It’s my personal opinion that everyone, regardless of religion (or lack thereof) should visit Israel. There is just no possible way to describe the deeper understanding one gets about current events (and how past events are guiding them) from standing in Jerusalem and seeing the Western Wall of the old temple, the gardens of Gethsemane and the Dome of the Rock.
It’s breathtakingly beautiful. There’s an aura about it that just can’t be put into words.
The Dead Sea Scrolls, climbing the snake paths of Mount Masada in the dark and watching the sun rise, snorkeling in the Red Sea, floating on the Dead Sea, entering the walled city through the Jaffa gate and seeing the Tower of King David, seeing the Baha’i Temple in Haifa, the multi-coloured sandstones and flour caves in the Negev, the Arab markets in the Old City in Jerusalem, the bustling metropolis of Tel Aviv, camping along the banks of the Red Sea in the Sinai desert, staying with an American Orthodox family in the settlement of Hebron over Shabbat, Herod’s Harbor along the Mediterranean… and that doesn’t even scratch the surface – I could probably go on and on and on. It is almost impossible not to be touched in some way or another, seeing and experiencing the holy land – touching, smelling, feeling it beneath your feet. You can’t do it now, of course, but I stood in the spot where it is believed that Moses took the Ten Commandments from G-d. It left me utterly speechless and awed. (And remember, I’m an agnostic Jew!)
It is quite jarring when you first arrive and see all the soldiers with their M16s and ammo strapped to them. They’re literally everywhere – walking the streets, riding the buses, milling around in town, hanging out in the shops – everywhere. Oddly, after a couple of days they blend into the scenery so much that you don’t even notice them.
Indeed, we had some close calls. Our first morning there we were headed to the Arab markets in Jerusalem and learned that a bomb had gone off there the day before. Several people from our group (including me) got lost in a wooded area near the Lebanon border. We eventually found our abandoned bus and waited for the rest of the group to arrive without incident. However, we were supposed to have met up with another tour group there and they never showed at all. When we got back to the field school where we were staying and asked them what happened, they said they’d met with road blocks because Lebanon and Syria we engaged in a war and Israel gave them 20 days to cease fire or she’d blow them off the face of the earth (no vouching for the validity of that story – I’m just saying what we were told). All access to the Golan Heights (where we were) was closed to everyone but citizens, as it was considered a war zone. Our bus driver knew this and, without warning us, snuck us in a back road! We never even heard a gunshot. <shrug> It’s very hard to explain how very, very safe you actually feel there, but you do.
With regard to expense, I went through a program set up by the Jewish Federation (it was called “Israel Summer Happening”). I paid for part of it from my savings and the JF gave me a loan for $750, payable over 10 years – interest free! I have no idea if they’re still doing that or not, but it would certainly be worth checking with your local chapter.
A really good person to talk to about Israel who’s been there much more recently than I have is Kyla. If she doesn’t see this thread, I’d recommend emailing her to ask her about it. I believe she lived there for a year (?) and is very knowledgeable about it.
Some really beautiful pictures of Israel