An excited and anxious group of 20 people assembled at the Des Moines International Airport at 8 AM Friday, November 11 to begin a life changing journey to the land of the Bible, Eretz Israel. (Well, Ingrid was there at 6:45 AM…NOT Avigdor.)
We flew from Des Moines to Chicago, then an eight hour flight to Frankfurt, Germany. After a two and a half hour layover there, a three-plus hour flight to Tel Aviv, arriving around 3 PM Tel Aviv time. Exhausted after a long flight, we were miraculously revived when we caught the first glimpse of the Israeli coast and the beaches of Tel Aviv. Some admitted to being teary-eyed at being back “home” again.
After going through passport control, we were greeted by our tour host and collected our luggage. Then it was to the bus where we met our guide for the week, Abraham “Abi” Bresler. As we drove to our hotel he gave a brief history of the area, preparing our hearts, minds and spirits for the week to come.
Our hotel, the Tal Hotel, was a welcome sight as we were all anxious for a shower and to freshen up. A short walk on the beach and then it was our first meal in Israel. And what a meal it was: a variety of vegetables, meats and breads. There was no dairy (milk, cheese or butter) due to the kosher dietary restrictions. But it was wonderful.
Now it is time to turn in early (around 8:30 PM) in order to get a good night sleep (in a horizontal position) so we can rise in the morning and greet the day.
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