After the lovely afternoon at Rosh Hanikra, Oz took me to the bus stop in Lev Hamifratz and I rode the public bus for the first time in Israel. I took the bus to Tiberias, where Mody and his new group picked me up at the station. Mody, actually told me I could have joined him as early as Monday, but Oz and I had planned the Rosh Hanikra trip for Tuesday, so I found a compromise and went up Tuesday after our adventures. Oz asked if he wanted me to wait until I got on the bus before he left. I said worst case scenario I am right next to Yagur so I can call my cousins. But everything worked out. I was quite excited to go to Tiberias. The only time I recall being in Tiberias, might have been a drive through on Taglit and a drive through stop at the super market before camping with Oz and Brian, which when the bus entered Tiberias I recognized the super market.
The bus filled up and we got on our way. It was about a little over an hour ride and my timing in Tiberias was quite perfect. Mody picked up his group then came and got me. His group was a Christian group from Holland. It made for an interesting trip. After we went to the hotel and Mody was relieved of his bus driving duties. We put my stuff away, changed and walked to the main area of town down by the Sea of Galilee. I had never been to that area, so Mody insisted we go to dinner down there. It was very pretty another walking area similar to Jerusalem and Tel Aviv but it was by the water. So we found a restaurant called Miracle right on the water and sat outside to enjoy a lovely dinner.
Wednesday was a day filled with lots of travel and lots of sightseeing. We started out driving to Zfat. It was really nice to be back in this pretty town. Since it was a Christian group they didn't spend that long there, but Mody and I walked around the art district a little bit.
Next we stopped at a military memorial and saw some old ditches and memorial for the soldiers who had fallen. The views were pretty and it was neat to see another memorial to compare to the others I have seen while traveling in Israel.
From there we departed and went to the Banias. Here are a few pictures from driving that day. In America, I am pretty used to driving by trucks with cows in them, but I had never seen a truck filled with chickens until I came to Israel.
It was fun to see what this group focused their time on while at the Banias. Rather than spending most of it on the trail they spent the bulk at the bottom and even ate picnic lunches. Mody and I sat with some of the other bus drivers, ate some ice cream and walked around. After the bulk of the group departed to hike to the falls, which the tour guide said I could go too; Mody and I went on a little stroll to a small close waterfall. I decided I had already hiked to the Banias and with my track record of getting lost sticking with Mody was best idea. Plus it was a little chilly and I didn't know if I would be warm enough.
After the Banias we drove to Mt. Bental. It was really pretty. Everything was so green. Because of the weather Mt. Hermon was in the clouds, but we did pass the sign for the ski resort. Sadly, wasn't prepared so I didn't get a photo. Mt. Bental was really cool. On my Taglit trip we were supposed to go there but it got cut out. The views are exquisite and you can see Syria, the border, and all the UN buildings. It was pretty chilly up there, so Mody lent me his jacket so I would be a little warmer. We walked around looked at the views and explored the bunkers/tunnels the Israelis built and used during the war with Syria. They are like little mazes and go on for what seemed like a bit. You never knew what was around the corner. Because it was so cold we had a coffee break at the top of the mountain at Coffee Anan.
Mt. Hermon in the clouds
There were really cool statue structures all around the path leading to the top.
all the UN buildings at the border.
Syria in the background.
From Mt. Bental we drove back to Tiberias to drop off the group. From there Mody and I said our good byes to the group. They were so funny as they left and treated me like I had been with them the whole time rather than just a day. We drove to the first Kibbutz in Israel- Degania Alef, however it has expanded so the guesthouse is in Degania Bet. Because of all our adventures and long day we actually missed dinner in the dining hall but everything else was really nice accommodations. Here are some pictures from the kibbutz and our place.
our back patio off the room.
Tank as decoration
first house on the kibbutz.
Early Thursday morning Mody, took me to the bus stop and we said our goodbyes and I headed back to Tel Aviv. I had an awesome time in the Tiberias area and thought it was fun to see what a different group does on a trip. If you are wondering, when I was traveling with Mody I sat in the front of the bus in a seat that folds down if needed. I thought it was really fun to sit up there and look straight out the big windows.
