First full day of our trip, In the Golan Heights | Shorashim - Israel with Israelis

First full day of our trip, In the Golan Heights

Hello from Israel! This morning’s hike was canceled because of heavy rain, which is a happy occasion for Israel due to the drought, but was disappointing for us from the states. Instead we traveled to Mitzpe Gadot, a lookout point where we could see the Golan Heights and learned about the countries surrounding Israel and the borders. We heard about the wars in 1967 and 1973, and the importance of the Golan Heights for Israel.

While we waited for the rain to pass, Jobi, our bus driver, told us in Hebrew about his life story. What an amazing man who has devoted his entire life to the country of Israel. Jobi told us with great passion about how he came to Israel from Yemen as a young child. He has fought in every war that Israel has been involved in, including the most recent in 2008 where he drove a bus to help families get to safety. He is the epitome of Jewish strength, and I’m so glad that we were able to hear his story.

We are now back on the bus and headed to Katzrin which is the only city in Golan for lunch. The sun is back out (for now!) and tonight we will return to our kibbutz for out first Shabbat as a group! More to come from Bus 87!

Written by Caroline Freidman, Jan 13 2012