Israel Part 1
I have decided to divide my trip to Israel into parts as opposed to one long post. Originally I was going to write a post for each day, but that was a year ago and I don’t remember everything. Also geographically it makes sense. So let’s begin with our arrival and first day. I went on Birthright with GW. They run a winter and summer trip every year. One of my roommates who also graduated a semester early like I did went on the trip as well.
Our trip begins December 31, 2012. We arrive from the airport to the kibbutz where we were staying and are welcomed with a very large dinner. That evening the hotel/kibbutz bar stay open an extra hour (til 11:40) so that we could “ring in the new year”. New Years Day happens to also be my birthday. So at midnight we yelled “Happy New Year” some wished me a happy birthday, and then I went off to bed. I turned 22, one of the old people on the trip. I woke up to the most incredible news that my friend got engaged. It was still NYE in New York City where she was, so I casually gave her a call to congratulate her.
We began our journey visiting man made caves that date back centuries. We then ventured to a moshave (a organic farm compound) to learn about agriculture in Israel. We also got to pick and eat the delicious veggies. After spending a lovely afternoon on the moshave we got back on the bus for our final destination, the Bedouin tents. After learning a bit about the Bedouin culture we sat down to a traditional meal. While it was an interesting experience it was also very touristy. The tents were permanent, not movable like in the olden days. Also many tents were set up hosting many groups. Eh, what can you do? Our group leaders, Noa and Adina took us out in the dark desert. We all ventured off, going our separate ways for time to reflect. We were greeted with notes that our families had written. Naturally Mama K wrote a pretty clever note that made me laugh. The group headed back to our tent and hung out by the campfire outside. Then it was time to go to bed. The next leg of our journey was upon us. And we needed our rest.