Arrived! First Few Hours

Without any complications in our flight from Kennedy Airport to Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv, we came into the area of the airport from customs to see Ephraim & Rimona Frank waving their hands to attract our attention. Jan's first impression was: Home! I am so comfortable in this land and its people.

The drive to the Frank's home was full of conversation, so I wasn't aware of the time it took. They have guests staying at their house, Karen and Bob from Gainesville, Florida, and they greeted us warmly as well. We remember meeting Karen once before in Aqaba, when she was visiting! Rimona and Karen busily prepare a wonderful lunch.


I'm taking pictures of the Sukkah in the backyard and of our group. We were taken over to Michal and Steve Kramer, our hosts for the next two nights, neighbors of the Franks. Delightful couple, our age with grown boys, Americans who have lived here for the past 20 years. Thus ended our first day in The Land.

The Adventure begins . . . . again

This is not our first trip to Israel. We first came here with a tour group in 1994 from Woodman Valley Chapel and our good friends, Jim and Daryl Tomberlin. (This was our tour bus during our first trip.) That was a life changing trip for us. In the 15+ years that have passed since then, we have grown in our faith and in our love for the God, the land, and the people of Israel. We've been back to Israel several times since then. We even lived in the area for a time in 1999 and 2000 when we spent almost a year in Aqaba, Jordan.

It was during our time in Jordan that we became students of the Torah, talmudim in Hebrew. Jerry began teaching the Torah to small groups and we have been involved with Torah teaching ever since. While in Jordan, we explored the country (including Petra) and made numerous trips to Israel. We also made some good friends in Israel (such as Ephraim and Rimona Frank and Boaz and Rinah Dreyer) whom we plan to visit on this trip.

Come along with us on this new God-inspired journey as we re-acquaint ourselves with the Land of Israel and its people.