This week, we offer a snippet from Abe F.’s reflections on an Eco-Israel trip up north…
By Abe F.
First organized trip. Northern exposure. We traveled to Nimrod’s Castle, the Temple of Pan at the Banyas, and day one we slept in the woods of Kibbutz Tziv’on. The kibbutz fell apart, and families have got together to start over ecologically, Ecological kibbutz. One of the guys just got back from touring Permaculture in Japan, showed us his amazing slideshow of wasabi farms, mushroom farms, ecocenter in Fuji, lots of stuff.
Second day. We went to Yehudia to hike down a mountain/canyon, jumped off cliffs into cold water, tried to fish with spears ( fun, but not effective) , hiked up the mountain the other way (exhausting) went to a Druze village (Hurfesh) just to get Kna’fe- I explained that it tastes better in Brooklyn. No one believed me, but that’s cuz I tell them that everything tastes better in NY, even the falafel… but really most israeli food tastes better in NY. Maybe not the falafel, but definitely the kna’fe and lets not forget Mimi’s Hummus on Cortelyou…
Third Day, we worked on the ecological kibbutz doing mud walls and sculptures. Then we went to the first wildlife reserve in Israel, Hula valley. The birds were on their migration pattern from Europe south to Africa, lets just say it was good timing, lots of birds, among the water buffalo, muskrats, turtles, (one hedgehog- but that was the next day (it was not blue)) . That night we went to Nahalal, the first Moshav in Israel. Planned like a radiant garden city, it was the highlight of the trip. One of the moshav families were converting their slice of land into an eco-center, very cool, huge mudbuilding, we ate homemade pita and hummus, shakshuka…. food was clearly a central highlight of the trip.
What else…
It was nice to experience the ecological/ permaculture centers in the North, just in order for us to appreciate that we were now part of a large family in Israel, well networked, and only growing… very happy to camp in a kibbutz and moshav – both with small groups of Israeli’s and ppl from abroad devoted to sustainability in Israel.
I am already excited for the next hike, which I believe is to Ecological kibbutzes in the South. Very excited. till then I will have to suffice with my own ecological farm. Today we potted worm compost and soil preparing for strawberry season.
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