Day One | Shorashim - Israel with Israelis

Day One

By Jenny Sorin

We arrived at JFK in the early morning hours unsure of who and what to expect.  After a long ten hour flight from New York, we woke up in the Holy Land.  For most of us, it was the first visit in Israel.  We were greeted in tel aviv by a group of Israeli soldiers and our tour guide, Yossi. 

Despite exhaustion, we celebrated our arrival with Shorashim's traditional song and dance in the airport.  From there, we continued to our second home, the bus.  We arrived to Kibbutz Gadot, in the North, for a quick lunch followed by a water hike in the Majarse.  Among the hungry, tired, and weary group, we were all  able to bond quickly throughout the walk and shared many laughs, especially when Robin got caught in a water fight with a group of Arab school children.

That night was a quiet dinner at the Kibbutz, as we were all too tired to function.  We got to bed around 10 P.M. After what seemed to be the longest day of our lives, we all realized that we were in for a life-changing experience...and after a good night of sleep, we felt prepared to take on day two!