TL-51-178 Update 1

We landed in the holy land early Monday morning in high spirits. After a seamless customs process, we met our Israel-based Taglit coordinator and Tour Guide, Gadi, who gave us all the ground rules and an amazing packed breakfast and bottled water to start our first day. After a quick breakfast outside the airport, we hopped on our bus and met the amazing driver, Razi, who is our esteemed chauffeur for the next 10 days. He and our security guard, Israel, have already bonded with the group and it’s already starting to feel like family. Razi drove us north to the city of Caesarea where Gadi gave us the tour of the ancient Roman city built around 2000 years ago. It even still has a functioning amphitheater used for live shows to this day. After the tour, we hung out at the cafe and enjoyed the beautiful view of the Mediterranean Sea before hopping on the bus again. We ventured further north to Mount Barkan to take in the views of the Israel Valley where King Saul and his army battled and fell. After that we arrived at Kibbutz Afik, our accommodations for the next 2 nights. We had some down time, dinner, and ended our day with a discussion about what it means to be in Israel at a time like this. We’re all looking forward to experiencing so much more in the next 9 days!