Here's what I want you to do ... Pretend you are in a bottle, and shake it real hard. Like a bottle of salad dressing, trying to mix the ingredients together.
Welcome to a jeep tour! Bump bump bumpity bump!
We left Yerushalayim bright and early. After a minor detail of nearly setting Shauly's apartment on fire. (Who leaves a plastic dishrack on top of a toaster? Shauly doesn't anymore! His it's a melted mess now. If you were ever wondering what melted plastic smells like, take my word, IT STINKS! And it hurts your lungs and eyes with all that smoke.) We headed to the Judean Desert. We arrived at Eretz Beraishit. This is a little reserve. When we arrived, we were greeted by Eliezar, Avraham's servant. He spoke to us about Avraham's history, and then gave us tunics to wear. There were seven camels that each hold two riders. Zahava and Shauly got on one of them, and my mom and step dad got on another.
My mother was hysterically funny. She started screaming when the camel got up. We were all laughing so hard. The rest were taken, so Sruli, Shmueli, and I all walked. Two of the camels were riderless, and Shmueli speculated that they were being trained. As we were walking, one of those two turned towards his trainer, and tried to bite him. He then began to kick him, and started to jump or something. I have no idea what he was doing, but when he turned my way, I turned around and ran the other way! In hindsight that probably wasn't the smartest thing to do. But gut reaction is to just get out of there. The trainers are very good and got him under control very quickly. When we got to the end of that road, it was our turn to ride. Sruli and I shared a camel.
Our camel was a naughty guy. He kept eating from the side of the road, which made me nervous. The he decided to try and get ahead of the camel in front of him, even though he was tied behind him. So yeah, it was a little scary, especially when they turned us around and we were closed to the side of the road that is on a cliff. Why do Israelis like to live on the edge literally, I have no idea.
We got to meet Avraham, and we were treated to some of his famous hospitality. I had decided before the trip to be brave and try new things. I will admit, I've never had a date. Since there was one there, I did try it. I didn't not like it, but it is not the first fruit I would reach for on a platter.
We also got to make pita. Not the pocket pita we are used to. Even though this was only flour and water, it didn't taste like a matza. I also tried the olive oil dip they had, but I didn't find that to my liking too much.
When we got back into the jeep, it was time for the fun to begin. We headed off the main road onto a dirt trail. Then he asked if we wanted to go up the side of the mountain or around it. I, of course, picked up the side with Sruli. We were outnumbered by everyone else. He did drive fast at times, and he made figure 8s, and went up and down. My mom of course was totally freaking out, going OH NO. We were all having such a blast. The scenery is beyond description. Pictures do not do it justice. I hate the desert. It's one of the reasons I don't like going to Phoenix. It's brown and bland and gross, IMHO. However, this is lush and green and also has rocks.
Daniel, our tour guide, told us that in the summer all for the grass is gone. So I am really happy we were doing this now. At one point we stopped to see a large cistern.
It was probably similar to the one that Yosef HaTzadik was in when his brothers sold him. We were able to see how he wouldn't have been able to climb out of it. (Talk about making the Chumash come to life!) Shauly had moved into the middle of the jeep, so I was in the backetee-back of the jeep with Zahava, Sruli, and Shmueli.
We saw a bedouin caring for the goats. He had two dogs to help him (and chase us).
Now it was time for more fun. We flew around and bumped and rattled and ooohhhed and ahhhhed over the views.
The far left section of houses is Eretz Beraishit! That is how far we had gone.
We saw the remnants of a castle from the times of the crusades.
Three guesses as to what this is ... It only took me one guess to get it right.
Yeah, it's a toilet!
We went down a big wadi and then crossed a creek. We climbed up to a small aqueduct that is being used today.
We saw a military lookout bunker that is not really used any more (thankfully not needed, but does get used from time to time, I think).
We headed back, and Daniel took us on one last ride. Let me tell you, this whole day was like riding a roller-coaster without being hooked to the tracks. It was thrilling and exhilarating and scary all at the same time. We were amazed at the sheer beauty of Eretz Yisroel. Everything described in the tanach is exactly how we saw it. We saw places Dovid Hamelech describes in his psalms. It is breathtaking to look at the view of the mountains where Moshe Rabainu looked out to Israel. We rode in spots that Avraham may have walked. Basically, we saw a living, breathing tanach today. It was a day we will need forget!
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