Birthright: My First Time in Israel – Day 1
All Jewish young adults (18-26) are given the amazing opportunity to spend ten free days in Israel on a trip sponsored by Taglit, an organization with the goal of creating a stronger connection between Israel and the Jews of the diaspora. There are several different trip organizers – I signed up with Israel Outdoors. The trip is known to be jam-packed and activity filled. For this reason, I was unable to write a blog as each day ended. I didn’t want to bring any valuables such as a laptop or iPad in case they might get lost. I kept a journal along the way, though I stopped writing in it after about four days due to exhaustion and lack of time.
It was May 29, 2013 when my parents dropped me off at the airport to meet with Jenna and Sam, the American staff of the Israel Outdoors trip. I knew no one that would be traveling and spending the next ten days with me, and to be quite honest, I was a bit nervous. I am a very particular person, and I don’t feel comfortable around just any crowd. When I first got to the gate, I didn’t have anyone to sit with. I felt a little bad that I wasn’t socializing, but the fact that no one seemed to be like me (academically and culturally focused) put me in a sort of mood and I purposely distanced myself from everyone else. It wasn’t until Sam and Jenna had us all circle up for ice-breakers that someone came up to me and said, “Don’t look so miserable!” This was Lindsay, a young woman with whom I spent the rest of the trip befriending and hanging out. I later found out that she was the oldest one in our group – graduated from college and already in the work force (most everyone else was my age, 19, and some were not even in college!). It’s interesting that I immediately gravitated towards the more mature members on the trip.
The plane ride to Israel is about 13 hours, but with a delayed stop-over in Vienna, it was even longer! I had never been on a flight that long! The furthest I’ve ever flown was Italy (stop-over in Zurich), but even that didn’t seem too bad. On the plane, I sat next to two students on my trip – Galina and Ilya – who I had previously “Facebook stalked” and knew they were ballroom dancers. Over an entire 9 hour trip to Vienna, we didn’t start conversing until the last 30 minutes! Birthright had ordered all of its participants 
kosher meals – something I wasn’t such a big fan of! I was served Asian style chicken, a dish I’m very used to from Shabbat dinners with Hillel. On the second leg of the journey, I sat next to a very friendly Israeli man who had recently moved to Vienna for work. He told me all about the places that I must see on my stay in Israel, and wished me an amazing trip.
When we finally landed in Israel, we were greeted by our tour guide Chen. Throughout this blog series, you will read a lot about Chen as a person and as an amazing guide on the trip. Even on our way from the airport to our first hotel (Ohalo Manor Hotel), he told us interesting information about the surrounding landscapes.
May 30, 2013 – Tiberias
So where was I staying for the first several nights? Ohalo Manor Hotel is right near the Sea of Galilee – a misnomer because the Galilee is actually a lake! We passed a sign on our way from the airport pointing towards a city named Afula. I know some family of mine that lives there, so I thought that was pretty cool! The first Zionist settlements were founded in this area of the country. Tiberias is named after Caesar Tiberias, a Roman ruler. This city is also the home to the beginning of Rabbinic Judaism – the foundation of the modern style of Judaism. The tradition of rabbinic law-making dates back to around 200 AD. The people in Tiberias (Tverya in Hebrew) remained even after the rest of the Jewish people were forced out in the diaspora.
After arriving at our hotel, we were assigned rooms. Each room fit three people. I was lucky
enough to be roomed with Lindsay, someone who I had already known from the airport, which made me feel a lot more comfortable with my situation! For dinner, we sat at a table filled with girls, but also invited the Israeli Medic (Idan) to join us. Who knew he would become such an integral part of our group in the coming days!!! After dinner, we walked around the grounds of the resort for a bit. There was a lovely view of the Sea of Galilee from the terrace. I tried to get an early night, while most everyone went out to socialize at the hotel bar, because I knew that our next day would be filled with activities – a trip to Tzvat/Safed!
