Our Congregational Trip to Israel has just begun, but our travelers have already had fantastic experiences in the land of milk and honey. We’ve just heard from Rabbi Greg Weitzman and Director of Development Lyndsie Levine. Here’s what they have to say:
Shalom everyone!
Wow! It has been an unbelievable 48 hours in Israel. After landing in Tel Aviv and meeting up with our amazing tour guide, Avishai, and the Puzzle Israel crew (our tour operators), we headed to Caesarea, an ancient Roman city built by King Herod in the first century. We spent some time walking through this ancient city from Hellenistic times, enjoyed food by the beautiful Mediterranean Sea, and got a chance to know each other before heading to our hotel in the Galilee. We are staying at a horse ranch overlooking the Kinneret (Sea of Galilee).
Tuesday morning, we woke up early for a horseback ride with amazing views of the ranch and the nature of the north. For lunch, we visited Masade, a Druze village on the very northern border between Israel and Syria. It was fascinating to learn more about the Druze culture, religion, and their lifestyle in Israel.
From there, we headed to the Banias, one of Israel’s beloved national parks. There we enjoyed a hike that took us to an ancient temple dedicated to the Roman god Pan, showed us one of the main tributaries of the Jordan river, and cooled us off with a stop by a beautiful waterfall.
Next stop was an off-road jeep tour from a kibbutz at the border of Syria and Lebanon, ending up at an Israeli military bunker with views into Syria. We learned a lot about the geopolitics of the region, talked a bit about the refugee crisis and civil war in Syria, and the realities of daily life in the Golan Heights.
After enjoying some hot tea (it’s cold up on that mountain!), we headed back to our hotel for an incredible meal cooked by our Puzzle Israel chefs and their team. Under the Israeli night sky, listening to live music, we truly embraced the words written by King Solomon in Ecclesiastes: “Eat, drink, and be merry!” We can’t wait for the rest of our trip—keep an eye out for our next blog post and a few more pictures from our adventures.
L’hitraot (See you later),
Rabbi Weitzman, Lyndsie, and the CRS Congregational Trip
We can’t wait to hear what else they have in store on this amazing journey! Stay tuned and keep checking into this website, and we’ll post as we hear more from them.
Nesiah tovah to the travelers!
