We were on our way! With Tzfat in the rear view mirror, Shlomo, our amazing driver had us on our way to our next adventures.
First, we headed to the Tel Dan Nature Reserve for a walk where we saw olive trees, the headwaters of the ‘mighty” Jordan River and amazing ruins. City gates that once marked the entrance to a Canaanite city were discovered in the 1990’s and unearthed for all to visit . It is incredible to see these 3000 year old structures and be able to walk through them. Our family walked where our ancestors once did.
Next, we met with a man named Eitan from Kibbutz Malkiya that is right on the border with Lebanon! We saw the remnants of a rocket lobbed at the kibbutz in 2006! It was a real attention-getter! While at the kibbutz, we were taken to a kiwi orchard and recent b’nai mitzvah kids on the trip planted a kiwi plant in the ground. All together, we stood in the orchard, in a show of solidarity and spoke the words of our ancestors for all to hear! From the kibbutz, we went to an IDF post and met the incredibly brave and charming soldiers stationed there. They were so happy to see us and vice-versa. They were embraced and showered with gifts and we thanked them for their service. Several of them signed Benjamin’s IDF cap! It was “way cool”!
And there was more…
From the border with Lebanon, we headed to Beit Shean, our Partnership 2000 city. We walked the Roman ruins that were unearthed in the 1990’s. As one of the group said, it was like being in Pompeii!. Only 10% has been uncovered and it is enormous! We sat in the ancient theater and walked the colonnade where shops once stood. There were mosaics in the floor. History is alive in a setting like that!
On to our kibbutz experience. We were invited to spend time with a young couple who are “renters”. They live on the kibbutz with their young daughter. The husband, Eitan, works there and Sarah is a nurse and works at a hospital. It seemed to me that they had the best of both worlds; Family, friends, a sense of community as well as things that they own. They were very modern, which was different from what I anticipated. Community dinner was very “Hamish” and the soup was delicious. Then to bed with dreams of ruins and sounds of peacocks in our heads!
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