I-Day +2

Hi everyone, Josh here! NUMBER 28!!

Anyways, I volunteered to blog about today's adventures, and I really couldn't have picked a better day, because what a day it was. At the time of this writing, I don't know how detailed the past blogs have been, but I'm going to use this as an alternative to writing in my personal journal, and since I want my mom to know what's going on, I'm going to write in as much detail as I can, so bear with me.

We woke up around 6:30 for breakfast at 7:15. Breakfast was the same as yesterday, which is fantastic. It consists of fresh veggies, including cucumber, tomato, red, green, and yellow peppers, cottage cheese, hardboiled eggs, scrambled eggs, bread, cereal, 3 different types of coffee (Folgers insta, Israeli insta, and Turkish), and chocolate milk. I opt for veggies, scrambled eggs, cottage cheese, and Turkish black coffee, which the Israeli's call mud coffee, because the grounds don't dissolve, they just settle to the bottom. This stuff puts a pep in your step, let me tell you. This breakfast is so much different than home: it's light and refreshing, yet filling. We are used to bacon and eggs and meat and MURICA, but this is such a fantastic alternative. It really makes me consider my breakfast choices at home, in a good way.

Anyways, after breakfast we headed first to Mt. Arbel, driving through and learning about Tiberius, and the importance of the writings that took place there. Mt. Arbel is a huge mountain overlooking the Sea of Galilee, as well as different farms and Muslim villages. On the top we had a really cool discussion about the villages and why they are the way they are, in terms of housing and living situations, which was also really different than home. They build their houses higher as family members get married, instead of having the married couple move away. It is very family oriented. We trek'd down this huge mountain side that started as a very rocky cliff side that was kind of sketchy to climb down, but was real exciting as well. It turned into a dirt and gravel path and there were flowers that grow on this mountain that only grow in the winter; they are sort of cup shaped with petals that go upward. The way that evolution and survival happen is so crazy. On our way down, we saw many caves in the mountainside; the coolest ones being made by the Jews during the Roman invasion as protection. We didn't get to go inside them, but were told that there were vast systems that made the rock like Swiss cheese. This was a way that the Jews could defend themselves from attacking Romans. It was like what you see in the movies; like Helm's Deep in Lord of the Rings. Later, walls were added and the caves were used as lookout posts to keep track of the ancient road that was between two Muslim villages: they provided fantastic vision to see what was going on below.

After Mt.Arbel, we headed to Tzfat. It was about a 45minute drive that took us to the other side of the Sea of Galilee. Tzfat was really interesting as well. We learned the basics of Kabballah and what that is all about, in terms of the main ideas of Kabballah, who started it, and what it meant to practice it. It is a very interesting idea which basically boils down to finding your own success in life, then doing what you can to help others be successful too. Basically guidelines on how to be a good person. We got to wander around Tzfat for about an hour after that for lunch, where I had falafel. I have fallen in love with falafel, to the point where some of the crew and I have dubbed it "falmazing" or"falawesome" or"falicious", because falafel sounds like "falawful”, and it is anything but. This falawesome had the hummus and chick peas, but they also put french fries in it. French fries in falmazing? Yes please. After lunch we met at the town square and learned more of the history of Tzfat, including the time the British ruled it, and got to see the military outposts that were used during those times. It is really something special to see these buildings that still have bullet holes in them; it makes it very real. After this discussion, we headed to old city where we started in the underground tunnels that are being excavated. I was unable to really hear about the point of these tunnels, but they might have been used for worship of Kabballah or as workshops. It was still really cool to see this area and know that they had been around for so long. After these tunnels we got to see something real special. A Hebrew band, called Agadeta was waiting for us in a room to show us some authentic instruments, including a pre-violin violin, which stood on the players knee while he bowed, a pre-piano instrument which was plucked with long metal rods, a guitar with either 12 or 16 strings, a really cool hand drum, and my personal favorite, the bell drum. This as a large round metal instrument with two sides, one with a big hole that was mostly used to hold and one with a bunch of dimples that, as the player tapped them with his fingers, made different notes. He told us that this instrument was almost always played using improvisation, and gave us a breath taking performance. It was like being transported to another time, watching him kind of go into a trance and tap on this instrument. The sounds were unlike any I've ever heard, but I would have to compare it most likely to a steel drum from Africa. It was incredible; you better believe I bought their albums. We then went to an upstairs room and learned about a Kabballah story of a man and his goat and his son, which had a different moral for different people, and then got another breath taking view of the city and surrounding areas. It was truly magical; like something out of a fantasy novel, with the mountains and water and sun. After this view we went into a Kabballah synagogue. Unfortunately, I was in the back of the group and was unable to hear our guide Italy’s explanation, but it was really cool to see a real Israeli synagogue. The artwork was very authentic and interesting to look at, and the place felt very comforting. We finished our tour of Tzfat at the candle making shop, which was super fun. They had some of the coolest candles, including a statue of David standing over a beheaded Goliath, Noah's Ark with a bunch of Disney characters, little animal candles, minion candles, psychedelic mushroom candles, and just really gorgeously colored candles.

