Home sweet home. 

i got from Hadera to Ben Gurion Airport in Greater Tel Aviv at midnight by car ($100 USD) since the trains did not run due to some issues, then, after about 12 hours flight on the ElAL's Boeing 777, arrived at the JFK airport in NYC, and then, due to lack of time to make a connecting flight and no direct bus route, i took a cab to New Jersey Liberty International ($150 USD), at the height of rush hour, around 3:30 pm, and naturally got stuck in traffic of cosmic proportions, i never seen anywhere so many cars in one spot, it looked like the entire country decided to go for a ride all at once! :) 

Luckily i had a Russian-speaking cab driver from Baku, who kept me entertained and drove very well, all things considered, going from lane to lane and making to the airport by 5:30 pm, where i managed to get my connecting flight on the Porter airlines smaller plane, business class with all bells and whistles, to Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport on the Island across downtown, to my pleasant surprise, since i was expecting to land at Pearson International, and being extremely tired did not look forward of travelling yet another hour+ from there to Toronto's East end in the middle of the night. After a short free ferry ride, the free bus provided by the Porter airlines dropped me by the Union station, a walking distance to the Queen street car which i took home. Very exciting and exhausting journey. i am happy to have been defender of the Toronto Island airport before, and after actually using it i see the great logic and convenience behind it. 

Going through the customs to and fro was what i have expected, the luggage was thoroughly examined, on the way to Israel i was strip searched and checked for micro particles with some advanced tech, all the items were scanned using different light spectrum, and i was questioned by the head of the security about why i was going to Israel and all related questions. i have showed them photos of my artwork on my blackberry playbook and spoke to them in the Biblical Hebrew which i have learned while studying in the Rabbinical College in New Jersey over twenty years ago,reciting some passages from Talmud which got stuck with me for some reason, i think that really did help convincing them that i am Jewish. All things considering, the ElAl airlines did a good job of getting me, and all on board, safe and sound to Israel and back.

On my way to Jerusalem, i took three tourist trips while in Israel, i got very emotional and tears started to flow uncontrollably from my eyes, i guess it was long time coming home to the Holy Land that my soul needed to make. After visiting the Wailing Wall, the remnants of the Second Temple on the Temple Mount, praying at it and kissing it, i felt much relief and felt much better thereafter. According to tradition, i left my prayers for humankind along with my One Page Bible in the cracks of the Temple Wall, i could feel the spiritual energy there present very strongly, the feeling is hard to describe. I have also visited the Church of the Nativity in the Bethlehem, West Bank where i bought for my mom a little silver hand adorned with the crystals, which i have placed on all the holy spots i was visiting, including the Temple Wall, and the spots where the Jesus of Nazareth was born and the cave where his body rested at death prior to resurrection, before giving it to her as a momento.

The white city of Jerusalem, originally built on the seven hills and now spreading across the twenty two, and the whole country i saw is beautiful and very well maintained. The native trees that were cut out throughout the ages by the passing through armies, are methodically being replanted and they did a very good job at that. I loved to see the diverse beautiful vegetation and how the land is being lovingly taken care of. The territory of Israel has seven different micro climate zones, from snowy mountain picks to the desert near the Dead Sea, with the temperatures ranging, in the winter time of my visit, from 7C to 22C in just one hour drive. The desert is green during this time and vast variety of flowering plants start to bloom in the symphony of colours i have never seen before. While the Israel's climate is known for much precipitation, i was blessed with good sunny weather all throughout my trip, with only a few light showers at night and a beautiful rainbow appearing in the sky on my last day, a good omen, the photo of which can be found in my albums.

After all said and done, thanks be to God, i made it home with only $10 in my pocket, tired, but happy and satisfied. I have seen my mom first time in over twenty years and visited my ancestral home for the first time, both experiences were long coming and very emotional, at times overwhelming, happy occasions. i feel much at peace now having completed this pilgrimage and feel renewed and rejuvenated. Taking a dip in the Dead Sea has also helped my body to heal its aches and pains, and i am happy that my little bag of Dead Sea salt has managed to get through the border without any problems. i have made as many photos as i could, took three cameras with me on the trip, so that all my friends could join me in this adventure.

Thank God, all my friends, all kind people i have met, and the countries of Israel, USA, Russia, and  Canada, for making this amazing trip happen. Live! Prosper! Be Well! Amen em hotep. <3 :)