camping trips

Sooo.. because I already explained every detail to you guys I'm just going to briefly say what I did because I have repeated this adventure to so many people that its just annoying now. I got to the campsite with Aron, my new hick/redneck/farmer/republican friend. We explored the old, torn down village and on the way back was stuck in the middle of a cow field surrounded my cows staring at us (I thought they were going to charge it was scary) but we managed to get by and got to our campsite and cooked a can of beans on the stoveburner. We were still hungry after that and our lovely gay neighbors made us food(unfortunately most of it was chicken and meat but i got some great salad). Then we explored the campsite and met a bunch of people and then we hung out with our new gay friends and they gave us vodka and snacks and we played games with them. Then we went to sleep under the stars with a full stomach, sleeping bags and a whole lot of excitement. I woke up at 5.00 in the morning to 100 flies sitting on my face.I looked around at the mountains and smiled. I wish I could wake up to nature like that everyday.. it just makes my soul feel so full and alive. It's so much more natural waking up to the sun and a couple of bugs then a cold dark room with an alarm clock. If I could take a bag and live in the outdoors for the rest of my life I would.(welll.. maybe just a couple of years) but I am the happiest person alive when surrounded by nature. Anyways.. We had breakfast, filled up our waterbottles, and took our first adventurous step into the unknown. It took us a half hour to walk to the first waterfall.. it was a breathtaking, abosolutely draw dropping view, and it's amazing when your walking through a huge mountain and you feel like your the only living thing in the world and you feel so small and insignificant but its a great feeling to know that your such a small part of a immense, tremendous world because all of your silly worries and problems all of a sudden become trivial, unimportant things that you can brush away in an instant. Anways.. so arrived at the waterfall and because we were sweating like pigs we jumped right in the freezing water and we swam for a while and then I climbed up the waterfall and JUMPED OFF A 20 FOOT CLIFF!! i was shaking I was so scared but It was so much fun and it reminded me of the time in Africa when dad jumped( "I'm still a young man!!")Hahah. So we kept going and had to cross many rivers and go down a steeep 30 foot ladder down a waterfall and met so many awesome people on the way. Every half hour or so we'd jump in another pool of water to keep cool and we took a couple of lunch/water breaks. The last hour was definitely the hardest because it was straight up the steps of the mountain and pushed it really hard was boookin it up the mountain (mostly to impress the 2 Israeli commander soldiers that were with me) and they were telling me that for army training they were given a map, memorized it, and had to hike 5 hours through the mountain alone with just a compass and a jug of water!! (I would get lost in the first 5 minutes...) So we finally finished the hike me and Aron passed out in the shade for a couple of hours and then woke up 2 guys that worked at the mountain gave us a ride alll the way back to Tel Aviv. It was exhausting but ALL WORTH IT! One of the most exhilarating experiences of my life. Then the next morning I went with 60 kids to the Kinneret and camped out, and then the next day went on a 4 hour water hike through this awesome river. Sorry this is bad writing I'm just babbling as fast as I can because I need to shower. I was just at the laundry mat for 3 hours in the hot, hot heat because there were so many people and then went grocery shopping and made eggs,potatoes and onions all together !! Yum. Love you all





"There is pleasure in the pathless woods,
There is rapture on the lonely shore,
There is society where none intrudes,
By the deep sea and the music in its roar;
I love not man the less, but Nature more!"
— Lord Byron