I've been told that this is the first blog entry since day 2, so I have quite the challenge in front of me to cover all that has
happened since then.

The beter question might be to ask what HAVEN'T we done in the past week. We've visited the Kotel,
conquered Masada, rafted down the Jordan River, ridden camels, spent a night at a Bedouin camp and floated in the dead sea.
Many of us became B'nai Mitzvot, some for the first time, this past Shabbat in Jerusalem. We explored Tel Aviv as well as much of
Jerusalem, both new and old. We've eaten, shopped, bartered, and then eaten some more. Finally, we've met and bonded with 8 awesome
Israeli soldiers, who represent the bright future the state of Israel has.

As I sit in our hotel in Ashkelon on the last night of this trip writingt this blog, I've realized there is no way I can
possibly convey how amazing this experience has been for all of us. People who were total strangers barely a week ago I now
count among my closest friends.

For all of those reading who have children, siblings, relatives, or friends who are on Bus #989, my best advice would be to
ask questions when we all return. Ask about the lion dog on the Kibbutz, being thanked by Dirk, trying to find Sarah, and our
collective inability to count to 40. Ask about the night in the Negev desert, our beloved tour guide Muki, and all the hours
we should've slept but were way too eager to remain in each other's company, knowing how quickly these 10 days would pass.
Ask about the places we've visited, what we've learned and relearned, the friends we made and the moments we will never forget.

It has not even begun to sink in that this adventure is all but over, and it may not be a for a few weeks or months that I truly
realize the profundity of the last 10 days. One thing is crystal clear: I've formed an incredible bond with the state of
Israel, and I know that even though I depart tomorrow morning, it will not be long before I return to my homeland.

Until later,
Max Lowe
Bus #989 - Taglit Birthright Israel

Day One:
After ten and a half teasing hours on the plane, bus 989 arrived in Tel Aviv, Israel. Following the plane ride, we made our way to Caesara for breakfast on the beach. We heard interesting stories about the reasoning behind why Israeli's were not allowed to go to the circus, and saw an amazing ancient theatre. Every Israeli celebritiy dies to perform at the theatere on the Caesarea beach. After breakfast at the beach, our tour guide, Muki, introduced us to the village and let us roam the city for lunch and shopping on our own. Recollecting at the bus, we rode to the Kibbutz to make our way into our rooms and settle in to our rooms for the next few days.We had time to relax and organize our rooms before dinner. We then did some fun orientation games in order to get to know our fellow group members and break the ice to end the night.

Day Two:
It all started with a hike. Israel's highest mountain, Mt. Meron, brought rocky and tree stump covered paths for the crew to travel across. A couple group team bonding games were played as we made our way through the heat. The views consisted of mountains on top of mountains. Even Israel's neighbor Syria could be seen from one point. Heading into the village, we went to a synagogue and experienced a sauna heat packed group of Israli's swaying flags and dancing. Next, we followed the cobblestone pathway to the glass blower. Watching her as she told her unique story of life and showed us how she makes her pomegranate glass holdings. Continuing, we made our way down several flights of stairs to work on taking trash to a dumpster from a bomb shelter. In order to do this, every person lined up where we passed the trash from person to person down to the dumpster. A nice Israli lady offered us pretzels as we jammed on the grass to some guitar. After helping out the community we went back into the village and visited a synagogue. At this point the tour guide told a historic story about a bomb hitting the temple and cracking it. Despite the bombing, luckily, no one got hurt. Next, we witnessed some candle making where one of the group members received two candles twisted together for her upcoming birthday. There was every animal imagined displayed as wax, along with Noahs arc and even the simple duck. The adventure packed day was continued with some wandering and shopping for lunch. Hopping back into the bus, we went into the beatiful and industrialized town we've been to yet, Tiberias. In Tiberias we did some shopping and caught a little dinner before ending our night.