Underground at Beit Gvurin
Photos from the 10-day "birthright" trip I staffed for Israel Experts, July 9-19, with 40 participants from all over the US, most in their mid-20's. Hizbollah launched war against Israel at the start of our trip so we were rerouted away from the north. In addition to the "greatest hits" of most "birthright" trips, we went to a number of sites I'd never visited, and the group developed a rare and inspiring bond.
Underground at Beit Gvurin
Negev, Ein Ovdat hike
Maktesh Ramon, largest crater on Earth, shaped like a heart
Ben-Gurion's desert home (Sde Boker) and tomb
At kitsch Bedouin tent night, near Dead Sea/Masada
Sunrise over Masada, never gets old (unlike me)
Ein Gedi/Dead Sea
Tel Aviv/Jaffa sites...I had to shoot the Israeli and German flag with the Hebrew word for "sorry" behind them at the Rabin murder site. The German flag was there for a high-level visit from that country, and "sorry" referred to Rabin's murder, but the combination made me think back a few decades earlier...
Barta, half in the West Bank, half in Israel proper, and a fence runs through it
As far north as we got, thanks to Hizbollah - this is a monument to Herzl built by early pioneers...also sunset over Kibbutz Afik in the Golan...
Underground bullet factory, Rehovot
The view from strategic Kastel site outside Jerusalem...and other photos from Jerusalem, including Yad Vashem, Hannah Gossler (Anne Franks's best friend, who spoke to us at Yad VaShem), Mary's tomb outside Old City, the Western Wall, and Mt. Herzl. See if you can zoom in on "Free Jerusalem" for another unsettling combination a la Germany/Israel "Sorry" below...
Sabra, made with love!