North Trip and More!

Shalom Y'all! This week we headed North and it was such a blast! We did so much! I loved it!

Sassy Saturday: I spent the day getting over my cold (in which I currently still have a cough).That night Rachel and I went to Sidewalk, a yummy restaurant that played awesome oldies music. That was my Saturday.

Sunday Crayday: I went with Nathan to sent some postcards. I hope the one I sent doesn't take 2 weeks to get the person like the one I sent to my parents did. The post office was interesting. Everything was in Hebrew. We had to figure out our numbers in Hebrew. Then, Nathan went to get his haircut. They were really nice. Gave us free water! After that, we got snacks for the North Trip. Since Sukkot started that night, we had a potluck dinner in the Sukkah. I liked it. It was very chill.

Mischief Managed Monday: I washed some towels before I went to the beach. Things in Tel Aviv end up sandy a lot. Maybe it's because I go to the beach so much. Haha. I didn't really do a lot after the beach. But, Alona, Nathan, and I went to this Italian restaurant called Gusto. It was so yummy! I love Italian. I think I was an Italian Jewish Sarcastic Princess in the past! And then I finished packing for the North Trip.

Tuesday Snoozeday: North Trip! First we went to a school and we talked to a teacher who is an Israeli Arab and some kids who are also Israeli Arabs. The kids seem very similar to us. They all have goals and aspirations similar to us. It was cool to hear that they already know what they want to do at age 16. When I was 16, I wanted to be an actress and that's all. I didn't know what I wanted to do until a year ago (age 22). I still want to do so many things as well as be a counter-terrorist analyst. The kids also stated that they argue with their parents, just like us! ha! Then we went on a 3 1/2 hour hike in the Galilee/Golan Heights. It was cool but exhausting. After the hike, we went to talk to some dude who lives on the border of Lebanon and Israel. He was a bit out there but I give him my respect. Anyone who lives near Hezbollah, gets my respect.

We Wear Pink Wednesday: Another hiking day! Today it was a shorter hike for me! We did a 2 1/2 hour hike. First we hiked down to a stream and hung out there or an hour or so. I went into the water and it was freezing. I think I lost feeling in my toes at one point. At the stream there was a Syrian tank that fell off a cliff during one of the wars. We then walked back up the hill and walked to a beautiful waterfall. In Florida we don't really have waterfalls, so this was awesome. I love waterfalls. They melt my heart when I look at their beauty. After the hike, we went to a helicopter memorial. There was an accident in 1997 where two helicopters heading out to war collided during bad weather. No one survived. The memorial was beautiful in its own way. It was very moving. After the memorial, we headed up the Golan Heights to Mt. Bental aka the place Birthright takes every group to see the borders of Israel and Lebanon and Syria. This was my third time there. The bunker on the mountain was closed last time but not this time. Chanah and I went into the bunker and when we got back out, we couldn't figure our way back down to the group. Eventually, with the help of our tour guide, we found our way out. While we were there, we blew bubbles as a sign of peace. You may think this was all we did since it's a lot, but there is more! We then went rafting down the Jordan River! Our group kept getting stuck. We also got hit by a few branches, ok so a lot of branches. I think I finally stopped seeing branches. We also did a mitzvah! Someone from our group lost a shoe and she got out of her group's raft to save it but their raft kept going so she was stuck. We ended up rescuing her. It was so much fun! After rafting, we went to the camp site. We had a bonfire and s'mores. We were sleeping in Bedouin type tents. So, when I was trying to sleep, they were having a jam session in the girl's tent and it was pissing me off because I had a headache and I just wanted to sleep. Soon it was over and I returned to being Happy Haley. That was a lot in one day!

Think About It Thursday: Last day of the North Trip! We started the day off the day by olive picking! I flippin love olives! And we got to keep some! Then, we went to the Kineret for lunch and to swim! If you don't know, the Kineret is also the Sea of Galilee. The food was amazing and the water was perfect! I loved it! Ugh! Israel, why are you so perfect? That was the end of the North Trip because then we headed back to Tel Aviv. In the end, I loved the trip. I hate stairs after the trip but I have to get over that.

Flip It! It's Friday: I did pretty much nothing all day. For dinner, I went with Alex, Nathan, and David to get sushi at this place called Omani. We then went to Max Brenner to get dessert. It was so good. I think Max Brenner is what heaven feels like haha! I then went to the other apartment complex to hang out with some amazing people like Charlotte and Chanah. And then I hung out with Rachel and we did some girl talk aka talking about boys and life. I think I had an amazing week!

Have a great week!

XOXO
-Haley