From the North to the Center

On Tuesday morning we woke up early to head to our first hike, Banyas. Banyas is at the foot of Mount Hermon, the largest mouintain in Israel. On the bus to Banyas we saw the most beautiful landscape in the Golan, and we couldn't wait to get hilking! It seemed like any other trail except it was a little more intense. Instead of hills we had mountains, instead of poison ivy we saw cacti (Sabras) and instead of a little bit of mud, we had a lot of mud! The hike was incredible and we saw a beutiful waterfall and running stream of the river. It was lilke nothing we have ever seen before.

After we went to Har Bental, which had breathtaking views all the way down into Syrian valleys and also across to Lebanon. We didn't even resalize how great a view we had until later, when we looked at the map and saw how far we were from Lebanon. But we could see it so plainly like it was right next door. We explored a military bunker on the mountain, and we all agreed that it would be a terrible idea to trey to storm it. This wasd like nothing we have ever seen in America!

We finished the day at a sdpecial cemetery at the Kinneret that has some very famous graves from the Second Alyah. We were exhausted but it was great to learn about people like Rachel and Berl Katznelson. These were people many Israelis could tell you about but as Americans it was awesome to learn about a few local legends and to learn some of the modern history of Israel. Needless to say we slept well on Tuesday night.

Wednesday was our busiest day yet. We went to the mystical city of Tzvat. I think most people on the group would agree that so far Tzvat has been the highlight of the trip. Really this is a city that runs at its own pace and on its own time. We met with an artist, Avraham Leventhal, a man who has 4000 years of energy behind his name going back to our first ancestor. He taught us about Kabbalah and the way it changed his life and influences his beautiful paintings. He had a great impact on our group. We also went to the Ari synagogue and heard some stories about miracles that have happened there. The synagogue was beautiful. The market in Tzvat was also beautiful and many of us had Yemenite cuisine for the first time. In a word; DELICIOUS! We all wish we could have spent more time in this incredible city.

After Tzvat we headed to a more modern city, Haifa. This had special meaning for the group because of the partnership between Haifa and Boston. Again, what an incredible view. We met with some high school students at Ironi Aleph, and we talked about some of our shared and separate values. It was great to learn from them and hear their experiences. We learned that even though we have different cultures and values we are still people and share a common humanity. Aftrer we headed to the top of the Carmel and Haifa University where we met a current Brandeis student studying there and saw a beautiful overlook of the entire city and sea. Thew views never get old!

Finally we headed to Tel Aviv where we spent some time in the hotel before heading out for a free night on the town. So far this has been a trip of a lifetime and we can't wait to see how things go for the next few days as we get closer to Shabbat.