Israel Day 1 – Allegedly It’s Tuesday

So…WOW.  Direct flight from Newark to Tel Aviv is just over 10 hours…which in and of itself isn’t bad, but what is the challenging part is that you literally fly through time – we took off from Newark at 1:15pm Eastern time and landed in Tel Aviv at 6:00am the next day.   Don’t ask me the math, all I know is that part hurt a little.  We are 7 hours ahead of the East Coast. Welcome to Israel!   [ברוך הבא לישראל]

The flight was great, we were met right away by our tour guide, Irit, and after a quick breather and an Israeli airport Americano, we were on our way.

First stop was the Valley of Elah.  This is where David fought Goliath.  It’s not hard to imagine such an epic battle happening here.  David standing up for the honor and glory of God, in the middle of his fellow Israelites quaking in their boots. [Read more in 1 Samuel 17]

From there we went to Kirath Jiream, where the ark of the covenant was brought after a series of unfortunate events and rightfully returned to Israel. Currently, a Catholic church sits on top of the hill, but a beautiful and historic place nonetheless. [Read more in 1 Samuel 7]

Lastly, we arrived at our hotel and took a tour of their Biblical gardens with many realistic recreations of things like a watchtower, a synagogue, olive oil press, threshing floor and a wine press.  Then we got to participate in 2 very needed activities: a nap and a hot shower.

Half of our group is here, we are waiting for the other half to arrive, who according to Find My Friends, is at the airport.  We look forward to seeing them over dinner tonight.

Resting up for Day 2 tomorrow!