Day 0: Travel Day

Our journey began in the Philadelphia airport where we all gathered for the first time. Many of us knew each other prior to the trip but some did not. We quickly made friends, which was easy because everyone was so excited and friendly. After waiting for everyone to show up and paying our $60 “tip” which actually goes to the bus driver Jobee, our security guard and medic Tal, and our two Israeli guides, and meeting our staff members (Ariel & Evan) we headed to security. After making it through, we all gathered in the food quarter to learn more about each other and get some dinner for a long flight (~10.5 hours). Some of us were fortunate enough to meet a pilot named Thomas Mason who flies for U.S. airways. An incredibly nice man told us about his life as a pilot. A quote that resonated with me was how us kids are “dreamers who rule the world, and once we make it to Israel it will be like a complete takeover.” Pumped more than ever, we headed to the gate and prepped one last time for the plane ride. We went through security once more. Several basketball fanatics, plus Chicago and Florida natives were checking up on the NBA Eastern Conference Playoffs Game 1 score between the Bulls & Heat. We missed the tip-off which was at 8 because we had to board around 8:30 for a 9 pm flight. The plane ride was long and somewhat uncomfortably packed but a few people were fortunate enough to have several seats to themselves to lie down and whatnot. There were mini-screens on the seats in front of us with wide-ranging movie, tv, and music options. A few examples were The King’s Speech, Entourage, Curb Your Enthusiasm, and music including classic rock, reggae, and pop (and much more). The last update we received on the Bulls Heat game was 80-65 early in the 4th quarter. The suspense killed us but us Bulls fans were stoked to be on top.