It’s official! We are touched-down, bunked-down in Israel!

We didn’t land in Munich until 9:30 AM, local time. As I stated in yesterday’s post, sleep was intermittent at best (but better described as fitful).

I’ll be honest, I wasn’t the happiest about not getting an apt amount of sleep. I spent the day traveling non-stop and some sound rest not only felt due, but also necessary for me to keep the energy going.

Never fear though! After a short layover in Munich, we boarded back on a plane again, this time headed for our final destination: Tel Aviv, Israel!

The happy part was that the plane ended up being held up on the tarmac for an extra 40 minutes, which was news to me because I fell asleep not long after taking my seat! Missed takeoff and everything!

If you’ve never had airplane food, it may be difficult to describe how simultaneously jilted and satisfied one feels as/after they’ve eaten some.

Despite doing nothing but sitting, I ate nearly everything hungrily, only to question my decision later on. I don’t think I’d ever call myself a “foodie”, but I do enjoy indulging and this, my friends, was done more out of the necessity for fuel than for the pleasure of it.

At 4:30 PM local time, we landed in Tel Aviv, safe and sound! The welcome was felt (as was the relief in being able to use my own two legs for the next several days)!

We all made it through customs swimmingly and there met up with the rest of our group. 22 people in the group total!

We met our tour guide, Itai, who led us to our bus and gave us some interesting facts about Israel and Tel Aviv on the way to our hotel.

My favorite fact though was Itai’s introduction of himself, which included that his name came from one of the mighty men of David: Ittai/Ithai Ben Rivai (2 Samuel 23:8,29; 1 Chronicles 11:10,31). What a name!

The hotel we stayed in wasn’t where our original hotel reservations were, but since we had to exchange them, they gave us upgrades.

Let me tell you, this is a swanky place. Dinner was spectacular and past meals sure didn’t hurt that impression. My and Carly’s room is bigger than any apartment I’ve lived in and it’s got a balcony overlooking the Mediterranean Sea. Tomorrow’s pics will show that off.

Thank you to everyone who is praying for me and my group! I appreciate and covet them! Now onto the learning and exploring tomorrow!