We're back!

Well unfortunately, I believe this is the end of the Samuels in Israel. I know we left you hanging back in April, but we are now back in California and on to other adventures, like summer camp and then moving to LA (in August). We were very sad to leave Israel, but happy to be able to see family and friends again. We leave you with more pictures of our adventures in the last months. Thanks for your support!










This was our last adventure in Israel. We stayed in Amirim, a vegetarian moshav overlooking the Sea of Galilee




We had to go see Elvis in Israel


Saying goodbye to friends


Amazing vegetables of the Machane Yehuda market in Jerusalem


On Lag B'Omer Israelis light bonfires all over the country. This one happened to be in the yard next to our apartment building.



Nikky and Jen went hiking in Ein Gedi while their men studied for finals


Soccer game with Beitar Yerushalayim and Nazareth


Israelis observe their Memorial days of Yom Hazikaron and Yom Hashoah with a siren and everybody stops what their doing (even driving) to stand in Remembrance



Our last Shabbat with friends in our apartment


The Samuels at the Dead Sea




The old city of Jaffa

Rosh Hanikra, Acco, Haifa and Zichron Yaakov

The Rosh Hanikra coast















The Rosh Hanikra grottos













Street of Acco
















Josh enjoying some amazing hummus, falaffel and Turkish coffee in Acco













View of Haifa















Old synagogue in Zichron Yaakov










I believe we definitely made a record for ourselves of visiting the most places in one day. We checked out of our rooms in Rosh Pina at the beautiful Mitzpe Hayamim with the intention of getting in as much as possible on our way to our next overnight in Zichron Yaakov. We started off at the coastal border of Lebanon, Rosh Hanikra. This is not only an amazing coastal area, but there are also incredible grottoes that were carved by the sea into the chalky cliffs. Definitely not a site to miss! Next we got back in the van and made our way down the coast to the old, walled city of Acco where we enjoyed an amazing hummus lunch, wandered through the marketplace and the tunnels below the city. That night our destination was Zichron Yaakov, one of the first aliyah communities in Northern Israel. On our way we stopped on the Carmel mountain in Haifa to look at the Bahai temple and the port area. What an amazing view. When we got to Zichron we wandered around and then had dinner at the Tishbi winery. Yum! This pretty much ended our Northern Israel trip with the Samuels.

Katzrin and Tzfat

The ancient synagogue in Katzrin













View from Tzfat







This was probably our shortest day of the tour because Rhoda, Josh and I all had to be back at Mitzpe Hayamim for massage treatments. What an amazing way to end a day! So in the morning we headed out to the Golan to visit the ancient Jewish city of Katzrin. Most of this area was built around the 3rd-4th centuries, completely abandoned in the 13th and 14th centuries and then rediscovered in the 19th-20th centuries and now you can get a fairly good idea of the homes that people lived in, the utensils they used and even the synagogue they prayed in. Modern day Katzrin is actually a bustling industrial area which includes the Golan Heights winery, Eden distillery and many other factories. Next we headed off to the old city of Tzfat. As you might have noticed this seems to be a place that we visited more than once and you are correct, but it is just one of those places that you can never get sick of. We realized while we were there that many people in Tzfat take off for vacation during Pesach because for many religious families this is the best time to spend with their families. So it was a little more quiet than usual, but just as amazing. We had lunch with a view of Mt. Meron and then headed back to Rosh Pina for a nice relaxing afternoon at Mitzpe Hayamim.

Tel Dan and Metulla

Maneuvering through the streams of Tel Dan

















View from Metulla of a town in Lebanon












After an amazing vegetarian dinner a little live music and a good night's sleep we were all ready to go for another day of touring in the north. Our driver Yossi was able to get our van temporarily fixed and the whole day we were holding our breath so "Lucky" wouldn't overheat again. It did. "Lucky" was a heck of a tour van. Anyway, we woke up, had a wonderful Kosher for Passover, vegetarian breakfast at our hotel and then headed out for Tel dan, a nature reserve and archaeological site. Josh and I had visited here with HUC and thought that Rhoda and Peter would enjoy it. I think this was definitely a highlight of the trip. We all greatly enjoyed wandering through the cobblestone pathways and maneuvering through the streams. When we were done with Tel Dan we headed up to Metulla which is on the northern border of Israel and Lebanon. This is a fascinating area. The way that the land and the cities are set up when you stand on a hill in Metulla and look out towards Lebanon (with a little help from some binoculars) you can actually see people walking down the street and tending to their every day business in the Lebanon border town. Even though Metulla has had it share of problems from being on the border, it is a beautiful area with hiking trails and a cute little center of town. Definitely somewhere I hope to visit again.

