From the Dead to the Red

We got up early, finished packing, and loaded up the van that we had picked up the night before. Before we started our journey we prayed the van would run safely and the AC would work.

We started off the trip with some sightseeing as we traveled through Jerusalem toward Jericho. We watched for the last tree of the Judean Hill country and saw the Dead Sea.

We all got out of the van at the sea level marker and took a photo. Fun fact: the Dead Sea is the lowest points on earth at 1,300 ft below sea level. There was also a friendly camel standing by the sign waiting for a tourist to take a ride. But he was happy to just pose for us as well.

We also stopped to see the rock formation that is traditionally called Lot’s wife.

After the Dead Sea it’s all desert until Eilat so everyone except the driver took a nap. We woke up a little north of Eilat at Yotvata (‏יטבתה) a dairy farm kibbutz (‏קיבוץ) that is famous for its milk products and especially their ice cream.

After our stop we made it to The Shelter—a youth hostel that we serve with when we come—just in time to see our friends and the owners of The Shelter.

We ordered pizza and ate it with all the new and old volunteers our first night and enjoyed getting to visit with everyone.