Israel Trip

Home

Travel Day

Back to the airport. It was a good thing we had three hours before our flight, as John was subjected to a very interesting (to those of us who weren't John) third-degree series of questions as we waited in the check-in line. Did he speak any Hebrew? Was he a member of any religious or politically affiliated organization? He clearly stated that he was not Jewish and was just here to tour Israel with his in-laws to see the country. At this point they took his passport and ticket and walked away for several nerve-racking minutes. Another more senior staff member appeared and continued the debriefing: Do you belong to a temple? Do you celebrate Jewish holidays at home? Which ones? Are you sure you don't belong to any organization? Are you sure you don't speak Hebrew? After a few more minutes of this completely unexpected and frankly worrisome line of questioning, they finally got to the standard questions about leaving your bag unattended and accepting wrapped packages from strangers. At that point we gratefully received our pink stickers and were allowed to move on in the check-in line. We're still not sure what the point of all that was. Just a bit of excitement to begin out trip home I guess.

We arrived at the airport Los Angeles at 11pm, collected our suitcases without incident, and boarded the shuttle back to the hotel where the car was waiting. Then there was a two-hour drive back to San Diego. We finally reached home at 2am and were able to collapse into bed.

Trip Retrospective

My mother noted some of the positive changes that my parents had noticed throughout the country: "During our visit in Israel we covered 3,000 km in two weeks. The roads and freeways between cities and towns are in top condition. Many are lit at night to make driving easier and safer. We were impressed with the changes since we were there last. It made the travel comfortable, fast and even pleasurable. The landscape around the freeways is green and colorful with vegetation. Along the roads one can see memorial landmarks (sculptures) for groups and individuals that are a constant reminder of the sad reality in Israel. The artwork of the sculptures is varied in styles and sizes. Each one is very unique and represents a different artist. The beautiful forests (mostly planted by the Jewish National Fund) are covering the countryside. Young forests on the Golan Heights and the Judean desert are very distinct. The Arab towns and cities that were villages before look very picturesque along the west Bank. The Bedouin villages around Be'er Sheva have changed too. You do not see the black tents anymore. Now, instead, there are real houses and the villages stretch to the south. In the Arava on the way to Eilat you can see many date palm groves along both sides of the road. Also many hot houses growing vegetables, especially peppers. In the past, the area was completely desolated. To sum up: The Israeli landscape is very impressive, even in the dry summer."

We had completely covered the country, from Eilat in the south on the shore of the Red Sea bordering Jordan, to the Golan Heights in the northeast bordering Syria, to Rosh Hanikra in the northwest bordering Lebanon, to Tel Aviv, Caesarea, Akko, and Haifa in the west on the shore of the Mediterranean. And we had explored the middle of the country too with trips to Jerusalem, Avdat and Timna and the Negev desert in the south, the Judean desert with Masada and the Dead Sea in the east, and the Sea of Galilee in the north. In reviewing our packed itinerary, my mother commented that it was like boot camp, but with much better food.

It was an amazing trip and we made many wonderful memories!!

<<--- Yesterday

Copyright © 2005 by Oreet Herbst and John Knott