We walked out of the terminal and into the arms of our fellow Israeli participants and staff, who were singing and dancing in celebration of our arrival. Our 41 quickly became 48!
We walked out of the terminal and into the arms of our fellow Israeli participants and staff, who were singing and dancing in celebration of our arrival. Our 41 quickly became 48!
When sundown came, we did havdalah together, to separate Shabbat from the rest of the week, just as it started to rain. After dinner (off the kibbutz!), we met again as a group for more name games. Nofar was the first to win the challenge by calling us all by name.
We escape the museum to see Israel under the glittering sun
To remind us that we’ll always have this home now that the war is done
We all spoke about our favorite parts of the trip and what we are taking away from the trip. We are sad to go back home tomorrow, but what we experienced together will forever stay with us. It will be extremely difficult to say goodbye to our Israeli friends, but our friendships willl last a lifetime.
Under the shade of a eucalyptus tree, we took the time to meditate. In between deep breaths we were told to think about the present, be appreciative of this trip, and to realize the wonder of being here in the state of Israel. I hope all of us will carry these thoughts with us throughout the rest of the trip.
We were all very surprised after stepping in the water and realizing it felt like a hot tub. It was so cool being able to float in only 2 feet of water, and I was happy that there was minimal stinging during my experience.
On day three, a family was made as we laughed and shared beautiful experiences. We all had a undeniable connection that was clearly evident by day three in Israel.
After finally getting a good nights sleep, we began the day by heading to Tel Dan for a morning hike. Following the hike, we went kayaking in the Jordan River. The most striking part of our trip down the river was watching Jewish Israelis (religious and secular) and Arab Israelis enjoying themselves - laughing and splashing each other absent any animosity or tension.
We drove to our first hike, at Tel Dan. Surrounded by trees, we walked over the rocks hovering the flowing water and took many pictures with the beautiful view
We were met by our seven Israeli participants greeting us by singing and dancing. We made our way to the Ofir lookout and did the Shehecheyanu with grape juice.