Heading out on the road...

Bet She'an













Hanging out on the freeway with our overheated van








After celebrating Pesach for two days in Jerusalem we headed out on the road with our guide Yossi. We left Jerusalem and drove through the West Bank towards Bet She'an and then to our final destination for our next three nights, Rosh Pina. The drive towards Bet She'an is very fascinating because you drive past Palestinian and Israeli towns that are right next to each other, yet they are all living peacefully. Bet She'an is right on the other side of the border of the West Bank and Israel. When we arrived at Bet She'an we had our first realization that besides Jerusalem most of the restaurants in Israel shut down for Passover, but we managed to find a little food and then we wandered around the ancient Tel of which it is believed that there are atleast 20 layers of settlements dating back as far as the Neolithic period (5th millenium BCE). Since the area was having a heat spell that day we cut our visit a little short and then headed off to Bet Alpha, an ancient synagogue that houses a preserved mosaic of a zodiac wheel from the 6th century CE. The plan for the rest of the day was to visit the Golan Heights and some overlooks of Israel and Syria. Unfortunately we had two factors going against us. First was that it was quite overcast and so the views were not so fantastic and second was that for some reason the car seemed to be overheating. So... we did manage to drive a little in the Golan to get an idea of where we were in relation to Syria and then the car decided it wanted to take a little rest on the side of the road. So, we got to hang out on the freeway right below Rosh Pina and Tzfat until someone else could pick us up and take us to Mitzpe Hayamim which was to be our home for the next few nights. It was quite an adventure and we were all very happy to get to the hotel and relax for the evening.

The beginning of Pesach

The grocery store prepares for Passover by putting signs in front of the cans stating that they are Kosher for Passover















Religious men burning the items from their house that are not Kosher for Passover













Our new seder plate (Thanks Jeff and Kim) with some alternate items:
-wasabi for horseradish
-a liquid resembling blood (hot sauce) for a shank bone












Josh leading our friends Matt and Ryan out of Egypt
(Josh is wearing his kittel from our wedding as he must do each time he leads a Passover seder)








So as soon as our trip in the Negev ended we began our next adventure of Pesach with Rhoda and Peter. They visited us in Israel from April 10-26. Throughout this time they were able to experience Pesach and Yom Hashoah as well as travel throughout Jerusalem and Northern Israel. I will try and recap all of our experiences, but seeing as they were here for a little over two weeks I might leave some things out. In Israel the first 24 hours of Pesach is a Chag which means that everything shuts down. So, our first task was to go grocery shopping and get everything we needed for our Pesach seder as well as the next day. My favorite part about shopping for Pesach is that the stores label things Kosher for Pesach and store away all of the items that are not Kosher. Just a side note: The Kosher restaurants who stay open also have to completely change their kitchens so everything is Kosher for Pesach. Josh and I hosted our first seder in our home. It was a lot of fun, but also a lot of work as I'm sure some of you know. For those of you who don't celebrate Pesach my closest comparison would be preparing to have Thanksgiving at your house. Josh mainly led the seder with a little help from our friend Matt and I did most of the cooking with everyone lending a helping hand. I made my first attempt at vegetarian matzah ball soup. I must say I think it turned out quite well for my first time. I even made the matzah balls! I would say that evening as a whole was a little alternative. This was partly due to the food and some of the substitutes we had to make on the seder plate, as well as Josh having us march around the room with matzah held over our heads. Hmmm... It was quite an experience nonetheless and a great start to the Samuels vacation in Israel.