After Tzfat we got another special treat: we went to the hot springs at Hamat Gader. On the way we strafed along the border of Jordan. It was like, hey, there’s Jordan! HI Jordan! Just a hop, skip, and a jump away. The hot springs were awesome. Although it smelled like rotten eggs due to the sulfur, the water was incredible; warm and soothing. I've had a neck ache since my time here due to sleeping on the plane so much, so I spent as much time with it under the water as possible, and it hasn't felt better than now in 3 days. We spent about an hour relaxing and chatting, then headed back to the Kibbutz.

Dinner at the Kibbutz included 3 types of fresh salad, including cucumbers, tomatoes, lettuce, peppers, carrots, and delicious dressing, tomato soup, white rice, Israeli couscous, (which actually isn't couscous at all), schnitzel, pigs in a blanket (which the Israeli's call Moses in a wrap (or something like that), because when he was a baby and wrapped in the cloth, that’s what he looked like?), and two other types of chicken. I opted for salad, couscous, and schnitzel. Again, this meal was light and refreshing, yet filling and healthy feeling. We ended our night by going around the room and telling what animal we would be if we could be one (tiger. duh), and our reflections on the trip so far. Some of the crew said some really cool things; it is really interesting to get a personal view into someone's psyche about their thoughts of this trip, and really made me think about my own ideas and feelings about it. These kind of group activities really give you a view into these people's personalities and really allows you to get to know them. I felt that we all made a really personal connection today at this activity, and that was really warm and comforting. 

Tomorrow we head to plant some trees for the JNF forests, to the Tel Aviv market, Rabin Square, Independence Museum, and are ending with a night out in Tel Aviv. I couldn't be more excited.

So far this trip has been everything that I could want. My own personal reflection was this: I feel like I, out of every one, am the most uneducated when it comes to Judaism, both culturally and religiously, as well as socially. Being with these people, not only the Americans, but the Israelis (especially the Israelis) has really REALLY opened my mind and eyes to what it's like to live in this country as a Jew, as well as what it could be like to live at home as a Jew.  We hear on the news about the ordeals going on in this part of the world, and read in history books about what has happened here, but being here, seeing the places, hearing the stories, being in the places were these things happened and are happening, has been incredibly eye opening. I know it's cliché to say "oh this is a country rich in culture and rich in history blah blah blah" and we all know that this is true, but until you have actually walked around in the area, been in the places of battle and hardship, heard the stories directly from people that live here, it is completely different. The perspective I've gained has been incredible. I cannot wait to see what else this trip has in store for me, personally, socially, religiously, spiritually, culturally. This is only day two and already I feel like I'm not the same person I was a week ago.

Anyways, it is 11:30 and we need to be out of here by 7AM tomorrow, so I'm going to wrap it up and call it a night. Until next time, 28 signingoff.

BUS 219 LETS GO TEAM!