Combined, the couple speaks five languages.

Ken grew up in Saudi Arabia where his father worked with Aramco Oil Co. He attended all four years of high school in Rome. Ken had not been back to Saudi Arabia since the ‘60s, so he and Judy thought it seemed like a good time to go on a three week cruise.

Shopkeepers seemed captivated at Judy’s blonde hair. Hearing Ken speak Arabic fascinated the locals even more.

“It was like going back in time to Arabia 50 years ago,” Ken said.

Judy visited bakeries and sampled cookies. She learned about ingredients used in that locale. In this case, fresh dates.

The fruit will be an important ingredient in a cookie which will be featured as July’s “Cookie of the Month.”

She sat with a woman around an open fire to make their type of bread. Later in the day, the woman removed her long black veil to uncover a sleeping baby securely tucked in a cloth holder, held against her body.

“We wanted to see how real people were living,” she said. “But we were glad to get back on the ship.”

A former foreign language teacher at Anderson University, Judy retired so she could travel.

The Zinszers’ journey began with visiting friends in Paris, then to Frankfurt, Germany. Other stops included United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Oman, Yemen, Jordan, Egypt, Croatia, the French Riviera and ending in Venice, Italy.

A main staple in the diet includes rice and birds. Many people raise goats and sheep. Ken and Judy enjoyed meeting people in their homes, typically two rooms and made of handmade bricks.

She may create another recipe later this summer, perhaps using almonds or orange flower water.