By Madelyne Solonche, NFTY in Israel Participant, Bus 2
The trip began with an hour bus drive to the Sea of Galilee, we stopped at a supermarket for snacks, and of course I had to buy ice cream before our four-day trek to the Mediterranean. At this point I was extremely excited, four days in the woods with my best friends, what could be better! Little did I know that this trip would be full of challenges as well.
The first day consisted of a downhill hike next to the Moran river. It was beautiful, but extremely different then the desert hike we did a couple days earlier. The big group was split into subgroups, each subgroup was in charge of cooking their own breakfast and lunch along the hike. For lunch, we made stir fry, although it wasn’t the best, it was a great bonding activity. After lunch we did an activity called navigation where each subgroup identified certain points on the hike using a map. The group to identify the most points correctly did not have to clean dishes that night. We won. That night our evening program was to sit alone in the woods in pitch black for 30 minutes. Crazy, I know. I was terrified, but eventually I accepted it and it helped me clear my mind and thoughts.
The next day was more fun than the first. The hike was harder, but much prettier. For lunch we stopped at a natural spring and swam, and if you stood really still the fish would swim on your feet. To end the day we had a hike up a mountain and I’m not going to lie, it was hard. However, I had the support of my amazing friends, and I made it to the top. My friends and I cried tears of joy. All of our hard work and we had this amazing view. We could see a castle which our tour guide explained was once guarded by knights. The day ended with us singing happy birthday to my friend and eating cake.
The last day was my favorite day by far! We had a late(r) wake up at 6:30 a.m. and mountain biked to the Mediterranean. There was something so freeing about riding a mountain bike (in Israel may I add). When we reached the Mediterranean, everyone cheered and ran to the beach. It was the prettiest beach I have ever seen with crystal clear blue water and lots of space to swim. It was in that moment when I was in the sea floating with my friends that I realized I had made the right choice in doing Sea to Sea.
Although at times I felt like I could not pick my feet up for one more step, or that I wanted to kill every single bug on this planet, or even that I had not showered in four days, I would not trade this experience for anything.
I bonded with so many people and strengthened so many friendships, as well as saw my hard work pay off. This was truly a once in a lifetime experience.
