OPINION: Three magical weeks on tour with the tribe

After three weeks of water activities, hikes and tours all over Israel, not even the 4:45am early starts could deter me from saying that Tribe Israel tour was the highlight of my year.

The tour of 15 girls and 4 boys (which seems tiny in comparison to other tours) created such an open and inviting environment – perfect for someone like me who went without knowing anyone. In fact, by day 2, the group had made sure I’d just about memorised everyone’s names.

Furthermore, I really felt that the youth leaders had our best interests at heart throughout. Even though the levels of religiousness varied between people, Tribe ensured that nobody felt isolated whatever their level of knowledge of Judaism and Zionism.

The madrichim (leaders) held an assertive belief in the importance of asking questions to further improve our understanding of our religion and Israel. The tour guide was excellent and had an upbeat personality which encouraged us to listen and learn from her talks.

The madrichim had a strong awareness and understanding of how to deal with safeguarding issues from mental health to physical ailments – it was clear that whatever mandatory training they attended was excellent, or they were just wonderful and caring people to begin with.

There wasn’t a moment on Tour when I felt unsafe in the madrichim’s care. Even when I fainted and was rushed in an ambulance to hospital, my trust in their protection over me didn’t waver – and that’s saying something!

Perhaps some could say that there were too many activities crammed into each day. Others may say that we were just getting our money’s worth! For us, we were appreciative of the busy days which provided an increased period of time to explore Israel, its culture and sites.

My favourite activities included a swim in the waterfalls at the Ein Gedi nature reserve, ‘tornado boats’ at Nahariyya, a donkey ride in Kfar Kedem in Hoshaya, exploring Jaffa and visiting the Kotel on Shabbat.

For those looking to cool off in the scorching heat, the plethora of water sports like banana boating and water hikes were fan favourites. However, the activities on camp weren’t just sports and physical exertion; small games and discussions led by the madrichim were dotted around the timetable. This helped break up the physically demanding days with some more mentally stimulating tasks.

Overall, I would rate Tribe Israel Tour extremely highly. Thank you very much for a wonderful three weeks!

• Amber Hyman went on Israel Tour with Tribe and is a member of Hampstead Garden Suburb Synagogue