blogs/rabbi-joshua-hoffman

If Day two was about real challenge and opportunity, today was all about confronting those challenges head on and overcoming our fears! We began with a well-deserved and much needed later start to our trip. There was a mass convergence to the pool area for some fun water play. Then we headed to Mt. Bental to view the military post at the Syrian border and gain a bird's eye view of the strategic importance to maintaining the 4 million year old volcano in Israeli control. The kids ran around the bunkers while our guide Keren explained the geological, political, and social significance of the Golan Heights and the complicated relationship with Syria. Keren told us the story of Eli Cohen, the Israeli spy captured by the Syrians and the long struggle to obtain his remains and return them to Israel. Finally, we all marveled at the fresh mulberries and other treats that were sold at a stand near the entrance to the bunkers.

No trip to Israel is complete without finding a friend or acquaintance along the way. As we walked down the path we ran into Joey Schecter, a VBSDS graduate. He was participating in a Birthright trip. We introduced him to the group, and when the VBSDS kids saw a grown young man with a huge grin and a passionate expression of spiritual connection to the Land of Israel, we felt a transformation beginning. Israel is more than a great vacation destination. It's a reconnection to our heritage and an inspiration to let the land transform us.

We descended the heights for a quick bite and a short drive to the Manara cliffs. This was pure unadulterated fun and adventure as we exited the bus to find an extensive alpine slide track, trampolines, and for us the zip lines. We ascended the cliffs by cable car and geared up to drop off the side of the cliffs at a breakneck speed for approximately 600 feet! Here's where challenges were overcome, as some of the most fearful and cautious among the group took the step forward and make the drop. IT WAS AMAZING! The kids will tell you the jeep ride back to the to was as exhilarating as the zip line since the jeep driver took it upon himself to drive the winding road back up the hill as fast as possible, often slipping off the road and ostensibly tipping the truck over!!!

Our high adventure didn't stop there as we drove a little further north to the Dag Al HaDan kayaking and river boating experience. We changed our clothes, broke into groups of 6 and away we went! You can't really call the Jordan river a high class river, but the occasional bump into the riverbank and the splashing fight between our group were certainly adventurous.

We finished our evening with a sumptuous dinner at the place Dag Al HaDan. Knowing that dag means fish in Hebrew, our fresh trout meal wasn't a surprise.

One of the highlights of this evening was our late night study of Kabbalah.

Given our proximity to the mystical city of Tsfat, we gathered for an evening of "spirits and spirituality." A small group of us sat together, learned about the mystical tradition, and for many it was the chance to overcome some of the trepidation with learning more about the Jewish tradition in general. Securing the Land, zip lining, deepening our connection to Israel and the Jewish tradition, a challenge overcome indeed.