This has been an amazing trip so far from so many aspects. One thing that I would like to focus on in today’s post is one of the themes that this trip has brought to light. So far there have been three main themes in my thinking. In no particular order, one is STEM education and how the disciplines of Science, Technology, Engineering and Math are being woven into education in Israel as compared to the US. In addition as part of this, we have been talking to some high tech educational institutions and will also be talking to some companies later in the trip. The second theme that I have seen so far is the ancient cultural aspects of this region of the world, both in a secular sense and a religious sense. This will be a high point during the next several days in Jerusalem, but it also ties to the science part as tomorrow we will be walking through a 2000 year old water conduit that was made using hydraulic cement 2000 years ago. The third theme which ties in particular to July 4th for us as Americans is the current state of the world and how neighboring people can either work to live peacefully with each other or they can not. For years I have read about conflicts in this region of the world, but until coming here, I have never realized the close proximity in which the different countries are and how close people live to the borders which are always being disputed.
Today after leaving our home for two days on the Sea of Galilee, we traveled up to the top of the Golan Heights to an old Israeli outpost (now abandoned and moved to an adjacent and higher volcano) which was on Mt. Bental which is an extinct volcano. This outpost was active until the early 1980s. From this vantage point we could see the Israeli – Syrian border at the foot of the mountain and we discussed how it had changed over time. Today there were UN soldiers in one of the turrets, using it to monitor the area below the mountain, as the Syrian civil war is very active. Looking over the other side of Mt. Bental, there is an Israeli town. Like the town of Metullah that sat on the Israeli – Lebanese border, the people that live in these towns live under conditions that we as Americans can never imagine. This is what makes the freedom that we have so precious and something that we should never take for granted.
As we left the Golan Heights, we drove down a steep road with the Syrian and later the Jordan border on our left. At times the border fence was right along the road. These signs and the fence were with us as we traveled down the road from the Golan Heights toward Jerusalem. The fact that there are active mine fields in an area are also something that we as Americans have a hard time comprehending. As we traveled toward Jerusalem, we also had to traverse the West Bank territory which had checkpoints at both ends. The fact that borders change frequently is also something that we have trouble comprehending. We may read about it but we never really experience it. Again both of these are something which should make us appreciate the freedom that we have even more.
Finally we reached Jerusalem where the focus will change a little for a while but we will continue to blend what to this point in my thought process have been three main themes. Who knows what tomorrow will bring. This has been a great experience so far and we have a long way to go. I can’t wait to explore Jerusalem!
