a guy wanted to come courting. :-)

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    3. My husband has been to Israel, as have his parents and they loved it. One of my best friends from when I lived in London is Jewish and moved to Mo'hin (near Tel Aviv) about 10 years ago, so I see a lot of beautiful pictures of Israel! I'm glad the Duggars enjoyed their time in the Holy Land, and how lovely for grandma Duggar to finally see her dream come true!

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    4. I live in Israel!
      Can't wait to watch this episode. A litte disappointing that they didn't meet other large families, because there are so many in Israel, and I thought it would be interesting for the Duggars to see the differences between them.

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    5. Yes, I traveled to Israel with my family of six when I was twelve. It was six years ago. I would love to go back. I loved it. Jerusalem is busier and colder than the Galiee region. I wished that they went to Tabgha, where the miracle of loaves and fishes happened and Bethlehem, where Jesus was born. I liked Galiee better than Jerusalem.

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    6. Hi Anonymous! (at 9:27PM)

      We haven't heard, but there is definitely going to be a break between seasons. We will keep you all posted.

      Thanks for reading!
      Lily and Ellie

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    7. Did u notice at the Dead Sea they have seperate sides for men and woman. I saw your father getting nervous with the girls was seperating not an option?

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    8. Also we only got to see one side of the market was there no time to see the Jewish side, is it in extra scenes, where u get to try Jewish food and meet Jewish people?

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    9. Hi Tova!

      The Duggars were in Israel for days, so there were definitely things that they did that were not shown on TV.

      Thanks for reading!
      Lily and Ellie

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    10. I didn't know if Grandma Duggar's mud had made it through, back to the US, or not. Good. ;)

      I think this was the best show yet out of their world tour. Looked very interesting. Israel is a place I've been reading about for years and have always wanted to go.

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    11. I posted a comment/question in the "about us" section regarding initial endorsement for the blog when it first started. I don't see the comment (nothing since Nov. 8). Was it lost or deleted, or is there an approval process for it to show up?

      Also, do you know what those little band-aid things are on Josie's temples? Sometimes you see them and sometimes you don't.

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    12. Hi Anonymous! (at 8:42 PM)

      There is an approval process for the comments. Most make it through, unless they are in poor taste or contain questions/comments that do not pertain to the blog and/or the Duggars.

      The band-aid things on Josie's temples are used to hold her oxygen tubes in place, when she needs oxygen.

      Thanks for reading!
      Lily and Ellie

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    13. We are going on the same trip using the same guide as the Duggars. There are still a few seats left and we'd love to have you come to His land--you will NEVER read the Bible the same. Learn more at:http://www.discoveryworldwideministries.com/israel/ferguson_03-13-22-2012.php

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    14. Do any of the Duggar kids have learning disabilities such as ADD or dyslexia? I just wondered about that.

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    15. None of the Duggar kids have learning disabilities.

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    16. i was kinda shocked thar Amy was not babtized but,she still loves the Lord ,so what?I belive Jim Bob did the right thing interfering in the dead sea as any protective and loving father would.But I was kinda of shocked in a good way that Joseph I think stood behind his sisters in a no nonsense way.He really demonstrated how all the kids look out for each other.

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    17. Ok. Just watched this episode now. As an Israeli I was also disappointed. I hope the Duggars got a better vacation in Israel than seen on the show (I hope it's just the editing). Israel is first off a Jewish modern state and the only chance to see it on the show was "thanks" to Josie's health issue. Sure they should've shown the christian side, but not ignore the rich Israeli (and Jewish) culture
      Plus it's too bad they didn't have (or didn't show) a meeting with other large families in Israel.

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    18. I enjoyed this show. I think that it was great that Grandma Duggar got to bring her mud home with her. It was good not only to see Jim Bob and Jessa and Jill's younger brothers watch over them like that. The young man seemed very nice though.

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    19. Tehilla-I am also Israeli. taking mud from the dead sea isn't a crime. Israelis do it all the time and there is a whole industry surrounding it. taking unregistered artifacts is a crime and/or plants/animals from Israel. Dirt isn't regulated, nor is water. I was also disappointed in the lack of "Jewish culture" shown from their trip, but was glad to see Terim clinic so well represented (the Doc in the episode is first rate, we've seen him for a bad infection). I wish I'd known they were here, they stayed just down the road from us. We could have had them for Shabbat! LOL.

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    20. When Grandma was collecting her mud, I noticed that she was wearing rolled up jeans. I thought that she wore skirts like all the other older Duggar girls, Michelle and Anna.

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