HUC Tiyul in the Negev

View from Sde Boker, Ben Gurion's kibbutz














Us and some of our friends hiking Ein Avdat












THE NEGEV














Viewpoint of Israel, Jordan, Saudi Arabia and Egypt








On April 6-9 HUC took us to the Negev which is in the South of Israel. To many Israelis this is the most beautiful area of Israel, even though it is all desert. This was definitely the best trip that the school has planned. (Atleast we thought so) The first day we went to visit Ben Gurion's gravesite and kibbutz Sde Boker and then we went for a hike in Ein Avdat. That night we slept under the stars in the desert, no tents, no facilities. We greatly enjoyed this, but some of Josh's fellow students weren't as excited about the idea so they opted to go stay at Kibbutz Yahel where we were to stay the following nights. We woke up the next morning and hiked straight from our campsite into the mountains overlooking Sinai, Jordan and Saudi Arabia. It was definitely one of my favorite hikes this year and we even got a little bouldering in. The end of the hike took us down to the Red Sea and the city of Eilat. There we spent some time on the beach, tossing the frisbee and snorkeling in the Sea. We spent Shabbat on Kibbutz Yahel. This is one of two Reform kibbutzim in the Negev. Unfortunately their guest services left much to be desired. We shared a room the size of a decent sized walk in closet with two of our friends. The room was made equally small by three bunk beds adorning its walls. Yep, I said bunk beds. I realized as I climbed up to the top bunk that people our age are just not meant to sleep in bunk beds. Oh well, we survived. The last day of the tiyul we visited Kibbutz Lotan. This is an extremely progressive kibbutz not only because it belongs to the Reform movement, but because they practice Creative ecology, recycling anything and everything, Natural Health and Birding. Check out their website: http://www.kibbutzlotan.com . I was in heaven there. They offered us tea made with fresh herbs and cooked on a stove using solar energy. We also had an amazing, Organic lunch. This was a fresh change from the quite disgusting food we experienced at Kibbutz Yahel. Overall it was a very nice, relaxing weekend in the Negev!

Northern Israel with Jeff and Kim

Our campsite with a view of Tiberias across Lake Kinneret

Josh, Jeff and Nikky at the Zavitan waterfall in Yehudiya


















People on their way to celebrate Shabbat in Tzfat











View from Mt. Meron









So I just realized that I am quite behind in posting. At this point we have just experienced the Pesach holiday in Israel, Yom Hashoah and are about to head into Yom Hazikaron and Yom Ha'atzmaut, the days of Memorial and Independence, but I still haven't even written about our last weekend with Jeff and Kim. They were here for about three weeks and have now been gone for about a month and here I am just finishing up about their trip. So their first and last weekends they were here we did a little hiking and camping. The first was Mahktesh Ramon and the second we opted for the greenery of the North. Our first night we camped on the Eastern side of the Kinneret(Sea of Galilee) in what we realized the next morning was a popular fishing spot. For us it just served its purpose of a nice place to rest our heads. In the morning we woke up to not only many fisherman, but a beautiful view of Tiberias across the lake. That day we headed to Yehudiya Nature Reserve for a nice hike along the river with amazing hexagonal pools and then at the end to a waterfall. When we all turned the corner to see the waterfall there was a feeling of deja vu. This is an extremely popular place for youth trips to visit when they are in Israel and we all realized we had been there before. That night we opted to spend Shabbat in the mystical city of Tzfat. Unfortunately, since Shabbat was nearing it meant that after the hike we had to scramble over to the city in order to get a place to stay and gather some food before things shut down for the 24 hour observance. After going to an Orthodox synagogue to experience their shabbat services we spent a very nice Shabbat dinner in our hotel noshing on hummus, pita, fresh veggies, and challah. Not so gourmet, but served the purpose. The next morning, being reform Jews we broke Shabbat and headed out to hike Mt. Meron. This used to be the highest point in Israel before they aquired Mt. Hermon near the Syrian border.

Makhtesh Ramon

Jeff in the sleeping tent












Us on top of a small peak in the crater












Hiking in the crater

















Look at the difference in the rock formations
















Our lovely van. It even made beeping noises when we backed up














View of the crater













Us and some friends hiking around the crater rim (as you can see it was a little chilly and windy)














Preparing shakshuka in the kitchen















Nikky and our friend Josh in front of the hang out tent
















Josh and Jeff hanging out on Shabbat. I think this is the first time Josh has ever worn a scarf








Since Jeff and Kim are visiting us now we decided we needed to try and get away on some adventures. The first weekend of their visit we rented a van with some friends and drove down to Makhtesh Ramon, the Ramon crater in the southern desert of Israel. The crater itself is now a 250,000 acre national park. The pictures will better explain what the crater and its different rock formations look like. We camped at a bedoin style place that had a large tent where we slept and then another tent where we could make meals and hang out. It was somewhat glorified camping. It was a weekend of great company, amazing food and even more incredible was the hiking and exploring of the fascinating area we were in.