A Great Day Up North | Shorashim - Israel with Israelis

A Great Day Up North

By Jarret Levine, Scott Mordecki, Cat Kliegle

As we awoke to the sounds of roosters crowing, we prepped for our long day ahead.

The journey began along the long winding road driven by our great bus driver Misha. As we took in the scenery, the bus pulled up to the top of Mt. Arbel to begin our hike.

Led by our lovely tour guide, Or, the ascent began. As our leader, Or lead us to peak of the mountain we started to enjoy the scenic views of the Sea Galiee, the city of Tsfat (afternoon destination), and Jordan.   After briefly resting for pictures and stories, the descent began.

As we carefully hiked down the mountain we learned about the ancient Maccabees fortress where the Maccabbees hid from the Romans 2000 years ago. The fortress carved into the mountain side was impeccable, it gave you the feeling that anything could be done. As we reached the bottom of the mountain and loaded the bus we prepared for our journey to Tsfat one of four holy cities in Israel. Upon reaching the city we enjoyed the famous shawarma followed by a little site seeing. Walking through the magnificent art galleries lead us to the pleasure of being serenaded by ancient instruments.

Led by one of our Israeli participants, Ariel, we were taken to the place of his Bar Mitzvah at the sacred synagogue. After the synagogue, Or lead us to Abraham a Michigan born citizen currently residing Tsfat where he paints his mystical arts, inspired by teachings of the Kabbalah. After 15 minutes of enjoying fresh squeezed juices and some shopping we loaded the buses to head back to the Kibbutz. Upon return to the Kibbutz we enjoyed dinner and a group activity encouraging the bonding of Bus 357. #Shorashim #Birthright