So many of the crazy moments we have had here could have only happened in Israel. One of my favorites that comes to mind is when we were visiting the town of Sderot to do community service on Purim. We had started the day off by delivering mishloach manot to families around the town who are affected by trauma from terrorist attacks. By the afternoon, some issue had happened with the buses and our group didn’t have a bus to pick us up so we had to just sit on a sidewalk for a little while and wait. While we were waiting in a neighborhood, a family down the street saw us and invited us into their house for their Purim barbeque! Even though there were almost 20 of us, we all crammed into their little porch and celebrated Purim with them. They had so much food, from chicken wings to couscous and pita, and they made sure everyone had something to eat. It was so generous for them to invite a bunch of random strangers from the street into their house to celebrate the Jewish holiday with them. They were beyond excited to have us as guests and wanted to take pictures with all of us. Even though they didn’t speak English and we could barely understand each other, we had a great time together and their hospitality towards us was remarkable. When we told the story to others when we got back, most of their responses were “that’s just how Israelis are.” People here are so generous and accepting that this event didn’t even surprise anyone.

Another “only in Israel moment” was when we went to stay at the Bedouin tents this past weekend. We ate a traditional Bedouin dinner, sitting on the floor on cushions together, and then listened to a Bedouin speak about their way of life. That night, we lit a campfire and made smores and sang songs. The next morning, a few of us decided we wanted to wake up to watch the sunrise. We left the tent at 5:00 am and walked up a small mountain to watch the gorgeous sunrise over the whole Negev desert. It was so pretty and peaceful, and you could see for miles. After, we went to ride camels which was so much fun. I had never ridden camels before and they were so much bigger than I had expected. The whole trip was so much fun and sleeping in the desert was really cool.

After being in Israel for so long, I realized that many of the things that happen here would never happen back home in the US. Whether that be because of the mentalities of Israelis, the weather and topography, or just the Israeli lifestyle, I have had so many amazing experiences that are so unique to Israel.